LucasArts and Traveller’s Tales have officially announced Lego Indiana Jones, the next franchise following the runaway success of Lego Star Wars. The game will have players play through the three released films and is scheduled for release in 2008 on unspecified platforms.

“LucasArts and TT Games are setting the bar for next-generation family entertainment with the LEGO Star Wars franchise, and our incredible relationship continues with LEGO Indiana Jones,” said Jim Ward, president of LucasArts. “In addition to providing the quality bonding time inspired by any good family game, LEGO Indiana Jones delivers something a little different for everyone. Parents will enjoy the humorous take on some of their favorite movies, and their kids get some rousing action/adventure gameplay that may also introduce them to Indy’s original adventures for the first time.”

They’ve also released a trailer from the game, showing off gameplay as well as cinematic footage. You can watch it streaming below, or download it from Rapidshare.

According to this post on the PlayStation Blog by Michael Shorrock, director of third party relations at SCEA, Rockstar is going to develop a franchise exclusive to the PS3. Though the post does not go into any detail on the project itself, it does mention Sony’s relationship with Rockstar Games, which is very good, to say the least.

Rockstar is hoping to make a game that will truly make use of the PS3’s resources, exploit the power of CELL and Blu-ray. The franchise is not LA Noire, but something all new that will be detailed soon, according to the post.

Revealed some time back, Namco Bandai has officially announced that the online add-on pack for the PS3 version of Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection will be available in North America later this year. To be purchasable through the PlayStation Store for $9.99, the multiplayer add-on pack will add four different modes: Opti Match, Quick Match, Custom Match and Friend Match. An online news ticker will keep players notified of noteworthy movement on the leaderboards. The add-on will also add Practice and Survival modes to the game.

Interestingly, this add-on pack will be sold only to current owners of the game. Those looking to get the game once the add-on is released will be able to get the pack plus the game at its original $20 price point.

Gamespot reports of Prototype, the next project by Radical Entertainment, the studio behind The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. Revealed in the latest issue of Game Informer, the game will follow on from its precursor, featuring free-roaming destruction as an integral part of its workings. It follows the trials and tribulations of Alex Mercer, who has acquired superhuman abilities from a science experiment gone wrong.

Radical’s unique twist on the Grand Theft Auto style of play is that as Mercer kills people, he absorbs their memories, abilities, and appearance. As a result, players gain the ability to shapeshift into any one they’ve absorbed, and they also gain knowledge and skills. Absorbing dead foes and innocent bystanders alike also augments Mercer’s biomass, making him stronger and giving him the ability to morph his body into a weapon or harden his skin in defense.

Prototype will use Radical’s proprietary fourth-generation Titanium game engine. The game takes place in Manhattan, and depending on whether players employ brute force or stealth tactics in the game, the city either acts as a labyrinthine maze or becomes a decimated warzone.

The game, as per the article, will feature online two-player co-op, letting players use tag-team moves and powers. Prototype is headed for release on PS3 and Xbox 360 sometime next year.

Microsoft Game Studios and Ensemble are going to release Age of Empires III: Gold Edition on September 25 in North America. It will retail for $40 and will include the full game and The Warchiefs expansion.

Building on the success of its Godfather franchise, EA has revealed that a sequel to the game based on Mario Puzo’s classic book. The game is simply dubbed The Godfather 2 and is expected to appeal to the “older demographic.” No other information, including platforms, was revealed.

Apparently, this was brought up by a shareholder who asked the company how it deals with “more mature, edgier titles”. Frank Gibeau, head of EA Games, answered the question, saying that games such as Crysis, Army of Two and the aforementioned Godfather game are being developed to appeal to the “older customer” and that they have a “good critical mass of franchises and brands” for such an audience.

Designer of such legendary games as Twisted Metal and God of War, David Jaffe has announced that he is leaving Sony to found his own development studio with Incognito Games founder Scott Campbell. Dubbed EAT SLEEP PLAY, the new company has signed a three game deal with Sony that will see them developing exclusively for the PS3 and PSP.

Although his blog post didn’t reveal any of the games they are developing, he does mention that he’s “crazy in love with game #1 already”. They are currently working on a PS2 port of Twisted Metal: Head On, which was released for the PSP. Set for release this Christmas, the game will feature all the content from the PSP title, but running at 60fps and better textures and gameplay tweaks; five to seven levels from a previously unreleased Twisted Metal game; and a documentary on the history of the series. It is pointed out that this is not part of their three-game deal with Sony.

Further information on Jaffe’s projects are expected soon.

Football fans can now look forward to Football Manager 2008, an upcoming entry in the footie simulation series, for PC and Mac this Christmas. The latest version will be fully updated for the new season and will allow players to select their favorite club or international team and guide them through Cup matches, Leagues, European Championships and even major international tournaments. It has been improved since the last game, thanks to fan feedback, resulting in over a hundred new features, including a brand new advisory system to help new players through the game.

More information after the jump. The official website also has further details.
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Valve and Nexon have announced Counter-Strike Online, a new online version of the most popular multiplayer game that will be tailored for Asia. Under the terms of their agreement, Nexon will be develop and publish the game in South Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan.

“It is our utmost pleasure to be able to develop Counter-Strike Online with Valve,” said David K. Lee, CEO of NEXON Japan Co., Ltd. “We will be devoting our expertise in online game development and service know-how for Asian territories to Counter-Strike Online. Already a global phenomenon, we are confident we can grow the success of Counter-Strike with this new product by tailoring the gameplay for the millions of gamers in Asia, one of the gaming industry’s fastest growing territories.”

Counter-Strike, released as a mod for Half-Life in 1999, is now the number one FPS multiplayer game, generating over seven billion player minutes per month and having sold over nine million retail copies worldwide.

Shacknews carries confirmation from Insomniac Games that more content for Resistance: Fall of Man is headed to the PlayStation Network soon. “We actually have some content that hasn’t been shared yet,” said Ryan Schneider, marketing director at the studio. “So I think our fans will be happy in the coming months in terms of ongoing support for Resistance.”

He also teases that a demo for Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction is also headed to the service. “We will touch the PlayStation Network somehow with the Ratchet & Clank Future franchise,” he said. However, he didn’t mention any timeframe as to when to expect the demo.

This week’s European Virtual Console releases are Kirby’s Ghost Trap (SNES) and Devil’s Crush (TurboGrafx). Here’s the deal:

First up this week is Kirby’s Ghost Trap, originally available on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Players must battle Kirby’s adversaries by strategically stacking and blending fast paced, colour-coded blobs! These blobs form huge chain reactions which in turn will cause a plethora of ghosts to fall on your opponent! With 16 levels of fast-paced action and familiar enemies from the Kirby universe to defeat, this is one puzzle game you don’t want to miss! Kirby’s Ghost Trap™ is available on Virtual Console this week for 800 Wii Points.

Get those fingers ready to flip as pinball simulation game Devil’s Crush makes its way onto the Virtual Console. Originally released for Turbografx in 1990, Devil’s Crush is the sequel to the successful Alien Crush. The fast-paced game sees players using the Devil Shooter to propel a ball onto a pinball board and using flippers to keep it in play and rack up a high score. After successfully completing certain conditions, up to six different bonus stages can be unlocked! Set against a ghoulish backdrop with ominous wandering enemies, this pinball game will flip your paddles! Devil’s Crush is available for download for 600 Wii Points.

A game trailer for Beowulf was also released along with the announcement and screenshots. You can watch it streaming below, or directly download it from Rapidshare.

Ubisoft has officially announced Beowulf, an upcoming action game based on the upcoming feature film in the works at Paramount Pictures, which, in turn, is based on an old English epic poem. The game is being developed for the PS3, Xbox 360, PSP and PC at Ubisoft’s Tiwak studio and is slated for release this November alongside the movie.

The Beowulf video game takes players deep into groundbreaking director Robert Zemeckis’ vision of the classic saga, Beowulf. Gamers live the life of Beowulf, the legendary Norse warrior with the strength of 30 men who is torn between the nobility and brutality within him. Arrogant, self-serving and lustful for gold and glory, Beowulf will journey to Denmark to destroy a bloodthirsty beast wreaking havoc on a frigid land. But evil persists, and Beowulf succumbs to its lure of even greater fame, quietly maneuvering to claim the Danish throne. As King, Beowulf must face the consequences of ambition, even as war descends on the realm. As Beowulf, players lead their men, called thanes, into battle, slay the Titans of a dying age and crush the enemies that threaten to annihilate both their kingdom and people. Only then, when Beowulf looks Destiny in the eye, will he know what kind of hero he has truly become.

The game will allow players to go through 30 years of the Beowulf story not seen in the movie to experience more of his life; an army of up to 12 thanes will be at the disposal of the player, which can be used to trigger in-game mechanisms, among other things; upgradable weapons and abilities; dynamic combat system and more.

Below are the first screenshots from the game:

Topware Interactive has announced plans to release Campus, its adventure simulation game that combines RPG elements with a custom social interaction engine. It will be released on September 22.

Following up on the disastrous Marvel Nemesis game, EA has announced that it will develop a brand new Super-hero fighting game using the Marvel franchise. This untitled fighting game is in development at EA Chicago for release sometime in 2008 on PS3 and Xbox 360.

EA Chicago’s credits include Def Jam: Icon (which didn’t do well) and the Fight Night series. “We looked at past comic-based games to find out what was missing and what was needed to successfully translate the intensity, excitement and fiction from comics into fighting games,” said Kudo Tsunoda, General Manager and Vice President, EA Chicago. “We’re challenging ourselves to make a game that delivers on the Super Hero promises of past top-tier fighting games.”

The game will be unveiled on Spike TV’s Game Head on Friday, August 31 at 1.00am ET/PT. The show will also feature a behind-the-scenes look into EA Chicago development.