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Ghost Recon has spawned a second mission pack in the form of Island Thunder. The latest add-on will take the elite Ghost team to Cuba in the year 2009, but they're not there on holiday. Castro has finally popped his clogs, ending decades of embarrassment for the Americans, but just when the Yanks thought that free elections would see honest hard-working American billionaires once again able to exploit the Cuban people, everything goes pear shaped. Rebel forces and drug lords are wreaking havoc on the island, and it's up to you and your special forces types to move in and secure the elections in the name of Coca Cola .. sorry .. democracy. Anyway, what ensues is eight more missions taking your squad across Cuba as they put an end to the dictatorial intentions of the evil warlord and his drug smuggling money men. New vehicles will be available for both sides in the conflict, and you'll also find yourself being dropped into battle from helicopters. On the multiplayer front, five new maps, two more game modes and a dozen new weapons will be added to the game, including the unfeasibly high tech M4 SOCOM rifle and an automatic grenade launcher. Ghost Recon: Island Thunder is due out in November, but in the meantime we have a handful of screenshots to give you a taste of the sun-soaked vistas awaiting you. Related Feature - Ghost Recon: Island Thunder screenshots

Acclaim confirmed today that their console shooter Turok Evolution has gone gold, with PlayStation 2, GameCube and Xbox versions all on the way. In America the game will launch on September 1st, which Acclaim's busy marketing department has dubbed "Turok Bloody Sunday - 9-01-02". Here in Europe the game is expected on store shelves on Friday September 6th for PlayStation 2 and Xbox ("Turok Good Friday", perhaps?), with the GameCube version following three weeks later according to our latest information. That just leaves you time to head over to mynameisturok.co.uk and apply to have your name changed to Turok. Or you could watch out for the non-existent world record queue attempt outside the Electronics Boutique on Oxford Street. Or you could just read our Turok interview to find out what all the fuss is about... Related Feature - Turok interview

Loosely based on the movie of the same name, which is in turn loosely based on the Tom Clancy book, The Sum of All Fears is exactly the type of material we've come to expect from Red Storm, albeit in a hugely diluted form. I'd be surprised if we could get a more straightforward, no-nonsense, almost FPS-like "tactical" shooter out of them.

Several importers and game retailers have informed us this week that the infamous Freeloader disc from Datel, and the Action Replay (a cheating device which includes the Freeloader functionality), are being shipped out in anticipation of a dead cert Friday, August 23rd release date. Freeloader shot to fame when Datel announced that it had found a way to play imported Japanese and American games on PAL GameCubes, but numerous setbacks, including problems with American DMCA legislation, have seen it labelled as vapourware by many. After the total non-event that was the Xbox version of the DVD Region-X disc - for region-free DVD playback - it seemed reasonable to assume an overzealous release date on Datel's part. But, if all goes to plan, those of you with pre-orders and suchlike can expect to receive it late this week or early next, and with that, expect to see a resurgence in sales of the Japanese version of Mario Sunshine. We hope to have our own Freeloader in short order so that we can confirm Datel's claims as to its functionality, so the cautious amongst you ought not to chuck out your Japanese and US Cubes just yet.

As with the original Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, the forthcoming MGS2: Substance will play host to the names of hundreds of gamers the world over in more ways than one. Confused? Back in the day, Konami asked gamers to send their names in and used about 450 of them on the dog tags of terrorist soldiers in the game. According to IGN by way of Dengeki Online, the same arrangement will be in place for Substance, with applications being accepted throughout September on Konami's Japanese site. So, bookmark it, pop back next month and you too could become a random terrorist. Related Feature - Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty review (PS2)

If you don't currently hook your Xbox up to your surround sound setup, Sega suggests that you consider it. According to the US branch of the company, all of the firm's top winter releases (which will appear over here in early 2003, as is standard practice) will come complete with full Dolby Digital 5.1 support. For your reference, that's ToeJam & Earl III, Panzer Dragoon ORTA, Crazy Taxi 3, House of the Dead III and Sega GT 2002.

Last night a playable demo for Hitman 2: The Silent Assassin leaked out onto the world wide web, giving punters the chance to take the stealth action sequel for a spin. Unfortunately it seems that the demo (which had been taken from the cover disc of PC Gamer magazine in the US) was released by mistake, and (as many people will already have discovered) it suffers from some pretty serious hardware support issues amongst other problems. As a result Eidos have now requested that we withdraw the demo. On the bright side, the publisher is promising us a newer, more stable build some time within the next two weeks. Now there's something to look forward to... Related Feature - Hitman 2 screenshots

After a strong showing at last year's ECTS, French publisher Ubi Soft will be back again in force this year showcasing a wide range of PC, console and hand-held games. Here's a few of the highlights we'll be seeing from them during Europe's biggest trade show -

Despite the fact that virtually none of you bought it (heretics), Hunter: The Reckoning is making its way from Xbox to GameCube this Winter in the US courtesy of original developer High Voltage Software and publisher Interplay. All being well, we should see it in Europe during early 2003. Hunter takes on where our precious Smash TV and Gauntlet left off, adding a coat of next generation paint to an ageing formula. We swooned over its dual analogue stick control mechanism, and cooed after its detailed visuals, all the while gasping for more of its energetic gameplay. It was, as we put it at the time, one of the best things to happen to Xbox, and if High Voltage can successfully recreate the formula on GameCube as they claim - four player modes and all - then it should be a big success. Related Feature - Hunter: The Reckoning review (Xbox)

As if the forthcoming Forgotten Battles expansion pack wasn't enough, Ubi Soft have now announced that a free upgrade for the award-winning Russian flight sim IL-2 Sturmovik will also be released. Due out in about three weeks, the "upgrade" (don't call it a patch) will feature four new aircraft for players to get behind the flight stick of - Russia's amusingly named Yak-9 and Yak-9D, and the German Bf109 E-7/NZ fighter and Ju87B-2 Stuka dive bomber. No doubt all those numbers and letters after their names means something to hardcore flight combat fanatics. Also available in the upgrade will be ten new single player missions and half a dozen online missions for co-operative play. And it's all absolutely free. Wonderful. While you wait for the upgrade to take off, why not feast your eyes on the first screenshots showing the new flyable Bf109 and Stuka in action in the skies over Russia. Related Feature - IL-2 Sturmovik v1.2 screenshots

The objective is to build your own successful racing brand, a by-product of which, conveniently enough, is racing against the world's top cars on fantasy circuits. You begin the game with a brand name and logo of your choice, a modest garage and a mechanic, who quickly populates it with your own cars. By winning races with these cars your brand grows in popularity and status, and your staff grows to include an R&D department, automotive technicians, a production manager and even a sexy secretary (who will doubtless appear in the game's promotional material).

Bruce Lee's Quest Of The Dragon has apparently led him to Yorkshire of all places, as Bradford's Pictureville Cinema will be playing host to a public showing of Vivendi Universal's new Bruce Lee Xbox game. Punters will be able to take the action-adventure yarn for a spin and then see the uncut version of Way Of The Dragon, which is celebrating it's 30th anniversary this year. For those of you having trouble keeping track, that's the one where Bruce Lee goes to Rome to help save a Chinese restaurant from gangsters, and ends up fighting Chuck Norris in a really tacky plywood set that's supposed to be the Colosseum. While this was hardly Bruce's greatest movie, it is quite amusing and the impressive fight scenes are sure to be a hit with any self-respecting martial arts afficionado. All of this is taking place as part of the Bruce Lee Fan Club's UK convention, where you will also be able to buy a wide range of Bruce and Brandon Lee related merchandise (possibly including the game itself, if it comes out on schedule) and see two new documentaries about the man behind the legend, featuring interviews with friends and co-stars. Doors open at 10am on September 1st, and it won't cost you a penny to get in. Ee by gum. Or something. Related Feature - Bruce Lee screenshots

The Japanese games press is reporting that beta testing for the Cube version of Phantasy Star Online Episodes I & II has concluded. The game is due on store shelves in the region on September 12th and in the US on November 30th. Despite previous setbacks, the game now appears to be on track. PSO will be the Cube's first online game, which is one of the reasons that its arrival is so highly anticipated. With Microsoft and Sony's enormous plans well and truly outlined at this stage, many will be keen to see how the Cube's characteristically diminutive approach fares. Related Feature - Phantasy Star Online Episodes I & II preview (GameCube)

Not satisfied with selling a shedload of copies on the PC and then porting the game to the PlayStation 2, Activision have today announced that an Xbox version of Return To Castle Wolfenstein is also on the way. Contrary to earlier reports it now seems that Nerve Software, who developed the multiplayer portion of the PC original, will be handling the porting duties this time, so it comes as no surprise to hear that Xbox Live support is on the cards. Up to eight players will be able to battle it out online in free-for-all and squad modes, which is somewhat less than in the PC version but still enough to provide some entertainment. More sociable gamers can also take advantage of co-operative support and split-screen two player deathmatch. Other features to look forward to in the Xbox port include additional weapons, a console-friendly targeting system, Dolby 5.1 surround sound, and of course Xbox Communicator support to allow online gamers to shriek at each other from the comfort of their own couch. "By fusing the award-winning gameplay in Return to Castle Wolfenstein with new multiplayer modes, communication abilities, and technology, we're delivering the definitive team warfare experience for Xbox", id CEO Todd Hollenshead modestly stated. Related Feature - Wolfenstein on PS2 and Xbox

The good news is that No Name War has resurfaced recently, sporting a brand new fully 3D graphics engine to replace the Total Annihilation style mixed 2D/3D affair that we were originally expecting. The result is certainly eye catching, with highly detailed polygonal buildings and units, smooth terrain and some lovely looking palm trees.

The sniper rifle is truly the god of guns when it comes to first person shooters, and now there's a whole game dedicated to it. Yes, Xicat and developers Mirage have teamed up to produce a new Lithtech powered first person shooter called Sniper, which puts you in the boots of a hitman caught in the middle of a full-scale gang war involving the Mafia, crooked cops and Chinese gangsters. In true Max Payne style you have been framed, drugged and imprisoned, and now your only chance is to follow the path of vengeance, blazing your way through the streets to discover the cause of the gang war. Along the way you'll get to develop your character into the killer of your dreams and grab hand grenades and other weapons to supplement your trust sniper rifle. The first screenshots of the game are sadly rather fuzzy, but with Sniper currently on track for release at the end of September we should have playable code soon and will be able to see whether or not Mirage have managed to pull off a head shot. Related Feature - Sniper screenshots

A few months ago AGB Games unveiled a tech demo for their WFR 3D engine showing a simplified version of the opening level of Quake .. running on a GameBoy Advance. Proving that they can now put polygonal characters into those worlds as well, AGB have released a new batch of screenshots showing Quake marines running around in a vaguely medieval looking map. Ok so the already rather blocky marine has lost a few more polygons in the transition to hand-held gaming, but it's another impressive demonstration of the poly pushing and texture mapping capabilities of a console that's more commonly used for good old fashioned 2D games. Related Feature - AGB shooter demo shots

Konami have unveiled their new Collection budget range for the PlayStation 2. The label will kick off in September with six re-releases, each setting you back €29.95, which should equate to about £20 in the UK. The launch line-up consists of Ring Of Red (an entertaining mecha strategy game), Silent Scope (a more reasonable prospect at a mid-range price), Age of Empires II (a faithful but lacklustre port of Microsoft's classic real-time strategy game), 7 Blades (a third person actioneer with swords and guns), International Superstar Soccer (Konami's other football sim) and Zone Of The Enders (Hideo Kojima's big stompy robot side project). Bit of a mixed bag then, but it's a respectable start for the label, and hopefully we'll see some of Konami's big hitters appearing there in years to come.

It's not just Galleon that is finally drifting into view at Virgin Interactive's offices - another long overdue game from Interplay's Digital Mayhem studio is also on the way, in the form of Run Like Hell. Described as a "suspenseful sci-fi adventure" with lots of dark corners and things that go bump in them, the game features the vocal talents of the likes of Lance Henriksen (Bishop from Aliens, also set to appear in Red Faction 2), Clancy Brown (the drill sergeant from Starship Troopers), Cree Summer (Tandi in the Fallout games) and Kate Mulgrew (Captain Janeway from Star Trek: Voyager). The game was originally due out on PlayStation 2 last year but is now expected to hit shelves across Europe in October. While you're waiting for its belated appearance, we have a fresh batch of eye candy from the game to get you in the right mood. Related Feature - Run Like Hell screenshots

Once upon a time, Tomb Raider designers Toby Gard and Paul Douglas left Core to form their own company, which they called Confounding Factor. There they would craft a groundbreaking new third person action-adventure game named Galleon, which would feature all manner of swashbuckling as you took control of a buccaneer by the name of Rhama and guided him around shipwrecks and islands in his clipper the Endeavour. A wide variety of fluid animations were promised for your character, as well as a unique sword fighting system and glorious 3D graphics. Way back in those days of yore a few (blatantly pre-rendered) "screenshots" appeared in the print media, amidst much touting of "world exclusive" previews which were obviously based on little more than a few beers with the developers and a couple of pieces of concept art, but otherwise all was eerily quiet. Years came and years went, and Core pumped out half a dozen more Tomb Raider games on a variety of platforms, with each new installment proving less inspiring than the last and yet somehow still managing to sell shedloads of copies. Meanwhile Westwood made their own swashbuckling action-adventure game, the flawed Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat. And yet there was seldom any news of Galleon. It was almost as if the ship had floundered, lost at sea. [Stop that, right now - Ed] Anyway, by a strange quirk of fate it appears that Galleon may actually come ashore in Europe this year, with a December release for the Xbox and GameCube currently on the cards. And to prove that the game isn't just a figment of someone's over-active imagination, UK publisher Virgin Interactive has produced a new batch of screenshots taken from the GameCube version. The years haven't exactly been kind on the game, and it's hard to say whether the angular look of the characters and locations is a stylistic decision or merely engine limitations, but either way it does have a unique feel to it which isn't entirely displeasing to the eye. Whether the gameplay can live up to the many long years of expectation remains to be seen, but in the meantime feast your eyes on these... Related Feature - Galleon screenshots

Nicely Crafted Entertainment will be launching their addictive online strategy game Time Of Defiance on Wednesday 21st August. With entertaining gameplay, a strong community, impressive 3D graphics for such a tiny download size (a mere 10Mb) and room for up to a thousand players in each server, it's a masterpiece of shoestring budget game development and well worth a look if you fancy something a little different to swallow your spare time. System requirements are fairly low and the game is playable on any internet connection from an analogue modem on up. A PDA version is expected to launch later in the year, and with SMS text alerts due to be introduced some time next month as well, you'll have no excuse for not defending your online empire. "This is the culmination of eighteen month's intensive hard work", MD Toby Simpson enthused. "The human factor that massively multiplayer games bring to the party provides players with an endless range of strategies and challenges as other players resort to increasingly devious ploys. Almost all of our original alpha testers from August last year are still playing today, which is a fantastic testament to the flexibility and depth of the product." Still not convinced? A free five day demo will be available from the developer's website at nicelycrafted.com, after which you'll be able to carry on playing for just £5 a month, with discount rates of £25 for six months and £40 for a full year available to hardened addicts. Go on, you know you want to. Related Feature - Time Of Defiance preview

Square has completed its plans to release every Final Fantasy game on a modern format with the announcement of Final Fantasy III for the GameBoy Advance. That's Japanese III, not the American one, which was Japanese VI, for those confused. Details were first discovered in Japanese gaming magazine V-Jump, and FFIII's transition means that Final Fantasies I and II will appear on PSone, III and Tactics will now appear on GBA, and Fantasies IV-IX are already available on PSone. X onwards appear on PlayStation 2. Then there are the GameCube releases, and the WonderSwan oddities, but you get the general idea. There is no news as-yet on whether the GBA Fantasies will appear in Europe.

The Vivendi Universal empire has launched the official website for their Dark Angel game, giving us our first peek at the third person action-adventure title. We're being promised a mixture of stealth, slow motion effects, "intense hand-to-hand combat and high octane action", in keeping with the genetically enhanced wire work of James Cameron's sadly defunct TV series. Also available on the site are a few early screenshots showing Max and her love interest in action, and the teaser trailer which we saw at a press event for another Vivendi game a couple of months ago. Unfortunately this only seems to show pre-rendered cutscene footage. Still, it's a step in the right direction, as the only official word on the game until now was its entry in Vivendi's release schedule... Related Feature - Dark Angel resurrected

The GameCube incarnation of the surprisingly good Smuggler's Run 2 has been further delayed by publisher Take-Two. Known as Smuggler's Run: Warzones, the game will now be released on September 30th in Europe, some two months later than its original release date of July 26th. Slightly more than a port of the original, subtitled Hostile Territory, Warzones will include a couple of extra levels, along with some superficial improvements to graphics and audio. Related Feature - Smuggler's Run 2: Hostile Territory review (PS2)

The Xbox has been well served so far when it comes to driving games, ranging from traditional racers like Project Gotham and the almighty Rallisport Challenge to the mission-based antics of Wreckless and the destructive mayhem of Crash. Luckily then I-Imagine's debut game Chase offers something completely different, putting you in the boots of a sassy young stunt driver rising through the ranks of the movie industry. We caught up with the South African developer's managing director Dan Wagner to find out more.

Although we haven't yet received the GameCube version of Sega Soccer Slam in Europe, despite a wonderful reception in the US and Japan, Visual Concepts continues its systematic conversion of this bastardisation of the beautiful game apace. The latest news from the US is that the Xbox version has been greatly enhanced. New game modes will include "Hot Potato", based on the playground game of the same name. Hot Potato replaces the ball with a bomb and challenges you to hold onto it for as long as possible before it explodes, rewarding you with points for doing so - no doubt to become a good post-pub versus matchup for those with alcohol-fuelled fingers too juddery for the likes of Soul Calibur. Another addition is "Brawl", which is an even more likely contender for the role. Quite simply, you waltz around a ring and beat the hell (and health) out of your opponent. The combat aspect of the game has been altered in other ways too, with chargeable shoulder barges amongst the tweaks. The final, and perhaps most interesting addition to the formula is a new challenge mode, which will allow you to build your own custom team from a combination of players. Those with knowledge of the game's make-up will recall that each team is themed, with three 'characters' - challenge will allow you to mix and match. Subsequently winning four consecutive matches will unlock one of the three secret teams added to the Xbox and PS2 versions of the game. All eyes now rest on Sega's European Cube and Xbox publisher Infogrames, who have yet to announce firm details of their release plans for the game. Related Feature - Sega Soccer Slam hands-on preview (GameCube)

Cube owners with a thirst for exceptional old school shooters will enjoy this quenching nugget from IGN. Infogrames Japan has been strutting around recently with its chest thrust out like a 2D space craft, having secured the rights to publish Ikaruga on Nintendo GameCube from Japanese developer Treasure. Ikaruga, a traditional 2D arcade shooter considered one of the finest ever made (rather like Treasure's previous outing, the Saturn collectible Radiant Silvergun, which changes hands for more than £120 on eBay these days), had originally been destined for a limited run on Dreamcast this September, with an importer dragnet securing a small number of copies. Now the game is expected to arrive "worldwide" in early January 2003, sporting the Atari Games brand and a handful of subtle improvements including a Training mode. A much-needed addition to Treasure titles, as any Radiant Silvergun owners will gladly attest. Related Feature - Ikaruga screenshots (Dreamcast)

Despite some wondrous gains from Microsoft's money slinging of yesteryear, we may soon suffer the woe of another lost European release in the shape of Shenmue II on Xbox, whereas the American RPG vanguard will receive an even greater bounty than previously estimated. Shenmue II is due to be released in the US on November 6th, and will include a 90-minute DVD of Shenmue: The Movie, a Japanese cinema production charting the tale of Ryo's quest to avenge his father's death. Naturally European gamers wouldn't expect to receive such a glorious package in exchange for their crumpled single currency, but if Shenmue II's disappearance from Xbox.com/UK is anything to go by, then we won't even find a slender domestic release to lament. A while ago we were alerted to a bit of disparity between the contents of Xbox.com - the American mother-site - and its regional subsites for Europe. Although Shenmue II had long been featured on the Adventure Games pages of both Xbox.com and Xbox.com/UK, the port of the slim-selling Dreamcast release has since vanished. A technical glitch? Possibly, but when Microsoft, Sega and Infogrames all declined to comment, our interest peaked. Not even a complement of screenshots released to Europe last week could drive it to wane - after all, they came from the American X02 event. There are plenty of good business reasons not to release Shenmue II in Europe. It didn't sell that many copies in the first place, it wasn't as critically acclaimed as its predecessor, and localisation costs would be almost impossible to recoup. Sadly, the more you think about it, the more obvious it seems. Argumentative responses about fuelling the proliferation of mod chips and the import market aside, this would be a sad outcome, but it seems an increasingly likely one. Related Feature - Shenmue II review (Dreamcast)

The Test Drive series has a long and not very illustrious history behind it, and its latest incarnation merely continues this decade long decline. The centerpiece of TD overdrive (simply known as Test Drive in America) is the Underground mode, although sadly this doesn't involve riding around on the Tube all day, something that would have been infinitely more entertaining.

After months of "will they or won't they" arguments, id Software co-founder John Carmack has confirmed that the company is "completely committed" to making an Xbox version of Doom III. According to a report from GameSpot, JC made the pledge during a speech at the QuakeCon event in Texas, saying that work would begin on the Xbox port once the PC version is finished, hopefully some time next spring. The console port will apparently sport all the eye candy of the original, which isn't surprising given that Doom III is being optimised for a graphics chip not entirely dissimilar to that found within the belly of the Xbox. There's no word yet on whether any Xbox Live support will be included, but Doom III looks set to be a more single player focused game anyway. Related Feature - Doom III screenshots (PC)