When Ubisoft secured the rights to develop a video game adaptation of hit US TV drama Lost, we were sceptical. Let’s face it, there aren’t many film or TV to video game adaptations that have received top reviews. Anyway, Eurogamer got their hands on part of the upcoming title, and first impressions sound quite promising. You’ll be playing a separate storyline to the actual TV show along with a new character – though events from the series will tie in with the game storyline. Check it out for character and plot information, as well as a bunch of new screenshots at Eurogamer.

Ubisoft revealed yesterday in their quarterly statement that a new Prince Of Persia title is in development, due to be released in Fiscal 2008 – 2009, - meaning between April of this year and March of 2009. Nothing else was announced concerning the new title (not even which platforms it will be on), so sit tight for more info.

[Ubisoft]

We brought you the news earlier, but here’s the official press release from Rockstar, with comment from company founder Sam Houser.

Rockstar Games Announces Release Date for Grand Theft Auto IV

Next-generation Console Debut of the Grand Theft Auto Franchise Set for April 29, 2008

New York, NY - January 24, 2008 - Rockstar Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), is proud to announce the release date for Grand Theft Auto IV, the new title in the genre-defining Grand Theft Auto franchise. Developed by Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto IV will be simultaneously available for Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and will be in stores worldwide on April 29, 2008.

“We are so excited to be releasing Grand Theft Auto IV,” said Sam Houser, Founder and Executive Producer of Rockstar Games. “We’ve pushed ourselves very hard to make something incredible and hope the game sets a new benchmark for interactive entertainment.”

For more information log onto www.rockstargames.com/IV

PS3 store

New Products

Title: Licence/Publisher: Price

Game
Judge Dredd: Zoo Digital Publishing Limited: £3.49
PixelJunk Monsters: SCEE: £3.49

Video
Civilization Revolution Launch Trailer: 2K Games Europe: Free

Themes
COD 4 Theme: Activision UK Ltd: Free

Wallpapers
COD4 Wallpaper 1: Activision UK Ltd: Free
COD4 Wallpaper 2: Activision UK Ltd: Free
COD4 Wallpaper 3: Activision UK Ltd: Free
COD4 Wallpaper 4: Activision UK Ltd: Free
COD4 Wallpaper 5: Activision UK Ltd: Free

PC store

Game
Judge Dredd: Zoo Digital Publishing Limited: £3.49
Syphon Filter Combat Ops: SCEE: £6.99

Big, big news this. MCV are reporting that Grand Theft Auto IV will get a global release on April 29.

“We are so excited to be releasing Grand Theft Auto IV,” Rockstar founder Sam Houser told them. “We’ve pushed ourselves very hard to make something incredible and hope the game sets a new benchmark for interactive entertainment.”

MCV

Lucky Mr Steve Boxer got hands-on with the new Burnout and had a lovely time, by all accounts. Read on.

Games can sometimes be victims of their own success: when a franchise continues to sell well over a number of years, its publisher invariably finds it impossible to resist the temptation to churn out a new version every year, and staleness inevitably sets in. Uber-publisher Electronic Arts is constantly being accused of milking its (often expensively licensed) properties at the expense of originality. Next time that happens, it will be able to point at Burnout Paradise, a properly radical reinvention of a venerable intellectual property, and perhaps the most successful revamp of a long-in-the-tooth game I’ve ever come across.

It’s easy to see what prompted EA and Surrey developer Criterion to treat Burnout to a rethink: Paradise is the first bespoke next-gen version of the game (it’s coming out for Xbox 360 as well as PS3). Its big change – one which has been greeted with cries of horror from some Burnout fanatics – is that it has become a free-roaming game. Whereas previously, you worked your way through the game by picking missions and performing them along a delineated route (in the Races, for example, circuits were set up with wrong turnings blocked off by chevron-painted transparent walls), now, you cruise around to your heart’s content, exploring Paradise City, and initiate a mission by stopping at a traffic light and hitting the left and right triggers simultaneously. Different types of missions are represented in different colours on your mini-map.

Read more…

March sees the release of God Of War: Chains Of Olympus on PSP, and we’ve been given an exclusive peek at the never-before-seen European packshot for the title.

Developed from the outset as the prequel to the award-winning God Of War on PlayStation 2, this brand new title will see anti-hero Kratos journeying to lands that no mortal has ever walked upon. With the world plunged into eternal darkness and the Gods rendered powerless, Kratos will face some of the most feared creatures from Greek Mythology, and ultimately be forced to choose between his own redemption and saving the world from certain destruction.

God Of War: Chains Of Olympus keeps true to the God Of War ethos with epic set pieces, dramatic camera angles, highly detailed graphics, incredible animation detail and the entire heritage of the series.

Click through for more screenshots.

Read more…

News reaches us that SCEJ have decided to delay the release of the microphone products for the PSP. But the good news is this won’t impact on the release date in Europe, which is scheduled for late January. With the forthcoming remote PlayTV functionality and Go! Explore, 2008 is looking like an exciting year for your PSP.

Official Press Release follows.

Read more…

Another week, another fantastic competition. We have two rather lovely Jabra JX10 Cara headsets - one gold and one stainless steel - to give away. As you probably know, this is one of the finest headsets currently on the market and all you have to do to be included in the competion is answer both parts of this two-fold question.

Question 1: Who designs the Jabra JX10 Cara headset?

Question 2: In the new Warhawk battlefield, the Omega Factory, who are the Eucadians fighting?

Email your answer to blog@threespeech.com and if you’re first (or second) out of the hat when we do the draw at midday on Friday, one of the headsets could be yours.

Be sure to put Jabra in the subject of your email and, sorry, but this competition is only open to UK residents.

CVG have reported on the progress of WipEout HD, the up and coming PSN game. We have been keeping an eye on this one since it was first announced a while back, so it’s good to hear more news on the game.

Last time we checked out the game it was looking amazing, but apparently even more improvements have been made, with CVG reporting that textures and lighting have been greatly improved.

After seeing how well the PSP versions of WipEout turned out it is probably safe to say that Wipeout HD is going to be one of best uses of the PSN this year.