With Fall settling in, you can expect the usual bumper crop harvest of annual sports sims to come our way. One of these titles include Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer 2009, which has been confirmed to be released this October 17 on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and the PC. Find out more about the upcoming game in our full article.

With Vin Diesel starring as the lead in The Wheelman (PC, Xbox 360, PS3), and Midway collaborating with Tigon Studios to deliver the finished product, it's no surprise that expectations are rising high, and the stakes, too. It doesn't hurt as well that Tigon Studios is founded by the Hollywood star himself. Read up after the jump.

While the name Peter Jackson was once associated with the long- buried Halo movie project, a new project involving the renowned Hollywood director has once again surfaced. Microsoft is currently assembling a team willing to "help develop a new experience in the Halo universe". Find out more about this in our full article after the jump.

Just how many cores does a processor need to be called fast? Two? Four? Eight? AMD says a dozen should do it for now. The company is planning to push the computing envelope by launching its 12-core Shanghai chip late this year. This little baby should result in rocket-powered Crysis sessions each and every time. Full details after the jump.

If you want to rule the world of MMORPG Voyage Century Online, you should get to know the land as well as the open seas. There are buildings in the world that can offer you treasures even greater that those you can find on the open seas.

Having said that, it's good to know that IGG is helping its players by releasing an introductory guide for the Parthenon and the Blue Mosque. The details can be found at the full article via the "read more" link below.

It's time again for the International Mobile Gaming Awards (IMGA)! Like last year, there will be cash prizes and other amazing opportunities for game developers.

 

The winner will have software licenses from Adobe, Nokia phones and a guaranteed contract for an operator and publisher to market the title. A total of US$ 40,000 will be awarded to winners in the following categories:

• Excellence in Connectivity (multi-platform, social networking)
• Excellence in 3D
• Excellence in Game Play
• Best-licensed IP-based game
• Best Casual Game (Flash, Java, etc.)

The contest is global, and participants can submit their games online at IMGA's official website. The basic platforms developers can use to create their games are, but not limited to, Flash, Java, Brew and I-Mode. The submissions deadline is on September 24. There will be 25 finalists chosen who will then have until January 28 to produce a demo version of their concept for the final judging and winners will be announced in Barcelona.

Head on over to their site for further details, provided at the Read link below. Good luck, developers.

Who among you didn't read 15th century novel Don Quixote when it was assigned by your English teacher at school? You're not alone because we skipped that one as well (it was far too long!). Anyway, Spanish video game developer Revistronic is giving us another chance to catch up on our readings.

Because you see, the development studio is currently working on title Donkey Xote to be released on PlayStation Portable (PSP), DS, PlayStation 2 (PS2), and Games for Windows (PC) platforms. The game attempts to re-tell the true story of the infamous knight of La Mancha through the eyes of Rucio, Sancho Panza's donkey.

There are still no details known about the project but the official site of Revistronic has these teaser statements, "In this new story we face the challenge of meeting Dulcinea. For that we must participate in an adventure that will bring us from the calmness of Sancho's house, to the jousting tournament in Barcelona."

Revistronic is also developing title Project Witches for next-gen consoles and PC platform.

 

Straight from Barcelona, Spain, an official press release from Microsoft Game Studios revealed that an MMO game themed by the comics world repertoire of Marvel Entertainment is now under development by Cryptic Studios. Marvel Universe Online, which should be available for Xbox 360 owners and Windows Vista PC-goers, will sport interconnectivity play over Xbox Live and Live for Windows, bringing the MMO fans of the PC and fans of the Microsoft next-gen console closer together.

"The vision behind the alliance of Microsoft Game Studios, Cryptic Studios and Marvel is to expand the MMO genre and create an epic gaming experience exclusively for Xbox 360 and Windows Vista gamers to experience together online," Frank Pape said, who's senior director of business development at Microsoft Game Studios.

With MMO veteran developer Cryptic Studios at the development helm, the exclusive team-up of Microsoft, Marvel and Cryptic will attempt to deliver "the best possible experience in Marvel Universe Online." The World of Warcraft-killer we've been searching for, perhaps?

You may know Cryptic Studios for their hit MMO games City of Heroes and City of Villains, which are also superhero-themed like the Marvel MMO should be. Bringing in monsters, villains and Marvel superheroes to your favorite gaming platform, the MMO is expected to bring out the uniqueness of the Marvel IP.

When is it coming out? It hasn't been announced, but expect it to be a long way off from 2007. Still, with an MMO looking to rival that of Fury's graphics, it's definitely worth the wait.

  

Wireless multimedia networking company Comverse attended the 3GSM Conference the other day in Barcelona, Spain, to demonstrate a new software that will provide connectivity between Second Life residents and those who are in the real world.

In a nutshell, the technology allows Java-based and Internet-capable phones to log in to SL's virtual world remotely and see who else is playing. The phone can then communicate with SL residents by sending SMS, MMS, and event instant messages.

Here's the interesting part: SL users can walk into virtual Comverse booths and pick up virtual phones to reply. "We're unleashing the virtual world from the PC and allowing it to be available on any terminal. That's the benefit for the end user," said Comverse Chief Technology Officer Daphna Steinmetz.

The attendees of the 3GSM Conference were able to witness first hand how the new technology actually works on mobile phones, especially Comverse phones. The company added that the software will be available in Europe within a few months with one anonymous major carrier about to close a deal.

There is no word about the software's availability to subscribers in North America.

In-game advertising goes all-out in NBA Street: Homecourt (PS3, Xbox 360) as EA and Nike have teamed up to bring you ads which do more than just annoy the casual gamer.

In Homecourt, created players can now be draped in authentic Nike gear to provide more than just aesthetics. The shoes actually boost up the experience gained by your created baller so you can raise your stats faster and own the playgrounds faster than you can say "Air Jordan."

Included in the extensive list of footwear is the entire Jordan series, from the brightly colored Air Jordan I's, the VII's that His Airness wore in the Barcelona Olympics to the freshly-released Air Jordan XXII's.

Aside from the shoes, real-life courts which saw the likes of Rip Hamilton and Carmelo Anthony grow to stardom are unlockable, but the legendary Rucker Park in Harlem has got to be the crown jewel of the bunch, and you can download it for free. Here are some of the game's goodies:

• The GOAT - UNLOCKED
• Dirt Bowl - UNLOCKED
• Hometown Park - UNLOCKED
• Venice Beach - UNLOCKED
• Franklin Park - UNLOCKED
• Cloverdale - LOCKED (Unlocked in Homecourt Challenge)
• Rupert Bell Rec Center - LOCKED (Unlocked in Homecourt Challenge)
• Ash Park - LOCKED (Unlocked in Homecourt Challenge)
• Brand Jordan Gym - LOCKED (Unlocked in Homecourt Challenge)
• Hometown Gym - LOCKED (Unlocked in Homecourt Challenge)

All in all, the addition of the Nike gear, the deep customization options and the fast, arcade-style play should give Xbox 360 hoop fans a good fix of hardcourt action.