A movie pack from Tomb Raider: Legend is now available for download, showcasing this game developed by Crystal Dynamics studio (known for Legacy of Kain: Defiance) and by the Lara Croft's original creator, Toby Gard. Thanks: 3DGamers. The sexy Lara Croft's character model will feature natural structure, realistic textures, detailed facial features, reactive eyes and fluid motion. Her equipment will consist of magnetic grappling device, binoculars, frag grenades, personal lighting device and communications equipment. Tomb Raider: Legend will be available for PS2, Xbox, Xbox 360 and PC during Q2 2006.

Aspyr announced that the NA version of Spellforce 2: Shadow Wars, the sequel developed by Phenomic Games, will incorporate some other form of copy-protection than Starforce. "Starforce is being used in the demo in cooperation with the European publishers of the title, JoWood Productions. This is to help prevent reverse engineering that could lead to our product being put up on illegal software networks. We apologize for any inconveniences Starforce may have caused and would again like to reassure everyone that we have chosen alternative copy protection software for our final release product. Thank you for your interest in Spellforce 2!" Thanks: Blues.

Following the recent Galactic Civilizations II copy protection issues between b>Stardock and StarForce creators, we have the following statement from Auran: "With the full support of the developers, Auran is publishing this game with NO COPY PPROTECTION, instead relying on a quality product that provides registered users with frequent updates, additional features and outstanding support to create a best-seller".

BioWare Corp. announced that a new studio, BioWare Austin, based in Austin, Texas, has been opened and has already begun work on a Massively Multiplayer Online roleplaying game (MMORPG) title. Joining the Austin team as lead designer is James Ohlen, BioWare's Creative Director, whose previous credits include lead or co-lead design roles on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Neverwinter Nights, Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate II. Check full story for details.

Act of War: High Treason, the add-on for Act of War: Direct Action, has been approved for manufacturing and will hit the store shelves on 24 March 2006, Atari announced. Act of War: High Treason features modern naval combat, as well as new units, upgrades and streamlined interface mechanics. Press 'read more' for details and grab the demo locally mirrored here.

Sega today announced that Condemned: Criminal Origins for PC has gone gold and that it will ship across North America on April 11th. The game allows you to experience a heightened level of psychological tension as you use your instincts, forensic tools, and melee/firearms combat to track serial killers and bring them to justice. Developed by Monolith Productions, the creators of F.E.A.R., Condemned: Criminal Origins features amazingly photorealistic environments and true to-life sound effects that transport players directly to the scene of the crime. Press 'read more' for details and check these new screenshots.

NCsoft North America and Massive Incorporated today announced a strategic partnership to integrate dynamic in-game advertising into the North American and European versions of Auto Assault, the action-oriented online role-playing game scheduled to be released this April. In this game, players explore a post-apocalyptic future in customizable cars, motorcycles, semis and even tanks. Players battle other players both in arenas and in epic race vs. race wars for control of the regions in a devastated Earth. Auto Assault uses the power of the Havok physics engine to let you make insane jumps, send obstacles flying and even blast bridges, buildings, fences and trees with your car-mounted rockets. New Auto Assault screens have been inserted in our gallery.

NCsoft Europe today announced Dungeon Runners, a fast paced online action RPG where you take on the role of a brave hero and explore dangerous dungeons, battle ferocious monsters, and discover unique items. Your hero can adventure alone or team with a party to hunt terrible monsters and reap fantastic rewards. Dungeon Runners will start taking sign-ups for its closed beta from 14th April 2006, with the closed beta scheduled to begin in May-June (dates are subject to change). The official European website for Dungeon Runners is now available in English, French, and German. Dungeon Runners is scheduled for the second half of 2006 - the first batch of screenshots have been added in our gallery.

TameStorm Games today announced the launch of Filler, a "a charming puzzle game for everybody, who wants to have fun or just relax". The game features 100 layouts, 100 levels, 11 special bonuses, and more (check full story for details). Filler can be purchased from its official website, priced $14.95 (USD), and you can have a 15% discount if you use the TAME-HQBL-FILL cupon.

KOEI announced that Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, the latest chapter of the popular series, has been approved for manufacturing and is scheduled to ship to North American retailers on March 28, 2006 for Xbox 360 and PS2. In Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, gamers can issue direct orders to each officer or signal general commands to officers on the field. Players will order when the army will take the offensive, defend their ground, or have all officers gather for an ambush. Gamers can also choose the officers for an attack force, entice captives into joining the kingdom's service and even expel officers from the kingdom.

Starting at 12:01am on Tuesday March 14th, Electronic Arts will host the “Burnout Revenge 21 Days of Carnage Sweepstakes”, an online contest with one winner, every hour, every day for 21 days. Hourly winners will be entered into a grand prize drawing with prizes from Monster Cable, Alienware, Dolby, Logitech, Alpine, Plantronics, Dragon, Nixon, Etnies and EA. Every week will highlight one crash junction from the game. Every time gamers play the junction online that week, they’re automatically entered to win. For each hour, EA will randomly pick a winner who will receive a Burnout Revenge Xbox 360 headset from Plantronics and be entered into the grand prize drawing. To enter, play the following junctions online during the specified week: March 14 – March 20: Exploding Bay; March 21 – March 27: Wish Upon a Car; March 28 – April 4: Jumping Jack Trash.

Techland officially confirmed that a sequel to 2003’s sci-fi tactical FPS game Chrome is in development. It will feature a single-player campaign as well as multiplayer squad based play for up to 64 players. The game is planned to be released for PC and a next-gen platform. An exact release date for the game has not yet been set.

Introversion Software has issued a new patch for the Windows version of Darwinia, adding a new Difficulty setting to the game, various bugfixes and more. Press 'read more' for changelog.

Destineer Publishing’s Bold Games label and Tripwire Interactive announced that the WWII online action game Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45 is shipping and will be available in retail stores across North America by the end of this week. A standalone follow-up of Red Orchestra mod, Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45 lets players choose from 28 infantry weapons or crew one of 14 different fully-realised vehicles on the Russian Front between 1941-45. There are more than one dozen maps, based on real-world locations and battles. Check full story for details.

Wizards of the Coast Inc. announced that PayPal is now a new payment option for Magic Online, the internet's most successful online strategy trading card game. PayPal enables anyone with an email address to securely, easily, and quickly send and receive payments online, using a credit card, bank account or stored PayPal balance. PayPal is available to users in 55 markets around the world. Press 'read more' for details.