It's been a while since we last heard from Turok, and we can't blame you guys if some have no idea what this is about (no thanks to a gazillion of other FPSes out there). That said, we could use a recap for the sorry mortals who missed this bad ass series.

Dating back to the days of N64, there was this game in which players could arm themselves with futuristic weapons as they explore a jungle in fear of getting eaten alive - by dinosaurs. This ain't your generic Jurassic Park fanfare; Turok was received well enough to establish a name of its own.

After several games the series spawned, Turok is finally going next-gen (PS3, Xbox 360) thanks to Disney Interactive Games and developer Propaganda Games. So far, we know that the hero is ex-black ops specialist Joseph Turok set in an entirely new planet to track down his former mentor.

To get an idea of what to expect, here's game director Joel Manners in an interview with IGN as he talks about the massive scope of the game, the living, breathing jungle, cinematic close combat, and a huge variety of explosive weapons at the player's disposal.

We hate to make you wait, so here's the video. Enjoy!

 

Whenever we hear the name "Turok", we're invariably reminded of Acclaim's dubious "Name your baby Turok and we'll give you ten grand" marketing strategy. Well, that's in the past. Buena Vista Games has picked up the property and has put Propaganda Games at the helm of the next-gen Turok game.

Speaking with IGN, Propaganda Games VP Josh Holmes shed some light on what could very well be the game that would put the Turok series back on the gaming map. Aside from sporting next-gen graphics courtesy of the Unreal Engine 3, the next-gen also features a whole new story, with new characters and a fresh new gameplay experience.

The game follows the story of ex-black ops specialist Joseph Turok as he tracks down his former mentor, Roland Kane. "Turok features a deep single player storyline that unfolds in episodic fashion as the player progresses through the game," said Holmes, "so the story cinematics are integrated seamlessly with gameplay."

Of course, Turok won't be Turok without the dinosaurs. Players can use these intelligent predatory animals to their advantage, luring them towards unsuspecting enemies. That might sound easy on paper, but in-game, it will be a different story entirely. "When some of the creatures in our game attack you, they are able to knock you down and begin gnawing on you, prompting a life and death struggle to break free," said Holmes.

Holmes didn't reveal too much about the game's weapons, but he did say that the game will "deliver the sort of excessive firepower that has long been the hallmark of the Turok series." As for details on the game's multiplayer modes, we'll all just have to wait and see.

 

The latest ESRB listing, once again prognosticates that a new game is set to arrive for a next-gen console of your choice. In this case it's for Microsoft's Xbox 360. This time, it's for a game listed as Discs of Tron. Yes. Hardcore Tron fans rejoice. The listing credits Buena Vista Games as publisher of the game. Weird thing is, aren't they now known as Disney Interactive? Anyhow, Disney Interactive's response to questioning from the folks of IGN was just your standard "no comment."

It is still unsure if this will be a remake of the game or if it will be a re-release on XBLA of the arcade classic. The folks from TeamXbox.com seem to think that it is indeed a release for XBLA of the classic game that was based on the fight scene between Flynn and Sark in the original movie.

While TeamXbox seems pretty adamant about the existence of this game, IGN chooses to lean on the side of caution and lists this as rumor.

It was reported back in October of 2006 that Climax Studios is readying itself for next-gen. What does that mean? Well, in simple terms, the company is trying to streamline its operations by selling off and downsizing some of its studios.

The Brighton, England racing studio was acquired by Walt Disney's Buena Vista Games. With regard to Climax's Santa Monica office though, the company maintains that it is not closing off the location totally. What will happen is that it will be re-organized as a "dedicated business development hub". This means no more games development will be happening in the Santa Monica office. The company explained,

Climax today confirmed that it is has completed its last game development project in it's Santa Monica studio and will now complete the conversion of that operation into a small, dedicated business development hub as part of its strategy to re-organize the group into a single studio/single location operation.

Furthermore, Climax CEO Karl Jeffrey is very pleased with the way the Santa Monica management handled the transition. Jeffrey added that their company can now focus on making games, rather than spending so much time and effort running far-flung group of studios.

Climax Studios is mostly known for its stint on Xbox Live with MotoGP: Ultimate Racing Technology and ATV Offroad Fury 3 on PS2. The company is currently working on Silent Hills: Origins for PSP.

Disney announced at their Investor Conference in Orlando that Buena Vista Games will now be known as Disney Interactive Studios (DIS). Senior VP and General Manager Graham Hopper reasoned, "This change reflects our focus on creativity, the weight of Disney content in our portfolio, and the enormous value consumers see in the Disney Brand."

True, although many people do know that Buena Vista is more or less Disney-related in many ways than one, we believe that slapping on the "Disney" name should reflect inspiration on the new game studio's image. You could think of it as an upgrade, like what happened to Pixar Animation Studios.

Will they be limited to Disney games? Apparently not, for they also have plans to publish non-Disney branded video games for all platforms worldwide. Touchstone, Disney, and ABC are the brands to look for on Disney Interactive Studios' published games.

DIS is powered by four internal game development studios, which include Avalanche Software, Fall Line Studios, Propaganda Games, and Climax Racing to develop games for all ages. So keep an eye out!

From the makers of Carmageddon comes yet another action-packed vehicular combat game. Stainless Games brings Novadrome to your Xbox Live Arcade yesterday for that added adrenaline rush that will be sure to be way off the charts.

The game features eight-player matches, 15 arenas, over 20 different vehicles, loads and loads of weapons, and of course, to make the challenge be a little more extra, those "gladiatorial robot opponents."

So, what's the story behind Novadrome? Basically, the players have been abducted by robots from the planet Nova. The mission then is to stop their captors from invading Earth. To do this, players would have to compete in a series of combat-driving competitions (hey, if that's their big plan to save our planet, let them) with those high-powered armored vehicles, armed with front-mounted automatic weapons.

Novadrome is available over at the Xbox Live Arcade for 800 Microsoft Points.

You can check out the rest of the game features as well as the screenshots after the jump! You can also download three gameplay videos right here. Enjoy!

Download: [Novadrome gameplay videos]

Sure enough, as announced before, Novadrome is going to be released right on time for the holidays. This game developed by Stainless Games and published by Buena Vista will be available for download on XBLA this Wednesday. After Carmageddon, go back to the roots with this 3D smash-'em-up, combat-driving game.

The game's got 15 arenas and over 20 fierce vehicles that you can choose from. For XBL Gold Members, the game can support multiplayer mode for up to eight players. There's going to be a whole frenzy of power-ups and weapon upgrades that you can pick up on the battle field to help you rise to the top of the leaderboard charts.

The release will be available for all regions at 800 Microsoft Points on December 20, 9 A.M. on XBLA.

Buena Vista Games, in collaboration with England-based Stainless Games Ltd., has just announced their new and upcoming Xbox Live Arcade title, a sci-fi vehicle combat game entitled Novadrome.

The 360-exclusive game will let users engage in gladiator-like combat aboard an armed vehicle in a distant planet arena (think space derby). Featuring 15 arenas and 24 vehicles (no, wait, space vehicles) to choose from, you'll also be able to play for bragging rights where you compete with the others to top the leaderboards and gain the oh-so-cool title of "Ultimate Champion."

Sarcasm aside, the game will also feature three single-player modes (Career, Arcade, and Free Play) and of course, an online multiplayer mode. According to the PR, there'll also be car-mounted beams, and particle and physics weapons that you can use to zap out the evil alien abductors.

Novadrome will be available for download in all regions on XBLA this Holiday.

We mentioned it in passing earlier, while covering news on the Lumines Live Advance Pack for the Xbox 360, but it's time to lay out all the cards. The folks at Siliconera picked up word that the Lumines Live Advance Pack isn't as advanced as people think. Mostly, it's because all of the content is also going to be a part of the PSP's Lumines II.

A representative of Buena Vista Games told Siliconera the following: "We can confirm that all the skins in Lumines Live will be in Lumines II - plus more." Note how that quote says, "plus more". Lumines II already has more planned content than its other incarnations, with more skins and additional music, so despite our feelings toward the Xbox 360 version of Lumines, we can't help but think about how hollow that feeling is now, especially when all that content is paid for in one go.

One thing we can say about Lumines Live though, is that with an Xbox 360, you really can't beat the multiplayer accessibility the game currently has in that form. Our love for Q Entertainment's frantic and frenetic puzzle game is strong, but our love for a reasonable means to enjoy our favorite games is even stronger.

At first it may seem that Climax Studio is on a downhill track following the sale of its Brighton, England racing studio to Walt Disney's Buena Vista Games. The recent reports about the downsizing of its Santa Monica studio also fits well in this line of thinking. The CEO of the company however, Karl Jeffrey, denies these speculations and says they are just restructuring operations.

"New-gen game development requires incredible focus and the removal of all barriers to your teams creating and communicating effectively," states Jeffrey. Accordingly, Santa Monica studio will be reduced by 14 while the remaining ones in U.K. (in Hampshire and London) will be expanding. All studios will now be placed under the direct management of Simon Gardner, Climax Head of Development.

Jeffrey adds, "Integrating our management structure in this way and doing more of our development in the U.K. will allow us to control the production process better. I am also looking forward to recruiting new talent into the company." The company, in the past, has been responsible for quality titles such as MotoGP, ATV Offroad Fury and Xbox RPG Sudeki.

Today, known upcoming projects of Climax Studio include Oblivion for PSP, next-gen project Codename: Avalon and a Ghost Rider game for 2K Games.