EGM is stirring it up again with a bunch of hot new rumors from Quartermann. Looks like we're in for a pretty sweet season: Quartermann's latest gossip includes word on a Halo spin-off coming late next year, a Grand Theft Auto MMO, and a whole lot more. Rumors galore in the full article!

Some of you may wonder why Digital Extremes designed Dark Sector (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3) to be a third-person shooter when it could have been just as promising as a first-person affair. In the video interview which you'll find after the jump, you're bound to be convinced that the devs had good reason to do so. Details up next.

After the news of the soon-to-be Activision-Blizzard merger, it seems there's a growing anticipation for consolidation within the game industry. The latest in the merger rumor mill is the one analyst's prediction that Take-Two Interactive would be taken up by another game entity. Find out who's top on Hickey's list at the full story.

 

Inspector Tequila's back, and this time he means business - that is, dealing with criminals with the business end of a firearm in this screenshot update of Midway Games' Stranglehold for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. We get you the skinny on the latest shoot-em-up that not only boasts the best slow-mo system since Max Payne, but also a body count that's sure to rise above any third-person shooter out today.

In this new batch of screenshots, we get a sneak peek at what looks like the game's multiplayer feature - as it's obvious that it's not Inspector Tequila we're looking at from behind (unless he got himself a haircut all of a sudden). One thing that also clues us in is what appears to be a kill indicator on your HUD, in the form of a skull with a number beside it. Handy, and fun.

What's clear from these screenshots - besides the fact that the game's looking quite sharp - is that the other players will have full advantage of Tequila's ability to use the background for some impressive bullet-related stunts. We can only wonder how they're using the Tequila Time ability in multiplayer, though - as it's one of the main reasons that Max Payne, the first game to feature Bullet Time, did not have multiplayer in its game modes.

Certainly a very good Saturday Night Special-sized screenshot batch. Updates as we get them!

  

If Max Payne gave gamers a quick fix of the stylized slow-motion ballet of bullets trademarked as Bullet Time, then John Woo's Stranglehold for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 is the fatal overdose. Yours truly is not going to beat around the bush, this game is looking like the most awesome third-person shooter to date.

These gameplay videos are actually Part 1 and Part 2 of what could be the obligatory Skyscraper level of Stranglehold, with Inspector Tequila gunning down each and every nameless henchman standing in his way. There's also an awesome bit in the second part where you dodge gunshots with a simple turn of the head, before sending a round or two of your own back. Enough spoilers from us, enjoy the video!

The second video after the jump!

Game Informer's latest issue just revealed 3D Realms' "big announcement" and it appears to be headed to the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and the Windows PC. According to the insider article, the new Unreal Engine 3 title, called Earth No More, is under the development hands of Recoil Gamers - those responsible for the Max Payne series.

 

Sporting gameplay facets that include revolutionary human interaction and conversation-affected AI (reminiscent of BioWare's Mass Effect), real character growth and absolutely no gameplay ripping cutscenes, Earth No More is beset upon a "possible world," where Mother Earth fights back against humanity's constant abuse and experimentation of the environment.

And boy does she pack a whallop: the plot kicks in a small town in New England being quarantined, because of a mysterious outbreak of mutating spores and poisonous red vines (think "War of the Worlds" alien growth). The outbreak spreads and "perverts" everything it happens to cross in its wake.

The player takes on the role of Will Forsyth, a "young chap" who must get to the bottom of the outbreak with four other characters who won't necessarily serve as your "squad." "The team is intricately analyzing how group dynamics work in movies like the 'Alien, The Thing,' 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers,' and '28 Days Later,' hoping to emulate that kind of tension in game form," the developers said.

Click on Full Article for more details on Earth No More.

Although Midway Games said last year that Stranglehold (PC, PS3, Xbox 360) was being prepped to be a PS3 launch title, delays have kicked the title out of the company's 2006 lineup and into this year's. No reason was given for the delay, but quite a few fans were no doubt disappointed.

It looks like things are finally ramping up for the game though, what with the various bits of news that have come trickling out lately. Today, Stranglehold's official website went live, bringing with it some goodies in the form of images from the game. Aspiring filmmakers can also enter the "True to John Woo" short film contest through the website.

In the action-and-cordite-packed Stranglehold, Chow Yun-Fat will be reprising his role as Inspector Tequila, last seen in John Woo's 1992 film Hard Boiled. This third-person shooter will see Tequila shooting people up in style in "Tequila Time", a feature similar to Max Payne's bullet time.

Stranglehold is currently slated for release this summer. To check out the website for yourself, click on the "read" link below.

Buy: [Stranglehold (PC)]
Buy: [Stranglehold (PS3)]
Buy: [Stranglehold (Xbox 360)]

We know a lot of you guys would love to star in your very own action flicks. So why not play your own action movie in Midway Games' Stranglehold? We got another dose of the John Woo fueled videogame with two new embeds from GameVideos.

Stranglehold is a third person shooter that features action packed gameplay and "Tequila time", which looks pretty much like the slow motion spots in Max Payne. With Chow Yun Fat as Inspector Tequila, things are bound to get ugly. The Gun Battles video is just screaming John Woo signatures: slow motion scenes, gun fu, and double pistols (this writer was almost expecting a flock of doves to shoot across the screen). The Massive Destruction video, as the name suggests shows just how destructible the game's environment is when using high powered guns.

We still have a bit to wait for Stranglehold (Xbox360, PS3, and PC); the release date is listed August this year. We'll leave you to check out the videos while we check for more info.

Check out the other video right after the jump!

Call of Juarez from Techland and Ubisoft is has "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" written all over it. Either that or the makings of some Louis L'Amour epic Western adventure theme. If you're not into the whole cowboy bee-bopping, at least it has one unique feature, among others. We get to see how it plays out today: Concentration mode.

While some might already be familiar with the PC-version, the gun-slinging gameplay video below shows you how to control Reverend Ray (using the 360 controller) as he enters Concentration mode. That's when the camera starts to slow down (think Max Payne's bullet-time) and you have to watch the two crosshairs carefully. As the reticule hovers over an enemy, let loose with the L- and R-trigger buttons like no tomorrow. Look-see; the video's holstered below:

Bizarre Creations, best known for Geometry Wars and Project Gotham Racing 3, has kept themselves pretty busy with highly-anticipated titles for next-gen consoles. Soon to be releasing Project Gotham Racing 4 by fall this year, they have also revealed a third-person shooter that requires marksmanship, timing, and a little environment know-how to progress through the game.

Nick Davies, design manager, and Matt Cavanagh, lead designer, arrived from Bizarre Creations to have a little chat with IGN about the game and some of its gritty details. The game was created around the idea of marksmanship training, and how your knowledge of the environment, targets, and timing could improve as you practice your way through each level over and over again.

The Club, headed for the PC, Xbox 360, and the PlayStation 3, soon developed a storyline (thanks to Gordon Rennie) after the concept was realized. Nick Davies said, "It was very much a gameplay-led development, the setting and the story evolved afterwards." Bizarre was planning on marketing this game not as an arcade target practice title, but as a fun, gun-running ride through action-packed levels.

Will the game sport different paths to success then? While there has been no word on the size of each level and the many ways one can traverse it, it has been revealed by Bizarre that game modes do determine the level design, and if they eventually turn out to be linear or "free form."

Enemies may spawn from different areas in the map, but Bizarre hasn't been clear on what they have planned for random spawning locations. But they assure that the enemies will look different each time they do spawn. And even if you did know where enemies were, your change of reactions would also trigger a change in theirs.

Aside from targeting skills, players can expect to also use slug-evading dashes, rolls and vaults that also provide an interesting way to kill enemies as you take each one out with unconventional gunning maneuvers, a la Max Payne. There wasn't any mention of bullet time features, but it would be pretty awesome to score points in style and watch it in slow motion.

The available weapons haven't been specified, although they're all considered "contemporary." The game itself may feature around 50 levels across eight environments for single player, while mixed game modes may be featured for online play. Xbox 360 Achievements haven't been named either, but they did say they there are a few "devilish" ones already listed. Thanks to hummer_dk for the tip!