Saboteur (Xbox 360, PS3) won't be making a splash on Q1 of 2009 as originally expected. Pandemic and EA's freedom-fighting action-adventure title has been pushed back to the next fiscal year. Read up on it more after the jump.

You know you can never go wrong with an LotR game that lets you play as an Ent. I mean - how cool is that?! Yay for spreading wanton destruction as a walking, talking tree! Watch out for next year then: Pandemic Studios just announced over the presswire that LotR: Conquest will be released simultaneously for the PS3, Xbox 360, PC, and DS on January 9 of next year. Check out a new trailer (and some old screens) in the full article.

The Ubisoft team working on Prince of Persia sure doesn't hesitate to jump on every chance to boast their cel-shaded artwork for the game. They've a right to, mind you - the art in this PoP title is definitely breath-taking; it's one of the many appeals that this game has under its silken belt. Enter the Light and Dark Art trailer. Other than the art, we get a special treat too: bits of the story were put in place as well. Watch the trailer in the full article for some epic LotR shivers.

For those who have been hankering for a Devil May Cry 4 update from Capcom, well, here's another massive dose of eye candy for you. This time around, we get loads of pictures of DMC4's hero, Nero, fighting against something that we're hoping to be a boss and not a lowly minion. *gulp*

In any case, the only thing that comes to mind at the moment is that the thing that Nero is fighting looks like a cross between the Balrog from the LOTR movie, plus Nelo Angelo and Phantom from DMC1. Hmm... eitherway, we get to see more of Nero's moves, and hopefully, this makes the waiting a bit easier, as we continue to pray that the Autumn release date of the game for the Xbox 360 and the PS3 finally gets narrowed down further.

But then again, in case that takes too long, at least there's the anime version of Dante to keep us distracted for a while, right? (And that brings up the question of: So, DMC's timeline now goes as DMC3, DMC the Anime, DMC1, DMC2, and then DMC4...?)

More screenshots right after the Jump!

Phil Spencer, a British TV presenter, had a lot to report regarding Halo 3, Bungie, and Crackdown. Among the more interesting topics discussed in the video, Bungie is expecting more than 1 million players to be playing multiplayer. They are currently working to avoid the excessive lag expected on its release.

In addition to this, you can hear about the apparent team-up between Bungie and Peter Jackson (Director of LoTR and King Kong). The video is very informative and if you are planning on picking up Halo 3, then it wouldn't hurt to spend five minutes to hear what the video has to say. Unfortunately, there are no lasers in this video... maybe in the next one.

 

After the successful Lego Star Wars I and II, TT Games promised more Lego-licensed games in the future. Jonathan Smith, head of production at the UK-based company, coyly teased Lego Star Wars fanatics with the promise that "we are definitely...working on more Lego-licensed games. We are working on another Lego project right now." Although he refused to give more information on what they're working on and when it's going to be released.

Some concern on these kind of titles is that it's primarily made for children, and that most hardcore gamers would choose to ignore it. This is what Smith said regarding it:

I think that a game that is made for children, which children genuinely enjoy, will also be enjoyed by older players as well, because it will appeal to the child in us all. The more you make games for an 8-year-old boy, the more you'll make a game for everyone

When asked about what he thinks would not work as a Lego game, Smith answered that "one of the amazing things about Lego is that it can be literally anything." So what would be next, then? Lego Batman? Lego LOTR? Lego Spongebob?

Electronic Arts indefinitely suspended the production of The Lord of the Rings: The White Council while they are "looking at the creative positioning and feature set on the Lord of the Rings franchise." Decoded, the statement would probably mean: "We are reviewing the LOTR licenses."

EA CFO Warren Jenson reassured an analyst that the game has only been put on hold when asked whether or not the RPG game slated for the PS3, 360 and PC has been cancelled.

Does this confirm the rumors? Unfortunately not anymore solid than the last one. Jenson added, "The Lord of the Rings product is back in development in terms of being on hold." Does that mean it was on hold and now it's back in development? Or it was about to get cancelled and EA decided to resume its production but paused it?

While EA is reviewing the license and what they could do with it (which includes selling it to other publishers) the game's production will be halted for about two more years. Yes, you heard that right the first time: two years. The game will not be coming out during EA's current financial year, which ends March 31, 2008. There is speculation that the game may never see the light of day again.

Oh, woe is the 'morrow of mankind...

Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II has received its first content pack in the form of Aragorn's Journey Map Pack 1 available now in the Marketplace. For those of you out there that can't get enough of BFME II the map pack gives you three new maps: Weathertop, Argonath and Umber, which you can play to your RTS heart's content.

The maps are for single player skirmishes as well as online multiplayer. The map pack comes in at 700 Microsoft Points so it might seem expensive for some. So if you want to add even more game time to your copy of LoTR: BFME II, go ahead and check out the map pack on the Marketplace.

Gamespot opened its online recruitment office for 48 warriors who are not afraid to die! Not literally, of course. It's The Battle for Middle-earth II (Xbox 360) tournament. In King of the Hill, 48 players compete for the top prize and walk off as the King of Kings.

Each round will pit three players against each other in a tug-of-war battle until the top three players emerge from the dust and ashes of the battlefield. Only the top three players get the spoils of the the war which happens to total a $1,000 prize package! Winners will receive gift certificates from Best Buy - 1st place winner will receive a gift certificate worth $600, 2nd place player $300, and 3rd place player $100.

If you think you have what it takes to rule Middle Earth, sign up now! Tournament registration starts Wednesday, July 26, 2006 at 3 pm PT. Sign up now to make sure you get one of the limited player slots. The championship battle will broadcast live on GameSpot Tournament TV.

For those of you out there that weren't sure if EA did justice to the RTS genre with the new Lord of The Rings: Battle For Middle Earth II, a demo has hit the Marketplace, so you can try before you buy. The demo weighs in at a staggering 848.84MB, so go ahead and put it in your active downloading list to get it out of the way.

In the demo you'll be able to build your armies and conquer Middle Earth as Elves and Goblins on two maps as well as having the option to challenge a friend and play as the Elves and Goblins in Evil Lorien or Buckland. So go ahead and check out the Marketplace if you want to try out LOTR: BFME II.