UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves in stores

Sony Computer Entertainment America has released UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves for the PlayStation 3. The sequel to Naughty Dog’s hit Unchartered, UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves blends the art of cinema and action platformer and shooter action in an all new adventure involving Nathan Drake, big explosions, exploration, running and jumping, and good old fashioned spelunking (I might be bending the truth here, but you’ll figure that out after you buy the game, won’t you?). The game promises a story-driven single-player mode and competitive multiplayer and cooperative modes as well.

Be sure to check out Tom Chick’s excellent UNCHARTERED 2: Among Thieves Review for the real skinny on this first party title published by SCEA.

More goodies added to Demon’s Souls pre-order package

Atlus U.S.A. have expanded the free bonus for customers who pre-order Demon’s Souls, the company’s hardcore action RPG for the PS3. In addition to the previously announced 40-page full-color art book, fans who pre-order at a participating retailer can now also expect to receive a free soundtrack CD featuring music from the game. The disc, which offers 24 tracks totaling 71 minutes from the game’s orchestral score, represents the complete Demon’s Souls soundtrack, available for the first time as part of this exclusive North American promotion. The CD will be secured within the inside back cover of the art book, ensuring that existing pre-orders will receive the added bonus disc.

Demon’s Souls for PS3s scheduled for North American release on October 6, 2009. The Standard Edition will retail with an MSRP of $59.99, and the Deluxe Edition, which includes a 150+ page strategy guide and collectible slipcase, will retail with an MSRP of $69.99.

The Saboteur shipping Dec. 8

EA’s Pandemic Studios announced that its open-world sandbox action game, The Saboteur, will be available worldwide on December 8, 2009. Inspired by a true story (which we expect and hope has been highly embellished for the sake of action), The Saboteur stars Sean Devlin, a street-tough Irish race car driver trapped behind enemy lines in 1940s Nazi-occupied France. Motivated by personal revenge and a strong sense of survival, Sean must fight, climb, and race through Paris, sneak into the heart of the Nazi operations and sabotage their every move.

With the help of the French Resistance, the British intelligence, an arsenal of weaponry, and an uncanny knack for staying alive, players will exact revenge by committing various acts of sabotage including derailing trains and blowing up zeppelins. Sounds like much more fun than Mercenaries 2.

The Saboteur is being developed for the PS3, Xbox 360, and the PC. Those attending the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con International, (July 23 – 26), will be able to check out The Saboteur for the first time at EA’s show booth, stall #5213 in the San Diego Convention Center.

1 Million Battlefield Heroes players

Electronic Arts announced that Battlefield Heroes has already recruited one million players to sign up for the game since its launch. Developed by wholly-owned studios DICE, Battlefield Heroes is a free to play third-person shooter based on the popular Battlefield series of action games.

The web-based game features gameplay that satisfies both hardcore and casual players by offering easy to understand controls and a matchmaking service that puts players against other players of similar skills. Players can now quickly download and easily launch the game from www.battlefieldheroes.com..

Like id Software’s free to play Quake Live game, Battlefield Heroes goes out of its way to cater to and match up players so that playing is simple, fair and fun. Unlike Quake Live, Battlefield Heroes features a class-based system so players can create and use a hero that best suits their style. Character customization items are available for Valor Points (points earned by playing the game) or with Battlefunds (a fictional currency bought with a credit card or PayPal) so players can update or change their hero’s style at any time.

Battlefield Heroes is rated “T” by the ESRB and “16+” by PEGI and is playable now from the web site listed above.

Red Faction: Guerrilla multiplayer demo released

If you liked the single player demo for Red Faction: Guerrilla, then you might be interested to learn that THQ has released a multiplayer version of it for the Xbox 360 and PS3. Scheduled to be released on June 2, Red Faction: Guerrilla is a third person, open-world shooter featuring physics-based destruction, a story-driven single-player campaign and a number multiplayer options.

The multiplayer demo features ten-player Damage Control, a new mode that utilizes Volition’s GeoMod 2.0 Destruction Engine, to add a new twist to traditional capture-and-hold, point-based gameplay.

Get it via Xbox Live or PlayStation Network now.

Time of Shadows Announced

Kalypso Media is prepping a third-person action RPG called Time of Shadows for PC gamers in August. Developed by SkyFallen Entertainment and 1C, Time of Shadows will have players traverse multiple worlds as they uncover sinister plots, battle evil forces and attempt to save the Earth from some imminent disaster involving wizardry and shadows.

The plot is paper thin at this point, and details on the gameplay are equally vague, but from its description it sounds like the game is putting a heavy focus on magic and less on combat. Players will use a variety of magic abilities and over 100 different spells, to take a on a variety of creatures and humans like dragons, wizards, and more.

We’ll have more on the game when it becomes available, but the game is still heavily in development. For more information on the game, check out www.kalypsomedia.com.

Bethesda Signs WET

Bethesda Softworks will publish WET, the new action game from Artificial Mind and Movement (A2M).
WET is a third-person shooter that blends acrobatics, gun play, and sword kills. With dual pistols and a samurai sword, players can engage in combat while sliding on floors, running on walls, jumping, flipping, and performing acrobatic moves.

WET puts players in the role of Rubi Malone, a gun-for-hire who specializes in “wetworks” – covert operations that tend to get a little messy. As Rubi, you can expect lots of double crosses, promises of payback, humor and violence, a unique retro film style, and an original 70’s-inspired soundtrack.

Voicing Rubi Malone is actress Eliza Dushku, star of Fox’s Sci-Fi thriller series “Dollhouse.” Dushku starred in the box office hit “Bring It On” and the television series “Tru Calling.” She is also well-known for her recurring roles on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel.”

If A2M can pull it off, WET might be the best thing since sliced bagels (sorry bread, the love is gone). The game is in development for the Xbox 360 and PS3 and will be released this fall.