Monday, February 20, 2006; Posted: 1:18 p.m. EST
By AlÍtheia Aklines

New Games

Q1 Releases on Our Hotlist

What are you playing now?  What are you looking forward to playing?  With a battery of neat new games on the horizon, it's hard to choose what to try next.  But here are a few we've found interesting ~ and with February and March release dates, you wont have to wait long to forge your way into these challenging new worlds.

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Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II

Release Date:  February 28, 2006

Product Description

In The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II, the sequel to the critically acclaimed RTS game The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth you now have the chance to experience all that Middle-earth was meant to be.

Given a new agreement with The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises that grants EA the rights to develop games based on the books, in addition to a separate agreement that allows for games based on the New Line Cinema films The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II will introduce players to depths of the fiction never before explored by EA.

With all new content from J.R.R. Tolkien's original fiction, delve deeper than ever before and engage in new battles that go beyond the award-winning movie trilogy. Wage war in the North and assume command of the most storied civilizations in all of Middle-earth history -- the Elven and Dwarven armies -- or fight on the side of Evil with heroes and creatures that have never been seen in The Lord of the Rings films. Defend or overtake never before seen lands such as Dol Guldur, The Misty Mountains, and Mirkwood as you unleash powerful new weapons and abilities - summon dragons, cause volcanoes to erupt, or bring down a cataclysmic lightning strike.

But beware, with greater power comes greater adversity. Your enemies, commanded by a powerful new AI system, possess a greater tactical edge and more powerful spells. Will your armies have the fortitude to persevere?

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Collectors Edition

Release Date:  March 20, 2006

Product Description

Oblivion is the sequel to the best-selling, award-winning role-playing game, The Elder Scrolls III: MorrowindÆ, named 2002 RPG and Game of the Year for both PC and Xbox.
 

In keeping with the Elder Scrolls tradition, players will have the option to experience the main quest at their own pace, and there will be plenty of opportunities to explore the vast world and make your own way. Numerous factions can be joined, such as the thieves or mages guilds, and each contains its own complete storyline and the chance to rise to the head of the faction and reap further rewards.

Oblivion features a groundbreaking new AI system, called Radiant AI, which gives non-player characters (NPCs) the ability to make their own choices based on the world around them. They'll decide where to eat or who to talk to and what they'll say. They'll sleep, go to church, and even steal items, all based on their individual characteristics. Full facial animations and lip-synching, combined with full speech for all dialog, allows NPCs to come to life like never before.

Oblivion is a single-player game that takes place in Tamriel's capital province, Cyrodiil. You are given the task of finding the hidden heir to a throne that sits empty, the previous emperor having been killed by an unknown assassin. With no true Emperor, the gates to Oblivion (the equivalent of hell in the world of Tamriel) open, and demons begin to invade Cyrodiil and attack its people and towns. It's up to you to find the lost heir to the throne and unravel the sinister plot that threatens to destroy all of Tamriel.

Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach

Release Date:  February 28, 2006

Product Description

The bustling frontier city of Stormreach, a cauldron of ambition and secret plots, has grown safe and secure as the only gateway to the riches of Xenídrik.  But now danger threatens!  Few explorers who set out adventuring the lands ever return, and those that do bring back only tales of death and destruction.  Are you a match for the fearsome monsters and the dungeons?  Can you discover the secret mysteries that threaten Stormreachís very existence?  Forge your destiny in Dungeons & Dragons^Æ Online: Stormreach!

For over 30 years Dungeons & Dragonsô has been the legendary benchmark for all roleplaying games. Now you can experience one of the most unique and dangerous online games ever created ñ based on the classic roleplaying game that started it all.

Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach takes you into a classic fantasy world, for incredible MMORPG gaming. Travel to Stormreach for exciting adventures where you'll face impossible challenges and unbeatable monsters, all for fortune and glory. Choose from nine classes and five races, including the Eberron warforged race - then enter ancient dungeons and complete missions to find gold, magic and treasure. Beware: Each dungeon has multiple paths to success. While a fighter is best off slaying the enemies before him, a rogue with Hide and Move Silently skills might be best off avoiding their notice. Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach is the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game to feature voice chat integrated into the service. Follows the D&D version 3.5 Core Rules. DVD for Windows. Gather in taverns to meet fellow adventurers, find new allies and quests, and rest up between battles Integrated voice chat lets you coordinate your team efforts more effectively.

Star Wars: Empire at War

Release Date: February 16, 2006

Product Description

Control the fate of the galaxy in Petroglyph's first RTS title STAR WARS: EMPIRE AT WAR.

Set a few years before the events of Episode IV A New Hope, the game will let players rewrite history as well as experience the aftermath of Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith, the creation of the Rebel Alliance, and Darth Vader's rise to power.

Using an entirely new game engine, the game will feature beautifully rendered land and space battles set on over 50 memorable planets such as Hoth, Tatooine and Dagobah as well as never-before-seen environments taken directly from the Star Wars films and expanded universe novels. In the game, players can choose to join either the Rebel Alliance or the Galactic Empire, building and setting up tactical forces that can be unleashed on the enemy in real-time 3D. All of the gameplay and action within Star Wars Empire at War is a persistent, meaning that strategic and tactical elements from previous events will have a permanent effect on the galaxy.

As players build, manage and progress their space and ground-based units, troops and vehicles, memorable Star Wars hero characters will begin playing a role in key situations. In addition to the single player campaign mode, the game will include a two-player Empire vs. Rebellion mode and up to eight player online skirmish modes.

Will you fight for the struggling rebels and bring freedom to the galaxy, or crush the rebellion under the tutelage of the Emperor?
 

Everquest: Prophecy of Ro Expansion Pack

Release Date: February 21, 2006

Product Description

In Freeport, Druzzil has opened a portal within the Academy of Arcane Science to her home plane. The city, already strained politically, falls into chaos and power struggles as fanatics cry that the end is near.

Rallos Zek, learning of Druzzil's actions, resolves to guide Norrathians to the Plane of Rage. His daughter, Sullon Zek, the demigod of Rage, has been overtaken by the very rage she grants to mortals. Confined to a tower within her realm, she unleashes her fury upon her realm. Can intrepid mortals bring a balance to chaos of her realm and restore Sullon?

The nature god Tunare, having lost her Chosen, has a growing sense of foreboding. She, too, has heard of Druzzil's efforts and now joins the fight against the threat. Her plan is bold but, as even Tunare herself admits, problematic. She intends to revive the ancient knowledge of her now-extinct first children, the Elddar elves. To do so, she calls upon Druzzil and Karana, the god of storms, for assistance. Karana sends great winds across the deserts of Ro to uncover the lost center of power of the Elddar elves, the place of Takish-Hiz. Its walls and petrified gardens uncovered, Druzzil then manipulates time and space to provide Norrathians with passage into Takish-Hiz of Old, so they may learn from the most ancient race of elves and return that great knowledge to Norrath.

EverQuest: Prophecy of Ro gives players the opportunity to interact with and transform the online world of Norrath like never before. The gods have returned and the mortal realm shifts with their influence. But a new presence walks among the gods, a malevolent force released into godhood by the follies of mortals. Unbound by the laws of the pantheon, it leaves corruption in its wake and threatens to bring the entire pantheon crumbling down. The only hope for Norrath hangs on the very mortals who have unleashed this upheaval. Battle your way through over 30 new missions, facing over 25 unique creatures, 7 zones New Spells, Tasks, Disciplines and Trade skills.

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