Force demo is Unleashing next week

The new Star Wars game, Force Unleashed, will be “unleashing” onto the PS3 and the Xbox 360 marketplace August 21st. According to LucasArts, the demo places you in the TIE Fighter Construction Facility level that has been taken over by a Jedi general named Rahm Kota. Your mission? Kill everything (though you aren’t a crazed killer [the game isn’t as dark as it sounds]).

Not only that, but LucasArts is also throwing a tutorial level into the demo as well (which according to them, is very important [not that any other demo we’ve played has not had a tutorial level in it]).

The full game releases September 16th for the Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PS2 and PSP.

Spike TV will be running a dedicated night to the release of the new game (much like they did for Halo 3).

Stay tuned.

Sony Game Exec resigns

Phil Harrison, Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios’s (abbreviated as SCE from now on as SCEWWS is just annoying) current President is resigning from his 15 year run as the head of SCE.

According to Sony, his official resignation occurs on February 29th. Phil is leaving the company, but has not said if he plans to work for another game company. Kazuo Hirai, current president of Sony Computer Entertainment International (SCEI) will be taking over for Phil in addition to his current job.

SCE is tasked with the creative, technical and strategic elements of development and production of the PlayStation and games. SCEI is in charge of sales and Research and Development of PlayStation consoles.

EA announces a new game to its Need for Speed franchise

Need For Speed: ProStreetEA announced their newest title in the Need for Speed series, ProStreet. ProStreet, which releases on October 31st, is supposed to be EA games’ interpretation of Street Racing Culture in the next 5 years (in otherwords, exactly the same as it is now). You start as you normally start in NFS games, a person who is a nobody who then enters street racing to become somebody. No new news here. According to the Executive Producer, Larry LaPierre: “This is a next-gen game, packed with the raw intensity and visceral aggression that defines street racing at the highest level.” Yeah, Need for Speed games have never really done it as well as the Burnout series, in my opinion.

Apparently for the “first time ever” you can design and build your car, a feature that has been in NFS since Underground. Not much of the story has been revealed but knowing EA it will probably have to do with you competing against some rival or something. And new in NFS: ProStreet is the Show Down mode, which sounds a lot like a race.

EA will probably not surprise me at all with ProStreet.

Reminder: Madden 08 tomorrow, launch parties tonight

Yup, today’s the day: August…13. You know, the day before Madden 08 comes out. If you want to preorder, today’s your last day to do it- and preorders are selling like hotcakes for the 08 installment. If you already have it preordered, your store probably has a launch party, so I suggest calling them.

I don’t know what else I can say. Uh, buy Madden?

EA puts 49 online games to rest

Earlier yesterday, EA put up a small notice on their website announcing that 49 of its EA Nation online games would be shutdown in the next three months. The notables are all of the EA Sports games pre-07 (that goes for Madden, NCAA Football, NBA Live, March Madness, Tiger Woods…). Also, Need for Speed Most Wanted and Underground will be put down, along with Burnout Revenge.

September 1, 2007 Online Service Shutdown
Arena Football for PlayStation 2
Arena Football for Xbox
FIFA Soccer 06 for Xbox 360
FIFA Soccer 06 for PC
FIFA06 for PC
FIFA Soccer 06 for PlayStation 2
FIFA Soccer 06 for PlayStation Portable
FIFA Soccer 06 for Xbox
FIFA World Cup 2006 for PC
FIFA World Cup 2006 for PlayStation 2
FIFA World Cup 2006 for PlayStation Portable
FIFA World Cup 2006 for Xbox
Fight Night Round 3 for PlayStation Portable
Fight Night Round 3 for Xbox
Madden NFL 06 for Xbox 360
Madden NFL 06 for PC
Madden NFL 06 for PlayStation 2
Madden NFL 06 for PlayStation Portable
Madden NFL 06 for Xbox
Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects for PlayStation 2
Marvel Nemesis: Rise of the Imperfects for Xbox
MVP 07 NCAA Baseball for PlayStation 2
MVP 07 NCAA Baseball for Xbox
NASCAR 06 Total Team Control for PlayStation 2
NASCAR 06 Total Team Control for Xbox
NBA Live 06 for Xbox 360
NBA Live 06 for PC
NBA Live 06 for PlayStation 2
NBA Live 06 for PlayStation Portable
NCAA Football 2005 for Xbox
NCAA Football 2006 for PlayStation 2
NCAA Football 2006 for Xbox
NCAA March Madness 06 for PlayStation 2
NCAA March Madness 06 for Xbox
NFL Head Coach for PC
NFL Head Coach for Xbox
NFL Head Coach for PlayStation 2
NHL 06 for PC
NHL 06 for PlayStation 2
NHL 06 for Xbox
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 for Xbox 360
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 for Xbox

November 1, 2007 Online Service Shutdown
Burnout Revenge for Xbox
Burnout Revenge for PlayStation 2
Need for Speed Underground for PlayStation 2
Need for Speed Underground 2 for PC
Need for Speed Underground 2 for PlayStation 2
Need for Speed Most Wanted for PlayStation Portable
Need for Speed Most Wanted for Xbox