In response to Gov. Blagojevich proposing legislation to ban the sale of violent and sexually explicit video games to youths under age 18, the Illinois State Crime Commission and state Rep. Paul Froehlich checked to see if such games really were being sold to minors in and around Froehlich's legislative district. The Crime Commission enlisted 15-year-old Dan Shemwell to go to 15 stores Thursday. He attempted to buy "M-rated" (mature) games, including "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas." Despite most retailers voluntarily adopting policies banning the sale of such M-rated games to youths under 17, Dan Shemwell was able to buy games at 11 of the places he stopped. Read the full article over at the Chicago Sun-Times.

FullMetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel brings a fresh new action RPG to this year's Square Enix lineup. Based on a wildly popular Japanese animation and comic of the same name, FullMetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel traces the journey of two brothers on a life-changing quest. Square Enix has launched the official website, so head on over there for the latest info & screens...

Torque is back in Surreal Software's The Suffering 2, promising all new & more enemies (over a dozen), new weapons (grenade launcher), new environments and although you will only be able to carry two weapons at any given time, you will be able to dual yield this time around. Not much info is available at this point, nor any official announcement yet, but the first screens have however already arrived.. Read more to check out the goods...

The Sims 2 University is the first expansion pack for the highly-acclaimed The Sims 2, giving players of The Sims 2 the ability to watch their Sims become young adults and put childhood behind them as they settle into an all-new college town to live out their ultimate college fantasy.

It has been six years since the destruction of Raccoon City and in that time, the U.S. government has been able to destroy the evil Umbrella Corporation. Fast forward to 2004 and players rejoin Leon, who is now a U.S. agent with a top-secret mission. He has been tasked to look into the abduction of the President’s daughter and his investigation has led him to a mysterious location in Europe.

Devil May Cry 3 unfolds an earlier chapter in Dante's history, before the original Devil May Cry, to the fateful clash between Sparda's twin sons, divided by the divergence of their chosen paths. Take a peek at yet another 50+ new screens...

Enthusia Professional Racing is a new PS2 racing game, developed by KCES, designed to bring all of the white-knuckle energy and thrill of car racing to life, Enthusia features groundbreaking gameplay mechanics, enhanced physics and pixel-perfect graphics to deliver an unprecedented racing experience.

It is 776 BC, the time of the first Olympics in Ancient Greece. The Greek city states of Athens, Sparta, Macedonia, Elis, Crete, Troy, Thebes and Carthage have gathered at Olympia. It is the last day of the historic event, and the five full days of frenetic athletic activities are coming to an end. But the pinnacle of all the Olympic events has yet to commence. As one of the competitors, the expectations of thousands rest upon your shoulders ...

East Front is a high-tech first-person 3D-shooter. The action takes place in the alternate universe where fascist Germany won in the Second World War. A soldier of the German Resistance, Karl Stolz, turns out to be involved in the deadly play of mysterious powers, and at stake is control over the whole world. Read more for the first screens...

The second release of the Musashi series makes its debut on the PS2 featuring exhilarating, fast-paced, action-packed gameplay utilizing manga shaded graphics. Like a true samurai, Musashi's powers of observation will pay off in the heat of battle as he channels this energy to learn his opponents' techniques. A new mode of his protective services has also been employed, in which he literally carries his characters to safety.

Retribution is a new FPS currently in production by U-235 Studios, with the prototype set to hit publishers doorsteps in November 2005. U-235 Studios have secured a licensing agreement for the state of the art engine "Reality" developed by Artificial Studios. Read more for details & screens..

Xeno Assault II, sequel to the critically acclaimed hit Xeno Assault, is the second chapter the forces of earth must fight once again against another massive invasion force from a race of evil insect aliens. A lone pilot is the only chance left for humanity.

"Origin Of The Species" is Nu-Generation Games's 3rd person action adventure title. It combines real world locations; present day conspiracy with both military and Sci-Fi enemies to produce a vibrant, fast paced game world. Read more for details & screens...

Gearbox has revealed that its WW2 based FPS title 'Brothers in Arms' will be getting a Limited Edition release. Brothers in Arms is based on a true story and will immerse gamers into the gritty, uncensored and emotionally-charged side of war. The game puts you in the shoes of Sgt. Matt Baker, a D-Day paratrooper squad leader, and asks you to lead the squad as you balance their lives with the success of the mission. The Limited Edition, which comes in a tin box, will have extra's such as exclusive postcards, 8 page book produced by Penny-Arcade.com, introduction to Brothers in Arms Road to Hill 30 letter written by Colonel John Antal as well as an exclusive DVD with soundtrack, documentary, trailers and excerpts from the screenplay.

Developed through a collaborative effort between Pandemic Studios and Mass Media, the game's innovative design, complex artificial intelligence (A.I.) and advanced graphical prowess has been successfully transitioned to the PlayStation 2, pushing the hardware to its limits. Full Spectrum Warrior is scheduled to ship worldwide in early 2005.

Wartime Command: Battle For Europe 1939-1945 is the stunning World War II tactical real time strategy game from Russian developers 1C Company in Russia. The game development project has been retitled from Battlefield Command to give it prominence in a cluttered market of similar product brands. Read more for some new screens ...

TheForce.net managed to get some info from the Feb. 2005 PCZone UK issue about LucasArts/Petroglyph's (ex-Westwood) newest Star Wars RTS, which was revealed early Nov. 2004. "This new PC game is set two years before ANH with a certain amount of cross over from Episode 3. Screen shots look superb. It appears to include ground battles set in dessert and greenland areas with attacking AT-AT's and a new Imperial ground based vehicle called "TIE Crawlers" which I've not seen before (cross between a tank and a TIE Fighter). The action also takes place in space with rebel fleets taking on Star Destroyers (think of the game Homeworld)." No timeframe regarding the release date yet though (thanks VE3D).

Unreal Tournament: Expanded Multiplayer is a class based multiplayer team game. UT XMP is a total conversion for UT2004, developed by Free Monkey Interactive, and is based upon Unreal II: Expanded Multiplayer, released in 2003 by the now-defunct Legend Entertainment. A new patch has been released for the Public Beta 1, fixing issues on various maps, collision problems and a slew of bug fixes and game balance adjustments.

Use destructive weapons and innate mental powers to take on the most feared enemy in the galaxy - Mankind! Play as Crypto, an alien warrior sent to Earth to clear the way for the Furon invasion force. Your mission is to infiltrate humanity, control them, harvest their brain stems and ultimately destroy them. You choose the method - infiltration or disintigration!

S2Games has released a new version of the latest v2.0e patch for its online multiplayer FPS/RTS Savage: Battle for Newerth patch. This full retail patch combines all previous incremental patches into one and includes authentication and server list fixes. The server browser and authentication systems have been completely rewritten. All game servers will now show up correctly (thanks 3DGamers). Read more for detailed fix list and download links ...