Two years after the dramatic conclusion of Final Fantasy VII, the ruins of Midgar stand as a testament to the sacrifices that helped bring peace. However, the world will soon face a new menace. A mysterious illness is spreading fast. Old enemies are astir. And Cloud, who walked away from the life of a hero to live in solitude, must step forward yet again ... Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is scheduled to ship in 2005.

Atari has named Marc Metis as its Senior Vice President, Marketing, effective immediately, it was announced today by Jim Caparro, President and Chief Executive Officer. Metis will be responsible for driving the marketing for all of Atari's interactive products and will oversee the Marketing team, including advertising, media buying and channel marketing, product marketing and publicity, and market research.

Square Enix today revealed the appearance of the top Japanese vocalists Emiko Shiratori and RIKKI and the return of MC James Arnold Taylor at the highly anticipated concert, "More Friends -- Music From FINAL FANTASY®." The concert starts at 8PM on Monday, May 16th at Gibson Amphitheater.

Buena Vista today announced a distribution deal with Tokyo-based D3 Publisher to release multiple BVG games in Japan. Titles will include The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe; Disney's Chicken Little; Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas; Kim Possible; and Lilo & Stitch.

What began with PC real-time tactical Desert Rats vs. Afrika Korps and continued with D-Day is to be concluded with 1944: Battle of the Bulge, as Digital Jesters announces the March release of the third World War II RTS from genre masters Monte Cristo.

Namco today announced "Atomic Betty" for the Game Boy Advance. A mission-based game with puzzle solving elements, "Atomic Betty" features a three character control scheme that allows players to enjoy all of their favorite characters at once, utilizing their individual skills to save the universe.

AGEIA today announced that Atari's much-anticipated Dragonshard, a real-time strategy game based on the Dungeons & Dragons universe created by Wizards of the Coast, will be one of the first major games developed using AGEIA's NovodeX Physics SDK.

Electronic Arts and The University of Southern California Viterbi School of Engineering today announced that they are partnering to co-sponsor the first-ever scholarship opportunity to the USC Interactive Entertainment Summer Camp. Open to any female high school junior or senior, the scholarship will assure an aspiring female game designer a coveted spot in the unique summer program.

Atari today announced the summer launch of Atari Flashback 2.0, the follow-up to the holiday 2004 hit, the Atari Flashback Classic Game Console, which shipped more than 550,000 units to retail. Atari Flashback 2.0 will be modeled after the Atari 2600 console and heralds in the 30th anniversary of Pong.

Infinium Labs today announced an agreement with OpSource, an enabler of Software as a Service (SaaS) applications. The agreement enrolls Infinium Labs in a 90-day SaaS Enablement Program to utilize OpSource's suite of tools and services to analyze and fine-tune the Company's business model, operational plan and service delivery.