The planet of Alderaan wasn't always a smoldering cloud of debris. No, back in the day it was a lovely, peaceful planet - perhaps the closest thing in the galaxy to a Utopian society. Then the Great War occurred, and the Sith tried to invade, and while the Republic handed the Empire their asses, the face of Alderaan changed forever. The peaceful rulers began to support talk of war; the crown prince was assassinated for storming out of the signing of the Treaty of Coruscant; and now everything is up in the air.

It looks like Alderaan will be a contested planet in the massively multiplayer online game, with players on both sides fighting against each other for a planet that will one day be used as Death Star target practice.

Holonet - Alderaan [Star Wars: The Old Republic]

Mind you, most of the images are just colored blocks with various colorful characters interacting with them, but the last one in the gallery completely nails it. It's hard to believe they managed to slip in that sort of action into an E—rated title. Things are definitely looking up for the Boom Blox franchise.

But Giant Bomb interface 1.0 isn't too shabby. Hit it up and check out the first video in the behind-the-scenes series "How To Build A Bomb." We snagged this still that looks like Luke Plunkett from 20 years in the future was wandering around in the background during Gerstmann's filming. Future Luke, if you can read this, know that you are in our thoughts and prayers.

Welcome to Giant Bomb (dot com) [Giant Bomb]

Hudson Entertainment Blasts Bomberman Land Onto WiiTM Nintendo DSTM And PSP® System

Experience Triple The Fun With 3 Full Fledged Game Modes

REDWOOD CITY, Calif - September 20, 2007 - Hudson Entertainment, the North American publishing arm of Hudson Soft, today announced Bomberman Land, the award-winning series, is coming to the Wii™ and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, and BOMBERMAN LAND Touch! 2 is coming for the Nintendo DS™. Published by Hudson and distributed in North America by Konami Entertainment, all three versions are planned to release in January 2008.

Bomberman Land brings together 3 exciting game modes into one. The series introduces a bevy of mini-games, where most can be played in multiplayer mode. The PSP system version features 50 mini-games, the Wii features 50, and the DS has 40 unique mini-games. In addition, the Bomberman Land series features a robust single-player Story Mode, where players can explore a fantasy land and solve quests and puzzles with the ultimate goal of restoring peace and tranquility to the beleaguered Bomberman world.

Best of all, the game includes the Battle Pack Mode, the classic multiplayer Bomberman experience that gamers know and love. The PSP system and the DS versions both allow gamers to share one game cartridge and network with friends to create the ultimate party game.

"Gamers are going to be blown away by the sheer amount of content they get in the Bomberman Land series," said John Greiner President and CEO of Hudson Entertainment. "Each version of the perspective Bomberman Land title is different, with unique mini-games, Story Mode, and features. With the success of Bomberman Live on XBLA, we knew we had to up the bar for the brand, and we believe this series truly is triple the fun."

For more details, visit http://www.hudsonent.com.

WARMONGER, OPERATION: DOWNTOWN DESTRUCTION GEARS UP FOR PC DEVASTATION ON OCTOBER 16, 2007

AGEIA and NetDevil Push Limits of PhysX Technology with Revolutionary First-Person Shooter

LOUISVILLE, CO - September 18, 2007 - NetDevil, an independent game company and leading developer of massively multiplayer online games (MMOs), today announced it is launching its revolutionary new title called Warmonger, Operation: Downtown Destruction, an apocalyptic, first-person shooter (FPS) powered by the AGEIA(TM) PhysX(TM) processor. Unlike other FPS titles, Warmonger features a unique, piece-by-piece destruction system and is designed to deliver stunning fluid and cloth-based effects unlike anything seen before. Warmonger will be available on October 16, 2007 to PC gamers via digital download and from leading edge hardware makers selling PhysX-based cards and gaming PCs. New assets, screens, and information may be found at: www.warmongergame.com.

Utilizing the AGEIA PhysX processor, Warmonger allows for dynamic game play to emerge from the results of combat. Destruction is enabled procedurally, rather than with standard pre-canned animations that are found in most games today. In Warmonger, destruction can also be used as a tactical tool or a weapon. Safe cover is no longer a forgone conclusion. For example, a sniper can blow up the stairs behind him to block access, but a rocket blast to the floor beneath him can also hasten his own untimely end. Explosives, rockets, indirect fire, and vehicle combat can literally blow away walls, obliterate ceilings and open up new pathways to totally change the flow of the game.

High performance FPS action is also delivered in rich and stunning detail through the PhysX-enhanced Unreal Engine 3 from Epic Games. This powerful game engine has allowed the NetDevil team to enable Warmonger's environments and special effects with a depth and feel that reflect the cutting edge of gaming visuals and physics.

"First person shooter environments have remained largely static for years. AGEIA PhysX has changed all that, and changed it profoundly," said Scott Brown, president of NetDevil. "New rigid body technology and procedural destruction of game environments set the stage for dynamic content creation that will literally transform the way people think and play."

"We're pleased to see what a forward thinking game developer can accomplish with our card. By incorporating PhysX, NetDevil brought to life some of the most compelling game experiences ever seen in a game," said Manju Hegde, CEO of AGEIA. "Warmonger's real-world, real-time properties offer gamers a whole new dimension in gameplay they can enjoy over and over again. They will have a blast discovering new terrains, sniper positions, and other game elements they've never had a chance to try out before."

Key features:
- Players have a choice of five different weapons, including a grenade firing assault rifle, an RPG launcher, a shielded and mountable mini-gun and more.
- There are six different maps including Sink or Swim, an underground staging area, The Approach, an old western "showdown", Knee Deep, an abandoned shopping center, Black Adit, an abandoned subway station, Car Collector, a wrecked parking garage, and Needle's Eye, an old industrial sector.

"Warmonger offers a unique environment for fans of FPS games, where no place is safe, and seeking good cover is a challenge rather than a given," said Chris Sherland, lead producer on Warmonger. "Test sessions leave a player with a strong emotional reaction to this... it's downright scary to play!"

Sales of the Xbox 360 critical darling BioShock outsold its first person competition Metroid Prime 3: Corruption by more than two-to-one during the month of August. Keep in mind the latter was on the market for one less week than 2K's insta-hit, but it still bodes well for a BioShock sequel.

The top ten selling games in the U.S. for August are listed below. More after the break.

01. Madden NFL 08 (Xbox 360) - 896,600
02. Madden NFL 08 (PS2) - 643,600
03. BioShock (Xbox 360) - 490,900
04. Madden NFL 08 (PS3) - 336,200
05. Wii Play (Wii) - 256,800
06. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii) - 218,100
07. Mario Strikers Charged (Wii) - 147,400
08. Guitar Hero II (PS2) - 145,400
09. Mario Party 8 (Wii) - 138,300
10. Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s (PS2) - 127,100

11. Madden NFL 08 (Wii)
12. Madden NFL 08 (Xbox)
13. Brain Age 2: More Training In Minutes A Day (DS)
14. Two Worlds (Xbox 360)
15. Pokemon Diamond (DS)
16. High School Musical: Makin' The Cut (DS)
17. Guitar Hero II (Xbox 360)
18. Madden NFL 08 (PSP)
19. Pokemon Pearl (DS)
20. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 (Xbox 360)

Sales for Activision's Guitar Hero franchise continue to impress, as does Nintendo's first party Wii efforts. A month of stellar sales totaling some $488 million across consoles and handheld gaming machines shows an $89 million boost over the previous August. Go video game industry!

Thanks to the NPD Group for August sales figures.

Video: MASSIVE Crackdown Explosion [360style.net - Thanks Chilly!]

Been playing through my fair share of Resistance (man, the second half of single player gets HARD real fast!). The online experience so far has been alright. I play on a Japanese server, but don't yet have a headset for voice chat. The most players I've seen online at one time in a Deathmatch has been around 12. But what if there were 40 people in one game, doing the same thing at the same time? The game's Chief Tech Officer, Al Hastings, explains:

Ultimately what you care about when you're trying to achieve a locked frame rate is the worst-case scenario—that point in the game where too much is happening or too much is on screen and you can't finish all the processing in the allotted time slice. One of the reasons this is getting harder is that games are less predictable and less scripted than they have been in the past, so as game developers we can't fully control or predict all the scenarios that the player might end up in. The ultimate example of this is a 40-player online game. If all 40 players chose to run into the same room at the same time and throw grenades at each other, you have the definition of a worst-case scenario.

Actually, I'd kinda like to see that worst case scenario. Brian Ashcraft

Roundtable Discussion [Siliconera]