Publisher THQ is very happy to announce that the video game title Cars has been made a discount title across almost all platforms. This means that the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable versions have been added to the "Greatest Hits" basket while the Xbox360 version can now found in the "Platinum Hits" basket.

If you really want to know, even the GameCube (GC) version is now a part of "Player's Choice" retail program.

THQ decided to come up with a sequel called Cars Mater-National for the 360, Wii and PlayStation 3 platforms. Disney Interactive Studios Exec. VP and GM Graham Hopper commented:

We are excited by the tremendous success the Cars franchise has achieved across the world on multiple video game platforms. Our successful and long-standing relationship with THQ has delivered a strong portfolio of Disney/Pixar titles that have become family favorites for gamers of all ages.

The original Cars is now available across all platforms at a suggested retail price of US$ 19.99. On the other hand, the new title Cars Mater-National is expected to careen around retail stores this fall. It will also be available on PS2, Nintendo DS, and GBA platforms.

Just days after the confirmation regarding its launch titles, THQ is at again - this time with a 30-seconder commercial. Though the third party publisher still failed to mention about the retail price for each, they have always maintained that their popular titles are and have always been, in sync with Nintendo's campaign for fun gaming experiences.

The commercial shows the four titles (Disney Pixar's Cars, Avatar: The Last Airbender, SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab and Barnyard) being played and enjoyed by kids. By the way all of them were rated E to E 10 by the ESRB. It seems that Nintendo is really bringing out all its marketing firepower now, from the big guns down to the the small ad campaigns.

Download: [THQ Wii Game Footage]

THQ has just confirmed four launch titles for Wii: Disney Pixar's Cars, Avatar: The Last Airbender, SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab, and a film-to-game title to put the icing on the cake, Barnyard.

Unfortunately, THQ did not comment on the retail price of any of the four games but THQ vice president for worldwide marketing Kelly Flock said, "As the number-one third-party publisher of software across all Nintendo gaming systems, THQ's library of popular mass-market brands aligns perfectly with Nintendo's strategy of creating fun and accessible experiences for the new Wii system."

Wii's launch line-up is looking pretty strong at the moment with titles such as Splinter Cell: Double Agent coming to the Wii. As long as your Wii doesn't crash, you'll have fun time playing all these games!

You've seen the trailer and read all the details as well as speculations on game controls. We don't know about you, but with the way previews go, there's definitely something missing here. (Cue hints, cue lightbulb aaand...) Yeah-huh, you guessed it, screenshots!

Today we bring you the missing link to the whole preview formula with the first screenshots of Cars on the Wii, and based on what we see, looks like the sweet-talkin' cars will look pretty swee-heet on your console as well. Just in case you don't know this yet, the whole four-wheeled cast from the movie will be appearing in the game, as well as new characters -- some of which will be playable while some will remain parked (pun intended).

We haven't gotten any confirmed details about the controls, but we've heard that it's impossible to steer your way around Cars by holding the Wiimote with one hand, you'd have to grasp it like a steering wheel. Rumor also has it that the trigger buttons will be used as your brakes while the D-pad will take care of drifting, accelerating, and boosting.

Like in the game's other versions (PSP, PS2, PC, GBA, Nintendo DS, GameCube, Xbox, Xbox 360), you'll get to go cruising around Radiator Springs and Ornament Valley while collecting Bolt Icons and Bonus Points. Cars will also feature over 30 races and mini-games, most of which you will get to play with your friends in multiplayer mode, and is set to hit the streets this fall. While you're waiting to take these cars out for a spin, load up on these screens we have for you. Enjoy.

More of the screens await after the jump!

Have you got your copy of Disney's Cars yet? If you own a PSP, PS2, PC, GBA, Nintendo DS, GameCube, or Xbox, then maybe you do. But the Xbox 360 and Wii versions of the game are set to come out in Europe on November. And in anticipation of the release for the next-gen platforms, we got you covered with another trailer to tide over all that waiting.

You've seen the movie. And you often find yourself singing that "Life is a Highway" song. Now it's time to get into the game as Lightning McQueen in his life-changing journey in a detour to Radiator Springs. You'll be meeting familiar friends from the film, including Sally the Porsche, Doc Hudson the Hudson Hornet, and of course, Mater the Rusty Toe-Truck. The cast is all here, and some of them are actually playable characters. There's also going to be some new vehicles you would be meeting for the first time, so that's something you guys might look forward to.

So, watch the vid, hotrods! (it's even voice-over'd by that Movie Trailer guy)

Download: [Cars trailer]

It's official! The Wii will launch in Europe on December 8 at an estimated retail price of 249 Euros (£179 in the UK). This is according to Satoru Iwata, Global President of Nintendo, who held a press conference in London's Docklands today.

The Wii will include one wireless Wii Remote (39 Euros/£29 in UK), one Nunchuk (19 Euros/£14 in UK), and five different sports games in one disk. The console's launch will also be accompanied by the the Classic Controller (19 Euros/£14 in UK), 20 software titles, and Nintendo first party games (estimated at 49-59 Euros/£34-£39 in the UK).

Iwata confirmed some of the launch titles: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Ubisoft’s Red Steel, EA’s Need for Speed: Carbon, Activision’s Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, THQ’s Disney/ Pixar’s Cars and Sega’s Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz.

Iwata also emphasized the role of on-screen channels that make up the Wii Channel Menu. He stressed that this is the starting point for all the Wii's function. Basically, it allows users to pick games to play, get weather news, create, view, and send photos they can use in the games, and download classic games on the Virtual Console when connected to a TV. In a nutshell, there's nothing like a real "all-around console" -- and the Wii aims to claim that title.

The following third party Wii games are confirmed to be out by the end of Nintendo's fiscal year (its fiscal year ends March 31, 2007). Many of the games in the following list are launch games, and we're telling you, Nintendo has provided quite an interesting list. There are over 40 games on it, and all of them are worth your second look. Remember though that this list doesn't even include the first party titles.

Activision
Call of Duty 3
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Rapala Tournament Fishing
Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
World Series of Poker

Atari
Dragon Ball Z Budokai: Tenkaichi 2


Check out the entire list of games after the jump.

The Leipzig Games Convention (LGC) is here! The Developer Conference opens today, August 21, with a record-breaking participation of more than 600 visitors. The LGC starts August 21 if you're a game developer, August 23 if you're a VIP or with the media, and August 24 if you're one of us, the unwashed masses. The LGC exhibitions end August 27, so start hiking now.

What does video game publisher THQ have for their line-up for the LGC? We took THQ's (very long) press release and squeezed it for the goodies. Here's the short version for your reading pleasure:

Saints Row
For the Xbox 360 is this third-person open-world action/driving hybrid developed by THQ's Volition, Inc. You're a gang member with the 3rd Street Saints and you have to go up the gang ranks and eventually take over the city Stilwater. The game features character customization options and supports multiplayer mode through Xbox Live. Official release: Aug. 29 for North America; Sept. 1 for Europe.

Frontlines: Fuel of War
For the Xbox 360 and also for PS3 and Windows PC is this open-world infantry and vehicle first person shooter from THQ's Kaos Studios. In the near future, a global war for oil is being waged between the Western Coalition (US/NATO) and the Red Star Alliance (Russia/China). You'll play both sides of the battle. Official release: 2007.

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2007
For the PSP, Xbox 360, and PS2 is this 8th release in the THQ and JAKKS Pacific franchise. It features an analog control grappling system, new movesets, and an interactive fighting area within the crowd. There are updated rosters for Raw and SmackDown and an expanded General Manager Mode and online multiplayer game play with voice chat support. Official release: 2006 holiday season.

Disney-Pixar Cars
You race. Based on the movie. Official release: fall 2006 for Xbox 360 and Wii; all throughout this summer for PS2, Xbox, GameCube, GBA, PSP, DS, Windows PC, and Mac.

SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab
Bikini Bottom. Enough said. Official release: fall of 2006 for Wii, PS2, DS, GameCube, GBA, and Windows PC.

Monster House
Based on the movie. Official release: all throughout this summer for DS, PS2, GameCube, GBA.

Bratz: Forever Diamondz
Search of the country's hottest fashion designer. Official release: fall of 2006 for DS, PS2, GameCube, and GBA.

Barnyard
Based on the upcoming film. Official release: fall of 2006 for Wii, PS2, GameCube, GBA, and Windows PC.

Avatar: The Last Airbender
Do your kung fu and explore the four Avatar nations. Official release: fall of 2006 for Wii, DS, PSP, PS2, GameCube, Xbox, GBA, and Windows PC.

The versatility of the Nintendo Wii Controller (a.k.a. Wiimote) was put to the test, Tuesday, by games publisher THQ in the basement of confectionery Dylan's Candy Bar of Manhattan's fancy Upper East Side.

With a by-invitation-only affair, the company allowed select journalists and kids to try out the work-in-progress versions of Wii games based on Disney's Carsmovie and Nickelodeon's Avatar: The Last Airbender,Barnyard, and Spongebob Squarepants franchises.

Many of the maneuvers seen in other companies' previewed Wii software were also exhibited in the THQ games. A punch in a rampage mode of Spongebob results from a jostle of the Wii remote, while a quick downward swipe makes your character stomp on the ground. Then, turning the device like a steering wheel - with the Wiimote held sideways by its shorter ends - controls the Cars racing game. "One minute you're using the [Wii remote] rampaging and hitting buildings, and the other you're holding it like a joystick in a jet fighter," says Ali Bouda, brand manager for kids' games at THQ, as he surveyed the players in the room.

Meanwhile, these rules have been found to be malleable enough to a certain degree. For example, in the Cars game, holding the remote like you would the horizontal steering wheel of a city bus, rather than like the vertical wheel of a regular car, may work. However, a quick test revealed that the game only reads a twist on the vertical plane. Flipping the remote upside down and then steering would work as well, but again, only on that vertical plane, like the movement of the hands on a clock.

THQ representatives at the event said they did not advocate these alternate ways of playing Wii games. Rather, they merely offered instructions for the standard approach and even gave sufficient warning against attempts to play the games the wrong way, like trying to steer Cars with one hand: "You can't do it. You do need to hold it like a steering wheel."

What this activity has shown is that games can possibly break the rules concerning use of the Nintendo Wii controller. Now, whether or not these alternative ways of playing will prove to be enriching or devastating to the system will be determined when Wii is launched this fall.

Car racing is not for young kids. It usually involves a license and a lot of skills to drive one of these things. However, if you do it in the virtual world, tag it with a Disney label, give them cute faces in the hoods, and put them in an adventure of a lifetime--even five year old kids can leave most adult players in the dust. It's on every game platform right now, but it'll be added to another one: Nintendo's Wii. Now they can kick the adult's butt there as well.

Lightning McQueen, Mater, and the other gas-guzzling vehicles in Cars will be heading over to Wii. Naturally this will be a racing sim for the younger Nintendo Wii users. However, will it play as good in Wii? To give people a glimpse of the answer, THQ gave a couple of NYC Press people some hands-on experience with four other games to be ported to Wii. One of them was a direct conversion from the Game Cube platform: Cars. Although there was only one level available, it went well. People found it as the most solid control conversion and fun.

There was no overall indication as to how the controls will be handled in Wii, but there seems to be some speculations. One would be tilting the motion-sensor controller on its side and turning it like a steering wheel. The trigger buttons can be used for breaking and the D-pad can do the drifting, accelerating, and boosting.

Let's wait for the final version and how THQ will handle the Wii conversion controls and graphics. Until then, kids will have to practice their drag racing skills on other platforms.