Business partners THQ and Nickelodeon have just released their planned lineup of games for this year. One title that's certainly worth a look is Avatar - The Last Airbender: Into the Inferno, which was previously announced Wii, DS, and PS3 platforms. Further details are available in the full article.

Just when you thought the casual gaming audience can't get any younger, 2K Play and Nickelodeon introduce the first video game designed specifically for preschoolers with Go, Diego, Go!: Safari Rescue for the Nintendo Wii. The game is a collaborative effort which takes a look at the next-gen console's potential to cater to kids with its intuitive controls and absorbing gameplay. You can hop on to the full article for more details about it!

THQ just released details regarding its profits for the third quarter of fiscal year 2008.

Aside from money matters, however, the company's CEO also hinted at when they'll be releasing the next installments of their Saints Row and Red Faction franchises. Details await in the full article.

Fans of Cartoon Network's hit series Ben 10 will be happy to hear that their hero will soon land in video game form outside the PC. Cartoon Network New Media has just announced that their latest offering Ben 10: Protector of the Universe will ship across North America for the Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS and Sony PlayStation Portable platforms on August 30th.

Also announced on their latest press release is the fact that come November 21, Cartoon Network sill officially launch the Ben 10 live action movie directed by Alex Winter. It has been described as an adventure which will captivate the imagination of young fans everywhere.

Art Roche, creative director for Cartoon Network New Media, says it is important for Cartoon Network New Media to expand their portfolio to various platforms after they built a successful base of popularity on web-based gaming.

In Ben 10: Protector of the Universe, players must assume the role of Ben Tennyson, an Earth-boy endowed with the powers of the mighty Omnitrix embedded in his wrist. With amazing powers, Ben can fend off threats to our home world from the evils that troll outer space.

THQ has announced the release of Avatar: The Burning Earth. The game, which is based on Nickelodeon's hit animated TV series, is available for the Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance and Wii platforms as well as the Sony PlayStation 2.

"THQ released the first Avatar video game last year, with the brand rapidly achieving a major sales milestone by selling in more than one million units worldwide," said Scott Guthrie, THQ's executive vice president.

"We are excited to continue the growth of this hit video game franchise, as well as THQ's overall extensive Nickelodeon portfolio, with the launch of Avatar: The Burning Earth as the first Nickelodeon title for Xbox 360." The Microsoft Xbox 360 version of the game will hit retail stores next month.

Game publisher Take-Two Interactive says that the delay of Grand Theft Auto IV, Manhunt 2's ban and good reviews for BioShock have all contributed to a financial roller-coaster which has stunted corporate growth in fiscal 2007. The company expects US$ 950 billion to US$ 1 billion in gross revenues when all is said and done.

Fans and members of the media were disappointed when the release of Grand Theft Auto IV, the company's biggest project to date, was delayed to next year due to development issues. Manhunt 2, on the other hand, was banned due to violent content and was held back for a few months until it was recently cleared to go, following revisions.

In the first quarter of fiscal 2007, Take-Two posted earnings of US$ 206 million, lower than the US$ 241 million that it reported in the same period during 2006. On the bright side, US$ 59 million in losses aren't as bad when stacked against the performance from the same quarter last year when US$ 91 million was reported lost in revenues.

The magnificent FPS BioShock led other good releases such as The Darkness, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, The BIGS, and All-Pro Football 2K8 to offset more financial troubles and negative publicity. In addition, Take-Two expects a strong fiscal 2008 rebound when Grand Theft Auto IV gets ready for both the Microsoft Xbox 360 and the Sony PlayStation 3. Also planned are casual games based on IP from Nickelodeon.

Take-Two estimates the next fiscal cycles to hit US$ 1.1 billion to US$ 1.4 billion. It also expects its 2K Sports label to start generating profits by the time fiscal 2009 arrives.

Sierra Entertainment has announced that it will be bringing the world of The Spiderwick Chronicles to video game consoles next year. The game will be based on the upcoming 2008 theatrical release of The Spiderwick Chronicles from Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Films.

The film is in turn based on the best-selling book series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. The story revolves around twin brothers Jared and Simon as they, along with their sister Mallory, embark on a perilous journey filled with requisite amounts of adventure and danger.

The Spiderwick Chronicles promises to authentically recreate the world of Jared, Simon and Mallory Grace. It's currently slated for a February release and will be available for PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Wii and DS.

WayForward Technologies is known for creating games for various Nintendo handhelds (SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab and Ping Pals) as well as the PC (Nickelodeon's Toon Twister 3-D). Today, WayForward adds another Nintendo console into their line, the Wii.

Actually, it has had dev kits for the Wii for a while now - eight months, in fact. It's just that they didn't want to jump the gun and spread the word when they weren't ready to announce anything. But today, they've finally broken their silence.  John Beck, CEO of WayForward, revealed,

Our status as a licensed developer for Wii actually took place in July of '06... we have been maintaining a parallel R&D form effort on the platform. This is partly to test concepts from our creative team, and partly in preparation for numerous contract development opportunities.

It's all good, then. Now all we have to do is wait for WayForward to churn out some more games for the Wii. We know we can never have to much of fun with the Wii. Welcome to the bandwagon!

THQ today announced its 2007 Nickelodeon video game lineup. The lineup includes the video game debut of El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera as well as new titles based on some of the shows on Nickelodeon. A new Nicktoons game is also slated for release this year. Here's the list of upcoming titles:

• Nicktoons 2007 (working title) (PS2, Wii, DS, GBA - fall)
• SpongeBob's Atlantis Squarepantis (PS2, Wii, DS, GBA - fall)
• SpongeBob SquarePants: Atlantis Treasures (working title) (Mobile)
• Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Burning Earth (Xbox 360, PS2, Wii, DS, GBA - fall)
• El Tigre (working title) (DS - fall)
• Zoey 101: Field Trip Fiasco (DS - summer)
• Drake and Josh: Talent Showdown (DS - summer)

"Our Nickelodeon video game portfolio continues to lead the kids market with more than 45 million units sold-in to date," said Bob Aniello, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, THQ. "We expect a continued robust Nickelodeon business in 2007 with an even greater presence on the popular Wii, our first title slated for release on Xbox 360, and additional titles in our new series of games based on Nickelodeon's live-action properties."

 

What started out as a small gathering of game makers at Chris Crawford's living room became a big event in the gaming community - the Game Developers Conference. There are lectures and panel discussions with interesting speakers, the latest info from game companies, even a goodie bag, but this time, no one's living room need be vacated for guests. Instead, the event happens this March 5 to 9 at Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco.

GDC will host a number of sub-conferences, all happening this week. There is the GDC Mobile, to be keynoted by Digital Chocolate CEO Trip Hawkins, talking about innovations in mobile space. Unity Capital Paul Heydon will discuss features of the mobile landscape. The Mobile Game Innovation Hunt also happens at GDC mobile sub-conference. This entertaining session will have independent mobile game makers pitch their ideas to a panel of judges.

The Serious Games sub-conference, meanwhile, will be keynoted by Square Enix chief strategist Ichiro Otobe. He will talk about his company's entry into the serious games field, while Nickelodeon's Karen Schrier will then talk about how an alternate reality game could be very useful for educational purposes.

At the Casual Games sub-conference, there will be a round-table with Sony Online Entertainment, Microsoft, and PlayFirst, Inc. about viability of downloadable casual games on console. Steve Meretzky of Blue Fang will talk about the anatomy, demographics and value of casual games.

Capping of the sub-conferences is the IGDA’s Education SIG Curriculum Workshop. Aimed more at academics, this event will include speakers such as Doug Church from EA, Tracy Fullerton, professor at University of Southern California, and Doug Whatley of BreakAway among others.