LucasArts announces remake of Monkey Island 2 and the PlayStation Network version of The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition.

SAN FRANCISCO--Last year, LucasArts gave Monkey Island fans a chance to relive fond memories of 1990s adventure gaming when it announced The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition on the PC and Xbox 360. With the 2010 Game Developers Conference well underway, LucasArts announced at an event tonight that The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition is coming to the PlayStation Network "in a few weeks."

More importantly, LucasArts also announced that Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge will be hitting Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and PC this summer. Players will once again be able assume the role of the wannabe-pirate Guybrush Threepwood in the sequel, who must use his wits to solve puzzles in order to find the legendary treasure of Big Whoop.

Similar to the release of The Secret of Monkey Island, Monkey Island 2 will include features such as high-definition graphics, a re-mastered soundtrack and three-tiered hint system. The interactive hint system has been expanded and can be used to highlight important objects in the environment. Aside from the audio and visual upgrades, LeChuck's Revenge will allow players to directly control Guybrush if they choose, instead of relying on the traditional point-and-click formula to navigate.

In-game audio commentary from the game's creators will be included so players can listen in on the developers' thoughts and memories regarding the sequel. LeChuck's Revenge will once again include the ability to switch between the original game and the updated version, which was available in first remake. There will be voice acting in both modes this time around, and the original voice actors from the Monkey Island franchise will reprise their roles. In addition, there will be an in-game art viewer that will display original and new concept art used during the making of the game.

Craig Derrick, the project lead on the Monkey Island remakes also announced that there will be Monkey Island-themed outfits available for PlayStation Home avatars, as well as a pirate ship environment coming out in a few weeks.

For more information on The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition, check out GameSpot's review of the game.

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SyFy teams with Bigpoint to deliver Web browser-based online game based on Emmy Award-winning TV series.

In 2007, NBC Universal and its now-defunct corporate sibling Vivendi Games teamed up to bring the Sci-Fi Channel's popular space opera Battlestar Galactica to downloadable platforms as a multiplayer-focused shooter.The two are giving it another go, as the rebranded science fiction network SyFy and NBC Universal are bringing Battlestar Galactica back to the online space, but this time in a more massively multiplayer form.

This week, the media company announced that it had teamed with Bigpoint on a Web browser-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on the Battlestar Galactica series. Titled Battlestar Galactica Online, the game will be available through Syfy.com beginning this fall.

Battlestar Galactica Online is being co-developed by Norwegian studio Artplant and browser-based gaming engine maker Unity. Though situated in a cross-platform Web browser, the game features full 3D graphics and sees players assuming the role of either humanity's remnants or the Cylons.

As for gameplay, Battlestar Galactica Online will include tactical space combat, exploration, and mission-based quests, which flesh out the game's overarching storyline. The game will also feature assets taken directly from SyFy's Emmy Award-winning TV show.

Battlestar Galactica Online is hardly SyFy's only venture into the gaming market of late. In 2008, the television network announced a deal with Trion Worlds to develop massively multiplayer online games that integrate with its broadcasts. Last month, SyFy entered into a joint development deal with game-publishing heavyweight THQ that sees the two collaborating on adapting existing franchises and creating new properties for cross-media use.

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Ubisoft taps two of three Logorama filmmakers to make $8-$10 million, 20-minute prequel for this holiday season's Future Soldier.

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Ambitious HD game-streaming service to debut on PC, Mac during E3, micro-consoles to follow; will cost $15/month; 1080p, 60fps service coming 2011.

One year after it was unveiled at the 2009 Game Developers Conference, OnLive finally has a launch date. Company CEO Steve Perlman announced today at his keynote address at the GamesBeat mini-conference at GDC 2010 that OnLive will go live on June 17. The service will initially be available as an application for the Windows and Mac operating systems, with a micro-console that can be attached directly to HDTVs to arrive later on in the year.

OnLive's launch will be limited to the contiguous lower 48 United States and will cost $14.95 per month. According to the
OnLive Blog, the first 25,000 thousand people to sign up will have the service fee waived for three months. (To apply, sign up on the
official OnLive site.) Multi-month pricing and other promotions will be announced prior to the service's debut.

OnLive's monthly fee does not include the purchase price of games themselves, which can be rented or bought from publishers directly at a lower-than-retail price. Publishers supporting the service with PC titles include Electronic Arts, Take-Two, THQ, Ubisoft, Epic, Atari, Codemasters, and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. At the DICE Summit last month, Perlman demonstrated both Crysis and Unreal Tournament 3 running on the service with minimal lag.

The June launch will only be the start of the OnLive rollout. The service will offer 1080p high-definition gaming at 60 frames per second starting in 2011. An international launch is also planned for an undetermined date.

For those unfamiliar with OnLive, the service aims to offer lag-free PC gaming via the Web. The company claims that since the heavy lifting of graphics processing will be done on the service's servers, it will offer high-definition gaming on any PC or Mac, regardless of graphics card or CPU speed.

The addition of the micro-console will also allow the service to be streamed directly onto televisions, without the need for a standard game console. Perlman sees this as a positive because OnLive games will not be tied to increasingly antiquated consoles. He promised that the OnLive servers would receive graphical upgrades every six months in order to provide the latest PC graphics.

For a detailed look at OnLive in action, read
GameSpot's coverage of Perlman's DICE presentation or watch the OnLive announcement video below.

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First PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 outing for the UK publisher's take on the pinnacle of motorsport confirmed for an autumn release.

While Formula One fans don't have long to wait until the cars roll onto the grid for the first race of the 2010 season in Bahrain, they will have a little longer to wait for the championship's official game. Today, Codemasters confirmed that the 2010 iteration of its nascent Formula One franchise will arrive for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC in September. This marks the first outing for the publisher's F1 games on high-definition platforms after the commercial success of the PSP and Wii F1 2009 games last year.

F1 2010 is based on the publisher's Ego engine, which was also behind previous hit racing games Race Driver: Grid and Colin McRae Dirt 2, and is being developed at Codemasters Studios Birmingham. It will be the first official Formula One game on the PC platform for eight years and the first-ever official F1 game to appear on the Xbox 360.

The game will feature all the drivers, teams, cars and tracks from the 2010 Formula One season, re-created with the help of "unprecedented access to Formula One teams and drivers." The Ego engine has been further developed for F1 2010, according to the publisher, "to accurately re-create the unique aerodynamics and handling" of Formula One cars.

F1 2010 will feature a variety of modes, including an "innovative" Career mode, as well as Time Trials, Championship, and Grand Prix options, although details of these modes have not yet been made public. The publisher has also promised a "highly advanced damage model, fully dynamic weather system, and extensive competitive multiplayer options."

More on the game is expected in the coming weeks, so keep it tuned to GameSpot for more news and previews as they emerge.

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