Storyline: In The Ward, gamers take on the role of David Walker, a U.S. astronaut who is on a seemingly routine mission to the moon. Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong does. In an instant, both the command module and landing modules are destroyed, taking the entire crew down, except Walker. When he finally awakes from the lunar disaster, Walker realizes that he has been abducted by aliens and is now being held hostage in a secret world. The aliens have deemed him as the chosen one to carry out an ancient alien legacy of universal domination.

Gameplay: In The Ward, players are challenged to take on three different roles in order to complete the mission. First, as a fugitive on the alien spaceship, gamers must figure out why Walker is there and how to escape. Second, as an investigator, the mystery of the aliens and their intentions must be unearthed. And finally, as a saboteur working for mankind, gamers must stop the aliens from destroying the world.
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Sierra Studios has announced that NASCAR Racing 4, developed by Massachusetts-based Papyrus Racing Games, will include all 21 tracks from the most recently completed NASCAR Winston Cup season. NASCAR Racing 4 will be the first and only racing game of 2001 to tout the complete collection of tracks. Test your driving skills at tracks such as the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, under the lights at DAYTONA International Speedway or side-by-side racing around one of the most challenging courses on the circuit, Pocono International Raceway. No other game has such a complete track offering. NASCAR Racing 4 is scheduled for release in February 2001. NASCAR Racing 4 is the next evolution of the best-selling, award-winning racing series from Papyrus Racing Games. Showcasing a brand new 3D-physics model, realistic body roll, spinning and locking up of individual tires, and the ability to become airborne, along with a new graphics engine, allows for real-time reflections and shadows. .

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Alan Emrich is a gaming veteran's veteran. He's done it all, from boardgames to card games, from computer games to pen and paper role-playing. Now, he's working as designer and lead writer on a title that has strategy fans drooling: Master of Orion III. Check out our most recent interview with Alan Emrich here at SharkyGames.
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Interplay Entertainment Corp. has announced that it is forming Interplay.com, a new initiative to strategically address the interactive entertainment online market. Targeting the exploding community of interactive entertainment enthusiasts, Interplay.com's primary focus will be exploiting the company's strong intellectual properties via MMPGs (massively multi-player games) and translating the increased loyalty of its fan base into revenue streams. With the exploding number of broadband customers estimated to reach nearly 15 million households by 2002, Interplay.com seeks to penetrate this market by creating an unmatched online fantasy experience.
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Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. announced today that its Rockstar Games video game publishing subsidiary shipped Oni for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system, as well as for the PC and Mac formats to domestic retailers. Oni is a third-person 3D action adventure game that, for the first time, blends hand-to-hand combat and gunplay into a single action experience.
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Segahas announced it would restructure the company to capitalize on its game content - an area that has been Sega's biggest strength for more than 40 years. In turn, Sega will unveil a three-pronged approach by becoming a platform-agnostic third party videogame publisher for game consoles, focusing on its advantage in the networked gaming arena, and becoming an architecture provider of the powerful Dreamcast chip-set technology to a range of devices including the Pace Micro Technology set-top-box. By embracing technologies including Java, Sega will also be taking advantage of different publishing channels and will deliver Sega games to Palm handheld computers and Motorola cellular phones. With this new strategy, Sega will be significantly broadening its accessibility to consumers and dramatically expanding its revenue possibilities, leading the company to a path of profitability.
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