Spore is being kept locked down on the show floor, available for preview only to members of the "Best in Show" committee, but there is still some information available for the rest of us. The official Spore site is now available for your examination, including an option to sign up for a newsletter. For hands on impressions, we turn to Gamespot and Gamespy. From the Gamespy article: "The game opens within the primordial soup, which absolutely teemed with blobs and squiggles of prehistoric life. As your creature evolved into a 3D environment and swam around in the sea, the water swarmed with life: plants, bubbles, little microorganisms. That same detail carried out once your critter walked out onto the land, where tiny insects buzzed around. Outer space was cluttered with comets, meteorites, gas clouds, and all sorts of interstellar phenomenon. Visually the game is a treat, not from state-of-the-art graphics but simply from a standpoint of detail and variety." Update: 05/20 15:43 GMT by Z : Wired has an interview with Wright at the expo on the game and what it means for gaming in general.

The ever churning E3 information mill has revealed details on several upcoming Massive game titles. MMORPG.com has details on Ring of Ryzom, the first expansion for Nevraxs' massive game. Gamespot has details on NCSoft's Tabula Rasa and Cryptic Studios' City of Villains, as well as the new Everquest II content Spirit of Splitpaw and Desert of Flames. Update: 05/20 14:52 GMT by Z : Age of Conan and The Lord of the Rings Online have also been shown off on the expo floor.

GamesIndustry.biz has the word that Final Fantasy XI, as it will appear on the Xbox 360 console, will be a straight port of the title with no proposed graphics upgrade. From the article: "The company also revealed that Final Fantasy XI was originally in development for the current generation Xbox console, but that an agreement couldn't be reached with Microsoft that would allow Square Enix to implement its custom PlayOnline online gaming service on Xbox Live. The restrictions on this have been eased significantly with the Xbox 360, the firm's spokespeople explained, and players will log into PlayOnline in order to play FFXI, not the Live service."

Gamasutra has word that the Human Head/3D Realms title Prey will be digitally distributed in a manner similar to the Steam service, though not over Steam itself. The Game xStream service, the chosen distribution channel, seems to offer improvements over Steam as well as convenience. From the article: "Gamers will be able to pre-order and pre-load Prey onto their hard drives, ready for instant activation and play upon the official release date...Or, after the official release, players will be able to buy the game and begin playing in minutes, as if the full game was already downloaded. This is what sets Game xStream apart from anything else the industry has seen."

Hironobu Sakaguchi elaborated for an issue of Famitsu, and Gamespot reports, on the two upcoming 360 titles that he's been involved with. He discusses details on Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey, cluing already interested fans into the bad news that it will be quite a while before they get a chance to take the titles home. From the article: "Sakaguchi revealed that one of the two role-playing games is slated for release within a year from the console's launch, and the other is scheduled to follow within two years. However, he didn't disclose which game would be coming out first."

Via the Guardian GamesBlog, a BoingBoing post with an interesting posit. Will the Revolution allow owners to run their own code on the machine? From the article: "...the world of consoles that only ran signed code was a nice racket while it lasted, but at the end of the day, needing to get permission to run software on your own device sucks and devices that let anyone write software for them get more valuable as more people write more code for them." A nice idea, but not too likely in my opinion.

Xesdeeni writes "According to The Register and MacWorld, TDK has unveiled a Blu-Ray DVD with four layers that will hold a whopping 100 GB of data. This is shortly after the previously reported HD-DVD announced three-layer HD-DVD that would hold a "mere" 45 GB. Unfortunately, this is also on the heels of the news that the HD DVD unification talks have stalled."

The Ico sequel Shadow of the Colossus has been showing its stuff on the expo floor since the doors opened on Wednesday. IGN, Gamespot, and Gamespy have looks at the upcoming title. From the Gamespy article: "Following the light from your sword will allow you to locate a colossus, but that doesn't mean your approach will be without difficulty. While Ico was focused on a castle, Shadow is focused on the wider world and its natural features." Update: 05/19 23:40 GMT by Z : 1up.com has a look at the game as well.

GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that the backwards compatibility that Microsoft offered up at the Monday press conference may not be anything approaching what we're used to. Due to the massive design changes in the shift from the Xbox to the 360, Xbox titles may have to be recompiled in order to work on the next-gen console. From the article: "The news has raised more questions than it answers, however, as it suggests that gamers may need to purchase titles they already own in order to play them on an Xbox 360 - and almost certainly means that only a sub-set of Xbox games will ever be playable on the new console." Update: 05/20 15:08 GMT by Z : The article has been updated with a quote from MS specifically saying that gamers will *not* need to repurchase Xbox titles to play them on the 360.

Mythic Studios, developers of Dark Age of Camelot and Imperator, has announced that Warhammer Online will resume development under their auspices. The deceased massive game was supposed to be back in production at independent studio Climax, but from the announcement on the official Warhammer site it seems clear that Mythic is now running the show. From the article: "Mythic Entertainment, developer and publisher of massively-multiplayer online role-playing games including Dark Age of Camelot and the upcoming Imperator today announced that they have secured the exclusive worldwide, rights to create massively multiplayer online games for PC and console set in the fantasy world of Warhammer created by Nottingham, UK-based Games Workshop Group PLC. The first game based upon the dark, medieval world of Warhammer will be released on PC in 2007." No word yet on a title, or whether this new game will be using any of the concepts, art, or code from the original development cycle.

cyrus_zuo writes "Take a break from the E3 world and look at what happened in the Indie world in April. Game Tunnel has posted its April Indie Game Round-Up, covering 15 Independent games that were released since the March Round-Up. While there has not yet been an Editor's Choice winner this year, April featured 6 Gold award winners (average score of 8/10), the same number as had been awarded during the first three months of the year combined! As always it is full of opinions from the illustrious panel of Seth Robinson (Legend of the Red Dragon), Mike Hommel (Dr. Lunatic) and Mike Kasprzak (Sykhronics) on each of the games."

The first day of E3 has wrested loose new information from Blizzard about its newer games, and they have a page up with dedicated links to the new content. World of Warcraft is sporting new trailers, wallpaper, screenshots, and a nice look at the capture-the-flag style Warsong Gulch Battleground. Meanwhile, Gabe and Tycho have allowed Nova out of the house, giving Blizz the opportunity to put up a new Starcraft:Ghost web site. The site contains a bevy of gameplay information, including multiplayer combat, psi powers, weaponry, vehicles, wallpapers, screens, art, and trailers. Update: 05/19 08:50 GMT by Z : Gamespot has some hands-on impressions of Ghost for you to check out.

The Guardian Gamesblog has a point by point breakdown of the Xbox 360 and PS3 spec sheets, comparing and contrasting the two consoles based on what we know about them so far. In the end, they come to the rational conclusion that for gamers what will end up deciding the battle is the gameplay. From the article: "We've pretty well reached the point of complexity with dual analogue sticks, analogue triggers and four face buttons, so while you can expect to see more content in terms of things happening, not much originality was on display. Gameplay advances will come from peripherals and Sony really showed that off with their kooky EyeToy games. Nothing wrong with controlling two bondage-clad Japanese spy chicks via videoconfering in my mind :)"

The first day of the E3 show is netting hands-on impressions of some of the most anticipated games of the upcoming year. 1up.com is offering up impressions for the New Super Mario Bros. title for the DS, and We Love Katamari for the PS2. Gamespot has a hands on with the upcoming Firaxis/2K title Civilization IV. Feel the Sid Meier love. From the article: "Civ 4 will finally update the series to a 3D engine. Firaxis is using an updated version of the Gamebryo engine that was used in last year's Sid Meier's Pirates. And yes, the early screens looked a bit muddled, but the game looks a lot cleaner and more beautiful now and in person. You can zoom out and see the entire world (presented as a rotating globe) and see continents, mountain ranges, and forests."

Steve Ballmer, cheerleader for all things Microsoft, was candid and reflective during the first official day of the expo. Gamespot has coverage of the one hour rap session he held with journalists, discussing game demos, the positioning of the 360, and their rivalry with Sony. From the article: "He voluntarily reflected on the poor pre-release showing the company gave the first-gen Xbox, calling those early demos 'a disaster.' Threaded through his comments in the freeform discussion were constant references to what the company must do to better its performance in the console wars with the Xbox 360." Update: 05/18 21:31 GMT by Z : Helps if I actually link to the article, huh? Interview with Ballmer up on Engadget, as well.

Yesterday's Nintendo press conference was probably the most subdued and honest of the three major events this week. While they didn't have anything really earth-shattering to offer up, the Gameboy Micro, the Revolution's game-downloading capabilities, and the new Zelda Trailer were all welcome news from a company that has been very quiet of late. Commentary, photos, and speculation available from: Nintendo, Engadget, USAToday, GamesIndustry.biz, 1up.com, Gamespot, Cube.IGN, NYT, BBC, Gamasutra, and CNN. Specific coverage on the new Gameboy Micro is available from Gamasutra, GamesIndustry.biz, and CNN. My two cents about Nintendo's conference are available below.

GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that the Grand Theft Auto series will see its first foray onto the PSP this Autumn with the title of Liberty City Stories. On a cuter note, Gamespot has word that the Lemmings will be a PSP title sometime later this year. From the article: "Currently in development at Team 17, the PSP version of Lemmings will feature both classic and all-new levels, and will also let you create your own that can be shared with friends. Sony also plans to release its own downloadable content for the game, including new themes and levels." Ahh, fond gamer memories.

Jakhel writes "IGN has up an article on PS3 pricing information. Apparently it comes straight from Sony officials. From the article: 'According an article published in the May 17th edition of Japan's Mainichi Shimbun, the PlayStation 3 could be one of the most expensive mass-market videogame consoles ever created. Officials from Sony apparently told the newspaper that PlayStation 3s would sell in Japan for "less than 50,000 yen each." That translates to about $465 US dollars.' So I guess they will be around $464.99 in the U.S. (plus tax of course). Granted, it does come with DVD Hi Def support out of the box, but is that enough to justify it's nearly $500 pricetag?" Commentary on this development available at GamesIndustry.biz as well.

Konami's press conference had lots of good news for the Metal Gear Solid fan, reports Gamespot. Three new MGS titles are currently in the works for this and the next generation of consoles. Metal Gear Solid 4 will see the light on Sony's next console, the Playstation 3. Metal Gear Acid 2 is already in development for the PSP, and in the spirit of many of the past MGS titles, Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence will offer a remix of the original Snake Eater experience. From the article: "...this content will likely appeal to many who have already played Snake Eater. Foremost, it will feature online multiplayer action, with Kojima saying his team was aiming for a maximum of eight players. The online portion will sport two modes: 'Snake vs. Enemies,' where multiple players hunt down one opponent and 'Team Battle' with multiple players fighting cooperatively."

eToyChest is reporting that there are two new Castlevania titles coming to the current generation of consoles. Castlevania: Curse of Darkness will be released on the Xbox and the PS2, while Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow will see the dual lights of the DS. From the article: "While past Castlevania games have focused on the struggle between Dracula and the Belmont clan, Curse of Darkness introduces players to an entirely new storyline and main character - Hector, a Devil Forgemaster, and former Lieutenant of Dracula. Told in true Castlevania style by award winning producer Koji Igarashi, this action-packed tale of betrayal and revenge takes players on a journey through an expansive world filled with formidable foes and beautifully rendered environments to the ruins of Dracula's castle."