Thought last week's game releases were a bit on the sparse side? This week should brighten you up especially if you own a Nintendo Wii or a Sony PlayStation Portable. A handful of releases have come out on each platform to keep owners busy. The Nintendo DS, as usual, has another crop of light games, while next-generation consoles Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360 also have something to share. What exactly? See for yourself in this week's list.

* Article originally posted Dec 03, 2007 at 12:10AM

For those of us itching for more musclebound protagonist action, Ubisoft's Beowulf for the Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PlayStation Portable, Microsoft Xbox 360, and PC is here to satisfy your primal urges. No, not that primal urge - more like the one that involves lots of grunting, slashing, tearing, ripping, and gouging (as well as the requisite arm snap or two), and we see it in action in this latest launch trailer of the game.

See the video at the full article.

Those who have been itching for more Beowulf (PS3, 360, PC, PSP) goodies, today's you lucky day. We've got a some eye candy and some audio sweetness for you. Composers Sascha Dikiciyan and Cris Velasco teamed up to create the soundtrack of the game - providing us with the proper background music for playing as the mythical hero, Beowulf. We also have a logo and a screenshot of the title character.

Better check out the Beowulf goodies while they're hot.

Ray Winstone will be lending his theatrical talents to the character of Beowulf, both for the upcoming Paramount film, and for his computer-generated form on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Windows PC, and Xbox 360. Voicing a video game character's a relatively new experience for him apparently, as he revealed in a video showing a routine recording session. You can view the video in the full article.

What we have here today are a couple of screenshots and gameplay videos for the upcoming video game Beowulf. Beowulf is being developed by Ubisoft for platforms PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Games for Windows, and PlayStation Portable. The game is expected to launch later this month to coincide with the release of the film.

Being an adaptation of the Beowulf movie by Robert Zemeckis, the video game revolves around the same set of characters, events, and locations. It was confirmed in an earlier report that the actors who will be appearing in the film, such as Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins, will be lending their voices for the game.

While the movie has been rated PG-13, the video game title will be carrying an M rating due to some disturbing images, violence, and sexual material. One such example of the last is the inclusion of the nude virtual image of Angelina Jolie. The designer explained that they could not removed such scenes because it is very much part of the story.

See the other screenshots and the videos after the jump!

Angelina Jolie's voice may not have made it into Ubisoft's movie tie-in Beowulf (to the utter disappointment of some fans, of course), but there's some good news to all testosterone-laden gamers: Jolie's naked virtual self has been added into the game version of Beowulf (for the Xbox 360, PS3, PSP, Windows PC).

Beowulf's narrative designer Gabrielle Shrager explained that there was no way that they can exclude the nudity from the game, since it was integral to the game's storyline. Said Shrager:

There is much sexual innuendo in the game, because the Faustian character who is Grendel's mother goes about getting you to sign the dirty deal with her by using her extremely tempting body. So you have that aspect of it and there's definitely no way around it. It's a very, very important part of it.

Shrager also said that Jolie was supposed to lend her voice into the game just like her co-actors Anthony Hopkins and Sebastian Roche, but the plan did not push through due to scheduling issues.

While Beowulf from Ubisoft is shaping up into its own brand of hack-'n-slash goodness for the Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Windows PC, and PSP, it's inevitable that it'll be compared to similar games in the genre, such as SCEA's God of War. This doesn't appear to worry Beowulf scriptwriter Gabrielle Shrager, who stated that the game would be darker, grittier, and more interactive then even the PS2's premier Greek adventure.

As Shrager elaborated during an interview:

Not to tout my own horn, but I think the writing is better and the narration is more profound in Beowulf than in God of War, which is a great story also, but more traditional. You have a level, you get to the end of the scene, there's a character that's standing there, gives the spiel and then you go to the next mission, and then you get to the end of that and then you get the spiel. We tried to make it a lot more dynamic. Our script is completely dynamic. You're getting minute by minute feedback according to what your status is, the state of your being as a player. You don't have that in God of War. So maybe it's more interactive in Beowulf.

Shrager further elaborated that compared to GoW, Beowulf would carry a tighter camera system. This is expected to give players a more up-close-and-personal encounter as they navigate both Beowulf (your character) and his fellow thanes through the fields of combat.

For the guys who'd like to see if Shrager's indeed on the mark with her statements, you'll want to wait for the game's scheduled launch this November. Make sure to see the movie too.

The game adaptation of the upcoming Beowulf movie will take the authenticity route like many other movie to game conversions. Ubisoft Entertainment has announced that Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins, Emmy Award winner Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson, and Sebastien Roche will be featured in voice and likeness in Ubisoft's Beowulf (Sony PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Microsoft Windows PC, Microsoft Xbox 360).

To extend the story two dozen decades further than the movie's plot, Anthony Hopkins (Red Dragon, Amistad) will take on the role of King Hrothgar, while Ray Winstone (Cold Mountain, King Arthur) will embody the player as Beowulf. The role of Wiglaf will be taken up by Brendan Gleeson (Harry Potter, 28 Days Later), and the character of Wulfgar (Christian) shall be Sebastien Roche's undertaking.

The Beowulf video game is currently under development by Ubisoft's Tiwak Studios in cooperation with Shangri-La Entertainment and Paramount Pictures, and this news would appear to herald the near-completion of the game development process. Beowulf's release will coincide with the premiere of Academy Award winner Robert Zemeckis' render of the tales of a legendary Viking hero, soon to be released on November 2007.

Buy: [ Beowulf (Xbox 360) ]
Buy: [ Beowulf (PC) ]
Buy: [ Beowulf (PlayStation 3) ]
Buy: [ Beowulf (PSP) ]

The latest trailer for Beowulf (PS3, 360, PC, PSP) is out and it doesn't look like they're sparing us from the blood and gore we saw in the movie trailer. It may even be bloodier. Beowulf is based on the new movie by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary and is due to be out in November, in time with the movie's release.

The trailer is titled "The Forge," placing special emphasis on a particular sword. The cinematics are excellent, probably at par with the graphics in the movie trailer. In case you were wondering, the movie is in full 3D. Check out the game's trailer below.

Buy: [Beowulf (Xbox 360)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PC)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PlayStation 3)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PSP)]

After an attempt to bring The Sandman to the screen, Neil Gaiman (of Stardust) and Roger Avary (of Silent Hill) set out to create an adaptation of Beowulf for the big screen. The movie inspired the game of the same name that will be released for the PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360, and the PC (and just recently, also the PSP).

If the trailer is anything to judge by, the movie will be absolutely stunning (and that's not to mention Angelina Jolie wearing nothing but mud). Featuring a stellar cast in their full 3D glory, including Anthony Hopkins, John Malkovich, Crispin Glover and (of course), Angelina Jolie, the movie is set to be released in the US this November 16, with Beowulf video games released during the same period.

Buy: [Beowulf (Xbox 360)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PC)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PlayStation 3)]
Buy: [Beowulf (PSP)]