Wii, TMNT, And Spider-Man 3

There wasn't a whole lot of gaming news out of Comic-Con this year, but there were some interesting developments. First, LucasArts confirmed that it would develop games for all three next generation consoles - Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii. Steve Sansweet, head of fan relations at LucasArts, didn't comment on whether a Star Wars title would be one of the Wii games to be developed, though it seems likely with the synergy between the light saber and the Wii controller. Sansweet also confirmed that the planned Star Wars live action TV series would arrive sometime before 2010.

Another franchise is getting a new treatment. In addition to an animated film scheduled for release next, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) will also get a video game from Ubisoft. According to the game company, TMNT the game will be releases simultaneously with the new film next spring. Ubisoft said the game will be launched for current and next generation consoles but did not specify which particular platforms will get TMNT.

Then there was "The Darkness" - no, not that lame metal/hair band, the upcoming game based on the Top Cow Comics series. For those that aren't familiar, "The Darkness" comic book follows Jackie Estacado, a young mobster who has supernatural powers and is basically invincible unless he gets a woman pregnant (don't ask). The game adaptation is being helmed by 2K Games and game developer Starbreeze, which designed the acclaimed hit "The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay," and will be released this winter on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in February 2007. With the recently released Prey and now The Darkness, 2K Games could have two blockbuster first-person shooters to help get it and parent company Take-Two Interactive back on track.

The Darkness

Much of the attention around games last week was swallowed by the two titans of comics, Marvel and DC. Both hyped their forthcoming video games on the exhibit floor, and both games feature a grand assembly of their respective comic book heroes. Activision previewed the demo version of the new Marvel Ultimate Alliance, which is scheduled for release this fall. The game features more than 140 comic book characters (though only a few are playable), including Spider-Man, Captain America and Wolverine. Meanwhile, Warner Bros (click here for an slide show of Marvel Ultimate Alliance). Interactive and DC Comics promoted Justice League Heroes, which also boasts a huge cast of superheroes like Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman (click here for an slide show of Justice League Heroes).

As for Spider-Man, the webbed superhero got quite a bit of play at Comic-Con. Most of it centered on next year's "Spider-Man 3" movie, directed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Topher Grace, Bryce Dallas Howard and Thomas Hayden Church. Raimi presented some early footage of the film. Besides the big movie sequel, Activision also showed off not one but two Spider-Man titles: Spider-Man 3, the PC/console adaptation of the film, and Spider-Man: Battle for New York, an original title for Nintendo's Game Boy Advance and DS.