Shippin' Out 11/27-12/1: Wii stealth, PC hobbits, portable pets

By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpotPosted Nov 27, 2006 6:02 pm PT

Gamers' wallets get a breather as the tide of AAA releases relaxes for a week; Sam Fisher sneaks onto the Wii, EA expands its Tolkien-inspired PC strategy game.

The year isn't over yet. December will play host to big-name releases like Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops for the PSP and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on the GameCube. But for now, gamers are going to get a tiny breather and a chance to catch up on whatever backlog of November releases they might have, because this week sees a sampling of interesting titles arriving in stores but few offerings that really stand out.

On the PC, real-time strategy gamers who enjoyed Electronic Arts' The Lord of the Rings, Battle for Middle-earth II can get a second helping of the game with the release of The Rise of the Witch-King expansion. The game takes place centuries before the events depicted in the recent Lord of the Rings films and puts players on the other side of the conflict, in command of the forces of evil.

The Wii gets a trio of postlaunch releases this week, led by Ubisoft's latest Sam Fisher adventure, Splinter Cell: Double Agent. Wii adaptations of the computer-animated films Barnyard and Open Season also arrive this week.

Over on the portable front, the theme of the week is all creatures great and small as a veritable menagerie of animal-themed titles hit shelves in the coming days. EA has The Sims 2: Pets for the PlayStation Portable, while the DS plays host to Hamsterz, Horsez, Catz, and even penguins with a rare game adaptation of an Academy Award-winning documentary, March of the Penguins.

This week's new releases are listed below (list taken from retailer information--actual dates may vary).

NOVEMBER 28, 2006
Cartoon Network Racing (DS)
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent (Wii)
Barbie in The 12 Dancing Princesses (PS2)
Hard Rock Casino (PS2, PSP)
Mercury Meltdown Remix (PS2)
Online Chess Kingdoms (PSP)
The Sims 2: Pets (PSP)
Hamsterz Life (DS)
Horsez(DS)
Lionel Trains On Track (DS)
March of the Penguins (DS)
Totally Spies! 2: Undercover (DS)
Xiaolin Showdown (DS)
DMZ: North Korea (PC)
Model Train 3D (PC)
The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II, The Rise of the Witch-King (PC)
Superman Returns: Fortress of Solitude (GBA)

NOVEMBER 30, 2006
Barnyard (Wii)
Open Season (Wii)
Catz (DS)

DECEMBER 1, 2006
Cartoon Network Racing (PS2)
Shrek Smash and Crash (PSP)
World Championship Poker: Featuring Howard Lederer - All In (Xbox 360)
Great Invasions (PC)
Harley-Davidson Motorcycles: Race to the Rally (PC)
Heroes of Annihilated Empires (PC)

71 Comments

  • Re_ensurer

    Posted Dec 4, 2006 1:30 pm PT

    Not too much stuff on their that suits me.

  • LordBaphomet

    Posted Dec 2, 2006 9:55 am PT

    They should stop making anime games period! God what a joke!

  • Centra

    Posted Nov 30, 2006 5:55 pm PT

    I can see double sales written all over these rel dates.

    Imagine big bikers grabing a copy of Harley Davidson Motorcycles, and a copy of shrek smash and crash.... hmmmm, I can these those 2 titles being a must buy.

  • Mush_Mouth

    Posted Nov 30, 2006 5:10 pm PT

    Wow, this is apparently "kiddie game week" coming up. If there's anything I hate more than a ton of these retarded-ass pixar-style animal movies coming out every week, it's a ton of these retarded-ass kiddie games...does anybody actually buy these??? I can't even imagine little kids wanting this crap...

  • jono128

    Posted Nov 29, 2006 7:08 pm PT

    I hope Splinter Cell Wii turns out to be pretty good. It's promising but how does the execution fair?

  • Inferno636

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 6:49 pm PT

    SWEET! 11 votes and the game is on a solid 9.0!

  • marioman50

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 4:30 pm PT

    everythings bad except for spintercell for the wii

  • PiMacleod_basic

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 3:00 pm PT

    this is a good thing. It means I have more time to play what I have now before GOOD new stuff comes out. I don't know about you guys, but I got at least 5 games I'm in the middle off.....starting another one would be silly.

  • nichtnicht

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 2:33 pm PT

    Splinter Cell 4... lets hope it looks better than on Gamecube

  • SavoyPrime

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 2:25 pm PT

    Wow, a lot of crap titles releasing this week.

  • princeofgames90

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 1:31 pm PT

    Man these titles arnt that cool

  • LivingDeadNinja

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 12:55 pm PT

    Load of crap. I wanted my Metal Slug Anthology for Wii NOW!

  • piecake

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 11:31 am PT

    only one 360 game - shame!

  • skyvader

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 11:10 am PT

    I see metal slug anthology has been pushed back......AGAIN!!!!!

  • skyvader

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 11:01 am PT

    I see metal slug anthology has been pushed back......AGAIN!!!!!

  • marco_poalo

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 9:26 am PT

    The Sims man. I can decorate my house, have my character eat, go to the bathroom and now play with my virtual pet. I could do all that stuff for real but why? Virtual pets give me that same honest and real companionship. A fake girlfriend is also just a good as the real thing. Have fun with life suckas.

  • NWA_31

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 9:18 am PT

    Cant wait for MGS: PO

  • VexRed4

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 8:55 am PT

    ehh... weak!

  • Gamepro2421

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 8:33 am PT

    lol i agree with you fartys...metal slug next week should be nice on the Wii tho

  • fartys

    Posted Nov 28, 2006 8:19 am PT

    what a terrible list of games

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