24 to begin countdown this fall

Following nearly a year of rumors, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has finally unveiled its adaptation of the hit television series 24. In a release to the British press, the publisher said it had signed an exclusive with Fox television for game rights to the show, with is currently in its fourth season. 24: The Game will be a PlayStation 2 exclusive and is set for a fall 2005 release.

For those unfamiliar with the program, 24 is set in real time, with each season following a hectic day in the life of federal antiterrorist agent Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland). Based on a script by one of the show's screenwriters, the game will cover another 24 hours in Bauer's stressful existence, which occurred between the second and third seasons. According to SCEE, the game will answer many questions raised by the abrupt transition between the two seasons and will also feature the voices and likenesses of Sutherland and costars Carlos Bernard and Elisha Cuthbert, who revealed the game's existence in a BBC interview.

24: The Game is being developed at SCEE's Cambridge Studio, creator of Primal and last year's Ghosthunter. The third-person shooter will feature 100 missions, including on-foot shootouts and high-speed vehicular pursuits. It will also sport stealth missions, interrogation challenges, and puzzles in the form of decoding various bits of intelligence.

GameSpot will have more information on 24: The Game as it becomes available.