Second Bond game added to Acti lineup

The biggest publisher in the world is only getting bigger. Activision Publishing laid out its 2009 slate of game releases at a presentation for analysts yesterday, touting a lineup of 70 different SKUs in 15 different properties. (The same game appearing on three different platforms would be counted by retailers as three stock-keeping units, or SKUs.)

While most of the lineup was previously announced, there was one new title slipped into the mix. Specifically, Activison Publishing president and CEO Mike Griffith confirmed that James Bond would be returning to the gaming world in a follow-up to this year's Quantum of Solace.

While the Bond game won't have a new movie appearing alongside it, Activision is keeping up with a few other box-office blockbusters for 2009. Games like Transformers, Wolverine, Ice Age, and Monsters vs. Aliens will all be using new feature films for their source material.

Highlighting the rest of the announced lineup were a trio of new intellectual properties. Activision Publishing will premiere Bizarre Creations' "racing category killer" during the year, while Radical Entertainment's Prototype will finally make it to production and release toward the middle of the year. Rounding out the original IP will be Raven Software's sci-fi first-person shooter Singularity, which Griffith said had the "strongest concept appeal we've ever seen."

Regardless of how those titles do, Activision will still rely heavily on its established franchises. Griffith said the publisher's top six franchises alone account for more than $8 billion in annual revenues. The 2009 slate of familiar faces will feature Call of Duty, multiple Guitar Hero releases, a revamped Tony Hawk game, Wolfenstein, and Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2.