This Wednesday, 360’s XBLA will release three classic games. Catan, Centipede and Millipede. I am not too familiar with the first game but I recall EndgameRadio describing it as this awesome board game, so who knows? I may check it out.

Catan, developed by Big Huge Games is the Xbox LIVE Arcade edition of the legendary multiplayer board game Settlers of Catan. With over 10 million units sold, Settlers of Catan is one of the most popular board games to hail from Europe, and has been translated into twenty-five languages from the original German. The game takes place on a newly discovered island, where they players vie for control of valuable territory and resources through strategy and trading. The game can be learned in just minutes, but will challenge players of all skill levels, even the experts!

Klaus Teuber, creator of the original Settlers of Catan board game, had this to say about the collaboration with Big Huge Games: “I had no doubts that Brian Reynolds would do a great job, and the first version of the game exceeded my highest expectations. The AI is so clever that I even lost several games in a row! Hands down, this game for the Xbox Live Arcade is an amazing achievement.” Catan supports up to four players online.

As for the Atari coin-op classics, they’re actually being released as a two-for-one combo. Both versions remain true to their arcade roots and feature an “enhanced” version consisting of pre-rendered, high definition graphics, special effects like motion blur, trails and particle-based explosions that make this classic as enjoyable today as it was in the arcade decades ago.

PS3IGN has released new footage of Crtierion’s highly anticipated supercharged racer, Burnout 5: Paradise coming to the PS3 (and 360 this Winter). While this is only a teaser trailer, it does give us a good glimpse of what to expect in the visual eye candy department. You can bet that many of us here at GotNext will be picking this up on Day One of its release later this fall. I should probably start dusting off my Revenge disc to keep my skills intact.

In any case, here’s the footage. Enjoy! (Thanks to GN forum member YankeeH8er for bringing this to our attention).

On April 27, 1997, an announcement was made that would shake gaming for years to come. The incredibly popular PC game Duke Nukem 3D, currently the only thing giving Doom II a run for its money, was going to get a sequel. Yes, Duke Nukem Forever was going to come out guns blazing, powered by the amazing Quake II engine. And then, a year later, a switch to the Unreal engine bumped its release date back. A few years later it moved on to the Doom 3 engine, and now it’s 2007 and the release date of “when it’s done” hasn’t changed a bit.

There’s still very little info out there on Duke Nukem Forever, even after all these years. A small handful of screens from its various stages of development, a little chatter about potential features, and… that’s it. But that’s not the important thing.

What matters is that someday there will be a Duke Nukem Forever. He’ll be back to kick ass and chew bubble gum, and I’m willing to bet the gum supply will be significantly diminished, possibly to the point of nonexistence, before he even starts. There will be big guns, big explosions, clever levels (if Prey is anything to go by), strippers, pig-cops, and snappy one-liners ripped from the best B-movies. In the meantime, though, it’s been a decade, and any impatience or hype for Duke Nukem Forever has long since died, replaced by the knowlege that it’ll be along someday and there’s no point in getting excited over things you can’t have.

So Happy 10th Anniversary, Duke! See you when you get here, but no rush.

I don’t understand.

I just don’t understand!

Pray tell, someone please explain to me why on earth the Nintendo Wii continues to sell out across the world.

What are people actually playing? And who are these people in the first place?

I own a Wii. I have played over a dozen games for it. Most of them completely stink, with the exception of Zelda, of course. Wii Sports is fun for a half an hour or so as a party game, but that’s about it. The only time I turn it on these days is for a review, since my 360 and PS3 are backlogged with tremendous games.

Other than children, I can’t possibly imagine where this is all coming from. There is not a single game that’s out for the system that has been designed exclusively for it that is remotely entertaining for more than an hour or two, and the vast majority of titles for it are PS2 and PSP ports. The best games – Zelda and Paper Mario – are built for the Gamecube, for crying out loud.

I am, and will continue to be, confused. For a long time.

Nippon Ichi Software (NIS) and its American presence, NIS America, have built a huge reputation over the past couple years as the torch-carriers for the 2D RPG fan, with Ar Tonelico recently offering a great dose of traditional, albeit excellent, action; lots of interactions with cute girls; and an item creation system that is simple and fun.

Here’s a quick look at a handful of titles coming out this year…

Aedis Eclipse: Generation of Chaos (release date: April 24, PSP). Here’s what I hope will happen, this game will rock the PSP like the previous NIS games were supposed to. We need more solid, 2D RPGs on the PSP and I’m crossing my fingers that this will be it (and we know there’s a killer app coming too, more on that below). From the site: “Long, long ago, battles were waged with blade and spell. The lush island of Aedis was constantly submerged in bloodshed. Eventually, this hatred and anger gave birth to an entity known as Mugen, which brought an end to all things. Mugen’s dark lightning scorched the land, split the earth, and shattered the vessels of life. The few survivors fled to an ancient relic, the Otherworld Tower. As they entered, some descended into the earth, while others climbed to the heavens. Some, however, still had faith in their land, and remained in Aedis. Thus has the legend this world has passed down. Now they call it a fairy tale, a mere child’s fantasy.”

Atelier Iris 3: Grand Phantasm (release date: May 29, PS2) is the 3rd in a series of alchemy RPG games by Gust. With a strong focus on item creation and good old-school battles, the 3rd time may be the charm for this great series. From the site: “Atelier Iris 3: Grand Phantasm tells the story of two young adventurers, Edge and Iris. They accidentally discover a fragment of a magical book that can grant any wish, once all 8 pieces are brought back together. On their quest to find all the pieces, they are joined by a rag-tag team of alchemists and warriors.”

Soul Nomad (release date: August 2007, PS2). Is this Disgaea 3? All kidding aside, the trailer makes this look like an awesome SRPG. From the press release: “This latest project from Nippon Ichi Software combines the infamous grid-based strategy engine of Disgaea with the deep game play of a traditional style RPG for a new and unique experience. Crime apparently pays well as players are encouraged to steal, abduct, and kick villagers in the butt to get what you want.” Consider this on my most anticipated list!

Dragoneer’s Aria (release date: summer 2007, PSP). Another PSP RPG coming our way. According to the press release: “Developed by Hit Maker, Dragoneer’s Aria takes advantage of PlayStation® Portable’s advanced hardware providing an compelling story telling with flawless transition between adventure and battles. Players can now battle enemies as a team through PlayStation® Portable’s ADHOC function. Up to 4 players can play at the same time.”

GrimGrimoire (release date: June 2007, PS2). According to the press release: “The fantasy real time strategy game (RTS) is scheduled to release in summer 2007, and is co-developed by Nippon Ichi Software and Vanillaware. In the game, players will take on the role of Lillet Blan, a young magician who is admitted to a prestigious yet mystical magic school; however, on the 5th day of school, everyone mysteriously vanishes. Lillet, awakens the next day to find out she is once again living out the first day of school; however, her memories from the previous days are intact, giving her the opportunity to solve the mysteries behind the disappearances and prevent the tragedy from occurring.” Definitely check out the trailer for this one, it looks amazing.

Disgaea PSP (release date: summer 2007, PSP). Not only is this the Disgaea we know and love, but there is additional content and a new multiplayer mode!!! According to the press release: “Gamers will now be able to play their favorite game on the go. And premiering with the North American release, Disgaea® PSP will feature a multiplayer mode, enabling players to pit their armies against each other. There will also be a brand new Geo Cube feature, which will alter the rules of battle, bringing a brand new element of strategy to the game, and spicing up player vs. player battles. A new story mode has also been added, allowing players to play as their favorite vassal.” Will this lead to perhaps some SRPG presence on Xbox Live with multiplayer? I’ve long thought the future of the 2D SRPG was on places such as Xbox Live where downloadable content would be available at intervals and where there could be human against human battles. It looks like even players who have put more than their share in to the original will have some new things to play with on the PSP version.

Note: all content taken from the NIS America website: http://www.nisamerica.com/