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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Local distributor: EATW
International distributor: EAUK
Platform/Release: Chinese and English version for PC this week, XBOX next month
In the latest Harry Potter game, gamers take on the role of Harry, now in his third year at Hogwarts. With him are his close friends Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley. Together they use their magical skills to face off against an array of baddies considerably more fearsome than previously encountered.

Each character has special spells that reflect their personality. Hermanie, who is clever and dexterous, is able to walk on water and creep into narrow places; while Ron has a sixth sense to detect hidden enemies. Harry will need his own skills and those of his friends to survive the many adventures offered in this addition to the Harry Potter game set.

The Prisoner of Azkaban game, in both Chinese and English versions, has drawn extensively from the visuals and plot of the film and all the favorite elements such as riding dragons and even a Pegasus have been lovingly incorporated. For a little bit of light amusement, gamers can also visit the novelty shop run by the two elder Weasley brothers where they can pick up all kinds of practical jokes and novelty cards.

The early availability of the games will give gamers a peek into the movie's contents prior to its international release on June 4.

Breed 末日之戰
Local Distrubutor: Leadinia Technology
International Designer: Brat Designs in UK
Platform: English for PC, XBOX
Released last month, Breed aims to set a new standard for first person shooters (FPS) in Taiwan by dint of its powerful 3D "Mercury" game engine, which has created a battle field of 256km2 in full 3D graphics. This richly detailed background creates new combat potential and allows for unprecedented fluidity of play.

According to Leadinia Technology vice general manager Vincent Huang (黃維倫), "First person shooters are the most popular type of game in Taiwan, and for this reason we have selected Breed, which has a unique style and amazing background graphics."

The game is being launched with considerable hype, with four of Taiwan's top FPS competitors being brought in as test players of the new game. Tsen Teng-wei (曾騰緯), Taiwan's team captain at the WCG CS Final Fantasy competition said that Breed currently has no rivals as a FPS game. Halo PC World Cup Challenge Taiwan region bronze medalist Huang Yu-kuei (黃裕貴) said that combat was made more difficult by the huge game map but otherwise was superior to other FPS games on the market.

Breed has also improved the range and function of vehicles in a FPS game. Vehicles include tanks, jeeps, four-wheel drives, galactic fighters and landing craft. The three-dimensional space in which the FPS takes place allows gamers greater freedom of movement over the battle field and with changing of battle field view, the new "mercury" engine now means that there is no "read" delay, so that gamers can flow from one view to another seamlessly.

Team play is the main strength of Breed, and gamers can toggle between first and third person perspectives. There are many specializations that gamers can choose from including doctors, snipers, engineers and so on. Interaction with non-player characters is also an important feature, and there is the option for gamers to, for example, command that a vehicle be fixed so that in can be used again by other troops.

True Crime: Streets of LA 極道獵車手
Local distributor: Unalis Technology
International Distributor: Activision
Platform/Release: English for PC in June
Transplanted from game consoles to PC, True Crime brings together the three most popular game themes: shooting, action and speed. It has also enriched the original consol game with new characters, plot, props and a heavy bass sound track, and has all the atmosphere of a Hollywood feature.

The gamer plays Nick Kang, an LA detective battling Russian mafia and Chinese triads. The action takes place in a realistic LA 40km2 map. The action can switch to slow motion such as seen in a John Woo picture and there is also the opportunity to go into combat with two guns blazing.

True Crime also has a karmic element to its game structure. Merciless killings of innocents will bring retribution by making you a criminal on the lam, but doing good deeds, capturing villains and completing missions will help revive your reputation. The game offers players a high degree of freedom to choose how they play, either building up their character with visits to the shooting range or in the real action on the streets.

Another attraction of the game is the presence, both on screen and on the sound track of music idols Snoop Dogg, Alice in Chains, Queensryche, Distillers, Westside Connection (Ice Cube, Mac-10, WC) and others. This makes True Crime a heady mix of action, LA and music. Who can resist?

Shrek 2
Local Distributor: Unalis Technology
International Distributor: DreamWorks, Activision
Platform/Release: English for PC, next month
The Oscar winning Shrek has proved amazingly popular both in movie and game form, so it's hardly surprising that a sequel has emerge in both formats. Shrek 2 returns to the animated fantasy realm, but this time it brings in characters from lots of other fables and children's stories, and these characters provide rich material for fun and games.

In Shrek 2, gamers can switch between the perspective of Shrek and each of his four companions. Each can use their different abilities to overcome the many obstacles they face. If you look carefully, gamers will also find that there are segments in the game that have been omitted from the movie, giving the game version even greater variety.

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