BAM! Entertainment
www.bam4fun.com

BAM! was showing off some impressive new titles in the more quiet and relaxing upstairs meeting rooms at the show. There were about six new titles on display, most of which were cross-platform titles, but there were also a few system-specific titles that looked really impressive.

Carmen Sandiego (PS2/GameCube)
I've been playing Carmen games since they first released on floppy disks. The Carmen Sandiego series paved the way for multimedia CD-ROM games in the early 90's and our super sleuth has traveled the world, through time, and even into space.

This next-gen version of Carmen reinvents the series, taking it into the world of 3D and giving it a more adventureous feel. Your will explore nine different locations on five continents as you search for missing (or perhaps stolen) ancient African treasures. Carmen will be sticking around ACME headquarters for this missions, and Cole Gannon, the best special agent ever trained, will be the one you are actually playing the game with.

There will be plenty of mind-bending puzzles, along with action and adventure elements. Carmen is targeted toward kids and while not being marketed as an "educational" product will still teach kids history, geography, and general logic and puzzle solving skills. The game is designed in such a way that kids will learn without realizing they are learning. Look for the great family title later this year on the PS2 and GameCube.

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Ice Nine (PS2)
In Ice Nine you play as Tom Carter, CIA rookie that is assigned to thwart the theft and deployment of the Ice Nine virus. This virus, unlike a normal computer virus can be spread through ordinary power lines. It is capable of massive damage through disabling the power centers of any city chosen as a target.

Ice Nine takes place in first person mode, the player will not only have access to gadgets such as bugs and a high-tech PDA but also heavy ballistic equipment such as rocket launchers and remote mines. The player is also able to take on many disguises in the course of the game, from enemies he has neutralized.

Mission briefings are supplied at the beginning of each mission, and also updated mid-mission as the scenario changes to reflect the players’ decisions. If you have a USB headset you can hear your orders during the mission just like real agents. It adds an additional level of authenticity to the game.

Ice Nine rounds out the action/stealth package with excellent enemy AI, realistic physics, and two plot paths (CIA Operative or rogue agent) giving the title extra replay value and a unique perspective. The action takes place across 12 large and distinctive levels where you will encounter more than 15 types of enemies. Discover the secrets of Ice Nine in June 2003.

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Wallace & Gromit (PS2/Xbox/GameCube)
Fans of the movie Chicken Run are going to love this. Wallace & Gromit is the original stop-motion animated series from the UK that is going to take the US console gaming market by storm this October with its classic visual design that blends stop-motion style with next-gen CG graphics.

Wallace & Gromit is an action adventure where the player has to liberate the zoo from the evil clutches of the maniacal penguin “Feathers McGraw”. Feathers wants to make diamonds - lots of diamonds, and he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his dream. The diabolical penguin has incarcerated all the baby animals in order to persuade their parents to do his bidding and manufacture gems using the incredible diamond-o-matic. Wallace and Gromit have smelled the fishy presence of Feathers and have developed an elaborate plan to infiltrate his domain. And so the mighty duo construct a clever plan to defeat Feathers.

The player directly controls Gromit, the lovable action hero dog, with Wallace providing predictive hints and humorous interjections. Gromit must collect all sorts of machine parts, nuts and bolts, etc. (much like Ratchet & Clank) then Wallace can build useful inventions to help Gromit advance further into the game. With 24 missions, 12 mini-games, and all sorts of loveable characters this is going to be a game that the entire family will love.

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