Traveller's Tales are experimenting with the idea of turning their Lego success into a TV show. Apparently a 20-min Lego Batman cartoon is in the works and will use the same engine as the upcoming game. "We're looking to do... a Lego Batman series. I think they're looking at doing a one-off initially," he said. "And they're basically able to utilise the assets, because our team has brought Lego characters to life." stated Rich Earl, TT's producer. Although most of the production is being done in separate studios the engine and original files used on the game will be used for the cartoon. Very cool stuff and Legos continue to dominate my existance. [gamesindustry.biz]

Just when you think things can't get any....I don't even have a word. I'm actually at a loss on this one. Finding the right word aside - apparently there is a new type of 'Guitar Hero' coming out called Guitar Praise which is a Christian clone of the ever so popular guitar playing title. Guitar Praise, which has no affiliation with Activision's GH, allows the PC/Mac user to jam with Christian rock acts rather than mainstream bands. The company's mission, which can be found on their website along with a track list, is to 'glorify God through interactive media.' The site reads: "Grab the guitar and play along with top Christian bands! Shred those riffs or blast the bass…you add a unique sound to the solid Christian rock… you'll soon be rockin' with the best while praising the Lord!" The title will go for $99 and be released in September. And to think, not too long ago rock & roll was the devil's music. [MCV]

Apparently rumor has it that Microsoft has been in "talks" with Gearbox, the studio behind Brothers in Arms and the much anticipated Aliens: Colonial Marines, about working on Halo 4 or whatever it may be called. According to an insider close to Gearbox both parties are excited about the prospect of the project but no deals have been confirmed. Bungie as we all, should know, created all previous Halo titles but became an independant developer last October. Well if this does happen at least the reigns are being handed to a trusted team. [MCV]

Ubisoft is taking game design to the next level, no pun intended, by using satellite imagery from the Earth orbiting satellite, IKONOS, for its upcoming '09 title: Tom Clancy's HAWX. GeoEye are the owners of the satellite and have provided Ubisoft with images for 16 international locales including Rio de Janeiro, Cape Canaveral and the Middle East. "High-resolution satellite imaging is moving from the black world of intelligence to the white world of commerce and Tom Clancy's HAWX will bring that reality to gamers," said Mark Brender, vice president, corporate communications and marketing at GeoEye. "With video game graphics becoming more realistic, the use of high-quality photographic ground textures in HAWX adds true photo-realism to the air combat experience." The development team seems to be going all out for a realistic 3D representation of Earth by getting the help of the US Geological Survey and the Centre for Earth Resources Observations and Science. See satellites are not only used to spy on you. [gamesindustry.biz]

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The English Speed Metal band DragonForce, and owners of your pitiful soul, will be releasing their new single, "Heroes of Our Time", as apart of a three song track pack for GH III: Legends of Rock. This will give gamers the opportunity to download and play the track in advance of the album release. The track pack will be available for download on Xbox LIVE and PS3 on August 21. The other two songs include "Revolution Deathsquad" and "Operation Ground and Pound" from their third album Inhuman Rampage. With this new release we may actually get to see a plastic guitar melt. You can view the awesomeness that is DragonForce below...just cause. [PR Newswire / Activision]

After rumors and talks its been finally - and officially announced by 2k Games that Bioshock will be released on PS3 in North America October 21st with an international release on October 24th. The PS3 version coming after the huge success the game had on the 360 will definitely open the game to a new audience of players. According to 2k Games the PS3 version contains all new content that, "augments and extends the experience in exciting ways." Yay, PS3 getting a new title. [MCV]

A cool Wiiware I think will be overshadowed by a NES classic this week. For the WiiWare is Midnight Pool, where you travel across the country playing in a pool tournament worth millions. But as cool as that sounds in the Virtual Console is the classic hit Mega Man and some crappy golf game from the NEOGEO. Follow the link for more details.

WiiWare
Midnight Pool (Gameloft, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone-Mild Suggestive Themes, Simulated Gambling, 800 Wii Points)

Virtual Console
Mega Man (NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone-Mild Cartoon Violence, 500 Wii Points)
NEO TURF MASTERS (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 900 Wii Points)

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Warner music recently said that they should receive more on royalties from tracks on games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Well Activision Blizzard's CEO Robert Kotick thinks differently and had some comments for Warner Music. Stating that they failed to mention the benefits to music sales from Guitar Hero and that they aren't realizing the affect these games have on bringing new audiences into the market. Kotick went on to say, "I think his view was...that [Warner Music] should be compensated the way they might for a performance on iTunes. But this is an entirely different business that is very technically complex. We're going to favour those publishers that recognise and appreciate how much we can add value to their artists," and  "We're introducing a whole new group of artists to new audiences that is resulting in their iTunes downloads being exponentially higher than they would otherwise be, [as well as] new album sales and new merchandising opportunities." Basically, go f**k yourselves. The music industry's lack of vision on technology is very surprising...isn't anyone over there paying attention? [gamesindustry.biz]