Furthering the eternal struggle between games and other forms of entertainment, a new report from research firm Verdict predicts that the UK retail revenue from video game sales will surpass that of both CDs and DVDs during 2008.

But while the Entertainment Retailers Association admits that "the games sector is having a fantastic year," it told the BBC that Verdict's estimate is a bit off.

"These figures overstate by including games hardware [but not CD or DVD hardware]," explained Entertainment Retailers Association representative Steve Redmond, echoing the industry response that emerged the last time this issue came up.

However, even with hardware sales taken out of the equation, the ERA still believes that games will "overtake video by the end of this year, but not music and video combined."

Mirroring Microsoft's efforts to bring original video programming to Xbox Live, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe today announced Shoot!, a new PlayStation Network initiative that sees Hollywood filmmakers teamed with "emerging talent."

In addition to being produced by such Hollywood talent as Jerry Bruckheimer (Pirates of the Caribbean, Flashdance) and Michael Winterbottom (24 Hour Party People), the shorts feature a number of well-known actors, such as Colin Salmon (Tomorrow Never Dies, 8.3 Minutes) and John Sessions (In The Name Of The Father, Dylan, Bitter).

According to Sony, the films were "shaped only by one of a number of words that capture the essence of PlayStation: Play, Create, Share, Connect, Discover and Challenge." The downloads will also pack behind the scenes footage.

Beginning November 13, the short films produced under Shoot! will be released as free PlayStation 3 and PSP downloads via Europe's online PlayStation Store, with the flicks then set to air on ShortsTV in January 2009.

SCE America has yet to state when or if these films will be released in North America. Read on for a description of the shorts and their talent... Read more

Universal Pictures has won the bidding war for the rights to develop a movie adaptation of an unannounced Electronic Arts franchise, rumored to be a video game based off the famous Dante's Inferno poem.

It's the second deal in just as many weeks for EA and Universal, which recently partnered the Army of Two movie. Game creator Jonathan Knight and EA VP Patrick O'Brien will be closely involved in the adaptation, according to Variety.

EA will produce the hell-centric flick with Children of Men producers Eric Newman and Marc Abraham. Both Newman and Abraham hail from Universal's Strike Entertainment, which aided in the production of Bring It On Again and the Dawn of the Dead remake.

The Dante's Inferno game and its journey through the depths of hell are expected to arrive next year on unknown platforms. A release estimate for the film was not provided.

Variety reports that Electronic Arts is working on a videogame adaptation of Dante's famous Inferno poem. Though EA has not yet officially announced such a project, it has engaged in talks with several motion picture studios about a movie tie-in.

According to Variety, Universal, Paramount, New Regency and MGM are currently submitting bids, while Warner Brothers is no longer in the race.

Other movie adaptations of EA properties in various stages of production include The Sims, Army of Two, and Mass Effect.

The game itself is expected to be released late next year.

Talking to MTV News, Chris Morgan has revealed a few tidbits about his Gears of War movie screenplay.

The movie, to be directed by Underworld and Die Hard 4 director Ken Wiseman, will center around the characters of Marcus Fenix and Dominic Santiago, and will detail "Emergence Day" - the initial alien invasion.

"I would not be interested in the movie if we weren't dealing with [Marcus and Dom]", Morgan told MTV. "I want to see those guys. I want to see 'Emergence Day.' I want to see this stuff happen."

The Gears movie will feature a mix of live action and CGI sequences, though according to Morgan, Wiseman is looking to stay away from using a lot of effects-heavy scenes. "In [Wiseman's] mind, he wants to make it as realistic as possible [...] and to blur those lines where your mind says, 'Oh, it's a big CGI film.'"

In a separate post on the MTV Movies Blog, Morgan confirmed his screenplay features plenty of the Locust Horde. Asked if we'll be seeing Corpsers, Seeders and Berserkers, Morgan answered, "If I have anything to do with it, you absolutely will. And I do, so the answer is 'Yes.'"

One of this year's best-selling Xbox 360 titles, EA Montreal's co-op action game Army of Two (PS3, 360) is getting more than a sequel--it's becoming a full-fledged movie.

Publisher Electronic Arts will be producing thefilm--a first for the company--alongside Scott Stuber, with The Bourne Ultimatum co-writer Scott Z. Burns handling the script. Variety, which broke the story, reports that Universal Pictures hopes to begin production next year.

"I told EA right off the bat I wasn't a gamer, and that appealed to them because they didn't want to simply replicate the game," explained writer Burns. "Because... Read more

Despite some intial harsh words, 3D Realms founder and original Max Payne producer Scott Miller says he is "proud of this film" and believes it is one of "the best game-to-film efforts we've seen in the industry."

"Along with the first Tomb Raider, I think it's hard to argue that Max Payne isn't one of the best two adaptations yet," he explained to Edge Online. "This kind of opening [hitting number one at the box office] brings us a lot closer to the reality of a sequel."

Following Remedy Entertainment's 2001 debut of the action-shooting series arrived, 3D Realms and Remedy sold the property to Rockstar Games, which then published the 2003 sequel and, according to Miller, attempted to stop the film.

"After they bought the IP, [Rockstar] made serious attempts, including legal, to try to prevent this movie from being made, and were non-cooperative in providing materials that would help with pre-production," he revealed.

"It's a miracle it ever reached the big screen, and a testament to the committed efforts of Scott Faye and Julie Yorn, the two lead producers," Miller added. "A book could be written on the winding hazard-filled path this project took, through different studios, scripts, and even lawsuits."

Despite panning reviews and an average rating of 3.7 / 10 on aggregate review site RottenTomatoes, the feature film adaption of the Max Payne video game series topped this weekend's North American box office by pulling in about $18 million.

According to estimates from analyst group Media By Numbers, the North American box office revenues for the weeekend's top 12 films were as follows:

1. Max Payne - $18 million
2. Beverly Hills Chihuahua - $11.2 million
3. The Secret Life of Bees - $11.05 million
4. W. - $10.55 million
5. Eagle Eye - Dreamworks and Paramount - $7.34 million
6. Body of Lies - $6.88 million
7. Quarantine - $6.3 million
8. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - $3.9 million
9. Sex Drive - $3.56 million
10. Nights in Rodanthe - $2.68 million
11. Fireproof - $2.67 million
12. The Express - $2.27 million

Reviews for the Mark Wahlberg-starring Max Payne feature film adaptation have started coming in prior to the movie's October 17 debut, and despite some earlier praise, the results aren't pretty.

"I suffered through it, and you shouldn't have to...Nobody comes out of this thing looking good," reads Latauro's Aint It Cool News review, which later labels the film as "the year's most socially reckless movie" due to a plot twist near its end.

"It's so unbelievably dull, I'm struggling to find the energy to even write about it," the reviewer said of the flick's revenge-driven story. "The slow-mo option from the game may be great in that context, but looks fucking retarded in the film."

Another review, this one from Finnish outlet Suomen Kuvalehti, compares the John Moore-directed Max Payne to a movie from reviled director Uwe Boll, noting that "the choice between [Max Payne and a Boll film] is like deciding whether you want plague or tuberculosis, but if forced, I would say yes to Boll."

Furthermore, word from FilmThreat suggests that distributor Fox is... Read more

Blizzard and Legendary Pictures' feature film adaptation of the Warcraft franchise isn't likely to arrive next year, as was once announced, though a draft of the script is done.

"I don't know about the 2009 date, but it is still something we are very excited about," Blizzard president Mike Morhaime responded when asked about the film.

"We do have a draft of a script, it isn't final," he added. "I think we still need to do a lot of work."

Chicago residents had the chance earlier today to meet up with Max Payne film stars Chris "Ludacris" Bridges and Mark "Animal Talker" Wahlberg, who were on hand to unveil local street artwork inspired by the upcoming movie.

Urban artists Zore, Rawfa, and Rogue have created three unique works in the Max Payne style that will be located throughout the city for a limited time. Wahlberg and Bridges showed up for a brief premiere of the pieces.

The exhibit was revealed at 2215 W. Lawrence Ave., between Ridgeway and Lawndale. If anyone runs across the artwork, be sure to send in pictures.

Former Gears of War film screenwriter Stuart Beattie is back at it with a Halo script, and this time he has the support of Microsoft and Bungie, the publisher and developer of the hit shooter.

"The Halo movie in its initial incarnation is dead. No one is pursuing it any more," said Beattie to GameDaily. Beattie's script, written during the Hollywood writers' strike, got Bungie's attention and the writer is now in talks with Microsoft. "I'm just a fan and I desperately want to see a Halo movie out there," he added.

Beattie, himself a gamer, thinks that appreciating the game is essential to making a successful adaptation. "You need to love the game ... I can't just adapt a game for a film unless I've played it and liked it," he commented.

The new script is based on Halo: The Fall of Reach, the novel by Eric Nylund taking place before the current trilogy of games. "[My script] sets up a world 500 years in the future and we have colonies, there's the UNSC, there's the secret Spartan training program. And you see this six-year-old kid kidnapped in the middle of the night," said Beattie.

Word that X3: The Last Stand and Rush Hour director Brett Ratner would be helming the upcoming God of War flick was not met with universal acclaim on the internet.

Now, franchise creator David Jaffe has stepped into the ring with the below video, explaining that he's very optimistic about the film based on the deity-slaying action series, which has hit PlayStation 2 and PSP with a PlayStation 3 entry in development.

Jaffe also doused conspiracies that he's pushing the film for his own gain, writing on his blog, that he doesn't "own .1% of the property in any way. Which means, no money EVER came to me- or will come to me- off the film, be it a massive hit or a massive flop. And no money has come to me from the game since I left Sony."

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Max Payne film director John Moore has won his battle with the Motion Picture Association of America to secure a financially-advantageous PG-13 rating for the movie.

The violent video game adaptation starring Mark Wahlberg had initially been rated R by the MPAA. Following the decision, director Moore used strong language in a complaint to DasGamer while arguing the R rating was unjust when comparing Max Payne to similarly intense blockbusters.

"The Motion Picture Association of America gave The Dark Knight a PG-13 rating and basically sucked Warner Bros.' cock," said Moore at the time.

After Moore and his crew "trimmed some frames more for the sake of trimming frames," the MPAA reconsidered, and the film will now make it to theaters with the friendlier rating.

The director also announced he is planning a "Gamer Dedicated Cut"... Read more

Confused as to how a watchable movie can be made out of The Sims? You're not alone.

Producer John Davis (Dr. Dolittle 2, Waterworld) is in charge of the project, and recently explained the current plot of the film to Collider. And after reading, and reading again, we still don't know what to make of it.

Davis' narrative follows:

Tom Rothman, the Chairman of Fox said to me, "How are you going to take this incredible piece of IP and make it into a movie?" Right? Because most games aren't movies, so this is the way I did it: The Sims, as you know, you can control your imaginary world, right?

And our movie, a young man, a 16 year old kid or a 14 year old kid and his friend get their hands on this thing called the Sims Infinity Pack, right, which kind of this very strange video game store which was there just for that moment, and seemingly wasn't all that. But what they realize is that they can scan their world in, because this is the... Read more

Film producer Avi Arad has bought the film rights to Bioware's cinematic Xbox 360 RPG Mass Effect, according to a report today.

"Numerous sources have confirmed that producer Avi Arad has optioned the rights," reads the report on The Cut Scene. Arad is also producing the Lost Planet movie with his new production company.

Electronic Arts, publisher of Mass Effect and owner of the intellectual property, declined to comment on the report, but the development would fit with the company's plan to generate revenue by way of Hollywood and TV tie-ins.

Arad, who brought Marvel comic book franchises like X-Men, Spider-Man and Iron Man to the silver screen, has yet to attach a director, screenplay writer, or any stars to the adaptation, if he indeed has purchased the rights.

Capcom today confirmed that Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li, the forthcoming feature film adaptation based on its acclaimed fighting series, will see a release in February 2009.

"Following the launch of the arcade video game Street Fighter IV in Summer 2009, its Hollywood movie version Street Fighter is set to be released worldwide in February 2009," reads a portion of the company's Annual Report 2008.

The February release puts the movie in close proximity to the home versions of Street Fighter IV, which are slated to hit PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 by March 31, 2009.

Starring Kristin Kreuk, Michael Clark Duncan, Neal McDonough and more, the Chun Li-focused flick, which does not include Street Fighter regulars Ken or Ryu, was written by Justin Marks and helemed by Doom film director Andrzej Bartkowiak.

Uwe Boll, the oft-reviled director behind such critically panned game-to-film adaptations as House of the Dead and Bloodrayne, has once again spoken out on the issues that afflict Hollywood.

Entitled "The Film market -- or THERE IS NO MONEY IN MOVIES," Boll's essay appears to blame the international film market for the poor performance of Bloodrayne, attacks reality television, claims that studio executives live in air balloons, and more.

"If I would run a studio I would do the same movies for half of the production costs in throwing the cokeheads out and cutting the bullshit of breakfast, lunch, and dinner meetings with idiots who never made a movie in their life," Boll claimed. "I can shoot a movie like Fantastic Four 2 in half of the time for half of the money shot by shot."

Portions of the essay, as republished by 1up, follow below:

Since 2004 the price for movies in the international film market went 85% down. With other words: a movie like my movie Bloodrayne got 2004 in Japan for example $1 million. MG and now $150,000. Mark Gill just wrote: "This time the sky is really falling!" Movies like CHE from Soderbergh or winning films from the Sundance Film festival stay ... Read more

MTV is planning to create a reality television show based off the hit music-centric video game Rock Band, according to a Craigslist casting call found by Variety.

Led by Mark Burnett, creator of reality shows Survivor and The Apprentice, the program is billed as "the first show based on the new video game Rock Band 2."

The listing calling for "four people to form their own band and show us their stuff live on stage for the chance to win the Ultimate Rock Band Experience." The four should "be prepared to rock," live within Southern California, and be at least 18 years old. No past musical experience in required.

As with the game itself, which is developed by the MTV-owned Harmonix, the four-person band has slots for a bassist, guitarist, vocalist and drummer. The revelation comes just before this Sunday's release of Rock Band 2 on Xbox 360, with PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 and Wii versions following later in the year.

Word of a Rock Band reality show follows a recent statement from Rush Hour director Brett Ratner, in which he expressed his desire to make a Guitar Hero movie.

Scott Faye, producer of the upcoming Max Payne film adaptation, is working on a Duke Nukem movie with Scott Miller, CEO of game series creator 3D Realms.

"As is the case with all of my game adaptations, I'd rather not make the movie than make a poor adaptation," Faye told Kotaku. He added, "I'm working at establishing a Duke film scenario that will compel a studio to finance a feature version. Certainly, there's a large audience that knows and loves this character."

According to the report, Miller's Radar Group will be involved in every step of the film's production. "Why go out of your way to acquire an [intellectual property] if you're not going to use as much of it as you can in the adaptation process?" Faye asked.

Details on the film were scant, but Faye promised to stay faithful to the series: "We're expanding Duke's 'storyverse' in a very significant major way without abandoning or negating any element that's being used to introduce Duke to the next gen platforms."

Faye also told Kotaku about Max Payne star Mark Wahlberg's interest in making a sequel as well as his method for video game adaptation, saying, "If I'm going to play a videogame based on a feature film, the last thing I want to do is play through the film narrative."

The Shacknews editorial staff humbly reminds readers that a Duke Nukem film is actually old news.