PlayStation 3 owners don't need to be told this--save maybe for those who have been adrift at sea for the past couple of years--but this week's biggest release is undoubtedly Killzone 2. Trumpeted by Sony as the next big thing since its dubious unveiling at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo, Guerrilla Games' PS3-exclusive shooter has already made a positive impression on critics, and GameSpot's full review will arrive next week. For those who didn't preorder the game through GameStop, a demo is currently schedule to arrive on the PlayStation Network on February 26.
Xbox 360 gamers have an exclusive of their own to look forward to this week, though its hype is decidedly less than Killzone 2's. Square Enix will deliver the fourth proper installment in Tri-Ace's sci-fi role-playing series this week in Star Ocean: The Last Hope. The game is set after World War III and follows humankind as it makes its way into outer space.
The Nintendo DS is in for a big week as well. Ignition Entertainment will deliver the portable edition of Blue Dragon Plus, a fantasy RPG first released by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi's Mistwalker for the Xbox 360. Infinite Interactive will attempt to re-create the success of 2007's Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords with Puzzle Quest: Galactrix. Additionally, Atlus has the 3D remakes of Legacy of Ys: Books I amp; II in the queue for Nintendo's portable.
It's been a long, hard road for 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand, but the one-time Vivendi Games, now THQ-published game is ready to take to the streets. In the Xbox 360 and PS3 game, 50 Cent and his G-Unit crew dive headfirst into a Middle Eastern warzone as they attempt to collect payment from a criminal syndicate for services rendered. PC wargamers will have a chance to launch their own assault against tyrannical forces with Tom Clancy's EndWar, a voice-controlled real-time strategy game from Ubisoft.
Lastly, Capcom's Dead Rising makes its return to consoles with Chop Til You Drop for the Wii. A lower-graphics port of the well-received Xbox 360 edition, the game sees photojournalist Frank West investigating a zombie infestation at the Willamette Parkview Mall. There, he will find all manner of often-ludicrous ways to eviscerate scads of the undead.
For a full list of the week's game debuts, check out GameSpot's New Releases page.