LEGO Universe will let gamers have a hand in literally building their in-game universe. Although LEGO games (LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Indiana Jones, LEGO Batman) have been popular on consoles, this is the first LEGO MMO.

The game will bring the LEGO play experience online, encouraging creativity and collaboration between fans all over the world. Within LEGO Universe, players will be able to create, build, quest and socialize together. As LEGO avatars, of course.

In LEGO Universe, players will be able to build anything from LEGO bricks, including their own avatar. Buying bricks and building involves "money," of course, but in a very LEGO sense: the game's currency is plastic, with players them use to buy bricks. Players can also find bricks in the persistent world, gain them by defeating enemies and completing challenges, or discover them a la treasure.

Lego Universe will be released for PC in 2009.

We have the first pieces of concept art from the game, as you can see below. You can click any of the

Electronic Arts today announced details to latest incarnation in the popular The Sims franchise, The Sims 3. The major features of this new incarnation include a new "neighborhood," which will allow Sims to greater explore their environment along with a revamped personality system. EA also confirmed that The Sims 3 is expected to launch globally in 2009.

In Sims 3, the virtual people will have more complex personalities and the game will have "endless creative possibilities." Click to see brand new Sims 3 screenshots...

"In The Sims 3, Sims can go beyond the boundaries of their home lot, and immerse themselves in an open, living neighborhood, interacting with other Sims using our new deeper personality system," said Rod Humble, Head of The Sims Studio. "It is this type of open-ended gameplay that inspires endless creative possibilities. In addition the new goals and rewards systems will give players of all kinds from core gamers to storytellers the ability to enjoy long-term gameplay."

"The new engine and technologies in The Sims 3 are designed to unleash the player's imagination with realistic looking Sims who have distinct personal