Best New Games This Week

Unsurprisingly, after last week was dominated by the huge release of Metal Gear Solid 4, this week's release list is a little quieter. There's still great stuff on offer, though, especially if you're a PC gamer: the Spore Creature Creator gives you a taste of one of the year's most anticipated releases, and The Political Machine harks from one of our favorite indie developers, Stardock.

Top Three:

Spore Creature Creator

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Want a taste of the year's hottest PC game? From the creator of Sim City, The Sims, and other games with Sim in the title, Spore is poised to be the most epic PC game in history. It's not due to hit streets until September, but you can get a taste of it this week by downloading this free trial of the game's Creature Creator. It'll let you design your own race of unique creatures - and then import them into the full game later this year, taking them from humble beginnings amid primordial ooze all the way to intergalactic domination. Or you can just make critter after critter with butts instead of faces. You choose.

Ice Cream Dee Lites

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The weather is hotting up, so kick global warming to the curb and cool yourself down with this cartoony time-management game. You'll manage the hottest -- sorry, coldest -- ice cream parlor in town, dishing out sundaes, yogurt and milkshakes to the fussiest customers around. Can you master the Chill Mobile?

The Political Machine 2008

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Whether you're an Obama-ite or a McCainiac, get a taste of the ins and outs of political campaigning with this promising strategy game. Can you raise enough money to sustain your campaign? Are your spin doctors good enough to keep you ahead in the polls? Will you prevail in those all-important TV debates? The Political Machine lets you take on AI opponents or hop online to face down human contenders. Plus, it comes from Stardock, the indie publisher responsible for the surprise hit Sins of a Solar Empire. Think of it as the Ron Paul of this week's gaming releases - a quirky maverick, packed with niche appeal and of immense interest to today's political junkies. Let's hope - unlike Paul - it stays the distance.

Best of the Rest

• Deadliest Catch: Alaskan Storm:
  Run your own crab boat, and tackle tremendous odds. As seen on TV.
• Space Invaders Extreme:
  Classic arcade action, re-imagined for today's portable platforms.
• Secret Agent Clank:
  The name's Clank. Uh, just Clank. Ratchet's longtime buddy gets his own game on the PSP.
• Wacky Races: Crash & Dash:
  Muttley! Do something!