Release This!: Mario Party 8, Forza 2, Shadowrun Blast Off

Gamasutra's regular round-up of worldwide video game releases, "Release This!", takes a look at every game title we know to be shipping to stores this week, in an exclusively compiled list. Mario Party 8 and Forza Motorsport 2 headline as this week's most prominent U.S. releases, and Europe will soon enjoy an exclusive look at Tomb Raider: Anniversary. The Xbox 360 and PC releases of Shadowrun are also expected to perform well in both regions, while Japan sets its sights on Miru Chikara o Jissen de Kitaeru, Guilty Gear XX Accent Core, and the Wii port of Biohazard 4. The following list covers all of the game software we know to be available -- across all platforms and regions -- for the week ending June 2nd, 2007. Games Released in the United States:

The United States will see a plethora of interesting new releases across several platforms this week, with anticipated titles like Mario Party 8, Forza Motorsport 2, and Shadowrun competing for the lion's share of attention among gamers in the coming days. According to a recent issue of its The Industry Record newsletter, GamerMetrics predicts Forza Motorsport 2 to sell upwards of 550,000 copies during its first two months of release, as evidenced by particularly high awareness and purchase intent exhibited by its users over the last several months. The Xbox 360 version of Shadowrun is another popular choice among IGN users, and is expected to move between 150,000 and 200,000 units by the end of June. The release outlook brings news of a number of other potential winners as well. The PSP 2D/3D hybrid puzzler Crush will soon see a U.S. release after debuting to a warm critical reception in Europe, and the Zombies Ate My Neighbors-inspired Monster Madness: Battle for Suburbia will likely find a receptive audience on the Xbox 360 and PCs. RPG fanatics aren't left in the cold, either, as Atelier Iris 3: Grand Phantasm is generating positive buzz and anticipation among followers of the popular Gust-developed series. Games Released in Europe:

Europe's lineup for this week may initially seem lacking in comparison to previous weeks, though a select few standout titles will likely pull in big sales numbers in the next several days. The awaited Tomb Raider remake Tomb Raider: Anniversary will make its European debut a few days in advance of its U.S. release this week, and both the PS2 and PC versions are generating significant preorder interest at Amazon.co.uk. Shadowrun likewise has piqued the curiosity of gamers in both regions, and could be one of the week's biggest sales winners in the U.S. and overseas. Games Released in Japan:

Few titles make a strong impression among this week's Japanese offerings, with a glut of pachinko sims, text-based adventure titles, and budget releases composing the bulk of what is largely an uninteresting release lineup. Miru Chikara o Jissen de Kitaeru rises to the top as this week's most-preordered upcoming title across all platforms at Amazon.co.jp, with Guilty Gear XX Accent Core and the Wii port of Biohazard 4 trailing close behind. Otherwise, importers and Japanese gamers alike exhibit little interest in any of this week's debuting titles. Whether next week will be any different remains to be seen, though the current outlook indicates that many publishers are waiting until the end of June to release their biggest titles.