Sony has announced that its singular killer app for the PlayStation 3 is getting a bit beefier this spring in order to coincide with the game’s European launch on March 23.

According to Sony, this update will add a pair of new online modes, including Team Conversion and Assault mode. Team Conversion mode is the same gameplay mechanic as the existing Conversion mode except that gamers will play as part of a team and both teams will start off as human and have one life on each side. The Assault mode is based around the concept of attrition where the objective is to wear down an opponent’s defenses before destroying their base.

In addition, another new online feature to be added will be the spectator camera that allows players to either observe the action from the player’s point-of-view or free-roam across the entire battlefield. Sony also notes that matchmaking also will be sped up and be made more reliable, and the old radar will make a comeback as a new custom game option that will be “ideal for nostalgic players.”

But that’s not all. In May a map pack update is scheduled that will enable worldwide gameplay and allow players to purchase and download new multiplayer maps in-game. Insomniac Games has created two new maps to provide players with an “entirely different feel” from those maps that are currently available.

One of these maps is set in Westmorland, England where players will find the struggle against the Chimera continues among the snowy hills of northern Great Britain. The other map is set in Camborn, England where once again the British Resistance battles the Chimera. In Camborn, players will be able to take part in both above-ground and subterranean combat. The story behind the new maps is told as an extension of the backstory presented on [url=http://www.rfomps3.com/]the [i]Resistance: Fall of Man[/i] website[/url], and additional details will be revealed closer to the May release.

The May update also allows players to challenge each other on a global scale. Players from around the world now will be able to hop online with one another and establish new friends and potential opponents. [url=http://www.myresistance.net/]Online leaderboards[/url] will be filterable by region, and each territory will retain the ability to make announcements and hold events that are targeted to their players.

[i]Warhawk[/i] was one of the very first games to be shown for the PlayStation 3, and while the game has largely stayed off the radar since its debut at E3 2006, recent news has indicated that the game had undergone several significant changes.

First, as earlier rumored, the game will only be made available as a downloadable over the console’s online PlayStation Network service. In addition, the game will focus on multiplayer at the exclusion of any single player content. [i]Warhawk[/i] will support 32 player multiplayer gameplay, with developers commenting in an IGN interview that “phasing out the single player allows the team to really polish the multiplayer.”

“Right now we are targeting 32 players. That really is the sweet spot for our game. We’ve played with more, we’ve played with less, but 32 players is as big as we really want to go,” noted the game’s director, Dylan Jobe.

Also building upon a comment by the game’s associate producer Drew Bradford, who stated simply that “people want more,” the game will also feature a variety of ground vehicles, as well as th option to get out and run around on foot – weapon in hand – if so desired.

Traditional game modes such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and more will be featured in the game. [i]Warhawk[/i] will be released this year, and most likely will cost less than a “normal” PS3 game, though currently nothing regarding price has been discussed.

Developer Telltale Games has released a demo for [i]Sam & Max Episode 4: Abe Lincoln Must Die[/i], the latest chapter in its episodic adventure game series starring Steve Purcell’s famous comic book icons. You can download the demo [url=http://www.gamershell.com/download_18029.shtml]here[/url], though given the length of the episodes up until now, you might be better off just picking up the full thing when you can. Expect the review of the espisode soon.

While next week’s 2007 edition of the annual Game Developers Conference has never been a showpiece for Nintendo, especially in terms of consumer information, news from [url=http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/03/nintendo_no_new.html]Game|Life’s Chris Kohler[/url] indicates that this year maybe even more so thanks to an impending stock trade.

According to the report, the [url=http://ce.seekingalpha.com/article/28542]major stock deal[/url] has resulted in a gag order, preventing Nintendo attendees from revealing anything that could be constituted as new information. The event is expected to see a number Nintendo personalities, including scheduled presentations by Eiji Aonuma and Koji Kondo, as well as a keynote address by Shigeru Miyamoto on Thursday morning.

I’ll be on hand at the event, and will be sure to speak up as things happen.