On May 23rd the new TrackMania United Forever will be released in the stores. Today a new trailer shows off some of the new cars and the seven new environments.

Codemasters has secured the exclusive video game rights to Formula 1 it was announced today. In a worldwide licensing agreement with Formula One Administration Limited, Codemasters will develop a new generation of the multi-million selling F1 game franchise across multiple platforms.

“Formula 1 is ambitious in expanding its reach with more circuits planned beyond recent additions in the Middle East and China. It is also ambitious in expanding its reach via technology. The digital communities that computer and video gaming creates will play a key role in further growing the Formula 1 audience and connecting them globally,” said Rod Cousens, chief executive officer, Codemasters.

“As a world-leading creator of driving games, this alliance with Formula 1 is the jewel in Codemasters’ racing crown and creates an undisputed segment champion. Formula 1 has gone with the best, the segment leader. It has gone to the home of the EGO Engine for quality; it has gone to the company that can host Formula 1 Online, to the company that is streaking away from the pack.”

“Codemasters’ success and recent innovations in the racing game space makes the company more than appropriately tuned for the challenge,” said Chris Deering, chairman, Codemasters. “The combination of Formula 1’s new momentum of expansion and Codemasters’ contemporary technology and past experience is the breaking of a new dawn for the sport, on the track and on the HD game screen.”

The worldwide deal provides Codemasters with rights to feature all Grand Prix circuits, Formula 1 teams, cars, and driver likenesses.

The FIA Formula One World Championship games will be developed using the evolution of the award-winning EGO Game Technology Engine, Codemasters’ highly versatile cross-platform middleware technology. Its advanced graphics and physics technology brings an unmatched cinematic quality and realism to interactive entertainment.

The EGO Engine is currently being deployed in the creation of Race Driver: GRID, the latest in Codemasters Studio’s international circuit-based racing series. Set to be a landmark release when it launches on May 30th, Race Driver: GRID was recently hailed as “The driving game of the summer” by BBC Top Gear magazine.

The estimated price of the F1 licence is at over $75 million.

A brand new BMW 3-Series car will be the ultimate champion’s reward as Codemasters today revealed an incredible pan-European fastest lap challenge to mark the launch of the Race Driver: GRID™ playable demo for home consoles.

The demo is now available to download from Xbox Live Marketplace for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft® and is available later today from the PlayStation Network for the PS3 system.

For the game that’s all about the race, the Race Driver: GRID™ playable demo delivers intense competition right from the off as gamers compete in single-player GRID World events, 12-player online races and then prove their worth in the white-knuckle Time Trial competition, which is home to the fastest lap challenge. Pitting all console players against each other, it’s the Time Trial results that will see one race driver getting the keys to the BMW.

With a BMW 3-Series car up for grabs, the competition is sure to be fierce from the start, so download the demo and then get revved up for the full aggressive wheel-to-wheel Race Driver: GRID experience, coming May 30th for Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3 system and Games for Windows; a Nintendo DS™ edition of the game is set to launch in June.