APRIL FOOL’S! We apologize. Come on, today’s a funny day.

Ruffian Games, a recently formed studio consisting of ex-RealTime Worlds developers, has announced their studios first project this morning. SLAM is described as an “RPG taken to the future day streets” where players will take control of Dexter (artwork above), a young fighter from SLAM, a crew from Jilared out to protect the streets from thugs and criminals out to take advantage of the collapsing society and economy.

Ruffian Studio Head, Gaz Liddon, said “SLAM is our new approach to the RPG. It’s making an amazing start for Ruffian… Our ideas for a new type of RPG are finally coming to be realized. Dexter is sure to make an impression on the world, but we don’t want to go giving out too many plot details, as our story is one like you’ve never seen in any other RPG.”

SLAM will feature an active-time battle system, fully-customizable weaponry ranging from swords to guns to knives to objects, a level cap of fifty, and twenty-two fully detailed cities set to take the world by storm. Players will be able to drive vehicles ranging from the car to the aircraft, and partake in mini-games such as basketball. Liddon tells us that “tagging” is to have a major influence in SLAM.

SLAM is set to release on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC in Q4 2009.