Dreams Are Dead

2007-12-11T13:03:00.000Z

Non-gaming: Birthday boy!

Whoah 19 already! That was a year? It went quickly. So, I thought you might be interested to know what I got, and I got some pretty sweet stuff really. Here goes:

Black Nintendo DS console, Mario DS carry case, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Mario Kart DS, Animal Crossing: Wild World, Assassins Creed, Tomb Raider Anniversary, God of War, Shawn of the Dead DVD, Bruce Almighty DVD, Spiderman choccies, and money...phew! :)

Not very varied but a lot of games, which is no bad thing- and I haven't bought many games at all this year.

As for the website, I must admit it looks a little neglected right now [pause: arwww.] Rest assured that new life will soon be breathed into it, with a re-design and perhaps a new url. I'll keep you posted.

2007-10-23T01:29:00.000+01:00

Update: I'm still here!

You will no doubt be wondering- 'where the hell are the new articles?' Well unfortunately I have been incredibly busy in recent weeks and have simply not managed to keep the site constantly updated as normal. That is not to say however that I have had my attention diverted and I do plan to upload the backlog of articles this week and normal service shall also resume. No worries!

2007-10-02T22:22:00.001+01:00

News: Bungie and Microsoft to split?

Are Bungie and Microsoft officially ending their long running partnership? Rumours are gaining real momentum on the Internet that this could be the case. It seems hard to believe doesn't it, though if the rumours are to be believed- Bungie wants to move on from Halo and Microsoft want them to simply continue with the AAA franchise. Another rumour is claiming that Bungie will indeed leave MS, though allowing MS first refusal to publish it's future titles.

The slight problem with this is that Microsoft in fact actually owns the studio, so the only way that a split could occur is if Microsoft agreed to sell it. It seems unlikely, but stranger things have happened. The other slight oddity with these rumours is that if you've now finished Halo 3, you will know why it would be strange for Bungie to jump ship. Oh, and just in case you were wondering, Microsoft fully owns Halo- so there's absolutely no possibility of seeing any Halo games on any other system.

Both Microsoft and Bungie are yet to comment.

2007-09-26T21:46:00.000+01:00

News: Finish the fight!

Halo 3 hit store shelves across the UK and Europe today and sales have apparently gone through the roof! In the US, where the game launched yesterday, the game has already racked up sales of USD 170 million! The game has also been received by highly favourable reviews, receiving a 9.5 from IGN and Gamespot, and a 10 from Eurogamer. The reviews average currently stands at 95.3% after 32 filed reviews. Anyway, I'm back off to play! More on Halo 3 soon.

2007-09-19T16:03:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Update

Both Sega's all-time classic masterpiece Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Eidos' Geon are now available for you to add to your arcade collection. Sonic 2 is downloadable for a price of just 400 MSP and is an absolute must- any old Sega fans will tell you exactly the truth about this game, that it is truly one of the best games ever created. Geon can be yours for 800 MSP.

2007-09-17T15:59:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3- Believe

With Halo 3 now just 9 days away, Microsoft have started their advertising campaign with 2 new trailers entitled 'Believe.' The first trailer can be downloaded from Xbox Live Marketplace at just 10 MB. The second, and longer, trailer can be viewed right here and will be shown on television for the first time tomorrow evening between the Champions League football action on ITV1.

Microsoft are believed to have spent over USD 10 million on advertising for Halo 3, but as the game is expected to make more money on it's first day on sale than any other previously released video game or film on it's opening weekend, I'm sure they aren't too concerned about it.

Halo 3 will be released here in the UK (and Europe) on September 26th, with those lucky lot in the US-of-A getting it a day earlier.

2007-09-13T00:18:00.002+01:00

News: Ninja Gaiden II announced!

Listen up Ninja Dogs/Lesser Ninjas/Greater Ninjas/Head Ninjas/Master Ninjas- Tecmo have officially unveiled the sequel to one of the greatest (and toughest) games of all time- Ninja Gaiden II. The game was announced at Microsoft's pre-TGS (Tokyo game show) through a fairly short teaser trailer. No release date was announced, nor were any further details- all we know is that Ninja Gaiden II is coming and it's coming on Xbox 360! The trailer is now available to download from Xbox Live Marketplace.

2007-09-05T19:54:00.000+01:00

News: Latest news...

The Gears of War 'Hidden Fronts' multiplayer map pack is now available to download for free

A new in-game demonstration of Ensemble Studios' (Age of Empires) Halo Wars can be downloaded from Xbox Live Marketplace

Both Midway's Cyberball 2072 (400 MSP) and SNK Playmore's Fatal Fury Special (400 MSP) were released on Xbox Live Arcade

2007-08-31T00:06:00.000+01:00

News: Xbox Live Arcade half price sale

The generous folk over at Microsoft (stop sniggering you) have decided to offer us a small selection of discounted arcade games this weekend. For a 48 hours period between 12:00 GMT on Sunday September 2 and 00:00 GMT on September 3, gamers can pick up any of the following titles for half price. Be quick to avoid the virtual ques.

Small Arms- 400 MSP (normally 800 MSP)
Zuma Deluxe- 400 MSP (normally 800 MSP)
Gauntlet- 200 MSP (normally 400 MSP)
Dig Dug- 200 MSP (normally 400 MSP)

2007-08-30T23:42:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Timeshift demo

Remember Timeshift anyone? Timeshift was a title originally scheduled for release last year, but following poor write-ups, generally abysmal feedback on the OXM demo, and even the developers themselves starting to question the game- Timeshift was pretty much scrapped...though not completely. Through the Ashes rises, the new Timeshift- which is practically unrecognisable from that bloody awful demo last year.

Timeshift essentially allows you to control the flow of time- (stop, reverse, slow) in your very hands. Well I suppose it's a handy skill to have! Having an assortment of futuristic weaponry at your disposal can't be too bad either. Can Vivendi Universal get it right this time around?

Size: 582 MB.

2007-08-29T23:22:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: This week's releases...

This week we have both Capcom's Puzzle Fighter HD and Sega's Streets of Rage 2 fighting it out for our virtual coins. Puzzle Fighter HD brings together the worlds of Street Fighter, Darkstalkers, and other Capcom characters in a game of puzzle mayhem- with both a singleplayer mode and multiplayer mode either locally or over Xbox Live. The full version is now available for 800 MSP.

Streets of Rage 2 meanwhile is a remake of the old Genesis side-scrolling beat'em'up classic. Besides the usual singleplayer, the game also supports multiplayer for 2 players either locally or over Xbox Live. 400 MSP and it's yours.

2007-08-28T22:44:00.000+01:00

News: Bioshock gets number 1

Bioshock has, not too surprisingly, gone straight in at number 1 in the UK all formats chart this week- with the Xbox 360 accounting for 88% of the sales and 12% on Windows, while in the separate formats chart the Xbox 360 version came out at number 1, with the Windows version at 4. As if that wasn't enough, it was also announced that Bioshock has become the 2nd fastest selling Xbox 360 game of all time (behind Gears of War.)

All in all, quite a successful week for Bioshock then, especially when you also consider the rave reviews the game received leading up to it's release- giving it an average review score of 96.1% officially making it the 4th highest rated game of all time. The team at 2K have got to be pleased with that!

2007-08-25T18:06:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Medal of Honor Airborne demo

EA have today released a demo for the upcoming Medal of Honor Airborne, and yes...it is Saturday. In Airborne you play as a member of the airborne division in the US army during WWII, allowing you to take to the skies and land practically anywhere within the given area and take on mission objectives from any angle. The demo is sized at 972.84 MB and allows gamers to take on the first 4 objectives of Operation Husky. Medal of Honor Airborne will be released on September 7th.

2007-08-25T02:00:00.000+01:00

News: Bioshock out now!

The first of this year's 'killer apps' is now available from all good video game stores, and some rubbish ones too...probably. Is it as good as they say? In short, yes, infact it's a bloody masterpiece but you'll have to wait for the full review to find out exactly what I thought of it. Let me play the darn game first will ya!?

2007-08-22T22:24:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Available now...

This week gamers looking for the latest arcade thrill can enjoy two new titles with Street Trace NYC and Space Giraffe now available. Street Trace is combat racing where you must fire up your customised hover board and take out other combatants in a variety of battle arenas in this brutal and dangerous new sport. The full version of Street Trace can be downloaded for 800 MSP.

Space Giraffe on the other hand is best explained as an ever-so-slightly bizarre 2D shooter. Heck, I don't know how to explain in any more detail than that! The Giraffe says 400 MSP and a bag of leaves to you good sir.

2007-08-20T23:19:00.000+01:00

News: Price cut for UK and Europe

Following on from the announcement a few weeks back that the Xbox 360 was to receive new lower price points in the US, Microsoft have kindly offered us lot over the old pond a similar deal. The new pricing structure will be effective from Friday which also nicely co-insides with the release of the new Xbox 360 Elite and Bioshock.

Xbox 360 Elite: GBP 299.99
Xbox 360 Premium: GBP 249.99 (-30)
Xbox 360 Core: GBP 179.99 (-20)

Microsoft also announced that a stand alone 120GB HDD will cost GBP 129.99.

2007-08-15T23:24:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Hexic and Ecco

Microsoft's Hexic 2 and Sega's classic Ecco the Dolphin are this week's Xbox Live Arcade offerings. Hexic 2 follows on from the successful original title, which comes pre-loaded on the Xbox 360 HDD, and adds new special pieces, new formations, and new game modes- and take the battle online with Xbox Live. Hexic 2 is unfortunately not priced as generously as it's predecessor at 800 MSP.

Ecco the Dolphin meanwhile has been re-worked for Live Arcade; you must help Ecco find his friends by exploring the vast ocean world. Ecco is available for 400 MSP.

2007-08-15T12:41:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 new weapons!

Want to know about two new weapons for Halo 3? Well both the flame thrower and incendary grenades will make it in to the final build. With the flame thrower, you will view the action from a 3rd person perspective and it contains nine 3 second bursts with a range of up to 44 feet. As for the incendary grenades, they will burn on the ground for up to 4.5 seconds. Toasty. Things are certainly 'hotting' up as we count down the remaining 5 weeks to release.

2007-08-13T16:03:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Bioshock demo

A demo for 2K games' highly anticipated first person action adventure Bioshock has been released and is ready to download from the Xbox Live Marketplace- I'm sure you can find 1.35GB of free space on that (no doubt) almost full HDD of yours. Problems with my broadband are preventing me from downloading it, imagine how long it'd take on a 100kbps line...yeah, that's right...it doesn't bare thinking about. So what you waiting for, go get it! Explore Rapture, take down a Big Daddy, harvest some ADAM...oh and let me know how it is!

Bioshock is released this month on August 24th with both a standard edition and limited edition available, exclusively for Xbox 360 and Games for Windows.

2007-08-10T21:32:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 reaches milestone

Microsoft announced today that pre-orders of the Xbox 360's highly anticipated flagship title Halo 3 have exceeded 1 million in the US. That's quite a lot really. Halo 3 will be released on September 26th, with 3 different versions available- though it is expected that the legendary edition will sell out with pre-orders alone. If you haven't already pre-ordered your copy (you really should have) then do so now to avoid day 1 disappointment.

2007-08-07T19:31:00.000+01:00

News: US 360 gets price cut

Those folk over the pond have been treated to an official price cut, with no word yet on a similar deal for Europe. The price cut will come in to effect from August 8th onwards. The new pricing structure will be as follows:

Xbox 360 Elite: $499.99 (-$30)
Xbox 360 Premium: $349.99 (-$50)
Xbox 360 Core:$279.99 (-$20)
Xbox 360 Premium (Halo 3 Special Edition): $399.99

Those hoping for a similar announcement over here should keep an eye on the 2007 Leipzig Games Convention between 23rd-26th August.

2007-08-07T19:17:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade: August line-up

Track & Field will be this week's Xbox Live Arcade release, though fortunately Microsoft have also announced an advanced schedule for games headed to Arcade this month to soften the blow. Gamers can also expect to play Puzzle Quest, Space Giraffe, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, Ecco the Dolphin, Hexic 2, War World, Geon: Emotions and Streets of Rage before the month is out. As for Track & Field, you can waste 400 MSP if-you-so-wish.

2007-08-01T02:48:00.001+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: This week...

For the fourth week in a row 2 new xbox live arcade titles will dual wield us right in the face with Bungie's classic FPS, Marathon, and the slightly more boring offering, Spyglass Board Games.

In Marathon, ported to the arcade by developer Freeverse, you are humanity's sole survivor; you must explore an alien planet and discover it's secrets, using the usual array of weaponry. Xbox Live and Split-screen multiplayer is also included. Marathon will be available for 800 MSP.

Spyglass Board Games will be available for 400 MSP and includes all the classic board games you would expect including Chess, Checkers, and Draughts. The game also supports the Xbox Live Vision Camera.

Both games should be available to download from the usual time of 08:00 GMT.

2007-07-31T23:37:00.000+01:00

News: Bungie tells us what we want to hear

Bungie confirmed today that we will indeed be able to play Halo 3's campaign co-operatively over Xbox Live, or system link with up to 4 players (and 2 players in split screen) ending months of speculation.

"We’ve been playing it for quite some time, and bluntly, having some of our greatest ever Halo experiences" say Bungie. "Apart from the horrifying network challenges this new mode presented us, were the various gameplay balance issues it adds to the fray. So we got it all together, polished it, and that’s why we’re revealing it now. As a result, you’re going to want to play co-op as hard as you can stomach it. We’d certainly recommend Legendary, but we’ll be revealing some more ways to make the game more interesting and challenging for multiple players in the very near future."

Players will not just play as a bunch of Master Chief Clones (as in previous Halo games) either. Player 1 will take control, of course, of the Master Chief, with player 2 controlling the Arbiter. Players 3 and 4 will play as 2 new Elite Characters called N’tho ‘Sraom and Usze ‘Taham.

Well done to Bungie for making this happen! Get your assault rifles and bubble shields ready for September 26th!

2007-07-26T13:42:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Resident Evil 5 trailer

The full trailer (approx 140 MB) for the next installment in Capcom's survival horror series, Resident Evil 5, can now be found at Xbox Live Marketplace. The trailer shows Chris Redfield (Resident Evil, Resident Evil: Code Veronica) seemingly investigating unusual goings on within an African Village, the inhabitants of which appear to be controlled and infected with some sort of virus. From the trailer we see two figures holding down a male villager who looks to be infected with something, eyes bleeding, he lunges towards Chris.

Gameplay looks rather similar to that of Resi 4, though we are promised some innovations- such as how Chris must adjust to light. Stay out in the heat and bright sun light for too long and vision may soon become blurred.

Resident Evil is one of my favourite game series of all time, so I'm obviously looking quite forward to this. Resident Evil 5 is due out sometime next year.

2007-07-25T00:50:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: On Arcade this week...

Konami's classic side-scrolling shooter, Super Contra, is now available to download for 400 MSP. The game features single play, aswell as a co-op mode which can be played locally on one console, or over Xbox Live. Be warned however, any Contra veteran will tell you of the games' pretty fierce difficulty level.

Also available this week is EA's Wing Commander: Arena, a multiplayer space combat game- featuring online multiplayer for up to 16 players, 8 maps, and 18 ships. The weaponry is pretty devastating too including mines, homing missiles, energy weapons, cloaking devices, and lots of other space-age gadgetry. Wing Commander is available for 800 MSP.

2007-07-23T17:22:00.000+01:00

Non-gaming: Photos from Rome

Want to see some of the photos we took in Rome? Of course you do. You can head to my photobucket account to view them, including a rather sizable (3L) bottle of JD- you know it was tempting but at €120- as if I had enough!

2007-07-23T15:50:00.000+01:00

News: Old news is still news, right?

I'm now back from Rome, which is a truely beautiful place btw, and feeling completely refreshed. I'm thinking the site could do with an update though- just a brief one- then we can move on.

Peter Moore has left Microsoft to take up his new role as the head of EA Sports. He will be replaced by Don Mattrick, himself having previously worked for EA
A demo for the Darkness can now be found on Xbox Live Marketplace- it's a massive 1.3 GB though
On Xbox Live Arcade you can now download both Bomberman Live (800 MSP) and Yie Ar Kung-Fu (400 MSP)
There will be no X07 event, instead the UK will get it's own show at a TBD date before Christmas
There may not be online co-op play for Halo 3 according to Bungie. The decision as to whether the game will support it is still yet to be made.
Retailers have priced the Xbox 360 Elite at £329.99

2007-07-14T00:22:00.000+01:00

Non-gaming: Off to Rome!

Come Sunday, I'll be off to Rome for 5 days with my girlfriend- so there will obviously be no new articles on the site until next Friday. I'm of course very much looking forward to it...should be fun! Take care guys!

Modifica: (that's Italian for edit :-) Im in Rome right now, using the laptop in our hotel- only 10 euros for 2 hours too! It's really beautiful but ridicolously hot! We've seen lots of places including the Colloseum, the Vatican, and the Trevi Fountain. Our flight back is tomorrow morning so I'll no doubt update the site then. Take it easy!

2007-07-13T22:47:00.000+01:00

Feature: E3 '07

So now E3 '07 is over, how do things look?

Xbox 360:

Microsoft showed a very strong line-up of games, choosing to focus more on this year, than on next. The exclusives headed our way before the end of the year include Bioshock, Mass Effect, and of course- Halo 3. Each of these games look to be really killer apps for Xbox 360, and should ensure a hugely successful year. There are also the multiformat games- like Assassins Creed (which looked incredible in the live gameplay.) Obviously, this is also coming out on the PS3 too- but with the Xbox 360 arguably being the cheaper machine, consumers looking at a new console with multiformat games- Xbox 360 probably wins that one.

What was also great about Microsoft's showing was clear announcements for Europe, in fact I'm sure they were the only ones to actually mention Europe at all- we know you love us MS. Video Marketplace will be a great addition to our Xbox Live service, and we are finally getting the Xbox 360 Elite.

Well done Microsoft. Awesome showing! Oh- and thanks for showing a new Resident Evil 5 trailer! :D

Wii:

Well, I won't lie to you- Nintendo disappointed me. After that showing, I'm becoming quite disillusioned with Ninty. Don't get me wrong- I love a bit of Nintendo, and we know they don't release that many games- but that what they do release is usually quality. Well- I think Wii Fit says it all. What the fuck is that?

Nintendo are clearly selling a hell of a lot of Wii consoles at the moment. However, what they claim is a good thing (attracting previously non-gamers) I now believe is a bad one. A lot of these people that were non-gamers before they purchased a Wii are still non-gamers now. Why? Because they are buying it for such things as Wii Play or Wii Sports...and no doubt next year when Wii Fit hits. These are essentially, 'non-games' and they're gimmicks, nothing more, nothing less. Where are the games Nintendo? You know? Games? Yes Mario Galaxy looks fantastic, but will it even make this year in Europe?

Maybe if they spent less time on gimmicks like Wii Sports or Wii Fit they could announce some really good stuff, much needed exclusive third party titles and some new first party IPs. Super Mario Galaxy should be one of the years best games though, although I'm not liking the direction Nintendo are going right now.

Playstation 3:

I felt Sony really had to impress here, and guess what? They did just that. On the back of this, I now want a PS3. The PS3 has a few decent exclusives lined up this year, including Heavenly Sword- and how stunning does that look? Sony also have a temporarily exclusive on Free Radical's Haze and the announcement that Unreal Tournament III will also be a timed exclusive to shout about. As for next year, I of course must mention Metal Gear Solid 4. The trailer Hideo Kojima.san showed was just breath taking. Playstation Home was another highlight for me. The scope and depth of it is amazing and technically very impressive.

The one disappointment I did have was that there was no price cut for Europe. Sure, we now get greater value for the £425 we pay, but that is not a price cut. I'll take it though, it's not bad- but I would have preferred a price cut, as I'm sure many of you would agree. £300 and then being free to choose your own games would have been ideal.

Summary:

Both Microsoft and Sony kicked ass this year, with Nintendo unfortunately lagging in casual land...too casual me thinks. For Xbox 360 and PS3 owners, prepare for some seriously awesome gaming, both this year and the beginning on next. Nintendo fans, enjoy Mario Galaxy, though I'm worried for what awaits after.

2007-07-13T22:31:00.000+01:00

News: Backwards compatability update- July

Microsoft have once again very nicely updated the list of original Xbox games that will work on the Xbox 360. For those of you who enjoy this feature, you can now play 55 more games than before. To download the update you can either pop in a compatable game and download it from Xbox Live or burn the update to a disk. For a full list of compatable games, head to xbox.com (US list.)

2007-07-13T22:08:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Bringing it home 07 update

With the last day of E3 comes the last day of the bringing it home content. Just a few things were added today including a demo of the new Harry Potter game, a couple of new trailers, and the last four parts of the Microsoft press conference. A fairly uninteresting campaign really, with none of the demos being particularly decent- although nearly all the trailers shown at E3 are available to download, as well as the Microsoft conference in full. Was it really just wishful thinking to hope for a demo of...oh say...Assassins Creed...or Bioshock...or Mass Effect? :-(

2007-07-13T00:20:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Bringing it home 07 update

More content is now available to download as part of the E3 bringing it home campaign. A couple of new demos are out, including Stuntman Ignition, as well as a few more game trailers for titles such as Assassins Creed, Blacksite, and Army of Two. You can also now download the first six parts of the Microsoft E3 press conference.

2007-07-11T18:26:00.000+01:00

Feature: E3 Live

So we've now seen what Microsoft and Nintendo have to offer, and at about 7.30 it will be the turn of Sony to impress. Now, let's hear about that price cut!

Tretton is showing off 'Home' and walking around 'Home Square' using his very own avatar
Talking about PS2 and it's 118m installed base worldwide- pretty impressive really
Showing off Home again now. In his apartment
New PSP will come available in September- 33% lighter, 19% slimmer
2 million registered users worldwide on the PSN
Showing a few various titles now such as Wipeout HD, Warhawk, and Socom Confrontation
Both Warhawk and Socom will be available to download from Sony Store and available on blu-ray disk
Showing Home (again.) They're quite proud of it aren't they? It looks great though
Talking about the new 80GB PS3
Talking about recent price cut in the US...and what about the UK?
Showing off a new Haze trailer, which is temporarily PS3 exclusive. Lovely stuff!
Oh wow. Unreal Tournament III confirmed as a PS3 exclusive...this year. Showing a trailer now
Showing a 3rd party games montage
Hideo Kojima walks on stage- its MGS4 time!
Showing new trailer. Crikey Bob! Awesome! It looks like in-game footage. The game will have a simultainious worldwide release, Spring 08
Now we're seeing a Heavenly Sword trailer. Looks superb!
Showing a new Killzone 2 trailer and it's in-game
No price cut for us in the UK, eh?

That's it. Again, not many surprises, but some really impressive stuff on show. I now want a Playstation 3! Still no price cut for the UK though.

Edit: Sony have now announced that they are infact not issuing a price cut for the UK and Europe. However, what they are doing is offering a new 'starter pack' which contains the console, a second sixaxis controller, and 2 games from a selection of 5 first part titles (Resistance: Fall of Man, Motorstorm, Genji: Days of the Blade, Formula One Championship Edition and Ridge Racer 7) all for the current price of the stand alone console, which is £425.

2007-07-11T16:51:00.001+01:00

Feature: E3 Live

Things are about to get a bit Nintendo Stylee round here soon as Nintendo steps up to deliver it's E3 press conference, which should start in around 10 minutes now. After this morning's strong, yet unsurprising performance from Microsoft- what will Nintendo give us?

"Nintendo is not a fad, it's the future" says Reggie
DS has sold over 60m worldwide
Showing new controller 'Wii Zapper'
Showing how the Wii Zapper works with Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles
Wii Zapper will be available for only $19.99, and will be packaged with software
Showing Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword for DS
Super Smash Bros Brawl will launch in the US on Dec 3rd
Showing Zelda: Phantom Hourglass on DS.
Playing Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
A new Wii Channel is on the way called 'Check me out' to do with Wii Miis
Mario Kart for Wii coming Q1 08- and it's online!
New controller coming with Mario Kart- the 'Wii Wheel'
Showing Mario Galaxy- looks very nice. Will be available November 12th
Announcing 'Wii Fit' and it is used with another new controller- the 'Wii Balance Board'

And that's it from Nintendo. Not too many surprises then. Mario Galaxy looks really good, but we already knew that. A little disappointed overall- not much new to shout about, other than Mario Kart Wii- which should be good.

2007-07-11T15:57:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Bringing it home 07 update

A whole host of content has now worked it's way on to the Xbox Live Marketplace including a Blue Dragon demo, new trailers for Halo 3, Too Human and Mass Effect, and that short Halo clip from Bungie and Neill Blomkamp entitled 'Arms Race.' There are also a few new gamer pic packs and themes. As for Xbox Live Arcade, as mentioned last night, both Sonic the Hedgehog and Golden Axe from Sega are now available to download for 400 MSP each.

2007-07-11T04:19:00.000+01:00

Feature: E3 Live

Things are due to get under way in just about 10 minutes now. Announcements will be made, trailers will be shown, and rumours/speculation will be answered [Ed- does Peter Moore have a new tattoo?]

Peter Moore promises "the greatest holiday line-up in video game history."
Mass Effect new trailer- looking good!
Moore comparing console and software sales- 5.6m Xbox 360, 2.8m Wii, 1.4m PS3 (in US.)
Showing a games montage- some good stuff in there (Assassins Creed, Bioshock, Mass Effect, etc- oh, and a new Crash Bandicoot game! [Ed- I played them as a kid, ok!?])
Showing a new controller- a new family title called 'scene it?'
Xbox Live has reached 7 million members- impressive!
Showing a Live Arcade montage
Sonic and Golden Axe available tonight on Xbox Live Arcade! Nice!
Huge selection of Disney movies coming to Video Marketplace, and available to download- tonight all in HD. All Disney movies from now on will come to Video Marketplace
Europe will get Video Marketplace this 'Fall.' Autumn then
We will also get Xbox 360 Elite on August 24th
Call of Duty 4 in-game singleplayer gameplay being played by 2 guys from Infinity Ward. An online multiplayer beta is planned exclusively for 360
A new Resident Evil 5 trailer! Oh hell yes! On July 26th the full version will be on Marketplace
Jade Raymond is playing Assassins Creed. Man this looks good!
We just saw a short action clip of Halo, created by Neill Blomkamp and Bungie
A new Special Edition Halo 3 Xbox 360 console will launch worldwide in September
Lastly, we're shown a new Halo 3 singleplayer trailer. Wowzers!

So there we go. Some good stuff announced today, though little in terms of surprises or new game announcements. All reaction will follow tomorrow, but for now...I'm off to bed!

2007-07-10T19:10:00.000+01:00

Feature: E3 2007
Just a little snippet to let you know that Microsoft's E3 press conference will be held at 4:30am GMT tomorrow and I'll be here watching events as they unfold live at xbox.com and reporting all the announcements back here as they happen in quick, easily digestable bullet points. Bring it on!

2007-07-05T23:58:00.000+01:00

News: Microsoft extends warranty program

Microsoft has finally admitted that Xbox 360 consoles have indeed had significant problems with reliability in the form of an open letter written by Peter Moore. Microsoft have announced that they are extending the warranty program on all Xbox 360 consoles worldwide to 3 years from the date of purchase, and that they will refund anyone who already had the three red lights of death and had to pay for a system repair. "Microsoft stands behind its products and takes responsibility to ensure that every Xbox 360 console owner continues to have a fantastic gaming experience" says Moore."If we have let any of you down in the experience you have had with your Xbox 360, we sincerely apologize." After having 3 faulty consoles myself, and now on my 4th, at least I don't have to worry about that anymore.

2007-07-03T15:23:00.000+01:00

News: E3- Bringing it Home '07

E3 will once again get beamed directly to living rooms around the world as Microsoft announced that they are to repeat last year's successful Bringing it Home campaign for E3 '07. Game demos, trailers, themes, and gamer pictures are all promised, though they aren't confirming which games will actually be playable. The E3 content will be released between Tuesday 10th July and Friday 13th [Ed- ahh!] July. The action starts on 10th July with Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference at 8.30pm PDT which is 4.30am GMT. Of course, I'll be giving you all the details and my reactions to all the new announcements, and letting you know as and when new content appears on Live.

2007-07-03T15:10:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Missile Command

Atari's classic arcade game, Missile Command, is to be this weeks Xbox Live Arcade title- ported over by Stainless games and will cost 400 MSP. The game has obviously been given a new graphical style along with enhanced music and audio effects, and of course you can always play in old 'classic' style. As usual the game will go live at around 8am GMT.

2007-06-29T13:19:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: GTA IV

The second trailer for Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto IV can now be downloaded from Xbox Live Marketplace in HD, entitled 'Looking For That Special Someone.' In the trailer, which is just over a minute long, we see protagonist Niko Bellic in a variety of scenes- claiming 'we are all looking for that special someone.' At one point a woman pleads with him 'please! no more killing!' In addition, Rockstar have released gamer pictures and a theme- which of course are free. In other GTA news, Rockstar have announced details on the special edition version of the game- which will retail for $89.99 (UK/EUR price TBC) in the States. The game itself will come in a safety deposit box. You'll also get an art book, Rockstar Games keychain, Rockstar Games duffel bag and soundtrack CD.

2007-06-26T23:19:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Carcassonne

Carcassonne will be this week's Xbox Live Arcade game, available tomorrow for 800 MSP; a tactical strategy game about annexing the medieval countryside. The game features a step by step tutorial, teaching you to play the game in minutes. Once you're feeling confident with your skills, you can take them online in 5 player games and you can even dust off and make use of the Xbox Live Vision Camera. Carcassonne will be available from 8am GMT tomorrow.

2007-06-20T15:45:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 achievements unveiled

Microsoft have very nicely released the full list of achievements for Halo 3, with 49 to unlock worth a total of 1000 gamerscore. Most points are handed out for completing the singleplayer campaign- each level has it's own achievement, and there's achievements for completing the game on normal, heroic and legendary difficulties. 125 points are up for grabs when playing ranked multiplayer modes over Xbox Live- 3 achievements for reaching recruit, sergeant and corporal ranking, as well as achievements for completing various feats which are all worth 5 points each. For the full list of achievements, head here.

2007-06-18T23:34:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Band of Bugs

Maal, an unhappy bug who needs meaning and structure to his life, he joins the royal army under command by the battle hardened mantis warrior, Tiernan. Maal is then put on a quest to save the queen and the kingdom. Yes, it's an odd one. In this turn based tactics game, you can play through the story based campaign and other stand alone missions, aswell as three multiplayer modes- Elimination, Escape, and Capture. Band of Bugs features 50 levels and also includes a level editor to create your custom scenarios and play them either solo or over Xbox Live. Band of Bugs will be available to download this Wednesday for 800 MSP.

2007-06-18T23:15:00.000+01:00

News: Take-Two nets a cool $50,000,000

The Grand Theft Auto series means series bucks to the gaming industry- Microsoft recognises this. Following the news a few days ago that the downloadable episodic content for the forth coming Grand Theft Auto IV will be exclusive to the Xbox 360, well now we know why. Microsoft was willing to smash the piggy bank and pay top dollar to ensure this system selling title on Xbox 360 will be the version to own- no less than $50,000,000. Apparently, the first $25m is for the first episodic content package, coming in March 2008. The other $25m is for the second package, which will be available later in fiscal 2008. Wow. Just wow.

2007-06-18T12:25:00.000+01:00

News: Tomb Raider Anniversary

Eidos have announced that they are indeed working on a Xbox 360 version of Tomb Raider: Anniversary Edition, which will be released as downloadable bonus content for Tomb Raider: Legend. The content will come in a series of episodes, four in fact, with the first two being released along side a training mission 'Croft Mansion.' Episodes three and four will apparently be released shortly after. The content will be available from Marketplace sometime in September and will cost 2400 (GBP 20.40/EUR 28.00) MSP for all four episodes. Eidos also plans to release a full retail version of the game later this year. Great news for us Tomb Raider fans then, though don't you think it's a tad expensive for a download?

2007-06-13T22:04:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 peripherals

To co-inside with the release of the most anticipated game for 2007, Microsoft have announced that they are to release Halo 3 themed peripherals- 2 wireless controllers and a wireless headset. These will each retail for USD $59.99 and be available in the US from September 4th. Unfortunately, no European release has yet been announced. Well, if all else fails- you could always import. I particularly like the look of the Master Chief controller.

2007-06-11T18:15:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Prince of Persia Classic

Prince of Persia will be this week's new Xbox Live Arcade game; a remake of the classic side-scrolling adventure. The Game is more than just a simple port however with new enhanced visuals and new puzzles, traps, and enemies to add further challenge to the original classic. Prince of Persia will be available this Wednesday for 800 MSP. I can't wait to start swording things up!

2007-06-10T20:02:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 box art revealed!

While the packaging for the legendary edition was revealed some time ago, Bungie have now shown off what the final packaging and box art will be for both the standard and special edition versions. The regular edition obviously just comes as it is, the game disk with the usual instruction manual. The Special Edition will come with special extras which will be a bestiarum book and an interactive bonus disk. The most expensive version, the legendary edition, will come with all the above plus a third bonus disk and all comes in a nice shiny replica spartan helmet. Behold- the final box art designs! Don't they look lovely?

2007-06-08T17:59:00.000+01:00

Demo Impressions: Shadowrun

Shadowrun from Fasa studios aims to bring something different to the largely populated FPS genre by combining shooting, magic, and tech gear- while at the same time enraging the classic Shadowrun RTS fans.

For the most part, Fasa is successful with this, giving us a fun, fast paced team shooter with loads of cool magic abilities and tech equipment to make use of. Gamers must choose their race depending on which suits their style of play best. The full game has 4 character classes, Elfs, Dwarfs, Trolls, and Humans, with only the Elfs and the Humans playable in the demo. The Elf is fast and re-generates health when not being damaged, however is weaker than other character classes whereas the human is kind of the all-rounder, you know not really amazing at any particular thing, nor weak at any particular thing.

The game uses a Counter Strike-esq feature at the beginning of each round whereby you can spend your hard earned battle cash on weapons, magic, and tech, or buy one of your team mates a gift. You earn cash as you play each round by killing enemies, securing/defending the artifact, reviving fallen team mates, or basically anything that helps your team.

The weapons themselves are quite the expected selection- there's the Pistol, SMG, Rifle, Shotgun, Sniper- oh and there's a Katana too! Weapons not featured in the game are both the Minigun and the Rocket Launcher. Unfortunately the shooting isn't nearly as satisfying as either magic or tech usage is. This is mainly down to accuracy levels and the aiming mechanic. As you run, turn, jump, or shoot- your target reticule grows larger to a certain point (the size of which depends on which weapon you are using) making you gradually more inaccurate. This is probably necessary in order to balance the PC and Xbox 360 versions, with PC users probably being given an even larger 'reticule bloom' however it just seems to make the weapons feel terribly inaccurate at times. Was a FPS really the best idea for a cross-platform title when having to resort to this sort of thing in order to balance?

Now for Shadowrun's biggest appeal- the magic. Magic is extremely satisfying in Shadowrun, and as you become more skilled with it's usage, you appreciate just how crucial it can be to use wisely and skillfully to secure your team's victory. There are 7 abilities in total. Teleport allows you to move yourself in any direction you want through solid objects, you can use it to quickly accend a floor or teleport through a wall for example. Gust lets you blow enemies back, while Strangle lets you protect and block of a specific area and slow the enemy down. Smoke makes you invunerable to damage and harder to see, Revive enables you to bring team mates back from the dead, and the Tree of Life can be used to plant down a healing tree which can be used both to heal and as cover. Lastly Summon which allows you to summon minions to help destroy the enemy. Sadly you never get to use either Summon or Smoke in the demo.

Tech is equally as important in Shadowrun, and equally as fun to use! The 6 tech abilities are grenades, enhanced vision which lets you see enemies through solid objects, the glider which is awesome and lets you glide around the map. Smartlink gives you enhanced aiming, Wired Reflexes allow you to move and reload faster, and Anti Magic Generators which enable you to destroy magic and essence sources within the device radius. Both Wired Reflexes and Anti Magic Generators are unavailable in the demo.

Shadowrun is basically a Multiplayer only team based game (RNA vs Lineage) and the first to enable both Xbox 360 users and Windows Vista owners to play together. However, in the demo you can only play with your fellow 360 users. My only complaint thus far about the online set up is that the Matchmaking system (as used in Halo 2/3) which does seem to take quite a while. However, also just like Halo 2 and Halo 3, the game supports a party system for you and your online buddies, which is a great feature to have.

The game's singleplayer, if you can call it that, consists of 6 training sessions and bot matches. The bot matches, although no match for online play, do work surprisingly well and the bots seem to have fairly adequate intelligence.

Visually Shadowrun isn't the most impressive looking, mainly down to things such as no customising options, resulting in all elfs/dwarfs/trolls/humans looking exactly the same, and other things such as no animations when say climbing a ladder. That said, on the surface the game does look nice enough not to insult your eyes.

After playing the demo it seems that Shadowrun is a solid title with plenty of appeal, though I would be concerned that there may not be enough content here to warrant a £40 purchase, with only 9 maps in the full game (1 in the demo- 'Power Station') and whether or not the magic and tech abilities would wear thin after a while.

Shadowrun is well worth the download time- download the demo, play through the training, then get online and have a blast!

Demo rating: 3/5

2007-06-06T21:34:00.001+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Pac-man Championship Edition

Pac-man makes a second appearance (third if you include Ms. Pac-man) to the Xbox Live Arcade this week with Pac-man Championship Edition, essentially the original game given a bit of a 2007 funk-up. In Pac-man Championship Edition, mazes are now much wider and even change as you play. Infact, these are the first new Pac-man mazes in over 26 years- about darn time! The game also comes with new gameplay modes and a completely new visual style. It's a shame then that Namco-Bandai decided to price this version of Pac-man, which should have been the only version worthy enough of being released on Xbox Live Arcade, at a rather steep 800 MSP. Come on, it's Pac-man for hell's sake! If Rare (originally 'Ultimate Play the Game') can completely remake one of it's classic titles for Xbox Live Arcade, aswell as throw in the original classic, all for a mere 400 MSP, it begs the question that surely Namco-Bandai could have done the same.

2007-06-03T16:11:00.000+01:00

Feature: Halo 3 beta taken apart- extended!

You may or may not have heard about a glitch on the Halo 3 beta that some people have exploited which lets them run custom games and fiddle around a little with the settings. In Changing the settings, it seemingly allows you to access a few game variants, weapons, a vehicle, and customisation options that are obviously in the beta code, but we were not supposed to get. Yes, I have tried these out myself, and in fact- took pictures (click on the titles below) of these weapons and the vehicle so you can see for yourself. The pistol, the plasma sword, and the Covenant wraith! So, I suppose that it's only fair that I write about 'em!

Pistol:

Looks very similar to the magnum from Halo: Combat Evolved, however it thankfully no longer has the zoom capability and isn't as strong. Can be duel wielded.

Plasma Sword:

Pretty much the same as it was in Halo 2, apart from they seem to have reduced the lunge distance and it looks a whole load cooler!

Wraith:

This Covenant tank is pretty cool. It has a large plasma cannon and a boost capability, and a second dude can jump in and make use of the plasma turret.

2007-05-31T19:21:00.000+01:00

Preview: Hour of Victory or Hour of Defeat?

Midway's Hour of Victory has been somewhat slammed as just another World War II game, or even a Call of Duty rip-off. Well my friends, Call of Duty this definitely aint', nor is it anywhere near as good. Things start off with you selecting which character you use, be it the Commando, Operative, or Sniper. Unfortunately the game plays pretty much the same with either character- there are special areas of the level design that only a particular character can make use of, such as the grapple hook for the Sniper to reach higher levels and sniping spots, or using the Operative's knife to cut away at fences to get around the enemy- however these feel quite tacked on, and in fact in the demo I only really found the Commando to be of any use. To be honest, they shouldn't have bothered with the different character nonsense, it doesn't work and even if it did- I'm not so sure it would make the game any better.

Once you head on into the action you find yourself in the middle of a German onslaught on a British HQ and you must fight your way up to the main building and help defend it. Problem is as soon as you take control you'll be heading straight to the start menu to change the sensitivity settings- the default are so ridiculously sluggish it's unbelievable, however even in doing this the controls never feel just right. As you head toward the HQ, and start unleashing hell upon the Germans, you start to realise that they're rather unintelligent to say the least- in fact it's almost like they've listened to some of that outrageous British propaganda 'remember lads, German soldiers have smaller brains that us' and have started to believe it themselves. They stand and shoot...erm, they sometimes move a little...that's about as tactical as you get with these guys.

Once you reach the HQ you and your fellow comrades must defend it against a few waves of German soldiers. This is terribly boring, unexciting, and poor.

Next up the demo gives you the chance to climb aboard a tank and take out enemy resistance, which consist of a few German tanks and foot soldiers with panzerschreks. Again, you'll immediately have problems with the controls, they feel stiff and very unresponsive. The tank's power and usefulness in battle isn't that awesome either. The on board machine gun is terribly inaccurate and it seems very difficult to take out foot soldiers. Using the tanks main cannon is quite effective, obviously, against the tanks- however the movement is so sluggish that you're pretty much a sitting duck and will be taken out quickly, either by one of the German tanks or by a panzerschrek wielding foot soldier- horrah! On the whole, the tank section seems very poorly implemented. There are also evident sound issues here too, with the frequent chopping in and out of sound effects.

Graphically the game looks ok at best, and Midway have definately not used the Unreal 3 engine to any where near it's full potential. It doesn't look bad, just not exactly good either.

Midway, take my advice and start all over again with this. Midway claimed they were not developing a Call of Duty rip-off, but something new and exciting for the World War II FPS genre. Well, they've been well and truely defeated in battle with this I'm afraid. Hour of Victory is, simply put, absolute pants, and fails to bring anything worth while to the genre. Based on the demo, you will want to avoid this.

Demo rating: 1/5

2007-05-30T20:29:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Mad Tracks

Mad Tracks, the 3D racing party game, is now available to download on the Xbox Live Arcade. The game features 15 challenges- 6 races and 9 mini-games, 2 game modes- championship mode and arcade mode, 12 power-ups- including rockets, freezer, oil drop, EMP, and more, 12 cars to choose from, and multiplayer for up to 4 players either local split screen or over Xbox Live. Mad Tracks or 'Micro-Machines re-hash' is priced at 800 MSP.

2007-05-26T22:42:00.000+01:00

News: Another Gears of War update on the way

Epic games boss Mark Rein has revealed that a new auto-update is in the works for Gears of War. The update will apparently address a few known issues with the multiplayer, as well as adding some new achievements 'geared' (see what I did there) towards the Hidden Fronts map-pack. No release date has yet been firmly set, but expect it very soon. Remember, the Hidden Fronts map-pack is currently available for download at 800 MSP but will be free if you're willing to wait until September.

2007-05-24T18:06:00.000+01:00

News: Hour of Victory demo soon

A demo of Midway's World War II fps, Hour of Victory, will be hitting the Xbox Live Marketplace on the 30th May- allowing you to play as three different characters, a Covert Operative (the sneaking expert) an Army Ranger (the sniping expert) and a British Commando (the all-guns-blazing expert) with the demo level taking place in North Africa. The full version of Hour of Victory has been confirmed for a June 22nd release.

2007-05-23T18:55:00.000+01:00

News: Haze to be exclusive...

to Playstation 3? Ubisoft have today announced that their much anticipated sci-fi first-person-shooter is to be exclusive to Sony's blu-ray power-house when it is released this Autumn. However, it is unclear whether this means Haze will be permanently exclusive or temporarily exclusive. My money's on that we'll definitely see Haze on Xbox 360's and PC's. At least- it better be, and if not- we must shout the following line. 'For hell's sake Sony- give the bloody thing a price-cut!'

Edit: Ubisoft have now kindly cleared this up for us. They say that Haze is in fact not totally exclusive to Playstation 3 and that we will indeed be seeing it on Xbox 360 and PC at some point, however PS3 is the game's 'lead platform.' Phew!

2007-05-23T18:42:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Rush 'n Attack and Xevious

Two new arcade games can be found under 'New Arrivals' today with Rush 'n Attack and Xevious. In Rush 'n Attack, which you may actually remember as Green Beret, is a 2D side-scroller from Konami where you must rescue prisoners of war over 4 stages. Xevious on the other hand is a vertical-scrolling shooter from Namco which apparently puts you up against the Andor Genesis mother ship and super computer GAMP. Obviously, both titles have been given the usual 2007 re-hash and are both available for 400 MSP each.

2007-05-21T14:41:00.000+01:00

Feature: Halo 3 beta taken apart- part III

Controls:

Let's talk about what's new here. Reload is now placed with the right bumper, rather than X, and when duel wielding- right bumper reloads your right hand weapon, and the left bumper reloads your left hand weapon. This gives you greater control over your weaponry and allows you to perform tactical reloads. The X button is now the deploy gadget button. The right bumper is used to (press and hold) to pick up weapons, get in vehicles, or hi-jack a vehicle- replacing the X button. The left bumper will cycle through the grenade types. All this may seem odd at first as you'll probably be used to reloading with the X button and such like, however it quickly becomes familiar to you. As in the previous two Halo games, a great deal of thought has gone in to the controls and they work just perfectly.

Other new features:

There are a few new features in the Halo 3 beta which I will now go through. These features are really awesome.

Veto:

Essentially a voting system whereby players who decide they are unhappy with the chosen map or game type can press the X button to use Veto and, with a majority vote, a new game will be selected at random. For example if 5 or more players (out of 8) decide to veto a game of Team Shotty Snipers on High Ground, the game could then be changed to Team Slayer on Snowbound. Democracy!

Party Up:

At the end of a game (providing your party isn't already full) the party-up feature will enable you the option of partying up with the players who were just on your team. For example say you have 3 players already in your party for Team Slayer (maximum party size of 4.) At the end of the game you can offer to party-up. If then another player also does the same, he/she will join your party.

Saved films and file sharing:

Oh this is a truly great feature this is. After a game, you can now save the whole game and watch it back later. Say you get 20 kills on Team Slayer and are particularly pleased with it, like I was, you can go to view stats at the end the game and then press X to save the film. You can then go to theatre mode and watch the game back whenever you want. In the beta options are severely limited, however in the full version there will be options to cut out a particular moment in a match, slow down time, view the game from an other players' perspective and maybe more. Another great feature is the file sharing. You can upload a selection of your favourite films (with a 25MB limit in the beta) which other players can then watch themselves. You can even recommend a film to a friend and attempt to try and lure him to watching a clip of you head-shoting him from across the map.

So, in conclusion, what needs work? (If anything!)

Well- not a lot actually. There are a couple of things I will mention that perhaps could do with a little tweaking, but these are really small things. Bungie seem to have the game's multiplayer down so perfectly, there's not much I can really complain about!

The Needler:

Could do with being made to look a tad more bulky, as you can't duel wield anymore. It makes sense that you can't duel wield the Needler due to it's improved power, however going by size- couldn't a Spartan manage to pick up two of these relatively small weapons?

Talk Button:

Just like in Halo 2, there's a talk button in Halo 3 too. Talking without using the talk button results in the voices coming through the speakers rather than your headset. To team talk through your headsets you must press and hold up on the d-pad whilst talking. This isn't a huge issue but there where some people complaining about this when I was playing. One annoyance is that you can't really team talk and move at the same time- it's not a good idea to stay still for too long in this game! Maybe a toggle on/off talk button would be preferred, or not even a talk button at all- where you just team talk all the time through the headsets.

So there you have it! If there's any questions I haven't answered then let me know and I'll do my best to try and answer it. Halo 3 is shaping up to be everything we expected and more- I personally can't wait for September 26th.

2007-05-20T14:14:00.000+01:00

Feature: Halo 3 taken apart- part II

Maps:

The Halo 3 beta gives you three maps which are Snowbound, High Ground, and Valhalla. All three maps are designed well and each offer slightly different experiences, meaning you must choose tactics and weapons wisely- depending on your environment.

Snowbound:

Snowbound is quite a close and intense battlefield; two bases at each end of the map are your main point of focus, with an underground tunnel system linking the two bases together. At each entrance to the bases there are plasma shields that are impenetrable by grenades or bullets, meaning that bases can't just be simply taken out with explosives. Snowbound is the smaller of the three maps, and is very similar to Battle Creek from Halo 2, only slightly colder!

High Ground:

This a-symmetrical map places you in a very much attackers vs defenders situation- the map was primarily designed for Team Skirmish objective based games, but works awesome for Team Slayer too. The beach is at the bottom of the hill, working you're way up to the main base. The base has a large fortified wall with a large main gate (which is obviously already open in Team Slayer) to breach. It reminds me slightly of the Zanzibar map from Halo 2.

Valhalla:

Valhalla is a large, open, alpine level with two bases at either end of the map- the two man cannons are situated on the top of each base. If you're playing team, working together can be very important here as it can be quite easy to get out numbered and out gunned if you're caught alone in no-man's-land. Great for mid-range and long-range combat and is designed for high vehicular useage. It's quite similar to Bloodgultch from Halo: Combat Evolved.

Game modes:

All the game modes in the Halo 3 beta seem to work well. Team Shotty-Snipers, a variant of Team Slayer, is something new and is actually quite fun. In Team Skirmish- Territories, an attackers vs defenders game, is extremely fun and in the beta is played on the High Ground map. Of course you've also got the standard, and my favourite, Team Slayer- a battle to the death between the reds and the blues.

Gadgets:

Gadgets are a new feature for Halo 3 and are deployed by pressing the X button. Gadgets can be found at a few positions on each map and, if you have picked up a gadget, are displayed on screen near your grenades.

Power Drain:

This can be deployed to interfere with field-based shielding or power generation. If you are near one of these when used they will take out your shield, meaning you are incredibly venerable until it recharges again.

Bubble Shield:

Using a bubble shield confines you within a spherical field-based shield which temporarily protects you against the enemy. Is impenetrable by grenades and bullets, however can be entered by other spartans or vehicles.

Trip Mine:

Are extremely effective against either on-rushing vehicles (deploy at the last second for a splat-tacular awesome-o kill) or can be used to defend a particular passage/area. The trip mine is triggered when it's sensors pick up movement, but can also be triggered by shooting it.

Grav Lift:

Having trouble getting over a particular part of terrain? Want to take a short cut over the wall? Then use a Grav Lift! Deploys on the ground which will then give you a quick vertical lift. Is very useful on High Ground when breaching over the wall.

Vehicles:

In Halo 3 beta the vehicles work just about the same as before, but there is one new vehicle- the Mongoose!

Mongoose:

The Mongoose is purely a transport vehicle, which is both fast and maneuverable. The driver can also carry a pillion passenger who can use his carried weapons. Extremely fun to use and can also be fired across the map (on Valhalla) via the man-cannon!

Watch out for the third and final part of this feature in part III which will cover new controls, other features, and what needs work!

2007-05-19T23:25:00.000+01:00

News: Splinter Cell: Conviction

Ubisoft have now confirmed rumours that a new Splinter Cell game is indeed in the works in Splinter Cell: Conviction. Set after the events of Splinter Cell: Double Agent, Sam is now a fugitive, pursued by the very government he once served- if he is to survive he must keep his head down and create a close underground network of allies. Sam must make full use of his environment, make shift weapons, and blending in with the crowd. Without all the classic gizmos Sam has been used to, stealth, anticipation, and quick thinking are now key. Sounds like Ubisoft Montreal are set to deliver something truely new and different for the Splinter Cell series. Splinter Cell: Conviction is due out at the end of the year on Xbox 360 and PC, although somehow (like previous Splinter Cell titles) I can see the release date slipping to around March 2008. We'll see I guess.

2007-05-19T23:00:00.000+01:00

News: Shadowrun demo on the way

Fasa studios have announced that they are to release a demo of Shadowrun on June 6th. Shadowrun combines both weapons and magic in a unique twist on the shooting genre and is the flagship title for the new Xbox Live Anywhere service, allowing both Xbox 360 and PC gamers to play with/against each other seamlessly. The demo will feature 3 chapters of training, a solo mode with bots and Xbox Live multiplayer on the 'Power Station' map. Players will be able to play as either an Elf or a Human. The demo is dated after the full version of Shadowrun is released (June 1st.) This is apparently because 'we'd rather release the demo at a time when players can focus their attention and time on Shadowrun, i.e, not in the middle of the Halo 3 beta.' So there you have it. Be sure to check Marketplace when this goes live.

2007-05-19T17:51:00.000+01:00

Feature: Halo 3 beta taken apart- part I

Firstly I'm sure you're wondering how good Halo 3 actually is. Well in short, it's good- very good infact. Halo 3 plays very similarly to it's predecessors- which is a good thing. Duel wielding is very much present again from Halo 2, however unlike Halo 2 where the main gameplay emphasis was placed with duel wielding, this is not so in Halo 3- mainly down to the superb weapon balancing and the return of the assault rifle from Halo: Combat Evolved. Melee and grenades useage are now a much larger part of the game, something that many (including Bungie themselves) often missed in Halo 2 as when duel wielding you can't do either of these. In gameplay terms- Bungie seem to have got it so right.

Now lets talk graphics. I'm sure you've heard, even perhaps thought- 'man, that looks kinda like Halo 2.' Stylistically the game is very similar to Halo 2- key word 'stylistically.' Halo 3 looks awesome- trust me. The environments are hugely detailed- and look simply stunning in high definition. Textures also look just great- rusty steel, shiny smooth metal plating, bark on trees- you name it, the textures are there in outstanding form. The highly sophisticated physics engine is ever present too, from grass blowing in the wind, to floating bodies when killed in the river.

In this first part I'm going to talk about the vast array of weapons at your disposal, and hell they're good!

Assault Rifle:

Makes a very welcome return! This is your base weapon as it where. Works great at mid-range and decently close up too. Has quite a shallow clip, but works perfectly with melee and/or grenades.

Battle Rifle:

This is a scoped, burst fire weapon- great for mid range distances. Seems more important to aim for the head now than with the Battle Rifle in Halo 2. Has a zoom capability.

Beam Rifle:

This is the Covenant Sniper Rifle, and works pretty much the same as it did in Halo 2.

Brute Shot:

Basically a grenade launcher, as used as the title suggests by the Brutes. A couple of shots with this usually does the trick.

Carbine:

Very similar to the Battle Rifle, however the Carbine is a Covenant weapon. Burst fire, ideal for mid-range, and has zoom.

Grenades:

There are now 3 types, rather than 2- you can carry a maximum of 2 of each type at any given time. Frag and Plasma grenades remain about the same as before, with the new Spike/Brute grenades (which look like a long stick with protruding spikes) can be used (like plasmas) to stick and kill your opponents.

Minigun:

Not as daunting as you might think. Wielding this beast of a weapon not only slows you down, but gives you a 3rd person perspective too. Powerful, but easily stoppable. New for Halo 3.

Missile Pod:

Like the detachable Minigun, the Missile Pod is both slow and cumbersome and gives you a 3rd person perspective. Unlike the Rocket Launcher this has a homing feature, by holding your reticule over an enemy spartan or vehicle for a few seconds until it turns red. The enemy will then receive a 'you have been painted by enemy targeting tech' warning. You have a few seconds of lock on time to let rip with your missile. Don't worry though- ammunition is very limited. New for Halo 3.

Needler:

Wow did they give this some umph! Bungie have made the needler much more powerful than before, but as a result the needler is no longer a duel wieldable weapon.

Plasma Rifle:

Is duel wieldable. Same as the Plasma Rifle from Halo 2 really. Can still over-heat.

Plasma Pistol:

Is duel wieldable. Has remained largely unchanged, however there is one new key feature of the new Plasma Pistol. Fire a charged burst of plasma at a moving vehicle to stop it right in it's tracks!

Rocket Launcher:

Now requires more skill. The lock on the vehicles and turrets feature from Halo 2 is now gone. The Rocket Launcher is much like the one from the original Halo now.

Shotgun:

Has remained largely the same from Halo 2. Obviously very affective at close range, one shot and they're down.

SMG:

Is duel wieldable. The SMG has a much larger clip capacity than the assault rifle, but lacks the range. Up close, a SMG is more affective against the assault rifle- and is duel wieldable.

Sniper Rifle:

Unchanged really- has 2 zoom functions, works just as well as before.

Spartan Laser:

A new weapon for Halo 3. Aim at a target by pressing and holding the right trigger for a few seconds, unleashing a powerful red laser. Your opponents' death will rapidly follow.

Spiker:

Much like the SMG, but Covenant stylee. Has a slightly shorter clip than the SMG, but for fire power and distance it's pretty much the same. Duel wieldable and a new weapon for Halo 3.

So there you have it. Bare in mind that these aren't all the weapons that will be present in the full version. Watch out for part II which will contain all the details on the maps, gameplay types, vehicles, and gadgets.

2007-05-16T11:41:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 release date announced

Ready your plasma grenades for September- Halo 3 will be released on September 25th in the US, and in Europe a day later on the 26th. The news is very timely with the first day of the Halo 3 public beta- which starts in just over 1 hours time! My poor buddy from California is having to stay up until 5am (PDT) in order to start downloading it.

2007-05-16T01:28:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Red vs Blue- Halo 3 beta special

If you head to the Xbox Live Marketplace right now you can download a new, yet again hilarious, video from the Red vs Blue team- entitled 'Beta Complex.' On the Marketplace blade go to Media and Entertainment, Gaming Community Videos, then press A on Red vs Blue- the new video is right at the bottom. Enjoy! LMAO!

2007-05-15T22:16:00.000+01:00

Feature: Halo 3 beta...

Is almost here! In approximately 14 hours time (1PM GMT) you will be able to download the beta, providing you own a copy of the awful Crackdown, from the in-game downloads section. Yes I spent £32.95 on it, but for 1 month's solid playtime of Halo 3- it was so worth it. Besides- it's going on eBay as soon as the beta is over! So for any of you that don't (and why the hell not?) have a copy yet, you can still pop out and get one from any good video game store...and probably some not so good ones too. So just to clarify- in order to take part in the beta you will need a Xbox 360 console (dur), broadband (dur again), a HDD, a Xbox Live Gold membership, and a copy of Crackdown. Bring it on!

2007-05-15T16:16:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade: Prince of Persia

Now this is more like it! Prince of Persia is making it's way to the Xbox Live Arcade, developed by Gameloft, and is a remake of the original classic game. However, this is no simple port- watch this trailer (courtesy of IGN) and see for yourself. The game looks simply stunning and is easily looking like it will be a true arcade treasure, something of a rarity on Xbox Live Arcade- it must be said. No release date or price has yet been confirmed.

2007-05-14T02:04:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Soltrio Solitaire

It is quite likely that your excitement is currently held elsewhere for Wednesday this week, but hold your excitement for just a few seconds for on Wednesday ladies and gentlemen we have- Soltrio Solitaire! Ok then, it's just another pointless title headed to Live Arcade that's probably not likely to divert too much of your attention away from the Halo 3 beta. If you must know, the game is made up of a collection of 18 different versions of Solitaire. The game also features both a co-op mode and 2 player competitive mode either over system link or Xbox Live. How can it be solitaire if it's played with other people? Well...apparently in this case it can. Soltrio Solitaire also supports the Xbox Live Vision camera so you can actually see who looks the most boring.

2007-05-12T02:09:00.000+01:00

News: Whohoo! It's a Simpsons Xbox 360!

To co-inside with the release of The Simpsons Movie, which opens in the US and UK on July 27th, Microsoft have decided to design a rather splendid special edition Simpsons Xbox 360 console. When I say special edition, I actually mean limited edition- Microsoft are only making 100 of them which it plans to give away as competition prizes around the time of the movie's release. Excellent.

2007-05-11T14:33:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Blacksite Area 51 demo

If you head to the all-new Xbox Live Marketplace blade and look under game demos then new arrivals, you will find a new 'teaser demo' for Midway Games' Blacksite: Area 51. With the full game not expected to release until around September time, a demo at this stage is quite unexpected, but hey- I'm not complaining and I'm downloading this right now, so off you go to do the same. Also, as far as I'm aware, the demo is available for both Gold and Silver members straight from the off.

Here are the handy dashboard details taken from Xbox Live Marketplace:

'Modern day fears come to life in a familiar, yet extraordinary setting: A small American town swarming with alien life. The government is desperate, struggling to contain secrets so terrible they can no longer be kept. Everything hinges on the actions of Aeran Pierce, a former Special Forces assassin thrown into one of the most explosive moments in American history.'

2007-05-09T17:35:00.000+01:00

News: Update is go!

The Spring firmware update rolled out this morning; you will be prompted to download automatically when you next sign in to Xbox Live. So- what new features do we have? Most noticeable is that we now have a completely new dashboard blade which is home to the Xbox Live Marketplace. Also there's the new instant messenger feature- which you can choose to make use of, or not if you so wish. All you have to do is sign up (just hit the chat and IM tab on the Xbox Live blade, then the IM tab) by linking your gamertag and your IM email address. Other new features include little improvements such as being able to see the name of what game you have in your console on the disk tray tab and being told more details of what you just did when earning an achievement. Want a full list of what's new? Head here to xbox.com.

2007-05-09T16:34:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Double Dragon

Out today is the classic side-srolling beat 'em up, Double Dragon. Play alone or with a friend either locally or over Xbox Live as you move through each level and take on the various gangs and gang bosses using your own moves or what ever weapon you manage to get your hands on. Double Dragon is available for 400 MSP.

2007-05-02T15:08:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Gears of more

New content FTW! Tomorrow Epic will release a new map pack for Gears of War entitled 'Hidden Fronts.' The new maps will cost you a pretty reasonable 800 MSP, or... you could wait until September 3rd where they will then be free to download. The map pack contains 4 new maps. 'Bullet Marsh' offers you a Kryll infested swamp, and with the area lights powered by an old generator, you might want to be careful as a few stray bullets could easily knock out the power and leave you to make friends with the Kryll. 'Garden' is an overgrown and crumbling conservatory with a still working hazardous fertilisation and pesticide system so you might concider venting the air before venturing in. 'Process' is a still active subterranean Imulsion processing plant, and 'Subway' is Timgad's central subway station which used to serve as a central hub for commuters; now the tunnels are crawling with Locust. Looks like the best Xbox Live game on 360 just got better!

2007-05-02T14:07:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Another 3 titles

This week on Xbox Live Arcade are 3 new releases- Catan for 800 MSP and Centipede/Millipede which are bundled together for 400 MSP. Catan places you as a colonist on a newly discovered island where you must aim for control over the island's territory and resources against your opponents. Something new for you strategists to master. This weeks' other offering, Centipede/Millipede, is a familiar arcade classic where you must try to destroy the centipede as it moves faster and faster through a colourful mushroom field. Download the trials now...well they're free aren't they?

2007-04-25T16:44:00.000+01:00

News: Call of Duty 4

Listen up soldier! You are about to be sent in to the line of conflict once again in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. For the first time, the Call of Duty series will leave World War II behind and take us right up to the present day. Also, in case you're worried about how rapidly the Call of Duty games are being released, fear not- Infininty Ward are behind this one and apparently started development even whilst Call of Duty 3 was being made by Treyarch. Details are currently very scarce, however it is thought that the game is being developed for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, with a PC version likely if you go by Infinity Ward developed the first two Call of Duty games and released them on PC, but unlikely if you go by Call of Duty 3 which was released on consoles only. Still- the first trailer will be available come this Saturday (28th April) so make sure you take a look at that.

2007-04-24T23:37:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: It's another arcade duel wield!

Just like last week, two more games will make their way on to Xbox Live Arcade as Eets: Chowdown and Pinball FX, which will cost 800 MSP each. Eets apparently combines 2D action/puzzle elements with a surreal sense of humour. Their are 120 levels on offer with characters including Marshomechs, Radioactive Ginseng, and Exploding Superpigs? There's also a co-op mode where players can play to keep the evil marshmallows at bay. No, seriously.

Pinball FX is slightly more normal featuring a real time head to head online mode for up to 4 players, 3 vibrant 3D pinball tables, and gesture based controls and live chat via the Xbox Live Vision Camera. At last something new to use the camera for. Hopefully this will work better than Totemball did.

Edit: Eets has temporarily been pulled from Xbox Live Arcade due to the game reportedly not booting properly after download. I will update you again when this goes back up, which should be today with a bit of luck.

Edit: This has now been fixed so go and check it out.

2007-04-24T23:21:00.000+01:00

News: End War

Ubisoft's mysterious new project for the Tom Clancy series has been reveiled as End War, a strategy game set during World War III and is being developed by Ubisoft Shanghai. A couple of weeks ago a viral site was launched, giving little detail as to what is was about but was thought to be a new franchise under the well known Tom Clancy series. It is still unknown as to what type of strategy End War will be, be it real time, turn based- who knows. End War is being developed for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, and should be released within Ubisoft's current fiscal year which ends March 31st 2008. Sounds interesting.

2007-04-21T00:24:00.000+01:00

Feature: Improvements for Xbox Live?

Here is an article on teamxbox, a very valid one at that, which talks about the cost and current state of Xbox Live. Are we paying too much? Are Gold members being rewarded sufficiently? Must we endure the limitless advertisements? Surely we deserve dedicated servers? All are asked in this article, but ultimately- do we as Xbox Live users deserve an even better service for £40 a year?

I would like to address the points made individually and give my personal opinions.

1) Server-Based Online Multiplayer

Without doubt. Most games on Xbox Live use a peer-to-peer hosting system. This was fine back in the early days of Xbox Live, but as the service moves on, games grow more advanced, and more users are attracted to the service- peer-to-peer very rarely cuts it. The 3 main problems usually created by peer-to-peer are lag, host advantage, and a small player limit. Admittedly some games manage better than others- such as Gears of War, which rarely suffers from lag and the player limit is set about right- however there has been some evidence of slight host advantage. Useage of dedicated servers means no lag, no advantage, and potentially limitless players. Dedicated servers do cost $$$ to set up and maintain, however if all Xbox Live Gold members are paying £40 a year- what's the problem?

2) Clan and Party System

This is a fairly good point, although I would only ever consider joining a clan for a few games- such as Halo 3. An integrated Clan system would be great as currently only some games support this feature and even then you are forced to set up a separate clan for each individual game. I'm a bit 50/50 on this one- great if they decide to do it, but it's not absolutely vital.

3) Dedicated Download Servers

In truth, most downloads from Xbox Live don't take too long, with the odd exception of course which takes ages (/thinks ahead to the launch of the Halo 3 beta.) Nevertheless with us Gold members paying to use the service, we do deserve dedicated download servers- resulting in much faster download speeds, which is always a plus.

4) Microsoft Points Program

This isn't a bad idea in theory, but in practice I'm not too sure. With the way Xbox Live is currently set up, with Gold and Silver memberships, Gold users pay for playing games online (something Silver users can't do) and I am personally fine with paying £40 a year for that. Gold members already get to download a lot of new content first before Silver members can. By making downloads cheaper for Gold members or rewarding them with Microsoft Points may make Silver users feel pushed aside- and MS needs Silver members as well as Gold. After all- when it comes to premium content- Silver users pay just as much as Gold users- so why should just Gold users be rewarded?

5) No Ads

Meh- this doesn't really bother me that much. Besides some of the ads on the dashboard like 'out this week' can be quite useful. Some ads in games can be quite annoying, but as long as they're not misplaced like HMV in Halo 3, they aren't too bad. Like the Airwaves adverts in Splinter Cell- they made me laugh more than anything but they didn't really spoil the atmosphere of the game. Ubisoft also often advertise their other games in their games too. As long as it doesn't go way over the top- I'm fine with it.

Summary:

Xbox Live is a great service which has always provided value for money and fantastic quality. Most gamers would agree that Xbox Live is the best online service on a console and has been since it's launch. However as games improve so must the service- and the most obvious way to do this is by providing dedicated Microsoft servers, especially for AAA titles. It is also probable that some of the future, more ambitious online titles will only be possible using dedicated servers- such could be the size and scope of these games.

2007-04-20T15:49:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: C&C3

Electronic Arts have released the Xbox 360 demo of Command and Conquer 3 on Xbox Live Marketplace. The PC version, which is already available, has racked up a very impressive average of 86% in reviews. The demo packs a fair punch too, weighing in at exactly 1GB. EA claim to have tailor made the Xbox 360 version of C&C3 for the system, including the tricky task of mapping RTS controls correctly to a controller- something which is largely thought as impossible. Admittedly, EA did come close with their last RTS outing on the console- The Lord of the Rings: Battle for Middle Earth II- but still had room for improvement. Can C&C succeed where so many other console RTS games have failed? Download the demo now to find out!

2007-04-19T22:51:00.000+01:00

News: More titles added to backwards compatibility

A new backwards compatibility patch has been released today allowing even more original Xbox titles to now play on the Xbox 360. The update can be downloaded when a compatible Xbox game is loaded and signed in to Xbox Live. Alternatively (if you don't have Xbox Live) you can download this latest update on to disk from xbox.com, then load the disk on your Xbox 360. 38 more titles are now playable which include Full Spectrum Warrior, Mech Assault 2, Panzer Dragoon Orta, and Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Head here to xbox.com for the complete list for backwards compatibility.

2007-04-17T12:33:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: X2 multiplier

Tomorrow will see not one, but two new releases on to the Xbox Live Arcade- Gyruss and 3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures. Gyruss is yet another one of those Konami conversions and will be priced at 400 MSP. Players take control of a spacecraft, blasting the inter-galactic space-dust out of anything that stands in your way between Neptune and planet Earth. Multiplayer is also featured in split-screen co-op and versus modes, along with online multiplayer too.

3D Ultra Minigolf Adventures, made by Wanako games, is priced at 800 MSP. The game features 36 challenging holes, and up to four players to compete online across Xbox Live.

2007-04-16T01:33:00.000+01:00

Impressions: Boom Boom Rocket

Pros:

Very addictive

Challenging yet fun on hard difficulty

Each song feels just right

Cons:

Not overpriced at 800 MSP, but at 400 MSP it would be a must buy

Lacks variety in background design

Summary:

One of the best games to grace the Xbox Live Arcade. It's incredibly addictive especially on the hard difficulty- each song is designed to perfection and you won't want to miss a single beat. Highly recommended.

2007-04-11T14:02:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Boom Boom Rocket

Bizarre Creation's highly anticipated new Xbox Live Arcade game, Boom Boom Rocket, is now available for 800 MSP. In Boom Boom Rocket you must hit buttons on the controller in time to the music, which appear on screen as rockets. Styled with futuristic visualizers and an awesome soundtrack- this game may well be the new Geometry Wars, funnily enough also developed by Bizarre Creations. This is also the first Xbox Live Arcade project for EA, who made a great job of publishing. Download this now.

2007-04-10T13:10:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 3 beta date confirmed

Mark the date of May 16th on your calendar, for it is an important one. Purchase your copy of Crackdown now- you're going to be needing it. Halo 3 beta is just under 5 weeks away! The beta will go live at 1pm GMT and run until 7th June at 8am GMT. We are promised new weapons, vehicles, game types, and maps. There will be 3 maps made available which will be Snowbound, High Ground, and Valhalla. Excited yet? You should be! In the mean time you can download the new viDoc (348.23MB) 'Is Quisnam Protero Damno!' from Xbox Live Marketplace. Head to bungie.net for the official details.

2007-04-07T18:25:00.000+01:00

News: Youtube part two

If you want to see some leaked in-game footage of Halo 3, which of course you do, then head here and watch. Yes it's very poor quality, but what you can see is still pretty decent. The footage, which has since been uploaded to many sites, is apparently from the Halo 3 build that US soldiers in Iraq were recently given to play. It is likely that what we are seeing is a pre alpha/alpha build of the game. Nothing too much is given away in the video, such as the 'awesome new gameplay feature' that is mapped to the X button. Bungie- give us the beta...NOW!

2007-04-07T18:08:00.000+01:00

News: Youtube part one

The latest system update for the Xbox 360 isn't far away; you can view a sneek peak of the forth coming update right here, coming sometime this Spring. As you can see from the video, your friends list will now be compatible with that of your Windows Live Messenger friends list- allowing you to chat to your messenger buddies on your PC through your Xbox 360 and vise verse. Other key new features include a new dashboard blade for the Xbox Live Marketplace, which also has improvements, and the ability to run downloads whilst the console is in low energy mode.

2007-04-04T18:35:00.000+01:00

News: Annex details

Details on the upcoming new game mode for Gears of War have been released. Annex will be a team based capture and hold, with infinate respawns on 15 second waves. Annex will be released as part of the auto update which, all going well through Microsoft's certification process, will be released on April 9th. The full details are posted on the official site.

2007-04-02T23:00:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Luxor 2

Luxor 2, the Egyptian themed puzzle game, will be this weeks new Xbox Live Arcade game. Luxor 2 will be available for 800 MSP. Yawn. Well that's another Xbox Live Arcade game I won't be downloading then.

2007-04-02T11:56:00.000+01:00

News: Gears of War auto-update

A new update will be available for Gears of War this week, which you will be prompted to download automatically when the game is launched and you are signed in to Xbox Live. The update applies fixes to a number of glitches, will able VGA users running at 1280x1024 resolution to experience 720p, and best of all- will add a new multiplayer game mode called 'Annex.' No further details of what Annex actually is were mentioned, however apparently those who have tested it have said 'it's the best game type yet.' Sounds good.

2007-04-01T01:41:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Dark Sector trailer

Wow. I've just downloaded and watched this new trailer for a game called Dark Sector. I knew of the game before, but this is the first solid footage I have seen of the game. It's being Developed by Digital Extremes using the U3 engine. Watching the gameplay footage, it didn't half remind me of Gears of War- which maybe is to be expected given that Digital Extremes and Epic have been partners in the past. It also looked very similar to Resident Evil 4. Download the trailer (98MB- 720p) for this third person gore fest and see for yourself. If this game is as good as Gears of War or Resident Evil 4- we're in for a treat.

2007-03-31T19:23:00.000+01:00

News: Halo 2 gains new maps

Bungie have announced that on April 17th Halo fans will be able to download 2 new maps from the in game content downloader for just $4 (about £2) for the pair. The new maps are re-makes of the original Halo maps- Hang 'Em High and Derelict. The new maps have been re-imagined for Halo 2 and will be called Tombstones and Desolation respectively. Also just to mention that a credit card will be required to download the maps, and not Microsoft Points, as this is an original Xbox game. It's great to see that, even after over 2 years after it's release, Bungie still continue to add great new content to the greatest Xbox Live game to date.

2007-03-29T22:53:00.000+01:00

News: Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City...again?

The very first trailer for GTA IV was unveiled at 23:00 tonight and can be viewed here and last just over 1 minute. It seems to be set in Liberty City/New York, just like GTA III. Very little is revealed in the trailer, but we see the main character, and it is clearly recognisable as LC/NY. The actual title is still not known, other than GTA IV. I wonder why they decided to go with this setting again?

2007-03-28T14:42:00.000+01:00

News: Elite confirmed

The Xbox 360 Elite has finally been confirmed by Microsoft and will launch in the US on April 29th for $479.99. No firm date has been set for Europe yet, however it is believed that we will be able to pick one up from the end of Summer. The Elite features a huge 120GB HDD and a HDMI port- and comes in a black finish. The bundle will also contain a HDMI cable and component cable, a black wireless controller, a black headset, and a 1 month subscription to Xbox Live Gold. The HDD will also be available seperately for $179.99.

2007-03-27T01:53:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live Marketplace: Shivering Isles available now

The Shivering Isles expansion for The Elderscrolls IV: Oblivion is now available for download from Xbox Live Marketplace, a few hours early. This is due to the scheduled down time (which Bethesda were originally unaware of) for Xbox Live, with the service unavailable for 14 hours from 08:00 until 22:00 GMT- therefore the decision was made to forward the release slightly. The Shivering Isles is sized at 993.75 MB and costs 2400 MSP. Just need to pick up some more MSP myself now.

2007-03-26T20:29:00.000+01:00

News: Xbox 360 Elite?

You've probably noticed the re-emergence of information on the long rumoured Xbox 360 Elite as it's now being called, previously known as Codename Zephyr. Well- now there also seems to be a few supposed 'leaked' pictures floating about the web- like here and here. Fake? Perhaps- who knows, but it does seem likely that we will see an official announcement from Microsoft soon. It seems probable that the Xbox 360 Elite will exist in one form or another. It's rumoured to feature a 120GB HDD and HDMI port- aswell as coming in a black finish.

2007-03-26T20:12:00.000+01:00

News: Playstation 3 breaks record

Wow. I'm impressed. I think it's safe to say that the Playstation 3 sales exceeded expectations for it's opening weekend on sale in the UK- selling a whopping 165,000 units, making it the fastest ever selling console in the UK. However what I will say, which is something most sites reporting this are quick to forget, is that the Xbox 360 especially and the Nintendo Wii launched on a worldwide scale, with far less consoles available, and therefore failing to meet demand- with the Xbox 360 shifting 70,000 units, and the Wii selling 105,000 units in their respective launch weekends. It is probable that if either the 360 or Wii had launched in the UK with 220,000 units, as the PS3 did, then most of those would have been sold. With the Playstation 3 not completely selling out, availability is good- which is quite refreshing knowing how difficult it was for people to obtain the Xbox 360, and how difficult it still is to pick up a Wii.

The Playstation 3 also managed to achieve 3 top ten exclusive games in the UK with Resistance: Fall of Man at number 1, Motorstorm at number 2, and Formula 1: Championship Edition at number 7.

Great news for gamers really. We should want all three consoles to do well- competition is good for the industry, and for us because we get to own 3 kick ass consoles rather than just one.

2007-03-26T01:42:00.000+01:00

News: Oblivion patched

The Elderscrolls IV: Oblivion is now version 1.2- thanks to a new patch, which you will be prompted to download next time you load up the game (aslong as you're signed into Xbox Live.) Additions and improvements include 10 new achievements for Shivering Isles, improved LOD visual quality for landscape, optimizations to file loading system, various bug fixes, various performance improvements, and a couple of quest problems have been fixed. For a full list of what the patch does, you can head here to the official Elderscrolls site.

2007-03-23T22:42:00.000Z

Xbox Live Arcade Wednesday: Jetpac Refuelled

Rare's remake of one of their earliest games- Jetpac, is set for release next Wednesday in Jetpac Refuelled- which will be available for 400 MSP for the full version, and the usual free trial. Rare's update to it's 1983 arcade shooter for the ZX Spectrum is also their first release for Xbox Live Arcade. The game features 128 levels, simultaneous multiplayer action, leaderboards, and of course, 12 achievements to unlock. There's also the inclusion of an option allowing the player to play the original title too.

2007-03-23T14:18:00.000Z

News: Playstation 3 launches

The Playstation 3 launches here in the UK and Europe today, with Playstation fans queuing up at various stores at midnight last night in order to be one of the first to own Sony's new machine. Unlike the Xbox 360 or the Nintendo Wii however, is that not all PS3 launch consoles in the UK have yet been sold. With most console launches, all initial consoles are snapped up by pre-orders and people who queue up outside stores for the hours leading up to launch. It is interesting that many popular gaming websites, such as game and gameplay, have plenty of PS3 consoles in stock. Is this due to lower demand, or down to Sony having shipped a plentiful number of units to these shores? Maybe it's due to the fact that it's March and not Christmas, and that they decided not to try and pull off a worldwide launch. Still- the PS3 should have sold out by the end of this weekend.