Bobfoc

I dare say there will be plenty of new iterations of the 3DS over the years, so I won't be rushing to buy it at launch. To put things into perspective, 25,000 yen is the same price at which the Wii was sold at launch. Having said that, though, I'm more excited for the 3DS than I ever was for the Wii, and I'm not even into handheld gaming.

The 3DS has been given a Japanese release date of 26th February 2011, and it will be sold at a price of 25,000 yen (approximately $300 or £190). A release date for North America and Europe has not been fully specified, but is expected to be around March 2011. Link

The next piece of downloadable content for this game, entitled "The Sacrifice", has been given an official release date of 5th October. As some of you may know, it will be a prequel to "The Passing" and will also be compatible with the original Left 4 Dead. Source

Try this one. I agree that it looks great, but I can see it being like last year's Create-a-Storyline mode in that it will be limited for no good reason other than to allow the developers to modfy said restrictions in the following instalment and tout them as groundbreaking improvements. EDIT: Beaten to it.

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/112/1122960p1.html A few more details and some new footage of the WWE Universe Mode.

1. Metal Gear Solid 2. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 3. Super Street Fighter II 4. Comix Zone 5. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City 6. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 7. Halo: Combat Evolved 8. Streets of Rage 2 9. Sonic The Hedgehog 10. Max Payne

If you're referring to my post, I actually called it a 'gritty' shooter, not an FPS, but I can see that I probably didn't make myself totally clear.

Thanks. That's a shame, but at least it will mean that I don't have to be as picky when it comes to choosing where to pre-order the game.

I'll be looking forward to it. As far as I'm aware, there should also be a demo released a couple of weeks beforehand. Does anyone know whether or not the retail version of the game can be activated on Steam if one happens to be fortunate enough to purchase it before the official release date? I have recently had a few of my pre-ordered games arrive a day before release, but never anything that requires activation through Steam.

I'll add myself to the Zelda bridgade on this one. While the games in the series have never really struck me as being particularly bad, I never got into them myself. Under normal circumstances, I could probably let my feelings of indifference for a video game slide, but it just irks me that Zelda seems to be the franchise that most posters on other message boards deem immune from criticism. The mere suggestion that Ocarina of Time, for example, isn't a divinely perfect creation sent from the heavens is akin to blasphemy in the eyes of some people, or so it would seem. The general distaste for the FPS genre doesn't surprise me, particularly as far as Halo and Call of Duty are concerned. I quite like shooters myself, and I do enjoy the Halo and Left 4 Dead series, but the main problem nowadays is that there are so many "gritty" shooters out there that everything seems so stale and saturated at the moment. We all know that Activision will continue to churn out new COD games every year until people eventually lose interest, and I certainly can't see Microsoft abandoning Halo and Gears of War for many years to come. As a result, quite a few of the other genres tend to get lost in the mix, which is a real shame. As for Guitar Hero/Rock Band, I can't see a great problem with them, other than the fact that they seem to be released far too frequently. To me, as other people have said, rhythm games simply serve as a source of harmless fun, and those who genuinely believe that they will turn them into rock stars make up an extremely small minority. Those who try to take the high ground and slam them for not taking up a real instrument instead are far more irritating to me.

1. Ronnie James Dio 2. Bruce Dickinson 3. Corey Taylor 4. Steve Perry 5. Rob Halford 6. Tim "Ripper" Owens 7. Ozzy Osbourne 8. Sammy Hagar 9. Ian Gillan 10. Vera Lynn

Some of the achievements for the Xbox 360 version have now been revealed: List Several predictable ones there, such as those relating to the Road to Wrestlemania mode, but the first few achievements on the list seem quite interesting.

A pre-load is now available to those who pre-ordered the game through Steam.

I am looking forward to the prospect of playing the likes of Mass Effect 3 and Uncharted 3, and I fully expect both to be formally announced within the next year or so. You could throw Half-Life 2: Episode 2 in there as well, but that should have already been released if Valve had stuck to their original timeframe. As for sequels that appear to be unlikely to ever materialise, I will echo the support for Jade Empire 2 and KOTOR 3, but particularly the latter. The KOTOR series is one of my all-time favourites and, even with all the cut content from KOTOR 2, it still had more than enough legs to carry a third instalment. Other than those two titles, I would really like to see a sequel to XIII, the cel-shaded game from around 2003. Its reviews were mixed and it ended up in the bargain bins very quickly, but I loved the story, artistic style and simple FPS gameplay. The cliffhanger ending left it wide open for a sequel, but poor sales have all but killed off such a possibility.

Out of curiosity, what exactly did you dislike about Condemned? I can see that it has some flaws, but I would call it one of my favourite games of this generation.

I thought that was already in the game. Correct me if I'm wrong, though, as I haven't played a game in the series since FM08.

I only played the trial version of Magic: The Gathering on the Xbox 360, but I didn't get into it enough to consider a full purchase. I really miss the 1997 Microprose version of Magic on the PC, which had an RPG-style quest to go alongside the card game. It was packed to bursting point with bugs and crashed more often than any other game I've ever played before or since, but it still holds a special place in my heart.

If Spain defeat Holland in the final, New Zealand will end up being the only unbeaten side at this year's World Cup.

I read somewhere that you can avoid having to put up with censored versions of games if you get someone from a region in which the uncensored versions are sold, such as the UK or USA, to send you the uncensored versions as gifts. So, if you know a generous Steam user from another country, you might still be in luck.

Half-Life 2: Episodes 1 and 2 also have 66% discounts, as do the Borderlands DLC packs.

I have just got the game and would be interested in joining in some multiplayer at some point.

Ronnie James Dio was my all-time favourite vocalist of any music genre. To me, nobody blended raw power and vocal range quite like Dio, and I am proud to say that he was the closest thing I have ever had to an idol in the world of music. I was fortunate enough to see him live twice in my life, once with Dio and once with Black Sabbath, or Heaven and Hell, as they were more recently known. I sincerely doubt that anything will top those experiences for me. To be honest, I find it hard to say much more at the moment, and I certainly can't find the words to do this great man justice. I don't like to throw around outlandish comments in the heat of the moment, but I truly feel justified in saying that the world has lost THE heavy metal legend.

I would strongly suggest Condemned: Criminal Origins. The game may be a little old, but its atmosphere and pacing is fantastic, and you can probably pick it up for a low price too.

Anyone who doesn't have this game on the PC yet should definitely consider it now. For this weekend, it can be purchased for £13.39/$19.99 on Steam. What's more is that The Passing is free for PC users, unlike the Xbox 360 version.

I thought that was a surprisingly good announcement. I will be particularly looking forward to seeing Rock Sugar.