While I obviously haven't had the opportunity to play Rock Band 2, I have been able to spend a significant amount of time with the first Rock Band and unless Rock Band 2 is going to be a lot different to the first one, they are in trouble.... The new guitar is fantastic and not only feels nice and sturdy, but has quite a couple of changes made to it as well. There is no doubt that some of the changes have been taken straight from Rock Band but some very clever changes to existing ideas have made a big difference. The Guitar has now been given 5 extra buttons as well, but instead of them being at the bottom of the neck like Rock Band, they are just a little lower down next to the normal buttons. The major difference is that the extra buttons are not buttons, but apart of a lengthy "touchpad" that not only allows you to nail solo's easier, but adds the ability to properly slide your fingers up and down like you would on a real guitar.... The pads themselves are very soft and don't make much noise when you play on them, which is nice because with World Tour the pads are pressure sensitive, so the harder you hit, the louder it sounds.... I didn't take the opportunity to embarrass myself with the microphone, so I didn't get a very good look at it but from what I heard from when i was playing on the instruments, the singers voices were coming out really nice and clear.... What I really liked in World Tour was that when you are on guitar, the songs are really still fun to play and there is a good feeling behind the system that detects when you hit a note. The guitar essentially still feels exactly the same as it does when you are playing Guitar Hero III and I don't know about you, but that suits me just fine. I decided to try the drums on hard, which, when done in Rock Band usually leads to me failing miserable while the rest of the band works hard to keep everything going. Now it could very easily have been the song that we were playing, but I found the drums on hard to be easier than in Rock Band. I can't decide if that is a good thing or not as it may leave you feeling unchallenged when you get good enough to attack expert mode.... I didn't even have the ability to mess around with the music creation system, but from what I have been hearing, that is going to be an entirely different reason to buy the game in itself. I have heard that World Tours pack that includes the game, guitar, drums and microphone will be going for R1700.00 in South Africa when it releases and will confirm as soon as I can. Usually I wouldn't be so quick to make bold statements in a hands on preview such as this, but if that price is true then this may very well be the bargain of the century.

I am sure by now you have seen the latest NPD stats but if not here is a quick recap. Nintendo DS – 518,300 Nintendo Wii – 453,000 PlayStation Portable – 253,000 Xbox 360 – 195,200 PS3 – 185,400 Yes Nintendo once again smashed it’s opposition on both the handheld and main console divisions. The PSP faired well and the …

By Philip Dunkley Unbelievably, for a person who considers himself a huge Ratchet and Clank fan, I actually forgot this was out on the PS3, and was surprised when I got the call from Ster Kinekor on Friday to come and pick up the review copy. Oh well, I must be getting old. Anyway, so the game has been released, …

I'm writing this article only a short while after arriving home from a Megarom event that had two rather humourous French blokes from Activision give us a presentation of their upcoming titles for the Christmas season. While they did a great job of keeping things fun and interesting, nothing could compare to the guy in the back row who thought that there was a walkway behind his seat and literally took a casual step off of a 2 meter ledge, shaking the entire rooms floor as he slammed into the ground.... I had the chance to get some hands on time with Call of Duty: World at War as well Guitar Hero: World Tour . Yes indeed, A couple of guys and myself stood up on a small stage in front of a bunch of strangers as I fought back the pressure of nailing the solo of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" on Expert mode, which I thankfully handled and made sure to not look like a complete noob (It came out of nowhere I swear). You had better make sure to check the site for my hands-on impressions of both COD:WAW and GH: World Tour as I will have both of them up shortly after this article sees the light of day and you will really want to hear what I have to say if you are a fan of the COD series or games that let you rock out in style.... If there is one thing that Activision impressed me with, it was that they very openly admitted to many of the faults in their previous titles and that they seemed to have really listened to the suggestions and complaints of gamers around the world and made any necessary changes to make better games. Whether they have done enough or not is something that we will only really find out once we have had time with the finished titles. We were also treated to some footage of the upcoming action title "Fracture", which takes a whole new approach on combat by giving you the ability to alter the terrain around you to your advantage.

...Quantum of Solace, the new James Bond game also looks like it has a lot of potential, especially for a 007 title since the last couple of Bond titles were nothing special to say the least. Add the fact that it is using the COD 4 graphics engine and it actually might surprise us. Obviously one of Activision's biggest titles for the year is Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. While I quite liked the feel of the game I can't say that I am completely sure that it will not get repetitive. We didn't see much more than what is already available in the demo so if you want to know more you can go read the impressions of the demo that I put up a while ago by clicking here. While there were a few other titles shown off such as Clone Wars, Spiderman: Web of Shadows and believe it or not, two Barbie titles, the real ones you want to pay attention to are the ones described above. All I can really say is that after my experiences with a few of these upcoming titles, the only advice I can give you is to start saving up. There is a big season of gaming on the way and you are going to want a couple of these in your games library come Christmas.

By now, everybody has seen the pictures and knows the majority of the features (transmits sound) of the new Sony Bluetooth Headset. However we are still left with those all important questions. 1. What if the headset looks silly when you have it on your head? 2. What if you’re going deaf in your one ear and need to know …

And now for something completely different... David Cage of Quantic Dreams has confirmed that in the upcoming PS3 title "Heavy Rain", if the main character dies, you will still be able to continue with the games central plot. If you haven't seen any of the screens or videos yet, the main character is a journalist that is investigating a couple of disappearances and the woman pictured in the image above. David Cage had the following to say: “I can’t really tell you too much about what the story’s about or how it’s going to work with the characters, all I can tell you that your character - the main character - can die, and the story will continue,” When asked whether the death of the main character will lead the player into some sort of side story, he replied by saying that “No, no,” and that "It's one big story". This all sounds rather interesting. The only question I have is, is whether the main character might die at your hands or if it will be something that is more heavily scripted into the plot. I believe it will be the latter and possibly based on a huge decision that must be made in game.

Want to have a go at Resistance 2 before anyone else? Why wouldn't you? It's pretty simple. Head on over to the Resistance 2 website, fill in the form and then hope that you get an email that confirms that you are in. Please note that you will need your Playstation Network ID and must be 18 or older. You want to try out some 60 player multiplayer as well as some 8 player co-op? You know what to do. The official statement after the jump. Publisher Sony Computer Entertainment America has opened up an online application form for the beta test of Insomniac's PS3 shooter sequel Resistance 2. Beta access is granted to pre-order customers and subscribers to Qore, Sony's digitally-downloaded video magazine. But for those unwilling to spend money, aspiring players can apply for free access at the Resistance 2 site. Applicants will need their PlayStation Network IDs and must be over 18 years old. The beta test samples Resistance 2's multiplayer modes--including competitive modes for up to 60 players and 8-player co-operative play using multiplayer maps--and will start in early October. The complete game will be released on November 4 in North America.

Bloomberg reports that since Microsoft introduced the price drop to its Xbox 360 console range, sales have doubled compared to that of last weekend. Not only for the Arcade console which now retails at $199.00, but for the Pro and Elite consoles as well. When we previously speculated that the price drop would boost sales, many stated that the price point is not important enough to make a significant difference to consumers purchasing decision. Well the numbers are clearly stating the opposite, with the sales boost being more than significant and also putting a Microsoft console at a lower price point that the Nintendo Wii for the first time. Is the PS3 in trouble? While the Nintendo Wii is still the definite leader in the console wars and ahead by miles, the fight for second place as the best selling HD console still continues between the PS3 and the Xbox 360. If the boost brought about by the price drop continues into the Christmas season, Microsoft can look forward to a whole lot of sales. At the same time the PS3 has been outselling the Xbox 360 for a couple of months now and its lineup is looking incredibly appealing to say the least, not to mention all the families who may be interested in a new Blu-Ray player for the house. The upcoming season is going to be a real fight to the death as the two console manufacturers go head to head for market supremacy.