Earlier this week I was browsing through the NXE and happened to see an interesting little bit of news about this upcoming weekend (28 - 30 November). This weekend coming is going to have a Live promotion called "Xtival '08" running that will allow all Xbox Live Silver Members to play online. Not only that but it also looks as if there are going to be a few exclusive downloads available as well. So if you are one of those people who have not yet decided to get a gold account or maybe have a friend who is thinking about getting one, hook up the boxes this weekend and try it our for yourself. Free multiplayer and access to a whole bunch of downloads at no extra cost? Hell, they may as well just called it Feel-what-it's-like-to-use-PSN weekend.

After a whole bunch of rumours flew around the net earlier this year regarding a PS3 motion controller, nothing was ever shown or seen of the remote and what it was capable. But now we have something special to show you. A company by the name of "Sixense" has put on a presentation showing the capabilities of the remote that they have been working on and the results are astounding to say the least. This new technology far outperforms that of the Nintendo Wii in terms of accuracy and usability and some of the demo's that the developer showed off really opened my eyes to exactly what can be done with a remote like this as well as how easy it could actually be to make a fully immersive experience with something like that of a third person shooter. Don't believe me? Check out this video and especially take note of how the developer makes use of cover in a mock-up paintball game around the 2 minute mark and tell me that integrating something like that into a hardcore shooter wouldn't make it a ton of fun. More information as well as the full videos, after the jump. Due to the controller being so accurate and being able to allow body movement (unlike an accelerometer-based controller that always has a centre point), the developer is able to properly take cover behind a wall by crouching and then stick out the side to shoot at his targets. Although I am not entirely sure if Sony even has any official involvement in this project, they had better jump on this fast because I am sure that Microsoft sees the same potential that I do and we all know that they are very quick to throw money at something that they want. I didn't really think that a more accurate motion controller would ever get me excited but after seeing this and realising the potential, I can't wait to see what gets done with it. Am I insane for thinking that this is really cool or do a lot of you out there agree with me? Let us know in the comments.

While I was aware that it was looking really good and I have been a fan of the Elder Scrolls series, I really didn't expect it to impress in the way that it did. While I am still trying to wrap my head around how much there is to do in the game and how many areas I still have to explore, I am happy to say that new DLC has been announced for consoles (as well as PC) and in another sense, I am sad to say that us console guys aren't going to be able to get our hands on the PC creation tools, called the G.E.C.K (Garden of Eden Creation Kit). The creation kit will be released next month and the DLC is set to hit in January, with even more coming in February and March. It looks as if it will only be the Xbox 360 getting the DLC, which sounds like a bummer to PS3 owners but it gets me thinking about PSN and how there is no reason that the content creation tools won't be able to be used on the PS3, so it may actually be good news for the PS3 guys. Bethesda says that they "can’t wait to see what the community does with the G.E.C.K.”... I can only hope that if we are lucky, Bethesda will choose some of the best content and then add it as DLC to the consoles. A list of what you can expect in the DLC as well as some more info on the G.E.C.K, after the jump. [Thanks Poddle for the tip] The G.E.C.K sounds pretty awesome, giving gamers the ability to not only change and create areas, but to also create missions and stories as well. Bethesda say that: "The Garden of Eden Creation Kit will let users create, modify, and edit any data for use with Fallout 3, from building landscapes, towns, and locations to writing dialogue, creating characters, weapons and creatures." It makes me wonder if gamers will also be able to record and add voice for the characters? In any case, the rest of us can all still look forward to the DLC. Here is the list of what is going to be made available: • Operation: Anchorage. Enter a military simulation and fight in one of the greatest battles of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders.... Journey to the industrial raider town called The Pitt, located in the remains of Pittsburgh.... Join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel and rid the Capital Wasteland of the Enclave remnants once and for all.

This rather funny music video was created because, as most of you know, CliffyB (Cliff Bleszkinski, whatever) really likes giving his opinion on things and at the same time, the media really likes reporting about them. Well it seems like these guys have had quite enough of Cliff's ramblings and have decided to write a song about it. It's pretty funny stuff and it does make one wonder why in the hell we do see so many articles about CliffyB's opinions. Yes he made a great game but as the song says, that doesn't make him a guru.

Well, sort of. With the new Avatar system being integrated into the new Xbox 360 dashboard, some people have been hard at work (read: bored) creating avatar versions of some of their favorite characters and people including Super Mario, Kratos, Chuck Norris and more. Game characters, movie stars and political figures are in the line-up and heck even some really bad creations are in there too. I have posted a couple after the jump but you can check out the rest of them by following the link at the bottom of the article. source: Check out the whole bunch created by the guys at GamesRadar by clicking here.

Well, I am an old-school NFS fan, I played them from the first one, right down to the point when I started losing interest, somewhere around the release of Carbon, So I take it that I am the perfect candidate for one of these promised smiles and to be honest, I am more than happy to have my mind changed.... Watching Maggie Q standing in a strangely dark lit room saying something like "Ok, your getting in deeper and that's exactly where I want you" (I can't tell if that is supposed to sound that bad) over the span of what must be around 5 - 10 seconds does not exactly make me want to break out the popcorn just yet. We can't expect too much of a story from a racing game but this time it looked like we were going to get given one, which is the only reason why it's quite a letdown so far.... It seems as if they have tried to squeeze every single next-gen visual effect onto the screen at the same time, ultimately making it so overdone that you basically can't see what is going on. image: IGN All the races take place during sunset or sundown (and there is no excuse for not yet integrating day/night cycles into the series yet) , so you have the sun in your face a lot of the time.... The roads are strangely reflective, as if they are constantly wet (but even more shiny than usual) and the cars themselves are also overly shiny and reflective, essentially making everything look so full of white reflection marks that it just looks plain ugly and the glow effects on everything can be such a visual distraction that you will end up slamming into a pillar at full speed just because it was too difficult to see what's in front of you.... Most of the time it will be relatively fine but it can drop like a brick through certain areas and is so inconsistent that it will pick up when you face your car away from the city towards the open seas, causing times where the framerate could drop down to around 5 - 8 framers per second and then jump straight up to 60fps as you turn a corner.... While I never really thought about them much in previous games, the sound guys have done such a fantastic job in keeping the dialogue realistic that I started to wonder if they had just plain stolen it off of some Real TV episodes.... The customisation has been cut down, which I don't really see as a bad thing to be honest and to make things even more laughable (especially when compared to other titles on the market), elements like simple vinyls don't even show up in online Multiplayer races.... While I can understand that yes, maybe there are some people out there who are short on time and would rather pay to get ahead, It is not in the spirit of gaming and comes across more as a willingness to make extra profits in every way possible and with no shame.... image: IGN Take that great driving mechanic and destroy it's fun factor with low framerates, repetitive races, lack of motivation from the story and an almost useless open world and you are really left with nothing but a game that feels like it has only moved backwards. At the end of the day the game feels like a stripped down and emptied out version of some of the past titles and while that may be fine for handheld titles, it really is unacceptable for a Next-Gen title from a large company such as EA.... Those were the good old days of the Need for Speed franchise and while I really did enjoy the move to street racing with the Underground series and even Most Wanted, I think that it should have ended there. Underground, Underground 2, Most Wanted, Carbon and Undercover feel like they are still the same game at their core and while I commend EA on trying something different with Pro Street, it isn't the kind of "different" that many of the fans are looking for.... I really cannot recommend this game to anyone looking for a fun racer to play on their console because in all truth, I would rather recommend picking up a cheap copy of NFS: Most Wanted instead, purely because it feels like it is a more advanced game.... Scoring: Gameplay: 6/10 [ Driving is fun but hampered by too many other factors ] Presentation: 4/10 [ No, no ,no ,no, no ] Sound: 8.5/10 [ A magnificent gem in a bucket of rocks ] Value: 6/10 [ While there is quite a lot to do, there is little motivation to carry on and the multiplyer is easily trounced by rival titles ] Overall: 6/1 0 [ Nothing more than a reminder that the Need for Speed series is in need of a serious change.

While the initial release date was set for the end of March 2009, a press release has been released stating that the game is indeed now confirmed for January 21. While the only downside is that a lot of people are still going to be incredibly broke from the combination of the recent gaming season mixed together with the expenses of the holidays, I am still really happy that the game is going to be in my console so much sooner.... We can probably expect a demo to be releasing fairly soon then as well and considering that I got more playtime out of the original Skate's demo than some of my full titles, I can't wait. The creation tools, referred to as the "Graphics Creator" is going to allow gamers to create custom graphics to apply to their hats, shirts and decks through an online web-based application, allowing gamers to look far more unique than before. For anyone interested, here is the full press release: SKATE 2 HITS STORES JANUARY Satisfy the Skate Craving with the All-New Graphics Creator or Pre-order Now for Exclusive Access to the Throwback Pack

...– 25th November, 2008 – Black Box, an Electronic Arts Inc. studio (NASDAQ: ERTS) announced today that Skate 2, the sequel to the genre-defining original game will hit retailers in North America on January 21st, 2009 and worldwide on January 23rd, 2009 – making it one of the first must-have games of 2009. Players that can’t wait until January can indulge their irrepressible Skate craving even sooner, with the Graphics Creator, a web-based customization tool launching next month on www.skate.ea.com. For those in North America anxious to shred the streets in blaring style can pre-order now for an exclusive code to unlock the Throwback Pack, a special upgrade pack that includes retro clothing, accessories and gestures.... With this tool, gamers have the freedom to create custom graphics for their in-game hats, decks and shirts, infusing their skateboarding experience with an unrivaled level of individuality.... Skate 2 brings gamers to New San Vanelona, a city that’s been rebuilt after an unspeakable disaster five years ago. Equipped with double the bag of tricks, players are tasked to rebuild their career and revive the skate scene. Now with the ability to get off-board and move objects around, gamers can create their own epic spots and challenges which can then be uploaded, shared and experienced by others around the world. Skate 2 ups the ante in delivering all the grit, creativity and culture of skateboarding with all-new tricks that allow players to truly skate it their way – on and off the board. Skate 2 is developed by Black Box, a studio of Electronic Arts in Vancouver, British Columbia and will be available on the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system and the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. Those that want to skate indoors over the holidays can enjoy Skate It with family and friends on the Wii™ and the Nintendo DS™ available in stores now.... More information about EA’s products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at www.electronicarts.co.uk/press.

There was apparently a big Fable 2 announcement that Lionhead was going to unleash upon us last week but they were asked by Microsoft to hold out till this week. Well it’s “next week” now and Lionhead have broken the news, Gamasutra caught it first when they reported on a entry on the official Lionhead blog that stated Fable 2 …