Microsoft has announced that the 360 has just surpassed the original Xbox in total sales. What this basically means is that the 360 has now sold over 25 million units which also means the analysts are a couple of million off and we can expect to see some huge sales figures coming out of NPD for November. With the PS3 …

While the original games were your straight-up platformers (not that that's a bad thing), this next title changes everything up somewhat by introducing as well as focusing on building and using vehicles to complete missions and explore new areas.... I never had the chance to play any of the franchises previous titles but in all my time as a gamer I had always heard such great things about them so when I got my hands on a review copy of the game I was quite excited to see what all the fuss was about.... From the word "go", Rare make it very clear that they had decided to approach the game from a rather different angle by taking us into the gameworld where game characters live and introducing us to the "Lord of Games" or "L.O.G" who basically runs the show.... The game is very self-referential and the humor is quite bizarre as the L.O.G explains to the (now fat and lazy) washed up video game characters that he has decided to scrap the original concept of the games and change things up a little by having them build and utilize vehicles to complete their objectives. All in all it's kind of funny although I find that the self-mockery gets to a point where you actually start believing that the characters are in-fact useless, which isn't a good thing. While the game is going to be played by a whole horde of new gamers who never played the originals, I think that a lot of the jokes are just going to fly over their heads.... This sort of thing may have been acceptable when the original games came out but this is the "next-gen" folks, people don't want to sit and read dialogue all day long anymore, especially kids.... What you do is use your vehicles to complete missions, ranging from races, to tasks such as collecting items, dropping items off or even just getting somewhere within a certain amount of time.... You are given access to a workshop to build your own vehicles in a way not unlike that of a Lego set. You slowly get access to more and more parts that allow to build the most weird and wonderful contraptions to use in your missions. On the whole the system may feel quite basic at first but once you get into it, the building can be quite fun, especially when you later get to tear around in your very own creation.... Multiplayer is included with the game and can be played over Xbox Live as well as splitscreen and while most of the modes are quite fun and the ability to use your amazing contraptions are there, I don't see it as being anything that will add a significant amount of playtime to the title.... It's too much for children and at the same time, too little for adults so I really don't see who Rare expects to play this game. It really is a shame because if there is anything that the Xbox 360 lacks and has always been lacking was a decent library of fun platformers on the lines of something like Super Mario or even Crash Bandicoot.... With hard-hitters like LittleBigPlanet on the PS3 and the wealth of platforming franchises on the Wii, Microsoft and Rare have really done themselves a disservice by falling short on a game that could have really pulled a lot of younger and more casual gamers towards their console. Scoring: Gameplay: 7/10 [ Missions lack a certain fun factor ] Presentation: 6/10 [ Framerate and boring load screens hurt a decent looking game ] Sound: 6/10 [ Decent sound but there is no excuse for the complete lack of voice work ] Value: 7/10 [ There is a lot to do and collect in the game, so it could keep you busy for hours if you enjoy what it's offering ] Overall: 6.5/1 0 [ Children will feel disappointed and so will adults.

You would think that with the price of the Xbox 360 Arcade SKU being what it is, even police officers with low salaries could afford one but it seems like that isn't the case. This video posted by CNN tells the story of a man who was pulled over by the police for speeding and then had his car searched because the police claimed that they smelled Marijuana. No drugs were found but the police did find an Xbox 360 Arcade Console with 8 games. The police officers told him that they were confiscating it because they suspect that it was stolen and that when he has the receipt he can meet them somewhere and they would give it back. What the heck is that all about? The guy even got his receipt and took it in to the police station but wasn't able to get his console back. Why? Well, because it had not even been transferred to evidence room. Seems like we are going to need to start organising some special discount for the Po-Po because things might start getting ugly.

They offer a type of an experience that can only be enjoyed when playing with a couple of friends or family members and definitely have their place in the world.... That doesn't mean that hardcore gamers should just ignore it though because sometimes, everyone needs a game that anyone can play.... You get four "gameshow" controllers that come with the game that have a big button that acts as your buzzer and then four small buttons that are used for answering the multiple choice questions.... Some will require you to figure out what is missing from a famous scene, listen to famous sound clips or recognise movies from 8-bit graphic versions of a famous scene while others will have you guessing movie names from still photographs. There are even times when you will watch a scene from a movie and then have to answer questions about the scene, movie or actors. There is quite a large variety of different trivia games that come with the title and the best part is that anyone can play because everyone watches movies. I had the chance to play the game with casual gamers, hardcore gamers, movie fanatics and even those who would considerer themselves none of the above.... Something that will also appeal to almost everyone is that the game includes movies from the old days when color was still an idea and then ranges right through to some of the very latest movies that have only just hit the big screen.... You will however be able to pull your avatars into the game, so making some avatars of your visitors ahead of time will impress to no end. The game can be played over Xbox Live as well but the truth is that the real fun is had when you have a bunch of people sitting together in the living room.... While there is no doubt that the game will reach a point where anyone who has played the game enough will start seeing questions that they have already seen before, the same is completely so for any standard board game.... It's going to sit on your shelf and do nothing for a lot of the time. When the time comes that people come over and you all want to do something together, you are going to whip it out just like any other board game, just better. It's fun, it's easy to pick up and pretty much appeals to anyone and I can highly recommend it to anyone who wants something simple and fun that they can whip out when their parents or boring accountant friends come over for dinner. If you are the type of person that like to host "movie night" at your place, the this game is the perfect way to kick off the evening.

This entire story with the Gears of War 2 Map Packs in South Africa have been a bit of a complete bummer for all of us. While we can assure you that we are still hard at work with our mission to try and get map codes to all South Africans, regardless of the odds, something very interesting (and not good) has arisen. A lot of South Africans have been buying map pack codes from various different sources so that they can all join in the flashback fun. A friend of mine (Let's call him "Bartleby") bought a code this weekend and was incredibly disappointed to get home and find out that the availability of the downloadable maps has come to an end. Just like the issue that we had with the first Gears of War, our IP's are now being blocked, meaning that they are no longer accessible to anyone in this country. We have previously posted up a very clever way to get around the restrictions but either way, it's still not good news to hear. Please know that we are still working on getting answers with regards to the map codes but for now we ask you to all sit tight until we can get you anymore solid information.

Anyone who has been playing Left 4 Dead knows that it can be quite an exhilarating experience, what with all of the zombie trying to eat your face and everything. The result can easily boil down to a few crazy moments of shouting and screaming as you do all that you can to avoid being swarmed by a massive horde of Zombies. The guy in this video however, seems to have taken "living the experience" to a whole new level. Please, please, please tell me that this guy is just messing around because if there are any gamers out there who actually react like this in games, I would have to wonder what this world is coming to... and I don't want to.

Xbox 360 ‘NXE Avatar Daft Punk’ clip So it took little over a day for gamers to come up with some new uses for Avatars, first up – Music videos. Have a look at these two groovy videos Xbox Live user Tronic Games whipped up using only the new dashboard, some electronica, and a little imagination. It’s gonna be cool …

So we have finally received n ews on the GTA IV DLC that is on it's way and it looks like Rockstar have taken quite an interesting approach to how they have chosen to handle it. This is mainly because in the DLC you will no longer play as Niko Bellic, the usual hero of GTA IV. Nope, this time around you will thrown into the life of Johnny Klebitz, a member of the Lost biker gang that Niko runs into a couple of times in the original storyline. The question I want to raise is... what about the new cities or locations that everyone was harping on about a while ago? The new DLC will still take place in Liberty City and while I find the idea of jumping into a whole different character and story within the game, a lot of people have possibly already grown tired of seeing the sights and are ready for some new ones. It may be possible that DLC that includes extra locations may still come in future but for now, whether you are Johnny or Niko, you are going to be sharing the same turf for a while to come at the very least. The new DLC titles "Lost and Damned" will be available on February 17. No pricing had been given just yet.