Fallout New Vegas is coming in 2010!
Credit: CVG, IGN, YouTube
Fallout New Vegas is coming and it’s coming in 2010! Obsidian, the development team behind Knights of the Old Republic 2 and Neverwinter Nights 2  released a teaser trailer this week and gave us a release window of Fall 2010. If you needed any further convincing that Game of the Year 2010 was going to be a hotly contested affair, then perhaps this might give you some perspective.

Got to love Frank Sinatra music being used to promote a computer game. Awesome!!

Project Needlemouse becomes Sonic the Hedgehog 4, the first true 2D platformer sequel in 17 years!
Credit: Joystiq, IGN, CVG
SEGA have finally lifted the lid on Project Needlemouse and given us some specifics. More specifically, the game is going to be Sonic the Hedgehog 4; a direct sequel to Sonic and Knuckles released back in 1993! No more bird collecting and stories about flying carpets, this is Sonic as we know and love it, with 2D graphics borne out with 3D visuals. It’s also been announced that the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions will sport 1080p support.

What’s more, while we’ve met many of Sonic’s friends over the years, the only playable character in Sonic 4 will be the spiky blue hedgehog himself, complete with his old school move set, joined by the homing attack of the more recent games. Sonic the Hedgehog 4′s music will also be familiar to people who’ve played the games in the past, reworking old themes and styles.

SEGA have said that the first episode will release in the Summer for all formats, and will have both Wii Remote and Six-axis support. The game will also enable you to compare speed runs via online leaderboards.

While I’m a little sceptical about the episodic nature of this and don’t quite understand how it will work, this is probably the best news to come out of SEGA in a long, long time. Am I allowed to be excited by news by SEGA? Is that still permitted in 2010?!

Still news in 2010!

Splinter Cell: Conviction dated for April 13th 2010
Credit: Joystiq
We finally get another ‘solid’ date for Splinter Cell Conviction. So solid in fact, that Ubisoft actually carved it into stone! April 13th 2010 will see the NA release of Splinter Cell: Conviction as cast into stone, and April 15th will see its release in the UK. It seems the first month of Q2 is just going to get as flooded as Q1 as a whole. Let’s hope that this one doesn’t disappear back into the shadows again.

Red Faction 4 to be unveiled at E3
Credit: IGN, CVG
THQ gave us a wealth of announcements this week, not least of which Red Faction 4, which they are preparing to showcase at E3 later this year. No real details were unveiled other than a tentative title. Whether it will be a game in the same vein as the original Red Faction games on PS2 or the newer spin on the franchise revealed in Guerilla last year remains to be seen. Either way, THQ seem to have a hit on their hands and they’re not shy in expanding that franchise even further.

Darksiders 2, DeBlob 2 and Saints Row 3 Announced
Credit: IGN
THQ also announced that Darksiders 2, DeBlob 2 and Saints Row 3 are headed into production. It seems THQ is investing its future in sequels and rightly so. Darksiders has been fending well for itself despite its stiff competition in Q1, DeBlob was a sleeper hit on Wii in 2008, many hailing it as the best game Nintendo never made, and Saints Row 2 holding its own against main rival to GTA IV. Great news for fans of all three of these franchises.

Dante’s Inferno DLC announced
Credit: Joystiq
As is the case with most every game these days, EA have decided to extend the Dante’s Inferno experience with some additional downloadable content. However, some of the ideas going into the content actually sound quite innovative and interesting. In March, a Dark Forest Prequel level will explore the story of the character Dante’s return from the crusades to Italy. Then in April come Trials of St Lucia, a co-operative multiplayer expansion with a new playable character and in-game combat editor! The editor allows players to create combat trails and share them online!

No pricing or specific release dates have been announced as yet.

GTA Episodes from Liberty City coming to PC / PS3 on March 30th
Credit: Joystiq
It seems the exclusivity agreement Microsoft have with Rockstar is about to expire, as The Lost and the Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony are finally coming to Playstation and PC in just over a month. These are two excellent pieces of entertainment that have been hugely successful on Xbox and really added to the experience of an already tremendous title.

Great news for GTA owners and well worth the price of a full retail product for all the content contained therein.

Continuing the legacy!

Next Borderlands DLC  ‘The Secret Armoury of General Knoxx’ details released . Borderlands DLC disc to be released in Feb
Credit: Joystiq
One thing you can say for Gearbox, they certainly know how to support a game post launch. The third piece of Borderlands DLC has been announced with some screenshots. The Secret Armoury of General Knoxx will feature more achievements, more environments to explore and an increased level cap!

Also, later this month, for those who don’t get online or prefer shrink wrapping can purchase the first two pieces of DLC for Borderlands on disc, available for all formats.

Halo Reach not a Natal title
Credit: Joystiq
As we near closer to the Spring and the supposed launch of the Halo: Reach Beta, details are slowly starting to trickle in about the enigmatic new project from Bungie. A series of screenshots found its way onto the web last week, and we know the project is a prequel to the original Halo: Combat Evolved.

This week, we also learned that Halo Reach will be controlled via your regular Xbox pad and will not utilise motion control. But that was to be expected right? I mean, we don’t even have a release date for Natal yet, so how else would we have been able to participate in the beta in the Spring? Still, Bungie’s comments pertaining to this were not an outright dismissal of using the technology. Could there be some features within Halo Reach that use Natal? It would certainly add further stature and validity to a project Microsoft are investing so much time and resource into, and with Fable 3 already announced to be using the tech, surely the announcement of the new Halo game using Natal will boost its sales even more.

Let the speculation continue.

This week on Playstation Network
Credit: CVG
This week on PSN is pretty darn cool. Final Fantasy VIII, the most underrated edition in the series, makes its debut on the marketplace for both PS3 and PSP for the bargain price of £7.99. You can also pick up a demo for the highly anticipated Heavy Rain, an Eye Pet Lucky Dip Pack and an Infamous Giggawat Blade pack, all free of charge.

This week on Xbox Live Arcade
Credit: CVG, Major Nelson, Xbox 360 Achievements
It’s cheap times this week! The deal of the Week is yet another gem. For 400 points, you can pick one of last Summers crown jewels, Splosion Man! It’s already cheap at 800 MS Points, and so it’s ridiculously underpriced at 400 MS Points. Seriously, you can buy a lightsaber for your Avatar for the same price, but don’t buy the bloody Lightsaber, buy Splosion Man!

As for the XBLA release, we have Chime, also for 400 points. Single player game seeks significant gamer for musical puzzle fun. Me: unique, compelling, creative and demanding. You: quick-witted and open-minded with sharp reactions and a deep love of music. Let’s get together and play something beautiful. Featuring music by Moby, Paul Hartnoll (Orbital), Philip Glass, Fred Deakin (Lemon Jelly) and Markus Schulz. To make things even more interesting, for the first time ever that I know of, every sale of this game, 60% of the profits go to charity!

How generous.

KA-BOOOOOOM!!!

The third Behemoth game revealed
Credit: Xbox 360 Achievements
Behemoth, the genius behind the brilliant Castle Crashers and Alien Hominoid, have unveiled their next project, Battleblock Theatre… I know, right? Complete with a new trailer, here is a synopsis of the plot for their latest creation…

“Having shipwrecked on a mysterious island you find yourself both betrayed by your best friend Hatty and captured by the locals. All of this is happening while being forced into deadly performances. This however, is just the start of your problems.”

No word on a release date or price plan as yet.

Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker has been delayed… In Japan
Credit: CVG
While this may not be a reflection on the release date for other territories, the Peace Walker release date has been pushed back in Japan to make a final ‘few adjustments’. Kojima went on record in December to say that the NA release date will be May 28th. However, that release window is certainly looking less likely. Regarding this recent news, Kojima has also gone on record to say the delay is ‘a crime’.

Bioshock 2 Reviews are in
Credit: Metacritic, IGN
The verdict is out on Bioshock 2, and if early indications are anything to go by, it seems Q1 won’t just be remembered for its quantity, but also its quality. PC Gamer gave it 90%, PSM3 gave it 93% saying it tops the original in terms of storytelling and combat and IGN score it with 91%. If you ever had any doubts that this game would not live up to its heritage, early indications seem ready to prove you wrong. Check out Metacritic for regular updates.

After it was revealed in the media this week that high street stores charge different prices across the country depending on their location, gamers need to be more savvy than ever but luckily there are some fantastic bargains available whatever your taste in games.

The Zavvi mega Monday is always a good place to start Neil’s Deals especially considering that at the moment if you simply text “Zavvi” to “82100″ you are rewarded with a £1.00 off voucher. If you use this voucher you can pick up games at a fantastic price. For example Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City for £16.95, Tekken 6 on both the Xbox 360 and PS3 for £16.95, Batman Arkham Asylum £16.95 again on both Xbox 360 and PS3 with PES 2010.

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising on the Xbox 360 is only a mouth watering £15.99 if you Enter “shoptovoucher3″ at checkout.

As it’s Christmas though, the best offer to keep the family this happy this Christmas would be Scene It? Lights, Camera, Action on the Xbox 360 with four wireless controllers £8.95 with the afore mentioned voucher.

Elsewhere on both PS3 and Xbox 360 Rise of the Argonauts is only £11.98 and if you are lucky enough to have any in stock near where you live, you can pick up Banjo-Kazooie for only £4.99 from Comet. The Hut have Bionic Commando for £8.73 and Skate for £7.73 for your gaming stocking fillers.

Dark Messiah: Might And Magic Elements is only £7.99 and if you really must buy James Camerons new Avatar game you can pick it up for £26.99. If you want to appear really generous this Christmas you could do much worse than a 12 month Empire Magazine subscription which comes with Assassins Creed 2 for free, I believe the offer is also with FHM if that’s your thing.

Ready 2 Rumble: Revolution is only £6.95 for boxing Wii fans, and it is also worth checking out if Comet have games such as Pikmin or Mad world in stock near you for only £4.99.

It may also be worth me mentioning that if you buy one £15 iTunes gift card at Tesco you get the second one half price meaning you pay £22.50 for £30 worth of card. This is confirmed to be available in most Tesco stores nationwide and ends 9 December but is not available online. It is also being reported that Morrisons are selling 2 x £15 ITunes cards for only £20 so might be worth asking the friendly cashier to scan there first.

Wet would be a very tempting bargain of the week for £12.99 on both Xbox 360 and PS3 but I found a little to disappointing to do so.

Bargain of the week
We are reaching that time when endless lists will appear telling you the best games of 2009, Borderlands will be near the top of most of these lists and for £16.95 it’s simply not wise to miss out. Remember to Simply text “Zavvi” to “82100″ and you will instantly receive a £1.00 voucher to get the game at this price.

£16.95 for the must have game of 2009

As this week’s Neil’s Deals comes to an end, remember the best deal is a free one, so remember from today that we starting our 12 days of Christmas Giveaway, there should be something for everybody and we want to give you a special thank you for your help and support this year. Remember to follow us on Twitter for the very latest deals and latest news, and feel free to contact me anytime if you have any requests.

Sometimes a gaming soundtrack can not only enhance the game but ensure that it stays with you for the rest of your life. Before you say that’s pushing it a little far, mate, we can all listen to a song or watch a movie and twenty years from now recall the first time you encountered it and the memories that go with it. Gaming is no different, especially if experienced at 2am on a cold and dark Thursday night and you complete the game that has taken over your life in glorious HD and complete surround sound headphones. Game music is an integral part of the game playing experience and as I love gaming and music, this is a subject I’m quite passionate about. So I thought it was time to share my favourite soundtracks of my many years of gaming adventures.

It sounds so much better than it looks.

Ask anyone the question, “what is your favourite gaming soundtrack?” I would imagine one of the first answers would be Super Mario Bros, which is where I will start way back in 1985; the musical score was written by Koji Kondo and is famed for the tempo of the music increasing when the timer reaches 99. It is quite possibly the most instantly recognisable song from any video game ever and a hook that will remain in your head after hearing it. There were even reports of people playing the theme from Mario using a remote control car with a wire attached line of over 100 bottles filled with various amounts of water.

In 1986, in my misspent youth, a young Neil spent his pocket money on an arcade game that blew me away; a game called Outrun. This was a game I loved so much that it would eventually make its way to my home on the Commodore 64. For me this is where gaming soundtracks came into their own, as the game was bundled with a cassette tape featuring the original arcade versions of the much loved tunes which were “Splash Wave“, “Magical Sound Shower”, “Passing Breeze” and “Last Wave”; all composed by Sega man Hiroshi Miyauchi. In the comfort of your home you could imagine you were in an arcade, only without the thick cloud of smoke and a pocket full of 10 pence’s.

My memory is a little vague, but I seem to recall that Mega Man 2 had a very addictive soundtrack, but my experience of this was only when playing at a friend’s house many years ago, so I’m unable to offer too much else, but I know it deserves a special mention. As the technology began to improve, the polyphonic soundtracks replaced simple monophonic melodies and compositions were starting to be written specifically for video games. The popularity of CD technology began to grow and grow and a huge change was on its way.

War has never been so much fun

Before the days of FIFA (hard to believe I know) there were two guys called Jon Hare (A.K.A. Jovial Jops) and Chris Yates (A.K.A. Cuddly Krix) who formed Sensible Software, and they ensured that fun was here to stay in gaming. Any gamer of a certain age will even now be able to sing every word of the popular themes to Cannon Fodder “War Has Never Been So Much Fun!” and “Goal Scoring Superstar Hero” that featured in the massive game Sensible World of Soccer on the Amiga back in the 90’s. The release of Cannon Fodder also coincided with a music video of the song. Yes these games had fantastic playability and were hugely addictive, but I am convinced another major factor in why we have such memories of them lies with the soundtrack.

I am afraid due to my Amiga addiction I missed out on the SNES, which means I also missed out on the classic Donkey Kong Country, which thanks to David Wise, has a soundtrack that stood the test of time. In 1995, gaming began to get exciting. A 32-bit fifth-generation video game console entered my life, which went by the name of the Sony Playstation.

The 1997 release of Final Fantasy VII, a game that even now remains at the top of many people’s “favourite gaming soundtracks ever”, thanks to the genius that is composer Nobuo Uematsu. Not many would argue that most of the Final Fantasy franchise has an amazing set of songs, but this epic four-disc soundtrack set a precedent that all other RPGs worth the salt would follow, in fact I would go as far to say that Nobou is a musical genius.

“Aerith’s Theme” will forever stay with me and remind me of when Aerith was killed by Sephiroth, and a quick look on the internet revealed that I’m not on my own with this, which once again proves the power of music when used correctly in a video game.

NIN: Quaking in their boots

Even when kicking back to some Gran Turismo on my beloved PSone, the title track was a Chemical Brothers remix of “Everything Must Go” by the Manic Street Preachers. The Manics are not famed for letting people remix their songs, never mind letting it be used in a video game. Games were then the new rock ‘n roll, no more so was this evident when Quake came along, and Doom fan Trent Reznor, and helped record the soundtrack which created a truly intense experience, and even the Nine Inch Nails logo appears on ammunition boxes in the game.

The first time I have ever been scared playing a video game is the first time I put Resident Evil in my Playstation. From the menu screen the evil voice saying “Resident Evil” was pretty scary for its time, but nothing prepared me for playing in the dark with a pair of headphones at 2 am!

I gotta feelin we're not in Kansas anymore

Yes, the game intends to be scary, but the soundtrack alone is enough to make you have an accident in your pants. Each song conveys the lonely feeling of isolation. The follow-up scared me even more, and even now I get flashbacks of the Raccoon City theme playing as I’m stuck inside the Police Department.

Metal Gear Solid raised the bar even further, and the “Best is yet to Come” by Harry Gregson Williams will forever remain close to any gamers heart especially combined with screaming “Snaaaaake!”. I have already mentioned that Resident Evil was scary, but nothing prepared me for Akira Yamaoka’s score for the Silent Hill series. The intense and almost suffocating atmosphere regularly got under my skin and made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up like no other game I have ever played. If the main theme doesn’t stir any emotion in you then “Theme of Laura” certainly will.

Stay away from the fog, don't go near the fog.

The late nineties were golden times for video game soundtracks, with titles such as Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Parasite Eve, Command & Conquer, and the magnificent The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which on its own has helped the ocarina become the third most popular musical instrument in schools.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was then released, and the soundtracks went all MTV on our ass. Sure there were good and bad sides to this; the good being it felt good in a wrong kind of way to be running over helpless pedestrians whilst listening to NWA singing “Express Yourself,” and the bad being of course that MTV were fast becoming too corporate for their own good and killing the spirit of Rock n’ Roll. As a rebellious gamer I didn’t want them destroying our games as well as music. My concerns were unfounded though, and the game was fantastic and gamers were finding themselves buying the game’s soundtrack on CD.

MTV, however smelt a winner and even created an MTV Video Music Award for “Best Video Game Soundtrack”. This went on to be awarded from 2004 to 2006 in a vain attempt to tap into the video gaming community and gain greater audiences for its VMAs. The men in suits didn’t seem to get what exactly constituted as a good game soundtrack and when the event was revamped in 2007, the award was never to be seen again.

I hear master chief is quite partial to a little Gregorian chant.

Games went on to sell more and more and budgets increased, and they now have the feel of  movies about them. The soundtrack for Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory was menacing, and could have been placed in any Hollywood espionage thriller. The biggest thrill however, came from Bungie when Halo arrived on the scene with an eerie, ancient and incredibe atmosphere thanks hugely to the main theme which contained Gregorian chant.

The evolution of game soundtracks regularly now brings a movie-like experience, and the music included in games such as Oblivion Elder Scrolls, the Halo Series, Gears Of War and Call of Duty could appear alongside any Hollywood blockbuster. This alone makes you realise just how far we have come since the simple yet addictive tones of Super Mario.

Who invented these lists?

Have you ever found yourself suckered into watching one of those list programmes late at night that seem to be on for three hours and feature Z-list celebrities trying to talk knowledgeably about the 100 best films, adverts, TV Shows etc, when in reality they were probably shown a video only a few moments before to spare their blushes? At the end of the three hours, you stare in disbelief at the screen as the countdown finally reaches the greatest form of media of all time, and it’s a load of rubbish. Most times you’ll find yourself reeling out a list of ten other things that should be in the run down. The problem with these lists that seem to dominate the media on all subjects is that they will always be limited to what the authors have been exposed to, and this is why I could never call this article “the world’s best game soundtrack” as it’s simply my opinion from my own gaming experiences.

This is where I hand it over to you; please tell us what gaming soundtracks have gotten under your skin and will stay with you forever. Will there ever be a unique gaming soundtrack that will challenge the legendry soundtracks from Hollywood such as Indiana Jones, Superman or Star Wars? Please comment and let us know.

1. Taking note of security cameras.
(Game to blame: Goldeneye 64)
When walking around at the office block at work (or any building that has them for that matter) I always seem to make a mental note of where every single security camera is and what their field of vision would be. I have no reason to enter any building I frequent undetected, so why the hell do I do this?! I even had one instance of waiting for a mate to make a transaction in a local bank, only to find a security guard had been sent out to follow me on account of the fact I had been blatantly clocking all the camera locations and security features…

Best FPS Evaaaar!

2. Looking around suspiciously before entering a vehicle.
(Game to blame: Grand Theft Auto)
I don’t drive so this is really a puzzler for me, but should I end up in a situation where I need to enter a vehicle, I find myself giving my immediate surroundings one last conscientious glance before I finally get in the car. What do I think I’m going to see? That I’m being watched or followed? Checking for attackers? Snipers?! Not a solitary clue, but I still catch myself doing it.

I was only wanting a lift!

3. Secretly wishing I could shoot at gas tanks.
(Game to blame: Half-life 2)
As I sit here writing this on my lunch break at work, staring mindlessly out of the window wishing I was elsewhere, my not-at-all picturesque view overlooks an adjacent construction site littered with big propane tanks and diminutive gas barrels. It looks just like a plausible yet clichéd scene from a generic shooter. In a game and offered a view such as this you just know that you would be presented with a sniper rifle, and have the freedom to fire down upon your enemies using the various explosive and flammable tanks to your advantage. The explosive red barrel is a formula I’ve really come to dislike, yet given the right view it’s at the forefront of my mind, weirdness.

Exactly what I was thinking...

4. Tapping out a ‘Shoryuken’ on anything that resembles a joystick.
(Game to blame: Street Fighter 2)
Analogue sticks, d-pads, arcade machines in pubs that aren’t Street Fighter, Atari controllers, my phones trackball. You name it; if it moves like a Joystick I will give it the old ‘forward quarter circle forward’ without fail (well except on my penis… hmm…). This move is forever etched into my brain. I even find myself doing it whilst waiting for any game to load. Mind you it is a good way to get a feel for the robustness of any pad.

SHORYUKEN!

5. Dreaming about games.
(Game to blame: Braid)
This is the most annoying one. I buy a new game on release and chances are that if I get bang into it that very night, I’ll dream about it without fail. Maybe only certain elements appear subjectively, or I dream about the actual gameplay itself, or even applying real world rules to what I’ve played. I’ve had situations where I’ve been stuck in a game and have gone to bed frustrated, only to dream the solution and see it work the following morning. It’s scary what my brain does at the best of times, least not when I’m asleep!

A dream game...

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