Over the weekend a few interesting, almost mad stories have evolved in the video game universe. Firstly something that's not so mad but interesting to know, Halo 3:ODST is the next release from Bungie in to the Halo universe. Much has been made about the fact this game will not be as long as the originals and is more of an expansion pack to the original. Therefore people believe it's price should be decided accoridingly. Bungie originally said this was going to be a 3 to 5 hour game and would not be a $60 US retail title, it would be scaled down. Well Bungie was obviously telling porky pies or Halo 3: ODST has been vastly uprgraded since then because it has been made available for pre-order at the price of $59.99 US. Hopefully the game times been extended or they just think their multiplayer is that awesome that it's worth it. Hardcore fans can spend $100 and get the collectores edition which comes with a specialised remote. ODST drops on September 30 2009.










That story is not so much madness as it is a potential rip off. Although it is still a title that I'll probably buy regardless of the price and just hope it's a longer game experience. What I can definetley say is madness is the latest analyst prediction for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2. It is almost udneniable that this going to be one of the biggest games of the year and possibly all time. Such was the success of the first title, it sold 12 million copies after just 17 months, that one analyst is predicting Modern Warfare 2 could sell 11.1 million copies in 2 months!! 2 MONTHS!! That isn't just madness that is insane but it doesn't stop there. They are also predicting that the potential market for Modern Warfare 2 is 25.7 million gamers. Just think about that number for a second, 25.7 million gamers. That is more people than the population of Australia!!! Now that is just madness but probably the best kind. Just think of the online potential in those first few months, it'll be huge and a challenge for Activision to keep things running smoothly. Modern Warfare 2 faces the analysts on November 10 2009.








The final and most ambitious piece of news I have for you is the huge rumour of a new Xbox console being released as early as Autumn in the US NEXT YEAR!! 1Up is reporting a new Xbox console could be released in 2010!! 2010!! This is supposedly going to tie in with the release of Project Natal, the new no controller gaming technology Microsoft is developing. Everyone is expecting Natal's launch to be big with Microsoft's spokespeople saying it will be like a console launch complete with launch titles but a new gaming system? So far the rumours are flying that it will be a development similar to Nintendo's Gamecube and the Wii, only minor technical changes (so no huge graphical leaps like Xbox to 360) but it will be focused more around Natal and its capabilities. Those more conservative analysts and well me too hope this is mere speculation and that Microsoft will instead just release a new package like the Arcade and Pro which come with the Natal software. Seriously a new system? It seems like I'm only just getting to know my 360 and same with the developers and well I don't wanna have to shell out hundreds of dollars for Natal AND a new console.








So as you can see it's been a pretty eventful weekend in the video game industry whilst it has also been an interesting weekend personally with the acquisition of Red Faction Guerilla complete with bonus Handbook so expect a review soon.

So it was Sony's press conference this morning and well personally the only thing I was looking for was a price cut. I really want a god damn PS3 but I don't have the money so ya know the nicest thing Sony could do for me was give it a price cut not reveal a new PSP the PSP Go, which unlucky for Sony was revealed before the show haha fail or its own version of motion capture gaming technology with a motion capture controller. Ok so no price cut in there but that's ok most of the games that come out are multi-platform so I'm not missing out on much right? Wrong, wrong, wrong thanks to Sony's new line up of PS3 exclusives. This includes the newly released super-hero themed inFamous, you can shoot lightning from your freaking hands score!, the highly anticipated and jaw droppingly brutal God of War 3, the Rockstar exclusive Agent set during the height of espionage in the 70's, Uncharted Two: Among Thieves and Team Ico' The Last Guardian. All these games just look and sound fantastic, especially to someone with a bloody PS3. The most I'm disappointed about is God of War 3, if I had a PS3 it would definitely be my most anticipated game, sorry Assassins Creed 2 but God of War was my mistress long before you. I was such a fan of the original two on the PS2 that I was giddy at the possibility of a third installment of mindless violence and gore under the guise of religion and war amongst the gods but sadly it is a PS3 exclusive so far now all I can do is wait and fawn over the trailer released online until I think of a way to get a PS3. I'm not complaining though, they are some awesome trailers I mean Kratos goes around with freaking lions on his hands, LIONS!!! You can't beat that (ok they are lion heads shaped gauntlets but still LIONS!! RAR!)...Do you think it would be a good deal if I sold my soul for a PS3 and a copy of God of War 3? I mean it sounds tempting to me...and I've only got until March 2010 to get one cause well that's when God of War 3 comes out obviously...GOSH!!

The Assassins Creed 2 trailer blew me away but Microsoft hasn't done too bad a job as well with their E3 press conference. Oh for those of you who don't know E3 is probably the number one date on any gamers calendar as this is when your favorite developers show you what they are doing next. So what's Microsoft up to? Well for starters Crackdown is getting a sequel, hooray!! I loved this game, the super-hero style openworld action game was a blast and slipped under the radar. A sequel had been rumoured for a while and was confirmed today yay!! Seriously though whilst that's good news it wouldn't blow me away. So what did???... The announcement of a new freaking Halo game. Yes another one! This time its called Halo:Reach, as in where the Spartans where trained. It debuted at the end of the Halo:ODST section of their confrence with a due date of 2010. By the way Halo: ODST looks pretty damn cool itself. The story is new and fresh, you playing it through flashbacks taking on the role of different ODST's and the opening drop sequence looked amazing. They also gave out a September 22nd 2009 release date. Oh and if that wasn't enough the nice people at Codemasters let Microsoft show off a game demo from Modern Warfare 2 and it looks amazing. There was ice climbing, snowmobile chases, some stealth action and lots of explosions. They also welcomed Metal Gear Solid onto the 360 and Project Natal, basically the development of controller free technology for gaming. Natal is definetly an interesting concept with full face recognition software and rendering of all your movements in real time on the screen. Lastly it wouldn't be a Microsoft confrence without a visit from Peter Molyneaux. What he had to show was almost a little creepy. It was a project called Milo, a boy created by Lionhead who can recognise people through Natal, see them, speak to them like a real person and display emotion. Basically you become apart of Milo's world and he becomes apart of yours. Very freaky stuff but very advanced. So there it is the Microsoft press conference.