In an interview with GI at Develop last week, Bungie lead AI programmer, Damian Isla said the company won’t rule out working on other consoles in the future.

“For now we are working on Xbox 360 with Microsoft but I don’t know beyond that,” said Isla.

Bungie seems to be enjoying its re-discovered independence, with Isla saying the split from the Redmond giant is “like there’s definitely a new energy in the company and I think that’s exactly what the intention was [in going independent again],” he said.

“There’s a real optimism about where we’re going.”

Full interview through the link.

Solid Snake is a gaming legend: an icon of the industry that not only defines a mythology and a developer, but stands as a mascot to quality. He has just made a triumphant and long-awaited return to the video game arena in Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and you can read our glowing review here – it was written by a man who, we kid you not, has shared a urinal with Kojima himself, a lifetime highlight that will one day be etched onto his tombstone alongside ‘died with a smile on his face’.

But this is not the only startling piece of information we have to share with you today – the Snake walks amongst us! One of our eagle-eyed Official Australian PlayStation magazine readers (our sister publication), Mr. Alistair Richardson, recently found himself in the presence of the man and, as you can see from the image above, took photographic evidence of the fact. To double check we merged the man with his in-game costume and hey presto, we had a match!

What were the events that lead to this historic discovery♠ We’ll let Alistair explain…

Hi my name is Alastair. I own a PS3 and have owned a PlayStation since the PSX. I bought my own PSX back in about 1998, I was young and had to save hard because my folks were against gaming and television and all that commercial stuff that came on the "Idiot Box" as dad called it.

So against my parent’s ideals I bought my first PlayStation and was the happiest kid on Earth. I had a small collection of games including Driver, Soul Reaver and Metal Gear Solid. Now that brings me to the interesting part.

Metal Gear Solid - or more to the point MGS4: Guns of the Patriots. I have a brother and he got married recently, so I was at the wedding and there were lots of family members about, some of which I had not seen for years. One man in particular caught my attention. An uncle of mine that had aged considerably since I last saw him - maybe more than ten years prior. I looked at him and thought "I recognise that face and not just as the face of my aged uncle." Then it dawned on me and I found myself thinking "Snake....... Solid Snake♠......Snake....What happened............. Snake............ SSNNNAAAAAKE!"

I had my camera with me and snapped a few shots. So there you have it! Solid Snake in real life! I thought he was a carpenter, but it looks like my uncle is a badass stealth killer.

There you have it gamers. We don’t know how we would feel if we found out it was our uncle we had been in love with all these years - Kojima would be proud. Anyway, much respect to Alistair for having a hairy enough pair to tell the world.

Viewers complain publisher’s Bully promotion 'glorifies' and 'trivialises' violence

A ‘violent’ UK TV ad for Rockstar’s Bully: Scholarship Edition has escaped a ban, despite 31 complaints from offended viewers.

Complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority – which included grievances from those who had suffered from bullying – said the ad ‘glorified, trivialised and encouraged bullying and violence’.

According to Brand Republic, the ad shows protagonist Jimmy in the headmaster's office being told he is: "the nastiest little boy I have ever encountered." He replies: "I'm just trying to fit in."

The complaints were not upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority.

Rockstar responded to the complaints by saying that the ad was no longer running and there are currently no plans to air it in the future.

It insisted that it was aware of the advertising codes and considered themselves to be responsible advertisers.

Responding to the viewers' complaints about sending out the wrong message to youngsters, the company said that far from glorifying bullying, the aim of the game was to beat the bullies.

Among other reasons, the ASA decided not to uphold the complaints because they considered the ad to be "cartoon-like in nature" and "representative of the contents of the game rather than a realistic portrayal of intimidation or bullying".

E3, the video-game industry's big trade show, is next week, and you'll be hearing a lot about all the new software coming between now and Christmas. But there's a bit of a lull until Aug. 12, when Madden NFL 09 unofficially marks the beginning of the fall game season. July is a good time to catch up on some of the games you may have missed. Here are the best of the year so far:

1. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar, for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3): The latest episode of GTA has its flaws, particularly in the storytelling department. But living a life of crime has never been more fun, thanks to much tighter gameplay and an exquisitely detailed vision of a decaying metropolis.

2. Lost Odyssey (Microsoft, for the Xbox 360): The epic tale of immortal mercenary Kaim is a delight for fans of classic role-playing games.

3. The World Ends With You (Square Enix, for the Nintendo DS): This adventure set in modern Tokyo is the most innovative RPG in years.

4. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Konami, for the PS3): It may be more of a movie than a game, but it's a dazzling finale for one of gaming's most fascinating sagas.

5. Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Nintendo, for the DS): Charming characters wrestle with clever puzzles in this beautifully written and illustrated gem.

And the worst. So many terrible games have been rushed out for Nintendo's Wii that it's hard to pick on just one. I'll go with Konami's Target: Terror, which combines repetitive gameplay, hideous graphics and laughable acting in a package that's so bad it's almost ... well, no, it's just awful.

SCEA just sent out more information on its E3 showing next month, confirming new titles for the LA event.

As you can see from the image after the link, two Buzz! games are now on the firm's list, namely Buzz! Master Quiz and Buzz! Quiz TV.

Previously confirmed were:

• Killzone 2 (PS3)
• LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
• MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (PS3)
• PixelJunk Eden (PS3)
• Resistance 2 (PS3)
• SIREN: Blood Curse Episode #1 [PSN] (PS3)
• SOCOM: Confrontation (PS3)

Targeting 101

1. Unless you're in Japan, The Auto aim feature will be set to off as the default setting. Until you get use to the game, we recommend that you turn it on. It will allow you to have a some what quicker response time, although it is not totally automatic. Once you are more familiar with the multiplayer mechanics you should turn it off. The key to a quick kill in MGS4 multiplayer is the Head Shot. Head shots are instantly lethal, even at distance. By playing in the first person mode, you should be able to quickly line up enemies and take them down.

2. Aiming needs to become automatic for you. Ensure that your D-pad becomes your best friend. With this you will be able to adjust your scope zoom by pressing the D-pad up or down.

Metal gear solid 4 online multiplayer PS3

I'm sorry. Did I break your concentration?

3. Surprise is a great tactic to use in any multiplayer match. MGS4 allows you to "play dead". To play dead, all you need to do is hold the triangle while in the prone position. New players or people busy being shot at will often walk right past you, giving you the edge. On the flip side, we recommend that you shoot at all dead bodies, until you are familiar with the real death position.

4. Use your environment to your advantage. There are often plenty of boxes around. These are prime for ambushing unwary players.



Is it a bird?

5. unfortunately, not. that is you being flung out of the "Man Cannon". Man Cannons are used to fling a player up to a higher level on a map. Be aware that when landing you are open to being shot, so scamper ASAP.

6. Don't just drop from heights in the game. Learn to use the environment such as ledges and landings. Rolling will also reduce falling damage.

PS3 MGS4

Spawning because you're not pwning

7. In death match mode, spawning is totally random. Before you spawn we recommend that you always hold your select button to pause your forced re-spawn. By doing this it will give you time to check your surroundings, thus preventing you from materialising next to an enemy.

8. Keep an eye out for the fade in effect of your opponents re-spawning. Once in, you can quickly pot shot them for an easy kill.



Well I guess it would be nice, if I could touch your body...

9. Sometimes you are going to have fellow teams mates who are not dead, but unconscious, laying about. To speed up the recovery of your mates, kneel over them and press the triangle. This is good if one of your better team players is needed back in battle.



What is this, a school for ants?

10. Know your game types. As always certain game modes will allow you to think of alternative tactics to win. For example, in team death match, you are required to have more spawn points than your opponent when the timer runs out. It isn't always about getting the most kills so why not play smarter?

Play3-Live has the first trailer for Hei$t, a funky GTA-Like scheduled for June 08 in Europe.

According to the Official PlayStation site , the PSN features game invites.

It states as follows: "Send game invites to your PLAYSTATION Network Friends".

Hopefully we will hear more info on this soon indeed!

Five sure fire ways to hype yourself up.

You may think you're already pretty excited about GTA IV - but you'd be wrong. What we've got here are five full-proof suggestions that'll really get you in the right frame of mind for the launch of the game at the end of the month. Just don't come running to us if/when any or all of these suggestions go horribly wrong.

1. Watch Eastern Promises

With the main antagonist in GTA IV, Niko Bellic, being connected to the Russian Mafia, there are a couple of ways to get into character. The first one is to drink so many Vodka shots that you actually think you can speak fluent Russian, before collapsing into a big pile of Russian Dolls. But the best way is to run out and hire the 2007 movie "Eastern Promises", staring Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts.

Although the movie is set in London, England rather than America, it offers a brilliant insight into the dark, seedy underground world of the Russian Mafia. The film follows the mysterious and ruthless Nikolai (played by Mortensen), who is tied to a notorious organized crime family from Eastern Europe. For 100 minutes you will be blessed with under-aged prostitution, extreme body disposal, brutal hairdressers and a naked Viggo fighting off two men in a bath house. It doesn't get much more raw than this. The only place this movie loses points is Naomi Watts' poor acting ability (nothing unusual there) and a tad too much male genitalia.

For Bonus Points: Replay the naked bath house scene in slow motion and play a drinking game (with vodka, of course) to have a shot everytime you see balls. The idea is to get so drunk that your eyes can't make out the TV anymore...

2. Ride Some Bumper Cars

A large part of Grand Theft Auto is getting sweet rides and driving them really fast - usually into stuff. Of course, doing this in real life is: A) illegal; B) rather stupid. You're likely to kill yourself and other people. The speed limit is there for a reason, okay?

However, bumper cars (or dodgems for any Yanks reading) are a perfect way to get your high-speed thrills, GTA style. To hype yourself up for GTA IV, why not get a bunch of your mates down to your local bumper cars arena, team up into divisions of cops and robbers, and simulate a high-speed getaway where the best way to neutralise a threat is to smash into it like some drunken kamikaze pilot?

For Bonus Points: Create a playlist on your iPod that includes the best of the previous radio stations featured in GTA games. More bonus points if you pick that awesome country station from the first one.

3. Visit a Strip Club

Most things in GTA will get you killed or arrested if you are dumb enough to try them in real life. Hanging out in a seedy strip club, however, will not. Bless our liberal hearts.

Of course, you've probably set aside all your guilt-free disposable income for your GTA IV pre-order, as well as snacks and beverages to keep you sustained for the next week while you're rooted to the couch. So why not head on down to your local strip club with a bunch of monopoly money bulging from your pockets, a cigar hanging from your gaping and drooling mouth, and pretend like you're some kind of hard-nosed gangster? You'll feel cool, and it'll give you some point of relation when you finally get round to playing GTA IV.

For Bonus Points: Take a 360 or PS3 joypad with you. And you'll get a virtual achievement for getting someone to ask: "Is that a joystick in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" Just try and remember that touching the girls or acting like a twat in general is the quickest way to find yourself in lots of pain and in the gutter.

4. Get in Character

While there's a lot of external stuff you can do to build excitement for the game, at some point you'll have to turn inwards to truly absorb the meaning of a new GTA title. If you haven't done so already, dive into the internet to catch up on all the trailers and previews to glean some information about main character Niko. Learn everything you can about him, from the way he walks to his most subtle mannerisms.

And then, become Niko. Freak your flatmates out by strutting around with a world-weary look on your face, all the while stating that ‘things will be different here'. Take your mate's car without telling him and crash it into power pole. Whenever a friend rings your cell, ask if they have any jobs for you. Invite someone out in the middle of the day to get absolutely trashed, and then stumble around like a maniac. It doesn't matter how many people you alienate - it's all about getting into the right frame of mind!

For Bonus Points: Go to Russia and spend a few years learning the ways of the criminal underground - none of this ‘watch a movie' nonsense. Then come back - but only if a family member says they need help.

5. Play through the Whole Series

Of course, if you're the lazy sort who can't be bothered leaving the house even for a strip club or a trip to Russia, why not play through every game in the series? If you start now, there's probably still time to cram them all in before GTA IV is released, assuming you don't need to work or have any sort of life. Plus it'll probably get you into less trouble than most of the above.

Just remember - no skipping out on the first few games. The series did not start with Grand Theft Auto III, even if some of you were too young for these games when the franchise was birthed.

For Bonus Points: Play through the series blindfolded. C'mon, you'd probably be able to, you utter nutcase.

Following today's Xbox 360 price cuts on Amazon, and with Microsoft's official announcement expected any moment now, TechRadar spoke with Nintendo and Sony spokespersons in the UK this morning to find out whether there are any plans to cut the costs of the Wii or PS3 in the near future.

A Wii currently costs £179.98 on Amazon. Nintendo UK informed us today that there are no plans to cut the cost of the Wii in response to the latest price cuts on the Xbox 360. The spokesperson said that "they are going for a different market with the price cuts… and once you start slashing the price of something, there is really only one way to go".

No PS3 price cut either

A PS3 currently costs £284.99 on Amazon. Sony Computer Entertainment UK also confirmed with TechRadar today that there are no plans to cut the cost of the PS3 "in the near future".

TechRadar has contacted Amazon, Play.com, Ubisoft, EA, Vivendi and a number of other games publishers and retailers to gauge their response to this latest salvo from Microsoft in the ongoing console war.

Konami has announced that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots will be released in Europe on 12th June as well as in the US.

That also means that Metal Gear Online: Starter Pack will come out at the same time.

Word comes courtesy of a German announcement, which specifies the date and adds that there will be - and we're translating here - a "free accessible beta" for MGO.

Konami UK has confirmed the date, clarifying that "Full details of the public beta program will be announced shortly".

In the meantime, get excited with our MGS4 and Online first impressions.

Thanks to our chums at Eurogamer.de for the heads-up!

Buried in its restructuring statement was this bit of data from Sci/Eidos: Kane and Lynch sold 1.4 million units.

That's a solid, though far from spectacular, worldwide performance for a game that got very mixed reviews (though I personally thought it was great).

However Sci said it could have done much better. "We believe it could have sold more had we optimised the opportunity," it said in a statement.

Given Sci/Eidos' size, of course, it can only "optimize the opportunity" so far. Which was exactly one of EA CEO John Riccitiello's arguments last week as he explained why Take-Two would do better as part of his company."I wouldn't change a line of code in 'Bioshock,' and the same goes for 'GTA' and 'Max Payne,' " he said. "What we would do is sell more of them. Given our scale, we have substantial operations in places we don't believe they have ever visited. ... That allows us to sell more software and do so more efficiently."

Amazon Japan is selling old PS3 models at nearly double the price of the new 40 Giga. Meanwhile used console buyback price for the old Playstation 3 models (20/60 Giga) has more than doubled in Japanese shops: from 15.000 to 40.100 Yen for the 20 Giga Model (from this Japanese blogger). Actually the used price is the same price the shops charged one year ago for a new console...
Seems that Japanese gamers value the retro compatibility with PS2 titles more interesting than Sony expected...

Phil Harrison, president of Sony Computer Entertainment worldwide studios, will resign from Sony Computer Entertainment Group as of February 29, 2008, the company has announced.



Kazuo Hirai, president and group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, will immediately assume responsibilities as president of SCE worldwide studios, in addition to his current duties.



Harrison joined Sony Electronics Publishing (later Sony Computer Entertainment Europe) in 1992 prior to the launch of the original PlayStation, and has since played a key strategic role in the launch of four PlayStation platforms, as well as building strong relationships with game developers and publishers globally. Harrison led SCE's first party game development operations and aggressively pursued the development of new online entertainment experiences.



"As one of the founding members of SCE, Phil played a key role in the development and growth of the PlayStation business and our industry," said Hirai. "It is sad to see him departing from SCE, but I wish to express my gratitude for his many invaluable contributions and also wish Phil the very best of luck in his future endeavors."



"The past 15 years at Sony Computer Entertainment has been the defining journey of my life so far," said Harrison. "I am grateful to all the PlayStation family for their incredible support, guidance and friendship. It has been a privilege to serve as part of the team and be inspired by them on a daily basis. I am so proud of everything PlayStation has achieved and will continue to support its future in every way I can."

We already love their games, and they've shown themselves as capable Rock Stars, but now Insomniac is looking to add the word "mentor" to their developer's resume. Their ambitious new Nocturnal site plans to be a Brain Trust of sorts, where as engine director Mike Acton puts it, is a winning combination for all:

"We see Nocturnal as a long-term project that may be valuable for those who want to develop similar technology as us, but without the same effort we needed. We also believe Nocturnal may be valuable for our fans to gain insight to our production processes, while communicating our ideas with a larger group gives us the opportunity to generate feedback on our approaches and ultimately improve them."

As you can see from the quote above, Nocturnal is Insomniac's personal contribution to those who are looking to streamline their own PS3 development process. By sharing their own research and winning code, I'd say that amounts to a pretty bold step of their own. Judging by the news we've gathered thus far, this year's GDC is very much looking like things are on the up and up for Sony. Let's hope that they continue to build on this momentum.

Quietly unveiled at yesterday's PSN session was PhyreEngine, a new "free to use graphics engine" from Sony Computer Entertainment. According to the presentation, the package includes full documentation, "70+ samples" and "full source code and artwork" of sample game templates. Working on both OpenGL and Direct3D, this engine will allow developers to more easily develop for the PS3 by using PC environments they're more familiar with. A "simple recompile" is supposedly all that's needed to make the game run on the PS3. Sony is promising "ongoing development and support" for the PhyreEngine.

The ramifications of this subdued announcement are actually quite significant. Three titles have been revealed to have used the PhyreEngine for development: flOw, GripShift and DiRT. Of those three, only one is exclusive to PlayStation. It appears that the PhyreEngine is truly cross platform -- Sony is indirectly contributing to the development of PC (and Xbox 360) games.

But why make it potentially easier to make games on a competing console? Well, it's undeniable that developers are increasingly focused on multiplatform development. It's been rather commonplace for developers to neglect PS3 with inferior and oftentimes delayed versions of multiplatform games. With PhyreEngine, Sony is making a much more attractive plea: make games on PS3 first, guaranteeing high quality games that will not only match their 360 counterparts, but in many cases can exceed them. Sony's message is clear: start games on the PS3, and they will be better for both PS3 and 360 owners. It appears to us that PhyreEngine is a crucial part of that plan.

More details of PhyreEngine will undoubtedly be unveiled later today at a GDC dedicated to what Sony has dubbed "the new hotness." Stay tuned.

With so many PS3 titles using Havok's physics middleware, PS3 Attitude are fortunate enough to get the first look at the Havok Cloth tech demo.

The article also gives details and the first screenshot of Destruction, also announced yesterday by Havok at GDC.

As more and more developers have come to grips with the complexity of programming for it, supporters of the platform have seen a resurgence of the PlayStation brand. Several high profile games have landed in the waiting hands of eager gamers, and for the most part, mirror their Xbox 360 counterparts -- but has it come at a cost? The PS3 really is beginning to morph into a PC, and that has startled some fans of console gaming.

We saw the first glimpse of this when we started downloading demos from PSN. Instead of mimicking the relatively seamless Xbox Live formula that we had been accustomed to, Sony opted to have us install the games on our hard drive in a way that closely resembled the PC experience.

Next came news that Epic was offering us the choice of installing Unreal Tournament III on the drive, in an effort to shorten loading times. We shrugged it off again, as it seemed to be in our best interests at the time. The key to it all was that we were still empowered by choice: we could still enjoy the game without the install, and it never once felt forced.

More on this, after the jump.

Then came the stunner that sent 40GB PS3 owners reeling: Devil May Cry 4 would require you to install the game before playing it. As expected, message boards lit up with angry gamers wondering why the Xbox 360 -- a Microsoft platform -- was able to do what the PS3 version could not: play smoothly without making us sit through a 20-minute install beforehand. After all, wasn't Devil May Cry native to the PlayStation bloodline?

Now we have word from of PS3Style (who claims to have a pre-release copy of the game) that they've done it again with the port of Lost Planet. Stunning? Maybe not, but I wouldn't exactly call it welcome news either. The option to install the game on your PS3 is attractive, but the magic is sort of lost when the choice is taken away from us. And bear in mind, we're not talking about some upstart company here -- this is Capcom, and they are highly respected for creating some of the greatest games on any platform.

So what does this mean for the future of the PS3? Can this be tossed aside as part of the growing pains that we must endure while the last remaining gremlins (with programming for it) are ironed out... or is this the price we have to pay for Sony making their console so radical in the eyes of those that give it life -- through their code?

We've seen some spectacular games on the PS3 since its release, and we look forward to a time when the console's big names really start flowing onto the platform like in the past. However, we hope that developers don't use the hard drive as a crutch much longer. We prefer to see it supplement our games instead, like the way things used to be. Regardless of what happens, we don't want to see forced installs becoming a trend. It has to stop.

The first details on the Grand Theft Auto 4 soundtrack have surfaced on the internet, revealing the titles of sixteen songs.

You should take this with a grain of salt though, as they have not been 100% confirmed by Rockstar yet.

Angel y Khris - Ven Bailalo

R Kelly - Bump N Grind

Seryoga - KingRing

The Boggs - Arm In Arm

UNKLE (feat. Josh Homme) - Restless

Gwen Stefani - Hollaback Girl

Res - They Say Vision

Raheem Devaughn - You

Junior Kickstart - The Go! Team

VHS or Beta - Burn It All Down

Humble Pie - Cocaine

Fat Joe - Shit Is Real

MOP - How About Some Hardcore

MOP - Downtown Swinger

Queen - One Vision

Ne-Yo - Because of You

The infamous missing in-game Cross Media Bar. Some want it, some don't. But with the sweet news of a possible positive implementation of universal in-game messaging, who's to be upset about that?

The eagle eyed few spotted an update on the Official US Playstation website, which has now mysteriously disappeared. The mention of in-game messaging is what excites, and its removal only adds to the intrigue.

One savvy individual managed to take a screenshot of the offending new PSN section before it went down, so we can read exactly what was said:

Friends & Messaging: Talk to others during game play, say hello anytime you're online, or have a video chat with an Eye camera, USB Camera, or headset.

The wording appears to be very much deliberate, with "during game play" and "anytime you're online" being the highlights. We all know it's possible, with many games taking up the in-game XMB gauntlet, some with in-game soundtracks (High Velocity Bowling, MLB 08) and others with in-game messaging (TimeShift) or alerts (Devil May Cry 4). We will just have to wait for Sony's announcement, presumably to come at GDC.

Too funny. Don Mattrick, head of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices division, has seemingly confirmed that "online multiplayer support" for GTA IV will be exclusive to the Xbox 360 version.

"It's an amazing piece of software and I'm really excited with its downloadable content and online multiplayer support," he said, speaking to Major Nelson. "Again, that's something that's unique to 360. We think consumers are going to love that and it's going to create, what I would describe again as the premium experience on our platform."

If true, the news will rock PlayStation 3 owners and will be a massive USP for the Xbox 360 version. Both SKUs are releasing globally on April 29.

The word "multiplayer" appeared for the first time in relation to the game when its official website launched recently, but was ghosted out. Since then, Rockstar has actively sought to keep the game's multiplayer details off the web, with varying degrees of success.

Sony's complex PS3 hardware is a 'nice fit' for Ubisoft's ambitious Far Cry 2 - but developers Ubisoft Montreal admit that compromises have been made. "We were somewhat worried by some of the reported high complexity of developing for the PS3", reveals Tech Director Dominic Guay, "but the raw processing power is impressive".

After a slew of delays, and some unfavourable comparisons between 'identical' Xbox 360 and PS3 ports, it seems developers are finally getting to grips with Sony's machine. "We made sure we had a group of programmers that were not scared by complexity and had a large console programming experience to work on the initial PS3 R&D of Dunia (Far Cry 2's graphics engine). At that point, we didn't know what to expect."

"One thing that we realized pretty quickly as we started R&D on PS3, was that the hardware architecture had a very nice fit with some of our technical design decisions. We were positively surprised by how efficient the SPUs (the Cell processing units) were to do such things as run our vegetation simulation, our animations or our physics systems. So while it did require quite a bit of R&D to understand how to use the system correctly, once we started having results we saw that it was a very capable console and that FC2 could run on it."

Tech Director Guay is also impressed by the potential of Blu-ray and PS3's hard drive for streaming games in real-time. "The hard drive and Blu-ray are making our life easy considering FC2 is an open world continuously streamed around the player. That streaming bandwidth and disk space is very appreciated. So, in terms of AI, game structure, physics, dynamic time of day, open world gameplay, dynamic weather system, destructible vegetation, all of those things where we had really pushed the envelope technically, they run well on PS3."

The PS3 version, unsurprisingly, won't match top spec PCs. "However, the notable area where we had to make some tradeoffs is in some assets resolution which had to be brought down from the higher end PC configurations due to memory size difference. However, the good new is that since PS3 players are not outputting over the top resolutions like high end PC users, this is not a big deal. It's somewhat proportional to our video resolution output."

We spend a lot of our time (well, nearly all of it really) explaining why the PlayStation 3 is the most powerful, best value video gaming console you can buy. Well, the March issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly helps further the cause and explain what's in store this year, with a cover story on why "2008 will rock" for the PS3 and its owners and fans. We, of course, agree. Covering off on subjects such as the amazing software line-up this year including LttleBigPlanet and MGS4, Blu-ray, PlayStation Network, and PSP cross-functionality, this is a pretty comprehensive article that is definitely worth a read. Subscribers should have it already, the rest can pick it up when it hits shelves next week.

The Three Speech poll takes another twist, with another batch of voters moving Metal Gear Solid 4 into joint top spot to go along with the hugely anticipated LittleBigPlanet.

With both titles claiming 20 per cent of the vote, it remains as two PS3 exclusives at the top of table, with Grand Theft Auto IV still languishing behind the two big exclusives with a mere 19 per cent of the voting pie.

At least GTA IV is doing a damn sight better than the only other multiplatform title in this top ten, with Tomb Raider: Underworld joining Buzz! Quiz TV with a single per cent of gamers looking forward to Lara's ample bosom above all others.

Still, its good on old LittleBigPlanet, and a hint that gamers aren't ONLY obsessed with updates to their favourite games of old.