The good news is, Infinity Ward have come up with the perfect cure, and it will be out at the end of this month!

To rid yourself of Mapathy for a period of time, simply obtain the latest Modern Warfare 2 DLC when it is released on March 30th. Unfortunately, all those sufferes on the PC or PlayStation 3 will have to wait a month longer for the MW2 DLC cure, as it is exclusive to Xbox 360 until then.

“Mapathy (n.) (or map-uh-thee – often expressed as, “How the hell did you know I was there?!”) is a state of indifference to the same old maps one has been playing for the last several months. The Mapathetic individual no longer derives pleasure from blowing up people hiding in the cockpit or on top of the crane. More than 20 million people may be at risk for Mapathy.”

Source

The official website also contains a number of countdowns to locked areas of the website, presumably so they can drip-feed information to the Sonic fans worldwide and bring the old hype train out of its station. There are three interesting things to note from the website:

• It clearly states ‘Episode 1′ under the Sonic The Hedgehog 4 logo – so it will be an episodic game
• The game is to be released digitally, via the PSN, Live and Wiiware platforms.
• There is another platform (or platforms) that are currently hidden – possibly iPad/iPhone?

If you want to see the trailer, you will have to go over to Gamespot for now, as they have an exclusive on it – but we’ll get a video here as soon as it gets YouTube’d.

PlayStation 3 Slim (250GB) bundle offer

Amazon are offering a great deal to everyone looking to buy a PS3 slim, specifically the larger hard drive version, which boasts a massive 250GB of disk space to save films, TV shows, music, games and more.

The deal:

• Buy PlayStation 3 Slim (250GB) for £269.99
• Get a free game: EyePet (with camera) or Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
• Free HDMI cable
• Pay an extra £15 and get another game from a list that includes Darksiders, Bayonetta (recommended), Army of Two: 40th Day and more.

Go to the PlayStation 3 Slim (250GB) bundle offer on Amazon UK

The usual process of updating applies – simply start up the game as normal from the XMB and you will be prompted to download the 1.06 patch (presuming you are connected to the internet at the time).

We already know the Xbox 360 version is currently being certified by microsoft so expect that one to hit shortly too.

That’s about all there is for this post. Go have fun not worrying about the next person you knife in MW2 exploding like a mini-nuke.

Whether or not you have been the victim of said atrocity, you’ll be glad to hear that the Modern Warfare 1.06 patch is currently being certified at Microsoft (and presumably Sony). According to Robert Bowling’s (aka fourzerotwo) Twitter feed the 1.06 update will fix:

• The Javelin bug
• An infinite care package glitch
• Geographical exploits in certain maps

So, don’t be expecting any new features, but be glad that it is going to be harder for certain people to ruin the game for the rest of us.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare was a complete behemoth in the gaming world and in many ways continues to dominate the industry. So, it was with great excitement, and yet a similar amount of apprehension, that I jumped right into the game as soon as I got hold of a copy. Do Infinity Ward meet expectations or fail to live up to the hype? Let’s see…

Choose your game

First of all, before we go anywhere, let’s take a look at the game modes put up for us in Modern Warfare 2. You are given three options on the opening menu, which can be broken down into the following:

• Special Ops: Challenges that feature co-operative gameplay.
• Campaign: Story-based single player campaign.
• Multiplayer: Features online and offline multiplayer game modes.

Special Ops

This is the newest mode in the Modern Warfare universe. Building on the basis of the huge popularity of co-operative gameplay, Infinity Ward decided to implement it into Modern Warfare 2. But rather than just simply taking on a two-player co-op version of the single player campaign, IW built a whole new game mode for it.

Special Ops consists of a series of challenges that get increasingly difficult as you progress through them. Each challenge has a 1-3 star reward system, depending on how well you beat the challenge and meet certain targets you will be awarded with more stars. Players must obtain certain numbers of stars to unlock later challenges.

As mentioned above, this game mode supports co-op play, nay was built for co-op play. Most challenges are quite generic, with the usual holding off waves of enemies. But there also some good little twists in there too, like a night time mission where one player covers another player from the air using the AC-130.

Special Ops mode supports one player, as well as two player local (split-screen) and online gameplay.

Campaign

I can’t really go into too much detail story-wise without revealing spoilers, so ‘ll make do with a quick introduction. Modern Warfare 2’s single player campaign will take you through a range of surroundings, from the desert landscape of Afghanistan to snow-capped mountain ranges. Each one feels perfectly suited, the snow crunches and leaves foot prints, while wasteland maps will have a constant sandstorm blowing around you.

As per the other Call of Duty games, Modern Warfare 2 will see you taking on the role of several different people throughout the missions. Sometimes you are working for the SAS-style Task Force 141, othertimes you are fighting for the American Army Rangers.

The missions tend to make use of new weaponry, like the remotely controlled predator missile, which gives you a black and white aerial view of the battlefield briefly before you take out a whole squadron of enemies with it.

Expect the story to twist and turn a fair bit, but always in a good way. There are some pretty amazing set pieces backed up by some brilliant level design and artwork.

Multiplayer

Considered by many as the ‘core’ to the first Modern Warfare (and probably Call of Duty: World at War too), this game mode features both online and offline multiplayer game modes. The offline is pretty similar to the online except you can only have up to 4 players locally via split-screen, unless you opt for a LAN setup, in which case there isn’t much difference at all. The offline mode now even supports local profiles, so you can save you and your friends progress each time you play, meaning you get to enjoy the feeling of unlocking all the rewards individually and setting up your personal custom classes.

The online mode is a much polished and enhanced version of the Modern Warfare and World at War versions from the call of Duty series. There are challenges, levels, prestige modes, custom classes, perks, leaderboards, party support, game invites and all the usual features you expect. However, there are a couple of new, gladly-accepted features too.

Modern Warfare 2 introduces a new item that could probably best be described as a gamercard specific to MW2 itself. This MW2 ‘gamercard’ displays an emblem (small logo picture), the players name and a title with graphic. Modern Warfare 2 lets you select your own emblem and title from a huge list (hundreds), which you progressively unlock as you complete challenges and levels throughout the multiplayer mode.

A slew of new weapons and equipment is brought forth to the scene with Modern Warfare 2, with fancy treats like a heartbeat sensor (similar to a personal, yet less-useful, UAV) attachment for your gun. I don’t want to spoil any more of the goodies so I’ll leave it at that, just rest assured knowing there is a lot more customisation available in MW2.

Perks. This is always a big talking point. There are some perks people hate (you may be glad to know martyrdom is no longer a perk) and some people love. Not only do Infinity Ward introduce a couple of new perks, but they have changed their usage slightly. Not only have they tweaked them to even them up a bit, but you can now also complete perk challenges to ‘level up’ your perks to “pro” versions, which tend to offer a much better equivalent of the original perk.

Overall Rating: 9.5/10

The following new features are to be added:

• Facebook Integration: This just adds an optional Facebook status updater for new Store purchases, trophy unlocks and game information (has to be implemented by developers)
• Improved Photo Gallery: When viewing photos, they will be displayed in a grid layout as opposed to the usual XMB list.
• PSN Friends Colours: You can now choose the colour of the somewhat obtrusive friends list boxes. You can only change the colour of your own box, but this will reflect on both your own and your friends PS3s.

Don’t get too excited about any of these new features (albeit that they seem to pale in comparison to another certain games consoles update today) as the SCEE blog simply states the update will be with us “soon”, which could mean 2011 with Sony.

Considering the retail price for this game is higher than every other non-special edition game of this gen (£55), this is a real bargain. It is thought a last minute (the game is out tomorrow) price war has been sparked by supermarkets, with ASDA offering Modern Warfare 2 also for £32 and Sainsbury going as low as £26!

These are all astounding prices, especially for such a popular game, which is already guaranteed to sell well, nevemind the huge price discounts.

This massively reduced price is available to Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game, but it’s bad news for PC users again, as the game is still showing as £35 on Amazon.

These deals are all available on Amazon UK. The Xbox 360 price isn’t updating in the widget below, but on the Amazon website it is set at £32.

I’ll admit now, I lied a bit. The loophole doesn’t get you Modern Warfare 2 for £4.99, unless you happen to already own certain games, in which case it isn’t a loophole at all.

The legitimate deal is that you can get Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for only £4.99 if you trade-in two selected games from a list. The thing is though, the list includes Overlord 2, which can currently be picked up from Amazon UK for £9.35 (Xbox 360) or £9.95 (PS3).

So a little bit of simple mathematics tells you that 2 x £10 (Overlord 2) + £4.99 (Modern Warfare 2) = £24.99. OK, so I did some rounding, the price is actually a little bit lower than £25, but you get the point. For a game that has an RRP of £54.99, getting it for less than half price before it’s release date is definitely a bargain.

The big question is, how long before Gamestation wise-up and remove this deal?

Oh, and another question, do you still want Modern Warfare 2?

The demo itself is in actual fact two demos. One to demonstrate playing as ratchet and one to give players a chance to try their hand as the little, mechanoid Clank. The Ratchet demo, Krell Canyon, lets you try out the new hoverboots gadget, while the second demo, The Great Clock, involves some time manipulation and a boss battle. Expect these demos to have some hefty download sizes, if the first game was anything to go by.

Ratchet and Clank: A Crack In Time is due for release on Friday, 6th of November in the UK and on the 4th or 5th for the other PAL countries.

Amazon.co.uk (£34.99)
Let’s kick things off with Amazon UK. Although no longer viewable on the product description, the Amazon pre-order bonus for Uncharted 2 was instant access to the ‘Revenge’ Booster in the multiplayer mode, think ‘Martyrdom’ Perk from Call of Duty 4.

HMV (£39.99)
If you pre-order Uncharted 2 with HMV, you will be emailed a code that gives you a temporary currency multiplier for the multiplayer, which lets you get new weapons and abilities even faster for a limited time.

GAME (£39.99 / £44.99 for the SE)
Game are not offering any pre-order bonuses, instead they are exclusively giving players the chance to purchase the Special Edition, which comes in a steel case along with access to a gold Beretta and and AK-47 ingame, multiplayer character skins, a PlayStation 3 Theme and 2 Postcards.

Play.com
Play get an honourable mention because they did have a pre-order deal going, but it has now expired as it was early access to the Uncharted 2 Beta, ah well.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is due out on the 16th October in the UK, exclusively for the PlayStation 3.

At the time of writing this there are currently 15 titles on offer, with some of the best being inFamous, FIFA 10 and, what Just Video Games think is a must-have, the completely stylish game, WET. If none of those are tickling your gamers taste buds, then there’s a whole plethora of Platinum titles up there too, including Killzone 2 and Uncharted: Drakes Fortune. The latter being a perfect PS3 start-up game, especially as it prepares you for the impending release of the already-critically-acclaimed, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.

Update: This deal now only comes with two games, still a good deal if you can catch it.

When you think of games published by the likes of Bethesda Softworks, we’ve grown to expect games that are heavily weighted (sometimes too much) and relatively slow-moving. WET, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of The Elder Scrolls. It’s fast paced, tight and linear, and it’s better because of it.

The main protagonist is Rubi Malone, a gritty, no-holds-barred, contract killer, who isn’t afraid of getting her hands wet for the right amount of cash. Hence the games name, which itself defines the slang term ‘wet’ as meaning getting your hands bloody.

Rubi gets thrown into a non-stop, slaughterfest that is portrayed in a way that would make Tarantino proud. The game lends itself to several films and other video games, ranging from Kill Bill (this one’s so obviously influenced this game I’m surprised Rubi isn’t donning a yellow tracksuit) all the way over to the Wii’s slash-and-shoot-em-up, Red Steel. Following on from the latter point, WET does what Red Steel tried to do and more. It gives you a sword and a gun and lets you use them in a variety of ways that will make gore-lovers drool; the odd severed limb can be seen after Rubi has finished with a room full of henchmen.

There are no in-game loading screens per say, instead you get old fashioned adverts that advise you on some good nosh, whether it is the classic hot dog or the not-so-appealing gherkin (pickle) in a bag. You will also get the occasional lift loading screen that features black and white CCTV footage of Rubi looking bored or playing away on her harmonica. Don’t worry though; these loading screens are never more than around 10 seconds.

The missions in the game and the story itself are quite basic. You are basically running or jumping your way from A to B, dishing out bullets or sword cuts non-stop to anyone in your way. This is refreshingly spliced with unique gaming moments like a car chase and free falling from an exploding plane as the debris rains down around you and in front of you, while you take advantage of Rubi’s ability to make everything go slow motion so you can squeeze between tiny gaps.

Every now and again, a mission will start with Rubi automatically shooting an enemy and the resultant blood splatter on her face causes her to go psycho. The next section of the mission will all be in vivid red, black and white colours and Rubi will go hyper, allowing you to slice up and shoot enemies at a ridiculous pace.

The game features Quick Time Events quite prominently, especially in the bespoke scenes, such as the car chase, where tapping the relevant buttons will allow you to jump, dodge or stab enemies.

In terms of variety the game offers 5 different weapons, which unlock throughout the game. Rubi starts off with her sword and the standard dual pistols, which have unlimited ammo, and later gains access to shotguns, sub-machine guns and a crossbow. WET also features an upgrade system where you can spend points that are obtained for getting kill combos and finding point pick-ups. You can upgrade the weapons (fire rate, power and capacity) and you can also buy new Rubi abilities, which can be anything from new acrobatic moves to being able to shoot while on a zip line.

Overall WET is gritty, dirty and graphically inferior to many of the games coming out at the moment. But all of this just seems to add to the style of the game, especially the film grain effect, which gives the game the Tarantino-esque it is obviously striving for. The story is about 8 hours long and probably won’t offer much of a reason to return to it and without a multiplayer the game has very low replay value, however, even playing through the missions just a couple of times is worth every penny for the amount of class this game just oozes.

Halo: ODST droppedstraight from 1st to 3rd, getting pipped by the resilient Professor Layton and Pandora’s Box. Down in tenth spot is Batman: Arkham Asylum, which is touted by many as the years best game. i just wonder if the general public thinks so.

1. FIFA 10 (EA)
2. PROFESSOR LAYTON AND PANDORA’S BOX (Nintendo)
3. HALO 3: ODST (Microsoft)
4. NEED FOR SPEED: SHIFT (EA)
5. WII SPORTS RESORT (Nintendo)
6. GUITAR HERO 5 (Activision Blizzard)
7. MYSIMS AGENTS (EA)
8. COLIN MCRAE: DIRT 2 (Codemasters)
9. MARIO KART WII (Nintendo)
10. BATMAN: ARKHAM ASYLUM (Eidos)

The game itself is a seamless blend of beautiful graphics and environments, along with a fun and exciting gameplay style, which is so varied it can’t decide whether it is an arcade racer or a car sim (not quite as much so as Forza 3 and GT5 though).