The bundle will only be available for a short period of time and is sure to sell out rapidly given the popularity of the Halo series. It features an extra controller, so you get two in the pack, both of which are styled to match the sleek silver look of the Halo: Reach Xbox 360 itself.

As the console is the new slim version, you also get a 250GB hard drive and the super-fast built-in WiFi N. Not to mention the important part for many; a copy of the game, Halo: Reach, of course.

If you live in the US, you can pre-order the console from Amazon right now for the great price of $399.

If you live in the UK like me, I’m afraid you are going to have to buy it from GAME or Gamestation as they have bagged exclusive rights to sell the game here – it will be retailing for £249.99.

Pre-order Halo: Reach Limited Edition Xbox 360 now on Amazon US.

The images make up a chart of pricing for the motion control gaming setups that has Kinect coming out cheapest, with Nintendo second and Sony last with the PlayStation Move.

This has garnered quite a big debate as of late, due to the fact that Microsoft has included a balance board in the Wii list of items and two navigation controllers on the PlayStation list, which some argue isn’t required as you are able to use existing PS3 controllers instead to save money.

This is an argument that can go either way, depending on how each company chooses to market it – the PlayStation Move offers a cheaper upfront cost if you start with just a one or two player setup. Meanwhile, the Kinect is probably the cheapest overall system because it doesn’t require any add-ons or controllers – something that is also touted as its limiting factor.

Source: Kotaku via Aiming at Gaming

The details, which were posted on the new site (http://callofduty.com/blackops/) were quite scarce, but it has been revealed in a tweet that the first proper trailer will be going live tonight on SpikeTV. Here is the full tweet from @treyarch:

“The world-premier teaser for the next Call of Duty airs Friday NIGHT (12:40AM) on SpikeTV! http://bit.ly/9TF07″

Well, that’s everything I’m afraid, for any more details on the game itself you’ll just have to wait until the official teaser is launched later today.

Patrick Seybold, PlayStation representative, has tweeted the following:

“Congrats to Bungie. Marrying their creative minds and incredible talent to the power of PS3 will be like giving PS3 fans Halo on steroids.”

This shows that Sony, or at least Seybold, is extremely happy with this turn in events and could very well lead to some promising results for all those involved. One thing for sure is; it definitely will not be a new Halo as Microsoft own the rights to that game not Bungie.

How does this affect you?

When the original Xbox Live stops running, some of the classic games server will be taken offline with it. This includes big hitters like Halo 2 and Battlefront 2 – games that still garner a lot of support from their respective fan-bases. Halo 2 and similar games will still have their single player functionality, but all online attributes will no longer be available after today.

I was personally never a fan of the Halo series and haven’t touched an original Xbox game in years, but statistics show there are still plenty of people playing these games on a regular basis.

A software update for MW2 was supposed to release alongside the Stimulus Package, which adds support for the map pack as well as new playlists to try them on. Unfortunately, the timing has all gone askew and the patch didn’t go live on time. No doubt Microsoft will rush this thing out as quick as they can, but there is no word on whether there is a problem with the update itself at this time.

The game patch will also improve matchmaking by better prioritising low ping servers based on the player’s locale.

This isn’t just your average port, the XBLA version of Perfect Dark has improved visuals (up to 1080p HD) – though the old school texture styles have been retained – and also boasts 2-12 person online multiplayer using Xbox Live that supports AI bots. It will also run at a super smooth 60 fps at all times.

The game also still features a local split-screen multiplayer mode for up to four players. This is something I have been looking forward to the most, as it takes me back a few years to the crowded rooms of fun that used to take place.

I hope they have that Villa challenge against the team of computer-controlled aliens – that used to be a torment in my younger years.

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.

In total there are 72 hours of free zombie-killing time available until it reverts back to a gold-only state on Monday 18th January. Left 4 Dead 2 is an exciting zombie infested romp, even in its offline mode, where two players can play locally, with the Source Director 2.0 technology taking up the reins of your two other companions, as wells as the hundreds of zombies that horde you at any given time.

That being said, if you haven’t already, it is definitely worth taking advantage of this free time to give the online a proper try. The online multiplayer modes are really where L4D2 begins to shine.

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

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?