GamePlay Unlimited

A new video documentary featuring the Spartans from Halo Wars.

Since the launch of the New Xbox Experience last November some Xbox 360 users have been having trouble with audio for their systems, trouble meaning audio won't work with HDMI connections. Microsoft had been working on the bug and now has announced that a dashboard update will fix the issue coming early tomorrow morning. From Major Nelson : "Starting Tuesday morning at 0200 Pacific when you sign into Xbox Live you’ll be prompted for a mandatory dashboard update. The update addresses the issue that a few folks were having with audio and their HDMI connection. This update will be rolled out to all Xbox LIVE members around the world over the space of a few hours, so you may not get prompted for the update immediately. Thanks for your patience." Good to see the issue is finally getting taken care of.

Just when we thought it may be on the way out, EA confirms work on three new Need for Speed games for 2009. Speaking to Eurogamer EA confirmed that the NfS franchise will continue in 2009 with Need for Speed: Shift on Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC, and PSP, Need for Speed: Nitro on Nintendo DS and Wii, and finally Need for Speed: World Online for the Asian PC market. "Need for Speed: Shift will be made by Slightly Mad Studios of GT Legends and GTR 2 fame, with help from EA Black Box producer Michael Mann and EA Games Europe bigwig Patrick Soderlund. Shift focuses on simulation racing - not just the realistic movement of cars, but also driver behaviour." Nitro will be developed by EA Montreal and will be an arcade racer with a focus on "vibrant, eye-catching visuals." World Online will be developed by Black Box and has the possibility of launching in the west if it does well in the Asian market. It will let you pick your car and "take on the rest of the world....

Ubisoft has announced that Prince of Persia will be getting new DLC on February 26th for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. The new content entitled Epilogue continues the story of the Prince and Elika with new features. "- New Region: The Underground Palace – A corrupted underground palace from which the Prince and Elika need to escape in a new epic journey. - New Power: Energize – Reconstruct destroyed areas of the environment to create a path and rush through it before it vanishes. - New high pace: The new trap challenge – The Prince and Elika will face more cunning foes, cleverer traps and level design, adding more to the difficulty level in over 3 hours of gameplay. - New Attack: Sprinting Clash – A duel move that lets you or the enemy trigger a sprint attack, charging towards each other, clashing your weapons fiercely. - New Unlockable Skins: Finish the game and unlock exclusively, from the early development of the game, the Prototype characters of the Prince and Elika."

New CG and gameplay footage of the much anticipated Final Fantasy XIII.

The first set of DLC for Fallout 3 entitled Operation: Anchorage is now available to download on your Xbox 360 (here is the web marketplace link for those of you on-the-go). Operation Anchorage has your Fallout 3 character take part in a military simulation of one of the greatest battles in the Fallout universe, the battle to defend Anchorage from the communist Chinese invaders. The DLC comes with 4 new achievements totaling 100 points. Download and enjoy!

Ensemble Studios and Microsoft have announced today that Halo Wars has gone gold. Also announced a demo for the game will be available on February 5th. The demo will let players get a grasp of the "groundbreaking" control scheme and gameplay elements. "In the demo, players will be able master Ensemble’s groundbreaking control scheme in optional beginner and advanced tutorials or jump right into the action to experience the beginning of the “Halo Wars” story with the first two campaign missions. The demo will also include “Chasms,” one of “Halo Wars’” 14 multiplayer maps, wherein players can battle it out in Skirmish mode vs. A.I., playing either as the UNSC with Captain Cutter’s leader powers, or as the Covenant with the Prophet of Regret’s own unique abilities." A video documentary series has been started and episode 1 is available on the Xbox Live Marketplace now.

Eidos has officially announced the Beneath the Ashes DLC for Tomb Raider Underworld. The DLC will be exclusive to the Xbox 360 and offer a new adventure for Lara to complete. "Offering a new adventure specifically designed to extend the Tomb Raider: Underworld™ experience, Tomb Raider: Underworld™ – Beneath the Ashes sends Lara back to the remains of Croft Manor where she uncovers a massive series of never-before-seen caverns and age old crypts used to protect and hide a deadly source of power. The pack will also contain six new costumes and deliver an additional 125 achievement points." The DLC will be released on February 10th.

Capcom has released a new Street Fighter IV trailer showing off all of the characters. enjoy!

Eidos and Io Interactive have announced Mini Ninjas for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo DS, and PC. The folks who brought you Kane & Lynch as well as Agent 47 now bring a bit softer game coming this fall. "Prepare yourself for a Ninja adventure like you have never seen before! Join Hiro, the smallest hero on the biggest adventure, as he embarks on an epic and electrifying quest to restore harmony to a world on the brink of chaos. Use your skills and mighty Ninja training to battle a magical army of evil Samurai. Harness the power of your Kuji magic and utilize the special skills of your Mini Ninja friends as you travel through a perilous world to reach the final confrontation with the Evil Samurai Warlord in his Fortress of Doom."

Capcom has officially unveiled the Resident Evil 5 collector's edition for the west, and it is massive. The edition will launch for the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 for $89.99. For your $90 you get quite a bit of goods. Encompassed in a special steel case is the game, bonus disc with special features (including the making of RE5), a nice Tricell messenger bag, a Kijuju necklace, BSAA patch, and finally a Chris Redfield figurine. Pre-orders for the collector's edition are available now, so go start paying off that $90!

There are many, many people looking forward to the release of the next in the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy XIII. Even more so now that the 360 version is coming along with. That being said gamers in the West will have to wait until 2010. Speaking to Reuters Square Enix's Yoichi Wada confirmed that the Japanese release of FF XIII will be later this year, but that western gamers will have to wait until 2010.

Ubisoft and Techland have teamed up once again to take us to the wild west. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is set to be a prequel to the original Call of Juarez. The game takes players from "Civil War-era Georgia to the Aztec ruins of Mexico." “Call of Juarez was well received by gamers and critics,” said John Parkes, Marketing Director at Ubisoft EMEA. “We’re confident this new collaboration with Techland will bring an even bigger and better adventure to fans of shooters and the lawless Wild West.” The game will release later this year on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC.

There is a whole host of new information about DLC and patches for various games today. Below I have outlined the who, what, and when for your information. Fallout 3 - Patch out today, DLC "Operation Anchorage" out January 27th for 800 MSP or $10. Fable 2 - DLC "Knothole Island" out today. Mirror's Edge - DLC out January 29th for 800 MSP or $10. Left 4 Dead - Patch coming this week for PC. Castle Crashers - DLC "King Pack" out Wednesday for 160 MSP. "Two New Characters! Open Faced Gray Knight and the King. New Weapons! NG Lollipop, NG Gold Sword and the King’s Mace (equipped with the King). New Animal Orb- Pelter, the Seal. New Magic! King’s Healing (Gold Knife, Healing Magic and the Kingly Jump)." There you have it, a bunch of new stuff to keep you busy this month.

Warning, there could be mild spoilers in this story that revolves around your dog from Fable 2. If you have not beat it and do not want to get a hint at what happens do not click this story. The Fable 2 development blog has issued a statement concerning tomorrow's DLC. The statement revolves around a certain four legged companion that... ...depending on your choice at the end of the Fable 2 story, may or may not have died. "Since the DLC Knothole Island will be hitting Xbox LIVE marketplace tomorrow, I wanted to draw the attention to the following bullet point from the site; * Unravel the mystical secrets of the resurrection shrine. Now I'm not going to spoil Knothole Island for you either, so while I can't really say a thing (or the infamous PR police will hunt me down and kill me to death), I think it'd be fair to say that you won't be playing Knothole Island without a trusty friend on four legs...." There, now (although the consequences at the end...

Criterion just keeps the DLC coming for Burnout Paradise. Just announce, the next pack from the developer will be the Legendary Car Pack. This pack features 4 cars from various media that have made themselves known and become legendary. The first is the 88 special, or better known to fans of Back to the Future as the time traveling DeLorean. As you can see, this car hovers so it will be very interesting to try it out. Second is another monumental movie car. Criterion calls it the Manhattan Spirit, but it is better known in the company of the Ghostbusters as the Ecto-1. Third is the Carson Nighthawk, or what resembles Kip from Knightrider. Finally we have the Cavalry Bootlegger. Hit L3 (PS3) and you will hear the one of a kind horn that tells you this is none other than the General Lee from The Dukes of Hazzard.

Ubisoft has released the first set of DLC for Shaun White Snowboarding. The Glamour pack contains a variety of new equipment for your rider. The pack is 400 MS points on the 360 and $4.99 on the PS3. The Glamour Pack includes provides riders with an exciting variety of new gear and equipment to conquer the mountain with, and includes the following: • 7 Pants • 7 Coats • 4 Tuques • 4 Gloves • 4 Boots • 4 Goggles • 14 Snowboards • 2 Bindings • 3 Backpacks

Lionhead has confirmed that the Fable 2 DLC "Knothole Island" will be available for download on January 13th. On the same day there will also be a free title update that adds some free items and lets those without the DLC play it via co-op mode. Lionhead has also released a new video diary: "In the latest installment of Lionhead Studio’s Video Diary series, the developers reveal some of the challenges they faced in the final days of making “Fable II” and offer a sneak preview of Knothole Island. Senior Programmer Jonathan Shaw and fellow members of the team hint at the new quests, weapons, items and specialty shops available on this mysterious isle off the coast of Albion, as well as some of the quirky characters that inhabit it."

EA has announced that they, in partnership with Hasbro, will be bringing the Hasbro Family game Night channel to the Xbox Live Arcade starting early this year. The channel will feature games such as Sorry! Battleship, Connect Four, Yahtzee, Boggle, and Sorry! Sliders. “We believe our Hasbro Family Game Night channel on Xbox LIVE Arcade will be one of the most dynamic and fun collections available on the platform,” said Chip Lange, General Manager of EA Hasbro. “We’ve been given the unique opportunity to create an exclusive EA Hasbro branded destination within the Xbox LIVE Arcade so players can easily find and play our lineup family-friendly digital board games. Just as families have game closets in their home, they will also be able to stock a digital game closet serving up hours of interactive play for kids and adults alike.” Stay tuned for more information.

Update: Microsoft has just released news that the Xbox 360 has sold over 28 million units, which increases its lead over the Playstation 3 to 8 million consoles. MS also released a few fun facts including during the week of Christmas Xbox Live had its busiest week ever with 1.5 million users on at one time. Microsoft was looking to hit a home run in sales this holiday season and it looks as if they have, in Europe at least. The company announced today that this holiday's Xbox sales were the most in the brand's six year history in the region, and double what the sales were last holiday. To date eight million consoles have been sold over Europe,the Middle East, and Africa. Chris Lewis, Regional Vice President, Interactive Entertainment Business EMEA, said: “Christmas 2008 was a resounding success for Xbox 360. 2008 saw us grow faster than any of our competitors and we over-achieved in sales during the crucial Christmas selling period. We reduced the entry-level Xbox 360 ERP in S...