Besides the added features the dashboard has also received a new look and feel (codenamed “Metro”) that Microsoft promises will make for a more open, inviting and intuitive experience. It’s also slightly faster than the previous dashboard. Here’s what else you can look forward to in terms of updates:

Beacons are a new way to alert Xbox LIVE and Facebook friends of games that you want to play online. It will also alert you when an Xbox LIVE friend plays a game that you’ve tagged, making it easier to party up for a good multiplayer session. With the new Cloud Profile you can log into any Xbox 360 and access your games saves, friends lists and your Gold membership, including your Microsoft Points balance to make purchases.

The new dashboard also adds voice search, powered by Bing, which allows you to easily find games, movies or TV shows by just saying the search term. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work in South Africa, as voice support still isn’t available locally, but, if you have a UK or US account or don’t mind using your controller, you’re good to go.

In addition to rolling out the new Xbox Live Dashboard, Microsoft also released an Xbox Companion app for Windows Phone users. The app works as a virtual remote for navigating through your Xbox menus – even while someone else is playing a game or watching a video. Use the Companion to find games, TV shows, movies, and music. If you own a Windows Phone and an Xbox 360, this app is a must-download and the best bit is, it’s free.

Modern Warfare 3 is a direct sequel to the previous game in the series, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The game will continue the campaign storyline in which the US forces struggle against an invasion by the Russian Federation following the framing of an undercover US agent in a terrorist attack on Moscow. Not only does the game contain classic Call of Duty multi-character control, but Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 contains deep multiplayer support, including two-player co-op Survival mode. The game will also contain all-new kill streak categories and customizable strike packages that offer you more options to find the style that fits you best.

Along with the launch of MW3, we are running a promotion where if you buy any copy of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (PS3, XBOX, PC, NDS) at full price, you can get ANY of the following items for R99.95!

• Duke Nukem Forever
• Bulletstorm
• PES 2011
• WWE All Stars
• Click here to download the full list of R99.95 games.

Please call the call centre for stock in your area as stock is limited!

This promotion is valid from the 8 – 13 November 2011.

id’s long awaited shooter RAGE has finally been released, and it is an absolute visual feast. After 5 years of work, (really it’s been that long), id have managed to create a game engine that powers an incredibly detailed world. With rich environments that surround you as you explore the game, just don’t get caught admiring the post apocalyptic scenery with a horde of mutants bearing down on you.

But beautiful graphics aren’t everything in a good game, and there is more to id’s first game since DOOM III. As I hinted at above, RAGE is a sci-fi first person shooter set on a post apocalyptic Earth, with survivors, bandits and mutants. Which may seem like pretty standard fare for a modern FPS, but RAGE does a lot with that premise and manages to make it all thoroughly entertaining. Perhaps one of the biggest standout points of RAGE are it’s wonderfully animated characters, with detailed expressions and great voice acting. Enemies are engaging and challenging with the AI often running circles around you. Bandits leap, dodge, climb, swing and duck for cover behind objects and one another, making RAGE much more than a point and click shooter.

Click here to view the embedded video.

A lot of fuss has been made about RAGE’s apparent open ‘sandbox’ environments that you can’t actually explore. While the game isn’t Fallout 3, and you can’t go everywhere you can see, this isn’t such a bad thing. You are on a set path, but that path is wide and littered with pit stops and distractions. This is definitely an FPS and not an RPG, and it plays like that. But at the same time id have pushed their boundaries and given the gameplay more depth with some great RPG elements.

You rumble around the wastelands from town to missions in a variety of upgradable vehicles, with vehicular combat a mainstay on your journeys. In town you will find vendors, mini-games and side quests. Everything from racing your buggy for prizes to collectible card games. There are only 5 weapon types available in the game, and an interesting ‘boomerang’ type weapon. But then there is the best part, constructable weapon upgrades. On your tours through enemy territory you will pick up various odds and ends that, when combined with a recipe, give you some great and interesting extras. From mind controlling crossbow arrows, to spider bots.

Expectations for RAGE were high, and perhaps there was some confusion about what id were making, leaving some people feeling a bit disappointed. But as what it is, an FPS, it does really well. At times you may find yourself wishing for more, and maybe that’s exactly what we will get, sometime later. But right now, RAGE is a beautiful game with some incredible technology behind it, and while it isn’t perfect, as no game is, it is a great ride.

Click here to view the embedded video.

*As a side note, for anyone buying the PC version, please be aware of the unfortunate buggy graphics and other problems people have been having. It’s a horrible blemish on an otherwise wonderful game, but you may need to put in a little effort to get the game running smoothly on the PC. You should upgrade you graphics drivers as a first step, if you’re still experiencing graphical glitches check these links for help:

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/10/06/sweet-desert-fixing-rages-texture-problems/
http://support.amd.com/us/kbarticles/Pages/GPU121AMDCatRagePerfDriver.aspx
http://www.nvidia.com/object/win7-winvista-64bit-285.38-beta-driver.html

The story picks up 4 years after Resistance 2 and you play as Joseph Capelli – whom you might remember from Resistance 2. Capelli was dishonourably discharged and is now living and hiding with his wife, Susan, and son, Jack, along other survivors in the town of Haven, Oklahoma. Dr. Malikov arrives with an opportunity to deliver a blow to the Chimera and Capelli embarks on a road trip to New York City to lead the resistance.

This latest version offers top quality gameplay throughout the game. This is evident in the arsenal made available to you – every gun has a secondary function which makes for some exciting gameplay. The standard magnum pistol, for example, packs bullets that can be manually detonated after lodging themselves in an enemy, further damaging them and everything around them. Add to this a healthy selection of grenade types and other variations on the shotgun, sniper rifle, rocket launcher, assault rifle, and even a clumsy-but-effective sledgehammer and there’s little to complain about when it comes to the weaponry.

Combat is also enhanced through the use of health packs over an automatic health regeneration system. By making you pick up these types of items to stay alive, the game forces a slightly slower, more well-thought-out pace than the majority of its peers.
This time round the Chimera have also evolved into two distinct groups. Feral Chimera, which are wild and un-organised and then there are the militarized Chimera, which follow ranks and orders between each other.

For all fans of the Resistance franchise as well as new comers Resistance 3 will not disappoint.

This year gamers can experience the unique style that established the Driver series as the quintessential car chase experience. With its timeless setting and unique car handling Driver: San Francisco is set to revitalize the classic free-roaming, cinematic car chase experience for the current generation of gaming platforms. The game will see you throttling through 20 challenging races and test out your handling skills in 80 dares spread all across the city in additional game-play modes.

Assume the role of Driver protagonist, Detective John Tanner as you drive down highways at break neck speeds, perform Hollywood-style jumps across intersections as you attempt to chase down the infamous Chris Jericho.

This time round game play has been dramatically changed with a great new feature that allows you to seamlessly and instantly shift to the exact car you need during any car chase.  Choose between 130 licensed cars and instantly shift to a more powerful car to make a faster getaway, deploying a civilian vehicle to destroy your enemies or even taking control of your opponent’s car. The game also features six online multiplayer modes, as well as various split-screen multiplayer modes.

The game has been released in the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC platforms. All-in-all Driver: San Francisco will wow you with its beautiful visuals, incredible soundtrack, highly enjoyable multiplayer modes, and over the top story.

The game handles beautifully, sound great, looks great, and truly captures the essence of Formula One racing. You’ll find on offer a large selection of real F1 drivers and teams and a great track selection. All the drivers that are set to complete in the 2011 season are represented, including Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, and more.

This time round there is a big focus on the team aspect of F1 racing in career mode. They’ve added a new co-op mode, which allows you to play with a second player as members of the same team. This adds an interesting new level of strategy to the game. They’ve also supercharged interactions with the media in career mode. You can interact with the media via interviews, e-mail, etc.

Racing itself is enhanced by AI that’s more consistent than before. The 2011 edition of the game also introduces DRS (Drag Reduction System) and welcomes back KERS. DRS is a new system which allows drivers to adjust the rear wing for a quick speed boost.

The graphics in the game are pretty incredible. Those who have tested the game have made a point of mentioning the amazingly real-looking weather conditions in the game as well the off-track effects. Codemasters has focused on making the world of F1: 2011 as spectacular as possible.

Gears of War 3 follows Marcus and the team from Delta Squad. The Coalition of Ordered Government (COG) has dissolved, a new enemy has arisen, and all hell has broken loose in Sera. The storyline in the third installment promises to keep gamers captivated for hours.

The gameplay in Gears of War 3 is quite remarkable. The game manufacturers have done a massive overhaul on the gameplay side and gamers can expect intense combat and a bucket-load of new weapons. Another new addition to the gameplay experience includes the ability to control a mechanical suit called the Silverback. The Silverback is packed with chainguns and has the ability to rip through even the largest enemy.

Gamers can also look forward to an improved multiplayer experience – which has been reported as nothing but legendary. You’ll find a host of multiplayer options to keep you and your mates entertained. Versus, comes packed with 10 multiplayer maps with modes that include: Execution, Team Deathmatch, Warzone and a host of other options. An overhauled Gridlock map is included in the 10 maps. Horde 2.0 allows teams to manage a cash flow, in order to build reinforcements, and take on Hordes of enemy waves. Beast mode allows Gamers to experience what it is like to be a Locust, fighting your way through waves of humans.

The graphics in the game are of epic proportions and the game itself is a thrilling ride. Fans of the series and newcomers will delight in the world created by Epic Games.

Gears of War 3 is also now the best selling game of 2011 by shipping more than 3 million units in its first week!

Purchase Gears of War 3 from Incredible.co.za for R599.95

The game features the biggest fan favourite players as well as some of the most famous rugby venues from around the world. Expect to find every player name and likeness in the Tri-nations, Quad-Nations, Aviva Premiership, Bledisoe Cup, Top 14 Orange, RaboDirect PRO12, ITM Cup and Ranfury Shield as well as all the important licenses for the All Blacks, Wallabies and all the Rugby World Cup stadiums.

They’ve added in a nifty little training feature that allows you to train while the game is loading. A great alternative to the annoying loading screen we’ve come to know so well. You’ll find basic, intermediate and advanced tutorials. Each of the videos takes you through a differing degree of the rules, to ensure that you know what you are doing and for the most advanced players, it teaches you things you need to know to win in the highest difficulty setting.

Things really start heating up in Career Mode where you can create a player and put him in any team in any competition in world rugby and play a 13 year career mode with that team.  Choose to play just club rugby, just international rugby or seasons that include both. You can also transfer your player between clubs at the end of a season. Career Mode also allows for some pretty impressive customisation of game play. Players, teams and competitions are all fully customisable. Customise your player’s hair, enter your team into any competition in world rugby and customise their tactics, or create your own competition.

With all the customisation features, there is plenty to keep you occupied before, during and after the Rugby World Cup. If you love rugby and you love gaming you’re going to love Jonah Lomu Rugby Challenge.

You play one of four characters who wakes up in his or her hotel room after a night of heavy partying on a New Guinea resort island only to discover that there’s been a zombie outbreak sometime during the night. Your character is immune from infection and must try to survive the scourge as long as possible, scavenging weapons on the way.

Gameplay is kept interesting with thousands of weapons to collect, from simple wooden bats to fire-axes to heavy rifles, and the game’s weapon customisation system allows gamers to craft any weapon needed to ensure survival. The game also incorporates RPG elements that allow you to enhance and develop your character using an experience system and un-lockable skill trees.

Dead Island gives you the choice of Co-Operative Multiplayer – a seamless 4 player, co-operative multiplayer provides an immersive multiplayer experience where players can drop in and out of each other’s games at any point with no loss of progress. Some other interesting aspects of the game include weather conditions – weather deteriorates into an ever-growing storm as the story develops. You’ll be on the edge of your seat as the environment gets darker, windier, and rainier.

Dead Island provides players with a world rife with quests, interesting environments, and a character progression system that will keep you glued for hours. The game has been released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows platforms.

The 1080p edge LED lit LCD features two HDMI inputs, stereo speakers and an integrated sub-woofer. Sony claims that the 3D PlayStation screen is the first display at this size with “quad speed frame sequential display technology.” The display is uniquely enhanced for gaming with a special two-player feature, offering fantastic visuals in both 2D and 3D. The 3D display optimises two-player mode by delivering individual full HD screens, giving each person their own full-screen view of the action on the same display while playing co-op or head-to-head. The monitor is ultra-slim and offers exceptional image quality and sound.

While the monitor comes with a pair of 3D glasses, additional pairs can be purchased for split-screen gaming. The glasses, which charge via USB, are also compatible with other manufacturer’s 3D monitors.

The bundle, which includes a copy of the game on Blu-ray disc, a PlayStation Move motion controller, navigation controller, PlayStation Eye, and PlayStation Move sharp shooter, should be available in South Africa later this year.