I realize that most people go “ga ga” for Madden NFL every year, but to be honest I’ve always found college football far more exciting. Each year I look forward to EA’s incremental updates to their NCAA Football series just like the slavering Madden junkies do. Growing up in Columbus, Ohio and working at Ohio State has left me a bit numb to my hometown college team – The Ohio State Buckeyes because here college football is the second biggest thing next to God, but regardless there is something about playing college ball, racing for the Heisman that I just find more interesting. Maybe its the lack of professional polish, maybe its just the presentation and the crowd elements of the game that don’t exist in the NFL. This year EA is adding a number of needed defensive improvements as well as a TeamBuilder feature so players can completely create their own virtual college to compete against the best.

Its interesting to see how Madden and NCAA change and this years tweaks are bit different. You can find all the new features after the jump.

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InFamous is an action packed trip into a familiar genre with an interesting twist. You start out as Cole McGrath, a poor schmuck who has a mysterious delivery package blow up in his face, leaving him with burgeoning electrical based powers and everyone else in a six block radius with a slight case of death. You emerge from your baptism by fire, crawl out of the blast zone and run for your life guided by your buddy Zeke as the police force hunts you down.

Once you reach the relative safety of your roof top penthouse, the game truly begins throwing you into a grand conspiracy masterminded by a clandestine mystical organization. As you unravel the mystery, you can either fight your reputation as the bringer of the apocalypse or revel in the new coolness that is you and start building your own evil empire.

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Yesterday, Jonathan let you all in on the weird and not very secretly coded message plastered across a teaser site for Metal Gear Solid. The last code is mostly likely the power button for a PC–at least that is what the symbol on my power button looks like, but it also looks like the one for the Xbox 360. Then again, if you looks at the codes closely, you would also see other gaming symbols that looks very familiar to you. Therefore, one might think that the “i” is for the Wii, and the “!” is for the Xbox 360 and the last one is for the PC.  Yet, the Wii most likely would not be able to handle an exact port of Metal Gear Solid 4, therefore I personally think this had to do with the Xbox 360 and PC only.

So, if my deductive reasoning (and upon further investigation-most of the internet) is correct, MGS4 will no longer be a PS3 exclusive in the near future. That, or all the old Metal Gear Solid games will be heading to other formats–but it is best not to think on this too hard and instead focus on the obvious.

All of the speculation from yesterday is getting even more heightened today, with people chatting on all sorts of forums, but if you look back on the actual beginnings of these rumors, the teaser site just makes perfect sense.

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Apparently enough people (rightly so apparently) have complained about the various bugs, poor quality and various other issues with the recently released Gothic 3 : Forsaken Gods that publisher JoWoos has taken it upon themselves to issue a formal apology.

Over on the JoWood Forums, the apology– which was recently published over on the German site PC Games– was translated as such:

First of all we want to thank the community for showing their support and we also want to thank those who have chosen to buy the game.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible for us to release a game that could fully satisfy you, for different reasons. The game was released this year because that was what we and the community desired.
JoWooD and Trine have worked under a lot of pressure, and to repair some of the mistakes we released the game with a patch to try and make it better.

Michael Kairat, Executive Producer of JoWooD said: “We are now getting the “bill” from the community for our mistakes. JoWooD Productions would like to present their apologizes to the fans for releasing an unsatisfying game.”

Furthermore Michael Kairat explained that in the next days a new patch will be released which will improve the quality of the game and it will be available for download on JoWooD’s Official Website.

“We also want to make a content patch which will include opinions, suggestions, wishes from the community. After the feedback from the community, we will release a statement regarding the patch.
Together with Spellbound we will make early beta tests for Arcania : A Gothic Tale, to be sure that the past mistakes will not be repeated.”

A patch was sent to FileFront on Wednesday, which you can get here. The patch in question that Kairat is speaking of has yet to be released but as soon as we find out more, we will be sure to let you know.

Hopefully, JoWood and Trine have learned their lesson, a hard one, but a valuable one nonetheless.

Silicon Knights has announced that the soundtrack for their third-person action game, Too Human, is now available for purchase. The musical CD, which was nominated for “Best Original Video Game Score” by the Hollywood Music Awards, features tracks from the game, such as “Relic”, “Path to Attrition”, “The World Tree” and “Gods and Chaos”, along with 16 other tracks.

All the music was originally scored by Silicon Knights’ composer, Steve Henifin, and performed by the FILMharmonic Orchestra and Choir Prague. This hour-long soundtrack is mixed in a continuous format with special extras and remixes which is selling for a suggested retail price of $15.98 via Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, iTunes and the CD label’s own site Sumthing Distribution. I found it for $13.98 on Amazon and $9.99 on iTunes, so prices vary.

Based on Norse mythology, Too Human was retold as a technologically advanced lost civilization and the music, like the game, tries very hard to stick to the old Norse roots while telling a more futuristic tale. The soundtrack feature period instruments, such as the Hardanger, Lyre, Alpenhorn and Langeleik, and Old Norse vocals that are loosely based off of the Norse Eddur (old Norse poems and tales). Kind of like how Oraff based his choral interpretation of  Carmina Burana off of poems and drinking songs written by a Goliard monk and two of his students called the Burana Codex.

The soundtrack runs the gambit of orchestral music, electronic/metal and ambient tracks that are made of layers sample-based sounds and evolving electronic sounding textures making the music Norse in presentation, but not exclusively Norse in sound.

So while the music and audio is Norse in its presentation, it is not exclusively Norse in its sound. All in all it is a very interesting soundtrack which, if you are a fan of this sort of music genre, you will enjoy it highly. I was honestly never really all that interested in playing the game, but I do like the soundtrack very much.

As usual, check with the above mentioned retailers to see if the Too Human Soundtrack is available in your region before getting overly excited.

With all of the big releases lately, Microsoft apparently felt you don’t deserve a new Xbox Live Arcade game this week — unless you’ve preordered Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, in which case you’re likely enjoying the original Banjo-Kazooie right now. For the rest of you, the only updates to the Xbox Live Arcade this week include a new Street Fighter II-themed table for Pinball FX and three additions to the Arcade Hits line — which means cheaper prices. All three games can now be had for 400 Microsoft points ($5 in real money).

The first of the bunch is the original Feeding Frenzy, a game where you lone goal is to gobble up fish. As much as I’d like to make fun of the premise, I won’t, because I know plenty of people who enjoy the game and for $5 it’s a pretty good deal to keep your child occupied for a bit while that demo of Left 4 Dead downloads.

Next up is something much further away from the kid-friendly tag you could slap on Feeding Frenzy: Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3. All of the people disappointed with the lack of excessive gore in Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe when it releases on Sunday will be right at home here with UMK 3’s classic violence. Just be wary of playing on the 360’s godawful D-pad — it can make things tricky.

And finally, we have Worms. Featuring prettied-up graphics and online support, it’s a very solid iteration of the classic series. It doesn’t bring much new to the table and doesn’t include every feature you’d want (namely, the omission of a number of weapons), but now that it’s just $5, it’ll be hard to complain.

Stardock CEO Brad Wardell recently talked about his company’s goal to avoid the congested holiday rush and release a game during the first quarter every year. While they’ve already got Demigod set for release in February, they’ll be adding another game to their 2009 release list, as Sins of a Solar Empire Entrenchment has been delayed.

Originally scheduled for release on November 18, the game will now make its way out sometime next year. The exact date hasn’t been determined, but according to a post on the official Sins forums “it will largely depend on beta feedback.” Those who can’t wait that long for some new Sins action will be able to participate in the beta by preordering the game.

Considering what Wardell said, I can’t help but think they wanted to wait until after the holidays to release the game. Opening up a beta is a nice gesture towards diehard fans who will no doubt be disappointed with the news.

After periodically releasing information in bits and pieces over the past year and a half, Gamecock and Spark Unlimited have finally revealed the achievements list for the Xbox 360 version of their upcoming FPS Legendary.

Formerly known as Legendary: The Box (they dropped the later part of the title thankfully), the game tells the nightmarish story of Charles Deckard, an art thief duped into stealing Pandora’s Box. When he opens it up, a whole mess of werewolves, minotaurs, and griffins step out and start going Godzilla on the city and its unsuspecting inhabitants. To further complicate matters, secret societies have their hand in the chaos and it is up to Charles, since he opened the box, to try and contain the genocide happening around him.

While you are engaging in fire-fights, emptying your gun cartridges, and watching enemies tear apart a dynamic environment full of easily recognizable structures from around the globe, you will be earning special achievement points which are listed below.

• You Call This Security?: Bypass the electronic lock in Episode 1 (5 points)
• Heeeeeere’s Deckard!: Chop your way out of the Internet Café with the Fire Axe in Episode 1 (5 points)
• Death To Soda!: Create a ramp with the soda machine using your Pistol in Episode 1 (5 points)
• Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey: Extinguish the doorway fire using the water valve in Episode 1 (5 points)
• Flashpoint: Complete Episode 1 on any difficulty (10 points)
• Upper Management: Unlock the warehouse exit in Episode 2 (10 points)
• Live Wire: Find the Black Order-eliminating electric switch in Episode 2 (10 points)
• Escape From…: Complete Episode 2 on any difficulty (20 points)
• Gum On My Shoe: Get stepped on by the Giant Golem in Episode 3 (5 points)
• Revenge Of The Soda!: Escape the Nari-possessed vending machine room in Episode 3 (10 points)
• Jazz Hands!: Look at all “The Great Langtini” posters littering Times Square in Episode 3 (15 points)
• Jack? Beanstalk, Beanstalk? Jack: Destroy the Giant Golem in Episode 3 (15 points)
• All Fall Down: Complete Episode 3 on any difficulty (20 points)
• Barf Piñata: Destroy a Blood Spider Queen in Episode 4 (10 points)
• Werewolf Whisperer: Defeat the first Alpha Werewolf in Episode 4 (15 points)
• Just Another Day At The Office:Eavesdrop on the Black Order as they cage up a Werewolf in Episode 4 (5 points)
• Full Moon: Complete Episode 4 on any difficulty (20 points)
• Tenderized!:Defeat the Minotaur in Episode 5 (20 points)
• Bull In A China Shop: Cause the Minotaur to destroy all Graveyard wall sections in Episode 5 (15 points)
• I Hate Ornithology:Defeat the Griffin in Episode 5 (25 points)
• Bullets & Blood: Complete Episode 5 on any difficulty (25 points)
• Science!: Run all Council Base lab experiments in Episode 6 (10 points)
• 10-Piece Bucket: Shoot down the low flying Griffins in Episode 6 (15 points)
• Counterstrike: Complete Episode 6 on any difficulty (25 points)
• Not OSHA Compliant: Cause the crane to drop the metal beams in Episode 7 (10 points)
• Power Outage: Take out the power to the Black Order outpost in Episode 7 (10 points)
• My Kind Of Town: Complete Episode 7 on any difficulty (25 points)
• DouBull TrouBull: Survive the double-Minotaur attack and terrible Achievement pun in Episode 8 (1 point)
• I Owe You An Apology: Unlock DouBull TrouBull (14 points)
• I Will Find You!: Free Vivian from captivity in Episode 8 (10 points)
• Endings & Betrayals: Complete Episode 8 on any difficulty (35 points)
• Petting Zoo: Complete game on Easy difficulty (50 points)
• Animal Control: Complete game on Normal difficulty (70 points)
• Savage Law Of The Jungle: Complete game on Hard difficulty (90 points)
• Bookworm: Collect 1/2 Of PDA Entries (20 points)
• Mint In Box: Collect All PDA Entries (40 points)
• Gun Nut: Fire all 8 projectile weapons in Single Player at least once (10 points)
• Axe-Wielding Maniac: Kill 25 enemies with the Fire Axe in Single Player (15 points)
• I Have A Problem With Intimacy: Use the Animus Pulse ability 10 times (15 points)
• Fair-Weather Friends: Use Animus to change the frequency of an Aniform Control Device in Single player (5 points)
• Walkies!: Start and finish a ranked Multiplayer match (5 points)
• Right Tool For The Right Tool: Fire every weapon available in any ranked Multiplayer match (10 points)
• Warm Fuzzy Feeling: Fill 50% of your machine with Animus in a ranked 4v4 Multiplayer match (15 points)
• Party Animal: Add 10 friends during ranked Multiplayer games (15 points)
• Zookeeper: Kill 10 Werewolves in a ranked Multiplayer match without being killed (20 points)
• Bounty Hunter: Kill 10 enemy players in a ranked Multiplayer match without being killed (25 points)
• Leader Of The Pack: Be first place in kills in 10 ranked Multiplayer matches in a row (30 points)
• Survivor: Survive a ranked 4v4 Multiplayer game without being killed (30 points)
• Combat Veteran: Played 200 ranked Multiplayer matches (45 points)
• King Of The Jungle: Win 50 ranked Multiplayer matches (55 points)

That’s 50 achievements worth a total of 1000 points, and that is all not all, because according to Xbox 360 Achievements, there are 10 secret ones waiting to be unlocked that range from 10 -35 points a piece. These will give you an extra 219 points.

Legendary is expected to land on shelves October 21 and will also be made available for the PC and PS3. If you happen to be a GameTap subscriber, you will also be able to digitally purchase Legendary online.

Another day, another round of Guitar Hero: World Tour news. It is actually starting to get really boring if you ask me, and I am very tired of hearing about it. Short of Led Zeppelin, Godsmack, or The Beatles being added to the play list, I could honestly give a damn anymore to be honest with you.  At least that is how I felt until Noel Gallagher from Oasis got diarrhea of the mouth. But I will get to that in a minute.

First off, according to Joystiq, there will not be a party-friendly “No Fail” option included in GHWT like its rival Rock Band 2. Nor will you be able to save a failing bandmate – instead you will basically be allowed to miss more notes than in Rock Band and still stay alfloat. While you may think that this makes the difficulty easier in the game, GHWT will provide you with a detailed analysis after each song. This will effect your overall score, so I suppose it evens out a bit. We shall see though.

Secondly, Activison sent us a press release stating that Motorhead along with The Sex Pistols and MC5 will provide some re-records for GHWT. Here is the rundown:

• MC5 – “Kick Out The Jams” (1968): Featuring the vocals recorded by Rob Tyner in 1968, Wayne Kramer was joined by friends Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains and Gilby Clark formerly of Guns ‘N’ Roses  at The Woodshed Recorder, studio of composer and ex-Oingo Boingo keyboardist Richard Gibbs – to update and modernize the sound without taking away from the original visceral garage sound that made MC5 famous and helped start the Punk Rock revolution.

• The Sex Pistols – “Pretty Vacant” (1977):  Last year when they re-recorded “Anarchy in the U.K.” for GH3, The Sex Pistols – with original members John Lydon on vocals, guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul Cook and producer Chris Thomas – also re-recorded “Pretty Vacant” utilizing the original analog sound board (circa 1969) that was built for George Martin at Air Studios, London, England in order to maintain the classic sound.

• Motörhead – “Overkill” (1979): Lemmy and the boys returned to the studio to re-record their hit which should make mullet haired men in thier 30’s who still drive cameros with t-tops pretty happy.

Thirdly, and lastly because it is the best news of the day in my opinion, Noel Gallagher- guitarist for Oasis,  brother of lead singer Liam and decrier of violent video games had this to say about kids playing Guitar Hero:

“If it puts little plastic guitars into kids’ hands and fires their imaginations, I think that’s a good thing. It’s harmless fun, innit.  I’d rather that genre of videogames than somebody getting their f***ing head chopped off with a samurai sword while getting f****d by a goblin up the arse with a laser. Do you know what I mean?”

Yes, we do Noel. As a matter of fact one of our writers, Jonathan, questioned this statement because he was shocked that the rocker had apparently never played “Samurai Goblin F**er” back in the day like he did.

Seriously, you cannot make this stuff up.

(Big Thanks to VG247 for the Noel Gallagher quote, and Joystiq for the “No Fail” info)