I'm running Euro 2008 predictions over on Sports Beat, the GS blog for all things sport. If you want to know who'll win the tournament based on our results with the official game's simluation mode head over and find out the results! We've done one for the quarter finalists with some interesting, and surprising, results.

We'll also be doing separate predictions based on which teams make it to the semi-finals and final game so stay tuned for more Euro action as it unfolds.

By now all those dedicated Metal Gear fans should've snapped up a copy, taken it home, unwrapped it and locked in some solid gameplay (see what I did there?) since the game's launch yesterday. Guy and myself, never ones to shy away from a midnight launch, went down to Zavvi Oxford Street to see if anyone still cares about an old, washed up veteran. Is there any life left in the old battleaxe? Find out what the fans think right here in our video!

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If that's not enough for you, the latest episode of Start/Select has just been pulled out of the oven and is piping hot! We look at Skype and Go!Messenger on the PSP, play a game of Smash Court Tennis 3, and speak to the developers of Mercenaries 2. Oh and in case you're wondering, Kevin VanOrd has posted our thorough (and I mean thorough) review of the Metal Gear Solid 4. You can read and watch all about it here.

I tagged along to Hideo Kojima's appearance at HMV Oxford St yesterday. Those that got there early on were lucky enough to get a limited edition Metal Gear Solid 4 sleeve, personally signed by Kojima, lead artist Yoji Shinkawa and one of the game's voice actors Yumi Kikuchi.

As if he wasn't considered rock star enough by his fans, Kojima-san is apparently also a huge fan of Joy Division. He walked on stage to Atmosphere, and was also wearing a shirt of the band. Here's a few of the best pics I snapped at the event. For the full story on the London Calling blog, click here.

Kyle Downes, NES lover and fellow Aussie has created the ultimate coffee table (well, other than a tabletop 1942 machine, of course) ... a working, oversized NES controller that also doubles as a storage box.

Behold the "giant NES controller/ coffee table/ storage box!"

And better yet, if you want to try this at home, kids, be my guest. Kyle's provided instructions on how to build your own. Just be sure to ask your parents first!

Here's a sweet video of it in action:

We've just put up an interview I did recently with Adam Park, who's the assistant producer on Rare's upcoming Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise. In the video, Adam explains a bit about the story, new pinatas, the new Pinata Vision card feature, two-player co-op and more!

If that's not enough Rare goodness for you, we've also just posted an interview with the developers of Rare's other upcoming title and the long awaited return of Banjo, one of its favourite mascots, in Banjo-Kazooie: Trouble in Paradise.

Hit play, sit back, relax, and feel free to leave a comment below on your thoughts!

Okay, so I know I've had a few photo galleries on my blog recently, but this one is cool, trust me....

I popped over to Montreal last week to visit Ubisoft and see how they've been keeping busy. While that's still under wraps for now, it wouldn't take much detective work to suss out what they're currently working on.

So, in the mean-time I thought I'd post a few photos from my Canadian sojourn. If you haven't been there before it's quite interesting. Quebec was freezing when we visited (about 10C during the day with a strong wind chill), and hearing French-speaking North Americans was a fascinating, yet bizarre, novelty (and yet they don't seem to have a French accent when speaking English)!

The locals are obsessed with their NHL ice hockey team, the Montreal Canadiens, who were in the playoffs at the time. Despite that being the centre of attention we were still able to find a bar that was playing the Chelsea/Liverpool Champions League game...and because we were on a different continent, there were no problems finding a seat at the bar during the match!

Pics below, full gallery here.

I'm not the first GameSpot UKer to visit Sony's uber funky, top-secret pad in Central London (around the Shoreditch-ish area) but was nonetheless happy to check it out recently for a Haze preview event--it truly is a sight to behold (the apartment, that is). It's not quite as exclusive as the Big Brother household, but still comes complete with CCTV surveillance and a security guard!

Anyway, I thought it might be cool to share a few pics of my time in the house. I wonder how much it would cost for the same interior decorator to deck out my place?

For the full album, click here.

Haze multiplayer hands on preview is here.

Just a shoutout that the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue review (by yours truly) is up on the site following the US release (looks like the Europeans beat them to the finish line!).

To check out the written and video review (complete with my distinct Orstrayan accent) head over to the Launch Center.

Get your Schumacher on after reading our review!

A few weeks back I visited Land Rover's global headquarters, just outside Birmingham in Solihull, England, to check out the upcoming Ford Off Road on Wii and PS2.

Off Road features a bevy of Range Rover and former parent company Ford's vehicles (Indian carmaker Tata purchased the Land Rover and Jaguar brands from Ford in March). While at Land Rover HQ we got a tour of the factory floor--which has been building Land Rovers there since 1948--and the "Land Rover Experience" a purpose-built obstacle course to test Land Rovers offroad abilities. I got behind the wheel of a Range Rover Sport and took some pics (though, not at the same time!).

Click here to check out all the pics from the dirty day out.

Since announcing a give-away competiton for 5,000 free demo UMDs of Sony's upcoming God of War: Chains of Olympus on PSP, GameSpot UK has been positively inundated with thousands of entries. Thankfully we've still got a few copies left for those slowpokes out there. If you get in quick you can still score a copy ... but only while stocks last!

All you need to do is go to the Chains of Olympus contest page and answer a simple question. We've even been nice enough to provide a clue for those not fully-versed in ancient Greek mythology and Kratos' story.

If you also like winning money (£500 to be exact) and having your voice heard, be sure to also complete our UK Reader Survey, found here.

Now make haste or suffer a fate worse than this bloke....