A sneak preview for Street Fighter IV was released a few days ago and I've had a chance to check out the trailer.

While the vidoe serves no other purpose than to announce the existance of SFIV and create some 'froth and bubble' for the game, it's certainly done its job, with over 1000 comments on GameSpot already, across the two stories here and here.

The frustrating thing about knowing about a game/film/album/book well ahead of release is the dreadfully slow wait. And the bigger the fan you are, the longer the wait feels.

Fortunately I've built up a tollerance after waiting for two Lord of the Rings sequels, numerous videogame sequels (Halo, GTA, Zelda, Metal Gear, Mario etc.) and years of listening to music. Still, it's always a matter of playing the waiting game.

That's why I love Apple's approach of keeping their cards close to their chest, then dropping an announcement with (virtually) immediate supply, at least in the case of iPods. This wasn't possible with the iPhone, due to FCC requirements, and we had to endure months of the iPhone dominating tech news headlines.

The risk with too much hype is the pressure to live up to it. Let's hope that Street Fighter IV is a more memorable experience than III was.

Cinematical, by way of Amazon, reports that 'Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair' will be coming to DVD on November 6th (at least in the US). While many of us shelled out for the first two, there have long been rumors of a single Kill Bill release.

While details are scant, we know that the entire runtime exceeds 4 hours (247 minutes of bride-fuelled mayhem!), is spread over 4 discs and, hopefully, should be a much improved upgrade to the original (especially as Miramax doesn't have the best reputation for DVD transfers).

Remember those skilltester things you used to (or still do) play at the arcades? Well, as Chippa mentioned over at his blog, a few of us stumbled upon a plethora of the things at Capitol Square filled with Banpresto's official Nintendo New Super Mario Bros. plush toys!

I'd been in there a few timese before, but never noticed official Ninty merch before. It wasn't long before we were poppin' dollars into these things like we'd pop mentos. I manged to lasso a goomba (complete with Luigi hat) yesterday, and a Mega Mushroom today (Dan scored the original super 'shroom).

Needless to say, we're hooked and might not stop until we get all the toys, or run out of money .. whichever comes first! Pics below.

Check out our full wish list here, including question mark box (complete with sounds?), spikey shells, giant shrooms and Yoshi. Sorry not Peach or Daisies to be found. Donkey Kong was hiding around somewhere though.

This t-shirt from Threadless is hilarious, I had to share it. I've only just cottoned onto it but no doubt lots of you have ordered plenty of nerdy and/or cool tees from there?

Today it happened ... the moment I thought I'd escaped and would never be victim to. The dreaded ring of death!

I was watching a DVD in peace (48 Hours, to be precise, for the first time) when all of a sudden I heard my TV emit a loud beep, followed by a black screen. Upon rebooting my 360 I was confonted with the dreaded sign that has haunted so many others.

Unfortunately, being an advocate of the 360 since day one (purchased on launch day, 14 months ago) means that I am, infact, out of warranty. Nice way to reward my loyalty, Microsoft. I only hope that they'll see the errors of their ways when I call tomorrow and have pity on me....

I love a good bargain. And the one I got tonight is one of the sweetest in a while. I've wanted to get Resident Evil 4 for ages and was waiting for the Aussie version to become Playerse Choice, like the US version. Seems like it's never going to happen. Despite the recent announcement of RE4 coming to Wii, I still jumped at the opportunity of grabbing the GCN version for $10 at K-Mart! If you want one you'd better be quick. Broadway, Bondi and Woy Woy have sold out...

Special thanks to Malcs for pointing out the original forum post .

Seeing as my blog has been pretty less than blogtastic thus far, I figured it's time to do something about it!

So, where do I start? What new game-related morsels can I share? Well the most interesting thing I've done, in that regard, recently was the Australian PS3 Media Launch, hosted by SCEE (Australia) at the Sydney Theatre.

Instead of bore you with pollywaffle, here's a few pics to whet your appite, before launch:

Inside the theatre


Canapes served to business partners and media.


The inside of the theatre foyer was decorated with lots of movie-esque posters.


Attendees got a taste of a wide range or launch titles on PS3 retail IDUs (interactive display units). Resistance looked like one of the most promising...


GameSpot AU's Randolph Ramsay gives Gran Turismo HD a spin.


Boombastic sounds complete with DJ and percussionist.


Randolph filming...


More posters outside ... I didn't catch her name though.


Outside facade, Sydney Theatre (complete with Oz Koz in the background).

As awesome and fun-filled as Nintendo's new console is, it seems that failing to include one minor element ends up being the Archilles' Heel of the Wii: rechargable batteries.

Admittadly, the Xbox 360 doesn't include rechargable batteries out-of-the-box but at least provided an optional rechargable battery add-on at launch.

What about Nintendo? Oh no! It seems we're forced to buy infinite AA batteries, or wait for a 3rd party solution, such as Joytechs and, I think, is a gross oversight on Ninty's behalf.

What are you thinking Reggie? Shame, shame...

Cool, looks like I got my first real emblem for TGS 2006 (My total access icon doesn't really count) which makes me intrigued how to earn more?

and, for that matter how to 'level up' in GameSpot. I know you get points for making blogs, forum comments etc but how many???

Anyone care to help me out? :wink:

Like a phoenix from the ashes, Gamespot AU arises!

Congrats to Randolph, Cankles & Co. for all the hard work and effort put in over the many moons.

It's now in your hands, Australian gaming public..... you finally have a quality, premium games site to be proud of.  Tell all your friends to come along and support Gamespot AU.