How exactly do you take on a franchise like Rock Band? According to Neversoft, you do exactly what they do - but do it better. Travis Barker from Blink 182/+44, Chad Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers and Stewart Copeland from The Police were recently flown in to the Neversoft HQ to give feedback on the first prototype of the Guitar Hero Drum Kit - and wear unflattering motion capture suits.

There’s next to no footage of the drum kit, but we do discover a couple of very interesting facts. Firstly, the pads are velocity sensitive - the harder you hit the pad, the louder that note will be. Before getting involved, Travis Barker asked the team if the note charts would be an exact interpretation of the drum score - so someone who knew the drums perfectly could sit down, close their eyes, and get a perfect score - and he was told this would be the case. When you add the two cymbals, Guitar Hero World Tour is really taking the drumming aspect to the next level - arguably where it should have been with Rock Band.

via Inside Gamer

GameStop has revealed the price and ship date for Activision’s answer to Rock Band, Guitar Hero World Tour. $189.99 gets you the “Band Kit” with drums, guitar and microphone, and the “Guitar Kit” gets you just the guitar for $99.99. Standalone versions are $59.99 for the PS3/Xbox 360 and $49.99 for the PS2/Wii.

Looks like those of us who already have two Guitar Hero guitars and just want the drums will have to kick up a stink in order to get the drums separately.

The release date is currently listed as 27 October, 2008.

via Engadget

Spike TV’s Gametrailers TV has scored a massive exclusive - the first broadcast of the first footage from Gears of War 2. The episode of Gametrailers TV will be aired at 1AM EST/PST on Friday May 9.

via Game | Life

Namco Bandai are working on a next-gen iteration of Splatterhouse - which was not only the first survival horror game ever, but the first game to have a parental advisory sticker slapped on the cover.

According to industry insider Surfer Girl, the game will be developed by BottleRocket Entertainment.

EGM has an exclusive preview of the game ready for their June issue, so stay tuned.

The video game adaptation of the Japanese anime series Afro Samurai, featuring cult hero Samuel L. Jackson, looks to be off to a great start. I love the stylized gore, and the Shinobi-esque death sequences for chopped up enemies - I just hope it doesn’t get cut from the Australian release.

Midway has released the first screenshots of the upcoming open-world driving game, Wheelman, along with a trailer introducing Vin Diesel’s character, Milo Burik. Check the screenshots in our Wheelman gallery, and check after the jump for the trailer.

(more…)

Midway has released seven new screenshots and a trailer showing off some in-game footage from their upcoming open-world title This Is Vegas. Check out our This Is Vegas gallery or watch the trailer after the jump.

(more…)

Twelve new screenshots have been added to the Soul Calibur IV gallery. Trailer after the jump.

(more…)

Rockstar has released a few new screenshots of Grand Theft Auto IV to the drooling public, making a total of 109 hi-resolution screenshots in our Grand Theft Auto IV gallery for your perusal.

Rockstar has released some information regarding the Team and Race multiplayer modes in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Team Deathmatch - Work as a team to smash the other players. Dead players drop cash, and the team with the most cash at the end of the round wins.

Team Mafiya Work - Complete contracts like escorting wanted criminals and stealing cars for a financial reward. Stop the other team from completing their contracts, and have the most cash when the round ends to win.

(more…)