We had previously learned that a Kratos SackBoy would be available with a GameStop pre-order, but what we didn't know was all the extras that would also be included with the reservation. The GameStop website and a new commercial (found after the break) reveal the pre-order will also include Minotaur and Medusa costumes, along with stickers and level pack.

The details on getting the redemption code vary between online and in-store reservation, with online codes being sent out a week before the game ships and store codes available at time of reservation -- while supplies last (call ahead). No word yet if the Heavenly Sword Best Buy exclusive Nariko SackGirl will come with levels, extra characters and a dose of a "twing-twang."

[Via PS3 Fanboy]

We played Cave Story at the Nintendo Media Summit, and other than controlling the game with the Wii Remote – old-school sideways, natch' – it's nearly the same as the free PC and Mac game. The retro look and gameplay make this seem like an overlooked garage-sale find, for good or bad. (Usually good.)

Another of the games shown in video-only form at Nintendo's recent North American media summit, Mario and Luigi 3 (or Mario and Luigi RPG 3, depending on who you ask) is the latest chapter in Intelligent Systems' superb action-RPG series, and the second on DS.

This outing adds Bowser as a playable character, and, from what we saw (and you can see in the above video), Mario's long-time nemesis brings some nasty power-moves to the party. It also looks like players will control him solo, rather than throwing him into a three-character combat system. That's okay with us; as long as IS keeps coming up with cool gameplay mechanics using both Mario bros. and crafting a zany story to compliment them, we're there.

As you put the finishing touches on your latest laborious LittleBigPlanet masterpiece, you make a startling realization -- something is missing. Your homebrewed LittleBigLocale is missing its keystone; without this necessary component, your hours of work will have been for naught. The component is, of course, a statue of Horace Horsecollar and his bovine betrothed, Clarabelle Cow.

While the previous sentence likely only made sense to people who watched cartoons in the 1930s, the following will probably be clearer -- according to the latest revolution of Electronic Gaming Monthly's rumor mill, LittleBigPlanet DLC is set to include non-sony property, such as characters from Disney franchises and 3rd-party PlayStation titles. We're not sure in what capacity these properties could be included in Media Molecule's uber-customizable platformer, but we're certainly excited about the prospective existence of SackBaloo.

Within the circle of paranoid and traumatized Silent Hill fans, there are two fundamental truths that must be embraced upon the release of each new entry in Konami's survival-horror franchise. The first, and more difficult to accept, is that the core gameplay in Silent Hill is sort of awful. Oh, but that gripping atmosphere! That inescapable miasma of melancholy! That's where the second truth comes in: if series sound maestro, Akira Yamaoka, composed the soundtrack (and he did for Homecoming), then it's probably an experience worth having. What say you, early reviews?

• 1UP (B): "Homecoming stays true to the macabre Silent Hill atmosphere without feeling stagnant. Exploration's perfectly in line with previous games, complete with tons of locked doors, decaying structures, and doubling back between the real world and its hellish counterpart -- but some little nuances intrigue."
• Cheat Code Central (84/100): "This game delivers on the experience you have come to expect from the franchise. It will also give you reason to begin clamoring for the next installment. The folks at Double Helix gave me the Silent Hill I wanted: a nerve-racking, scary as hell experience to hold me over this Halloween season."
• IGN (67/100): "Unfortunately, I admit that the game feels like a bit of a letdown. The gameplay has been reduced from a tense psychological experience fraught with spine tingling jumps and scares to a generic, predictable action title set in the location with good graphics and a great soundtrack."

We regret to inform you to that Mr. ESC has again ran, jumped, and slipped through the fingers of modern retail, keeping the escapologist's touchable adventures in Exit DS unrestrained, at least for a little while longer.

Not to fret, however, for while the game will miss its previous release date on October 7, publisher Square Enix seems confident that the escape artist's puzzle-adventure exploits will be on store shelves on November 4. No reason was given for the delay, though we like to think that when it comes to Mr. ESC, sometimes you just can't keep a good escapologist down.

[Via press release]

One of the biggest things we missed at E3 this year was the upcoming Vigil Games / THQ title, Darksiders: Wrath of War. How we managed to miss this one is still unclear -- we can only assume that it was in our blind spot the entire time. So, during our recent jaunt down to Austin for the Game Developer's Conference, we made time to stop by Vigil and take an in-depth look at the the team's debut title and two-year labor. Luckily, they weren't holding any grudges against our non-existent E3 coverage and were nice enough to give us a huge chunk of time with the game and the designers.

Concept artist and Vigil founder Joe Madureira and lead designer Hadyn Dalton sat down with us for two hours, taking us through the game and showing us levels that haven't been released to the public just yet. We got to take control of protagonist War and do battle with enemies, solve puzzles, and even take his massive warhorse Ruin for a spin. Check out the full writeup after the break, and be sure to check out the gallery, full of exclusive images from the game, just below. If you've been itching for a Joe Madureira Battle Chasers fix, this might be about as close as you can get.

Lionhead technical art director, Ian Lovett, tells Eurogamer that consumers are "visually illiterate." Wait a ... what cha talkin' 'bout, Ian? Turns out that the man behind Fable 2's lurveliness – following a verbal double-take by concept artist Mike McCarthy – actually appreciates the fact that most people don't notice every single, on-screen visual effect.

Lovett explains himself, saying, "I want [players] to be drawn in, and that's more than the sum of the parts. Nobody's going to look at this and go, 'what amazing normal mapping on that! I'm so glad they did that!'" Really, Ian? We hear what you're getting at, but we have, oh, an entire internet full of gamers we're pretty sure will pick every itsy-bitsy last facet of your game engine apart, count the polygons, then email us a picture of an improperly applied tessellation and ask for a free car.

Late last week we learned that Silent Hill: Homecoming was essentially banned in Australia after being refused classification by the OFLC. IGN has some more details on the OFLC's issues with the title and has spoken with regional distributor Atari, which hopes (following some edits by Konami) to have the game out by Q1 2009.

The OFLC apparently found several instances of gore in the game to be problematic. One scene involved the protagonist having a drill forced into his eye, while another had him drilling an enemy's skull. There were a few other issues, but nothing we haven't seen in horror films for the last few decades. It's really about time Australia got that "R18+" rating for games.

According to CVG, Xbox World 360 magazine (also owned by Future Publishing) claims that Max Payne 3 is being produced internally at Rockstar Toronto, the team behind The Warriors. This follows rumors by EGM that the game is currently in development.

Original Max Payne developer, Remedy, is currently picking its nose hard at work on Alan Wake. There's currently no timetable for when (or if) Max Payne 3 will become official. We've contacted the folks at Take-Two in the hopes that they'll shed some light on the issue.

Inspiration seems to be cyclical in the games industry. Well, at least in the case of Tomb Raider Underworld. Many of the improvements we saw in the latest preview of the upcoming Lara Croft adventure seem to come directly from last year's Tomb Raider-inspired Uncharted. Considering the wide accolades Naughty Dog's title received, that's certainly not a bad thing.

There are a lot of elements which make us think back to Nathan Drake's quest for treasure. Perhaps it's the environment: the lush jungles of Thailand, with their deserted, decaying ruins reminding us of that other lush, ruin-filled jungle. But there are other similarities to note here, as well. Crystal Dynamics' creative director, Eric Lindstrom, told us that the team was trying to make Lara more human in regards to her abilities. She'll interact with the environment, by pushing foliage out of the way. She'll stumble when she makes large jumps. For the first time, Crystal Dynamics is working with motion capture, to make sure Lara feels a bit more believable.

We've heard this pitch before, no? Lara will be holding off ledges, and she'll look towards the direction of a place she can grab on to. We saw Lara jump from one pillar to another, but before jumping, she reached out her arm towards the next pillar to indicate the potential action. Then we saw her approach a narrow walkway, cautiously, lifting her arms for balance as she crossed. We watched her stumble a bit too, struggling to make her next jump.

Despite having her franchise rebooted a la Batman Begins, it saddens us to see acrobatic archeologist Lara Croft give in to her old, animal-killing habits. Sure, there's a modicum of guilty pleasure to be derived from watching her kick tigers in the face, but the above shark-slaying video simply lacks ... finesse. If watching the lithe leading lady go all Richard Dreyfuss on the wonders of the deep is something you find upsetting, we'd advise you to skip to the video after the break, where she runs around Mexico sticking poles in holes.

Oh, don't even start. Tomb Raider: Underworld is out on November 18th.

The folks at Electronic Arts have high hopes for Dead Space and are going all out with an ULTRA LIMITED EDITION (their capitalization, not ours) for the Xbox 360, which is being sold directly through EA's online store for $150. The special package includes:

• The Dead Space game
• Special Ultra Limited Edition packaging
• Dead Space Downfall Animated Movie (DVD)
• Bonus content DVD
• Exclusive lithograph art
• 97-pg Dead Space art book written and illustrated by the development team
• 160-pg Graphic novel
• Ishimura crew patch

Is it worth the Benjamin and a half? It's hard to say, but if the game is half as good as our time with it has inferred, then this limited edition will likely fetch a hefty bounty on eBay.