SteelSeries (a leading manufacturer of various gaming accessories such as headsets, keyboards, mouse pads, and mouse accessories) just struck a partnership with Reason Gaming (a British team that manages squads for Quake 4, Counter Strike, Call of Duty, Battlefield 2, and Halo 2; and was even chosen to represent UK in the World Cyber Games 2005) to produce cool videogame accessories.

As such, Reason Gaming will take part in promoting SteelSeries products. Also, both companies are preparing for various UK LAN events for 2007, so that's something to look forward to.

Says, Kim Rom, Head of SteelSeries' PR & Communications:

SteelSeries have been supporting a wide range of eSports teams since our inception in 2001. We select partners carefully, ensuring they are well suited to represent our brand. Reason Gaming has already had solid results with Gladiator Computers and Western Digital.

Heads-up! We got wind that a couple of Blaze and Xploder accessories are now available for the PS3 and Wii. What are they? Read on to find out!

Blaze Component Cables: Yep, that's right, component cables (to give your game's picture and sound quality the needed boost) for the Wii are up for grabs. We heard that they have gold-plated connections as well, "to satisfy even the keenest eyed and eared gamers out there."

Silicon Skins for the Nunchuck and Wiimote: These ones were made to protect your handy Nunchuck from dirt and all that shebang, plus, it keeps your Wiimote safe and snug in your hands. Now, who says silicon is just made for breast implants?

Xploder HD Movie Player and Media Manager: This one's made for the PS3, and enables users to convert, manage and transfer your digital and conventional music, video and image files for the PS3 and PSP. There are a couple of "high-quality cables" for Sony's latest console:

• S-VIDEO
• Component
• HDMI

If you want to get hold of these accessories, you might want to order now, so they can be sent to you on the 18th of December.

So you already know that the latest installment in the Virtua Fighter series is custom-made (so to speak) for Sony's brand-spanking console (we're talking about the PS3 here, in case you're wondering).

So what does Sega's Virtua Fighter 5 has to offer? Well, let me sum it up in two words: A LOT. This baby's going to feature 19 characters that you can customize, and when we say fully customize, we mean it. You can select their own costumes, weapons, even the various thingamajigs you attach to their body parts.

Cool, huh? Here are some videos to see those characters in action. We have four videos that feature Vanessa vs. Lei- Fei, Akira vs. El Blaze, Lau vs. Jeffry, and Pai vs. El Blaze. Why don't you check 'em out right now? Enjoy!

Download: [Vanessa vs. Lei- Fei video]
Download: [Akira vs. El Blaze video]
Download: [Lau vs. Jeffry video]
Download: [Pai vs. El Blaze video]

You guys may already have heard about the latest PS3 firmware update from Sony, as we have reported about it earlier. Unfortunately until now, the officials PlayStation site hasn't been updated regarding v1.31's brand-spanking features, so details about it are still scarce.

HOWEVER, we got wind of Siliconera's article, which hints on a probable backwards compatibility feature with the bumped-up firmware. You see, along with v1.31, the PS2 game Nobunaga no Yabou Online: Haten no Shou has been released in Japanese shores as well. Just like Final Fantasy XI, the said PS2 game needs a hard drive add on which according to Siliconera, is something that Sony has been "reluctant to back up".

Interestingly, the latest firmware update is compatible with hard drive requiring games for the PS2. Hmmm... sounds a little like backwards compatibility for me? What do you guys think? Click on "Comments" and let us know...

I am a self-confessed anime freak. I go squeee at all things Japanese, and if I'd be given a chance to hop on the next plane to Japan, I sure would grab it. Getting a chance to be on Japanese TV is another.

Our source, who goes by the name, "nyago" ("getoffmyface" in YouTube) got that chance to be in Japanese limelight when he was asked to be a guest at "Bankisha" ("Reporter TV Program"). Unfortunately, it didn't turn out as expected, as dear nyago was edited out due to his opinion on the PS3.

The segment was about PS3s in eBay, and nyago said that although there are a lot of PS3s in eBay, the numbers aren't "indicative of demand, and the real prices being paid." He added that the most expensive unit costs around 1, 200 pounds, which no one has ever bid on. Guess that didn't sit well with the producers, so they decided to cut it entirely. Of course, that made nyago fume. Go check out the vids to see for you.

It seems that the PS3 has been quite controversial since it was announced. For one, there's its superb capabilities (there's the Cell processor and the Blu-Ray player among others), and the negative press that hyped it even more.

Well, unfortunately, it also seems that the negative press won't go away even if the said unit has been released already. I guess you can't please everybody.

The thing is (as Alex Zaharov-Reutt says), the PS3 is waaay beyond its time. It's not even a month old, so we're pretty much still left in the dark on other things it can do. Our source says that we just need to give it more time (err, pardon the redundacy). After all it MAY have pushed the Xbox 360 to its limits:

Windows blogger/writer/pundit/author extraordinaire Paul Thurrott says, It (Gears of War) is available only on the Xbox 360... It is, in short, the best video game I've ever played. It is, of course, not perfect. It is occasionally marred by minor bugs, a fairly-short single player campaign, and the rare lockup that seems to only occur when a game pushes the Xbox 360 to its limits.

Our source argues that a console reaches it limit only after five years, which may spell bad news for the Xbox 360 if indeed this "five year thing" is true. Also, that means we still have five years to go to fully explore what the PS3 has to offer. Until then, maybe we'll just have to wait, see, and maybe stop the ranting a bit. *winks*

So you're one big "Titanic" fan. And by "Titanic", I mean the movie by James Cameron with Kate Winslet, Leonardo DiCaprio and the big, big boat that unfortunately went *glurg glurg* (that's supposed to be the sound of a boat sinking).

Anyway, back to the "story". So you're a "Titanic" fan, and it has been your habit to check out the movie daily. Of course, playing a DVD over and over and over (ok, you get the point) will lead to disc scratches, rendering your prized disc unreadable by some DVD-playing gadgets.

Well, Ben Kuchera from Ars Technica has found out that while the Xbox 360 "chokes" on scratched discs, it seems that the PS3 doesn't. He tried out a Christmas DVD with his kid a couple of days ago, only to find out that the Xbox 360 has rejected it. Meanwhile, it played quite well on the PS3. He tested it with other scratched discs too, and they turned out fine. Cool, huh?

Many have speculated that the Wii's advent to the gaming realm has sparked a revolution in gaming (pun unintended), as it has pushed developers to think of more innovative features to games (such as substituting a Wiimote for a baseball bat or something).

Sure, it has opened lots of possibilities for gamers, which is quite exciting really. Now, computer hardware company Hewlett-Packard is setting its sights on gaming as well, and it seems that they're upping the ante on gaming innovation further. HP VP Philip McKinney recently showed an intriguing video at a "major telco con in Hong Kong" that features kids playing a scavenger hunt using handhelds and "racing along alleyways and backstreets of the real world collecting clues posted on walls and other places to find the prize."

And it's all thanks to a nifty open-source platform called Mediascape, something that HP programmers have been working on. Whether we'll see this technology in the near future, we're not really sure. But it's exciting to know that devs are exploring new horizons in gaming.

So, you guys probably know that the PS3's got a software update recently. And by recently, I mean just yesterday. Version 1.30's now out, but it's exclusive for North American units only. And by exclusive, I mean, ONLY PS3 units bought in North America are only eligible for this update. So if you purchased that console in Japan, this update is a definite no-no for you.

So what does this update has to offer? Well, according to the official PlayStation site, version 1.30 will enable your PS3 to detect various USB devices, specifically:

• Logitech Driving Force USB Steering Wheel
• Logitech Driving Force Pro USB Steering Wheel
• Logitech Driving Force EX USB Steering Wheel
• HORI Flightstick2 USB Flight Stick
• Logitech Flight Force USB Flight Stick

Besides that, here are the other features available in this update:

• You can now register the BD remote control in [Register Bluetooth Device] under [Accessory Settings].
• [BD/DVD Video Output Format (HDMI)] has been added as an option under [BD/DVD Settings].
• [Backup Utility] has been added as a feature under [System Settings].
• You can now select the hard disk format method in [Format Utility] and [Restore PS3 System] under [System Settings].
• The method of selecting output resolution has been changed in [Video Output Settings] under [Display Settings].

Ahhh, Akihabara (or Akihabara Denki Gai, even Akiba, if you prefer). The Japanese mecca of anime, manga, and all things electronic. Oh, and let's not forget the otaku goods, as well (maid bars, anyone?)

Here, tourists and locals alike can scour the streets for electronic goods: old or new, cheap or not, bundled or by parts. As such, it doesn't come as a surprise when somebody spotted a folding table set accompanied with the sign, "emergency! Notification! December 24th, PS3 additional sale! First-come limited 300 unit!" (in Japanese of course).

Leaflets were then handed, informing people that if they want to reserve a unit, they just have to fill in stubs requiring them to give their name, address and contact number. The 20 gig PS3s are sold for ¥ 49,980 (which isn't so bad, as Amazon lists the same unit for ¥ 60,980). Shady? Maybe. But if you want to get your console for less than ¥ 10, 000, maybe you'd want to try somewhere else other than a folding stand.