Vancouver 2010 cover athletes revealed

SEGA of America is partnering with top American and Canadian gold medal contenders Lindsey Vonn (USA; alpine skiing), Seth Wescott (USA; snowboard cross), Kristina Groves (Canada; speed skating) and Matthew Morison (Canada; snowboard) to appear on the cover of the upcoming video game Vancouver 2010 - The Official Video Game of the Olympic Winter Games.

The game will be available for purchase at North American retailers on January 12th, 2010 for the Xbox 360, the PS3 and the PC via digital download.

The games are being developed by Eurocom Entertainment Software. Find out more at www.olympicvideogames.com.

White Stripes make Rock Band debut next week

Harmonix and MTV Games will release a three pack of tracks from The White Stripes and singles from The Damned and Kasabian will be added next week to the Rock Band Music Store for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii.

Tracks from No Doubt and Dropkick Murphys will be available for download next week for Rock Band Unplugged on PSP.

Sadly, no LEGO Rock Band content mentioned unless I am missing something here, which Is highly doubtful. Anyway, here’s the completel list:

Available on Xbox 360 and Wii (Nov. 10) and PlayStation 3 system (Nov. 12):

- The Damned – “Smash It Up (Part II)” 

- Kasabian – “Club Foot”

- The White Stripes – “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground”

- The White Stripes – “Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine”

- The White Stripes – “Icky Thump”

Tracks available for Rock Band Unplugged (Nov. 12):

- No Doubt – “Excuse Me Mr.”

- Dropkick Murphys – “I’m Shipping Up to Boston”

Halo Waypoint now live on Xbox Live

Starting Saturday, Nov. 7, Halo Waypoint will begin previewing new Halo content on Xbox Live. The new virtual home for all things Halo launches today on Xbox LIVE, and will be the “exclusive destination for full-episode previews of Halo Legends beginning Saturday, Nov. 7. Halo Waypoint promises daily updates featuring developer interviews, trailers and screenshots, exclusive video footage, community activities and the latest Halo news.

In addition, Halo Waypoint includes a career system that tracks players’ accomplishments across multiple Halo games and gives them new ways to show off their in game exploits. Players who participate in Halo Waypoint will be rewarded with a variety of Bungie-created Halo 3: ODST Avatar Awardables for attaining specific Achievements in the game. Rewards vary from T-shirts to full sets of ODST armor. These awardables are retroactive, so if players have already unlocked the requisite Achievements, the awards will be ready for them once they enlist in Halo Waypoint.

Turn on your Xbox 360 and log on to Xbox Live to learn more.

DICE preps for Bad Company 2 PS3 multiplayer beta

DICE today announced the upcoming Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer beta, which is apparently an exclusively on the PlayStation 3. Starting November 19, PlayStation 3 owners will be able to experience the multiplayer action, destruction, vehicular warfare, squad play and open sandbox environments that make up the Battlefield recipe.

In December of this year a PC open beta will launch and early in 2010 DICE plans to release the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer DEMO on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will be in stores on March 2, 2010 in North America and March 5, 2010 in Europe for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and the PC.

Those interested in signing up for the beta should visit www.battlefield.com for beta key distribution details.

Mass Effect 2 Collector’s Edition details

A Collector’s Edition of BioWare’s Mass Effect 2 will also be released in limited quantities on January 26 in North America (Jan 29 in EU) alongside the standard edition. The Collectors’ Edition comes in a tin case and includes the full version of the game, a 48-page hardcover “Art of Mass Effect 2″ book, Issue 1 of the Mass Effect Redemption comic book, and a bonus DVD with behind-the-scenes and making-of videos. In addition, the Mass Effect 2 Collectors’ Edition will include in-game weapons and armor that can only be obtained by purchasing this version.

Mass Effect 2 will be available on the Xbox 360 and PC. The Mass Effect 2 Collectors’ Edition will retail at an MSRP of $69.99 on Xbox 360 and $59.99 on PC.

Find out more at masseffect.bioware.com.

Rocking your blocks off: LEGO Rock Band released

Warner Bros. Interactive has released LEGO Rock Band, much to the delight of kids and adults alike - assuming the game is good, of course. Combining Rock and Roll with the popular building blocks, LEGO Rock Band adds LEGO style into the Rock Band formula. The game features 45 songs and at launch and lets players of all skill levels play bass, drums, guitar and mic to such songs from Queen, Foo Fighters, Jackson 5, The All-American Rejects, Jimi Hendrix, Good Charlotte, Tom Petty and more.

Unique to LEGO Rock Band is the introduction of Rock Power Challenges, where players can harness the power of rock to pull off killer riffs that have the ability to do crazy things like demolish a building, stop an angry octopus or send players on wild missions. Naturally the game promises build-and-play elements that let players customize their own experience by creating a minifigure avatar, band and entourage.

The game will also be supported by the Rock Band Store’s regular release of weekly content as well, with some tunes already ready for purchase. LEGO Rock Band is available for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and various incarnations of the DS.

Dragon Age: Origins in stores

BioWare’s newest action RPG, Dragon Age: Origins, is now in stores and available for the PS3, Xbox 360 and Windows PC. Dragon Age present an original RPG created by BioWare, best known for creating such hits as Neverwinter Nights and Mass Effect. Dragon Age: Origins introduces a dark and gritty approach to the fantasy genre where players must make ruthless decisions and be willing to sacrifice their friends and loved ones for the greater good of mankind. Several downloadable content packs are also now available, including Warden’s Keep, The Stone Prisoner and the Blood Dragon Armor.

The Stone Prisoner gives players access to new environments, items, hours of additional gameplay and the stone golem Shale who can become one of the most powerful party members in the game. The Warden’s Keep DLC provides a new dungeon-exploring adventure, new loot including a set of ancient Grey Warden armor, a chance to gain two of six mysterious new abilities, a new base complete with merchants and a party chest to store their hard-earned items. In addition, BioWare has released the Blood Dragon Armor DLC, a set of themed armor that gives players additional protection in combat and will be available for use in both Dragon Age: Origins on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC and in Mass Effect 2 on the Xbox 360 and PC.

Dragon Age: Origins is available today in North America on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. In Europe, Dragon Age: Origins will be released on November 6th on the Xbox 360 and PC and later in November on PlayStation 3. The game is rated M by the ESRB and 18+ by PEGI.

For more information on the game check out www.dragonage.com.