Now available on the PlayStation Network, Xbox LIVE and PC is the long awaited FIFA 12 demo. It's lands a fortnight before the game hits stores, and has been receiving high praise from a wide range of publications. GamesMaster has the world's first review, scoring it a whopping 94% and calling it "the freshest and most fearless FIFA in living memory." Konami's PES 2012 demo is also out, if you want a football sim comparison....

Aaron McHardy, FIFA 12's Lead Gameplay Producer, gives us a video demonstration of what we can expect from the football sim's player impact engine. The aim is to deliver real-world physicality in every interaction on the pitch, and it's looking mighty close to exactly that. "Experience the way real-world players challenge each other for the ball, win possession, and test each other physically. Enjoy an infinite variety of natural and believable outcomes in every collision."

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I spent much of my youth in Adelaide, South Australia. Unlike today, Hindley street was alive with video game arcades. The Twilight Zone, Downtown, Timezone Meridian and The Tilt most famously. Spending hours, days and nights traversing them are times I still remember fondly, pumping coin upon coin into Offroad, Virtua Cop, Daytona, Tecmo World Soccer and, yes, NBA Jam. So, unsurprisingly, when I discovered NBA Jam was being given a breath of fresh air not just on the Wii, but in HD on the PS3 ...

NBA JAM's reboot was initially going to be a Nintendo Wii exclusive, with non-online versions bundled with the now cancelled NBA Live, err, "NBA Elite" 2011. It turns out that with EA Sports' flagship basketballer put on the bench, and the high anticipation for some old-school boom-shakalaka action, it was decided NBA JAM would see its very own Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 release - in HD, with full online multiplayer support. It's not all good news, though.....

HB Studios, the developers behind the PSP version of FIFA 11 and the Wii version of 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa is "in full swing on 6 projects including Rugby 2012". It won't however be an EA Sports branded game. This is surely great news for residents of New South Wales and Queensland, even if no one else....

Not too long ago we threw up the slam-dunk of a teaser that is NBA Jam's debut trailer. We know a bit more about the upcoming title now, including that it's coming to both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 - not just the Wii. More interesting is what we know about the game's line-up of secret characters, which includes president Obama....

Not sure which new soccer game to pick up? You will be soon. Let's start with EA's FIFA 11. IGN UK gave it a substantial 9.5/10: "for the next twelve months at least this is likely to be the best football experience available, and FIFA's looking like retaining its crown in convincing fashion."
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So an octopus named Paul predicted a bunch of World Cup matches correctly, pfft, so what - he'll be dead in two years anyway. That's if the Germans don't eat him before that. What's really interesting is that EA Sports used their 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa title to simulate the World Cup, a first for the developer, and it also picked Spain as the winner. Now that's hardly impressive by itself, until you consider that EA Sports have been using their Madden franchise to simulate the NFL Super Bowl for 7 years, and it has only picked the winner wrong once.
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EA's FIFA engine had a major rework back in 2006, launching it onto next generation consoles such as the Xbox 360. Unfortunately for PC gamers, we've been stuck with the last generation engine even into 2010 - the same engine we played with on the Xbox...

Virgin Gaming has officially launched. But what is it? Quite simply, it's a console tournament platform, that allows you to compete for cash, points and prizes in an organised fashion. Whether you're booting around in ModNation Racers or kicking goals in FIFA 10, you can play for a share of 1 million dollars up for grabs in Virgin tournaments, or wager your own cash in individual challenges against other players...

Everyone seemed pretty impressed with Tiger Woods Online, and given the huge popularity of football and the fast approaching FIFA World Cup, it will be interesting to see if they can kick a goal with FIFA Online. The free-to-play browser-based game has just gone into open beta, and anyone who has an EA account can participate. Fill in your log-in details, click 'register for the beta', then actually log-in and you're away......

Dubbed 'Online Pass', all EA Sports console games will be sold with a one-time use registration code as of July this year that grants access to online multiplayer modes. If you've purchased the game second hand and the original access code has been redeemed already, you'll be up for an additional $10 charge to jump online to have a bash, kick, bat - or whatever your flavour of sports simulation is.....

If you're a console owner and a football fan, then you're probably already more than aware that today EA Sports' 2010 FIFA World South Africa hits store shelves today. For those that weren't, now you are! EB Games have it selling for $80, and I'm sure if you looked hard enough you could find it a few bucks cheaper from a competitor retailer....

I remember spending countless hours playing at Hindley Street arcades in Adelaide, long gone thanks to modern consoles and broadband internet (oh, and crime). Downtown, Timezone Meridian, Twilight Zone, The Tilt. One of my favourite games was NBA JAM, which etched phrases such as "from downtown" and "he's on fire" into my mind forever. Well, for those who didn't know, the classic title has been revitalised and is on its way to a re-release. A debut trailer has been produced showing off some of the gameplay for your viewing pleasure. It seems to be a faithful reincarnation - justice has been done....

Rage-quitting is the bane of many a FIFA player's existence. The minute you're up is the minute your competitor quits the game. It seems there is light at the end of the tunnel, though. EA Canada's Simon Humber told Eurogamer that EA is looking to add a reward system to FIFA 11 that would encourage players to finish matches, win or lose. Hallelujah.