Something For The Weekend? Today's NEW Releases

When SPOnG got into work this morning it found a memo from Sony. It turns out there was a console launch today. It also turns out there were about 23 games that came out. We had a bit of poke around and realised we've got a complete launch line-up here, and getting into something of an excited frenzy at the prospect of said new console that decided to pick a few out for you.

The pick of the bunch has to be, in SPOnG's humble opinion, MotorStorm. This next-gen chestnut is the jewel in Sony's launch crown. Mashing things up in HD was surely what the PS3 was built for, wasn't it? If you're not sure you can have a look at SPOnG's review here.

Resistance: Fall of Man, also from Sony, is next up. It takes gamers to a dystopian (actually Utopian... but we won't bash the point) vision of the past (a nice break from dystopian futures, at least) to take on the murderous and monstery Chimera. It wouldn't be a console launch without a flashy first person shooter, would it? You can find out what SPOnG's man with a gun craze thought here.

Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII take place in the same time frame as Resistance, but several thousand feet up. And without the monstery-type things. It's more about shooting down evil Nazis than it is about monsters, really. If you want to know more about the life of an ace pilot on the PS3, click here.

Unfortunately, Sony decided to sully its launch line-up by allowing a certain spiky blue mammal with a penchant for going fast in. Sonic the Hedgehog gets a mention more as a warning than anything else. Check out SPOnG's review to find out why. It's a shame, because Sonic and The Secret Rings on the Wii was rather good.

For those wanting nothing more than a good ol' button mash to work out latent aggression after spending £425 on your PS3, well, don't get Virtua Fighter 5. Download Tekken: Dark Resurrection instead. You should, however, get Virtua Fighter 5 if you fancy an intricate and well thought out fighting romp. Cast your eyes in this direction if you don't believe us.

The PS3 didn't all of a sudden become the only console on the market, however. It would be remiss of us to neglect the rest of the gaming world.

That said, there weren't vast numbers of releases on other platforms. The 360 shared some of the PS3's launch line-up. It got the hippity-hop inspired beat 'em up/music management title Def Jam: Icon, for one. It also shared in the release of Sega's Virtua Tennis 3.

The Wii gets The Godfather: Blackhand Edition, inviting gamers to clamber up the ranks of the Mafia with new missions and an improved control system.

It's a slightly busier week for the DS. The card-wielding monster-duelling genre gets an entry with Yu-Gi-Oh! GX: Spirit Caller. Gamers who can't find Dr Kawashima's Brain Training might want to pick up Mind Quiz: Your Brain Coach, but we suspect it might sell more copies by mistake than anything else. The other mention-worthy game this week is Theme Park in which, believe it or not as you choose, you run your own theme park.

Those heroes in half-shells make a reappearance on just about every platform you can think of (except the PS3) this week. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles gets an honourable mention if for no other reason than sheer dogged determination on Ubisoft's part to get them onto our screens. Similarly, this year's UEFA Championship League offering from EA gets a mention for pulverising footy into our consciousness via the PSP, PS2, 360 and PC.