Microsoft's early Chrismas present for racing game fans would have to be the price drop of the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel. For US$ 99, you can now avail of the peripheral that promises an authentic racing experience. Drive to the full article for more details!

Variety is the spice of life, and in this industry, it's the rumors that mix it up a little for those of us on the pulse of video gaming news. And what better way to get things going than a round of rumors direct from the master himself, Electronic Gaming Monthly's (EGM) Quatermann. Check out what he has to say in the full article.

Microsoft has announced that it will be replacing Xbox 360 discs that have been damaged. Before you get excited, the company has specified conditions that apply to this promo.

The disc replacement program will only cover select Microsoft published titles such as Gears of War and Crackdown. They've also limited the exchange to one disc per game for each Xbox 360 unit, so if you own multiple copies of a game and they all got nuked, you can only have one replaced unless you own more than one Xbox 360. Finally, they are charging US$ 20.00 per disc replaced, so if you're having multiple games replaced. it might be turn out to be rather expensive.

Microsoft has released a statement regarding their improved customer support:

We are committed to delivering an improved Xbox customer service experience for our Xbox 360 console customers, one that is faster, more efficient and includes shipping free of any charge. From our customer service representatives to our executive team, the entire Xbox team has made delivering on this commitment a top priority.

This is good for Xbox owners worldwide. Their disc replacement program is open to Xbox 360 owners from Europe, US, and Asia. Those located in Asia are requested to contact Xbox 360 support for instructions and details while those located in Europe and US can click on our source link below to go to  the page where you can find the downloadable form.

Games covered:

• Crackdown
• Fuzion Frenzy 2
• Gears Of War
• Halo 2
• Kameo: Elements of Power
• Ninety Nine Nights
• Perfect Dark Zero
• Project Gotham Racing 3
• Viva Piñata
• Xbox Live Arcade Unplugged Vol. 1

Read the full article to get more information on Microsoft's disc replacement program

International Cyber Marketing Inc. has just revealed the final roster of games that players will be able to compete in at the upcoming World Cyber Games 2007 to be held in Seattle this October. Last month, we gave you a brief update on three more games that were added to the list of playable games, namely FIFA 07 Soccer, Age of Empires III, and Age of Empires III: the War Chiefs.

So with no further ado, here's the full list of games to be featured in the upcoming WCG 2007:

PC:

• WarCraft III: Frozen Throne
• StarCraft: Brood War
• Half-Life: Counter-Strike
• FIFA Soccer 07
• Need For Speed: Carbon
• Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars
• Age of Empires III: The WarChiefs

Xbox360:

• Gears of War
• Dead or Alive 4
• Project Gotham Racing 3
• Tony Hawk's Project 8
  

Jake Shears and the rest of Scissor Sisters will be performing alongside an amazing line up of DJ and snowboarding talent playing in a series of unique Game with Fame events at the Xbox Big Day Out in Val d’Isère, France.

The band will team up with the likes of French DJ and producer Martin Solveig, UK superstars Fabio & Grooverider and Quiksilver riders including Mathieu Crepel, Danny Wheeler and Jakob Wilhelmson to take on gamers across Europe, direct from the Alps later this month.

If you want to take these guys on, click on the "full article" link below. The events will take place following each day’s competition on the slopes on February 27, February 28 and March 1.

More info after the jump!

Aussie gamers will now finally be able to grab their copies of games from the Xbox 360 Classics range soon. Kotaku reports that the re-released budget Xbox 360 titles will become available in Australia come March 1. The initial wave will include ten titles going on sale for AUS$ 49.95. The titles included are:

• Project Gotham Racing 3
• Perfect Dark Zero
• Kameo
• Dead or Alive 4
• Call of Duty 2
• Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
• Condemned
• King Kong
• Tomb Raider: Legend (due "late March")
• Rockstar Table Tennis

If you're looking to save a bit of money on your next games purchase, check out these titles when they hit retail stores.

Talk about a forehead-meets-palm moment. As it turns out, the people who maintain the Sony PSP Connect website have made a recent boo-boo by using an image that was actually from an Xbox 360 title, and not from the game that they were trying to promote.

One of the first people to notice this mistake was Major Nelson himself. He was quick to point out that the image that was used for PSP Connect's front page banner was actually from Project Gotham Racing 3 for the Xbox360, and not from Gran Turismo HD which is for the PS3.

Thankfully, the Major was able to take a quick screenie before the mistake was discovered and removed from PSP Connect. From the screencap, it can be confirmed that the artwork of the fancy yellow car is the exact same one from Bizarre Creations, the devs behind Project Gotham Racing.

This whole incident has left many people wondering why this glaring mistake was not caught early on, and if the two games in question really do look so similar that they can't be told apart.

Thanks to Mallrat for the tip!

Admittedly, we're really not sure how to interpret this one, but we're very excited about it. One of our loyal readers, Bob, sent in this one screenshot with this accompanying short note: "The next big thing on 360. Fresh from Japan. Safe to post, will be announced later this week."

There is no mistaking that this one is related to racing series Project Gotham Racing and the online service Xbox Live. Now, Shinjuku is one of Tokyo's major commercial and administrative centers. This place is relatively familiar to videogames as some have used it in the past. One good example would be Genki's Import Tuner Challenge.

What we are thinking about now is how exactly this one's connected with Project Gotham Racing 3. Would it be safe to assume that this is a map pack or some sort of a microtransaction for the game? Or is it something entirely different? What do you think, guys?

We guess we'll all find out next week. Thanks, Bob!

St. Louis rapper Chingy will show off his driving prowess on Project Gotham Racing 3 on Xbox Live's "Game With Fame" session. Game With Fame gives players a chance to play and chat against famous personalities, something regular folk like us can't do everyday.

The challenge is on for Xbox Live Gold members who are interested with the prospect of playing against the rapper and other online players. Keep your eyes peeled for the gamertag ChingyGWF from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. EST on Thursday, December 14.

Project Gotham Racing 3 is a high speed racing game teeming with jaw dropping variety - around 80 or so cars, an amazing number of tracks, difficulty levels, and missions.

Chingy, born Howard Bailey, Jr., is responsible for hits like "Right Thurr", "Holidae Inn", and "One Call Away". He jokes:

Getting loose on Xbox Live allows me to show my appreciation for where I come from, and who supports me. It lets me show the world how I not only dominate the rap game but the virtual court too.

Other Game With Fame celebrities include: Jack Black, R&B singer Chris Brown, rock group The Fray, and Rihanna.

Here's a bit of inspirational news for all of you gamers out there. Wesley "TTR Ch0mpr" Cwiklo, the youngest member of Team USA, took gold in Project Gotham Racing 3 on the Xbox 360.

Team Korea (you know what a gaming-crazy nation Korea is) took home the Grand Champion title (their first since 2002; they won this year partly because of the gold and silver from Starcraft: Brood War). Team Russia got second in terms of medal count. Canada, China, Poland, and USA each took home one gold, so that makes Wesley Cwiklo the only gold medalist for Team USA.

Cwiklo went undefeated round after round at Monza, Italy, where the event was held. The final race was against Christopher Hogfeldt of Sweden, a fellow TTR member (TTR is a team of PGR players).

Next year's World Cyber Games will be in Seattle. Ralph Morton, Executive Director of Seattle Sports Commission, was there at this year's closing ceremonies to take the WCG flag in the symbolic turn-over.

(One last thing about how the Koreans are a gaming country (or at least a nation where gaming is not frowned upon but seen as a positive thing). We were digging through our press photos from the event, and we kept finding Koreans; it seemed like they were really well-represented there. Eventually, we settled for that image of the event stage, because it's pretty neat.)

About US$ 462,000 were given away in prizes. Gold medals went to China for WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne, the Polish for Half Life: Counter Strike, and Germany for FIFA 06. You know how parents say that gaming doesn't pay? Well it usually doesn't, unless you're really good like the 700 players who went to this year's WCG.

If any of you guys know of any other competitions - or if you're joining a competition - why don't you let us know? We'll cheer you on. And if you're in the Seattle area, make sure you don't forget about next year's WCG!