Our non-U.S. readers sometimes feel left out. They don't get to join the big U.S.-only contests by American game developers. If you're in the UK, you often get your games days or weeks after the Americans on this side of the pond.

Free to enter tournament. But Matchbox360 and AlienPants (and Microsoft, of course) are having the Matchbox360 XL LAN 2006 at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre (NEC) where attendees "will be able to enjoy freeplay and a free to enter tournament on the year’s most anticipated Xbox 360 game, Gears of War."

Prizes. What's at stake? A "whole host of fantastic prizes, including limited edition Gears of War faceplates for the Xbox 360, courtesy of Microsoft."

When and where. The event will be on the weekend of Saturday, November 25, and Sunday, November 26. So start making plans to get yourself to the West Midlands.

Tickets. The tournament is free to enter. But it looks like the event is not free to enter. You need a ticket to get in. You can pre-order your ticket from xl.matchbox360.co.uk (that's probably better - you can never be sure there'll be tickets at the door).

One last thing. How many people are they expecting? We've heard the NEC is gigantic. For those of you who manage to go, let us know what it was like. You can always open a thread in an appropriate place in the QJ forums (now we make no promises, but if it's good, we'll mention your post on this blog).

Matchbox360 just recently got the support of AlienPants to host their upcoming XL "e-sport" event. With over 50 consoles lined up for all of those tournaments, there's one more bit of info that you might want to know: Vivendi SA is a video game developer; formerly known as Vivendi Universal">Vivendi is coming along for the ride. Do you know what the means?

XL is going to have a paranormal twist when F.E.A.R. latches onto the tournaments. While the floor is alive with matches for other games, there's going to be an eight-player tournament dedicated to F.E.A.R. The winner will get a whole score of prizes from Vivendi and a limited edition F.E.A.R. faceplate for their 360.

So, make sure you guys practice and own up to your fear, because once the event kicks off on November 25, it's going to be one paranormal weekend for the participants.

Pro-G is giving you the chance to go head to head with the best Prey players out there by hosting an online PC and Xbox Live Prey tournament during the first two weekends of September in cooperation with AlienPants (who will be running the tourney) and Jolt Online Gaming.

“With the Pro-G community in full swing, it’s fantastic to be hosting another big tournament,” said Adam McCann, Operations Director at Pro-G. “This tournament will most certainly be the best one yet.”

Both matches will use the Deathmatch gametype to gain a place in the semi-finals. Eight players will duke it out in PC Finals, but oddly enough the winner will be taking home an Xbox 360 console; the six tough enough to make it in the Xbox Live Finals get a chance to win a selection of Xbox 360 games. All the prizes will be provided by 2K Games, publisher of Prey.

The PC tournament will take place on a blisteringly fast ÜberServer clan server provided by Jolt.co.uk. Tournament and sign up details are available at Pro-G's website. Go then, cock those guns and prepare to stalk your 'prey'.

Here's a chance for racing fans to own the Joytech Xbox 360 Officially Licensed Nitro Racing Wheel. Pro-G, one of UK's fastest growing video game publications, is hosting a Project Gotham Racing 3 tournament on Xbox Live this June 17 to 18. The race will be administered by AlienPants, which has previously administered over 200 Xbox live tournaments.

Registered players will race against each other in a knockout-style heat on the tournament's first day. Day one winners will then proceed to battle head-to-head against each other on day two. Whoever plays his cards right in the Project Gotham Racing 3 racetracks takes home the Nitro Racing Wheel.

This month, Pro-G will also offer its readers an exclusive driving guide written by 2005 Forza Motorsport Champion Adam Plum. To be released this week, the guide will cover the best methods for attaining the fastest lap time and a comprehensive explanation of how to approach different types of corners coupled with illustrations.

To sign-up for the tournament and to know more info, just click the 'Read' button below.