WIN GRAND PRIZES

To celebrate THE game of 2008, we’ve teamed up with Rockstar to offer some great prizes. We’re giving away a special GTA IV Xbox 360 Elite, plus T-shirts and GTA licence plates. For your chance to win, answer this question and email it to comps@notw.co.uk with your name, age and address by midnight, Saturday, May 3, 2008. What is the name of the main character in Grand Theft Auto IV? a) Cheeko b) Niko or c) Freako. First correct answer drawn at random wins the special edition GTA IV Xbox 360 Elite console. Next three win a T-shirt and the following two win a GTA licence plate. Normal rules apply. Editor’s decision is final.

WIN Wii Fit and console

WE’VE got a totally Wii-cked contest—with 20 Wii Fit Boards and consoles to be won.
That’s right, Nintendo’s work-out board game is a virtual sell-out everywhere—but GadgiTs has managed to get hold of TWENTY. We bumped into Girls Aloud star Sarah Harding at the Wii Fit launch this week.
Despite suffering a back injury, the star looked in great shape working out with the £69 board. She said: “Wii Fit is fun and really easy to use.”
Gadgits’ Emily Merritt also put the board through its paces at home. She  says: “The Wii Fit board lives up to its promises of a good workout and a mixture of movements specific for you.”
“After entering my age and height it told me I had the fitness of someone 12 years older, which only made me more determined to get fit. And by the end of the week my fitness age had come down a year!
To be in with a chance of winning one of 20 boards and consoles, answer this question: What do the Americans call trainers? Is it, a) Sneakers, b) Plimsolls, c) Pumps.
Send a text to 80855 with the word FIT, leave a space then your answer (a, b or c), then put your address. For example: FIT B Paul Jones, 43 London Road, Anywhere. Or call 0904 040 0715. (ROI 1517 303 315)
T&Cs: You must be 18 or over. Texts cost £1.50 plus standard msg rate. Calls cost £1.50 only from standard BT landlines. If you call or text in after the closing date/time of this competition, you will not be entered but you will be charged. Competition closes at midnight tonight. Winners will be contacted on Monday, April 28. Winners selected at random.

GRAND THEFT AWE-TO, by Owen Anslow

WIPE the drool away and breathe a sigh of relief gamers, for the new Grand Theft Auto is here—and still streets ahead of the rest.

GTA IV, which hits the shops on Tuesday, is in great nick and the BAFTA award-winning Rockstar have once again taken the game to the next level.

Firstly, it looks sensational—cars, thugs and buildings no longer have a cartoon feel to them. And the storyline is probably the best yet.

You’re Niko, an Eastern European who has landed in Liberty City looking for a new life.

Sadly, his cousin’s promises of mansions, fast cars and pretty women have all been a big fat lie. So, Niko must start from the bottom and work his way up.

Differences from previous GTA titles include a more intense gameplay, thanks to the seamless plot and great graphics.

Your playing area is one (big) city with no load screens in between districts. Car handling is more realistic and cop chases now rely on a line-of-site system (well, that’s when they’re not dodging the grenades you’ve dropped out the car window).

Your main character is a lot more agile this time round. Niko can hop and climb around and also has some cheeky little combos for when he gets into a scrap.

During a gunfight players will enjoy Niko’s ability to take cover behind anything and shoot his way out of trouble (firing controls have vastly improved).

This may be a violent game—but no more so than any film or TV show, hence the 18 certificate.

Rockstar have also introduced a nifty mobile phone system so Niko can call and send texts, which help with missions—one of many nice touches.

Others include Ricky Gervais at the comedy club and the music. Ah yes, the music. There’s plenty to keep you nodding along to as you zoom across Broker Bridge.

Basically, GTA IV is much bigger and much better than ever before. And here’s where it gets even better . . . Rockstar have put their greatest project online. Yes, sixteen of you and your mates can run riot throughout Liberty City until the wee hours.

Simply put, this game is grand.

VERDICT: Runaway success

SCORE: 9.8/10

Let us know if you Hate It or Rate It . . .

Win legendary watch

GET the Will Smith look and WIN a Hamilton Khaki Twilight watch.
We’ve teamed up with Warner Brothers Entertainment to give away the amazing watch featured in No1 box office hit I Am Legend which is out on Blu-ray and DVD from tomorrow.
Set in New York City, I Am Legend follows the struggle of Robert Neville - a brilliant army virologist who is the last human survivor on earth following the spread of a man-made and incurable virus.
While most of the population perished when the contagious superbug took hold, a small number of people transformed into vile vampire-like mutants - The Infected, a breed of vicious and bloodthirsty monsters, bearing no human resemblance, who fear the light.
Neville learns to live his life by his watch as it expertly alerts him to the onset of sunset — a feared time when The Infected are out in force.
Set in stainless steel casing and with sapphire crystal glass and an automatic movement, the Khaki

STEERS OF WAR

Mario Kart Wii

FORMAT: Nintendo Wii

GENRE: Racer

RATING: Everyone

3…2…1… GO-KART! Yes, quite possibly THE best racing game in the world is back and still pinging off those green and red shells in style. Mario Kart Wii is car-azy fun and a triumph in online gaming for the whole family. Parents need not worry about their nippers coming across bad language while whizzing Mario or Yoshi around the tracks because this is safe gaming. You can compete with racers all over the world without swapping personal info and there’s a limit of pre-approved phrases you can use to gloat about karting victory. The game itself is superb. As well as online gaming mode, new features include motorbikes, a special balancing system and the funky Wii wheel. The 32 tracks include 16 new designs and 16 classics that have had a little work done to them. All your favourite characters are their (Luigi, Wario, Donkey Kong etc.) and once you’re racing, you won’t stop. Nintendo deserve a honk of congratulations for this cracker – so far, it’s our game of the year.

VERDICT: A beautiful work of kart

RATING: 9.4

WIN an MTV Sky box

WIN! An exclusive MTV designed Sky box with a year’s free subscription to Sky World and Multiroom packages!
If you’re into the hottest TV entertainment or love music, now you can watch your favourite shows when you want with MTV and Sky's limited-edition Multiroom box.
Boasting a cool cutting-edge design based on a human x-ray, the exclusive box is an iconic must-have for music and pop culture fanatics alike, letting you watch the best MTV has to offer from your own room — from hot American reality imports The Hills and Pimp My Ride to UK favourites such as Kerry Katona: Crazy in Love, Spanking New Music and the televised search for an MTV news presenter, Pick me TV.
A very limited stock of special MTV Multiroom boxes is set to be snapped up when they go on sale at the dedicated website www.sky.com/mtv. But readers have the chance to get their hands on one right here.
We’ve teamed up with MTV and Sky to offer one lucky reader the opportunity to take home this exclusive Multiroom box, along with a year's free subscription to Sky World and Multiroom packages.
To be in with a chance of winning, just answer the following question and email your answer with your name, address and age to comps@notw.co.uk by midnight Saturday April 20th.
What is MTV's televised search for a news presenter called? a) Pimp My Ride b) The Hills c) Pick me TV. Usual rules apply. Editor's decision is final.
For terms and conditions, click here

SNEAK PEEK

YOU’LL be quietly please to hear that Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has announced plans for a public beta program across Europe for the forthcoming Metal Gear Online for the PS3. MGO is specifically designed as a multi-player online romp and will be released worldwide as part of MGS4: Guns Of The Patriots in June. The beta program will let players experience MGO’s cracking co-op team-based gameplay and give a tantalising taste of what’s in store when Patriots hits the shelves. Apparently, up to 16 people can play simultaneously, with game worlds created using Guns Of The Patriots’s incredible 3D engine. Retaining the classic stealth combat gameplay of the Metal Gear series, players are dropped into a series of war zones where wherein different challenges await. Check out www.konami-mgo.com for more.

BT release extra Isle of Wight tickets

BT is selling extra tickets for this year's sell out Isle of Wight festival at its website. It's a last chance for fans to grab a place to see headline bands including the Sex Pistols, Sugababes and Ian Brown. From today BT, the primary sponsor of this year’s three-day event, will be releasing the highly sought after tickets for the original price of £130 plus booking fee for a 3-day entry and camping pass ticket. The tickets will be available to buy online only at: www.bt.com/isleofwight Around 500 tickets will be released each day, limited to four per customer. The festival takes place this year from June 13th – 15th at Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight.

WIN Green Room tickets and a phone

THE Nokia Green Room music show hits our screens today on T4—and we’re giving away tickets, plus a brilliant music phone.
Today’s show features American R&B star Chris Brown, The Courteeners and Swedish sensation Robyn. Each week, you’ll be able to download free samples of the music. For a chance to win two tickets to the Nokia Green Room show and a Nokia 5310 ExpressMusic phone, answer this question and email it to comps@notw.co.uk with your name, age and address by midnight, Saturday 12th of April.
Which city do the Courteeners come from? a) Belfast, b) Southampton or c) Manchester.
Winner will be the first correct answer drawn at random. Normal rules apply. Editor’s decision is final.
For downloads visit the Nokia music site at http://music.nokia.co.uk
Catch the T4 show today at 14.20.

WIN Xbox and Condemned 2: Bloodshot

WE’VE teamed up with our mates at SEGA to give away an Xbox 360 elite and TEN copies of Condemned 2: Bloodshot. For your chance to win, answer this question and email it to comps@notw.co.uk with your name, age and address by midnight, Saturday 12th of April. Winners will have to verify their age before prizes can be sent out. Who makes the Xbox? a) Sony, b) Microsoft or c) Nintendo. First correct answer drawn at random wins an Xbox and a copy of the game. Next nine win a copy of the game. Normal rules apply. Editor’s decision is final.

FIRST PERSON SPOOK 'EM UP by Owen Anslow

Condemned 2: Bloodshot

FORMAT: Xbox 360/PlayStation 3

GENRE: FPS Horror/Thriller

RATING: 18 (lots of blood ’n’ guts)

OUT: Now

WARNING: This is a scary game! The kind that will have Mario scurrying for cover and Sonic curling up into a ball. In fact, be afraid, be very afraid. Because Condemned 2: Bloodshot is enough to make Hannibal Lecter hide behind the sofa.

Gone are the days of the bright, colourful and fun classics like Tetris, Zelda and the mushroom-chomping Mario Brothers. Now it seems gamers are after something a little more dark, a little more chilling – and C2 is certainly that. Like any good horror film, this SEGA romp is not for the squeamish. It’s a bruising sequel with scary-looking clowns, deranged zombies lurking in the shadows, and, erm, exploding toy dolls – yes, that’s right exploding toy dolls. You play Ethan Thomas, who’s gone downhill since the last game and hit the bottle big time. But he’s eventually persuaded to join SCU to investigate the nasty goings on in the city. The game itself is good. Simple controls allow you can take on the bad guys using a number of different fighting methods and weapons (anything lying around). When you’re not fighting off nutters, you play CSI cop investigating gruesome crime scenes. The storyline keeps you engrossed and the graphics are superb. But it’s the spooky soundtrack and some terrifying moments that make it a horror show hit.

Verdict: SHOCK AND GORE

Score: 7.5/10

Let us know if you Hate it or Rate it . . .

Xacti what's needed

THIS could be Xacti what you need for shooting video and sharing it over the web. Sanyo’s pocket-sized CG9 will store upto 32 hours of video on a stonking 32GB memory card. The action is recorded in the advanced MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 format which delivers top clarity with the smallest file size possible. Users can record up to one hour of video per gigabyte of available memory (TV-HQ mode) on a standard SD or SDHC memory card. SDHC cards up to a capacity of 32 gigabytes are supported. The latest in the award-winning Xacti range also takes 9.1 Megapixel digital stills.
It will be available from the middle of the month in silver, black or pink.

Gear you go

The Gear 4 Bass Station is one for the couch potatoes. It brags a 15W sub woofer of super sounds that can all be controlled by remote. From 10metres away you can access playlists and albums and even adjust the treble and bass without moving a muscle. The station charges while you listen and can also be connected to your TV for super surround stereo. £99 from gear4.com

Free view recorder for £99

Maplin’s Freeview Personal Video Recorder is the next best thing to cable TV except no monthly bills to worry about. You get over 600 channels, a 7 day programme guide and a twin receiver meaning you can record and watch different channels at the same time. The recorder can be pre-set up to a week in advance and stores 250GB – that’s a huge 160 hours worth of programmes or movies. All of that for that for just £99 from maplin.co.uk

Slice one!

BURNT toast is, well, toast! The world's first transparent toaster lets you see your bread as it browns. Developer Inventables uses heatable glass so that you can eject the slice the moment it turns a perfect colour.
Ideal for dieters too, as it only takes one slice at a time. You might have to wait until it pops up in the shops though.

ON YOUR MACH, JET SET, GO! By Owen Anslow

EVER wanted to be like Maverick from Top Gun? Yeah, me too. And now we’re almost walking on air thanks to Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. Those legends at Ubisoft have announced the development of this high-altitude, high-attitude, warfare romp. Set to hit the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC in the autumn, they promise the game is set to revolutionise computer dog-fighting. Check out these exclusive screen grabs of the game, which offers cutting-edge technology, devastating firepower, and intense MIG scraps. Have a look at the preview too http://www.youtube.com/v/iamn2y9jUKQ. All together now (just like in Top Gun) - Highway to the danger zone, riding to the danger zone . . .