Play Red Faction: Guerilla Beta... for a Price

THQ is currently holding a Red Faction: Guerilla beta for the Xbox 360. However, there is a catch. You must be a Gold Xbox Live member and a member of FilePlanet or IGN Insider.

I went to FilePlanet and activated a month's membership for $6.95. I was able to get an activation key and download the beta with no problem after filling out the questionaire. But be warned that there are supposed to be a limited amount of slots in the beta.

Red Faction: Guerilla is being developed by Volition and takes place on Mars 50 years after the first Red Faction. There are two factions, the re-established Red Faction and the oppressive Earth Defense Force. The single player campaign will have the player helping the Red Faction fight against the EDF. The game will be released for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC in fiscal 2009.

The beta is around 640 MB in size and is only limited Multiplayer of the game.

There is no tutorial for the beta so in the beginning, you'll have to deal with some trial and error and ask your teammates any questions.

The most common game is usually a type of territories. There are three "territories" that your team can control. There is a machine on each of these territories when a team has control of it. You must destroy any enemy machines there and then build your own. You get a point every second or two per machine(maximum one per territory). The first team to 400 points wins.

Your starting equipment varies from game to game, but I think you always start with at least an assault rifle, a sledgehammer and a repair gun thing. There are also modules around that give you a backpack which gives you special abilities.

The Concussion power knocks enemies off their feet(good to then go in and smash their face with your sledgehammer as they're getting up). The Rhino power lets you tear through barriers(and enemies). The Fleetfoot power lets you run really fast. The Firepower power allows you to increase your damage.

Every once in a while in the beta you play a simple team deathmatch, but so far I've only seen one map.

New Saint's Row 2 Trailer Calls Out GTA IV

The developers over at Volition have released a new trailer that makes fun of some of the new aspects of GTA IV which gamers have found annoying. The trailer definitely throws down the gauntlet and lets the gaming community know that they plan on trying to beat GTA IV(plus it's pretty funny).

In particular, the trailer makes fun of GTA IV's bowling, watching TV and hanging out with friends at the cabaret. The trailer also shows some of the aspects of upcoming Saint's Row 2 like hijacking septic tankers, robbing liquor stores, disguising yourself as a cop, collecting insurance claims, flying barnstorming airplanes, base jumping, car surfing, working security for a rock band, underground fight clubs and just general mayhem.

Watching the trailer might give you an idea of why I've been looking forward to Saint's Row 2 for so long.