Sure, Bad Company comes out next week, but if you’re interested in the Gold Edition of the game, you might want to head on over to Amazon before the release and pre-order it. For doing so, you get a free $10 Amazon.com gift card.

Promising non-traditional gameplay for the genre, environments where you can destroy nearly everything, and online multiplayer for up to 24 people, this should be a good one.

PS3 Gold Edition | 360 Gold Edition | PS3 Regular Edition | 360 Regular Edition

Available on XBOX 360 and PlayStation 3, the latest installment in the Soul Caliber series will be heading to stores on June 29. The PS3 version features the ability to play as the Star Wars hero-turned-villian himself, Darth Vader. The 360 version, on the other hand, boasts the much more adorable Yoda as a playable fighter.

For the first time in the series, online versus mode is offered, as are several other single and multiplayer modes. Also newly added, is the “Soul Gauge” that fills as you attack and allows you to execute special attack moves that weaken you opponent’s armor.

Now’s your chance to pre-order the next installments of the Guitar Hero franchise… Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, available June 29, and Guitar Hero: On Tour, the portable version of the game for Nintendo DS, available June 22.

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith is available for the PS3, 360, Wii, and PS2, and can be purchased as a stand alone game, or bundled with a wireless guitar.

Guitar Hero: On Tour comes bundled with the Guitar Grip add-on for the DS, and features 4 different game-play modes.

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith (Bundle) - PS3 | 360 | Wii | PS2

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith (Stand Alone) - PS3 | 360 | Wii | PS2

Guitar Hero: On Tour - Nintendo DS

THQ recently announced an official release date for Saints Row 2. The sequel to 2006’s Saints Row (which, incidentally was developed here in town at Volition, Inc.) will be available on August 26th for PS3 and Xbox 360.

Pre-order it on 360 and PS3 today! Saints Row 2 is also available as a collector’s edtion for PS3 and 360.

According to the official Wal-Mart blog, Sam’s Clubs across the country will be participating in a midnight launch of Mario Kart Wii. They’re even taking online preorders, even though they say they’ll have “a lot” of copies on hand.

Not only that, but every Sam’s Club location will have at least 15 Wii consoles in stock, so if you’re a Sam’s Club member, are still in the market for a Wii, and are willing to line sit for the midnight April 27 Mario Kart Wii launch, this might be your chance.

In the unlikely event that you haven’t heard yet, Grand Theft Auto IV will be released worldwide on April 29. You can pick up the regular version, or go for the special edition, which includes a customized GTA metal safety deposit box, GTA IV in special packaging, a GTA IV Art Book, selected Soundtrack CD, a Rockstar keychain, and a limited edition Rockstar duffel bag.

Preorder it for PS3 or 360 today, or grab yourself the PS3 or 360 Special Edition, and get all that other nifty stuff.

Rumored to be the final installment of the Metal Gear Solid series, MGS4 will be released this summer on June 12. The game will features characters new and old, a new form of camoflage called “octocamo”, and a robot drone called Metal Gear Mk. II.

The game will be released in three separate editions: the standard stand-alone version, the special edition version (comprised of a metal game case, Blu-ray documentary, four chapters of the digital graphic novel, and a soundtrack CD), and as part of a PS3 bundle (which includes the game, an 80GB PS3, and a Dualshock 3 controller). So if you like MGS, preorder it.

And finally, the future. Here’s a look at some of the peripherals that are yet to come.

Part 3: The Future

The Guitar Grip - I already mentioned this in an earlier post, but Guitar Hero on Tour for the Nintendo DS will ship with the Guitar Grip add-on (and a guitar pick-shaped stylus). To be honest, I’m still trying to figure this one out. I sort of see how it could work, but it looks decidedly awkward to me. I can’t imagine you’d really get the feel of playing guitar with this thing. At all. But who knows? I could always be wrong…

The DualShock 3 - Finally, the rumble returns to Sony’s console. After having at last come to an agreement over patent issues, the DualShock 3 will go on sale April 15. About time, I say. I think I’ve gotten spoiled by force-feedback. I miss it when it’s not there. The thing looks damn near identical to the DualShock 2, as well… which in my opinion is a great thing. DualShock 2 was the best controller ever.

The Wii Wheel - I have a feeling that the Wii Wheel, while endlessly amusing to the kid in all of us, could potentially turn into some sort of deadly frisbee. If you thought the Wii Remote could do damage when you lost your girp, just imagine this thing sailing towards your head… or worse, your plasma screen. This little guy ships with Mario Kart Wii.

The Wii Cord-Free and Wii Wireless Nunchuck - Both currently available for pre-order, these two might actually be useful. After all, who doesn’t get tired of that stupid nunchuck cord? I know I do… my cats go nuts anytime they’re in the room when I’m playing something on Wii. Having a ten pound kitty swatting at your controller while you’re battling moblins gets a little old after awhile. The Cord-Free, available March 25, converts your corded Nunchuck into a cordless peripheral by stashing the cord in its base and slapping a receiver on the base of the Wii Mote. The Wireless is just what it sounds like. A wireless nunchuck (and at $35, it’s an expensive little thing). It’s available May 1. Unfortunately, despite the pictures, these are third party products and neither one of them are actually packaged with a Wii Remote (the Cord-Free doesn’t even come with a Nunchuck… it’s just a shell for your Nunchuck).

Wii Balance Board - Already making the rounds in Japan, the Balance Board (I really wish they’d called it the “Wii Board”) comes bundled with the upcoming Wii Fit, which should be making its way stateside sometime in mid-May. Yet another attempt to prove that the Wii is really a highly advanced workout machine… looks like it might be fun, though. At least until I strain something.

Here’s a little something for the Guitar Hero-obsessed. This summer, you’ll be able to get your fix on the go, when Guitar Hero on Tour debuts on the Nintendo DS. It comes with a Guitar Grip add-on for the fret controls and a pick-style stylus, and will feature wireless co-op and battle mode. Pre-orders are open, and the game is set for a June 22 release.

Read more over at Kotaku or visit the extremely Flash-heavy Official Site

And if you just can’t wait, you may want to check out the Guitar Hero Competitions going on at both Jillian’s and It’s Brothers next Wednesday night.

First there was Super Mario Kart… then came Mario Kart 64… and then Mario Kart Double Dash (and somewhere in there were Mario Karts for the GBA and DS, too, but if you’ve been reading, you already know my opinion on handhelds. Curse you, tiny screens!). So I guess that means it’s just about time for more Mario racing! Yay!!!

Mario will be racing onto the Wii on April 27. The game is Wi-Fi enabled, and comes packaged with a nifty Wii-Wheel peripheral. Why haven’t you pre-ordered it yet?