If you didn't feel that our review of the game was informative enough—you're obviously crazy!—you can try the latest LEGO adaptation for yourself. Go on, relive the magic of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull! Who wouldn't want to revisit that festive romp?

Or you can snap up the Trials HD Big Pack downloadable add-on. It's also available to Xbox 360 owners for a paltry 400 Microsoft Points. There's some substantial stuff in there, 35 new tracks, five new tournaments and three new Achievements. Good luck with that!

The demo of Divinity II: Ego Draconis is on Xbox Live and out for PC download today. It gives players the chance to try out some of that non-Witcher morality I was talking about in my preview — like Mindreading — as well as a look at the skill trees. Sadly I don't think you get to sample the dragon gameplay. But it sounds like you might get to fight one at least.

Check it out on XBLA or get the PC demo from one of these mirrors:

-Worthplaying
- FilePlanet
- Big Download
- Spawnpoint
- Atomic Gamer
- Extreme Players

In the meantime, anybody else got any suggestions for my not-going-out-shopping entertainment? I borrowed a copy of Assassin's Creed II, I've got the Divinity II trailer queued for download and I finally have time on a long airplane ride to Texas for Scribblenauts.

It's an early Christmas present for MGS fans from Konami! Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker: Demo-Ops is hitting the PlayStation Store later today, giving fans a taste of four different mission types with content previously playable at the Tokyo Game Show and "more." Ooo, more. I like more. I don't know what "more" entails, but I know what I like.

The free demo will be available later today on PSN, with several other gaming sites hosting it as well, in case you are allergic to the PlayStation Store or something. The full game drops May 25th, so hopefully they've got enough gameplay in there to keep fans satiated for another five months.

The Army of Two: The 40th Day demo will let players experience the majority of the first level of the game, after the bombs seen in the opening trailer radically change Shanghai's skyline.

"THE 40TH DAY is non-stop action in an explosive Shanghai. The game has been designed with a focus on co-op gameplay and it has been our goal to refine this core experience in all aspects of the game," said executive producer Reid Schneider. "The demo will give players the opportunity to experience this evolution and the new co-op moves and tactics available to players at any time in the game."

A demo for the PSP version of the game will be released on January 7th in North America (Europe on the 14th), just in time for the game's January 13th release date. Check out the trailer below to see what's in store for our pals Salem and Rios.

I suppose Activision is trying to show the range of the Guitar Hero: Van Halen product to those of us who didn't already get it for free via the promotion in Guitar Hero 5. A promotion I completely forgot to redeem, mind you, so now I am getting my first taste via this demo. Van Halen's "Panama" is joined by Weezer's "Dope Nose" and Killswitch Engage's "The End of Heartache," making the Guitar Hero: Van Halen demo a little light on the Van Halen.

Still, it's "Panama," and if Gran Turismo 4 taught me anything, it was that "Panama" never gets old.

Update: Make that four songs. I checked out the demo with the mic only, and instrumental "Eruption" isn't available on that playlist.

Guitar Hero: Van Halen should be out in time for Christmas Eve.

I suppose that was a rather large hint, but I just couldn't keep our readers in suspense. The Dante's Inferno Gates of Hell demo will be hitting the PlayStation Network on December 10th, arriving on Xbox Live two weeks later on the 24th. Announced last month, the demo features the entire opening level of the game, detailing Dante's journey to Hell's gates in order to rescue his murdered love, Beatrice.

"The world of Alighieri's Dante's Inferno is such a rich, detailed, and often alarming universe, that all of us at Visceral Games put our hearts, and dare I say souls, into creating something truly intense and exciting," said executive producer Jonathan Knight. "We hope gamers enjoy this tease of hell, and come away from the experience lusting for more when the game comes out on February 9."

In the spirit of the holidays, I urge PlayStation 3 owners to invite an Xbox 360 owner to their home on December 10th in order to promote console harmony. Call it a kinder, gentler way of saying "go to hell."

And here you thought you'd have to wait until January to get your hands on PlatinumGames' saucy hair witch. Not so! On December 3rd, PS3 and 360 owners in North America and Europe will get their chance for a little hands on before the main event on January 5th and 8th respectively.

Bayonetta has recieved perfect scores from both Famitsu (sort of) and Edge Magazine now, so we should be in for a pretty good time.

Jurassic: The Hunted, developed by Cauldron HQ and released two weeks after it was announced on the Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PS2, is a budget first-person shooter involving weapons and survival expert Craig Dylan, trapped on an island inhabited by dinosaurs. The screenshots looked nice enough, but there's just something about a game going from official announcement to release in under a month that doesn't generate confidence. Now releasing a demo, on the other hand, either speaks of Activision's confidence in the title, or its hope that the few people who would enjoy this sort of thing realize it exists. One of those.

The Jurassic: The Hunted demo is now available to Gold Xbox Live members in the U.S. Give it a go, and report back your findings.

1.5 GB worth of Ubisoft-developed James Cameron goodness is now available for your download and play at several fine PC demo downloading establishments, including FileFront and WorthPlaying. I'm still downloading the file myself, so I couldn't begin to tell you what the demo entails, but it's a pretty safe bet there will be giant blue people and a fantastical alien world. Just a hunch.

Download it and give it a try for yourself, while I savor the irony of the location I discovered the demo links at.

Avatar Gets a PC Demo [Evil Avatar]

For those of you who may not have gotten one of the reported 40,000 demo slots, take comfort. The full game will be available for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 come January 5 in North America, just three days later in European territories.

Those who did get access to Bayonetta's locks, let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Thanks to the many lucky tipsters who got in!

Dante has nine circles of hell to travel through in his quest to save his lost love, but first he has to get there. Players will be able to take the first steps on this epic journey in next month's Dante's Inferno demo. Our hero battles from the surface to the fabled gates, slashing his way through hordes of enemies towards his first boss encounter - Death. When the first boss you encounter is Death, you know you're in trouble...or you're playing a Castlevania game.

"Our main goal from the start of this project has been to create a journey that will make gamers truly feel like they are going through hell," said executive producer Jonathan Knight. "The demo will give everyone some insight into how we are treating the story and a taste of the gameplay. And with nine more circles of hell to explore once the game comes out in February, we are literally just scratching the surface."

Dante's Inferno is indeed out in full retail form on February 9th in North America and the 12th in Europe. For extra-added fun with the demo next month, be sure to moan "I wasn't even supposed to be here today!" over and over again as you play.

Here's the deal - once you register (free) for a Sega Pass, go back to this site on Nov. 9 and register to get your code. Registration for early access will be open until Nov. 13, but given the first-come, first-serve nature of this offer, my guess is it won't last that long.

Again, this offer covers the Xbox 360 version of the Bayonetta demo.

Bayonetta Demo Offer [Official Site, via Ripten]

Earlier this week EA DICE shot down rumors of a November 19th launch date for the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer beta for PS3 owners, but now it looks like they just wanted to announce it themselves instead of having GameStop doing it. To participate in the North American multiplayer beta test, PS3 owners need only reserve a copy of the game at the GameStop website or retail locations, at which point they will receive a key allowing them to join in the fun on the 19th.

The multiplayer beta takes place on the Arica Harbour map, pitting Americans against Russians in ground and vehicular combat for up to 24 players. You can check out the official beta announcement trailer below.

"With Battlefield: Bad Company 2 we're looking to raise the bar across all aspects of our multiplayer experience, setting a new standard for online play," says Patrick Bach, Senior Producer on Battlefield: Bad Company 2. "From the graphics to the vehicles, weapons and destruction, we are delivering the best online multiplayer game next year, and we want gamers to experience it themselves by playing the beta and demo."

What about the Xbox 360 and PC gamers out there? Don't fret too much. The PC open beta for the game kicks off next month, followed by a multiplayer demo for the PC, Xbox 360, and PS3 early next year.

Image courtesy of the PlayStation Blog.

Connected Consoles reports that, at the Eurogamer Expo, an Ubisoft rep told them straight up the game will not be getting a demo. Your only opportunity to try before you buy is if Ubi brings it to a public expo near you.

No Demo for Assassin's Creed II [Connected Consoles via Game Stooge]

Original story follows:

"Miracle Pack" and "Apocalyptic Pack" are both mentioned in the demo files. The original L4D survivors also are mentioned in the files. CVG speculates they might be made available at some time in the sequel.

News of Xbox Live avatar awards were also discovered by the same inspection of gamefiles.

I've emailed Valve to see if they want to take a swing at it. If so, it'll be updated here.

Left 4 Dead 2 DLC Detailed? [CVG, thanks Mike B.]

The Dragon Ball: Raging Blast demo gives you a tiny taste of the "most explosive fighting action ever seen for this franchise" today, delivering 261MB of hot Piccolo on Raditz on Goku action. The demo lets players take the three characters for a spin in VS. Mode, with all of the signature moves, super attacks, and guys flying into mountains that entails. Just keep in mind that the demo is a Gold Xbox Live subscriber exclusive for the time being, so Silver members will have to keep playing out battles in their backyards until their turn comes up.

I'm not a big fan of the Dragon Ball manga or anime, but I'm extremely fond of the fighting game franchise, and a company releasing a demo before the game releases is always a good sign. Confidence is key!

Demo: Dragon Ball: Raging Blast [Major Nelson]

That Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time demo should hit alongside the weekly PlayStation Store update, offering a taste of the all-new Clank-centric gameplay that Insomniac is introducing in the game. A second is planned, with details on what that will entail coming soon.

Keep an eye peeled for the upcoming Kotaku review, also due very soon.

Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time First Review, Demos and New Videos [PlayStation.blog]

The Left 4 Dead 2 demo will include gameplay from The Parish campaign, set in the New Orleans' French Quarter. The demo will let one to four players game together online or locally on both the Xbox 360 and PC versions. The Xbox 360 version of the game will include split-screen mode. The demo will also feature all of the new boss infected zombies and melee weapons found in the full game.

The demo will be available to everyone on Nov. 10. PC gamers and Xbox Live Gold members get to check the demo out starting Nov. 3 and people who pre-oder the game will get access to the demo on Oct. 27.

Left 4 Dead 2 will be hitting the PC and Xbox 360 on Nov. 17.

Finger Eleven's "Paralyzer," Taylor Swift's "Picture to Burn," and Katrina & The Waves' "Walking on Sunshine" make up the three-song set included in the Band Hero Xbox 360 demo, now available for download via the Xbox Live Marketplace. The demo includes Party Play for those of you that would prefer to walk on sunshine with friends, as well as the new, no-pressure Sing-Along karaoke mode, perfect for those who prefer not to be judged.

The 534MB demo is currently exclusive to Xbox Live Gold subscribers, meaning the freeloaders will have to wait patiently for their Taylor Swift fix. I know it's painful, but it's the price you pay.

This morning Sony released some numbers to show just how popular the demo, currently the most popular demo on the Playstation Network, has been:

Total Number of games played – 1,217,424
Total Number of Kills – 92,110,787
Total Number of Treasures Captured – 1,860,645
Total Amount of Money Earned – $38,841,367,350
Total Time Played – 9,905 days (or 27+ years)

Sony also notes that Uncharted 2 has racked up a staggering 17 perfect review scores out of the 34 currently on Metacritic, the rest are 90 percent or higher.

While we don't score games, we certainly heaped our share of love on Uncharted 2: Among Thieves in our review.

UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves By the Numbers