If you ever wanted a reminder that Australia is roughly a month behind the rest of the world, EA have come up with the goods.

Their upcoming, award-winning title, SKATE, will be released for Xbox 360 in the US and Europe on September 12 and 14 respectively, with the PS3 not far behind (Sept 24 and October 5th), while Australia must wait for both to arrive on October 11.

If that's too long for you to wait to try out the groundbreaking new gameplay that will revolutionise skateboarding games, there will be a playable demo released on Xbox Live Marketplace on August 15th - and we've got a couple of brand new videos to share with you.


To start, a trailer simply labelled Sizzle:

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The downloadable demo for the game incorporates tutorials and gameplay challenges in the fictional San Vanelona community centre skatepark, giving gamers an introduction to the revolutionary Flickit controls. While the demo is obviously not the full game, it does include the innovative skate.reel feature - allowing gamers to record video footage of their skate session at any time, and then share that video online for other gamers to view, rate and comment on.

The aim of the game is to get coverage in two of skateboarding's most esteemed publications - Thrasher magazine and The Skateboard Mag - as coverage leads to sponsors, and they lead to product, money and fame. Get on the covers and you'll snag yourself an invitation to the X-Games - the world's biggest skateboarding comp. Test out your skills on the street course, or go huge in the Skateboard Big Air event - innovated and dominated by 2x gold medallist, Danny Way - featured here in this video.

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SKATE was one of only four games nominated for Best Sports Game in the recent Game Critics Awards: Best of E3 2007 and is one of only a few games to take advantage of the 360's dual analogue sticks. With the innovative Flickit control system, players can sculpt tricks to define their own style - creating an 'authentic' boarding Mecca that has never been seen in video gaming.


If all that still hasn't grabbed you, then check out the soundtrack. It includes Pretty Vacant 2007 by the Sex Pistols, a brand-new recording of the song performed in June 2007 - the first time the band have recorded in a studio in thirty years. I know people who'd get the game just for that song.

* Agent Orange – "No Such Thing" * Airbourne - "Let's Ride" * Bad Brains - "I Against I" * Band of Horses - "The Funeral" * Beat Beat Beat - "Sinking Slow" * Black Flag - "Six Pack" * Booker T. & the M.G.'s - "Green Onions" * Challenger - "Input the Output" * Cheap Trick - "Surrender" * Children of Bodom - "Hate Crew Deathroll" * David Bowie - "Queen Bitch" * Dead Prez - "Hip Hop" * Devo - "Gut Feeling/Slap Your Mammy" * The Doors - "Roadhouse Blues" * Eddie Rap Life - "Push Your Wood" * Eric B. & Rakim - "Juice (Know the Ledge)" * Escalera - "Go It Alone" * Filthy Thievin' Bastards - "Lords of the Avenues" * Gang Starr - "Now You're Mine" * H.I.T - "Drama" * Mac Mall - "Perfect Poison" * Motörhead - "We Are Motörhead" * Nirvana - "Lounge Act (Ztrip Remix)" * N.W.A - "Express Yourself"

* Renee Renee - "Stand Up Talk Easy" * Rick James - "Give It to Me Baby" * Rick Ross - "Hustlin'" * River City Tanlines - "Black Knight" * S.T.R.E.E.T.S - "Georgia St." * Sicker Than Others - "Face Away" * Sister Nancy - "Bam Bam" * Slayer - "Raining Blood" * The Briefs - "Poor and Weird" * The Coup - "Ride the Fence" * The Dwarves - "Massacre" * The Exploding Hearts - "Your Shadow" * The Falcon - "Blackout" * The Mag Seven - "Dick Cemetery" * The Ramones - "Psycho Therapy" * The Returnables - "Teenage Imposters" * The Sex Pistols - "Pretty Vacant 2007" * The Stars Misplaced - "Prophets and Kings" * The White Stripes - "Girl, You Have No Faith In Medicine" * Trouble Andrew - "Chase Money" * Valient Thorr - "Man Behind the Curtain" * ZZ Top - "Just Got Paid" * The Berzerker – "No One Wins"

So... it's got pretty graphics, innovative controls and a fairly impressive soundtrack - that doesn't make waiting for it any easier!