Some of us burn up more of the Internet's bandwidth than others. Take Google. The search giant consumes far more of the Internet's traffic lanes than it actually pays for. That's the conclusion of a provocative study released by tech industry analyst Scott Cleland. In fact, the analysis shows Google is by far the largest user of Internet bandwidth, and that Google's bandwidth use is orders of magnitude greater than its payments for its cost.

Cleland is president of Precursor, a leading tech research firm, and was named an Institutional Investor Magazine top independent telecom analyst in 2004 and 2005. Here's what he found:

-- Google is by far the largest user of Internet bandwidth, generating 16.5% of all U.S. consumer Internet traffic in 2008; Google's share will grow to 25% in 2009 and 37% in 2010.

-- Google in 2008 has paid approximately $344 million toward the operating cost of the part of the Internet used by U.S. consumers using its services; but that's $6.9 billion short of what it costs to supply the bandwidth burned up by Google's highly profitable operations.

Cleland's 27-page study lays out an extensive argument why Google rightly should cover more of the cost. "The core conclusion of the study is that any sustainable national broadband policy must ensure that the heaviest Internet users pay their fair share of Internet infrastructure costs," Cleland says. "It is neither economically rational nor equitable for the biggest users of, and beneficiaries from, shared resources to not share fairly in the recovery of costs."

By Byron Acohido

Warm up your fingers, there's more tapping to be done.

Tapulous, the makers of the free Tap Tap Revenge game, downloaded by more than three million iPhone and iTouch users, has two new games in the works.

Scheduled to be available on the iTunes store today is Tap Tap Dance ($4.99) which lets you tap descending "notes" Guitar Hero-style on colorful customized backdrops while listening to tracks from Moby, Daft Punk and Chemical Brothers.

And available in the next few days is Christmas With Weezer, a holiday-themed version of the game ($4.99). The L.A.-based alt-rock band recorded six Christmas songs exclusively for the game (We Wish You A Merry Christmas, Silent Night, O Holy Night, First Noel, Hark The Harold Angels Sing and O Come, All Ye Faithful) along with two bonus tracks.

Weezer bassist Scott Shriner knew about the special Tap Tap Revenge Nine Inch Nails edition ($4.99), released two months ago. "And we all love Christmas songs so it sounded like a good idea," he says. "First Noel is a big dramatic song with a really gorgeous melody and it's kind of got a Weezer rock style to it" after the band's treatment.

"We are trying to embrace the mobile aspect of being active in  music in whatever your favorite band is," Shriner says. "Weezer has been trying to find different ways to connect with our fans and to get our fans more physically involved with our music."

Tapulous CEO Bart Decrem expects to see more musicians and fans connecting via the iPhone. With the iPhone, he says, "people are not doing twice as many things but they are doing 20, 30 and 40 times as many things. They are much more engaged than they have been with any mobile phone before."

The new games expand beyond the fairly static feel of Tap Tap Revenge. "We've totally redone the technology and with that the gaming experience," Decrem says. "There are richer visual effects and every song (on Tap Tap Dance) has its own look and feel. We have moved away from a simpler Guitar Hero knockoff, if you will, and that simpler UI (user interface), to something that feels almost like an interactive music video."

The free Tap Tap Revenge is the top free game on iTunes and the No. 3 free download overall behind Pandora and Facebook.

By Mike Snider
Photo of Tap Tap Dance by Tapulous

Ed Baig says SlingCatcher boasts plenty of PC-to-TV potential ... The best "mini-notebooks" ... YouTube, Ning pass on sex ... A Microsoft-free PC ... Adobe slashes 600 jobs ... Company offering point-and-click search on the iPhone ... Playing with your food: New crop of video games pulling players into kitchen ... What you should know about Microsoft Vista's new service pack ... Finally, what makes a great iPhone app?

By Brett Molina

The season's best tech bargains, cameras and more ... Amazon sinks its teeth into Apple's App store ... Google starts tightening its belt ... Home appliances for the baby boomer ... Pandora Radio: Now serving 2 million on iTunes ... Logitech builds its one billionth mouse ... New Nokia mobile device turns up the heat ... MySpace video goes mobile ... Would Obama's FCC bring free broadband for everyone? ... Finally, Apple yanks recommendation on antivirus software.

By Brett Molina

Bank of America has quietly become the first major bank in North America to make security tokens widely available to average consumers. This is a huge step forward in the fight to make it tougher for cyber thieves to hijack online banking accounts.

While big banks all across Europe and Asia have long made it mandatory for customers to supply more information besides a username and password to access online accounts, most big U.S. banks have dug their heels in and vigorously resisted making so-called "two-factor authentication" widely available to U.S. consumers.  I wrote about this controversy in this 2005 Money cover story.

However, if you are a BofA customer, you can spend $19.95 and get its new SafePass Card, a nifty wallet-sized card with an embedded button. Push the button and SafePass issues a one-time-use, six-digit security code that appears in the upper right corner of the card. This is a major tech advancement over the clunky key-fob security tokens that have been around for years. You must then use this one-time code, along with your username and password, to access your online account and complete transactions.

I just finished speaking about cybercrime trends at the FinSec 2008 security conference in New York City. I took to the podium just after Jason Witty, Bank of America's Information Security Executive for Global Information Protection, gave a presentation on what BofA is doing to protect its online banking customers. I asked Witty if BofA officials discussed making use of the SafePass Card mandatory.  After some hedging, he told me that a seamless rollout to BofA's 25 million-plus customers was deemed  "close to impossible."

Still, BofA deserves a lot of credit for being the first U.S mega bank to make true two-factor authentication widely available to average consumers. If your online banking usernames and passwords aren't already for sale in criminal forums, they probably soon will be. That's because data-stealing keystroke loggers now routinely infest email and IM spam, not to mention you can get a keystroke logger embedded on your hard drive by simply clicking on tainted web links that are cropping up all over social networking chat rooms and on millions of popular web pages.

What's more, security experts report a big spike in proliferation of sophisticated banking trojans -- tools cyber thieves use to siphon cash from online bank accounts. The converged use of keystroke loggers and banking trojans allowed a German gang to pull off an Ocean's 11-like heist, in which they snatched $6 million from online banking customers of banks in the USA, UK, Italy and Spain.

All U.S. banks have met the federal rule requiring them to meet a 2006 deadline to have "strong authentication" in place for online banking accounts. Witty told me Bank of America decided to go the next step and embrace full, two-factor authentication (albeit on a voluntary basis)  because "defeating strong, but not two-factor authentication, is getting easier and easier" for the bad guys.

So if you happen to be a BofA online banking patron, the $19.95 you spend to get a SafePass Card may be the best 20 bucks you've ever spent. It may be slightly less convenient than simply typing your username and password; but you'll have peace of mind knowing no cyber thief can get into your account, and hijack your hard earned cash, without the one-time security code.

By Byron Acohido
Photo by Bank of America

Actor Jack Black (Tropic Thunder) will host Spike TV's 2008 Video Game Awards, which will be televised live in high definition on Dec. 14 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Black says his selection as host "is appropriate because I have a big video game coming out, Brütal Legend, that I did with Tim Schafer, the creator of Psychonauts, which is my favorite video game in the world."

Brütal Legend, Black says, "is basically the story of a heavy metal roadie that is a cross between me and a super muscular guy who gets sucked into an alternative universe made of heavy metal. It is hard to explain but it's been a lot of fun to work on and will be fun to play."

In addition to 22 award presentations, the event will include ten premieres from upcoming video games including Brütal Legend, God of War III, Uncharted 2, Fight Night Round 2, Mafia II, Terminator Salvation and Watchmen: The End is Nigh.

"Video games don’t get the kind of respect or accolades that their counterparts in film and music get, so it is important to get the awareness out," Black says.

About Black, Spike TV's senior vice president Casey Patterson said in a statement, "Jack is a huge gamer and a former performer and winner on the 'VGAs' having taken home Best Performance By A Human -- Male in 2005 (for Peter Jackson's King Kong video game).  We're thrilled to have him as our host.  With a record 10 world premieres including Brütal Legend starring Jack, it will be a big night and wild ride!"

By Mike Snider
Photo: Actor Jack Black holds the Vector Monkey, the VGA's award (By Mark Mainz, Getty Images)

Sluggish economy not slowing video game sales ... Retail outlets rebound on Cyber Monday ... Nokia hops aboard the smartphone bandwagon ... Apple encouraging Mac owners to install anti-virus software ... San Francisco's mayor delivering annual address only on YouTube ... A social network for the financial elite ... Microblogging service Pownce to get shut down ... Teens can now collect their allowance via PayPal ... Finally, search me baby one more time: Britney tops 2008 Web searches.

By Brett Molina

In September we wrote about Canon's new 5D Mark II upgrade, a high-end $2,700 digital SLR that also shoots high-definition video clips.  But little test footage was available because the camera wasn't out yet.

But Chris MacAskill, president of photo-sharing site Smugmug, finally got his new 5D and ran around San Francisco at night to show it off, with an edited video in full 1080p high-def splendor. Take a look at the clip -- it's classic San Francisco.

For a look at another side of the world, via the 5D, check out French videographer David Porta's video, shot in Toyko.

By Jefferson Graham
Photo: Chris MacAskill

If you're hesitant about joining the Cyber Monday frenzy, there's a new shopping portal that can help you rationalize your online spending.

We-Care.com will make a donation to your favorite charity in your name for every purchase you direct through their website. This is the brain child of search advertising expert Kevin Lee, founder of Didit.com.  Lee has set up technology to basically share the affiliates fee merchants pay to websites that direct traffic to their online stores. There are a couple other similar portals, but We-Care is the first to let charities and social networks tie in.

"We-Care.com combines two key elements," says Lee. "First, it’s a fully branded marketplace where a nonprofit organization can send its supporters to shop and book travel at discounts (with coupons and deals) at all the top merchants such as Target, Expedia, 800Flowers, etc. while earning a piece of every transaction.  Secondly, we have built reminder technology for both individual and corporate supporters to assure that as many transactions as possible get credited to the cause."

Another cool element: its Shop & Give Gadget can be embedded on your Facebook, MySpace and other social media profiles.

"It gives new meaning to the concept of shopping with friends," says Lee.

By Byron Acohido

Watch out for scams on Cyber Monday ... Cellphone makers hoping touch screens will woo consumers ... Facebook ready to unveil new Connect feature ... FCC chief pushing for free wireless Internet ... Amazon and Wal-Mart battle for online shopping supremacy ... New service lets you manage all your social networks in one place ... Here's what you should expect from the digital TV transition ... Citizens of Morocco now carrying biometric ID cards ... Could the economic crisis slam broadband? ... Finally, Japanese company selling keyboard split in half.

By Brett Molina

As part of (RED) Wire's launch today, the new digital music service co-founded by Bono has added a social networking component on iLike.com. Fans can sample and share music and videos from the star-studded lineup of (RED) Wire artists -- U2, Coldplay, Dixie Chicks, Bob Dylan, The Police & Elvis Costello -- from a blog-like feed on iLike.

Through its web site and Facebook and iTunes applications, iLike will also serve as a conduit to connect (RED) Wire artists directly with fans. “We’re delighted to serve as a platform for artists and fans to come together around a shared goal of saving lives," said iLike CEO Ali Partovi in a statement. "Now you can go to iLike to see video messages from your favorite (RED) Wire artists, sample the new music and help save lives by sharing it with friends. I have no doubt that the electrifying talent and content in (RED) Wire will galvanize our audience.”

Subscribers to the service can see weekly issues in a downloadable custom player. Contents include an exclusive song from a major artist, a song from an up-and-coming artist, and an extra bonus such as a digital short film, photos or reading from an artist or actor). Half of the service's $5 monthly subscription fee goes to buy medicines for those living with HIV in Africa.

As part of today's launch event, MSN will broadcast world premiere songs and videos at http://red.msn.com.

By Mike Snider
Photo by (RED) Wire

I wasn't alone in wondering what the guys from Redmond were thinking when Microsoft acquired a couple of tiny antivirus firms back in 2003-2004, then moved ahead with plans to compete against the likes of Symantec and McAfee. Turns out that skepticism was well placed. Microsoft last week quietly announced it will pull the plug on Windows Live OneCare, its tepid-selling consumer antivirus suite. Instead, in July 2009, Microsoft will roll out Morro -- basic anti-virus protection which it most likely will distribute free with all new Windows PCs and Windows Mobile devices. 

"We have not announced any details related to distribution," hedges Microsoft senior product manager Amy Barzdukas. "But we can say that Morro will be available broadly at no cost to the consumer."

Microsoft's spin: Most home PC users in the USA, and especially in emerging nations, don't bother to pay for basic antivirus protection, once any free trial protection expires. So Microsoft will magnanimously supply Morro for free to boost baseline security for all Windows PCs and devices.

"We're really looking to get the 60% of Windows users today who are not protected, more protected,"  Julia Atalla told me. She's Director of Product Marketing for Windows Live OneCare.  Microsoft aims to supply "baseline protection" so customers "have a better Window experience," says Atalla. "The happier our Windows customers are, the happier they will be with Windows in the future."

Antivirus giants Symantec and McAfee tell me they are non-plussed. "This doesn't change the landscape in any way," argues Rowan Trollope, Symantec's Senior VP of consumer products. "What consumers really care about is high performance. They want assurance that their system won't fall down. And they're willing to pay for high performance."

Todd Gebhart, McAfee's Executive VP of consumer, mobile and small business, sings from the same song sheet. "We do not expect measurable impact from the free offering by Microsoft," Gebhart told me. "Consumers want better security protection from today's ID theft and financial theft attacks as well as quality protection against viruses and hacks."

Still, the antivirus giants have got to be a bit nervous, right? After all, Symantec and McAfee derive about 30% of their revenues from consumer antivirus subscriptions. And Graham Titterington, principal analyst at Ovum, predicts "few consumers will opt to buy an anti-malware product,"  once a free alternative from a big- name supplier catches on. He believes some antivirus suppiers will choose to "vacate the consumer and small business sector entirely" resulting in a "scaling down of operations"  that  will "accelerate industry consolidation."

Some tech security experts question whether Microsoft will invest much to keep Morro an effective deterrent, since Morro will generate zero revenues. Michael Cherry, who tracks tech security for research firm Directions on Microsoft, isn't one of doubters. "Microsot wants customers to perceive the Windows platform as safe," says Cherry. "So I think that is all the motivation they need" to keep innovating with Morro.

Siobhan MacDermott recently joined AVG, the Amsterdam-based supplier of a popular free antivirus suite, as Head of Global Investor Relations and Corporate Communications. The Dutch recruited her away from a senior marketing position at McAfee. MacDermott told me she thinks Morro will errode Symantec's and McAfee's low-end consumer subscription business. "They stand to lose a lot of money," says MacDermott. "They don't have a free product, so they'll take an aggressive stance."

Consumers will hear from Symantec and McAfee that "Morro is not good enough," predicts MacDermott.

By Byron Acohido

Many people hunt for bargains after Thanksgiving, but it's also a great time to create family photo calendars to give as gifts. One photo service, Shutterfly, makes calendars for $19.95 a piece -- but it's offering several special deals right now, including 50% off.

The great thing about photo calendars is that pictures are displayed in a large, 8x10 format.  It's a whole lot cheaper than putting them in frames. Plus, you get a new image every 30 or so days.

So far, I'm up to eight (yes, eight) with two more to go.

By Jefferson Graham (photo too)

Indian terrorist attacks spark a flood of Twitter Tweets -- some helpful, but many inaccurate...A real live Rickroll at the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade...Yet more dotcom layoffs...Nokia pulls out of Japanese handset market...Spam increasing again after shutdown of hosting company.

By Michelle Kessler

Millions of gadget lovers traveling this holiday weekend will be toting around wall chargers,  power plugs and converters to ensure their favorite electronics -- such as mobile phones and MP3 players -- are powered up.

The Powerstick V2 by Ecosol ($69.95; powerstick.com) is an easier and smaller alternative.  This tiny device plugs into a PC or other device with a USB port -- such as a laptop seat or compatible car stereo --  to charge up.  Then it can be used to power all kinds of devices, such as smartphones, iPods, digital cameras and Bluetooth headsets, using nine different adapters.   The company claims this doohickey can double talk time or audio playback on a device with a dying battery.

About the size of a small pack of gum (and weighing less than two ounces), the Powerstick takes up to 90 minutes to power up its internal Lithium polymer battery (to 90 percent).  A small LCD “Fuel Gauge” on the screen displays its charging progress. Connected devices can be used while the Powerstick is charging.

By Marc Saltzman
Photo: Powerstick

The downturn finally takes a bite out of e-commerce...Nearly four in ten workers would consider changing jobs if their new employer was willing to train them on the latest technology...Samsung settles a patent dispute that could have kept its 3G phones out of the country...T-Mobile, AT&T plan to offer Black Friday discounts...Apple is forced to drop an iPhone ad in the U.K. because it's deceptive...Google confesses to breaking Apple's App store rules...Juror dismissed for discussing case on Facebook.

By Michelle Kessler

Competition is a good thing!

YouTube dwarfs all other video websites in terms of traffic, but when it comes to image quality, it pales in comparison to newer sites such as Vimeo, Hulu and Sling.com, which showcase video in larger, prettier windows.

So Tuesday, YouTube made some changes. The YouTube viewer has been enlarged to showcase wide-screen high-definition. That's the good news. The bad news is that the video images are still low-resolution and grainy, compared to competitors. You can click the "View in High Quality" tab for better resolution, but quality still pales to Vimeo and the rest.

Here's two examples: a test high-definition video posted it on YouTube and Vimeo.

"We're expanding the width of the page to 960 pixels to better reflect the quality of the videos you create and the screens that you use to watch them," YouTube said on its blog.  This new, wider player is in a widescreen aspect ratio which we hope will provide you with a cleaner, more powerful viewing experience. And don't worry, your 4:3 aspect ratio videos will play just fine in this new player."

Traditional ratio (4:3) videos now have black bars on the left and right in the new YouTube player.

(Here's an example.)

By Jefferson Graham
Photo: YouTube

Here's another place to waste time at while you're at work.  Meet Sling.com, yet another new online channel devoted to full episodes and clips from some of your favorite shows.

Sling.com, operated by the folks who make the TV-fan favorite Slingbox and Slingcatcher devices, launched Monday with current shows from CBS, NBC, Fox, many cable channels and Internet video sites like Break.com and CollegeHumor.com.

Sling.com joins Hulu, Joost, Fancast, Veoh and several others that specialize in long-form TV programming. Not to be left out, of course, is CBS.com, ABC.com, NBC.com and Fox.com, which also show full episodes. The Web’s no. 1 video site, YouTube, recently began experimenting with full episodes, with 3 shows from the CBS library, the original Star Trek, Beverly Hills, 90210, and MacGyver.

So what’s different about Sling.com?  The service is trying to tap into social media tools, to let you "subscribe" to channels and your friends get to see what you’re subscribing to. Sling also has a nice blog that serves as a guide for what's available to watch.

Viewing stats are easy to come by — as of Monday afternoon, the number one viewed program was an old episode of the 1970s motorcycle cop drama CHiPs, The rest of the top 5: an episode of E’s Wild On series, a skit from NBC’s Saturday Night Live, and episodes of CBS'  NCIS and The Unit. 

The Slingbox is a device that lets you watch your home TV online, even if you’re on the other side of the country, and the new Slingcatcher is the reverse — you can watch Internet video on your TV.

So coming from a company (owned by the satellite firm Echostar, owner of the Dish Network) that serves as the TV geek’s paradise, Sling.com makes a lot of sense. Nowhere else on the Web is TV as revered as here — and available to view.

If you own a Slingbox, you can watch live TV on Sling.com, instead of through the Slingbox software, but only if you have a Windows computer. However, Sling says it will be available for Apple computers owners soon as well.

By Jefferson Graham
Photo by Sling.com

College student Dominic Coryell, CEO of a high-tech laundry and dry cleaning firm, is this year's winner of the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards, the so-called Heisman Trophy for undergraduates who own businesses.

Coryell, a 23-year-old senior majoring in finance and accounting at Northeastern University, runs  Garment Valet. This year, it rang up about $800,000 in revenue. He beat out 26 finalists, whose businesses earned more than $20 million this year. In all, the annual competition drew 1,000 collegians from more than 300 universities in 11 countries this year, including Sweden and Australia. The competition is overseen by the Entrepreneurs' Organization.

Garment Valet is an automated service that provides next-day delivery and pick-up of garments, creating efficiencies not commonly associated with the longtime industry. Coryell received more than $100,000 in cash and donated services by leading entrepreneurs, including Web services and business consulting, a year's mentoring by an EO member, and a year's tuition to the EO Accelerator Program.

By Jon Swartz

For the last dozen years, the National Institute on Media and the Family has released a pre-holiday shopping report card aimed at helping shoppers find video games that are appropriate for their children.  The 13th annual report card, released today, gives the video game industry its highest marks ever and puts the onus on parents themselves. "The industry has really responded," says institute co-founder David Walsh.

The Entertainment Software Ratings Board earned two "A" grades for adding summaries to video game packaging that explain the game's content that earned the respective rating and for promoting its rating system to parents.

Video game console makers (Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony) also earned an "A" for including parental controls, built-in playtime timers and parental education.

However, parents were given an "Incomplete" grade for not monitoring the games their children play. "While we will continue to hold (the video game industry) accountable with the report card what became clear to us this year is (that) the industry has responded," Walsh says. "Yet still we have a lot of kids particularly teens playing Mature-rated games, a lot of them are doing it without their parents' knowledge. Parents need to pay more attention to the games their kids are playing."

It's nothing new that children and teens want to play games -- or see movies -- that are not appropriate for their age level. And often, parents may look the other way or even decide that their child is mature enough to play a Teen or Mature-rated game.

But Walsh warns that "parents need to pay attention to the fact edgier games are getting edgier.  "It’s the parents' job to know what (kids) are playing and to say 'No.' The good news is they don’t have to say 'No' to playing video games. Instead of playing (Mature-rated) Grand Theft Auto, you can say, play a game like (Teen-rated) Spider-Man: Web of Shadows. There are good sports games and there are good adventure games."

A family game to consider is LittleBigPlanet, pictured above. "The real promise of games is that it really gets players to use their head and not just their quick reaction, to literally do some brainwork solving puzzles and whatever," Walsh says. "LittleBigPlanet has literally the ability to build and create a game within the game."

Walsh also highlighted music games and fitness games such as Wii Fit as signs that game developers are looking beyond traditional shooting and fighting games. "One of the things parents really need to pay attention to is getting kids active," he says. "As video games encourage physical activity, I think there is going to be more and more interest in those games and that means more of a market for those games."

The Institute's recommended games for 2008

E-rated games (games for Everyone, usually ages six and older; full game descriptions and parents guide at www.mediafamily.org)

- All Star Cheer Squad (THQ, for Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS)
- Animal Crossing: City Folk (Nintendo, for Wii)
- FIFA Soccer 09 (EA Sports, for Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and DS, Sony PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable and PC)
- Hasbro Family Game Night (Electronic Arts, for Wii and PlayStation 2)
- High School Musical 3: Senior Year DANCE! (Disney Interactive, for Xbox 360, Nintendo DS and Wii, PlayStation 2 and PC.)
- LittleBigPlanet (Sony, for PlayStation 3)
- Nancy Drew: The Haunting of Castle Malloy (Her Interactive, for PC)
- NBA LIVE 09 (EA Sports, for Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3)
- NCAA Basketball 09 (EA Sports, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3)
- Samba de Amigo (Sega, for Wii)

T-rated games (games suitable for those aged 13 and older)

- Guitar Hero World Tour (Activision Blizzard, for Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3)
- Rock Band 2 (MTV/Harmonix, for Xbox 360, Wii, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3)
- Rock Revolution (Konami, for Nintendo DS and Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)
- Shaun White Snowboarding (Ubisoft, for Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable; a version for the Wii is called Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip.)
- Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (Activision, for for Nintendo DS and Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable and PC)

Games to Avoid for Children

- Blitz The League II (Midway, for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3)
- Dead Space (Electronic Arts, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)
- Fallout 3 (Bethesda Softworks, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)
- Far Cry 2  (Ubisoft, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)
- Gears of War 2 (Microsoft, for Xbox 360)
- Left 4 Dead (Electronic Arts, for Xbox 360 and PC)
- Legendary (Gamecock, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)
- Resistance 2 (Sony, for PlayStation 3)
- Saints Row 2 (THQ, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)
- Silent Hill: Homecoming (Konami,  Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC)

By Mike Snider
(Photo of LittleBigPlanet by Sony)