It’s that time again, so let’s see what goodies Major Nelson has unleashed for us lucky XBox Live gold subscribers…

Xbox Live Games with Gold for September 2014

Coming up in September, Xbox Live Gold members can look forward to three new free games on Xbox One and Xbox 360. Super Time Force is coming to Games with Gold on Xbox One as a free download, replacing Strike Suit Zero (so grab it now if you haven’t already). Crimson Dragon will continue to be available for Xbox Live Gold members as a free download for Xbox One.

    

Then, on September 16th, Xbox Live Gold Members can download Halo: Reach (normally US $24.99) for free through September 30th.

    

*Titles are available as free downloads for qualifying Xbox Live Gold members in all markets where Xbox Live is available. Some regions may offer different titles depending on market availability.

Woah…   HALO Reach for free?    Well I know what I’m getting (and trading in my disc copy)

The PC port of GTA V was inevitable. All previous GTA games have found their way onto the platform, and I bet I’m not the only one considering checking it out when it does release. And Rockstar are making a lot of tweaks to be sure the game runs well for us.

There will be a lot of graphical tweaks, such as heavier traffic, thicker foliage and even some new animals dotted around to complement the mountain lions and sharks. What’s recently emerged though is that the radio stations of GTA V are also getting an update:

Back with @rockstargames to update my GTAV radio station Non Stop Pop FM for new versions coming this… http://t.co/ef2VSb0g9G

— Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) August 29, 2014

The above tweet is from Cara Delevingne, a British model and host of Los Santos’ Non Stop Pop FM radio station in GTA V. It suggests that she’s been back in to record lines for the radio station for new versions which means that the sounds of the PC port will also sound hopefully as fresh as they could do and there may even be some new content to hear. It’s unknown if the other stations are also going to be updated but you’d have to assume that it’s a given they’d be polished too right?

Rockstar are also disputing rumours that have gone around recently about a change in the release date. As of speaking they’re still saying that the PC version will release during this year’s autumn window.

One of the announcements coming out of PAX this year has been that of an upcoming Super Meat Boy game, due to release next year. It’s surprising for two reasons, the first being that no one saw it coming and the second? Well Team Meat have said that the new game will capture the feeling of the original but without the use of “multiple buttons”.

Quite what this means isn’t yet clear, but given that the game will release on Steam and also mobiles and tablets it seems to suggest that the game will support touch controls upon release and that’s a bit confusing given that Super Meat Boy was all about timing and precision and such things are a lot harder to do with touch control.

Otherwise the game will feature randomly generated levels over six chapters, twice as many bosses as the original game and an ‘endless’ mode, whatever that entails. There’s no concrete release date, but they aim to have it out “sometimes next year”.

At PAX sandbox MMO ArcheAge got its release date announced. It will release on September 16th, with a four day headstart for those eligible (i.e. the Founders) as well as a four day open beta beforehand. This means that the alpha that is currently happening could be coming to an end as soon as today.

The dates and times for Open Beta were announced as starting Thursday, September 4 at 10:00 AM PDT and then running until the same time on Monday, September 8, and those who took part in the Closed Beta will have their characters to use during the Open. After this though the servers will be wiped in preparation for the Head Start for the Founders which begins Friday, September 12 at 10:00 AM PDT and runs through to the official opening for all.

Those who are disappointed that the Alpha is ending though should know that the ending will come with ‘due fanfare’. “Starting this Saturday at 6:00 PM PDT, our diligent Alpha testers should check their in-game mail, keep a weather eye on the horizon, and be ready for anything…”

Facepunch Studios have announced another title that they’re currently working on, an aptly named game called ‘Arcade’ about… well, arcades. The game allows players to set up their own virtual arcades in which others can enter, play arcade games, earn tokens and attempt to rack up high scores.

The main reason they’re doing this is for the nostalgia feel. “We’ve got fond memories of being in arcades, trying to decide what to spend our limited tokens on, watching someone get to a stage we’ve never seen before, etc.” said Facepunch’s Ryleigh Kotash. “Even in our early tests it already feels cool to play a game with people literally & virtually watching over your shoulder. And it’d be even cooler with VR support.”

The aim of the game would be to spend your limited tokens to play games to earn more tokens to play the more expensive games and eventually become ‘King of the Arcade’.

For those with fond memories of the arcade days, this could be one to watch.