That’s right, three of your favourite UK Ripteners are off to the new Wembley stadium this coming weekend to cover Play.com Live, and hopefully to uncover Gemma Atkinson (pictured) and the best upcoming games of 2008.

Myself, John Kershaw and Kev Lochun are going to be gracing the country’s biggest gaming event this Saturday and Sunday to bring you every piece of juicy info we can from behind the scenes.

Taking place in London’s Wembley Stadium, Play.com Live has the industry’s major players showing off their wares, including Microsoft, Sony, EA, Activision, Capcom and Ubisoft.

Gian Luzio, Play.com’s head of games, says that the event will fill a void in the UK market:

At the moment there isn’t much of a gaming event in the UK that brings together all of the different games publishers and their offerings for the consumer.

So this is the first of a yearly show that we hope to put on, which will have the whole breadth of entertainment from games, music, and film for the consumer.

It’s set to be a spectacular two days brimming with live music, competitions and celebrities.  Expect to see Jamie Cullum (musician), Tara Palmer-Tomkinson (IT girl), Duncan James (Blue), Jean-Christophe Novelli (chef), Robert Llewellyn (Red Dwarf) and Dr. Who legend Tom Baker, taking part in stage activities and meeting their fans.

Live music comes from the likes of We Are Scientists, Beth Rowley, Elliot Minor, Go: Audio, Saving Aimee, The Rumble Strips, Vincent Vincent & Villains, and You Me At Six.  Their tunes will be accompanied by stage demonstrations and competitions that are poised to give lucky winners massive cash prizes.

However, what’s attracting us Riptener’s there is not the sparkly lights and the TV celebrities, but the possibility of getting our hands on this years games. With the promise of the following games, what more could we ask for?   Lego Indiana Jones, Star Wars Force Unleashed, Resident Evil 5, Street Fighter 4, Race Driver: Grid, Gran Turismo 5: Prologue, Army of Two, Ninja Gaiden 2, Condemned 2, Haze, Rainbow Six Vegas 2, Soul Calibur IV, and more

Sony is being unusually coy of their involvment, but a playable LittleBigPlanet, and a new Killzone 2 trailer are rumoured to make a showing.

TV babe Gemma Atkinson (ex-Hollyoaks and I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!) and Virgin Radio presenter Iain Lee (Virgin as in Richard Branson, not…well, anyway) are lined up to host the two-day extravaganza. What these two have to do with gaming we don’t know, but a pretty face and a sprinkling of charisma will do them well.  You can see more of the duo posing with game controllers in our gallery.

In an interview with UK newspaper The Sun, Gemma bigs up the Wii:

I win every time I play the Wii. I’m the champion at the bowling game. I love it because all the family can get involved so it’s great to play on a Saturday night if everyone is round.

But she admits that her endowments hold her back:

I have to wear TWO bras when I go running at the gym so I’d love to design a range of sports bras for big-breasted women, something sexy not plain. It’d definitely be handy for strapping them in when jumping up and down with the controllers.

Time’s running out to buy tickets, so quickly log onto Play.com or call 0845 270 1669 (Mon-Fri 9am-6pm). Tickets cost just £6 per adult and £3 for children and are available to buy for a morning or afternoon visit on either day, or you can buy VIP weekend tickets for £16.

If we don’t see you there, we’ll be sure to bring you every little bit of info us three mortals possibly can, including previews, photography and footage.

• Nintendo at Play.com Live: Where Are You?
• Play.com Live: First Major UK Gaming Event
• Play.com Live: The Final Day
• Haze Demo Now Available for Download in Europe *Update*
• Sony at Play.com Live: Old Killzone 2 & LBP Trailers, GOW PS3?
• Microsoft at Play.com Live: Aims for Wii60
• Play.com Live: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Hands On! Wait, No.
• Adam Montgomery, Contributor (Carlisle, UK)

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