The good news is that Alien Breed Evolution is nearly upon us. The bad news? The much-anticipated Team 17 update is coming in bitesize chunks. That's right, episodic content has struck again.

Why would anyone want to buy a book, only for you to get half way through and be faced by blank pages and a small disclaimer instructing you to fork out more cash to find out how it ends? Well, it seems that this is the way gaming is going... and I hate it.

Wallace and Gromit was split into four segments on Live Arcade recently, each costing 800 gamerpoints - buy them all and that's the price of a full-blown new release... Granted it looked faithful to the original TV series and retained its cutesy humour but for fans who wanted to experience the entire adventure, they needed deep pockets...and didn't even get a box or manual for their money!

Anyway, rant over. Alien Breed is coming - and from what I've seen it looks great. It's been revamped graphically but seems to retain the same charm as the original all those years back. It's going to be split into three episodes, which can be played independently but fit neatly together to form a single narrative. According to an interview in OXM magazine, each boasts its own aliens, weaponry and environments.

Release date for the first installment is reported to be 16 December...

(Photo credit: Videogamer.com)