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 At the 2007 Tokyo Game Show, Sony has announced the launch of the dualshock 3 wireless controller with rumble feature. Although this is welcome news for U.K PS3 owners, it is also a bit of a blow, as usual it will go on sale in japan, and ship to north America and Europe in early 2008, they are available now on ebay and amazon for around £40 (imported) what gets me is that the U.K pay the most for Sony PS3 console compared to japan and the U.S where they are considerably cheaper, so on that basis the U.K PS3 owners are contributing the most to research and development of the hardware and games yet they are always released in japan first and if we want to get our hands on these items we have to import them or pay a premium yet again to sellers on ebay etc... Sony if you want us to pay more than everyone else then give us something back and release games and equipment in the U.K first it is only fair.

 Anyway the reason it has taken so long to get the rumble controller is that Sony has been in a legal battle with Immersion, the developer of game controller force feedback technology, which Sony has now settled paving the way for them to release the new dual shock 3.

 What can we expect from the dual shock 3? Well the rumble controller still features the six-axis design, the six-axis controller  has a six-axis sensing system that lets its PS3 users maneuver more intuitively by tilting their controller across Six Axis's in addition to operating the controller’s directional pad, thumbsticks and buttons, . The controller works wirelessly using internal rechargeable batteries that will recharge when you connect the controller to a PS3 via the supplied usb cable. Something tells me though that the batteries in this controller will not last as long due to the extra power needed to make the controller rumble, unless Sony stick a bigger rechargeable battery in, which i seriously doubt. It will also be heavier due to the extra components needed to make the controller rumble.

 IS it worth the hassle? for most games yes, for driving games  i like the rumble feature to tell you when you are sightly off the track, and in FPS games it is also a useful feature.

So what games are compatible? Sony announced that Enemy Territory: Quake Wars, The Darkness, Rage, Burnout Paradise, Unreal Tournament 3, MotorStorm and many others will use the function. Other games like FIFA 08 and cod4 will  be able to add the  feature through a software update download on the Playstation network, which is free to all registered users.

 People who haven't bought the PS3 yet will be disappointed to learn that the rumble controller will not as part of the PS3 console bundle, but is a separately sold accessory. Something tells me though in 12 months time when the PS3 sales die down they will add these controllers to the new ps3 bundle, just like they did with ps2.

 If you are looking at the moment for a new PS3 then at the time of writing the best PS3 Deal is a playstation 3 console, with gran turismo 5 prologue, an extra game of your choice like burnout paradise, assassins creed etc.. a free hdmi cable and free delivery for £305, details of this can be found at PS3 deals prices are updated daily, and the GT5 prologue deal is a one off, once they are out of stock they won't be coming back in.