FirstPlay has gone all festive this week, with a whole host of holiday-themed content, including a review of the year, a round-up of the best Christmas films, and even some free gifts in the form of a dynamic theme celebrating OPM reaching fifty issues and a couple of free avatars.

However, if you’re one of those people that hate Christmas specials, then there’s plenty of content for you too, including reviews of Tron: Evolution and the Prince of Persia Trilogy, screenshot galleries of Brink and Mass Effect 2, plus much more.

Traditionally, the PS Store update before Christmas is always chock-full of great content, but this year SCEE have truly outdone themselves, with what is without a doubt the best update ever!

Firstly, later today will see the releases of a number of highly anticipated PSN titles, including Eat Them!, echochrome ii, Magic: The Gathering, Tetris, and the first batch of NEOGEO Station games.

There’s also a ridiculous amount of trials and demos, the stand-outs of which are what will no doubt be three of 2011′s biggest games: Dead Space 2, LittleBigPlanet 2, and Mass Effect 2.

You’ll also find a massive amount of downloadable content, notably the Vietnam expansion for Battlefield: Bad Company 2, as well as add-ons for Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, R.U.S.E., and The Sims 3.

Furthermore, there’s the biggest sale the European Store has ever seen, with far too much content to list here, but some of our picks are Joe Danger, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, and PixelJunk Shooter. Be sure to check out the huge list of deals on the Store.

But that’s not all! From today, PlayStation Plus subscribers can also download (for free) the minis title, A Space Shooter for 2 Bucks, and the NEOGEO game, Samurai Shodown. There’s also further discounts on other NEOGEO titles, and more.

Merry Christmas!

This week there are reviews of James Bond: Blood Stone, EA’s Create, and Call of Duty: Black Ops, as well as previews of Dead Space 2 and Homefront. There’s also a feature on the making of the original Dead Space, and an online guide to Medal of Honor.

You’ll also find an interesting feature about the films that have influenced modern gaming, and tips on how to be insanely good at Sonic the Hedgehog 4, as well screenshot galleries of Dragon Age II, F.E.3.R., and Mortal Kombat.

We hope you have some spare cash lying around, because you’ll probably want some for this mammoth update. This week sees the PSN releases of Prince of Persia: Warrior Within HD, Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones HD, Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves, and (assuming you’ve got money to burn) Prototype.

There’s also five new minis, a Move demo for Planet Minigolf, and shed loads of downloadable add-ons, including content for Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, DJ Hero 2, Mushroom Wars, Rock Band 3, and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II.

PlayStation Plus subscribers also have some more free treats to download again this week. This new batch of content comes in the form of a Full Game Trial of Prototype, the Turbo! add-on pack for LittleBigPlanet PSP, and exclusive access to the DC Universe Online beta (which, by the way you might want to free up some space for).

So, what will you be downloading today?

In this week’s episode of FirstPlay there are reviews of Buzz!: The Ultimate Music Quiz, Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, and Red Dead Redemption’s Undead Nightmare pack, as well as an online review of Medal of Honor.

There’s also a ‘making of’ feature for James Bond: Blood Stone, an interview with Atari’s executive producer Vince Farquharson, and screenshot galleries of Bulletstorm, Crysis 2, Dead Space 2, Shift 2: Unleashed, and Tokyo Jungle.

We’re a little late with today’s European Store update, as it actually updated this morning. Don’t get used to it though, it’s just an early Christmas present from SCEE.

This week’s content includes Alien Breed 2: Assault, Kung-Fu LIVE!, and a PSN release of Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2, as well as the usual DLC, minis, demos, themes and avatars.

PlayStation Plus subscribers also get a few free goodies this week, in the form of some Hustle Kings and Dead Nation avatars, and more importantly, the co-operative PS Move game, Sackboy’s Prehistoric Moves (releasing on the Store next week for everyone else).

So, is there anything that Sony can tempt you with today?

This week’s episode includes reviews of the awesome Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, DJ Hero 2 and Rock Band 3. There’s also an entertaining feature on OPM’s Rachel Weber learning how to rap, and a making of video for God of War: Ghost of Sparta.

If that’s not enough to tempt you then you’ll also find a feature on FirstPlay’s first hour on the Killzone 3 multiplayer beta, as well as screenshot galleries of Duke Nukem Forever, inFamous 2, No More Heroes: Heroes’ Paradise, and Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath.

We’ve got yet another pretty good update coming our way today. The star of the show is Dead Nation; the new zombie shooter from Housemarque, the team behind the incredible PSN shmup Super Stardust HD.

This week also sees the releases of Beat Sketcher, a PSN release of the original Assassin’s Creed, and the usual slew of DLC, avatars, themes, wallpapers and videos.

Finally, as it’s the 1st of December, there’s also a new batch of PlayStation Plus content, which this month includes awesome PSN puzzler Cuboid, minis titles Bubble Trubble and Dracula: Undead Awakening, and PSone classic Oddworld: Abe’s Exodus.

So, will anything be getting your money this week?

FirstPlay has gone reviews crazy this week, with reviews of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, recent SingStar releases, and a whole host of the second wave of PlayStation Move titles, including TV Superstars, The Fight: Lights Out and The Shoot.

There’s also an online review of FIFA 11, an interesting feature on the difficulty of awarding review scores, screenshot galleries of Dungeon Siege III and Operation Flashpoint: Red River, and even a free minis title, Beam’em Up.

We have a feeling that a lot of people will be too absorbed in a certain driving simulator to have much interest in today’s Store update, but to be fair if you thought SCEE would give us a small update this week then you’d be wrong.

For a start, there are several PSN games released, including Pac-Man Championship Edition DX and Funky Lab Rat, as well as downloadable content for Enslaved: Odyssey to the West, Mafia II and Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light.

It’s also worth mentioning this week’s deals, which include offers on all Prince of Persia related content. There’s also a long overdue permanent price cut of the Awakening expansion for Dragon Age: Origins, which is actually a bit of a bargain now.

So, can any of this content tempt you away from the racing behemoth that is Gran Turismo 5?

Lucy Porter is back from having a baby, which she admits wasn’t as much fun as playing a PS3 game. Speaking of PS3 games, this episode features reviews for Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom, The Sims 3 and Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1.

There’s also a preview of inFamous 2, a video on the making of Vanquish, and the second part of FirstPlay’s Castlevania: Lords of Shadow bosses guide, as well as screenshot galleries of Batman: Arkham City and Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds.

After last week’s lacklustre update, this is exactly what the doctor ordered. There’s a whole range of content this week, including Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time HD, the PSN release of Red Faction: Guerrilla, a port of the awesome Dreamcast title Crazy Taxi, and a permanent price cut for Grand Theft Auto: The Lost and Damned.

There’s also Who’s That Flying?!, Mediatonic’s follow-up to the awesome minis title, Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess. Mediatonic describe their latest game as ‘a really interesting blend of mechanics and something we hope will appeal to the discerning tastes of minis players’. Check out the PS3 Attitude review to see what we think (it’s good!).

We haven’t even touched on all the DLC yet (of which there is even more than last week), but you’ll also find the free PS3-exclusive pack for Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, ready for the game’s launch later this week, as well as add-ons for the likes of DJ Hero 2, Fist of the North Star: Ken’s Rage and Vanquish.

You’ve got to find something to love in this week’s update, right?

It’s a bit of a quiet episode this week, but there are some nice exclusive features, including the Making of Costume Quest, an interview with Jean Jacques Belletete (Art Director of the upcoming Deus Ex game), and a Castlevania: Lords of Shadow bosses guide.

There’s also a reviews round-up featuring Saw II: Flesh and Blood and BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, screenshot galleries of Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Splatterhouse, and an exclusive demo of recent PSN title, Premier Manager.

We hope you like downloadable content, because there isn’t much else to get excited about in this update; although to be fair with add-ons for EyePet, Front Mission: Evolved, God of War III, Guitar Hero, Hustle Kings, Just Cause 2, ModNation Racers, My Aquarium, PAIN and Rock Band, there’s quite a bit to choose from.

The biggest release this week is probably the awesome role-playing title, Grandia, which has finally been released as a PSone classic. Other games include Crescent Pale Mist (no, we hadn’t heard of it either), a bundle of Söldner-X 2: Final Prototype & The Last Chapter, and three new minis.

Other than that it’s just the usual themes, avatars, videos, and FirstPlay for those in the UK and Ireland. MUBI, the independent film streaming service is now also available in more countries, and with the quiet Store update there’s no excuse not to try it out.

So, anything take your fancy this week?

In this week’s episode you’ll find reviews of Def Jam Rapstar and DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue, as well as a reviews round-up featuring Front Mission Evolved, Vanquish and Tumble. There’s also previews of the awesome-looking BioShock Infinite and Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit.

Elsewhere, FreeStyleGames give some tips on how to be a DJ Hero, Tim Clark explains why he’s in love with PES’s Become a Legend mode, and there are screenshot galleries of Alice: Madness Returns, Mindjack and Twisted Metal.

Lucy Porter is away again, so OPM’s Rachel Penny talks us through this special Halloween episode instead. There are previews of upcoming horror games such as Dead Space 2 and F.3.A.R., as well as a feature on the FirstPlay team’s scariest PlayStation moments, and the goriest screenshots ever.

If that’s all too frightening for you, there are also reviews of Fallout: New Vegas and WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2011, a great feature on The Making of DJ Hero, and screenshots of the Ico and Shadow of the Colossus Collection and The Last Guardian.

This week there are reviews of the remastered version of Medal of Honor: Frontline and recent PSN games Lara Croft and the Guardian of and Light and Worms 2: Armageddon, as well as previews of LittleBigPlanet 2 and Vanquish.

There’s also a new feature called Head to Head (which sees two members of the FirstPlay team battle it over which of two games is the best), a look at what’s new on the Digital Comics Store, and screenshot galleries of epic MMO Final Fantasy XIV and upcoming PSN title Swarm.

To clarify, by a day late we mean us and not the actual update. Oh my, think of the craziness that would be taking place on the official EU blog if the update really were a day late. We shudder just thinking about it

Anyway, the update is here and with it is lots of cool stuff. If you’re lucky enough to be a PlayStation Plus member, you have the full game trial of Hustle Kings to look forward to, as well as three different Fallout 3 expansions. Also available is the Killzone 3 beta theme, and although the beta is already locked up as far as participants go, the theme is still in the Store if you’re interested.

Following in North America’s footsteps, you can also find Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 for download, as well as Dead Space Ignition. Speaking of Sonic 4, you have the official PS3 Attitude review to look forward to in the near the future.

Beyond that, there are several new demos and a lot of game add-ons, videos, themes and avatars available. So check out the complete list and let us know what can be found in your download queue this week.

On the frontline of this week’s episode (do you see what we did there?) is a review of the modern reboot of the classic Medal of Honor series. Other reviews include the muddy racer WRC: FIA World Rally Championship and the cute PSN title Swords and Soldiers (along with a European-exclusive demo of the game).

Elsewhere there are previews of the imaginatively titled (not) EA Sports MMA, and the awesome-looking multiplayer of Call of Duty: Black Ops. You’ll also find a cool video of Skate 3, and screenshot galleries including Batman: Arkham City and Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One.