It's great in '08

Read on for a run down on some of the best new PlayStation 3 games heading your way in 2008.

As good a year as 2007 was for PS3 owners, 2008 is shaping up to be even better with some exceptional games coming into view over the horizon. Below is just a selection of the titles you can expect to lose considerable portions of 2008 to, all due this year on PlayStation 3.

Grand Theft Auto IV

Sure to be one of the gaming events of the year, the latest instalment in the massive Grand Theft Auto series is due for release this spring. We know a bit about the game from the trailers released so far - it's set in a Liberty City that bears more than a passing resemblance to New York, and promises to be massive in scope. Official sources put the time it takes to travel from one side of the game world to the other at over an hour, making it easily the biggest single city in a Grand Theft Auto game yet. Charting the criminal progress of hard-bitten Russian Niko Bellic, Grand Theft Auto IV promises to be one of the most expansive, realistic and breathtaking games of 2008.

Rock Band

Taking the Guitar Hero concept to the next level, EA's Rock Band adds drums and SingStar-style mics to the tried and tested formula to create what can only be an unforgettable multiplayer experience. Featuring a tracklisting as good as any Guitar Hero game, and that features bands as diverse as Weezer, The Smashing Pumpkins, The Beastie Boys and Radiohead, Rock Band has something for the armchair rock star in everyone.

Killzone 2

The latest game in the Killzone franchise that already includes the critically acclaimed Killzone and the standout PSP game Killzone: Liberation, Killzone 2 is making its way to PlayStation 3 in 2008. Giving players their first look at the Helghast home planet of Helghan, and using as many polygons to create a character's face as the original Killzone used to create an entire level, Killzone 2 is already shaping up to be a contender for game of the year.

LittleBigPlanet

An entirely new kind of game, LittleBigPlanet combines platforming, world creation and massively multiplayer online gaming to create a wondrous, bizarre, breathlessly fun world of online excitement. Create your own character, team up with friends and run riot across user generated worlds, all the while collecting materials to build your own Patch that you can make as crazy or as simple as you want. One of the most charming and innovative games ever devised, LittleBigPlanet is sure to be a massive hit in 2008.

Home

Coming in 2008, Home promises to revolutionise the way you interact with people online. Not so much a game as a vast, graphical social networking tool, Home lets you build an online identity for yourself to use within PlayStation Network, where you can meet your friends, hang out and chat, listen to music, play a game or exchange files with ease. People who enter each other's virtual homes can stream the host's music and videos from their Hard Disk Drive, and you can watch movies in a virtual movie theatre, go bowling in a virtual alley and play your favourite games to unlock trophies that you can proudly display in your Home space.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots

The fourth and final instalment in Hideo Kojima's legendary stealth 'em up series, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is set in 2014 and features a much older Snake than the previous games. Containing never-before-seen technology, a fresh FOXHOUND team and a brand new squad of formidable bosses known as the Beauty and the Beast Unit, Metal Gear Solid 4 will take the tactical espionage action to the next level on its release in 2008.