While we've known for some time that the "Gun Metal Gray" PlayStation 3 bundle -- featuring a shiny 40GB model, a matching DualShock 3 controller and a Limited Edition copy of geriatric sneakfest, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots -- would be available to Americans, we didn't know until now that it would only be available to Americans logging onto Konami's website. Online and inevitably scarce pre-orders for the $599.99 package will start on May 19th, so you'd better get clicking if you want Snake and Gray Box to face off in your living room.

No, we mean it. Judging by Konami's labyrinthine sign-up process for the Metal Gear Online Beta, you'll need at least several days to prepare a registration, obtain an ID, convert that into e-currency, trade it in for the microfilm, enter the password, steal the key code, write the secret URL on a postcard and summon Hideo Kojima in an arcane ritual.

Note: This bundle is different from the regular, $499 MGS4 bundle which includes an 80GB PS3 and a DualShock 3.

A new Playstation 3 bundle will go on sale in the UK this Friday, featuring two first-party titles along with the 40GB model of the PS3, GamesIndustry.biz reports.

The bundle, which will retail for £349.99 GBP, allows consumers to pick two games from a list of first-party titles to accompany the console. The list includes big 2007 titles like Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction, and SingStar (with microphones). With the 40GB PS3 normally priced at £299.99, this deal probably won't incite a voracious demand for the console, but it is a nice way to pick up a few games on the cheap with a new system.

Full list of titles available through the offer after the break.

If you've yet to get yourself an Xbox 360 in this post-Halo 3 world, Microsoft is of a mind to sway you with fast cars and terrifyingly tight pants this holiday season. New Xbox 360 bundles (yep, these ones) are set to arrive "retail-wide by the end of October," with both the $349.99 "Pro" and the $449.99 Elite models offering two games at no extra charge -- racing sim Forza Motorsport 2 and supervillain clobberfest, Marvel Ultimate Alliance.

Though Project Gotham Racing 4's arcade styling would have held more general appeal than Forza's serious nitty-gritty, the latter's unquestionably a fine game for a freebie. The same holds true for Marvel Ultimate Alliance, a fun and accessible adventure both online and off. We rather like this bundling business.

The industrious Frenchmen of gamick.fr say they spied the above image at a Microsoft marketing site that pretty clearly depicts a new 360 bundles for the Elite model, packed with Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance. (A Premium model version was found later.) There's literally no other information available at this time save for these images, so we don't know if the packs will be priced at the recently slashed rates. Although the sticker does say that they're free, so we're betting that they're basically deal sweeteners.

Also, the photos were reportedly labeled as "Holiday Value Bundles" (they seem to have since been removed) so we're guessing they'll be here just in time for your grandma to knit you a sweater instead of buying you one. Adding to this pile of mysteries: The lack of any similar bundle for the Core model ... interesting.

[Via Kotaku]