On Sunday April 17th Rockstar along with Dub Magazine, Pepsi and Boost Mobile threw an official launch party for Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition in LA. At the event there was a lot more than just gaming. It was a full blown car show, featuring some of the slickest rides around. I saw everything from imported Skylines to decked out surround sound Humvees to cars with a full entertainment system in the trunk. Talk about gaming on the go.

If you're into car customization you would've been in heaven checking out the field of pimped out cars. Walking from one side of the area to the next would give you a chance to hear some of the music talent hired at the event. The main stage featured live performers like Fabolous, Twista and Clipse. In between each performer there was a different DJ, like DJ Lady Tribe who spun top 40 hip hop tracks. The beat kept people moving. Some dancing here and there, which isn't bad for a Sunday afternoon party. All the way on the other side of the arena was the hip-hop DJ group the   X-Ecutioners. Known for being more progressive and for spinning their own tracks, they were the highlight to see at the event. While they have excellent turntablism skills and a good song flow they had almost no audience. The only time people would come to check them out was when they dropped to the booth next to them, to get free Pepsi. Nearly hidden from sight, underneath a camping tent, were the Hot Wheels crew. Instead of spinning popular tracks they focused on scratching and showing off their skills. If you wanted to try to scratch yourself there was a booth with Stanton turntables and a basic mixer hooked to some computer speakers. Amateurs could get a chance to be a DJ, for a few minutes. Dub did an awesome job fueling the party with some great music.

It wouldn't be a car show with out models, lots of models. DUB and Rockstar didn't disappoint. There were a fair share of models by each car booth. Most of them signing posters if you happen to be so lucky or so patient.

Oh yeah I was there to check out Midnight Club 3. At Rockstar's booth they had a bunch of LCD TVs with fully playable versions of Midnight Club 3 Dub Edition. I spent a little time with it to have a hands on experience and it's a fast paced arcade racer. Something you would expect from the Midnight Club series. What's new in the game is a bunch of special moves fast cars have a bullet-time slowdown trick called "In the Zone" that lets you evade oncoming cars while driving fast. Larger cars have a roar move that sends a shockwave clearing up obstacles ahead. The car selection was pretty wide. You can drive a luxury car like a Lexus SC430, a faster Lamborghini Gallardo or a decked out Cadillac Escalade EXT. A new feature to Midnight Club 3 is the option to ride bikes too. You can race down the streets of San Diego in an Aprilia or cruise Atlanta with a Ninja ZX 12R. There was some cool stuff to pick up at the booth to, like a couple of posters and a DUB promo book.

An awesome party for a pretty tight game. I mean you know its a good time if even Charizard shows up in his ride to the party.