There's no World Cup football this summer. There are no Olympic Games. Even the greatest video gaming event, the Electronic Sports World Cup, has been postponed because of the credit crunch...

Consider the void now filled.

You've no doubt already seen the Top 10 and the Must-Play List(!) but now comes a moment to savour: some of the greatest ever games pitted against one another in Megabits' very own Head2Head Gaming Contest.

After much discussion and deliberation, literally hundreds of classic titles have been whittled down to just 30 - some of which you may recognize below (click on the picture to enlarge).

Having chucked those lucky few into a hat, the final 16 have now been picked at random and over the coming weeks, they will battle it out before eight go through to the quarter finals.

Based on originality, longevity, graphics, sound FX and replayability, only the best will make it through.

The 16 are: Grand Theft Auto IV, Tetris, Fallout 3, Call of Duty 4, Sonic the Hedgehog, Syndicate Wars, Halo, Football Manager 2009, Gears of War, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, Gran Turismo, Streetfighter 2, Metal Gear Solid, Fifa 09, Medieval II: Total War, Fantasy World Dizzy.

But which of these will emerge battered and bloodied to be crowned overall champion? Keep checking the blog...