Now, if you’re giving the game a try on Xbox 360, there’s one tiny, little niggling detail that might keep you from ultimate enjoyment — you’ve got to have a Gold account to truly enjoy the multiplayer part of that demo.

Fortunately, Microsoft’s helping you out a little bit on that front! As posted in their forums yesterday, Microsoft has decided, “[i]n celebration of Mass Effect 3,” to allow everyone to have access to the multiplayer part of the game for the duration of the demo.

According to the post, it does look as though this includes full access to Gold — but only for a very limited time. Just enough to get you hooked, perhaps. Just remember, the first hit is free, and then it takes over your life.

This news comes to us, as lots of Xbox LIVE-related news does, from Major Nelson. Here’s the schedule:

• Warp: $10/800MSP, February 15
• Alan Wake’s American Nightmare: $15/1200MSP, February 22
• Nexuiz: $10/800MSP, February 29
• I Am Alive: $15/1200MSP, March 7

Buy all four games, and get 800 points back. It’s like getting one of the cheaper games for free! Except you have to buy it, and the money comes back later, and you get points back, but…hey! Points back are points back, right?

Venture into the darkness fight masses of enemies and try to defend your control over the darkness.

Xbox LIVE Gold members can now download an exclusive The Darkness II demo, published by 2K Games. On Jan. 24, PC gamers can download the demo through Steam, and all Xbox LIVE members can get the demo. On the same day, the PlayStation Network in North America will have the demo available, but it won’t be downloadable for most other markets until the next day.

Gold members get an extra week to delve into the single-player story of Jackie Estacado as he battles the Brotherhood. PlayStation gamers be jealous.

The full game comes out in North America, for all systems on Feb. 7, and worldwide on Feb. 10.

Over on Xbox.com, a new House Party is on the way. This year’s one-game-a-week promotion looks to start off with something quite a few people have gotten excited about since its reveal at the VGAs — Alan Wake’s American Nightmare.

This year’s House Party also features Warp from EA, Nexuiz from THQ Partners and Ubisoft’s long-awaited I Am Alive.

Get a look at all of them in the trailer below.

The physics engine has been reworked from the ground up, and new character animations have been added. Speaking of things that are new — Tails is making an appearance (finally).

“After twenty years in action, it’s clear that Sonic hasn’t slowed down one bit,” said Haruki Satomi, Senior Vice President of Digital Business at SEGA of America. “The first entry in the Sonic 4 saga was a major success. We’ve listened to the fans and been hard at work making sure we recapture that same spirit of fun in Episode II. We hope the fans will enjoy it.”

Check out the teaser trailer here:

I was pretty bummed when my Xbox Dashboard updated and the UFC tab had the old fight on it. Then reports came out that UFC application would not be updated until December 20th in time for the UFC 141. Even UFC posted about it!

This may be only available to certain users, but I was able to get the UFC application working and found that it’s updated with all the latest fight information! Amazing videos about all the fighters in UFC 140. You can make your picks as well as see who your friends picked to win. Basically it’s my husband and I fighting to see if Mir or Nog is going to win this Saturday.

Voting is easy and you get a plethora of information on the fighters. Not only the Tale of the Tape that shows all the measurements/age/history of the fighter, but also the last three fights and the outcome of those fights.

Check out this video where I walk through the available options. I am so excited to continue to play with this application. The amount of pre-fight content available is staggering. Currently it shows I can order the event for $0, but I’m pretty sure that will change when the application does go live.

That changes today for anyone with iOS, as Microsoft’s made the “My Xbox LIVE” app available on Apple’s app store. (Here, you can even have a link.)

The app allows you to manage your friends list, message your friends, invite new ones, edit your entire Xbox LIVE profile, change your avatar’s clothing and features and even view your achievement progress in the games you’ve played.

You can even create beacons on the go that will allow you to tell your friends what you feel like playing.

It all looks very slick, from what I’ve gotten to play with so far. It definitely dwarfs the other apps I’ve used to access my friends list in the past.

And Windows Phone is probably still the best way to access Xbox LIVE on the go — a new Xbox Companion app hit Windows Phone 7 yesterday, and it’s got even more features than this.

Do you like to keep up with your gaming friends on the go with an app like this? (I do.)

“Players on both Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 and Windows PC can get their chance to face the minions of the Orb and detonate chain reactions to maximize their score,” said Lyndon Sumner, design director of WXP Games. “We’re excited that our game is now available on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 so more gamers can blast their way through 23 cunning, puzzle-like levels while maximizing their time bonus and collecting powerups, activating point multipliers and discovering hidden secrets.”

The game released for PC earlier this year, and currently costs 800 Microsoft Points, or $9.99 on Steam.

The Ghost Clan, a cult of murderous fanatics, has infiltrated the waterworks beneath the town of Wellspring with plans to poison the water supply. You are the only one with the weapons, talent and courage to stop them. While in Wellspring, you can also meet the townsfolk, try your hand in games of skill and chance, peruse the wares of the local vendors or hit the Speedway for some racing.

This will come in handy this Friday, when the game is available for a special price at select retailers — $29.99. Hooray, Black Friday!

Two new series entries are on Xbox LIVE today for you to try in advance.

The Kinect-exclusive Dance Central 2 is one of these — the sequel to the peripheral’s breakout hit offers more music, simultaneous multiplayer and new dance crews. You can add it to your queue here.

Also on the Marketplace is the demo for Need for Speed: The Run, where you’ll find yourself racing through the Desert Hills of Nevada, and you’re not trying to get to Vegas. The race will extend through Independence Pass where you’re attempting to beat both a rival…and the clock. Download that one here.