That noise you hear? It's the sound of Twitter breaking as a million fanboys flood the social network site roaring the name of Bioware's next project, which has just been announced at the Spike VGAs: ladies and gents, it's Mass Effect 3.
Confirmation came by way of a stunning trailer, of which the teaser images and clips we've seen crop up online this week come from. The trailer shows a army sniper lurking within Big Ben in London, overlooking the city's skyline, while a voiceover intones that there's been "two million dead in the first day...seven million in the first week."
The where, when and what is clarified as Reapers descend to wreck havoc and the voice continues: "If Shepard doesn't get back soon, there won't be an Earth left to save."
Better hang on to those save games people: the game's due holiday 2011, stacking it right alongside Oblivion sequel Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
Excited? Oh yes. See it for yourself below.