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Mad Max! Featuring Generic male #5. Fun game, a bit slow going at first but it does rev up and take off once you get into it. However this is also the downfall of the game.
Though it is an incredibly fun game with great moments you create yourself out in the wasteland, I won't spoil anything of the story or ending but simply say that, the ending of this game made the rest of the game feel cheap. The mini boss fights are far and away tougher than the ending fight(I also played this on the hardest difficulty they had) The very end literally was a short cut scene after an even simpler shorter fight, then the credits roll.
On the other side and why this game actually is a bit of fun? It's essentially Skyrim meets Grand Theft Auto. I play tested for WB studio when they were researching games like GTA to help with making MAD MAX. It has a vast open world you can explore with increasing difficulty in each part of the wasteland. You can stockpile scrap for different strongholds, complete projects to refuel your car,ammo, health and water etc. Its a very fun aspect that keeps you digging out into the wasteland to make your trips easier.
Like others, and I'm going to assume this comes down to either licensing or just pure lazy assedness. Why they chose to make max Generic male #5 versus you know...using Mel Gibson or Tom Hardy I can't fathom past these two options. Either they couldn't get the likeness or they decided to say screw it and put a randomly generated guy in the role. You can customize your road warrior though. Sadly only in a repeating pattern of no beard, beard, long beard. goggles no goggles, or goggles with paint. It's pretty lame and rather sad. Given the first trailer for this film and then the ones leading up to its release it honestly looks like they tacked on things from Fury Road once it became the hit it now is. Which if true shows they had no idea what to do with this game and that's sad(if true)
In the end though. It's still fun. Just lacking here and there. It's great upgrading your car, unlocking new ones and completing side quest. The main story is -good- but not amazing. Pretty depressing even when good, but still the ending is what sucked the vinegar off a dead mans sack for this game. | video-games_xbox |
Perfect RB Introduction for Kids. I love all the RB games, but if you have younger kids who really want to play, this is the game you want. Many young players are already familiar with the other Lego games (Indiana Jones, Star Wars) which are very entertaining and this is no exception. The characters are customizable, as in RB2, but so is your "Rock Den". Dozens of unlockable characters and items can be acquired for your area, from wall art and signs, to crazy characters like Dracula, and Wolfman.
Great for little kids:
They can play on "Super Easy" mode (usual range is easy to expert) which allows them to correctly "hit" a note on the guitar by merely strumming (no need to correctly key the right color fret); a drummer can hit any pad; the singer needs only to keep time, not match pitch. In addition, the kick pedal for the drum can be disabled, so it is not necessary for the game. This is a blessing for the kids that could otherwise play drums, but for that pedal!
The characters are fun to watch during the rock challenges, in which your band defeats a giant octopus, demolishes a skyscraper, scares ghosts out of a spooky mansion- and these can be watched over again in your Rock Den on the TV there.
Many cool vehicles that take you from pace to place- each area with its own population to be wowed by your bands' skills. These look like the lego minikits, and have your band's name on them. You perform for audiences ranging from rock monsters and cave men to pirates and construction workers. It is like playing in a virtual legoland, and the kids love to watch their character's adventures.
Many cool extras:(the notes are mini lego bricks, for instance) All points(studs- redeem to buy new characters, hair, den items) earned by the band are shared by the band, and parts bought for one member can be shared by all the others. There are also pets that are added to the Rock Den that move about!
There is a lot of downloadable content available that is compatible with this game, though not all the songs I would have preferred. I think they are edited for acceptability to young ears.
There is an option that allows you to play shortened versions of the songs- which is great for the littlest kids who might get bored or fatigue though a longer version. (Some of the songs are so awful, I'd play them on short to get them over with)
Why I didn't give it 5 stars:
Frustratingly long load times. If this is your first experience with RB this might not seem so bad, but after playing the regular version the wait seems excessive.
In the story mode, to get from one venue to another you have to travel to a different part of the rock den first, then go to the vehicle, then go to the venue. There is no way to just "skip" to the venue. This takes a lot of time, which can be frustrating.
A minor quibble, but the character heads and body colors are not able to be modified, so if you have chosen a light or a brown head for your character, there are few matching choices in the body section as most options are that orange/yellow typical of lego people.
The songs really suck. I haven't heard of half of them, and I'm surprised at the ones that were included (Queen is great- but "We Will Rock You" is the most boring song ever.) There are also not very many of them, but more are available for download (unlike the wii version) which is a saving grace. Plus, on many venues you are stuck playing a mystery setlist that repeats a song already at that venue- so you get sick of it pretty quick. (This is my subjective opinion, so please don't use it as an excuse not to look at the game.)
This is an outstanding game for your little lego fan who wants to rock out with the big brother, or for the novice parent who wants to not ruin the game by failing out of a song. (Super easy mode is also no fail, but unlike Rockband 2, you get to keep the money earned even when played on this mode. Online saving is disabled in RB2 if playing in no fail mode, so your achievements and game money and progress count for nothing.)
As an adult fan of lego, and a lover of the RB games, I will play this with my kids, but prefer RB2. A few fixes to the interface and better songs would make it near perfect. Absolutely worth a look for the kids. | video-games_xbox |
Excellent performance, but pretty fragile. I've had the AX Pro's for a couple weeks, and have used them with my PS3 as well as with 5.1 content from DirecTV. Overall, performance has been excellent. The multi-speaker headphones do add a good amount of directionality and spatial effects to sound. Shooting games sound great, and being able to hear where shots are coming from, or the direction of your teammates' voices adds a new dimension to gameplay.
I have found that I need to adjust the levels on the volume control for each game and can't find one setting for all. Tritton's goofy color scheme is a pain - for this amount of money couldn't they just add a small lcd screen with numbers? Within each color there seems to be 4 or five levels, but until you drop down or go up from one color to the next, you won't be able to tell, for example, a Red 5 from a Red 1. In addition, setting overall volume levels, or the delay, or even the dynamic range compression, on the decoder box, is equally as cryptic. All you can do is mash the + or r- button until you feel confident you've gotten to the bottom or top of the range, then count your way up or down from there. Again, how hard/expensive would it have been to provide an lcd display?
As for the fidelity of the sound, my older ears aren't the best to judge this, but sound quality seems to be on a par with my 10 year old Grado's . High's are a bit harsh, midrange is solid and the bass is especially impressive (when adjusted correctly - if you just crank it up, it is boomy and distorted).
I have my AX Pro's hooked into an optical source switch so I can select the PS3 or DirecTV DVR. Works well. Using the "Optical Out" on our plasma TV didn't seem to pass anything other than 2 channel sound.
Using these with DirecTV is a pleasant surprise. Sporting events sound a LOT more spacious (again, you'll need to adjust the levels). Watched a hockey game the other day and the announcers were squarely in the middle of my head, the crowd was all around me, and the on-ice action actually moved from one ear to the other to track what I say on screen. Pretty cool. Other DTV content is equally enjoyable. Movies provide a 5.1 experience almost as good as a home theater, and even weekly TV shows are more entertaining.
Now, for the bad. These things are very flimsy. Yesterday, while simply removing them from my head (in a normal way), one side of the 'phones pulled loose from the headband, and the 'phones went dead. I was able to fix them, as the entire assembly is just snapped together, but MAN was I ticked at how easily the things come apart! I was very lucky nothing broke, but you better believe I will be treating them extra carefully from now on.
Also, I can't comment on how well the mic works since I haven't used it yet.
So, in summary, I really like the AX Pros, and they're a lot of fun. Just wish they were built a little sturdier. | video-games_xbox |
Could Have Been Better. Now the need for speed series has been out for a while and it is argued to be the best video game series out there. I still say that Midnight club is better, but whatever floats your boat. The need for speed series is a very good series but lacks in some things. This one is no different in problem wise. It is a good game no doubt, but lacks in some things that could have made it the greatest racing game alive.
The story-line isn't all that good, but I mean what Racing game has an excellent story-line. They are hard to come up with and are mostly dull. This one is sort of new to the dull story-lines but what the heck. You are a racer, one of the best, and you race another guy named Razor. Unfortunatley you leave a little car spill at the beginning of the race. Your "so-called" friend Mia tells you to pull over just to be safe. You end up losing the race and oyur vehicle. You find out later that Razor has used your car to get to the number one spot on the blacklist(consists of 15 racers all racing for the number one spot). Mia tells you its your chance to get your car back by working your way up the list to eventually race Razor. Now there are a couple of twists in the game, but I don't want to give anyhting away. The game could have had more cinematechs though. I mean it only has a few in the beginning and a few at the end. Its really disappointing too because they look amazing. It also does get boring around the middle of the game where you are kind of in the middle of a story-line desert with no cinematechs and no story-line updates. You kind of say to yourself where is everybody, because they don't send any messages or anything. I would rate the story line a 3 out of 5.
The gameplay is obviously the top thing the game has to offer. The game makers decided to go with the whole cop chase theme with this one. A good way to go, but they didn't do it too well but i'll get to that in a minute. The blacklist basicaly works like this: You get informed on who is the next racer on the blacklist and to race him, like usual, you have to earn respect or whatever. He gives you a certain amount of races you need to complete and also a certain amount of milestones, which are like cop chaces and what not (smashing cop cars, dodgeing road blacks, and time limits in chases). Now listen up because this is a big bad thing in the game. The hardness RATIO between the races and milestones is incredibly bad. The races are so easy and the milestones get incredibly hard. So basically if a younger kid wants to play the game he'll be able to do the races no problem, but then have to have an older person to the milestones for them everytime. Its incredible. And i mean the races are so easy even the final boss Razor is easy. To be in fact I never lost a blacklist race the whole game. However I did have trouble with the milestones. They start to get incredible hard around the nineth blacklist member. It will start to take you a whole day of none stop playing just to finish the milestones. And so basically if you are a hardcore gamer and you're reakky good then you can complete the milestones, but you will feel bored with the race difficulty. However in other gameplay words, its rather good. The customization is amazing and I love the body kits and everything, however there is not as much sutomization as the other which disappointed me and there is not many cars and they are like ..eh, nothing to great. The gameplay with mostly feel the same as the other NFS games, but they did make the shops all into one so you didn't have to do that stupid driving to go to the paint shop and then body shop like the last one. I give the gameplay a 4 out of 5.
The graphics are excellent and there are no problems with them. The only thing is your car has better graphics than the cars on the road, but what racing game doesn't have that. The cinematechs graphics are even greater, but you only see them in the beginning and end, god only knows why. I give the graphics a 5 out of 5. The sound on the other hand are also good, with the car sounds and what not. The acting though is horrible. Mia sounds like a joke and Razor, oh my god, his voice is ridiculous. It sounds like he is a devil. Me and my cousin always make fun of it and he does the voice so good i crack up everytime. Anyways I give the sound a 4 out of 5.
It may have sound liked I complained about the game a lot, but its a pretty good game. Its just that the things could have been prevented if they made the game right, it just frustrates me. Anyway I say get the game, definitely buy it. Because if you rent it you will never hae the time to beat it because it is amazingly long, perhaps maybe too long, but whatever. | video-games_xbox |
Orange Box Review, Includes Pros and Cons. I'm 14 years old and I've played the first Half-Life, and have played both Left 4 Dead's, all by the same company, Valve. In this review I will discuss the pros and the cons about the Orange Box and all the games that come in it separately in one review. I hope you find it useful.
The Orange Box: Action, Puzzle Solving, Minor Gore, Online Class-Based Combat.
This review contains no spoilers.
The Orange Box consists of five different game in one: Three sections of the Half-Life story (all making up three parts of the sequel to one game), Portal, which is a humorous-yet-serious puzzle solving game, and Team Fortress 2, the online-only sequel to a game I have not played.
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Half-Life 2
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--[ALERT]-- Please note that Half-Life 2 will make NO sense to you if you have not yet played the original Half-Life. If you haven't played the original, then this entire review on Half-Life 2 can be considered full of spoilers.
Half-life 2 is, of course, the sequel to Half-Life, an alien invasion based game. In Half-life 1, you play a character named Gordon Freeman, a scientist working at a facility called Black Mesa. You and your coleagues are working to establish contact with an alien world, when something goes terribly wrong. (This is not a spoiler because it is the plot of the entire game). Aliens began pouring in, killing your coleagues and wreaking havoc throughout the facility. Eventually, a hostile alien force (I assume they're some kind of alien police, Valve doesn't explain things very well) takes over the world, holding humans under their thumb as the dominant species. You, Gordon Freeman, lead the revolution against the alien force that has ruled over the world since the Black Mesa Incident, and hopefully will become the savior of humanity.
Pros:
Extremely Interesting Story - Half-Life 2 is solely about the storyline. It doesn't offer any multiplayer or online play, but it makes up for it with its brother in the Box, Team Fortress 2. As explained above, Half-Life 2 is about an alien invasion, with you leading the rebellion against them. The story is completely addictive, but is pointless if you have not played the original Half-Life.
Good Graphics - The Orange Box came out a little, little while ago, a few years. So it doesn't have the best graphics, but it was among the best of its time. The graphics are still practically picture-perfect, but aren't as good as today's games.
Deep Characters - The characters in Half-Life 2 have lives of their own. Valve did such a good job on writing the characters that you actually develope feelings for them and what happens to them... All of the characters in the game are very different, and all of them will capture the way you feel towards characters in a game.
Cons:
No Multiplayer - As stated above, Half-Life 2 is all about the storyline, and has no online or multiplayer features. However, there's always Team Fortess 2, in case you buy the Orange Box instead of buying the games separately.
Unique Controls - For those who have played strong titles such as Call of Duty or Halo, Half-Life 2's controls will be a change, for better or worse, especially with the unique guns it has in it. Do note that the controls are still quick and responsive, they are just unique to the controls most FPS titles share.
Mature Storyline - This could be either a pro or a con. The storyline in Half-Life 1 and 2 are told very maturly, in a very intricate way. This probably isn't a game for younger audiences, though buy-knows-best.
Half-Life 2 contains little blood, usually a bloody skeleton or a burnt face, but no limbs exploding or anything substantial. No sexuality, and a mild amount of cursing.
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Portal
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Portal is a very unique game, combining puzzle solving, humor, and little action. You play the role of (character name not given in the game), who has been taken to a testing facility to be.. you guess it! Tested on. You are given a special gun that is used to shoot portals. You can only have two portals out at once, and when you (or an object you throw into it) travel through one, you (or an object you throw into it) come out through the other. You are given a series of testing chambers, all becoming more complex as you progress through the game.
Pros:
Brilliant Puzzles - Portal's puzzles feature you using your portals at the right times, getting objects to where they are needed in order to complete said puzzles, and getting there safely. Some puzzles feature acid-flooded floors, elevators, timed doors, portal-proof panels and much more.
Great Antagonist - The antagonist of it all, GLaDOS, (no typos) watches your every move and makes sarcastic remarks on your performance. Abrupt inflections show her frustration as you complete puzzles correctly, which makes GLaDOS a unique character in a game.
Silence - Most FPS games usually have teammates yelling at you or gunfire echo-ing in your ear, but Portal provides absolute (and much needed) silence to help you figure out its complex puzzles.
Yet it's still funny - Portal is both a serious and a humorous game. With GLaDOS's sarcastic remarks and ironic outcomes of some puzzles, Portal makes a great game for both worlds, as some may say.
Ending - Without giving anything away, I guarentee you that if you decide to get Portal, you'll love what the ending has in store. It's very memorable.
Cons:
Too Short - While Portal has an artistically written story that draws you in from beginning to end, the game itself is a little too short. On your first run, you can probably beat the game in about 2-3 days. Once you've figured out the puzzles, it can easily be beaten in less than one day.
Dizzying - The constant need for portals in high and low places alike and the need to travel through them can make Portal a dizzying game for those who don't have, um, spinning experience. You have to fling all around and launch yourself all the time in Portal.
Frustration? - Some people may find some of Portal's challenges to be too complex, and trust me, Portal can be very frustrating at times.
Portal should not, and I repeat, not be bought by itself. It's too short to be bought as one game. It's like spending $40 for Pac-Man. It is definitely something to consider if you get the Orange Box, but it is not worth anything about $30 by itself. No inappropriate content, just some blood spatters on the wall when you're shot at. No cursing.
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Team Fortess 2
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I have not played Team Fortress 1, and I strongly doubt that either of them have any story to them. Team Fortress 2 is a class based game, meaning that you can choose to snipe enemies from afar, build turrets to protect you and your allies, or even disguise yourself as an enemy to infiltrate them. Team Fortress 2 has something for everybody.
Pros:
Something for everybody - Umm as stated above, Team Fortress has several different classes to choose from (Nine to be exact)
Humorous Massacre - While wreaking havoc on your foes, you may decide to mock them in a unique way (aside from teabagging them, while you can still do that). You can press (assigned button can vary due to player modifications) to do a special emote to mock your enemies. For example, the sniper can sarcastically mourn for you, or the medic class can play a sad violin for you.
Fool-Proof Teamwork - The fact that you can be a medic, an engineer (who build machines to aid you and your allies) or a durable muscle-man who can take damage for you make sure that everyone isn't just stealing your kills, they're helping you get them as well!
Cons:
Intended Graphics - When Valve made Team Fortress 2, they made the characters and areas kind of cartoon looking, which can make it funnier or worse, depending on your play style.
Gore - Unlike Half-Life 2 and Portal, Team Fortress 2 does have some notable gore in it. When you blow someone up, there limbs blow up in all directions in little bloody chunks.
Please note that Team Fortress 2 can only be played online.
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Well that sums up the Orange Box. It's definitely a steal, getting 5 games for the price of one, and all have good replay value. No inappropriate content, besides the gore in Team Fortress 2. Mild cursing in Half-Life 2, nothing major. I rate this game overall to have 4.5 stars, but Amazon won't allow halves.
I hope you found this review helpful. | video-games_xbox |
Xbox One OK, Support Severly Lacking. I purchased an Xbox One for my son for Christmas. I preordered in June as soon as they became available for preorder. I received it around Thanksgiving, and immediately wrapped it and put it under the tree until Christmas Day. This was a mistake on my part. I heard that there were problems with the Xbox One and that many had faulty CD drives. I figured it had to be a minuscule number and surely wouldn't affect me. I was wrong. Christmas day came and my son opened his gift, and of course immediately wanted it fired up. We got everything hooked up, fired up the first game. (Forza 5). It actually played, until we tried to eject the disc to put in a new game.
That is where the wheels fell off so to speak. The unit would not eject the game, and would no longer play the game in the unit. Spent several hours on the support forums trying various fixes to get the disc ejected. All failed. Logged onto to Xbox support chat and went through the process of explaining my situation. I was left with a choice of sending in my Xbox one for repair and waiting 3 to 4 weeks for its return or doing an advanced exchange. The advanced exchange sends you a new unit (well new to you at least) and when you get it you put your old one in the shipping box and send it back. Of course there is a catch, you have to give them a credit card number and they will put a hold for the full purchase price of the Xbox on your card until they receive the old one back. This being Christmas and my son's main gift, I really had no choice in the interest of my own sanity, but use the Advance Exchange. I was worried about the Forza disc being stuck in the game and it being returned to me. I was told by representative that they would put a note in my ticket and the game would be returned once it reached the repair facility. It all sounded good to me and I proceeded.
I received the new unit the next day, and packed up the defective unit and sent it back. New unit worked fine. I received an email saying the repair facility had received the defective unit and the hold on my credit card was removed. I was thinking to myself that for a bad situation this worked out pretty well. I was wrong. Four weeks later I had not heard anything back from Microsoft in regards to the game that was stuck in the original machine. I contacted support, and they told me that they would have to refer me to the Customer Advocacy Team and open a ticket with them. I proceeded with opening a new ticket. A few days later I got an email from "Jeremy" a Customer Advocacy team member who explained to me that he had contacted the repair facility and they could not find my game disc, but they would be happy to generate a token for a download version of the game if that would be acceptable to me. I emailed him back and said that would be acceptable. This should have wrapped everything up, but once again I was wrong.
Three days later, I had not heard back from Jeremy. Maybe he didn't receive my email or something. So, I contacted support again with my Customer Advocacy ticket number and asked if there was a problem. The representative told me my ticket was open and that my reply was in there. The representative then went on to tell that he couldn't issue me the game token, and that to give them 24 hours. Unhappy, I waited 24 hours and surprise, surprise no response. Contacted support again, this time I spoke to a customer representative named "Ian". Ian told me my ticket was still open and that he would flag it to be expedited. "Ian" proceeded to tell me that I was now in good hands and that this problem would be taken care of and that he would personally check on it and ensure that it was resolved and that I would get download token. He took my email address and my telephone number and basically pulled every lever in the book to reassure me that it would be taken care of.
And guess what, I still haven't been contacted. It still isn't taken care of, and now it's the weekend. I know the first thing my son is going to ask me when he gets home from school is if he can play Forza. I am almost at the point of going and buying my son the game again, because while I'm upset at being jerked around by Microsoft Xbox support, I am absolutely furious at my son being dragged along for the ride. The only thing that is stopping me is the fact that I do not want to give them anymore of my business. I am really feeling like I should have gone with the PlayStation 4. | video-games_xbox |
Great Game. **UPDATE** Sad news from Lorne Lanning and Oddworld Inhabitants, the creators of this spectacular series. Oddworld Inhabitants is closing its doors. After creating 4 games in what was supposed to be a huge series and with 2 games already in development for next gen systems, they are closing up. Chances are this will be the last game featuring the loveable creatures of Oddworld. But fear not, Lanning believes he might be able to crack into the TV or movie business in order to have his property protected. Keep an eye on them. They are so talented, their studio might be the next Pixar.
On to the review:
I'm very disappointed in the mistreatment this game has been getting from the professional online reviewers like IGN, Gamespot and Gamespy. When I was trying to figure out if this game was worth purchasing or not, I had to literally search the entire page at the Xbox branch of IGN just to find the review. Normally, reviews get top billing; not the case with this beautifully unique game.
A lot has been said about the "gimmick" of having live ammo. Given the series of Oddworld (Abe's Oddysee and Exodus, Munch's Oddysee), how someone could label the live ammo as a gimmick is beyond me. Oddworld is a world very different from our own. Stranger's Wrath just heightened this oddity by giving you creatures to fire instead of finding ammo for your tripple-barrelled, shoots rockets and has a flame-thrower attached, shotgun. And it fits in the universe perfectly. Now, if this was a Halo game (for example), yes having live ammo would be a gimmick. But, it fits in perfectly with the Oddworld mythos and provides a truly engaging experience.
Another thing that I feared after reading the sorely mistaken (IMO) professional reviews was that it was virtually impossible to capture the bosses alive. Being a bounty hunter, it is your mission to capture wanted villains either dead or alive. By capturing them alive you get two or more times the money than capturing them dead.
Now, if you were to read a lot of reviews from IGN etc, it would seem that you couldn't capture any of the bosses alive. While I have been playing games all of my life and am better than the average gamer in some respects, I would definitely not consider myself a master of the FPS genre. By any stretch. And yet I was able to capture every single boss alive. Now, there were a couple that made me very frustrated and it took me more than a handful of tries to do it, I was able to. The game definitely makes you work to get that full bounty but it's not impossible.
As far as the story goes, the developers once again created a uniquely different story involving Stranger and his past. I will not reveal any story spoilers, but not is all what it seems and there will come a point where the way you look at the game changes in an exciting way. And from that point on, the game ramps up the excitement to a wonderful climax.
Graphically, the game is beautiful. It makes me remember why I bought the Xbox. Not only are the lush environments beautifully rendered, but the framerate moves swiftly. Seeing Strange bound at a cheetah speed through these beautiful environments is striking. There is some pop-up, especially in Mango (sp?) Valley where bushes will pop up in the distance. But considering the speed and the graphics the game is pushing, it doesn't really bother me.
As far as controls go, this game is well designed. Switching between first person and third person is as easy as tapping the R3 button. This change works really well, giving you the best of both worlds, the percision of first person shooting, and the fluidity and speed of moving in third person. I have a couple complaints though. Moving up and down rope is a pain. The animation is kinda clunky and I don't see why you can't slide down rope, instead of hand over hand moving down it. Hey, if the Prince can slide down rope, why can't Stranger? But this is a minor quibble.
As far as the sound goes, again Oddworld Inhabitants (the developers) did an excellent job. Stranger's voice is a little silly to me, he talks in a slow drawl that seems to be a cross between Clint Eastwood and Forrest Gump. But the other voices are remarkable, especially considering that most (if not all) are done in house with the Lead voicing most characters in all of the Oddworld games.
My only real complaint is that the game isn't long enough. It's longer than Halo 2 (which is a bonus), and I don't know exactly how many hours I clocked in on it, but it felt like it was over too fast. I guess what disappointed me was that I was having so much fun exploring Oddworld again that no matter how long or short it was I would be sad to leave it. The world is just so interesting.
The level design is also very linear. In today's world of GTA openness, people might have a problem with that, which is why I bring it up. The levels have a set path. That's not to say the gameplay is linear. There are MANY different ways to tackle every situation. The joy of having live ammo is that you are presented with a myriad of ways to take down the opposition, creating gameplay that allows you to experiment. But if you're looking for a Deus Ex type of environment where there are multiple paths to get to the boss, you won't find it here.
What the game does best is refresh video games. From the opening CG cinema (which is Pixar quality) to all of the loveably strange and bizarre characters, this game oozes originality and charm. You can tell the developers truly care about the artform of video games. They love what they do and the game was a refreshing experience.
To sum it up, I can't say enough about this game. It is unique. It is beautiful. And it is fun. Even after the 5th time trying to take down a boss alive, I didn't throw down the controller in anger. It kept me wanting to play until I could take him down. If you are tired of the same old save Earth from "insert name of alien race here", or similar I would definitely recommend this game. It is hard, but it is easily one of the most enjoyable games I have played in ages. And the jolt of energy the games gives you about half way through the game is enough for me to recommend buying this game. | video-games_xbox |
Very short cables severely limit this for console use. One of the first games released for the Xbox One was Forza Motorsport 5. Although the game itself had some drawbacks, one of the major ones, for me at least, was the lack of any kind of steering wheel and pedal set available for the Xbox One. I had a few sets for my PS3 and Xbox 360 and had grown so used to playing driving games in a seat with pedals and a wheel that going back to the controllers just didn't seem right.
Since then there have been a few (not many) pedal and wheel sets come out for the Xbox One and none of them to be honest have been very good so far with the exception of the Fanatec set which will cost you around $1500, not including a seat.
Thrustmaster has once again decided to dip its toe into the world of racing wheels with the Thrustmaster TMX set. Primarily designed for the Xbox One but it will also work with your PC as well. The Thrustmaster TMX is basically a two piece set. You get the wheel which has all the buttons for the Xbox One laid out in easily reach positions with the exception of the menu buttons which are a little too far in on the wheel for easy reach however you will rarely if ever use them in games. It has a nice set of metal paddle shifters with a solid microswitch click to them letting you know gears have changed. The wheel itself features a 270 to 900 degree turning angle (adjustable in game) and adjustable force feedback (also adjustable in game). The force feedback works very well letting you know when you are running over rumble strips or goes slightly light when you are in a skid giving you instant feedback just like you have in a real car. This really helps with controlling your car and getting the best laptimes possible. The wheel is sturdy and comes with a screw on clamp so that you can affix it to a table. I tried playing with it in my lap an you realistically can't. It needs to be clamped down.
The pedals set is a base accelerator and brake pedal. The brake pedal has a tighter spring on it giving you a simulated feedback mechanism but unlike the pedal sets from Fanatec, it is not a true feedback mechanism. Compared to the wheel, the pedals look and feel a lot cheaper and more flimsy.
I've tried the wheel with Forza 6 and Forza Horizons 2 and it works well. Force feedback works well (you may need to adjust the settings in game for your own particular preference but I found the defaults work really well), the buttons and paddle shifters work well however the accelerator pedal isn't as precise as I would have liked. I do own the much more expensive Fanatec set and you can really tell the difference.
Setup is as simply as plugging the pedals into the wheel, the wheel into a power supply and your Xbox using the USB cable.
There are some issues with the wheel however and one of them (for me anyway) is a major one. Firstly, there are no holes in the bottom of the wheel which would allow you to fix it to a racing seat, you only have the option of clamping it to a table. I have two racing seats and the clamping system really just doesn't work with either of them.
The second problem and this is the major one is that the Thrustmaster TMX set simply does not have long enough cables. The USB cable is only about 5 feet in length and the power cable is perhaps 6ft. I have an 80 inch TV that my consoles are hooked into and with the very poor length of the cables I found myself sitting 2 feet infront of it. This simply does not make for a good way to play games. You are far too close and after a while I actually started getting a headache with being so close the TV. The cables need to be 3 times as long as they are. It's not as if cabling is expensive. Whomever designed this must have designed it primarily for use on a PC where 5ft of cabling is generally long enough but is nowhere near long enough for your average console.
Overall this is quite a good wheel and pedal set, especially for the money but rendered almost unusable by the woefully short cables. | video-games_xbox |
Another Disgrace to Philadelphia. This is a let down. I was really hoping for a fun shooter that had some nice open world elements to it and that is how this game is designed in purpose and intent...but it doesn't follow through at all. Some described it as having the potential to land inbetween a Far Cry game & Call of Duty and that couldn't be further from the truth. I think it flat out sucks, in fact I would rather play the 1st game than attempt giving this another go.
The controls are clunky and generally just feel awkward. I never made it passed the 1st mission because I quickly ran out of ammo and for whatever reason could not pick up the enemies firearms. what a way to start a brand new game! Usually the introductory sequences are not much of a challenge and more of a tutorial and welcome to the gameplay. well this intro mission sucked. I think the worst thing about the beginning is they start you off at night, and this game definitely has a lighting issue, I cannot see a damn thing. I tried tinkering with the brightness settings and it didn't help one bit.
The crafting table and weapon wheel seem like they might be pretty cool once you figure everything out but I have no interest in this point. I maybe didn't give this game a fair chance but i'm the type of gamer who is at a make it or break it point within the 1st couple hours of playing a game. Homefront Revolution also has a long and drawn out intro but that's OK i've come to accept that in modern day gaming, buttering players up with a story and or background is fine. But not with what I just experienced.
Last but not least this is a typical disgrace associated with Philadelphia. As a resident of Eastern PA I am not surprised to see just one more let down or turd affiliated with the city of Brotherly Love, we've already got one of the worst conglomerates of Sports Franchises right now. Why not have a garbage game to go along with it. Fortunately from what I can tell, it seems to just be a simple spot that was picked and not much more.
I'd like to try giving that 1st mission another shot but I feel like I might strain my eyes doing so.
If you're reading my review and you like the game, please feel free to give me a reason to attempt playing it again. I cannot think of one. | video-games_xbox |
Bad Customer Service. Spoilers ahead, reader beware (there isn't any plot to ruin on the game though). First off, I would like to state to any quote, "fanboys" who want to criticize me just for giving this a game one star, I am not only reviewing the game, I am reviewing several things. Please read the review before commenting.
I received this game on Christmas along with my Xbox One, which I could not play all day because you have to log into an account which you were not able to do. While this is a flaw on Xbox, I started this game with a bad mindset of anger and irritation at 12 AM. The game overall was highly enjoyable! I loved the physics, graphics, and several other aspects. I felt it was almost too similar to Forza Horizon though. I have a rather ridiculous amount of playtime on Forza Horizon (one) so it did not shock me when I played this game and got bored very quickly due to similarity. I felt that the whole championship was very dull. There are a total of 168 championships, which to complete the game, you will have to beat them all. 28 Championships have the same races, so the game got very repetitive. After you beat 15 championships you get to race in the Horizon Finale. The company did not even put anytime into redoing the voice overs once you beat the first finale. The guy will say "People are starting to take notice of you" "Won't be long and you will be racing in the finale" and so forth. Which I thought was sad, they could of at least re-named the race and did a different voice track.
I will now be talking about the bucket list system, 45 challenges you have to complete to beat the game (I did them all). If you don't have patience, I don't recommend challenging yourself to beat the Playground Games: Beat us at our own game bucket list. Many of the challenges are almost impossible with all assists off (how I play) or at least watching a video on YouTube explaining how to beat it. There were several in this bucket list category I was almost crapping myself after I beat them. I had a couple where I truly had to try the challenge around 35+ times
Here's where my main, 1 star review, came from. I had an issue with Forza Hub Rewards, no big deal right? You know, the Hub still allowed me to post photos and let me view event's and other friends photos. After a few days I decided to take action into my own hands (stop waiting for an update) and email Turn 10. I seen this reply when I logged into my email.
Thank you for contacting Turn 10 Studios. Due to the volume of mail we receive, we cannot individually respond to all e-mails sent to us. If you have a question about a Xbox LIVE or Forza Motorsport Terms of Service, please see the following links:
http://www.xbox.com/en-US/Legal/LiveTOU
http://forzamotorsport.net/en-us/support.aspx
http://forums.forzamotorsport.net/turn10_postst263_Terms-of-Service--TOS--for-Forzamotorsport-net-Community-Forums.aspx
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Ok, come on? These links would literally help 10% of people with their issue. You are a multi-million dollar (too be honest I can't even begin to imagine how much Forza Motorsports / Turn 10 studios has from people buying their games) company, and you can't even supply a proper support system to your community? What a joke! I have spent a lot of money on yours games and you can't even assist me with a simple issue? I understand you may get many emails, but they should have a support team. I will now be contacting Xbox themselves tomorrow. That really broke the line for me to right the review. I was already thinking about writing one with 3 stars, but this was just unbelievable. The Forza Forums also feature a moderation period on your account, so I figure I definable won't be receiving help now (I posted something about their support sucking).
I am a hardcore racing game fan, and a long time Forza fan, but after this experience I don't think I will be buying any of their DLC or games for awhile. | video-games_xbox |
All that and a bag of chips. I've been a huge rpg fan from way back in the 80's. This game is horrible. I started out sceptically about how an RPG could have a space theme, Although i was pleasantly surprised. The irritating aspects of the game don't really show up till several hours into the game. Initially the combat system is amazing, Blindsides are a lot of fun. HOWEVER as the game goes on blindsides become practically useless, either you get ganged up on and can't set up a B.S., OR the bad guys counter your blindside. In general it's way to easy to interrupt your characters actions. A great example of this is the spell Cure Condition. totally useless in most combat situations, due to the fact if your poisoned the poison damage ticks interrupt your attempts to cast the spell. The interrupts combined with stun locks are ridiculous, am i playing WoW all over again?
Next on my list of disappointments is all the female characters in the game. Between the horrid voice actors, and the inability to act like a normal female its seriously annoying. Who gives a child a sultry adult woman voice? Kay... Next is the stupid Cat character.. wtf? all i gota say kay... Whats with RPG's not being able to design and code a normal female character personality? Although Reimi is fairly cool.
Next i get into the progressively lame boss fights... Why would you design a boss encounter to take 3 hours? You play through the game just fine killing the encounters with ease... then you run face first into the wall, and aren't able to effectively finish a boss. Blindsides become nearly useless, with all the bosses having aoe whirlwind type attacks, setup a blindside just to get "interrupted," or even worse countered. Set up for this super super cool attack, just to find out your DENIED, kay...
As far as graphics are concerned? the graphics are fairly great, with exception of the text. for some reason the text, for example item and character screens are almost impossible to read. blurred white lettering with a yellow background? yea what ever kay..
Hopefully another decent rpg will come out for the Xbox360, For now if i need a fix I'll go back to Lost Odyssey or Oblivion. Better graphics, better characters, less annoyance factor. | video-games_xbox |
Not everyone's cut out to be a ghostbuster. Most movies based on video games suck. Likewise, most video games based on movies suck. This one is an exception. It has a lot to do with the fact that Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd co-wrote the script for the game. The graphics are good and original characters are all well rendered with good voice acting. Better still, the original actors return to voice all four ghostbusters, even the token black one Winston. The original actress returns to voice the secretary, although she looks younger and hotter in the game. They even got the original actor to voice, Peck, their annoying antagonist. Bill Murray's brother voices the mayor and he looks like himself. You play a generic fifth rookie ghostbuster, who doesn't get a name or a voice. You are referred to as rookie and cadet most of the game.
The game play, sound effects and graphics are pretty good. You get a small variety of weapons, and have the ability to upgrade them somewhat. You acquire money throughout the game for capturing or destroying ghosts, and can use that money for your upgrades. You should be able to purchase all your upgrades well before the game is over, after which money is useless.
The game features the original theme music though not the whole cord, and not the song (no lyrics).
This game can be enjoyed by kids and adults, and features a fair amount of humor. You will chuckle more then actually laugh. Difficulty on the normal setting is actually pretty challenging. However, the difficulty of certain parts is really sporadic, as most of the boss fights I found easy, where as some supposedly simple parts proved very difficult and took repeated tries. The hardest part of the game is near the end by a gate, and is ridiculously difficult.
Fortunately the game saves your progress automatically at check points and there are many. Unfortunately you can't have saved games to just replay your favorite parts, and the although the checkpoints are usually well placed, some of them require you to go back through boring stuff you already did.
The game is very linear and there are no choices to be made. At several points in the game you have the ability to wander around the station before going on your next mission. It's interesting the first time, but there is nothing to do there, and it's absolutely pointless. I get the feeling they wanted to add something else to do there, and ran out of time or money.
Some jokes, ghosts and places are rehashed from the movies. All things considered this was pretty good for a games based on a movie, and most fans of the movies will probably enjoy this | video-games_xbox |
Harakiri. I'm sure many of you have never even heard of Samurai Shodown. The name is actually a bit misleading, as many of the characters are not even samurai, although most still are. The original Samurai Shodown games were for the Neo Geo and the SNES and they ran on a modified version of the Street Fighter engine, and the first Samurai Shodown was one of the first weapons based fighting games. On top of this, Samurai Shodown 64 was the first 3D fighting game to utilize multi-tiered arenas, although Dead or Alive has stolen the fame for it.
When the latest entry was released for the Xbox 360, it immediately peaked my interest, but something told me it wasn't going to be worth the $50 price tag, and so I waited. About a week ago, I saw that it was only $20, and decided it was time to give it a shot.
When I first booted the game up, I immediately jumped into story mode without practicing at all. I enjoyed the graphics for a while, as they were vibrant, and cel-shaded. I soon noticed, however, that the graphics are actually a bit lackluster. The Xbox 360 is definitely capable of much more than this. The character artwork, however, is amazing.
The gameplay has changed drastically in this entry. Controls have been simplified, however, combos and specials are quite difficult to learn. The basic layout took a cue from Soul Calibur. The controller's face buttons are for a horizontal strike, a vertical strike, a kick and a grab. The right bumper initiates a powerful, quick attack, while the right trigger activates and even more powerful, albeit, slow attack. The left bumper begins charging an extremely powerful attack that can break any defense. The problem with the combo system is that it just isn't fluid enough, and the game doesn't bother making the skill lists easy to read.
The series has always had faulty translations, and Sen is no different. Some of the characters titles are good for a laugh, and was particularly amused by the sign that read "Solaon" instead of "Saloon" in the wild west stage.
The music reminds me of that from Okami, except less awesome.
This is without a doubt the most violent entry in the series. At the end of the last round of a match, you can dismember your opponents arm, cut out their head, or even chop them in half. Depending on the character, you may also be able to deliver a fatal slash to the chest, or puncture their heart. Each character also has a fatality-like move that can only be activated if they are loosing badly, but I couldn't figure out how to activate any of them. Although it is no Mortal Kombat, there is something satisfying about cutting the hand off of a spammy opponent as if to say "Now, those tactics didn't get you very far!"
Speaking of spammy opponents, that is the best way to sum up the AI in this game. After beating story with only 8 characters, I was sick of it, and have not touched its single player since. I tried to find a match on Xbox Live, but so few people play this game that I sat there for 45 minutes while reading a book and found no one. I did play with someone in person, though, and honestly, the game is two times better when playing a human opponent.
Although this game is not as good as its predecessors, it isn't all bad. It's only $20 new, and it can be fun to play with a friend. Just don't expect to find many, if any, online matches. It is worth having in your collection only if you have a friend to play it with, but even then, you may only pick it up occasionally. Until they bring this series back to its former glory, I suggest you just play the originals. | video-games_xbox |
The Chief is back. Let's get this out of the way right now....Halo 3 does not revolutionize nor change the face of FPS gaming. There I said it.
With that out of the way, Bungie's Halo 3 is an amazingly fun experience that brings the Halo trilogy to a close. Like other "Space Operas" of its ilk, the Halo storyline is a very confusing one, especially if you have never been exposed to the previous Halo games, the books or the graphic novels. However this in no way affects the fun factor of Halo 3.
Let's start with the graphical department. It is my personal opinion that each Halo offering has had quite amazing graphics. The original Halo: Combat Evolved, stunned gamers on the Xbox. It had some of the best graphics on the Xbox at the time and rivaled every game in terms of graphical beauty on the console market. Halo 2 had upgraded graphics from its predecessor that were equally impressive and garnered a top spot as one of the Xbox's best games graphically.
Halo 3 has some amazing graphics, but it is in no way THE best Xbox 360 game in graphical terms. That title still remains with Gears of War.
However one cannot ignore the beauty of Halo 3. Water effects are simply stunning; water both reflects and refracts light and objects in real time and reacts when a character or vehicle moves through it. Water crashes up against and flows around rocks and other objects.
The flora and fauna of certain levels is simply astounding: the first level has you fighting through a jungle and it looks simply gorgeous. Plants react to gunfire, if you walk over a plant it moves like a plant would if being walked over or brushed. Butterflies and bugs can be visibly seen going about their daily lives.
The lighting system is probably one of the best on the 360; light reflects off of vehicles, weapons and other metallic surfaces in just the right way, yet it does not give you that "over gloss" shiny effect that so many new games are offering these days (think Perfect Dark Zero). Objects and character models cast shadows in real time, and they look pretty realistic.
The alien enemies look absolutely awesome. Their armor is incredibly detailed and light reflects off it and their skin models look really good and believable. Similarly The Flood, which is another enemy in the game, look horrid and exactly what you would expect a parasite to look like.
The level designs are equally as impressive. Alien technology has never looked so stunning. Desert levels resemble barren wastelands and the jungle areas, as previously stated, are amazing. The levels also never really get repetitive; a problem of all the previous Halo games.
The vehicles, of which there are plenty of in the game, look equally amazing.
The cutscenes look simply astounding and are most definitely next generation stuff.
The one flaw, and it is a pretty big one, is that the human characters look lifeless and grotesque, and its painfully obvious that Bungie spent much more time on all of the other aspects of the game and neglected the human models. Their faces look rigid and linear, their eyes look downright weird, and their body's look awkward.
As far as gameplay goes you can expect a very easy to control FPS. Halo benchmarked the FPS controls for console gaming way back with the original Halo. Bungie made FPS gaming fun. Firefights, depending on which level of difficulty you decide to play on, are downright intense; if you are playing on the Heroic or Legendary difficulty there is a literal downpour of enemies as each wave of them is replenished by enemy drop ships.
One of the greatest aspects of the Halo games are the assortment of hidden goodies that Bungie has cleverly placed throughout the game, and Halo 3 has its share of them. The infamous "skulls" (there are golden ones and silver ones) that were located in hard to reach places in Halo 2 make their return, and they are found in equally hard to reach and sometimes impossible places (meaning that if you were not looking for them there is probably no way that you would be able to find a good majority of them). These skulls, when activated will alter the game play in some way. For example there is a skull that, when turned on, will award the player with a chorus of children screaming "yay!" and confetti if he/she scores a successful head shot. Another skull upgrades all enemies to their highest ranking (military wise), making them tougher. There is also a skull that doubles the amount of health the enemies have, a skull that takes away your HUD( Heads up display) and a skull that makes explosions much more grand.
There is even a skull that changes the game in subtle but very enjoyable ways, and this skull is also the hardest skull to get in the game, forcing the player to think outside of the box to attain it.
Also, Halo 3 introduces the Meta-game the Halo series, which really adds replay value to the campaign mode. The Meta-game is like an "arcade mode" where you get points for each kill (more points for stylish kills), and when in conjunction with activated skulls a player can really rack up the points. The meta-game is a really cool addition in that it challenges the player to hone and improve their skills, which will help them with the online multiplayer portion of Halo 3.
The multiplayer is basically the big attraction for most Halo fans, as the game play is intense, fast paced and features all of the weapons and vehicles of the campaign. There are many different multiplayer games to play as well. The game types range from classic Free For All and team deathmatch to more original team games like Capture the Flag and Oddball.
Overall the multiplayer is fun but not the greatest online multiplayer available.
For achievement hunters there is much to be found. A good chunk of the achievements are for mutliplayer (kill x amount of players with x weapon), or completing each mission and beating the game on Normal, Heroic and Legendary. The other achievements are more original. There are achievements for finding the golden skulls and there are achievements for scoring insane amounts of points in the meta-game.
I have only covered a small range in this review of what Halo 3 has to offer. There is a lot to do and I cannot see anyone getting bored with this game right away, this is of course unless you are just interested in beating the game, this can easily be accomplished on Easy or Normal with ease. However, if played on Heroic or Legendary a solo player will have quite the time beating the game, as some fights get so intense they will find themselves dying a lot. The skulls, Meta-game and online multiplayer are more than enough to keep Halo 3 in the 360 consoles across America for a long time. | video-games_xbox |
A Fun Lower Budget Adventure. The First Templar is a pretty unknown release, as it seemed to just sneak out without any press or gamer adoration. Needless to say, I was quite skeptical of this game's potential. So fast forward a month later, I have some credit sitting around, and this game is available for a slightly cheaper price through Amazon Warehouse, so I pulled the trigger, and guess what? I actually enjoyed this game. Now, The First Templar is no big budget production, make no mistake about it. This is a smaller budget game from a developer that isn't well known at all. No one part will blow you away about The First Templar, and even as a whole it feels very outdated, but that doesn't make it bad. Now read on and find out why.
Positives:
- A Deep & Interesting Tale - The story in The First Templar revolves around the Order of the Knights Templar. Throughout the game there's an overarching story, as well as more story to find littered throughout the environments. It's all well done and will keep you involved in what's happening.
- Single Player & Co-op - This is a game that is both enjoyable in single player and co-op form. The A.I. for the single player performs admirably and doesn't fail you under dire circumstances. However, there's also drop-in drop-out co-op play, which is well done and didn't present any issues while I was playing.
- Simple Yet Fun Combat - The combat system in The First Templar allows for some really cool looking combos, finishers, etc. There's also block and roll mechanics for defending yourself from the enemy.
- Nicely Rendered Environments - While no one object will really impress you visually in The First Templar, the environments generally look really nicely detailed and crisp. The resolution is rather sharp, so you won't get a sub-HD image here.
- Goofy Banter - The characters throughout the story use some rather cheesy and enjoyable banter, which will keep you entertained throughout the experience.
Negatives:
- Graphics - The First Templar looks like a PC game from about 2004 or so. It's not a super ugly game or anything, but it certainly looks a bit rough at times. This isn't a cutting edge graphics pusher.
- Animations - Aside from the combat and finishers, The First Templar's animations feel very rigid and poorly done.
The First Templar won't redefine what a video game is. The First Templar won't make you fall in love. However, The First Templar will give you a fun and enjoyable action romp with some good banter and an interesting story. If you're all about graphics, this game probably won't satisfy you, but if you're looking for something a bit different and fun, I'd recommend checking this one out. | video-games_xbox |
Love Mario Kart Wii...but Sonic Is Even Better! Here's Why. Since we got the Wii a year ago, we had Mario Kart from day one and love it! It was probably the premier karting game, so it is nearly impossible to describe this game without comparing the two. I also have not tried the Wii version of the game, but considered buying it.
We got an Xbox for Christmas and the trailer for Sonic & SEGA Racing looked pretty fun, but I was torn over getting it for the Wii or Xbox, so I downloaded the demo on Xbox Live and tried it out. My kids loved it, so I decided to get the game for Xbox so that we can race in Hi-Def and play against friends over Xbox Live as well.
First of all, the real game is WAY better than the demo! SEGA could have sold more with a better demo, in my opinion. Why is it more fun than Mario Kart Wii? Well, I think the racing action is a little easier on the Xbox controller than the Wii-mote. Additionally, each character has their own unique abilities and "All Star" moves, which are hilarious for some of the characters, such as AIAI the monkey! The Bonanza Bros. also perform silly antics throughout each race, which made for lots of laughter from everyone in our house. :-D Some characters are clearly better than others, which is a shift from the "one size fits all" or "win with anyone" gameplay in Mario Kart.
One of the best differences is how you earn new tracks and racers. As you race, you earn "SEGA miles" points, and I believe you earn more points per race if you have more players in multi-play. With the SEGA miles, you purchase new tracks or racers. This is a HUGE improvement over Mario Kart, where you had to unlock everything in single-player mode to be able to race with them in multi-player mode! That process took hours for one player, and if the license got accidentally erased by a kid, those hours were lost forever. With SEGA miles, everyone can keep racing and you have the freedom to choose new tracks and characters as you wish!
You can also choose the number of laps per race, rather than the standard 3. My 10-year-old said that more laps = more SEGA miles. Another fun thing is that being in 1st place on the last lap does NOT put a bullseye on you, with the unrelenting barrage of "blue shells" (missiles, bombs, boxing gloves in Sonic) like in Mario Kart.
Pros:
- Unique characters with their own special All Star moves and fun vehicles
- Ability to "unlock" new characters and tracks in multi-player mode
- Some characters are very silly and/or have silly antics which boosts the fun factor of the game :-)
- Improved steering control while drifting (over Mario Kart) = longer drifts and bigger speed boosts
- Items on the track are dispersed evenly--no last lap onslaught against 1st place = fair racing throughout
- Xbox version is Hi-Def with the ability to race friends on Xbox Live or as your avatar
Cons:
- Some tracks have a really bright racing surface, which kind of hurts to look at sometimes
- Some "haunted" tracks such as Curien Mansion, Deadly Route, have zombies walking around (nothing gross or gruesome, just creepy), which bothered my younger racers; this can easily be avoided by not racing those tracks
- When you cross the finish line, you don't know what place you got until everyone finishes and it shows the final results
- No track maps while racing, just a timeline in the center of the split-screen which shows your position relative to the whole race and other racers
All in all, very fun! | video-games_xbox |
Exciting hack-and-slash game. *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*
Although this game is not new in any sense, I just finished playing it a few days ago and felt the need to write a review. The game is nearly two years old but I found it very exciting and fun. Just for reference, I am a 21 year old female so, this review is coming from a different type of gamer.
This is a third-person hack-and-slash game and boy did I enjoy it. The basic idea is that your wife, Beatrice, has been taken to Hell and you, playing Dante, have to fight through the nine circles of Hell to get her back. A ghost like man named Virgil guides you through the levels and tells you background and information about each Circle you visit. Each sin has a specific place it belongs in hell, depending upon the severity. The "Sins of the Flesh" like adultery and gluttony come in the first few circles and the more serious offenses such as Violence and Fraud come later. Once you reach the 8th Circle, Fraud, you must battle through ten stages of the Malebolge, and this is where I found a little flaw in the game. Sure, it seems appropriate to increase the difficulty of the game as you progress but going through ten stages just to beat one circle of Hell was a bit annoying. In each stage, there is a different challenge you have to meet such as finishing the battle without using magic, or staying in the air for ten seconds while killing two enemies. Most of them were fairly easy but a few take a while and just seem tedious.
In the Ninth Circle you of course face Lucifer in three forms. I could not for the life of me beat him on the "normal level" Zealot so I switched to "Classic" which is easy and it was incredibly easy.
So, now that we've got the basics down, I'll go over what I liked and didn't like about the game:
PROS:
1. Awesome graphics: Despite the fact that the game is 2 years old and was made and 2010 and graphics always improve, I was impressed. They really made things seem real and of course how they addressed the different circles of Hell was interesting.
2. Creative plot: I think the idea of a man going to save his wife by battling through the Nine Circles of Hell is a pretty sweet idea. However, I know others might not agree with me. I've read a lot of other reviews and many compare this game to the God of War games and say they are copy-cats. I have never played those games so, I cannot comment on that. So, in my opinion, the story line is different.
3. Able to make real-world decisions: You have the option to make "Holy" or "Unholy" decisions and this allows you to make the game personal and use morals.
4. Variety of opponents: You face anything from Suicide individuals, girls who want to eat your face off, to a giant worm. There are tons of different enemies and I really enjoyed this because beating the same type of enemy can get pretty annoying. Fear not, you will not have this problem with Dante's Inferno.
5. You can relate to the game on some level: Everyone has sinned some time or another in their life. And this shows you how someone's sins can effect another. It is also shows you the great lengths Dante was willing to go through to save the soul of his wife, Beatrice. You can't help but feel sorry for the guy and hope that everything works out.
6. Decent game play time: I know of other people who have beat the game quicker than this, but I played for a little over 12 hours. That's a pretty decent amount of time. Other games like BattleField 3 have a campaign mode of like 6 hours tops.
CONS:
1. Eighth Circle of Hells 10 Challenges: I already talked about this but just to say again, I found this part a little annoying. I found it tedious.
2. How difficult Lucifer was to beat on normal: I played the entire game on normal and then when I got to the final boss battle against Lucifer, it was impossible to beat him, and I know thousands of other people had this problem too. So, when I switched to Classic, or easy, it literally took me 4 minutes to beat him. It made me feel a little cheap and I hated it.
3. The puzzles: Sometimes you are required to do puzzles to advance in the game. Most of them were pretty easy but two in particular I had trouble with were the one with portals and the other moving a box underneath a bucket that was pouring lava. I just feel like they were a little hard to figure out.
Overall, I found Dante's Inferno to be a great game. It was an enteraining hack-and-slash game and I would reccommend it to anyone. Besides a few minor complains, I would give the game a try if I were you, you'll get some enjoyment out of it and, in all honesty, it kind of made me fear ever doing anything wrong again. Might be a gory game but, you can teach your kids a thing or two about sinning haha. | video-games_xbox |
Definitely Worth a Try. I bought this game not too long after getting an Xbox One. I also went all out and got the Thrustmaster TX wheel, a Playseat, and over time added in a 3 pedal set and the manual shifter, all which work perfectly in Forza 5. I can get why people didn't like the game due to the lack of content although it wasn't a problem for me as I'm personally going for enjoying certain cars that I want to drive and not needing to drive them all, but it would have been nice if some of the cars I did want to drive weren't paid DLC. The small amount of tracks also gets repetitive quickly especially if you race in every event in the story mode.
Now that Forza 6 has come out it has pretty much corrected all of these issues: tons of cars, many more tracks, rain & night driving, better/more intense force feedback for wheel users, more events, specialty events, and much more. One thing I did like more about Forza 5 though was the Top Gear voice overs were more informative about the car classes and specific cars for the opening of each new series of races in the story mode where in Forza 6 it's just a few rushed tidbits about the cars.
Now that Forza 6 is out I recommend buying it as well but Forza 5 is still worth playing, at least for the achievements and also for those die hard Motorsport fans and sim racers just to have a new story and goals to progress towards and also for someone who is new to the Forza Motorsport series and might just want to try it out by getting the older, cheaper game. I personally never really got into Forza Horizon 2 however I've put hundreds of hours into this game, even though it isn't perfect (and Forza 6 is so much better) what this game did get right were the graphics and pretty good racing physics which allowed me to have lots of fun with my Thrustmaster wheel setup and sparked an interest to want to go a lot further into the world of sim racing. | video-games_xbox |
Lazy Bungie gives us a decent game. I have to agree with some of the other reviewers, Bungie got lazy when it came to sound effects, ally AI's and graphics of the story scenes. The sound effects are like the other Halos but I was hoping for better especially after playing Bioshock (which freaked me the BLEEP out because of the sound). The ally AI's are IDIOTS! I like that the enemy AI's are better and smarter but why couldn't they give you some control over your ally AI's (i.e. Marvel Ultimate Alliance, a different type of game I know but at least you could tell your allies to defend or follow when you wanted them to). Your allies constantly go into ambushes and create chaos because they just go when they want and you end up losing them most of the time. Then they also cross in front of me when I am shooting multiple bursts instead of behind me so I accidentally fragged one or two. The graphic of the stories scenes are so choppy and the characters unreal its a shame. While the graphics for the rest of the game play is good, you get to these scenes and its like you are watching marionettes act out a scene. These are not XBox 360 calibur graphics! An improvement in this area would have been what the customers deserved! I also take issue with the fact that you don't get a chance to find out what happened to Master Chief after part 2 and before this chapter unless you got the comic book that tells you the story. What kind of none-sense is that? I haven't been able to find the comic so I have no idea what is going on in a general sense. This takes the passion and makes me less drawn into this world not knowing what is happening to one of my favorite characters in gaming. One other thing is I hate that you can only carry 2 grenades of any type, 2 weapons (HELLO haven't you people watched RAMBO?) and one type of special items(i.e. bubble shield). I would have liked to have had at least 5 grenades, carry 3 different types of weapon and 2 special items.
I haven't finished the game yet but I'm hoping it isn't as short as some people are saying and I hope that they give us a good story to send us off a little bit satisfied that we bought this game. If they did this I'll see about changing my review and giving them another star. If not, I'm never going to buy another Bungie game again because I refuse to give money and support to a company who doesn't give love back to the fans who have given them so much(ala cash) in the past.
Overall its ok, almost good, definitely not great or mindblowing. I'd give it 3.5 stars overall if I could! | video-games_xbox |
Another talented installment of this very cute shooter game, hobbled by overpricing and an excessive reliance on EA servers. The good news: This is a well designed new installment of this cute game series. You can now fight on the zombies side, that alone justifies the sequel. As in the first one, the animation is great and the game never feels dull. My two boys can't get enough if it, especially the split screen mode where they play against each other. (They would love to be able to split the screen between them when playing with people outside our household, but the game won't support that. And they would like to be able to play in "chief mode" like they could play in v1 - apparently it is not available in v2. I am just relaying their wishes to Santa in case there is a v3 in the works...)
The very bad news: It's hard to say what EA was thinking pricing this at a steep $ 59.95. The first installment was $ 19.95 (it listed xbox Gold as a requirement but you could play many parts of it without it.) If this chapter were $ 19.95 I'd say that every xbox with k-12 users should own it, it really makes the console shine for that audience (and many a grownup too.) But frankly at $ 59.95 you should only buy this installment if you are a rabid fan of the series.
The somewhat bad news: It seems EA games make it a point to depend on the EA servers in addition to the xbox servers. For starters this means that in addition to opening a regular xbox account for each of your kids you'll have to open them an account on EA. This is not the end of the world but it needlessly increases the hassle factor to get going on the game. For example, when I tried to create the account for one of my kids the player name he has on xbox was taken in the EA servers. So I had to have him come up with a different player name that he liked, which for his kid reasons took him excruciating amounts of time. Way to kill the excitement of a new game arrival...
In my household's case the EA servers have an additional drawback. We live in a remote rural area and get our Internet wirelessly. On some days it is slow (high latencies/low bandwidth) and occasionally it even dies altogether. So the kids often get a "trying to connect to EA server" message which in this game is the kiss of death - the game won't let you play it in any mode. When that happens my crestfallen kids know it's time to switch to a different game with a forgiving offline behavior (in our household that's typically Kung Fu Panda or one of the Lego games.) | video-games_xbox |
Well worth it. This isn't going to be the in-depth review you'll get from many other people. I'm just gonna talk about a couple issues and the things I liked the most.
Issues
1. The reused environments get repetitive. This is especially true if you want to play through the game more than once (and you will!) By far this is the biggest problem with the game. Not only do you have to explore every section of the city every chapter, but you have to do it twice, once for day and night. Even when doing side quests the same buildings and caves are reused over and over.
2. The combat is a bit on the easy side. While I did take time to customize the tactics of my companions, I still fought battles with reckless abandon and yet never lost a fight. Remember how difficult dragons were in Origins? Not this time around. You can adjust the difficulty and I did this once, but when I put it on the hardest setting my team was decimated all too easily.
Things I liked
1. The story. Leave it to Bioware to tell a deep story and give the player difficult choices with severe consequences. A few choices took me several minutes before I could grudgingly give my answer. Be ready for some of the biggest twists you've ever encountered in a game.
2. Action based combat. I know I said it was a bit too easy, but the move to make it more action based was smart. In origins I often selected an enemy to attack and my character stood around or ran off somewhere. I know people complain about button mashing but it does help make actions more precise.
Don't listen to them points
1. Can't customize companion armor. This is not entirely true because you can buy upgrades and add runes. It's just that they cannot wear the same things you can wear. This isn't that big of a deal since a. they look more unique this way and b. you only get one of the best stuff anyway, so now it is an easy choice who gets to wear it.
2. Dumbed down. While I did complain the game is too easy on the normal difficulty, using one of the higher settings will remedy this. The strategy is still there for those who look for it.
Conclusion
I enjoyed this game thoroughly and was eager to start again after I finished it. This is the longest game I've played since Origins came out, which makes for plenty of value for the money. If you enjoyed Origins, you will enjoy DA2, hands down. If you never played origins but enjoy RPG's, you can't go wrong here. | video-games_xbox |
Another Great Ubisoft Game. You are Aiden Pierce, a hacker on the streets of Chicago bent upon avenging the murder of your six year old niece. Throughout the campaign, you will amass an arenal of leathal firearms and expand your transportation with a plethora of performace cars, heavy freight trucks and fire engines as well as motercycles capable of reaching relative speeds in excess of 185 mph (provided you don't meet your fate in a head on collision with a dumptruck).
Firstly, I want to give praise to the designers behind the vehicle performace engine. Each car is unique with its own areas of high performance and limitations. Accelleration and braking are handled in a realistic manner and with the handbrake (controlled with (B) on Xbox) you can now drift around hairpin turns with ease. Just try and avoid the newstand. Your car will never run out of gas however, when engaging in car battle, be sure to jump into a beefy muscle car or heavy truck unless you want to find yourself downrange of a police blockade or vengful mob of Vicerorys. NCPs can and will ram/shoot your vehicle until it is disabled. Carjacking is another option in desperate straits but will often prompt citizens to report you to the authorities which results in a highspeed chase and disaster or escape. Once you have evaded your pursuers, hop on the freeway and speed out of the district or pull into a back alley garage, kill the lights and wait for them to return to HQ (this takes a little as a few seconds of skimming the streets to several minutes of detail combing of any and every alley way depeding on your current wanted level. Unfortunatly, you cannot exchange gunfire with agressors from your vehicle but you can raise one of the cities many drawbridges, race over it at the last second, leaving your pursuers to find an alternate route. Drawbridges are especially thrilling while astride the Sayanora LE, the games fastest and most powerful motercycle. Boats patrol the waterways of Chicago and don't heistate to jump on board one and make your way out of the city to Lighthouse island or the backwaters of Pawnee. No, waverunners are not present.
Combat functions like most any shooter game. LT to aim, RT to fire, all in third person though. Once you have felled a gunman, don't turn you back just yet, he may get up and keep shooting, especially if he is an armored elite or an Enforcer (hulking juggernaughts best taken out with a grenade launcher or an IED stuck to their back). Many different firearms are available for purchase at gun shops or you can loot them off you enemies. Purchse, pick up and fire anything from SMGs to 50 BMG snipers to four shot pump action grenade launchers. The choices are nearly endless.
Mutiplayer, though fun leaves a bit to be desired. Options include hiding and hacking other players for noteriety points. Tailing them unoticed or engaing in four man races through the streets of Chicago in a wide range of vehicles. Ubisoft released two additional multiplayer options for the PC and next gens but not for the older consoles.
All in all Watch Dogs is a great game and though some Assassins' Creed elements are visible (such as Aiden's gait) the game is for the most part completely orriginal. | video-games_xbox |
Are you kidding me. Horrible, just horrible. As a 360 owner I needed a baseball title. And this hardly qualifies as one.
It has a nice presentation but thats it. The music stinks in the menus part and the in game play. When you use the option to use your own music for in game play, it doesnt work in dynasty mode and in other modes it sounds terrible.
Player animations are garbage. If you saw some of the idiotic catches I have seen made by out-fielders.... Lets just say you'd laugh at how clueless the programers or what ever are about the game of baseball. Other animations like managers coming onto the feild are awful too, as sometimes they are walking as if they are 3 feet under ground.
Everything is either a home-run or a lagged out line drive that gets caught by the speedy CPU outfielders. Meanwhile your outfielders are slow as hell and either don't put their glove up to catch a ball, or they just drop it. Try switching the fielder when you're chasing a dropped ball. Its an automatic inside the park HR. Forget trying to squeeze a grounder or a line drive through the infield.. Their fielders are amazing while yours are pretty uncontrolable.
Cant pull off a double switch with a pitcher. Wanna take out your pitcher late in a game and move his spot up or down in the order? Tough. Cant do it. The pitcher is STUCK in the 9 slot of your batting order.
Injuries are messed up. Was playing a dynasty Carlos Beltran got hurt on day one and had to be put on the DL. When he was due to come off, he is continually listed as hurt and needed to either be kept on the squad or be put on the 15 day DL. When used in a game, Beltran is more useless than he ever could be. Same with pitcher Shawn Green.
Pitchers lose composer for no reason. You could be up 7-1 in the 6th, and if the CPU manages to get a guy on 2nd with 2 outs and a 0 and 2 count... Your pitcher will lose composure and have trouble with accuracy..
Im so mad that the 360 doesnt have a good baseball title, and as far as I can tell they don't have a good sports title at all (big hockey gamer and EA has consistantly dropped the ball on the NHL series)...
Im debating on buying a PS3 after I just sent my 2 year old elite 360 in for a free repair/replacement, and Im dying for a baseball game.. Also want it for the blu-ray.. Could anyone respond with how good of quality a PS3's blu-ray player is? | video-games_xbox |
One of the best for XBox this year. Lord of the Rings - Return of the King videogame is now out for just about every platform. You can be Aragorn, Sam, Gandalf or other characters on your quest to save Middle Earth!
Made in the same style as Two Towers, the game covers the third movie complete with video clips from the movie, actor interviews, voice-overs by the original actors and much more. Gandalf's actor, for example, jokes that the wizard in the game seems to be far more agile than the wizard in the movie was :)
The gameplay is very similar to Two Towers and apparently they made many improvements based on user feedback. For example, when you do character upgrades, you can choose just to upgrade the character you are currently playing with (say Faramir) or to upgrade ALL characters for that ability. That makes the upgrade paths VERY interesting.
There are three main event paths. There is the way of the Wizard, where Gandalf takes on the Gondor defenses. There's the way of the King, where Aragorn builds up his army. Then there's the way of the Hobbit, where poor Sam and Frodo struggle their ways into the depths of Moria.
It's a great preview of the movie, showing lots of film clips of the various battles and scenes. There are many very slick changes between video and gameplay that really make you feel involved. The character movement is great, between the combo attacks and killing blows.
It's not just a hack and slash, there's a fair amount of strategy involved, both in in-game handling of the enemies as well as how to upgrade to get all characters to the end point. And once you reach the end - the game isn't over. There are characters to unlock, and special skills to earn for each one. You go back through the various levels with each character, trying to get even higher scores and build up your characters.
Co-op mode adds to the fun - pair up Aragorn with Gandalf and wade your way through massive piles of orcs. If you want to see something truly impressive, wait until you get to the final battle at the black gate and SWARMS of orcs, each an individual AI person with its own direction and attitude - are seething around you. Now THAT is impressive.
The sounds are amazing, the blasts of smoke, fire and thunder surrounding you truly give you the sense of battle shock. The game plays fast and can be replayed indefinitely. A definite must-have! | video-games_xbox |
A nice change of pace. I am not a fan of racing games. With the exception of silly ones that end with the word "Kart," I stay far, far away from this genre. That said, I AM a fan of huge explosions, causing chain reactions from said explosions and figuring out intricate ways to cause all sorts of virtual mayhem. It's because of this second part that I enjoy the Burnout series.
But Burnout has become a stagnant series, in my opinion, with subsequent sequels simply tweaking the modes and gameplay while relying on slicker graphics to attract gamers. And so it is that we have Burnout Paradise, a game that tries to completely re-invent the series by making it more about an open world.
This completely changes the way the game plays, both for the good and the bad. The freedom to traverse a beautiful city, see the sights and plan your attack is liberating and makes the game feel less like a racing game. This isn't Grand Theft Auto, so don't expect to see cops trailing you for the mayhem you cause. If anything, it's an explosion simulator.
While you're busy driving around the city, you'll come across many events for you to partake of. These events are grouped into five categories, Race, Marked Man, Road Rage, Burning Route and Stunt Run. Race and Marked Man have you racing around the city, with Marked Man having other cars chasing you. Road Rage has you attempting to destroy as many cars as you can withint a set time limit and Burning Route is a time trial, using a certain car. My favorite is the Stunt Run, which tags you with trying to string combos together with various stunts ( boosts, jumps, drifts, reverse driving, near misses, etc.).
The controls feel just right and spot on. A lot of recent driving games have felt loose to me and it was nice to "get behind the wheel" and feel like I actually had control over my car. I've already mentioned the graphics (they're beautiful in case you missed it) and the sound is also meaty, with some nice explosions and a pleasant soundtrack adding to the immersion.
Utilizing varous system-specific peripherals (Xbox Live Vision in this case), you can take a picture for your driver's license and when you take the game online, you'll show your driver's license to whoever you're playing against. It's kind of a cool feature.
Since this game has been out for awhile, you can also partake in some expansions that add a ton of different content and modes to both the online and offline game. So it's nice to see Criterion support the game post release, especially with some of the free updates.
The biggest problem is one inherent in an open-ended game. It's easy to lose focus and pacing when you're not being pulled along a more linear course. I think this change is a good one for Burnout, but, unfortunately, as far as the crashing goes I think the earlier games were better. That said, it's nice to see a company not simply coast through with minor tweaks and actually release a product that dares to be different. It's still the best place to go if you want to cause untold amount of car-related virtual destruction. | video-games_xbox |
GET TO DA SAFEHOUSE. Techland really hit a home run with this one(cue sound of my modded bat weapon against a zombie's skull!). As most of you know from reading other reviews, this is a spiritual successor to Dead Island(albeit more serious), as the gameplay is very similar but with the added element of the parkour.
You are Crane, who has the good fortune of being dropped right into the middle of a zombie epidemic. You are there because you are helping your shadowy government agency(forgot the name, IRS?) , but the story takes a turn and you wind up helping the locals get out before the government goes all Return of the Living Dead ending and blows up the whole city and everyone in it. Admittedly, the story isn't fantastic, but it works well enough for what people really like to do, some good old fashioned zombie killing!
But wait! You can't do that yet! At least not at the start. Your 20 damage broken wooden plank will not do much damage, even to the basic zombies that are literally all over the city. I first realized this on my first mission when I only saw two zombies and decide to take them out. Head whack, head whack, head whack. Oh boy, he is getting up again. Oh look another one joined, and another. Oh look my wooden plank didn't last too long. Repair! Oh look another zombie, he grabbed me. Shake him off. Oh look 3 more! Time to get out of here!
This is when you have to use your parkour skills. In the beginning it is best not to fight the zombies at all and stick to the roofs. There is a reason you can climb on almost anything in this game. But as it turns out, your agility isn't the best either at the start. Crane runs and climbs like a fat person with asthma. People have complained about this, but this is a great design decision. It makes no sense to be able to mindlessly slaughter or dodge hordes of zombies at the beginning because there would be no sense of progression. If you are one of these people that get turned off easily by some difficulty, stick with it and it will get better. Borrowing from Skyrim a little, you raise skills by using your skills! Raise agility by climbing on everything. Raise power by fighting. Raise your survivor rating by..surviving(turning in quests and not dying). Also, get those air drops! They give huge survivor XP boosts but they won't stay forever. Other roaming groups will take them if left out too long.
Now you got some levels under your belt, you got some gadgets like molotovs, throwing stars, traps, and other things that will make the normal zombies not that big of a deal. But the game has some surprises up its sleeve as well - special zombies. The big 2 handed weapon wielding monster zombies won't go down with a couple of whacks from your machete, but you will if you stand there and let them hit you. The recently infected zombies which are more human will chase you down, and up if you think you are safe standing on a van while the lesser zombies stand around and wait for you to come down. They even plead with you not to hit them again, until the virus takes over their brain again and they try to rip your face off - what a great touch to add that subtle little thing in the game! There is also the little short fat belchers that seem to have incredible accuracy with their toxic spit. I take them down as soon as I see them because they can ruin you quick. Oh yeah, what was the other thing? Oh NIGHT TIME!
Probably the most dramatic change. You can't see all too well, and the night also brings out the Volatiles. Not sure what they are, maybe a mutant zombie? Whatever the case, if you are in the beginning stages of the game, just run. Don't bother to stop and fight because you will be slaughtered quickly. Another excellent feature they put in is a button to turn around while you running which slows down time so you can see what exactly is chasing you. I tell you the adrenaline rush of running and turning around to see a Volatile ON YOUR ASS is pretty intense. You do have weapons to fight but it is better to wait it out somewhere safe - unless you want to level those skills faster! XP is doubled at night. Choose wisely.
All in all, this is a great game that I am having fun with. Some problems exist(mediocre story, maybe a little too many fetch quests, sometimes not grabbing onto something and falling to your death if there is not a convenient garbage bag heap to fall onto). I would probably rate this a 4.5 but since this game is getting some low reviews from "professional sites" I am rating it a 5 here. Happy slaying(after leveling up, of course). | video-games_xbox |
The best game of the 2nd generation. How good is 'Red Dead Redemption'? Truthfully, I find it hard to sum up into words just how good this game is. First off, let me start by stating that I am a first generation gamer. I cut my gaming teeth on Atari classics like 'Frogger', 'Galaga', and 'Ms. Pacman'. I honed my teeth to a fine point with the NES and the SNES. My favorite game (and still is) is 'Super Mario Bros. 3'. So, as you can see, I grew up with video games, or you could say video games grew up with me. Either way, you get my point.
There have been a ton of great games since the introduction of the Sony Playstation back in 1995 (the start of the 2nd generation). 'Resident Evil', 'Metal Gear Solid', 'Bioshock', and 'GTA III' are all examples of amazing games, but none hold a candle to 'Red Dead Redmption' in my opinion. I look at it this way, if you don't like RDR, it's probably because you haven't really played it. Since it's release, I have been playing it almost non-stop for 3 years and it hasn't gotten old yet. No game immerses you in the story like RDR does. The game itself is a work of art. You don't even have to be a fan of westerns to like this game; it transcends the time setting. What it offers is an amazingly deep world and a very engaging story with tons of things to do and almost limitless possibilities. Toss in the amazing DLC pack 'Undead Nightmare' which adds a zombie-infestation element to the game, and what you are left with is a nealry perfect gaming experience.
Essentially, the game is the story of John Marston, a former outlaw turned rancher who has given up the sinful ways of his past in favor of a new life as a straight-laced family man with his wife, son, and "uncle". Everything is great until the federal goverment decides to step in and force John to help them hunt down his former outlaw buddies by holding his wife and son hostage at an undisclosed location. The game unfolds with John tracking one of them down to an abandoned fort where John is gunned down and nearly killed, only to be saved from deaths door and nursed back to health by a head-strong cattle racher named Bonnie McFarlane. This begins act one of the game. What follows is one of the most engaging and immersive storylines ever found in a video game. John's story spans a huge map that stretches from The American Northwest to Mexico and everywhere in between.
The game is set up into missions that must be performed to move onto the next mission and progress the storyline, but WHEN you decide to do these missions is completely up to you. In the meantime, you can play texas hold'em poker (the ai on this is as good or better than the mass-marketed WSofP games), blackjack 21, horsehoes, liars dice, five-finger fillet, or arm wrestle. You can track down wanted men and return them for the bounties (dead or alive). You can hunt just about any animal you could imagine from Grizzly Bears to Mountain Lions, Elk, Beavers, Boars, Eagles, to rabbits and sell the meat and skins at local shops for money. You can break and tame wild horses. You can herd cattle. You can get drunk at the saloon. You can duel people out in the streets. You can do side missions (called 'Stranger missions' in the game) that are sometimes sad, sometimes happy, and sometimes downright weird. You can take side jobs like breaking horses or patrolling towns at night for rustlers, thieves, and outlaws. You can even hunt for buried treasures using very vague and rudamentary hand-drawn maps that span the entire gaming world. There are rankings you can obtain in the game by completing progressively more difficult tasks. You can help clear bandit hideouts and engage in shooting contests, or you can just ride around on your horse (there are more than 20 different horses in the game) and enjoy the breadth of the countryside that Rockstar obviously put ALOT of time into (my favorite thing to do besides hunting). Even the weaponry of the game is amazing. You have everything from simple Cattleman revolvers, to Schofields, LeMats, double-action revolvers, Winchester and Henry Repeaters, Double-Barrel Shotguns, semi-automatic shotguns, Springfield Rifles, Carcano rifles, Bolt-Action rifles, Buffalo rifles, dynamite, fire bottles, and that is just the tip of the iceberg. Best of all, everything is accurate to the period.
It is a beautiful world that really does an increidble job of capturing the look of turn of the century America, just before World War I, when the ways of the old west were steadily dying and giving way to industry and innovation. The world was changing and the way of the gunslinger was over. One of the most fascinating aspects of the game is traveling from old Mexico all the way to Blackwater (the most civilived town in the game, complete with automobiles and electric lights in the buildings). You can see, as you move further and further north, the change in each town as electricty begins to be added and the people begin to look more and more to modern conveniances. It is almost a study in American history.
As amazing the gameplay is, the story, characters, and voice work is equally as amazing. No other game can boast a cast of characters as deep, diverse, and interesting as RDR. The game could easily be turned into a pretty damn good feature-length film based solely on the cutscenes alone. To top it all off, the game has incredible gameplay aspects that make it almost too easy to pick up and play from the start. The control is tight and the actions are easy to pull off. The game has an auto aim feature that makes it almost impossible to miss a target. In no time flat you'll be riding horses, shooting anything that moves, and roping (yes, you can rope in this game too) everything in sight with the greatest of ease. There's even a fairly deep multiplayer mode that is pretty damn fun as well.
To be honest, if I had one gripe about the game, it's that you can't fish with your character. It is a small gripe and in no way tarnishes the game in any way, shape, or form. The game is, in the simplest terms, the most fun you're going to have playing a video game - hands down, and like I said earlier, you don't even have to be a fan of westerns to enjoy everything this game has to offer. The most amazing thing, however, is that the Game of the Year edition of RDR can be had for $19.99 (which includes all DLC, including the great 'Undead Nightmare'). So, for less than $20 you can have a game that you could play for the next several years and still enjoy thoroughly. I'd say that is a bargain! | video-games_xbox |
What I Think About WWE All Stars. You're right it doesn't matter what I think, but I'll write this review anyway. WWE All Stars, a wrestling game that contatins a roster of legends and superstars over the top silliness and crazy moves, but is it any good? I've made a list of positives and negatives of the game...
Positives:
+ The Roster is absolutely amazing.
+ Controls are easy to learn and can actually goes into much more depth and become complex and amazing, once you start pulling off every move you possibly can.
+ Fantasy Warfare videos are fantastic and really get you into the match you're about to play.
+ Pulling of Signature Moves and Finishers are insane and and makes every character unique. Flying 30 feet in the air has never looked so good.
+ Matches are very fast paced, and become very intesne.
+ Path of Champions and raising to the number-one-contender, feels like you're actually trying to acheieve something.
+ Different attires for each superstar. Some are better than other's though. Kane's, Macho Man's, and HBK's are some of my favorites.
+ Gameplay is smooth, pulling off combos or flying around the ring and spinning your opponent everywhere looks really good.
+ Entrances are short and straight to the point.
+ Getting revenge on the Undertaker in the Mr. Wrestlemania fantasy warfare match with HBK, was extremely satisfying.
+ DLC isn't super overpriced.
+ Extremely fun playing with friends.
+ Fatal Four Way Eliminations (Tag Team as Well) have offered some of the most fun I've ever had in a video-game.
Nuetral:
+/- CPU reversals can be very frequent and cheap, but can be solved with some concentration.
+/- Loading times are long, but not horrible.
+/- Rope exiting.
Negatives:
- No Royal Rumble...
- Only 6 arenas.
- Online can be very laggy at times.
- Create a Superstar has few options and customization.
- People rage quitting, when they're about to lose.
This game isn't the greatest game I've ever played, but I have to admit it was one of the most fun. It has its flaws, but is a satisfying experience and I keep coming back. I usually never buy games for $60, but I say I got more than my money's worth out of this. 8.4/10. | video-games_xbox |
A good game, but kind of a pain. I haven't finished the game yet, but I'll go ahead and post up a short review for people considering the game.
The Good: This game is different. It broaches a subject matter not common in games, the graphics are anime/cel-shaded. (Like Valkyria Chronicles or Borderlands, if you're not sure what that is.) The story is interesting, and the main character is a pretty likable guy. From what I understand, the choices you make in the game drive you towards one of the girls and several different endings, and it's actually similar to the paragon/renegade system used in Mass Effect 2, except there's only one meter for both girls.
The Bad: The puzzle gameplay is frustrating. Honestly, I don't mind hard games, or complicated puzzles, but I'd like enough time to do them. With Catherine, you often have a giant nightmare racing up to smash you, so you end up retrying a lot. Also, you have a limited amount of continues. (but don't worry, you can get more) Then again, when you finally do get it, there's a sense of accomplishment that you won't get from a lot of the way too easy games that are on the market today. Honestly I don't think it's way too hard-just a little. Another simple tip that helped me alot-talk to your fellow sheep. You can move your meter and you learn new strategies for getting up the blocks.
EDIT: Now that I'm farther into the game, I'd like to add a little more detail. There's more to the levels than the blocks slowly falling, or some giant horror chasing you, you'll also have to contend with enemies smacking you around, boss special attacks, (so far I've had getting knocked down, and getting my controls switched to backwards), and trap blocks. Oh, and speaking of trap blocks, here's a tip that I found really useful: You can trigger the spike blocks by running over them quickly, and then you can treat them like normal blocks.
Oh, and I also should add more about the bar part of the gameplay. Basically, you sit and talk to your friends and other bar patrons, and your responses move your karma meter (not really karma I guess, but I can't remember what the game calls it) over to blue or red. I guess you could say hanging out with your friends is reminiscent of Persona 3 and 4, but you don't up your bond with them, but instead get a boost towards one of the girls (and take care because this affects your ending.) Also, your responses to text messages you get from either girl will move your meter. Oh, there's also a tower climbing minigame in the bar.
One thing I'd like to ask the Persona team though, what's up with all the games about climbing towers? Not complaining, just seems a little strange. | video-games_xbox |
Great System but a few minor cons. Having been a Sony Fanboy since the release of PSone its been hard to go and purchase a 360 but last August i had finally bit the bullet and purchased a 360 now after having a Ps3 Since launch well the February anyway, the 360 is a nice companion now granted each systems has there weaknesses and strong points if you can forget about it or have both systems they make out in the end. Now that being said here's my thoughts on the 360.
The Dashboard it is very nice slightly cleaner than the XMB it's a nice navigation to get to where you need to go although if its your first few times getting around it can be hard to rember where things are.
Media Center a nice extension to have though having a Mac kinda hard for me to use but i have bootcamp to run windows and when I'm on the windows part running windows 7 ultimate it runs great looks nice on TV etc.
Avatars now when MS first announced this back a few years ago everyone was shouting this is a blatant Mii nock of well having all 3 systems the avatars are 100x better than the Miis and are starting to be able to be in games to just like the Wii uses to, you can buy some pretty cool stuff for them some can be over priced like 240pts for aLight Saber prop others are not bad.
Now on to the Core of the 360 Xbox Live Now Some people say whats the point of paying 50 bucks "usually the general price but you can find cheaper routes" it does have its ups and downs 1 the online features such as partys cross game chat Netflix right out of the box "no pun intended" to twitter Facebook and Last fm some of these features are nice and ad the price but there are the typical complaints of the 13-15 jerks who like to be jerks and ruin experience but so far i have not run into anything like that. so that being said those are my pros for the 360
Now Cons are not much but ill point out a few 1. Acssesories this is a big draw back if your like me and get a arcade and want a good rig you will have to spend a additional 125 bucks if you want wifi a HD and wireless adapter but if you look around you can get a lil cheaper but not much I wish MS would allow more 3d party stuff to help that issue out like the ps3 does. That Brings me to my final con Wifi how is it that every System the PSP Wii DS PS3 can have wifi built in and not MS? this is just a Dumb greedy move on MS and i hope they look to change on it on there next console.
Final word if your looking to get a good system a 360 is it granted i think the ps3 is overall a better deal in terms of what comes with the system but still 360 is great and if you want to play games that you cant on ps3 this is obviously good second system. | video-games_xbox |
Eyes fixed on the gorgeous horizon and not on all the mud beneath you. This is obviously very late, but I just couldn't take it anymore. This game truly is horrible! I've actually traded this game in, and was stupid enough to buy it once more after all of the patches were released. The sad part is, I played it a bunch, in the hopes that I would eventually enjoy it, and ended up hating it even more now than I did before. Almost every major aspect of the game that was broken before is still prevalent today.
1. There is an enormous delay relating to taking incremental damage from gunfire. In other words, everything from a pistol to a sniper rifle will pretty much drop you in one shot before you realize you were even taking fire.
2. The most ridiculous spawn points in any game I've played. You'll encounter everything from enemies spawning right behind you after you start running, to spawning 5 ft. away from enemies and practically spawning in the exact same spot, three times in a row.
3. Screen stuttering from lag. I've never actually seen something quite like it on a console game before. Maybe I've just been lucky, but wow... it's pretty harsh. Why make a game that's 60FPS when it's going to make it even harder to drop targets due to screen stuttering?
4. Terrible weapon management UI. It's definitely the most cluttered and horribly-navigable screens to sort through. My sister could've put something together better than that! Not to mention, players aren't allowed to modify their weapon loadouts until they join a match.
5. Poor map design. Obviously Hammerhead (no matter what game mode you play) gets 1st place for this, but when it comes Team Deathmatch and Squad Deathmatch, which were my favorite game modes in BF3, are now the worst game modes in BF4. The selected locations in which DICE chose to use for each map is an absolute joke. The maps are already extremely small, not to mention there are more players anyway, but they usually involve running around a building or two, instead of having the option to engage targets further away. Forget about using DMRs or Snipers.
6. It took quite a while to adjust various sensitivities within the game to achievement one that's fairly usable. The reason why every player will end up doing so, is because the stock settings making it extremely hard to acquire targets from a distance. Had they simply lowered the ADS sensitivity by %30, they would've never had to impliment that feature in the game.
7. There are times when switching your current weapon will inadvertently switch back to your previous weapon.
8. There are some staircases that are either wrongly placed on flat surfaces or the first two steps are not evenly spaced out, but at times I'll try rushing into a building and will get stuck in the doorway. I noticed it the first day I was playing the newly remastered Operation Firestorm. I remember chuckling when it happened. Need I say more? | video-games_xbox |
Four stars * * * . First off, I am a HUGE Playstation fan (currently own the PS3 & PS4).
With that being said, I bought the Xbox One S Launch Edition 2TB off Ebay for $400. It came with an extra (black) controller, & 12-months of Xbox Gold Live.
Looks - I like the sleekness of the console and the controller. I can't really imagine the size comparison compared to the previous model, but it's very similar in size to my Playstations, which in turn, looks good standing vertically next to them on my TV stand. I do like the fact that it came with a vertical stand. Sony doesn't include this. Everyone has been complaining about the color. Yes, it is very very white. But it does not look bad on display with other black consoles and electronics. I was hesitant on the white color, but overall, I'm glad I bought it.
Controller - Nice and sleek, with a rough kind of texture to it. I feel the texture helps with grip, and is easier to hold compared to the Playstation. It looks more sophisticated to the Playstation controllers; however, I am hands-down all for the controller layout of the Playstation.
The setup process - Normal for me. I did not experience anything out of the blue like the one-star reviewers did. All the updates downloaded and installed in a very short amount of time. The biggest thing for me was recovering my Xbox Live account. This was a royal PIA and, as a result I couldn't even use the console for 24 hours thanks to all the security codes from multiple email addresses Microsoft requires. I actually locked my yahoo email address, so that was the majority of the wait time. Very disappointing. I can see Microsoft prompting for a security code here or there; but prompting one for EVERY action was a bit daunting. (And no, I did not remove a star for this as it has nothing to do with the console.)
Interface design is a bit awkward coming from the Playstation. I didn't choose the option for auto login at first, then wanted to switch to it. It took me a bit of time to actually figure out how to do it even based off of searching the internet. The language for the steps was not accurate, and that was a bit frustrating. I finally figured it out myself to just logout as a user, and then the prompt is on the right side of the screen. Overall, the interface is just OK, and this is the main reason why I docked one star off of my review. I feel Microsoft could do leaps and bounds with the current interface. My opinion, though.
Overall - I am generally happy with the unit. It will not be my go-to gaming console (bought it for Forza and HALO); however, it will be my go-to movie console, as I do have a 4K TV. The graphics are pretty good for 4K. Overall, it was a good buy for the specs and pricing. Four stars from this Playstation fan. | video-games_xbox |
The way a remake should be. Presentation: 10/10 How do you honor a game that single handedly put the Xbox on the map, spawned countless clones and revolutionized the FPS genre? Remake it to look, sound, and feel like a brand new game while keeping all of the things that make the original great, intact. Weather your a casual Halo fan or just a fan of the genre you owe it to yourself to see where modern First-person shooters as we know them today got there start.
Gameplay: 9/10 It's not a bad thing that Bungie has taken the "if it isn't broke, don't fix it" approach to developing every Halo game since the original. Halo:CEA feels exactly how it did ten years ago. For better or worse, nothing has changed. What does that mean? That means that you will wish you could sprint on many occasion and will want to memorize where health packs are located before tackling the higher difficulties. This also means all of the powerful Halo:CE weapons return as well. All of the weapons feel as they should and enemies aren't the bullet sponges they seem to have evolved into in the sequels. Movement is what you would expect from a Halo title especially if you've played the latest title, Halo: Reach. The game-play as a whole is very solid, if not stretched a little thin at times.
Graphics: 9/10 Artistically, Halo:CE always felt like the odd man out. Every other game was in sync as far as art style was concerned. It was as if Bungie didn't know what they wanted the environments of a Halo ring to look like in 2001. 343 Industry fixes this in Halo:CEA. Taking art assets from Halo 3 and Reach, 343 has done a fine job at helping this game to look in sync with the rest of the Halo Universe.
Running on top of the pre-existing graphics engine does bring the quality down, only in one spot though. The character models. These high detail models need to match the old models geometry that exists underneath them. That means you get characters that look great when standing still but mouth movement and facial expressions just look funny in an almost buggy sort of way. Nothing that isn't forgettable but it's a shame they couldn't have at least re-made the cut-scenes from scratch considering you can't do an on the fly graphics change in the middle of them. Oh did I mention you could change the graphics back to how they looked in 2001 at the push of a button? It's awesome!
Sound: 10/10 I was nervous when I heard they were re-recording all of the music and sound effects for Halo:CEA and for good reason. After 10 years, I know what Halo sounds like. The buzz of a plasma pistol, the pounding discharge of the sniper rifle, and the epic music that starts up as you make the long trek through a snowy battlefield. No matter how little they changed, it would not be for the better. Then I played the game, and was pleasantly surprised. Skywalker Orchestra did a great job at recreating what you heard in the original without trying to improve on it in any way other than improved sound quality. What this provides is an audio experience to match the visual splendor with the option to toggle all the audio back to the way it was in 2001 in the options menu. Like you would ever want to. 343 took great strides to make Halo:CEA feel like a 2011 FPS and it shows in the sound more than anything else. The character voices are just as you remember and fit in very well with the new audio.
Value: 10/10 You get arguably the best campaign in the Halo series, new collectables in the form of skulls, terminals, and achievements. Multiplayer offers six new multiplayer maps and a new firefight map to play. If you have already been playing Reach for a year than the multiplayer offering may feel more like a map pack rather than a full fledged multiplayer option but with 343 releasing playlists that very closely emulate the Halo:CE experience in the Reach Engine there is plenty of reason to assemble old school Halo Party's for some late night fun. For the true Halo fan it's a must buy and the price is a great deal.
But you know, James... Goldeneye was always better. | video-games_xbox |
Good concept, executed poorly. Azurik's an interesting game. The elemental combination system that's at the heart of the game is an interesting one, and could have provided for some unique and creative puzzles, situations, and combat. However, in many respects, the game falls flat on its face.
Combat, for one, as frequent as it is, is entirely uninteresting. A,A,A,B is the name of the game, and while you've got to make sure you're using the right elemental combinations, the lack of a reward for beating a monster (they respawn, you gain no experience, and often end up using more "elemental fuel" than you regain) is negligible.
The game is billed as an action/adventure. Adventure games are generally about two things - seeing the sights, and solving some puzzles. The sights are a mix of good and bad. While there's clearly a lot of geometry up on the screen, it's not really put to good effect. Textures are detailed close up, but muddy from the distance you'd normally look at them from. Poor level-of-detail control. The level design is also often pointless, and very easy to get lost in due to the repetitive nature of the levels.
Azurik's cardinal and unforgivable sin, however, is that there is no logic to the game. The puzzles are simply to find the pieces of the elemental discs, and their respective powers, and use them where you're told to. There are a few puzzles that actually require some thought, but even then, they're more illogical and trial-and-error based than not. Had there been any indication of where you might look to solve your current problem, the game would have been worlds better.
Alas, the lack of logic in the puzzles and level designs, the poor floaty controls, the repetitive and boring combat, and the atrocious save system (yes, there's a save anywhere cheat. It can also permanently ruin your game, forcing you to start all over again if you use it wrong) make Azurik a pass for all but the most hardcore adventure gamers. But the problem, then, is that the hardcore have seen games much better than this. | video-games_xbox |
Too many post-release issues, no plan to address them. Once again, the lesson is NEVER PREORDER. As much as I wanted to show Harmonix that there really is an audience for this much-awaited sequel, all I ended up doing was reassuring them that they could release a half-finished product that in no way is a worthy sequel to 3. Even if you managed to get the right instruments (I did), there's no guarantee they're working properly, and while they do support the automatic sync that the later instruments for 3 introduced, you're still probably going to deal with lag, which means playing on Hard or Expert is not going to work well.
Of course you'll have to play the standard songs because your DLC won't all transfer yet, even if you want to take the time to download every song individually (confirming that the Xbox Live Marketplace is just as terrible on the Bone as it is on the 360), a large percentage of them won't show up as previously purchased. Harmonix is at least admitting there's a problem now - on launch day it was "contact Microsoft or Sony." Right. I'm sure I'm the only customer who got 25% of his DLC licenses transferred.
If Harmonix can get all of these problems worked out - and unlike Neversoft, they have a history of doing so - then I might get this out and play it again. Until then, it was a waste of my money, and it'll be a waste of yours too.
UPDATE: Here we are, months later, and it turns out that Harmonix did manage to get a few problems sorted ... but there are others they never really did get to. Most of my DLC seems to have transferred, but of course not all songs are available due to what I'm guessing is the inability to retain licenses for them. (Not that there's any place to find this out.)
The game itself isn't bad, and at its best, it does address a couple of the glaring weaknesses with RB3: you're not nearly as encumbered by sets entirely from in-game music (the new feature that lets you vote on what to include is cool), and the career mode is significantly longer. However, it introduces a number of other issues, many of which came down to releasing 50% of a game at full price and then gradually adding features as time went along.
There's also the problem on the Xbone version that combines Microsoft's Apple-like quest to make you replace everything every time and Harmonix' puzzling decision to allow PDP to release only a small amount of adapters for those of us with ION Drum Rockers for the 360. Because the standard drums are garbage (especially with the cymbals attached - those are even cheaper than the drums), your only option now is to stock up on drum kits so that when one of them breaks you can just throw it away and open the next one.
Overall, I'm really regretting my decision to buy it for the Xbone; I didn't really get enough carryover value to justify that purchase, and it doesn't seem like Harmonix is really invested in supporting my part of their customer base. It's too bad, because at its best, the Rock Band series was amazing. Now, it's hard to imagine those days. | video-games_xbox |
A Giant Regression in Online Gaming. Let me start by saying that I believe that the Call of Duty franchise is as popular as it is because of it's extremely entertaining multiplayer mode. Call of Duty: World at War made huge leaps forward in improving on the already popular Modern Warfare 1 online experience, making playing real human opponents more fun than ever. Personally, I enjoyed it so much I logged over 14 full days of gaming time on World at War's multiplayer mode. Naturally, my expectations for Modern Warfare 2 were, like everyone else's, sky high. In that light, Modern Warfare 2 is a huge disappointment because it has taken a massive step backwards from its immediate predecessor.
Many of the multiplayer issues which plagued Modern Warfare 1, were fixed when Call of Duty: World at War was released. These issues have now reappeared for reasons that seem to have no plausible explanation. The main culprit is the bizarre new match-making system that has been installed. The option to search for "Locale Only" games has been removed and now you are likely to be thrown into unplayable connection after unplayable connection.
On top of that, members of your party are often dropped from the server for no discernable reason. And for MOST of the game types, the "Party only" chat feature is not allowed so the members of your group who have been dropped from the game CANNOT communicate with the rest of the group to tell them so!! They will be unable to use the in game chat channel as they have been uncermoniously booted at the start of the game, and will be unable to use the party chat channel because it has been muted by CoD: MW2! Lame!
Not only does this cause problems when you're trying to get into a game with a group of your friends, but it also removes a vital tactical element when your whole party makes it in. Being able to communicate with your team during matches gives your team a strategic advantage that should be preserved. I am quite sure that among all of the gear pictured on the helmet of the guy on the cover, at the very least he has a closed circuit radio channel to his squad. Why can't I get this in the game?
You are also exposed to the chatter of the room/match, which, as anyone who has played an online match will tell you, can be highly annoying. It took no less than 10 seconds (TEN!) in the game lobby for a young man with a thick accent to start calling us (or someone in the room) "[expletive] stupid americans" among other things. This was never an issue in Call of Duty: World at War, because we could just use the party chat. Even when the discussion is civil, there is so much chatter going on at once you can't really hear what anyone is saying. Disappointing indeed.
Another handy feature that was not ported over from CoD: WaW, was the option for the team leader to bring the entire party out of the game lobby. Now when another friend logs on and wants to play with your group, you each have to individually exit the room and then the party leader has to re-invite the entire party from the Xbox dashboard and reassemble the group. Why was this feature removed?? How hard would it have been to keep this??
These things make the multiplayer mode far less enjoyable than they should be. Yes, they do not completely kill the online experience, but they do make it a LOT less fun. How much fun is it to constantly play with a yellow or red connection?? The new maps are beautiful and complex, and the possible weapon combinations expansive, making me think that the underlying game could be a lot of fun, but the extreme difficulty of actually getting into one of those games with your friends is shocking.
If you're looking to mainly play the campaign mode or just spec-ops with *A* friend, this is a solid game and probably worthy of 4 or 5 stars. However I believe the real draw of the Call of Duty series is it's fantastic multiplayer mode; a mode, that for this release, is a huge disappointment. | video-games_xbox |
A tragedy of errors. So I was a huge promoter of the original Fable, an excellent game despite it's minor flaws and inability to live up to the astronomical hype created by Peter Molyneux's rampant hyperbole.
I followed Fable 2 throughout it's development and was extremely excited for the release of what looked like an excellent follow up to one of my favorite games.
When Fable 2 was released, I was initially very impressed. The Fable charm was all there, the world was beautiful and engaging and I was quite addicted to developing my character in this world.
So why, you ask, does this game get an overall score of 1? Well there are three major problems with this game that hold it back from being the mind blowing sequel it should have been.
1. First and definitely foremost, The bugs. I mean big, huge, ridiculous game breaking bugs. If you're interested, check the Fable 2 Fears and problems forum on the lionhead website for a myriad of problems with the game and angry customers. The huge one that affected me was that after putting maybe around 20 hours of time into the game and getting almost to the end, I realized that I could no longer visit one of the major areas (westcliff) as it would cause my Xbox to BSOD every time requiring a hard restart. I waited for Lionhead to release a patch, but post patch, I still have the same problem. At this point I realize that my only solution is to create an entirely new character and play through the game again. Completely unacceptable.
2. Length of story and volume of content. The story in this game is short, very short, shorter than the short story in Fable 1. Also, the world is small. The land mass may have increased since fable 1, but there are far fewer areas to explore which gives the impression of a much smaller and less varied world. This would be ok, but the bar for volume of content has been set pretty high in the past couple of years with games like Oblivion, GTA, and most recently Fallout 3. In retrospect I can't think of a single reason why, given the choice between Fable 2 and a gigantic, truly open world game like Fallout 3, I would choose the former, it's a ridiculous difference in entertainment per dollar.
CAUTION, POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
3. Lack of connection between the Albion in Fable 1 and the Albion in Fable 2. Seriously, why Lionhead, these games are supposed to take place in the same space separated by a couple hundred years, why is there almost no evidence that anything from the first game ever existed. There are a few moments where you see things from the first game and how they've changed, but many times the changes don't make sense, and these moments are far too rare. It would have been smart to include a little more fan service in this respect. I would have loved to be able to run around the burned out ruins of the old Heroes guild. I would have really liked to have more moments where I say, oh yeah, I remember this place, and there are almost none.
In conclusion, the potential to be a great game, absolutely destroyed by a few major problems. An unfortunate fate for a great license. | video-games_xbox |
Massive. Mass Effect comes from BioWare. The creators of Knights of the Old Republic. Because of that, it goes without saying that Mass Effect feels very similar in its RPG like approach. This is no clone of Knights of the Old Republic, though. Mass Effect is its own game and it's a very fantastic game at that. This review is pretty long. If need be, you can look to the bottom for a list of pros and cons.
You're John Shepard. The game takes place in the year 2183, and humanity has come to explore the Galaxy like never before. You'll discover a series of races throughout the galaxy and there's a sense of injustice afoot. Tensions between races are also high. You'll come across people who hardly trust a certain character because of their race. Just the same, a Turian (one of the many races in the game) named Saran has betrayed the Galactic council and its up to you to stop him and bring justice to the Galaxy. Mass Effect has a pretty intriguing storyline that grips you from the moment you begin. It's also well written with some fairly interesting characters.
The storyline is told through fantastic cut scenes and some fantastic voice acting. The quality of these scenes is movie like in its execution. The game also looks fantastic. Some of the character models look almost lifelike. In terms of eye candy, Mass Effect is sure to delight. It also sounds really good. There's a lot of great music here. Again, it sounds movie like. Hardly any game sounds better. The music always manages to fit the mood and situation at hand.
You begin by making a character. Much like Knights of the Old Republic, you're allowed to customize what he looks like and here you're also able to give your character a back story. As the game goes on, you'll participate in several conversations. These conversations have a direct impact on the storyline as well as shaping your character. Most times they'll also have an effect on the outcome of certain situations. Not always, but often they do. There's also a light and dark attribute going on much like Knights of the Old Republic.
In terms of Gameplay, Mass Effect is a pretty complex game. It plays a lot like a third person Shooter, but at its core it is definitely an RPG. As you traverse the field you'll have a squad at your command. You control Shepard and can give orders to your troops. Either you can send them ahead to attack, rally them or tell them to keep their distance. You can give these kinds of commands any time you want. Just because it plays like a third person shooter, though doesn't mean you treat the game as such. Mass Effect is not a very easy game. It is important to add strategy to a situation rather than go in with guns blazing. Your enemies have some attacks that can take off a lot of health at any given time. The AI of your characters is sometimes questionable, though. For the most part, they help in battle, but sometimes you'll feel like a one man army.
Throughout the adventure you'll also gather Medi-gels and Omni-gels. Medi-gels heal you while Omni-gels are for using decryption or electronics on devices like locked doors or containers. Speaking of locked doors, you'll come across some of those too. As well as locked containers and other things you'll need to override. You'll do it by entering a series of button presses. This is actually a pretty annoying mini-game. Screw up even once and you lose your chance to override and you'll have to result to using Omni-gels.
There is also a lot of customization to take in. All characters have certain talents. Whenever you level up you can increase a characters rank in a talent. In time they'll be able to do things like open locked doors with ease or be able to better handle certain weapons easier. You can also customize weapons and armor or turn them into Omni-gels. If you turn a weapon into an Omni-gel, though, it's gone forever. For the most part, the game is pretty free in terms of what you can do.
Mass Effect has a couple of glaring problems when it comes to gameplay. As you traverse, for one thing, the game sometimes slows down. So it doesn't always run smoothly. While you have control over the camera, you can't automatically position it behind you. You always have to swivel it around. It's not a huge problem, but it is one that can get you killed when you're surrounded by several enemies at once. It also doesn't help that the camera doesn't swivel fast. Also, much like Knights of the Old Republic, there are a couple of bugs that hinder gameplay. At some points you'll even have to reload or something because of them. There was even an instance where the game froze entirely. In short, the game is good, but there are a lot of little nit-picky technical things that keep it from being as good as it could be. Technical glitches that shouldn't be in the game in the first place.
Mass Effect is a strong game. It's got all the qualities that really make a game good. It's just too bad that it has a few problems in the technical department that keep it from being an overall fantastic game.
Pros:
+Strong storyline
+Excellent voice acting and script
+Very interactive story
+Fantastic looking visuals
+Good strong soundtrack
+Simplistic, yet strategic combat
+Deep customization
Cons:
-A couple of camera issues
-Sometimes there's a slowdown in frame rate
-A few technical bugs and glitches; sometimes these will make you have to reload your game... very annoying | video-games_xbox |
Elite Founder Details for Hardened Edition. There is not much to say about this game. The multiplayer is fast paced, addicting, and always fun. There's modes to fit every player (campers and even those who hate campers, i.e. Kill Confirm). The weapons are pretty much the same as MW2, but they seem to have been nerfed a slight bit in comparison. However, this review is for the hardened edition so let me get to what I feel is important.
Everyone who was trying to get this on release day was worried about activating the elite membership by the 13th to ensure you get founder status. LET ME ANSWER THIS!!! IF you activate by the 13th EVERYONE gets founder status, even people who buy elite with their credit card online and purchase the regular edition. So why the hardened edition? It allows you to get the founder status with a code after the 13th has already passed by. So if you were worried about getting this and not receiving it by the 13th, stop worrying. You will still get founder status.
That being said, yes this game is worth $99, no it's not worth the 150-200 price tag that gougers are giving it. If you can't get it for 99, just order the regular edition, then go online to the elite website and sign up by the 13th. You won't get your "green skull" founder badge until later on, it takes about 48 hours to get this to show up.
That being said, for those who were wanting founder status, but wanted to hold off activating their elite service till the first DLC releases so it lasts longer, you will need the elite founder card to activate founder status later. However, if you're just worried about getting founder status NOW, then either way you go about purchasing Elite, you will have no problems.
As far as the book goes - it's neat, and I'll probably read it all in a few weeks, or save it for a long plane ride after I beat the campaign just to get the full experience, but it's not the selling point, elite and long term founder capability is past the 13th (plus collectively you save about 10 bucks if you pay retail). All in all, if you enjoyed MW2, you'll enjoy MW3. The campaign is the same old style, but still fast enough paced. The spec ops can be fun, but seems VERY much like horde mode from gears of war. Still, grab a partner, get ready to be immersed, and activate your elite membership! | video-games_xbox |
Fever Fan. With all the high quality football games on the market, there's really only one final determining factor for your purchase: personal preference. If you're a Madden fan, you'll probably buy Madden. Same with the 2K series or Blitz or whatever else floats your boat. I happen to be a Fever fan, so when Fever 2003 came out, it didn't take me long to decide which one I was going to buy.
For those of you in the "undecided" bracket, let me plead the case. Fever is a great game. To me, it is somewhere in the middle of 2k3's great graphics and Maddens realistic play. I think it's the most well rounded of the football games. There are lots of plays, and they're easy to understand. The Dynasty mode is by far the best in any game, in my opinion, and the play editor is easy to use. The big reason for X-box owners to get Fever is that it will be a marquee game on the new X-Box Live platform.
For those of you who've already played 2002, there are only a few subtle changes to 2003. Probably only die-hard fans will notice anything past the roster changes. The graphics are only slightly improved over 2002, and it looks like the exact same engine. I guess they figured if it aint broke, don't fix it. The tackles and runs are far more animated than in 2002 which showed the same tackles over and over. While the engine is pretty much the same, the shading and lighting has improved, and the weather features look a little more realistic, especially field damage.
Once you get past the superficial aspects of the game, you can tell there have been other needed changes.
1. Defense: the secondary is much more of a threat than in 2002. The computer still passes 99% of the time (unfortunately) and instead of confronting the key issue and making the comp stay on the ground more, the secondary is better at blocking passes and breaking up plays. The A.I. is much imroved. If you throw all the time like the comp does, the secondary will adapt and become more aggressive. If you try to run every play, the same thing will occur. It becomes more obvious when playing the computer, but it's also a major factor when playing against friends.
2. Officiating. Anyone who played 2002 knows there were only about 2 calls the refs ever gave unless you accidentally encroached or made a false start on your own. One was holding, the other was pass interference. The officiating seems a lot tighter in 2003, and there's a lot mroe going on with the A.I controlled characters. I've already heard one too many "holding" calls, but I guess you can't eliminate it completely.
3. Dynasty mode. Not much has changed here, but one major difference is the way players improve. First, they improve far more slowly and less dramatic than in 2002. Having a stellar game in the box score does not guarantee improvement. In fact, I'm not sure what does. On them same side of that coin, it's also difficult to get worse. One cool feature is, after every game, they show you exactly who did or didn't improve. It saves you the trouble of having to go to management after every game.
4. Gameplay: Overall, the teams are a lot more balanced than in 2002. I think they've obviously tried to represent the salary caps this way. There are dominant teams, but they're not as dominanat as in 2002 where the margins were often huge. Teams and players now average somewhere in the 80's, and there are a lot fewer players with overall ratigns higher than 90. Far fewer than last year. I think they're trying to avoid players with unrealistic ratings that can achieve the superhuman (Cory Dillan on 2002 for example). This is probably the most dramatic change, and the one that is bound to have a big impact on people used to dominating on 2002. I used to play on the veteran or all-pro setting, but I'm getting my a$$ waxed at anything higher than novice right now.
Bottom line: if you liked Fever before, you'll still like it. They've done a lot to make the game more realisitc, without becoming tediously realistic. If you didn't like Fever, you probably still won't. Stick with what you like and stop hating. To each their own. | video-games_xbox |
The almost spiritual succesor to TF2. When i first saw Brink I thought that this could be one of the better ideas to come out of a quickly stagnating gaming industry full of clones of the industries finest. Brink appeared to be Team Fortress 2 with Mirrors Edges mobility with the weapon customization of CoD but with a character customization yet to of been attempted in any FPS to date. I found that the game in all respects had a solid foundation but fell short in aspects that really needed to be taken into consideration. Character customization was fairly in depth with enough variety to leave me splendidly surprised even if you were stuck with the medium body type till you gained some levels. Weapons customization was great as like many games before adding one thing affected a stat on a weapon in both a positive and negative way(if you used the under barrel grenade launcher you sacrificed so ammo capacity etc.) but its not limited to one or 2 things you can literally put an attachment on any part of the gun that is available to do so downside was that many of the attachments required you to do the Challenge mode to unlock most attachments. Now for the game modes Campaign can be played in many different ways either solo, co-op with friends or random people and versus; you are either attacking or defending. This mode also is the games multiplayer component which is its greatest strength and weakness as there are a total of only 11 total missions on each side(either Security or Resistance) and on both its the same levels which give Brink a very big lack of map variety. Online can be quite painful as well as the game uses migrating host as apposed to dedicated server which if your not lucky and the host has a horrible internet connection can cause the game to lagg terribly, by the writing of this review they had not done anything to address the issue. The next game mode is Challenge mode which is essentially a training mode were you take on certain objectives that will later be seen in the campaign such as class tutorial missions escort missions etc. The Challenge mode at 3 stars is very painful as the AI if brutally uncompromising if you are at a high level as they scale to you my recommendation would be to do all those first before delving into the Campaign. Lastly is Freeplay which lets you specify the rules of the game such as how many player be they players or bots what level what difficulty etc. This is an excellent way to grind achievements or just mess around with other classes if you don't usually play one of them. The class balancing in Brink is fairly stable there's really no dominate class as the game is designed so that almost all classes can somehow contribute to the other such as medics boost health engineers boost weapon damage its a really nice system that reminds me alot of TF2 and some MMO mechanics. In closing its worth looking at but needs to have lack of additional content variety addressed, something to keep people playing after they max level would really benefit the game. | video-games_xbox |
Solid Single-Player; Great Co-op. I was able to purchase a copy of Syndicate for $10 during a sale (not on Amazon), expecting a simple, generic first person shooter. I was pleasantly surprised, though.
The campaign was surprisingly fun, especially in short bursts. If I could summarize the story as briefly as possible, it would be: corporations at war to have the lead in the latest DART technology. You are an agent for Eurocorp and use DART to complete your milestones/missions. The gameplay was fun; aside from your regular FPS controls, you can use DART by pressing RB to slow down time and see enemies that you've already spotted, and use LB to breach their chips. When you breach, you can have their weapons backfire, persuade then to fight for you, or have them kill themselves in a small blast that hits others around him. I like the DART system and felt it added more to the generic FPS genre. I also thought the stats at the end of each mission added more to the game, and would eventually bring me back to improve on that mission. But the single player campaign isn't all good. There are about 20 missions, all of these missions can be completed in less than 20 minutes; in fact, I'd say I beat most of it in 10 minutes, more or less. So it's very short, I'd say 5-6 hours. Also, I thought the ending was weak and could've been a lot better.
As for the multiplayer, the online community is barely active (as of 7/30/12). I was able to play 2 games of coop and can say it was very fun. You get to customize your loadout including your DART enhancements. For example, I was able to give shields to the rest of my team and also give them a power boost. You can heal and reboot fallen allies. The whole team can speed up a breach by breaching together. The missions were straightforward, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Overall, it's a very well done co-op campaign and worth playing if you can. Hopefully it gets more active, though.
I'd also like to note, the graphics were amazing; it gave off a Deus Ex: Human Revolution vibe with the settings and character models. (not a bad thing, in my opinion). Also, although the main character never speaks, the rest of the voice acting was superb.
Syndicate is a great game, only suffering from lack of support and a very short campaign. I definitely recommend checking out Syndicate, especially if you can get if for less than $20. | video-games_xbox |
Madden 25 Review. I have been playing Madden since 2012. I thought last years edition was really good. Madden 25 seems to take a step back regarding the passing and defensive game. When passing, unless you have an open receiver or can control your receiver well, you will almost always throw into coverage which makes passing more difficult. It is very difficult to lead the receiver without controlling and moving the receiver to a point of interest. It is equally tedious to play difficult as in a number of situations your defense will be out of step against the offense with almost no way to stop a tight end, slot receiver or running back unless you know what you are doing. As a matter of fact, the Madden 25 Prima guide states that the defense plays behind the offense in man coverage. With regards to zones, the defensive players don't move much at all which makes the game harder because by the time you click to a defender, more than likely the defender is out of position to stop his offensive counterpart. Another thing that is so troubling is that in this edition, if you like to air the ball out, you will throw numerous interceptions which in my opinion doesn't make the game fun. Many times with the controls, the quarterback cannot throw over defenders and at times make interceptions that even the pros themselves would have trouble making. For instance, a running back traveling from the backfield cannot run straight through the line. They curve out and right into the path of a safety which makes it difficult to throw to them. Since I am no expert at playing Madden, this game can be very frustrating because it forces you to operate within certain limitations offensively and defensively that will only help you rack up losses while playing online against opponents. One other thing regarding passing the ball. I have noticed at least from my standpoint that when I pass distances over 10 to 15 yards, the ball seems to hang in the air longer and is delayed getting to the target which will result in an interception. This has happened to me numerous times and is so frustrating because I have had players wide open only to see a defender quickly rush in and intercept. I like Madden, but I want a game me better options against some of the better opponents and this game doesn't quite do it. I don't think it is worth buying for the new Xbox one. It is a difficult game to master and I wouldn't need another edition in which the game play lags. | video-games_xbox |
It had so much potential, yet was squandered in the worst ways. Well now that I've had the chance to play through the campaign and do more multiplayer over the weekend, heres the rundown by section.
1. Audio - Surprisingly one of the bright spots of the game. Incorporating the Aliens original soundtrack made it at least "feel" immersive. Even those spots where something crashes in the darkness or moves quickly out of sight and you hear that orchestra pipe up was nice. I played with my turtle beach headphones and it definitely gave it a good feel. Scenes where the music came up got you pumped up for whatever was coming.
2. Graphics - Well... as with alot of us who saw that 11 minute demo stating "Work in Progress" on the screen and saw how sharp the effects were with the Pulse Rifle, fire effects and the level of detail on the aliens themselves made us crave it. I just could not believe how unfinished the levels looked once I got deeper in to the game. The computer consoles that are showing information, although irrelevant, look so blurred and distorted it looks like it was airbrushed. The alien "webbing", that black stuff that is coated all over the walls and ceilings looks more like chocolate fudge was thrown on walls. It looks nothing like the demos we were shown at all. The lights and reflective surfaces look downright awful. Your weapons you wield look sharp and have good detail, but aside from that the rest of the game is unpolished at best. A graphics update (moreso a major overhaul to even update them) is highly needed. Even playing on my 60" 1080P with HDMI the graphics are subpar, thats just not acceptable. The cutscenes while good, are horribly laced with issues like screen tearing and graphics lag. Cutscenes like that are usually rendered 30FPS or more (the human eye only discerns up to 30FPS) and that makes those scenes very smooth. These seem like they were cut together quickly to fill in gaps and would run probably at maybe 18-21FPS. Very bad indeed.
3. AI - At times the teammate AI is helpful, but suffers from bugs like getting caught in doorways, walls and sometimes I had one just get flat out stuck while walking. Usually as you progress the AI will "warp" to your location to fix this which is fine, just not a good thing to see. Enemy AI isn't too bad really. They will try to swarm you, jump away from fire and regroup and come at you or try to use the environment to go around and flank you (although it rarely happens which keeps most of the action right in front of you without having to turn around and watch your back) and takes some of the suspense out of their attacks. An AI update is more than welcome to fix these issues if it ever happens. Gun targeting was shoddy. You could have a Wey-Yu merc or Alien centered on the pulse rifle and have to almost empty a clip to take it down. Seems like the AI hit boxes were never really squared away properly and was very hit or miss on targeting. The smart gun (when you use it) is the only thing that felt on point as when you were locked on and fire it, you decimated the alien into an acid splatter pool.
4. Story - For being marked as "Canon" ... I can't explain this one. I won't go into spoilers but those who've played through probably did a "wtf" like I did at a certain point. It starts out good, but it just gets lost and seems like it couldn't get back on its feet at any point later on. Just to add... fighting Wey-Yu Mercs was painful in that you could unload half a clip with them dead centered in your sights and still not hit them. The marine "bravado" dialogue in this game is horribly filled with non-sensical jargon that doesn't fit with the scene or events taking place at that point in time. Certain parts, yes... most everything else... no. The cast of characters was interesting but they soon became just bit parts of a story lost on itself. I felt no connection to anyone and didn't really care what happened to who as we went along. Thats shameful for any game but moreso for a franchise like Aliens which the films made you feel a connection for those marines trying to survive a desparate situation in the movie.
5. Multiplayer - The part where they got it right. This part of the game feels like a Gearbox title as they did such a great job with BL2 coop. Seems like this is the only part of the game they developed as it felt fleshed out, interesting and creative. Leveling up your Marine or Xeno and using the loadouts was nice and with a ranking system as well. Playing as an alien is alot of fun, just don't go off on your own. I liked to lure marines into areas and since you can walk/crawl on walls and ceilings, make use of them. Drop behind and bam! You can really have alot of fun just with the MP aspect of this title.
In review.. this game had so much going for it yet it really fell apart. The one redeeming part is its MP. Otherwise, this is definitely not a $60 AAA title by any means. If they perhaps issue some patches to update the graphics, AI it would at least be respectable.
I would say this is a $14.99-$19.99 title. Not a full price buy.
(I played this on the Xbox 360, not PC). | video-games_xbox |
The Game I've Been Waiting For. Update (10/3/14): My original review was about five hours into the game. I've now played close to 20 hours. There are several things that have come up that I wanted to share.
1) I love how different cars handle on different surfaces. I was driving an upgraded Audi TT and that thing was so difficult to drive off-road, hated any races that required me to leave the street! I then bought a Lancia Stratos (have loved this car since Forza Motorsport 4). The Stratos is AMAZING off-road. This thing is an absolute blast! Every moment I can, I take detours through the forests. Most cars are pretty easy to handle on the road, but I love that once you take a shortcut, you better hope your car was made for it!
2) The bucket lists are pretty fun, not amazing. Every now and then you'll do one that puts a huge smile on your face. I recently did the one with the Lancia Delta (pretty sure it was the Delta), where it was night time and you had to cut through a forest to get to a checkpoint in time. This race was pretty difficult, took me a few tries, but WOW was it intense and exciting! There have been a couple of bucket lists like that, so I'm glad they're in the game.
3) I really like the physics in this game. Of course its not a full on sim like FM5, but it sure is close when you use a wheel with sim steering. I'm glad that they added a small arcade feel to it, keeps the game fun and exciting, instead of having to use X to rewind every time you came into a turn slightly fast and messed up your lap time by a second or push the gas a little too hard causing a spin out.
4) Slow credits. That's one of the painful things about this game. Its taking me a really long time to save up credits to buy some of the more expensive cars. The most expensive one I have right now is the SLS, and that's because I won it in a lottery spin. I like that I have to work for some cars I want, but at the same time it seems a little too slow. Maybe its because I've only got a green wristband right now? Once Turn 10 figure out their server issues, the Tier rewards will help out a lot, which should make everything ok.
5) The last thing that I noticed and am not a huge fan of is that every time I start up the game I start at a car meet. This is annoying when the car meet is pretty far away from where I left the game which was right next to the hub with races to join.
That's all for now. I plan on playing a lot more over the weekend, will update next week if there's more to share!
Original:
Forza Horizon 2 is the game I've been waiting a very long time for! After having played Test Drive Unlimited for countless hours, I didn't think anything would come close to the happiness it brought me. When the original Forza Horizon was announced, I got excited, thinking that a racing game was finally coming along to take TDU's place as my all time favorite open world racer. While Forza Horizon was an awesome game, it still fell short in a lot of areas. The fact that it wasn't really open world, you couldn't drive very far off any roads, made it not fulfill what I was hoping for.
Forza Horizon 2 is exactly what I've been waiting many years for. There's finally a game that's topped what TDU did for me. While the map may not be as big as TDU, the graphics, car list, sounds, car tuning, etc., more than make up for it. When I first started up the game I couldn't believe how good it looked, driving those super-cars along the coast was jaw dropping! I picked the Camaro as my first car (love some good ol' American muscle), started driving to the first destination, saw a field to my left, and decided to take a detour. I don't remember the last time I had so much fun in a racing game! Driving through fields, vineyards, dodging trees, it all just left a huge smile on my face. I ended up completely forgetting about my destination and spent a good 30 minutes just driving around and loving every minute of it.
I use a Thrustmaster TX with a Playseat Challenge, the wheel feels great with this game once some adjustments are made. Sim steering on, force feedback bumped up a little, and my degrees of rotation taken down a bit. Its such a blast! I know that this game is going to bring countless hours of fun, even without doing any of the races/events. I can't wait to build up my garage with some iconic cars and drive the crap out of them! Would highly recommend this game to anyone who loves cars! Can't wait to get home and continue playing, thanks Turn 10! | video-games_xbox |
Rare Replay is the history of one of gaming's most prolific game developers. Rare Replay is hands down one of the greatest game compilations ever made. In my opinion, this is right up there with The Orange Box in terms of quality and value. You're getting 30 games, most of them good-great, for $29.99. That's a wonderful deal.
This collection has games from the '80's to the latter years of the first decade of the 2000's. Some older games, presented in their native format, do have borders, while newer games do not. This is done to preserve the image quality of these older games that weren't made to have their images stretched for widescreen 16:9 televisions. That said, most of them received significant upgrades to their image quality in the form of a resolution bump.
While I've yet to play all of the games in the collection, I've checked out Conker's Bad Fur Day, Killer Instinct Gold, Blast Corps and Jet Force Gemini. These games alone are worth the price of admission, but you also get 26 more games, in addition to extras in the form of videos about Rare's history, options to add filters and whatnot to classic games, etc.
The whole package exudes a quality you'd expect from Rare. That said, there are some minor quirks here and there, but nothing that takes away from this great package. Jet Force Gemini's controls, for example, are incredibly dated; however, Rare/Microsoft have said that they're going to patch in a dual stick control scheme to make it feel more current, which is a very good thing. The other 3 games, however -- Conker especially -- feel great and look better than the original versions running on their native hardware.
If you like Rare, love Rare, or you're new to them, this is a collection that won't disappoint you. No matter what kind of games you're into, I'm sure you'll find something here to please you. Rare is a company known mostly for their mascots such as Banjo-Kazooie, Conker, Joanna Dark, etc., but they also had wonderful games like Blast Corps and Jet Force Gemini that were really special and different for their time. Even though the graphics on the older games have aged, they look better than ever here, and a lot of these games are timeless.
I will add to this review at a later date if I come across anything that I feel needs to be added. | video-games_xbox |
Good for long nights. These are very good headphones, and came just at the right time when I decided to take on some <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Halo-5-Guardians/dp/B00DB9JV5W/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Halo 5: Guardians</a>. They sound great, and are easy to set up with the Xbox One. During my tests, they were very comfortable, even in longer sessions, and did not have much issues, except when the battery finally ran out. Then there was little feedback, except for disconnects. Fortunately it comes with a long enough cable to be able to continue while the headset is charging.
Overall design is nice, but lacks two important things:
- First, the detachable mic is nice, if you're going solo from time to time. Yet it is a potential for problems in the longer run. Some reviewers mentioned broken connectors, fortunately mine is going well so far
- Second, the earcups are round, but my experience was that oval shapes are slightly more comfortable.
Also I was used to voice feedback from my Bluetooth headsets (i.e.: battery full, connected, disconnected, etc). Having to memorize different "beeps" is a step backwards.
Back to good points:
- The Xbox One detects is natively, and assigns automatically to my (non-regular-headset-compatible) controller.in a true wireless fashion
- It also works on the PC as a regular chat capable headset. Of course there is no game / chat audio separation, but almost all games have that option (no luck on Mac or Linux so far, though).
- It has an optional aux cable for phones / tablets etc. I would still prefer to keep my <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Bose-25/dp/B00M1NEUKK/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Bose 25</a> though. The noise cancelling is much better on that one
- The battery lasts very long. I did not do any measurements, but it needed much less charging compared to my <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Corsair-headset/dp/B007ZZ6OW6/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Corsair headset</a> (which is a mediocre set anyways).
- There is clean output and bass option. It is not as good as having a full EQ capability, but preventing distracting bass boosts during gameplay is nice (if you're using a music oriented bass headset during gaming, you're doing it wrong)
Overall I'm impressed with the headset, and this is a nice complement to the Xbox One, especially for the hassle free setup | video-games_xbox |
Activision Sony and Black Ops II fail to deliver. Having played Call of Duty since Call of Duty 3 was unveiled, I have had the opportunity to see the game change both for the best and for the worst. Let me say that for all practical purposes, my comments will surround the PS3 platform since thats what I own. I recently bought an Xbox as well but haven't played it much yet and don't have a call of duty game for it.
As the Call of Duty series has changed over the years, becoming one of the most anticipated games of all time, I have to say this latest version, Call of Duty Black Ops II, is disappointing. CERTAINLY not worth the hype that the creators announced, or the 60 dollars you pay for it. The 1080 HD video resolution is fine and for the most part, graphics are pretty amazing. The offline version of the game is entertaining. The online version, where most of the gamers live and play, the community, is where at least for me, this latest version lacks.
Over the recent versions of the Call of Duty Series starting with Modern Warfare II, many players have begin incorporating cheats, hacks and/or modded controllers or systems in an effort to gain an edge over talented players. These cheats are in violation of all gaming systems TOS (terms of service) but are rarely, if ever, enforced. So part of the disappointment for this latest version, is the cheats that go on without consequence. Paying 60 dollars for a game only to see it degraded by such activity is a real eyeopener to what youth are really learning about life. I wonder if parents don't by this game as some form of daycare device so they themselves don't have to do much parenting. Reporting the cheating has become much simpler with reporting tools right on the options for each player, but you don't see much enforcement at all. Cheating leaves you really disappointed about the game, the manufacturers and the system developers.
Game add ons for Black Ops II are in the works, rumor has it sometime in February 2013. They are already advertising the Season Pass. Another costly adventure that you pay for and that only provides additional map packs for online play. Why not have the map packs available at the time of release? Im sure its part of the game makers stratedgy for corporate greed.
Glitchy servers, frequent disconnects, player drops, this game is by far, the worst for all of it. The manufacturer have incorproated a few "Bug Fixes" to ease the aggravation including changing the Hardcore Players Maps by removing the Spawn Delay that a player has when they are killed. It has been a tradition of Hardcore Play since World at War, and initially, Black Ops II had the delay or "penalty box' as some would call it. But in a recent update, it included the removal of the spwn delay ad now the game is just a glorified CORE version.
I think the original creators of this game really had something. But now its just another method of obtaining your money with false claims of magnificence. Infinity Ward vs Treyarch? Hands Down, the trophy does to Infinity Ward for truly fluid game play, connectivity and the overall online experience. Both companies need to do more about the cheating however! | video-games_xbox |
A Great Journey as Always. Most of people rating this game low is because people don't like changes. People get used to stuff most of the time and they don't understand that changes in every aspect of life is what makes it interesting. YES, it is not the same Dead Space you are used to, YES there has been changes and YES it feels different. But it is important to mention that some of the aspects that made this franchise big, still in DS3. You are going to find yourself walking around the game (not running) scared of what you are going to encounter around the corner. This game plays with your brain the same way the other 2 games did. You play 2 or 3 minutes without any action (your brain thinks everything is all good), minding your own business and all of the sudden, you find your self pressing buttons, holding the controller like your life depended on it (literally), your brains flips out and changes to survival mode from one second to the other. THAT is what makes DS lovely... and that is still in the game. On the other hand, co-op was added to the game and that sensation i just mentioned is lost, since you play with a partner and you feel more secured. The story in the game changed as well... WHY?? because developers wanted to explain many of the things that happened on the other 2 games, so the MYSTERY is lost. Which in my opinion, should not affect your experience at all. The addition of co-op is not the developers fault, BUT YOUR FAULT. Thanks to the COD phenomenon and other shooters, instigating and forcing developers to add multiplayer to everything, now it has transcended to DS and other games, which NEVER depended on multiplayer to be excellent games. But, business is business, since multiplayer sells nowadays, why not have it on other games. Again, I blame it all on COD fanboys.
Anyway, BUY THE GAME... who cares about reviews, who cares about others opinions. BE A MAN/WOMAN and play the game and judge it on your own, your voice and opinion counts and if you are a FAN of the DS universe, you know you won't be disappointed, 'cause you know what DS is about and trust me, they kept the ESSENCE of what made this franchise, better than Resident Evil and destroyed Silent Hill. | video-games_xbox |
honored to play it. Dishonored is a stylish first person stealth / shooter. I found Dishonored to incorporate elements of these other great games:
- Batman Arkham (detective vision)
- BioShock (health/mana instead of health/plasmid, double-handed power+weapon)
- Splinter Cell (incapacitating gadgets and peeking through keyholes
- Half-Life (it has an "Outsider" that shows up and seems to know everything instead of the mystery man)
PROS:
- great style. it has it's own universe. the characters act and feel like they live in this turn-of-the-century (WWI era alternate fantasy) setting with an economy built on whale fat and a plague spread by rats...the characters don't look like they belong in any other universe (except maybe BioShock). multiple factions are fighting each other.
- good enough story with multiple plot points, some twists, turns, betrayals, and optional good or bad ending.
- easy to pick up and play. it's an FPS using Unreal Engine so the button, stick layout works fine...
- truly a play-your-own-way guns-a-blazin' or stealth game. BOTH gameplay styles work wonderfully here...truly a multiple-ways-to-approach-an-area game. sneak from below, find a hidden passage. teleport above and swoop down on your enemies. You can play all the way through and never kill a soul if you wish. this game delivers OPTIONS!
- great DLC.
NEUTRAL:
- (SPOILERS) some story items never get explained. who the hell is this Outsider guy? are you this chick's father? they're all left dangling either for a sequel, or simply because this is a video game.
- some voice acting is a bit spotty.
CONS:
- visually muddy and low-rez textures. not really excusable for an Unreal Engine game this late in the console cycle. I don't care if this is a port from PC or not, the game has great style and aesthetics but the graphical fidelity itself is noticeably pixelated and ugly. the game is kind of a bummer to look at. | video-games_xbox |
Marble Madness Goodness. I don't know who remembers it or not, but Marble Madness is class awesomeness. Move said marble down paths and through obstacles to finish line. I SUCKED at it, but was addicted to it none the less.
Marble Blast Ultra is really fun and really challenging. The easy levels are easy, no doubt. The intermediate levels are a definate mix of easy and difficult. The hard levels are pretty insane with a few easy ones mixed in.
The Good:
-Graphics are simple and smooth. It's pretty to look at, very colorful, and easy on the eyes. No bright flashes, no background annoyances, etc. What you get is the marble, the level itself, and the clouds.
-Gameplay - simple but tricky at times. There are multiple items that assist you along the way. A helicopter which allows you to glide down to another platform, a rocket to give you a speed burst to get you up a steep hill, an hour glass that stops the clock for 5 seconds, and a spring to give you super jump. Other than that, the left stick controls ball speed and direction, the right stick controls the camera view. There is a button to jump and there is a small blast button which I havn't really figured out a use for, but it gives you a little extra hop.
The Bad:
-The start takes a few seconds. This isn't a problem until you find yourself listening to the woman's echo voice and seeing the start graphics every time the ball is set into game play. Can get annoying, but the game is just too much fun to worry.
-The camera is zoomed in. It's tough to get a bearing on where you are and where to go. You have to learn to turn the camera and move it up and down to get the right angle. This is workable, and many games have this issue, but I do wish that it had an option of different fixed camera angles.
-Some of the par times, which are necessary to meet in order to get all achievements are ridiculous!
Overall:
-If you like playing arcade games, this is a must. I would DL the demo, but if you think you like the sound of it now, I guarantee you will like the demo. It also has available expansions, which is great since a lot of games have no further support after release.
Achievements:
-They are realistic. There are achievements for beating all levels for easy, intermediate, and hard (20 levels each). There are achievements for doing all levels in par time (I was able to knock off easy and intermediate, and so far, missing 1 in hard with another 12 levels to go, I expect more than 1). There are also easter eggs to collect (20 in total, would recommend reading a guide to find them all. I havn't looked yet, but the 2 I got so far are not easy to reach). Overall, you should be able to get all 200 without tooooo much work. Expansions have extra points, but I am not sure what they are since I don't own it yet. | video-games_xbox |
Got my Jasper - Arcade Holiday Bundle from Amazon. I bought my Arcade from Amazon two days ago, chose one day shipping and got it yesterday. BTW, it is a jasper, came with 150W power brick, TEAM: FDOU, mfg 10-23-2008, Lot 0843x (package was picked up by carrier from Phoenix, AZ).
This is my first XBOX360 console. I never had one in the past due to the bad reputation it had from the RRoD issue. I did have a PS3 but sold it a few months ago due to financial problems. I was regretting it until now.
Now the review:
I have to say I'm impressed by the size, looks and feel of the controller (which BTW is wireless). I like it much better than the PS3 controller. Although that was much lighter it didn't provide the same accuracy in FPS games - I can tell the analog sticks really make the difference. One annoying thing though, the controller anaglog sticks start squeaking after playing less than one hour (I bought the Orange Box and Fallout 3).
The console didn't come with a HD cable so I bought a component cable to go with my 26" HDTV.
The graphics on this are gorgeous. It's been a while since I played on my PS3 but I can tell the images look crisper on the XBOX360 (might be due to contrast). I didn't experience any hickups while playing the orange box unlike on the PS3 which was unplayable at times (frame rate drops).
I also purchased a separate 60GB HDD that came with a 3-month XBOX LIve GOld subscription. From what I can tell, there's no more waiting unlike the PSN which was very very slow. I'm not going to renew the subscription since I rarely have time to play.
Now to the bad part:
Let me start saying the console is fairly quiet WHEN playing from the HDD (the new update allows you to install games locally), as quiet as my previous 40GB PS3. It does not overheat either. I played three ours both Half life EP2 and Fallout3 and the console was amazingly cool - no slowdowns or hangs).
HOWEVER, the console sounds like a vacuum cleaner when playing from the disk. It is very very annoying. I don't know if it scratches disks yet but we will see in time. BTW, I thought it scratched my disk for a second but then I realized that circle who looked as a scratch was present on other disks too (which were unopened at that time)
Overall, I like it a lot and don't regret buying it. I don't care about blu-ray anyway, the movies are so expensive so are the games and if it breaks it will cost a fortune to replace/repair. I'm not going to start about the game selection which its huge. I can finally play some oldies like Doom3, Quake4 which are unavailable on the PS3.
Now that It's confirmed Amazon has Jaspers you could hunt for one of your own. (God, I was so lucky being able to cancel my order for the 60GB bundle and getting this)
I'm not giving it five stars due to the controller squeaking issue and DVD drive noise.
Cheers!
PS: I'm keeping mine horizontal. | video-games_xbox |
New York Needs Saved. Crysis 2 is the sequel to crysis developed by crytek using their new cryengine. I own the 360 console edition of crysis 2 and it looks beautiful. Every little detail when it comes to the enviroment, the characters and background look amazing. The only thing i can gripe about is that i know it was specifically made for consoles and not the pc monster their first game was made. My understanding is that the pc version looks a lot better than the console version but its not saying much when they aren't using pcs tools to their fullest just recently they announced it will be able to use directx11 but this is i want to say a month or months after the game was released. So obviously it was made specifically to be console friendly. Besides all of that the game looks amazing.
The gameplay is solid. It played exactly as i imagined it would play after playing the first one. There are two things that i do have a problem with which if were not a problem i would have loved the gameplay. First off you're supposed to have super human strength yet it takes forever to hurt a soldier with any object you throw at them. You would assume that if you have super human strength that a box would hurt a lot but instead they immediately get right back up. The second is i love the powers you have but when you get to the higher leveled powers are not needed. One of the power's for example is to detect aliens that are invisible when doesn't happen until you get the very last fight and when i mean last fight i mean that literally it only last 5 mins and it's only a couple of aliens. So to me it seems the developers ran out of ideas. But on the same hand those powers work well online so they are needed for online but for the campaign some of the powers are a waste of time.
The replay i would so is high based on doing the campaign multiple times to try the powers out in different ways and trying different tactics. The online portion i want to say is a mix bag. It has the call of duty feel when it comes enhancing your weapons, challenges, badges. Then they add a twist but using the powers you have which for the most part works very well. The only thing that is an annoyance is how almost every one turns invisible so at first its hard to get a bearing of how to be better than someone else when they are invisible. Then when you think about it you have the same options offered to you, you just need to utilize them in better ways. I loved the campaign and i think the multiplayer is really fun i think its worth buying. | video-games_xbox |
A big improvement over the Xbox 360 adapter, but the costs add up. Let's cut to the chase of this review: this dongle does exactly what it's supposed to, which is to enable the use of Xbox One controllers wirelessly on a Windows-based PC. It improves on the Xbox 360 equivalent by ditching the attached USB cable and replacing it with a thumb-drive inspired design, which will be a welcome change for laptop users and anyone else who would rather not have another cable flopping around their desk, and it even includes a USB extension cable for the people who want it.
So what's the downside? First of all, the thing is huge. Even compared to most thumb drives it's quite large, but compare it to a typical Blutooth adapter or even the Steam Controller's wireless adapter, and the thing is a giant. If you plug this thing into a laptop, you are going to want to make sure that you do not sit it incorrectly on your lap and bend it (but you should not be playing games on a laptop that's directly on your lap anyway, since all that extra heat on your pelvis is unhealthy for a certain bodily function). That's not the worst thing in the world, but worth considering.
The biggest gripe I have with this adapter is the price. A PS4 controller works fine with a $10 USB Bluetooth adapter, it has a built in rechargeable battery, and the controller itself is usually $10 less than an Xbox 360 controller. You essentially have to pay $35 more to get a wireless Xbox One pad running on your PC than you would a wireless Dualshock 4. Granted in my testing I found the Xbox One's connection to be much more reliable than the DS4's while gaming wirelessly, but even at that price you still have to pay more for the play and charge kit to have true parity with the Dualshock 4.
If it sounds like I hate this thing, I don't. If you have the cash I would gladly recommend an Xbox One controller for PC gaming over a Dualshock 4, because in addition to the better compatibility you get other features like support for the headset / headphones jack and chatpad support. Just be aware that you are going to pay a lot more in hidden costs to get up and running. If you want to pay less than $60 then I'd say the Dualshock 4 is a fine option, and if you are willing to pay up to $100 for a similar but smoother experience, go for the Xbox One controller.
I was lucky enough to get my Xbone controller on sale for $40 during black friday this year, so that was a somewhat easier pill to swallow. If Microsoft really wanted to be more competetive with the Dualshock 4 though, I would say that this adapter should cost $15 (or at least not more than $20), and the Xbone controller itself should include a rechargeable battery and not cost more than $50. | video-games_xbox |
The bumpy road to sequel-ville. It's strange looking back at "Gears of War 2" since it was the game that made me decide "ok that does it, time to buy an Xbox 360". Hard to tell why since I had a perfectly good Playstation 3 working and with good exclusives but like most people, the other team has cool stuff too. Playing it endlessly at the time of its release, I find it graphically stunning, fun to play and Horde mode was a bit addicting. But time has a habit of lessening the impact and while I still say Gears of War 2 is an extremely well-executed game, some aspects of it bug the **** out of me.
Story: Taking place several months after the end of the original, citizens have been reported being sick by something called Rustlung disease thanks to the Lightmass bomb detonation. To make matters worse, entire cities have been sinking into the ground and the last city stronghold Jacinto is next and so Marcus Fenix and friend Dom Santiago decide to take the fight to the Locust stronghold and hopefully find Dom's missing wife, Maria.
The problem ultimately with the story is 2 things: one concerns Cliff Bleszinki's claim that the story is more personal. And while there's an actual reason for Dom in this one, too often does it feel like they skimped on the extra elements that would've made the story work. Okay the character Maria, who we have to save and who Dom keeps obsessing about finding, is introduced in one flashback scene and only mainly seen in a photograph. Would've been nice to at least get some extra development on her character considering she's one of the key figures in the story. Secondly is Epic's love for setpieces or namely outdoing their last one. Yes sequels always have a "bigger, badder, better" mentality but what made the original work is the bigger gunfights mixed in with more quieter and different chapters. Recall the Kryll section from the first one. Here it feels like you're just constantly shooting ****.
Graphics: Yes Gears of War 2 is definately one of the more superb looking games on the Xbox 360. The lighting, the detail on character's faces, the more improved architecture and changes in fight encounters make this more advanced than the original, which is pretty amazing still. However, as most people have complained, there's an extremely noticeable "same-y" feeling to it, what with the greys and browns. Multiplayer doesn't have the same level of detail though that's a given and lag can hit so watch out.
Sound/Music: There's 2 different things to look at in regards to voice acting: the acting and the scripts since its what the actors have to actually say. Some actors can deliver awful lines with gusto and that's a case here since a lot of these lines are just...bad and not a whole lot of character development either but at least the actors do a good job with the lines themselves. The music is big, epic and frequently engaging,making the bigger firefights that much more awesome. Although I am getting tired of the theme that plays during matchmaking though.
Gameplay: Same thing as before since the game isn't like Call of Duty or Halo where you can just run and shoot; this time you have to find cover, pop off some rounds and get back down. It's not as magnetic as it was in the first one where you'd attach to walls you didn't want to and they're quite easy to pick up on. Weapon selection is mapped to D-Pad with default Lancer being right, left being shotgun/bow/sniper rifle etc, up's your grenades, down's your pistols. Aside from the wonky d-pad making you pick a pistol when you wanted the shotgun, it's a lot more faster and immediate than having to scroll through your lists a la Half-Life 2 let's say.
Co-op of course is here but this time there's a special feature: individual difficulties. Say you beat the game and want to beat it on Insane with a buddy (seeing as how the AI is still pathetic). Well rather than tackling insane on both sides, one guy can be on Casual, other's on Insane and just let Casual do all the work up front while Insane snipes from the back. It makes getting that achievement easier but I hate going through single player since the AI on your friends are a little...screwed. One thing: the Friends with Benefits achievement unlocks if the entire game is in co-op, so if for one second somebody logs out, it messes up the achievement and you have to find a friend and pick chapter start. Worse thing is that it actually doesn't tell you WHAT chapters you're missing so it becomes a dart throwing game on a map where you randomly pick an act and hope your missing chapter's in there.
The big draw and the one reason people will repeatedly play Gears of War 2 is the multiplayer. There's quite a few modes from a Capture the Flag variant where the flag is a gun-toting brat who doesn't want to be captured, King of the Hill with hills frequently changing location, Wingman where you and a buddy take on 4 2-player teams and the ever-popular Horde mode. You and 4 others take on 50 waves of locusts that get stronger after every 10. While it's very fun (though slightly boring if you've beaten all 50), would've liked to see variances in the waves since they just repeat the next time and a surprise round would've been nice.
However I will say that after 3 title updates, there's still a lot of kinks to get ironed out and it's strange how the talented guys at Epic still can't seem to get this one right. Weapon damage is inconsistent (guy survives 3 shotgun blasts to the face at point-blank range, he gets one shot 10 feet away and poof!), lag can be frequent, matchmaking can be long and disconnects can result in loss of EXP. Why can't it be like Call of Duty where individual actions bring EXP and not disconnects or Halo where EXP only comes from winning the match. People play to win not find all their hard work vanishing because you had the one bad connection match. So of course naturally most of the achievements are in multiplayer. How lovely.
Gears of War 2 is one of the most successful games of 2008 but it's still not a flawless experience but that doesn't stop people from flocking to it in droves. Give it a play though I find other games have been eating up my time lately. | video-games_xbox |
LeBron James has terrible taste in game music. Essentially NBA2K14 is NBA2K13 with new rosters and UI Graphics. And a terrible soundtrack filled with slow songs that are better for a high school couples dance than a basketball game.
There are some marginal improvements in passing and some new Signature Skills, which forces you to re-learn many of the commands that most players are familiar with in NBA2K games for the past few years. This was problematic at first but with time you become more accustomed to the new layout.
MyCareer starts on Superstar mode instead of Pro. This ups the ante and makes it seem a lot tougher than it has in years past. Pass interceptions seem to be tuned up, so no more averaging 20+ assists by face rolling your controller. The new passing interface is still a little tricky for me but I'm seeing some cool features.
Online Association no longer allows coach mode. Which is great for players, but bad for some types of hardcore sim leagues since those servers for prior years games go down so soon after the release of a new title. And no keeper mode was included, which would have been nice.
MyTeam has moved to a booster pack only system of accruing new players. Either buying players on the market has been disabled in order to front load VC purchases, or this new system will be persistent. You cannot make money buying low and selling high like you could in NBA2K13. As of today, October 3rd 2013, its a pay to win gameplay component.
LeBron's Journey Pre-order Gameplay is basically situational gameplay, like reliving the last quarter of the Finals against San Antonio, going through free agency and then playing MyCareer mode as LeBron on a new team. The animations they made for cut-scenes looked like they were procured from some kid in a garage hired on Craigslist.
MyCareer: No more Doris. (Doris is now back as of patch on 10/4/13) No more coaches comments. No more 3rd quarter review. No more end of game highlights review. New scouting reports on your cover guy before you enter the game. New interface for grading is terrible. Thin pinstripe progress bar is hard to see and not as satisfying. You also get called for blocking if you force the ballhandler into a backcourt violation which really chaps my hide. Ball security is super highly important unless you like being pawed like a stripper at a full nude dance club.
In all honesty, I play NBA2K probably 90% of the time I play on my console. It's like my Call of Duty, Madden or HALO. I really do not feel this title is worth the $60 I paid. I'm just one of those guys that needs to have his NBA2K and pre-orders the second it is available. If you play this game casually, wait till it drops to $30 and then pick it up. No use rewarding 2K for re-skinning last year's game and calling it "new". | video-games_xbox |
Really good controller. This is the best controller that I've ever used. Its big, but after a little while, it feels natural. I have no trouble reaching either of the analog sticks, the triggers, the D-pad, the four main face buttons, or the black and white buttons. You do have to unseat your hands a bit to hit the back or start buttons, but you don't need to reach them fast in games anyway. If you have small hands (mine are average) you may have trouble reaching the black and white buttons, but I haven't seen many games where it was important to hit them fast (exception: DOA3). The buttons are not difficult to press, but are stiff enough to make it hard to press one accidentally.
Some reviewers complain about the D-pad, but I have no problem using it (except that it was sometimes hard to get the diagonals at first), and most games don't really use it (again, exception: DOA3). The joysticks have a good give, allow very acurate control (they alow Halo to have the truly sweet, smooth control scheme that makes it such a great game), are rubberized, and are buttons (this adds whole new realms of possibility for control schemes, example: Gunvalkyrie). The shoulder triggers are great, especially because they are triggers, not buttons, which gives the controller a much better feel for shooters: they, along with the solid design of the controller, and the excellent built in vibration, makes it feel like you are firing a gun, instead of pressing some button (I always hate shooters where the fire control is a button, it pulls me out of the game). Also, the triggers have many levels of sensitivity, and so make them much better for things like racing games: you have much better control over the throttle. In fact, all of the buttons are pressure sensitive, which is useful in some games (example: the Madden football series).
If you are having trouble using the controller, you are probably holding it wrong. You can't try to hit all the buttons, or use all of the joysticks with the tip of your finger. Especially with the A/green button, use the ball of your thumb. Also, if you are used to holding the shoulder triggers with both your forefinger, and your middle finger (like with PS2 and GC), don't, just use your forefinger. I've never really met anyone who hasn't liked the XBox controller after a bit of use. I know that I've pulled 10 hour straight Halo sessions without having any problems with my hands.
-Heahengel
Edit: Reading this a number of years later, I wish I'd left out the last paragraph. I still prefer the original Xbox controllers to the smaller ones though. | video-games_xbox |
Excellent guitar - Fool your friends. I've been a Guitar Hero/Rock Band fanatic since the original releases on Playstation 2. Over the years, I've found that the default guitars that came with the games have a relatively short shelf life for players who only rock out on the expert difficulties. While it's always disappointing when your favorite guitar starts to ignore strums/strum twice, you can't expect that little plastic toggle to last forever with the rough beating it receives from an avid player.
When my last guitar died out, I decided to go for a slightly more expensive model, hoping the build quality might mean the product will last a bit longer. I was surprised to see this replica Fender controller for sale at the same price as the other wireless cheap plastic guitars. It has been a few years since I purchased a Rock Band guitar (favoring Guitar Hero recently), so I decided to pick this one up and get some of the achievements related to the solo buttons only available on the Rock Band guitars.
When this arrived at my door, I was shocked. The box was massive, and upon bringing it inside, the weight confused me. This truly is a replica fender stratocaster guitar. If you hide the fact colored frets on the wide of the neck, this can easily fool your friends into thinking you bought a real guitar. The size, weight, and appearance are all perfect. The attention to detail is great, from the tuning knobs all the way down to the bridge.
But appearances aren't why you buy a guitar controller. I booted up Rock Band 3, and immediately started to play. The fret buttons on this guitar are almost completely silent. The strum bar does have a bit of a click to it, but after playing for a while the sound does die down a little. Depending on your speaker setup, it may be possible to completely miss the clicking sound through a combination of volume and zoning out the steady sound/beat of the clicking.
Some reviews have said this guitar does not come with a strap, but mine did. I do not know if this is a problem with certain boxes not having the strap, or if other reviewers may not have noticed it inside the box [it was not taped down, so it could have easily been "lost" under the other packaging].
Overall, I highly recommend this guitar to any Rock Band/Guitar Hero fans, especially those that like to abuse their guitars a bit by playing high difficulty rating expert songs. After getting used to the increased size and weight, this has become my favorite guitar to use. | video-games_xbox |
Didn't live up to my expectations. It's been a while since I have played an exclusively single player game and being a big fan of Film Noir this one really interested me. I had read so many positive reviews about this game that I decided to give it a try. I expected it to be story driven, but maybe not to the extent that it was.
I enjoyed the game at first, driving around to crime scenes, investigating, chasing criminals. The problem is that it never changed. Ever. It was the same exact thing the whole way through. The story was good enough to keep me playing, but there was never really any excitement in the sense of new methods of doing things as the game progressed.
Chasing criminals was always the same, you either find a way to roll their car or make them crash, or they end up getting out on foot. The only way to fail was to get too far behind, which was usually really far behind.
Investigating crime scenes was the same, which as fun for a while, but again, nothing new was ever introduced.
I admit I didn't know much about side cases besides the fact that they were optional. I thought they would be cases unrelated to the story, but would require investigating just the same. I couldn't have been more wrong. You just show up, shoot or chase a couple people and move on.
Questioning/Interrogation was my favorite part, and was the aspect I struggled most with. It was the only part of the game that really took any thinking. The rest of the game was pretty much done for you.
It was fun for the most part, just a little to repetitive. Thankfully the game wasn't too long so it didn't draw out too much. Switching desks helped keep it from being too dull. Finding and driving the rare cars was entertaining and I liked the recreation of the city and landmarks. At the same time I often felt like I couldn't fail. Even if I got a poor percentage of correct answers when questioning I never had trouble completing a case. What kept me going was finishing the story, though I was disappointed by the ending. It was good until the last second where it took an unnecessary turn. | video-games_xbox |
A Great Merging of Two Classics. I adore the Lord of the Rings series, and I adore the Lego video games. I am thrilled that the combination of the two is spectacularly fun.
The Lego game makers have definitely perfected the gameplay over their various iterations. The coin-gathering fun is there. The cut scenes can be laugh-out-loud funny. There are puzzles and battles, quiet moments and gorgeous scenery.
It is just so satisfying to go wandering all over the Shire, watching the hobbits dance at the party, and exploring the ins and outs of hobbit holes. Then there's the beauty of Rivendell, with Elrond and all his elvish friends. Sure, the game gets darker as it goes, and it can be fairly tedious following Gollum along through the grimy swamp. But all in all there is a lot to enjoy here.
I really have to give special kudos to the team that develops the cut-scenes. Sure, they had the real movie dialogue to work with, which is a treat. But the detail they give to the little Lego expressions is priceless. There's quite a deft touch here with the humor. While kids will enjoy the game, the adults will adore some of the jokes.
This is one of those games that I'll be playing long into the night, knowing I should go to sleep, but then I want to get through just one more level. And then the next thing I know the sun is peeking up over the horizon. It sucks you in. Luckily the save system is fairly good. Certainly not perfect, but far better than many other games I've played. When it's important, you can usually get saved fairly quickly.
The game is great for all ages. The Lego games in general are well deserving of praise in that area. A young child can play along as one character, and an adult can "jump in" at any time to help out with a puzzle. Then the adult can drop out again, allowing the kid to progress on his own. Not of course that the adult has to leave if they don't want to :). I know many adults (including me) who are quite addicted to these games.
Are there any downsides? I suppose you could say that there's no politically important statements being made about nuclear war or the state of minorities in the modern world. But for simple, relaxing fun, with a heavy dose of the Lord of the Rings fantasy, I definitely recommend this game.
Rating 10/10
I purchased this game with my own funds in order to write this review (and enjoy it!) :) | video-games_xbox |
A sequel that is better than the original. It's hard to find a good sequel that lives up to the original. This one definitely accomplishes that feet.
Story: continued from Mass Effect 1, you continue to try and stop the Reapers from emerging. A new race called the Collectors has emerged and are abducting human colonies and you must explore the galaxy once again looking for clues to learn what is going on and try and stop it.
Gameplay: Still a 3rd-person shooter. Combat has changed in that there are no more grenades and different weapon classes have emerged. You have to upgrade in order to carry heavy weapons. There are 6 weapon classes now, including the new sub-machine guns. Ammo is now used as well. Healing is now done atomically and you can't use medi-gel except to revive a fallen squad member. Exploring the galaxy for side quests is similar but the main difference is now the mako is gone and you manually scan a planet and launch probes instead of searching it on the ground. You have a scanner that can be upgraded. You also have fuel once you are in a solar system and you need to refuel often and buy more probes if you want to explore other systems. There are tons of side missions as before and a lot more plot-advancing missions. New characters are introduced into your party as well as some characters from ME1. The new Illusive Man is an awesome and mysterious character. Your character alignment can be altered through conversation as in ME1, but you now have interrupting options that can be either good or renegade. Game decisions will affect the ending and squad members as well. Each squad member has a mission they want you to do for them that if done, lets you gain influence on them and will allow you to further level them up. Your ending can be imported into ME3 so choose your ending wisely.
Conclusion: Graphics are better than ME1, controls are easy to execute. The story is once again engaging and the game is not a disappointment. It is ranked as 3rd best reviewed game on the Xbox 360 and 14th overall. Pick this one up and prepare for the conclusion to the trilogy in ME3. | video-games_xbox |
set your expectations to: low. The Cursed Crusade is a game that could have turned out to be a lot better than it actually is. What it Is, unfortunately, is a mess.
As a game, Cursed Crusade isn't awful. Its about as average and generic as a hack and slash game can get. As such, it can get repetitive and dull as you dice up enemies with the same dial-a-combos over and over. There's not much there that makes it stand out. The only thing that's close is the 'curse' gimmick which is pretty much superficial. The Cursed Crusade has a kind of dual-world thing going on. With the push of a button, the normal world converts into a hellish burning landscape and all your enemies look like burn victims or living corpses. Its kind of a neat idea, but it doesn't add a whole lot to the game. The curse feature is basically a powered up mode that allows the player to use super moves and solve extremely crude puzzles. Its an intriguing feature, but the developers didn't do a whole lot with it.
In nearly every other department, The Cursed Crusade is garbage. The story is absurd and silly desperately attempting to do what Assassin's Creed 2 does trying to weave fiction into historical events but failing to be anywhere near as inspired or interesting. Graphically, the game is inconsistent. Most of the time it looks okay, but every now and then the game obviously looks like it isn't properly finished. For instance there's a part where you fight a duel and before you grab your sword, its stuttering and hiccupping around in its holder. The game itself is glitchy as well. I've had to restart a few chapters since an event that was supposed to trigger didn't. There's also poor design where there's no indication on what to do or where to go. Typically this means using your curse to reveal a hidden wall, but sometimes those aren't even properly highlighted.
Honestly, I would have given this game a 3 star rating saying its average and nothing more, but I can't ignore just how sloppy and rough around the edges it is. The Cursed Crusade is so thoroughly a mediocre bargain bin quality title I really can't recommend it. It is not a quality or memorable game. For the budget price of $20, there's a lot better out there. I got it for $15 brand new, and I still feel like it wasn't worth it. The Cursed Crusade is so unpolished I'd even place The First Templar above it in terms of quality.
However, if you're into Gamerscore, The Cursed Crusade is a rather easy and quick 1000 g. | video-games_xbox |
AMAZING - MUST READ. Hey, Hello, did my Headline get your interest? Well good, as you are here now anyway, why not stay a while and read this review?
I can promise you something here and now today. When you have finished reading this review. You will have learned 3 new things.
Stay with me for this, ok? Here we go:
Now, without further ado, straight to the review:
Today: ASTRO GAMING A40 HEADSET
Well now finally here is a topic where I actually do know things about: Gaming Headsets.
I am not a big COD or more precisely FPS gaming fan. But my buddies John and Kevin totally wanted to play the new COD WW2 all the time. So ok, I guess now I am playing FPS games. I had a Turtle Beach Elite for a long while now but it seemed kinda meh for COD. The sound was a little hollow and I was not a 100% happy with it. As I am really bad at FPS games I needed to upgrade my gaming accessories to at least have the slightest chance of doing anything helpful. So I went out and read a few reviews and everybody said the ASTROs were really good. Now I am not a great fan of wireless headphones so I decided to go with the A40 and not the A50s.
That I would get the MixAmp with the Headphones was a given. As I said, I need all the help I can get.
The sound was really good, but not like AMAZING. So back to Google I went. Was I doing something wrong?
Turns out, there is a ProGaming Equipment Upgrade set for the ASTROS. Ok, I thought, lets see if that does the trick.
I cant tell you how big the difference is. its the WORLD.
Sound is great. Deep Base, you can hear all the steps, clear sound. Definitely get these and all the upgrade packs.
Only issue now: I am still bad at COD. So I guess its still kinda about skill. At least now I can hear myself better while playing really bad.
Better than nothing
As I promised you will learn 3 new things today, first the product review, and here are 2 amazing facts more:
- Every Year on August 5th, the Mars Curiosity Rover celebrates the anniversary of its arrival by singing the Happy Birthday Song. To Itself. All alone. On Mars.
- Queen Cleopatra was alive closer to the invention of the IPHONE than the construction of the Great Pyramid. Think about that...
"Reviewing a better world. One product at a time"
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#NotSponsored #NoBias | video-games_xbox |
Good mic that could have been Great. The wireless 360 LIPS microhpone mics are extremely well made. Alot fancier then the standard USB microphones used in Guitar Hero, Rock Band or Karaoke Revolution games. They sound better as well. Less distortion then the USB mics. The mics are comfortable and have flashing lights to give them a little bit of flare. Thats personal taste. But I thought it was nice.
So why are these mics good and not great...well they have flaws. The system of turning the mic on and off is honestly rediculous and confusing. The system of connecting your mic with the xbox 360 is equally rediculous and confusing. They use LED light indicators to show when a mic is on or off, when the batteries are running low. Things of that nature. But I'll be darned if I could totally figure it out. They did it this way to avoid putting buttons on the Mic. I can understand that...but it makes it a royal pain to get it up and started.
The next flaw is of course game compatibility. Most games that this works with, it works with perfectly. LIPS of course, flawless. The Beatles Rock Band, flawless. Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero almost flawless, however sometimes they have trouble recognizing the mic. You may have to go into the options and make sure the mic has been selected or it won't work. Not hard but it sometimes happens. Then we come to Rock Band 2....ok...heres the thing. They added the online patch for Rock Band 2, as reviewers have noted, you need that patch. If you can't connect to Xbox Live to update. You won't be able to play these on Rock Band 2 right out the box. The next thing is...the lag...the lag is not necessarily as bad as I thought it would be. In fact it doesn't really sound as much like a lag, more like a background echo. It depends on what type of person you are...I can tolerate it. But if your a perfectionist. It could be annoying. You can try some fixes, lowering your mic volume will reduce the echo. You'll barely be able to hear yourself. But you should still perform well on the game.
Overall I found the mic worth it. But I enjoy LIPS alot...which is what its made for. If you want to buy this just for Rock Band 2 for an all wireless setup. Wait awhile. Because its not perfect. If you want to buy this for several music based games however. I saw go for it. Its a good mic, but it does have flaws which prevent it from being great. | video-games_xbox |
Not the Next-Gen Awesomeness I Expected. Now, I've been a huge CoD player since the first Modern Warfare came out, and it's more or less been the exclusive MP game I've gone to for years. So I do have history with the game franchise. And every year I oh-so-want to love it, especially when this was going to be the next-gen colossus we were all waiting for.
On the superficial level, the graphics are very sub-par. Especially for a next-gen game. Ghosts looked better. There is nowhere near as much detail as the previous iteration, and everything is very washed out. The level designs are all greys, browns, and blues. And while 'next gen is grey and brown' has never bothered me, this was an extreme case.
Mostly due to the locations. They are all urban/building environments. Ghosts at least had some outdoors levels, and broke it up a bit. These are all boring, cement-slab facades with nothing to break it up, and are more vertical than anything, which is clearly designed around the EXO suits.
The EXO suits are the gimmick for this game, that let you double jump, dash, and do other "cool" things. While Titanfall also had this, they did it better. And the levels of TF were not designed around this mechanic. Unless you're willing to boost-jump all over the place and try to command an upper level, you're going to lose, because all someone has to do is peek over the edge and take you out. It's very frustrating to have to gear your tactics around this.
Unlike TF, it's all much easier to use in combat, which you'd think would add an interesting element, but once again, unless you're specifically gearing yourself towards this tactic and learning how to deal with people who are using the boost in combat, it's very frustrating and you're left behind the curve.
There's also the niggling issues of lousy sound effects, very limited weapon selection, and poor gun handling. But it pales in comparison to the fact that the game is not well designed, and just doesn't look good for the games first true outing on the next-gen platforms. If I could get my money back, I would. | video-games_xbox |
Amazing Product, Would Recommend To Everyone And Fast Shipping. Don't be so skeptical from other reviews!! . Ok first off I'd like to point out that I've never owned any Astro product until the A40's. I'm a huge gamer and tech freak and know good product from bad. I've owned a pair of Turtle Beach X12 (entry level) headset for almost 2 years and prefer headphone audio for gaming over any other if you're a serious gamer (especially for online multiplayer aka.. COD, Battlefield, Crysis, Far Cry, Halo etc..) I love Turtle Beach headsets and in no way do I have a biased opinion, I just love great product that inhances my gaming experience. When I first heard about Astro headsets from a sales rep at a local Best Buy I had to check them out. When I first saw the design on the website, the quality and options delivered they had my attention.
So I started doing some research to justify spending the hefty $250.00 on a pair of headphones and the first thing I started seeing pop up under every review was: "Sound gate problem", "Mic stops working after firmware update", "Sound cuts out due to insufficient power from USB" and some that just said "Does not work after 2 hours, do not buy!!" There were so many negative reviews it naturally made me skeptical. I started wondering how a company would let a problem so bad persist for such an expensive (almost luxury) item, especially Astro of all who are known for their product and contribution towards gaming championships across the nation.
I've worked in customer service and retail for over 15 years and know that a customer expects perfect and will sometimes take that expectation of service for granted on a daily basis forgetting that the product or service is produced by us..Humans and we are far from perfect. On the other hand, an unsatisfied customer will go to great lengths to share his/her dissatisfaction with a service or product and an opinion lasts a lifetime when most else is uncertain.
I bought the Astro A40s' and let me tell you... Pros: They're amazing!! No broken mic, no sound cut outs, no sound gate problems or power failures. The design is modern and yells "I'm not just a gamer with style, I have taste and good taste at that"
The ear cups are crazy comfortable, as is the whole set. Some complained about it being hard to adjust the ear cups and they are stiff, not sure if the complainers ever thought maybe thats so they stay put and not un-adjust. So be thankful they don't slide up and down with ease. The sound is mind blowing compared to standard stereo headsets. Crystal clear sound not to mention Dolby Digital Surround Sound 7.1 (5.1 technically) if you have a surround ready device, if not stereo is an option as well and sounds great too.
I tested Battlefield 3 out for 3 hours straight with master volume set at about 68% (some reported very low volume levels and low voice chat levels aka hard to hear anything, which would be so if the mix amp knob is left positioned in the middle to pick up both voice chat and game volume, if you set the mix amp knob (bottom knob) closer to game volume or chat it WILL get loud and so forth with the game chat.) I was also in a chat party (xbox live) while playing BF3. I could hear the game and the people chatting in my party clear as day. With the Turtle Beach's their mic picks up in my opinion too much sound. My Astros on the other hand picked up my voice clearly and only my voice, no background sound WITHOUT sounding robotic or cutting in and out, according to my friends I was "Crystal Clear". Their feedback, not just mine :) (They're Turtle Beach fans BTW!) The mic out of the box is seperate from the headset and must be plugged/inserted into the side of the headset, yes that means its removable if you do not want to chat. I removed it again and again, adjusted it, twisted it and it still worked fine as day chatting away with my friends. The mute button (which looks awesome and does not catch on things as badly as people say. The turtle beach mic, volume, bass knob on their cord catches worse then any) is located on the stereo cable that connects the mix amp to the headset. If orange shows then the mic is muted on the mute switch for chat. If the mute switch is all black then you're ready to chat.
The box came packed with every cord you could ever need INCLUDING: A seperate USB power cable (Shipped in same box but seperate packaging at no additional charge) which is thicker then the stock USB included in the box and its gold plated (they do listen at Astro and have made the power failure rumor just that, a rumor) It also has a TOSLINK (fiber optic) cable for dolby digital SS, stereo cable for connection from mix amp to headset, pc splitter cable for hook up to computer, mp3 stereo cable to connect an mp3 player to mix amp to listen to music and xbox live chat cable to connect from mix amp to controller for game chat. There are 2 more inputs which are a stream input and a daisy chain input on the mix amp, if you do not know how to use these or what they're for just do not use them, they are for linking multiple headsets and voice playback etc.. You do not need them to properly use the headset for listening or chatting. This is the part I feel everyone is mistaking for problems like no sound or crackling or cut outs or too quiet: People! Read the instructions before connecting and using the headset and mix amp. If you plug the main stereo cord into the stream input or mp3 input or daisy chain input yeah your headset is not going to work and vice versa! Plug the right cords into the right input jacks on the mix amp/headset, follow the instructions and you're headset will work normally. If you're a hardcore gamer and know your headsets then just read a little, if any of this sounds like too much or too complicated then maybe a more standard entry level headset will suffice (like the Turtle Beach X12s or standard Astro A30s)
The mix amp has 4 preset audio setups you can select with the press of a button to fit your style and needs (like: progamer, Core gamer, sports, each sounds significantly different). The mix amp allows you to adjust the master volume of the headset (big knob on top). Choose priority of either game volume or chat volume if playing a game while chatting (smaller knob on bottom). select dolby digital mode (surround sound) or just stereo. The mix amp also has all of the inputs located on the top and bottom for connecting the cords that come included. The mix amp is about the size of an xbox controller but do not fret, Astro gives you plenty of cord length to sit back, get up, move around with out tugging on the mix amp if you prefer setting it on a table or keeping it by your console or computer, I keep mine right next to me incase I need to adjust chat volume. The mix amp itself looks awesome and parts illuminate with a cool blue light. The whole set is solid including the headset. Some also complained that the headset feels cheap, flimsy and they're afraid to drop it. They're stronger then they make them out to be and I don't know about anyone else, but I wouldn't wanna drop or throw around a $250 pair of headphones anyways. You wouldn't throw or drop your laptop, tablet xbox or ps3 would you? Take care of the product and it will take care of you.
Now for the Con: Really the only thing I can think of is the Astro packaging (retail box) that the headset comes in. Don't get me wrong, it looks sweet! It makes you feel like you're getting your moneys worth before you even open it, but thats the only problem I have I feel like a decent chunk of change could have been saved and shaved off the retail price of the product had they just packaged it in a normal snazzy box like everyone else. Your headset is plenty unique Astro, let your actual product do the shining (which it does, don't get me wrong) not so much of the box (packaging).
So there it is, my honest opinion and experience a full day after receiving my Astro A40's. They're great! Amazing! Best in house for the price, they work, sound and look AWESOME! No I'm not a sales rep, PR person or worker for Astro, just a very satisfied customer who thinks a good company deserves recognition for great product when so many other UNHAPPY people in the world live to write negative reviews only to try and justify their lack of know how or willingness to read and follow directions. Great Job Astro! I will recommend your product to everyone and continue to support your awesome product :) If you're still a little skeptical, just know, when you buy it, go to their website, register your headset and you'll have a year warranty right off the bat, not to mention they'll also give you 15% off the price for a second year of warranty just for registering it!!
Should you buy the Astro A30, A40 or A50?: YES!! Don't listen to the 1 guy that maybe got a defective product or just didn't read the instructions right and broke it him/herself out of the other 10,000 people that are happy with their product and just didn't think to write something good about it. This is worth every penny and you'll love every minute of them when you start playing with them with any game! They just make everything sound good! Get em! -Darryl aka BringSin (XBL Tag) | video-games_xbox |
This really should be a wait and see review. There are two updates coming in about a one month period.. Today being 2/9/13. So, it's still early to write a review.
Pros:
Hooked up to my directtv easily and switches between them seemlessly. I love having the kinect and do see why Microsoft is not having it an additional add on. I wouldn't through the training videos and personally I have no issues wirh the speaking and I have a deep voice and mumble. When I turn on the xbox the tv, directtv, and the surround sound. I'm not sure that the xbox really turns on the surround sound though. I'm happy with the graphics. I'm happy within e speed and actual impressed by how quickly I can go between apps. You kind of figure out quickly to use a combination of the controller and voice. It brings up the guide for me and switches channels pretty slick, I mainly still ise the remote. Being able to have two things open at once is awesome. The things that are available work well. It seems to run very cool too. The xbox app is nice. Being able to control things with you tablet or phone. I wish there were more controls. I wish I could get into that app say tv and have a remote and guide instead of only being able to switch to it.
Cons:
When you have two things snapped it is not very seemless switching g between them. I'm not going to talk about anything that I know is in the update and I'm sure an about could solve a lot of these issues. Volume control between the two snapped apps is an issue as well. I'd also like to be able to control the size of snapped items and there are certain items that appear have to be on the bigger screen. I realize there some legality issues to this one that their working. Not being able to be a DVR to TV programs. It's not the full . I've had it freeze on me several times. I've had xbox exclusive apps just crash on me. It's frustrating. There needs to be more inputs. I would like more things runnin get through it. It's frustrating switchingt to TV and then going through TV inputs. It needs more inputs if it wants to be a one stop hub. Maybe this is just me, but xbox can turn everything on, but turn nothing off other then itself. I don't know how realistic this is, but I wish more would update while it's off. I have the xbox running in the background, but it's frustrating coming home and wanting to play a game and waiting for it to update. It is nice not sitting through whole system updates.
One tip I want to say is go through the video lessons. Check out and learn the power settings and decide what's best for you. | video-games_xbox |
This is a review for the Single player and co-op side only! Also Zombies. Just so you know before you read all of this, i will NOT be talking about the Multiplayer aspect of this game, meaning the online PvP stuff.
I typically am a single player, story driven gamer and i have avoided COD games since BO2. I then pulled myself out of the FPS all together because they were all becoming more about the competetive and not for the casual gamer. However, i still like to have that rush of grenades being thrown at me and running for a chopper in a military shooter. I read several reviews and heard this game had a longer campaign than usual, so when I was at best buy i was offered a free game and decided to go with this on (because i already had fallout 4 and Rise of the Tomb Raider).
Honestly, this game looks amazing, for the most part. There are some cut scenes where the graphics pop in like your looking at an old Xbox (original) and your wondering why things look weird, then BAM, next Gen graphics in your face, like the system was still buffering in the background. The sounds are awesome, the base, the fire fights, the explosions, all sound great.
As for the game, i actually enjoyed it alot, not only did you get to "create" your character, i put create in quotes because you really only choose Male or Female (which is cool) then pick a head, nothing else and all the guys heads look alike. But I was following the story and having a good time, cussing at the TV when i would get picked off because i didn't look to my left, and it all felt great. Until the end, the story took a weird turn in the very end that left me confused and then credits rolled. So wasn't 100% satisfied with the ending, but oh well . It lasted right around 10-12 hours, i played on veteran which was a challenge for someone who hasn't messed in an FPS in a while, but still fun.
Now the best part and the reason i wanted to share this was the 4 player co-op, 2 player split screen or 4 online, drop in CAMPAIGN CO-OP, soo fun, we all have our own characters and we do the misions and just watch the chaos unfold. In 1 stage 2 of us went on the ground to secure the base while the other 2 flew in jets firing at the enemies.
Lastly Zombies, always a good time and this time its even better, plus once you finish the campain, you unlock Nightmare mode which is basically the campaign but now with zombies in the mix. Makes it even more fun and extends the time you play single player to nearly 20+ hours.
SO, i would recommend this for anyone who is a single player fan or co-op fan. But maybe wait til it hits around $40. As for you MP fans, i haven't played MP yet, i might if i ever get time after playing fallout 4 and witcher 3, but i hear good things, so im sure you couldnt' go wrong. For you MP fans maybe get it while its $60 since it will still be a great deal, $40 single player and $20 MP ;)
Anyhoo, thats all sorry for the long windedness,
Enjoy!
TG | video-games_xbox |
A Gamer's Dream Come True. Whether I'm watching Netflix, playing Halo, or browsing the web on my Xbox 360, I always use my Xbox 360 Wireless Controller. The controller is very easy to use and lightweight. I've owned my Xbox 360 for about 3 years and haven't had to buy a new controller since. The Xbox 360 Wireless Controller really is spectacular when it comes to gaming.
The shape, size, and layout of the controller is fantastic. I can easily fit the controller in my hands and reach all of the buttons without any effort. The location of the buttons are fairly well placed for playing any video game. The triggers on the top of the controller make shooting games easier to play and more realistic since you can just pull them with your index fingers. The rest of the buttons and the analog sticks on top can also be easily pressed and used utilizing your thumbs. The controller's two handle-like projections make grip on the controller easy and doesn't give your hands cramps while gaming for hours. I've played games on many consoles with many controllers like the PlayStation and Wii, and I can honestly say that the Xbox 360 controller is the all-around best. The only thing that could be a problem for the controller is the size of it for little kids as they could have trouble pressing some buttons.
Durability is a big factor in controllers for any game consol. I've had my Xbox 360 Wireless Controller for a few years and still haven't had to buy a new one. The buttons, triggers, and analog sticks are all still in great shape. None of the buttons have worn down to the point of being unusable or in any way falter my game playing, but I do admit that they are not quite as "springy" as they used to be. The controller itself is very durable too. I've dropped my controller countless times for numerous heights and nothing has broken on it. I also know that some people get extremely angry playing video games and can tend to throw the controller. I highly advise you don't do this, but if throwing the controller were to happen I believe the controller could withstand the blow. Again I highly advise against doing this with your controller. I'm sure at some point I'm going to need to buy a new controller due to normal wear and tear but that won't be for quite some time.
One of the best parts about the controller is all the accessories and functions it has. The whole wireless adaptation that's in the name is very useful. Since the controller is wireless there's no hassle from an awful wire and has a 30 ft. range. There's also an "Xbox Guide" button on the controller that really comes in handy to access any aspect of the actual console like games and apps, settings, media, your Xbox profile, and even turn your controller or Xbox 360 on or off. The Xbox 360 Wireless Controller even has ports for a headset or keyboard on the bottom and one for a charger on top if you don't want use two double A batteries to power it.
Overall the Xbox 360 Wireless Controller was a marvelous purchase, and it's fairly priced too. The controller has outstanding features that any gamer would be thrilled about. I highly recommend this type of controller to anyone buying an Xbox 360 or just looking for another controller. | video-games_xbox |
This is insulting. I can not, in any way shape or form, understand how anyone can find this game enjoyable. If you have never played any kind of shooting game since the super Nintendo, I can understand how this would get 5 stars. If you however do have some taste, you'll probably use this disc more often as a coaster than an actual game- if you can even call it a game (more like a sadistic plan to brain wash the public into buying a product so bad our standards would drop, threfore paving way for the next mass-market gaming projecy). Here is what you need to know before looking further. This game IS NOT FULLY COMPLETE. There are tons of little bugs you'll be able to groan about as you play. The enemy AI will run in circles, there's a lot of clipping, and most importantly, the game may CRASH, resulting in a BLACK SCREEN Secondly, the graphics are nearly identical to a N64 game...drab, dull colors, bland enviornments along with totally generic and uninsipired level design make for some of the most painful experiences that a regular gamer might have.
The fighting is fun... AT FIRST. After an hour of Kung-Pow it is just as enjoying as watching grass grow. I never thought I'd say this, but going outside and sitting in the sun is a helluva lot more fun than playing this game. I won't go into how bad everything else is...but lastly, the controls are real sketchy. You'll be cramping your fingers around the left and right triggers, tapping the black button, then sidestepping while hitting the A button just to do a cartwheel. Oh, and Your characters can't hit the broad side of the barn. Your shooting capabilities are extremely poor, pretty much all throughout the game.
If you want to go ahead and follow the herd, buy this game and rant and rave about how good it is... I don't know how or why you would though, and I seriously think the orginal PONG for atari2600 would have sold just as many copies if it had The Matrix pasted all over it. Maybe the FMV video is worth it, but none of it is exactly thrilling. Honestly, the developers on this game deserve no credit for taking advantage of the mass market with such a peice of unfinished garbage. I rented this game, battled through most of it, but could not bring myself to finish it, and when I returned it, I felt just a little aggrivated that I wasted $6.30 (at the time I did rent it, my reasoning was "well 1 million people can't be wrong" -thats how many people bought the game the first week) on a game that people pay, what, 50$ for? Garbage.
Stinky, rotting, bug infested garbage (pun intended). | video-games_xbox |
Time to die . Before you buy this game let me tell you the most important part of this game, your going to die a lot. DO NOT go into this game thinking its just a run of the mill rpg/hack n' slash that you can put on easy and run around killing hundreds of baddies at one time. There is no "easy" mode to this game. Truth be told, don't be surprised if you die continuously on the tutorial for a while. Every single enemy on this game can and probably will kill you at least once. This whole game is about getting to a certain spot, getting killed, coming up with a strategy on how to not die at that same spot the 2nd time, getting past that point and moving up like 20 ft. and dying again and starting that same process over again. This game is like hard/very hard mode on every other game. Its intensely challenging and rewarding if you make it through.
I recommend this game to anyone who wants a challenge, and doesn't mind dying over and over again. The second you realize that your character is not all powerful or superman and is just an average guy that can come back to life over and over the sooner you'll move on to the realization of how this game really is. I've had a lot of friends quit this game just cause they thought they were "bad at the game" because they died a lot. When truthfully that is what happens to everyone.
Putting the game play aside, the visuals are pretty good. The backgrounds like nice, the enemies are well drawn up and pretty diverse. The bosses all look intimidating and the music is pretty good too.
Definitely not my favorite game but I enjoyed it while i played it the 2nd time around when i got over getting killed a bunch. I wouldn't recommend this game to younger kids just starting out playing. This is not necessarily for older players or adults or what have you, kids can play this, but I do not think that most of them will enjoy it or have the mentality to want to go through it has hard as it is. | video-games_xbox |
Ninja Gaidan 2, beware. Having played Ninja Gaidan and largely enjoying it, I bought this game looking for more of the same gameplay, with a new story. you basically get that. as a side note, this game is shorter than its prequel, but I'm going to evaluate it on it's own merits anyway so that doesn't terribly matter.
the gameplay is pretty good - for the most part. But I hope you don't have a temper, or you're gonna be buying a new controller/Television. the first thing to note about gameplay is that it's fast. If you've got a good reaction time, and the ability to learn your enemie's patterns quickly, this game will go fine, I do however, have some major issues.
Pros:
good gameplay: its fast, responsive, and interesting.
graphics: the graphics look great, and Ryu looks awesome while slicing things to pieces. It's not quite realistic as another reviewer commented, but if your into scenery, you will stop a couple times just to take a look around.
It's largely fighting focused, which is what most of us want to play it for. the previous one had many places where you had no clue where to go, had to play games with jumping puzzles, or just ended up wasting time running through tokyo fighting the same ninja over and over for most of the game. in this incarnation however, the gameplay is fairly linear - you won't end up lost for more than a minute or two at any point, and the focus is on the fighting rather than puzzles.
Cons:
Frustrating - If you have a temper at all, you will break your controller - this game is by far the most frustrating game I've played in a long time. I'd rather play somebody in a fighting game who's being abusive of a cheap trick to win.
Redundancy - Team ninja recycled 5 of the bosses(the main ones) and one of them you fight 4 times. I didn't mind this, because he was my favorite boss, but the others were slightly annoying.
Uninteresting bosses - the bosses basically all fight the same way(the major ones at least) 3 of the 5 bosses that are recycled fly, 4 of them have a long range charge attack, and the tactic to beat them 4 of the 5 is identical - and very similar: figure out how long their standard attack combo is(they only have one or two), then every time they do it, dodge the last hit and wail on them.
Incredibly cheap enemies - most of the time, you will wtfpwn every enemy you run across. and then they will get in a single hit or so...and the 14 others with them will take advantage of the opening to reduce you to 1/2 hp.
most of the enemies in the game are ninja, and most of THEM love abusing their exploding shuriken. it is impossible to dodge these exploding shuriken, and they will throw so many at you, that you are exploding every second or so, unless you break their momentum and get some hits in.
the ranged enemies are also abusive - they will stand 50 yards from you and shoot you with exploding arrows, bazooka rounds, or rapid fire-I'm not even sure, but they all cause explosions and blow you backward so you cant advance anywhere near them - frequently from the end of a long hallway so you can't dodge it very effectively.
Many of the bosses are extremely easy - once you figure out how to avoid their one ludicrously cheap attack. one boss dies in a gigantic explosion - and the only way to survive is to block. with your sword. I died to this explosion several times before I decided it was baloney and looked up a guide to see how to live the explosion. It just never occurred to me that I would have to block an explosion big enough to take out a city block...with my sword.
Another boss you fight in an area filled with lava. and he will try his best to blast or walk up and THROW you off the platform you are fighting him on, then launch continuous fireballs at you, knocking you into the lava and keeping you there. here is a way around this, but you probably won't figure it out till you die 2 or 3 times.
Level design - The item placement is extremely annoying. the level designers apparently thought it was a good idea to give you a shop to buy healing items at, then once you do, you walk through the next door and find 3 healing items, but are maxed, so just wasted your money. events like this are common.
further, you frequently run into enemies or groups of enemies that almost force you to use one attack over and over(flying swallow I believe?) because it is by far the best attack in the game, and if you try to use much of any other attack on these particular enemies, you will be taking a lot more damage for the sole purpose of looking cool.
this is emphasized at points where you attacked by absurd numbers of ninja - at one point I was fighting upwards of forty ninja at one time(which also caused the framerate to slow drastically).
The save points - The save points generally are not that bad - except for the bosses. usually you will get a save point a fair distance back from the boss, which isn't generally a problem because when you die on a boss, you load at the beginning of the fight. But if you get frustrated at the cheap tactics and quit for awhile, your console crashes, or you have to do something else - back to the save point. This wasn't a big deal most of the time, because the enemies aren't that difficult, and it's only a bit of a waste of time, but the end of the game is four bosses in a row. No restorative items in between, no shops. now. if you get to the last boss(or worse, the second to last boss) and quit in frustration. then you get to kill them all, all over.
last boss - the last boss is incredibly easy and anticlimactic, the second to last boss is way harder, and really, really stupid. Too many game designers feel the need to make the last boss some huge monster that is absurd and most of the time not even fun to fight. half the time you sit there whacking at a body part for most of the fight. In this one however, the second-to-last fight is...all archery. You dodge some attacks, shoot him, and he barfs a bunch of rotted gore at you for massive damage unless you dodge or block. he also has an attack that is designed solely to make it harder to shoot him. it does very little damage, but interrupts your charging of your bow shot. unless you are charging your bow, it will never, ever hit you. you can walk directly at the boss, and you will never be hit with it - so it's intended purpose is incredibly easily discernible. And this boss was the most difficult boss in the game for me - and the most irritating and least fun, because it little to do with the rest of the gameplay.
Archery: I admit, nobody used the bow much in the first one - but that was choice. you can do the same with any melee weapon you choose to ignore. But in this game, archery was forced down your throat with a vengeance in the majority of the missions.
The ninpo - most of the ninpo are not very good. the fire wheel was good, because it homes on enemies and does a good job of thinning out the needless and irritating adds that guard some of the bosses, the pheonix fire ninpo I liked as well, because it can, if you are lucky, do fair damage to a boss, and it works well in a crowd.
engagement - If you leave the game for even a few days, you will forget how to fight. it is a long road to being good in this game, and you will have to walk it all over again every time you stop playing for a few days.
Moves - this is kind of petty, but I lost some of my favorite moves from Ninja Gaidan, which annoyed me.
Replay - This game has fairly low replay value. the action is great, but once you've done it once, there isn't much point to doing it again. After fighting one boss 4 times already, and the rest of the major bosses twice, do you really want to do it again?
Conclusion:
I wouldn't buy this game again. I beat it, it will probably go into a drawer for a long time. If you are a casual gamer, you probably will not like the difficulty. you have to be fast or you will hurt. a lot. I would only buy this is you are a hardcore gamer looking for a challenge(for a short time till you figure out the way things run), are really obsessed with Ryu or ninja, or want a new TV - the hard way. | video-games_xbox |
Good yet not great. I got this game only yesterday night and have been playing it non stop for a few hours. Did I say I got it for 15$ only from Walmart? ;)
I must say Kinect Sports Season 1 was epic in many ways, first it has more action and being the first of its kind it grabbed more attention and raised the bar really really high and sadly the second edition do not cross that bar.
But the franchise maintains the "fun factor" which I think soul for this game. A lot of us watch these great sports on TV and wish we had such skills and Kinect Sports touches that emotion with a lot of FUN factor. Player's lack of skill is pushed by technology and it gives you that sweet illusion of being a great athlete ;) that is why I play these games.
It has less events than the actual KinectSeason 1 coz it had Track and Field which it self contained lots of events.
Now for the games
1) Baseball - Its quite fun. Honestly it took me some time to master the perfect swing but once you know the lag and trick its lot of fun. I am big fan of cricket so I liked this game very much though its not any where near to the great sport but at least it has a bat to hit the ball ;)
The play is nice, you would enjoy pitching too though fielding/catching is not much fun, it's filled with tones of prompts and it makes it very easy for a player. I wish there were settings to turn off these annoying suggestion coz once you play it for a couple of hours you would like to ramp up the game.
*** / 5
2) Dart - Oh boy, it is a lot of fun. I imagined it as a filler event but it is not. Its lot more fun than what I expected it to be. The sensor tracks slightest movement tries to make it as much real as it can. Unlike other games where you wild hand movement will not affect results e.g. boxing/base ball pitching etc... This game tracks your move carefully which gives it a close to reality touch. Its fun especially when played in group. Coz it's one of the game night/day outing sport which a lot of us might have tried in real life like Bowling in season 1.
So you have a good idea of how game would work in real life. I am pleased with the way they have done this event.
**** / 5
3) Tennis - Ohhh it is a good burner. You won't notice but if you play it for a while you will actually end up burning lots of calories. I loved it. Yes it not accurate you don't get to do the great base line jogs or can not run to the net and give a slice but its still fun. Coz the computer makes it lot more fun for you. Cross the first level and then game will be fun. You will end up having long rally nicely supported by crowd and pitching sound effect. You will really feel you are involved in the arena for a minute. I bet you will raise your hands out of pleasure / frustration a couple of times when you play with pro level. Its fun.
Though it's missing the volley, base line slogs, net plays etc... The real fun of tennis game but it's still enough engaging and will entertain you like anything.
The calories burnt number will pump you up for sure.
The trick, like Table tennis from first version is not to imagine your hand/palm as racket. Keep your hand in position as if you are holding one and see the top spine and slice shots, its fun.
****/ 5
4) Golf
The only gold I have enjoyed is the mini golf on family outing. So I do not have great knowledge about this game. But it is fun. Though Kinect the swing speed and hand movements are not taken in to consideration.
The trick is to play with the right club than controlling your swing speed. I observed it's more of club than the actually hand movement that makes difference.
I mean it does pick up speed of swing and all but not that well.
The game is OK. I did not enjoy it a lot for that fact I am not good at this game and do not have good knowledge about clubs etc... So I practice with multiple clubs before I go for the shot.
Again the very idea of you doing something without having a plastic in your hand is fun. But the game experience is just ok
**/5
5) Ski-
Fun fun fun. One more surprise. Like darts I thought this would be an OK game but its more fun than I thought it to be. Coz the movement that you use while playing these games are easy and you won't feel that your avatar is doing something which you did not want it to do. It does good justice to what you want to do in game. Not as realistic as Darts but way better than Golf. Its fun, you can control speed and directions by simple body movements.
You will feel in control of your avatar. Its fun
***/5
6) American football - I had high hopes from this one but sadly its not as much fun as it should have been.
I watched E3 event and this looked more fun while they were playing on stage but soon you will get bored.
Only 6 plays and no single player defense not rushing... its does not do justice to the game.
Like Soccer in first season, American Football killed a great game. This could be so much better and one can do a lot of cool things with game but sadly they did not. Not fun :(
* / 5
Though overall it's not bad, especially when you have spent only 15$ for this ;) but not worth its 49$ value for sure. Wait for it to get cheaper or buy a used one. This doesn't worth 49$ for sure.
And these are more of family/friends game night thing. We played like anything yesterday night and it was fun.
If you take these games too seriously then you won't enjoy it.
I agree that they are not perfect and do not do justice to the actual sport but its Kinect, made for casual, fun gaming [for now]
Amazon is selling it under 30$, its not a bad deal go get it.
I would stick give the Kinect Sports Season 1 better ratings than this. | video-games_xbox |
Incredible looking, Incredible campaign. You don't need to play the first Crysis to play this game. It stands out on its own. I just have to say that the campaign is incredible for many reasons. It is more open world uses to allow you to play the game in either a stealthy or go guns blazing. Unlike many other games, this one gives you the ability to use camouflage (like Predator), gives you armor to boost your protection, and allows you to move extremely fast. These abilities share a meter. When you use them, it will drain and you have to wait for it to recharge. Unlike most other games (are all games that I can recall) this game lets your survey the area and target all enemies in view so you will know where they are at all times regardless if you can't see them.
Just like a lot of other games, it has set pieces, those dramatic cut scenes. They are done here in impressive fashion and wrapped around what has to be said, easily one of the best looking games on consoles. It does draw distances to view everything ahead of you better than any other game. It boosts sharp visuals without any grainy effects. It has impressive lighting that foreshadows multiple objects. It is a stunning looking. Besides the graphics, the gameplay does compliment it by giving you those choices how to play but also giving you smart A.I., great weapons to play with, and great and varied locations to play in.
Besides the great campaign, the multiplayer has its problems. It is great in concept. It can still be fun but its riddled with bugs every so often. These problems can be fixed with a firmware update. its still playable but can hamper the game at times. I tried to shot at one point only not to see my gun and one person looked as if he was hovering in the air. Not good stuff but it hasn't been a occasional affair. The game though does some great things by mixing Halo and Call of Duty together. You can still use all your abilities from the campaign but you can also enhance them with upgrades. There is a whole level system that ranks up your abilities by what you use. The level up system is pretty deep. Its fun and at times can be pretty addictive to play but I wouldn't be surprised if you run into a bug or two.
I recommend this game. The campaign is one of the best this generation, especially for a game will garner peoples' attention on the multiplayer. It does some unique things, has an interesting story, and some amazing encounters. I can't say its a hard game. Its learning curve isn't steep but when you encounter mechs, they are a pain. Recommend this game! | video-games_xbox |
This is probably the best product of this type on the market as of today. Overall
I'm an avid gamer and overall I am pleased with this product as it is probably the best of it's kind on the market as of today (Dec '06)!
Setup
I had no problems setting this product up although I would suggest following the user guide b/c it is confusing otherwise.
Quality
The sound quality is good enough for the price. The base is pretty decent which I was surprised by. I can adjust the sound settings as needed (note: the manual touches on this specifically).
Comfort
The headset is comfortable and light-weight.
Additional Uses
I can even use the device to listen to MP3's or DVD's if I'm using my Xbox 360, which is cool. I haven't tried to use it for other applications but it should be able to work for other devices (the company lists PC as 1 of it's uses), you'll need standard RCA jacks or perhaps you could get some sort of converter kit if you only have a mini-jack input.
Signal Strength
Works fine from 10 feet which is as far as I've tried it. You do have to be within sight distance to use the product, the signal will not recieve around obstructions although others may still be able to hear your Team Chat even if you can't hear them because the Team Chat goes through the 360 controller's wireless signal as opposed to the infrared signal that the headphone's use for In Game Audio.
Battery Life
The battery life is really good from my experience. I have used the product for about 10-12 hours total and have not had to replace the provided batteries. Even so, I plan to get some rechargable AAA's as batteries can get expensive after a while.
Drawbacks
I didn't realize I would need to plug in a cord to my 360 controller but I guess that is not a huge biggy.
The Mic Boom has to stay on your right side which I was not aware of. It's always been a personal preference of mine to have my Mic Boom on the left side but again no biggy.
Summary
Whether you're a recreational or extreme gamer I think this is a great product overall if you require Actual Game Sound and Team Chat capabilities. | video-games_xbox |
Move over GTA, Saints Row is here. The game Saints Row tells the epic tale of one gang called the Saints as they battle rival gangs to become the rulers of the city Stilwater.
It starts off letting you customize your character - anything from nose size and hair to muscle definition and weight. From there you're allowed to run around, punch & kick enemies & civilians, hijack or buy and customize cars, spray paint walls, buy clothes and jewlery, purchase guns (and boy is there a wide variety of guns such as RPGs, handguns, shotguns, grenades, etc.) , buy CDs, call up your homies to fight along side you, and MUCH more. In order to do missions you have to earn respect. To gain respect you can do "activities" scattered throughout Stilwater such as snatching hookers away from their pimps, protecting drug dealers as they do their things, race, participate in demolition derbies, steal cars for stores, kill rival gang members, and many more. Also, if you wear a lot of purple (the Saints' color of choice) you can gain extra bonus points.
The missions themselves are BRUTALLY fun (with the exception of maybe 3). They go from destroying planes, storming mansions, robbing cars, blowing up buildings, rescuing people... its all really fun, and your rewarded with viscerally appealing and cool sounding cutscenes afterwards.
To earn money you can rob stores (eitrher by holding them up or by opening the safe yourself), beat up people and take their money, do the activities I mentioned, or beat missions. The more money you have, the more things you can buy.
Also, as you take over enemy turfs for your own they will do these things called "push backs" on random areas. This is when rival gangs try to take back their lands, and its basically an all out war between the Saints and the enemies until you kill the red highlighted lieutenants scattered throughout the territory. Once thats done, you can resume your game. Also owning more territories gives you more money each day... by the time I beat the game I hasd about $8 grand coming to me each day.
Moving on, this game has an EXCELLENT sound track. There is something like 100 songs from different genres such as hip hop, rock, and classical to listen to and many of them are really catchy. They even have some big namers on it like Xzibit, Wu-Tang, Winger, and Fall Out Boy (but I dislike FOB). Ontop of that, if you have a hard drive for your system you can upload your own songs into the game which is great. The sound effects are really top notch - like the guns shooting and things blowing up. Additionally, the voice acting is superb as well. Everyone portrays personality through curses, crude humor, and anger.. not to mention THQ also got some big times to do some acting such as the guy who plays Goliath from the Gargoyles and the girl Jackie from "That 70's Show".
The graphics are great in Saints Row. Everyone looks lifelike, and the city looks so realistic. The weather changes from sunny to rainy, night to day... its breathtaking. The cars look AMAZING, be it really new and shiny to old and rusty, everything has an authentic feel to it. Easily better looking then Grand Theft Auto.
But like always, no game comes without faults. For starters, the weapon selection screen is hard to get down and sometimes when you choose a weapon it won't exactly change to that weapon. Ontop of that, shooting while driving is a nightmare. The ally AI is sometimes incredibly dumb and when you want them to get into a car with you they will just stand there. Finally, the ending was terrible - you kill the last guy and take over Saints Row. Julius, who is the head of the Saints, tells you he still thinks something is amiss and that you're his right hand man now. Then they show you cocking a pistol and overlooking a crew of your boys. Then this mission called the "3rd Street Saints" mission opens up where you have to take a bus and destroy it, and when thats complete you, Dex, and Gat have to blow up like 5 police cars... evntually you meet with a guy running for mayor and he says "thank you but I have to kill you". He proceeds to surround you with like 50 of his goons, then the ship blows up. Uh huh..
To sum it up, Saints Row is a MUST HAVE for X-Box 360 owners or people who enjoy GTA-like games. There so much to do, and its so fun to do it that you just have to own this game. | video-games_xbox |
Makes the same mistakes as Year One Destiny, But hopeful for improvement. The story mode of this game is pretty much what you'd expect when it comes to a virus that could wipe out the majority of the human race via Bio-Terrorism. The gameplay is tight and this game has very good controls and graphics. The loot while playing through the campaign comes at a rapid pace and there is always a better gun or armor piece dropping throughout the story line missions. The story can easily be played solo but be warned, the story is over before you know it. I finished the campaign and didn't even realize I had just played the final story mission. I was left feeling like there should have been more, I mean 2 smaller parts of the city weren't even touched when the story ended.
Once the story is over, the end game kicks in and if you've ever played loot based games or MMOs, you know the end game basically becomes a grind and this is no different. I feel like it's made the same mistakes as Destiny which kept me entertained for a short while but quickly became repetitive and stale once the end game was reached. And the end game raid they provided is nothing more than you and your team locked in a room while waves of hordes attack you. Not the most thrilling way to grind for loot. I would have much preferred the story expanded upon or end game missions where more of the city is utilized and explored.
The PVP is in the Dark Zone and this is another area where you can grind for loot and credits to get more loot so you can grind to get loot and more credits.....see a pattern? Also, PVP shouldn't be explored on your own as others will take you out quickly. So very dependent on you having a team or quickly joining up with other players so you aren't at a great disadvantage and can actually make some progress if grinding is your thing.
Overall, the first raid was a huge letdown to me and I'm hopeful I'm going to get more out of the season pass content as I want to explore more of the story and get loot without it feeling like a job. | video-games_xbox |
It's no C.O.D 4, but what the hey. Camelot. Stonehenge. The Great Pyramids. The Great wall of China.
All of these names are ingrained into our culture. When we hear of them, we all think of what they are, and in some cases, what they mean. They all are indelibly burned into our collective psyche. Some are heavily inter-twined in mythology, while others are physical objects that are steeped in history.
In the United States, there is another name that brings up an air of mystery, of conspiracy. You probably know already which site I'm talking about here...
Area 51.
This secret military site, that has long been denied by the federal government, is steeped in secrecy and mystery. Some believe that this location is where the government keeps the bodies of aliens that were discovered in the 50's. Others believe that there are LIVE aliens kept there.
Of course, people believe it is the home of ultra secret black projects, or super high technology, technology that will help keep the American's at the top when it comes to global power.
Now, when you have something that is as cloaked in secrecy as Area 51 is, of course people will speculate.
And the media will take it one step further. There are dozens of novels about this secret location. There are many movies that deal with it, and it's been seen on television as well.
Best of all, it has been used in numerous video games.
Years ago, there was an arcade video game called Area 51. It was a first person shooter, one where you had to invade the military base and defeat not only aliens, but zombies that were brought back to fight with them.
Blacksite: Area 51 is pretty much the sequel to this video game, with updated graphics and I'd have to say far better game play.
When you begin the game, it starts instead of in Area 51, you find yourself in Iraq. The whole purpose of this, in my opinion, was to introduce the player to the games controls, and to give the player a little background information on several of your team-mates that would help you out later in the game.
I have to admit that I was pretty impressed with the scale of the game. Sure, you start out in Iraq, but the story quickly builds from there. After losing one of your team-mates, the game fast forwards several years.
I'll do my best to not give away too many spoilers from here on in.
This is where the scale of the game really comes into play. You have to travel cross country (although you don't get much of a choice in your route) in order to reach Rachel, Nevada.
Along the way you'll end up facing a literal army of the Reborn, the main foe in the game.
The fight for Rachel is pretty intense and quite enjoyable in this reviewer's opinion, and of course it'll lead you onto the next mission, where you'll have to fight and defend the military base you're based out of.
Finally, you will end up in Area 51, and confront the enemy in one final showdown.
All in all, the game is divided up into a total of six missions, and depending on what difficulty setting you play it at, the time to complete will vary. Expect to reload numerous times if you're not careful.
Even though I've only played a handful of Xbox 360 games, I found that this game played like the other first person shooters. You don't have a health meter, like in many other first person shooter games. Instead you can sustain a certain amount of damage and your screen turns red to indicate that you're about to die.
When this happens, find a safe place to hunker down and give yourself a short period of time to regenerate your health. If you don't, well you'll have to wait for a reload.
Fortunately, even though you can't choose where you save, there are numerous save points so you won't be forced to re-do large portions of a particular mission just to feel the frustration of having to do it all over again.
You're also limited to only two different weapons at any one time, so choose what you carry wisely! And, if you do need a specific type of weapon, try to remember where you saw it, or where you dropped it last. That'll save you a great deal of frustration as well.
Use your team-mates wisely. Try to go for head-shots as often as you can, as it improves the moral of your fellow warriors. The higher the moral, the better they fight. If you find that moral is slipping, get fancy and ventilate as many craniums as possible. It cheers up your friends.
The nice thing is that even if your team-mates get taken out in a battle, if you successfully eliminate all enemies, they'll get back up after a short period of time to continue to fight along side you.
As with several other games on the market, you are given a chance to drive in the game. Sometimes you are the driver, and your team-mates act as the gunners. Now this in itself can be frustrating, as they'll fire the main weapon until it over-heats and then you're forced to wait, usually taking heavy return fire, for it to cool down.
Other times you are the gunner and you can control this factor, and when you get the chance I would suggest taking it. It'll save you having to reload from the last save point several times.
The graphics, as I mentioned earlier, are very nice and clear. I had no problem differentiating the various enemies and I like how the game looked. Everything from fighting in the ruined bunker in Iraq to the tranquility of the trailer park, to a drive in theatre and of course Area 51 itself.
The use of lighting and music really set the mood as well.
There are a total of 44 different achievements that can be unlocked throughout the game, and many can only be unlocked during the multi-player mode. I have to admit that I didn't unlock any of those, but then again I've never been one that was big on multi-player games.
If I had any complaints about the game, it would be that I found there were too few aliens to fight! Your main opposition is the army of the Reborn, the aliens seem to be there more for flavour than anything... but be warned, some of the aliens you encounter can be very difficult to take out.
My other complaint is that the game is too damned short! I pine for the old days when it took me weeks of playing to beat Half-life. This game took me only about 6 hours to beat from start to finish.
Overall, I enjoyed the game, and when I have time, I'll try beating it on the hardest setting. Who knows, I might even give the multi player function a shot, and earn a few more achievements.
It's not the greatest game, and believe me, it doesn't come close to something like Call of Duty 4, but you know, it was enjoyable none the less.
3.5 out of 5 | video-games_xbox |
Awesome! Well worth the extra 50 bucks. I actually got this as a gift for my little brother. He's going to be 9 years old in a month, and he's LOVING this xbox!
With the price drop on the pro 360 combos from 399 to 349, I was wondering how much different (aside from the color scheme) this system could be to justify spending the extra 50 bucks. Well, aside from the spartan green color scheme (Which is awesome, by the way) and the matching control and headset... this system also includes an HDMI output port which I believe was only included on the Xbox 360 elite systems and not the standard units. It also comes with a play & charge kit out of the box. The play & Charge kit is a GREAT little device. It's basically a rechargeable battery pack with a USB cable, and when your wireless controller battery starts to run low all you need to do is plug one end of the cable into the controller and the other end into one of the xbox usb ports and the controller actually charges while you're playing. No removing old batteries and replacing them.. just plug the usb cable in and you can continue playing wired until the battery finishes charging. I thought this was such a cool thing to have that I actually went out and bought myself a play & charge kit. It's much better than having regular rechargeable AA batteries and swapping them out whenever one set needs to be charged.
Another cool little extra is the custom halo 3 dashboard skins, and gamer pictures that are included. All you have to do is get on xbox live once you create (or recover) your gamertag, and input the codes that are included in the xbox documentation and there you have your custom skin and gamer pics.
Overall, i think this is a great looking system and he hasn't encountered any problems with it yet! He loves playing Halo 3, ace combat 6, and a bunch of other stuff like that. I'm actually jealous because I've got just the plain old white 'pro' system... which is basically the same, but no HDMI.
This system is really nice! If you're a Halo fan, and you're planning on getting a 360... I would definitely recommend this one! It may be 50 bucks more than the regular system, but it's worth it. | video-games_xbox |
The Underrated Brother Of The Series. TBH, this game has been reviewed to death, so I'm only gonna state how I feel about it, then that'll be it, haha. Anyway, I called this one the underrated brother of the series because it truly is. The campaign was a bit...well, let's just say that it wasn't as good as Halo 3 or CE in my opinion, but it still is enjoyable and I loved the elements of Bungie going back to the style of Combat Evolved with the health bar back and some of the classic weapons. The campaign did though actually do something a bit different and gave a story of characters that you get attached too.
As for Multiplayer, I think this is where Reach shines it's true colors. The Multiplayer is at it's best in Reach, offering many game modes and play styles for all with Armor Permutations which finally added Sprint to Halo MP, which IMO, was awesome, and other cool permutations were added too, despite Armor Lock <_<. Most of the maps, are in fact, stripped down versions of the campaign, but that isn't a bad thing as a lot of great MP maps were in here because of that. Maps like Countdown, Sword Base, ETC. were great maps for insane team slayer and zombies. Bungie even included some throwback maps such as Reflection (Halo 2: Ivory Tower), and even added more with the CE Anniversary Map pack, which added even more from Halo 2 and 1. So if you're nostalgic for the old days of Headlong snipers in the evening on Halo 2 or Beaver Creek, then prepare to relive some glory days as they were remade well. Tons of game modes as well insuring you will never get bored such a Grifball, MLG, Zombies, Big Team Slayer (8 v 8) and tons more! Also, CO-OP is available for both online multiplayer and campaign, and this is executed really well actually! Tons of challenges to unlock too, and Forge is back! O and you can edit your Spartans in over thousands of ways and can also play as an Elite too! (Ooo...the days of Halo 2 will not be forgotten)
The Graphics are alright, but it's a bit too grey and not as breath taking as Halo 3's graphics in my opinion. The thing about Previous Halo's were the attention to beauty and detail of nature and Sci-Fi ships while killing Aliens that are hell bent on destruction. Halo 1, 2, 3, and ODST all did this, especially 3, with it's very vibrant colors and attention to nature, but in Reach, it's just...not there, look up some screenshots between Reach and Previous Halo titles to see what I mean...but remember, Graphics don't make the game, gameplay does, and this is where Halo Reach I do think makes up for it.
And lastly, the sound is good, not as good as the previous titles, but it's on par. I did enjoy the soundtrack and the sound of the guns, but I just didn't feel the same as the others. But the sound still does provide to the experience, especially the soundtrack when getting in epic battles in campaign.
In short, I still love Reach, because it was like Bungie's last battle cry, and I respect that. Bungie is a really nice company who always focused more on their fans than the actually money, and I love them for it. Bungie may not be making Halo anymore, but that's not a bad thing, they're just moving on to better things and my hopes for their newest game to be released soon, Destiny, and quite high, and I know that Bungie will never cease to amaze us. But anyways, Reach offers a decent campaign, awesome multiplayer, okay graphics, good sound, and overall, a nice game! I recommend you get Reach today and beat the campaign. Then, once you're done with that, go try the awesome Multiplayer that still has me playing it today still ever since I got this 4 years ago at Gamestop! Until then, happy gaming, and see ya! | video-games_xbox |
This is what Resident Evil 6 should have been. This game was fantastic. It is in my opinion the best game in the series since Resident Evil 4. This game is basically Resident Evil 4 and the original Resident Evil in a blender. Just so you know where I am coming from as a fan, I was first introduced to Resident Evil with Resident Evil 4. When I beat Resident Evil 4, I immediately wanted to start all over and beat it again. That's how I feel about Revelations, and it is the only other game in the series that I feel that way about. I went back and played the Resident Evil Gamecube remake and Resident Evil 0, both of which I really liked. I loved about half of Resident Evil 5, but found a couple of the environments bland and it lacked the scariness of the previous games. I loved the expansion pack for RE5 that took place in the mansion from the first game. It was like playing a modern third person shooter remake of the original Resident Evil, and I wanted a whole game of that. The main area of the game is a ship, and it felt very much like the mansion to me, so if you wanted to go back and play the first Resident Evil game as a third person shooter like Resident Evil 4, then this is the game for you.
I bought this game for the Xbox 360 about a month ago. It was so quietly released that I didn't even realize it was out. There was only one copy on eBay and there wasn't even a review of the 360 version on Gamespot.com. I had been really disappointed with Resident Evil 6 because the graphics were poor, gameplay was bad, and it had no "feel" to it. I really wanted to like it, but I couldn't get into it. I had absolutely no interest when I played Operation Raccoon City. Because of this, I did not expect much out of Revelations. Much to my surprise, it was really good. I feel like they should have released this game instead of RE6, but that wouldn't make sense story-wise because it takes place between RE4 and RE5. This game definitely deserved a stronger marketing campaign and I am curious as to why it was so quietly released.
Revelations is the scariest game in the series since some of the original games. It has a slower, more suspenseful pace than Resident 4 and 5 but keeps the same gameplay and controls as those games. There are a couple nice control additions: Now you can just press Y to use an herb instead of pulling up the items menu, and there's an "evade" maneuver which comes in handy during close combat. The game doesn't give you a lot of ammo and that made the game more scary. I thought the enemies were some of the scariest since the zombies of the original game. The game has solid mechanics, a good soundtrack, and great graphics. The graphics are not as good as they were in RE5, but they're close, and much better than RE6 which I thought looked unfinished. One big complaint I saw online about this game was the lack of enemy variety, but I really didn't think it had any less variety than the other games in the series. There were a couple minor things that bothered me about the game at first. The cutscenes at the beginning of each level are a recap of the previous level. I thought that was an odd choice at first, because I would beat a level and immediately see a recap of the cutscenes I had just watched, but later on the story gets more complicated. Later when I had not played for a day or two, I appreciated the recap. There are short levels throughout the game where you can play as some of the supporting characters or main characters during flashbacks. One of the supporting characters was annoying at first but those levels are short, and he didn't bother me as much as the game went on. He's supposed to be comic relief, and I felt like those levels interrupted the creepiness of the game. Luckily they are very short levels, maybe 15 minutes of gameplay total, and ultimately it is more fun to play out the stories of the side characters rather than just watch a cutscene. I found myself more into the story and it was satisfying when all of those threads came together at the end of the game. Neither of those minor complaints turned out to be a big deal, because the game eventually changed my mind about them. The only thing that really bothers me about the game is that there's no split-screen co-op. I think you have to use system-link to play co-op, or play on Xbox Live.
If you miss the fast paced action of Resident Evil 5, you'll like Raid Mode. Basically you run through the game's main stages with more enemies. It's more action and less suspense, and similar to the mercenaries modes in RE4 and RE5. You actually have to find the upgrades for your guns, which is kind of fun, and there are multiple shotgun and rifle models that you can choose from. This game also contains my favorite final boss of the entire series. He looks cool and is a real challenge. There are a couple really spooky moments on the final ship level that I now have burned into my brain as well. You play most of the game as either Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield, whom along with Leon S. Kennedy are my favorite characters in the Resident Evil series.
I highly recommend Resident Evil Revelations. I think this game will appeal to fans of the older games in the series and the more recent games. If you felt like the most recent games were missing something, this is probably the game you've been waiting for. It really reminded me of what I loved about the original games and Resident Evil 4. It brought a smile to my face and an enjoyment that I haven't had from a game in several years. On average, I finish a couple games a year and rarely find a game that I would play through a 2nd time, but this is one game I am sure that I will complete again. | video-games_xbox |
Fun, but it will kill your Xbox. I first read about Fable II in a Nintendo Power article a while back. It seemed AWESOME with how you could marry anybody, have children, fully customize your character, interact with anyone, work in towns, own real estate, and so on. I bought the game a couple days after it came out. I had no idea about what a bad decision that was. I put it into my Xbox that I had owned for 2 years and had absolutely no problems with EVER, and the first thing I noticed was how loud the Xbox was running. It sounded like it was working very hard to play this game. Everything went fine for about 2 days. I left it on for less than 10 minutes to go take a shower, and it worked fine when I came back to play. However, the next time I tried to play the menus weren't working right. The game kept shuffling madly through the menus and I couldn't just press a button to go to the town I wanted to go to. After reloading the game a couple of times, I tried to manipulate the joysticks around for a bit until I could stop the shuffling long enough to load the game. Once I was in the game I attempted to fight in that underground competition with all those random foes, but after a few minutes the game froze, and it did it again, and again... and again... AND AGAIN. I finally gave up and took the game out. The next day my brother started to notice that none of the game were working properly on the Xbox, and it had to be sent out to Microsoft for repairs. I didn't get RROD unlike some unlucky people who purchased this game, but it still rendered my Xbox as unusable. I returned the game and got my $60 back. If anyone's still trying to defend this game, go to any local store that sells Fable 2. They're either all used or cost $20-$30 due to the amount of returns and unsatisfied customers. The patch that was supposed to clean out these crippling bugs only solves minor problems, but there are still tons of people who can't play this would-be-fun game thanks to major, MAJOR bugs.
All I can say is, do NOT buy this game. Try and hold out for Fable 3, and do your research before buying it. I know I am. I'll never make the mistake of buying a game so soon after it comes out again. I hope that Lionhead can actually iron out all the bugs in the game before shipping it out this time. My theory is that they were really trying to get the game out by a certain deadline and shipped it out with tons of bugs. Fable 3 will supposedly come out at the end of this year, and I really hope that they'll push it back if it's just not ready to be sent out yet. I don't think anyone would be too mad if they admitted it had to be reworked because of major bugs. ESPECIALLY not after everyone's experiences with Fable 2. | video-games_xbox |
One of the best FPS games ever made. Rainbow Six Vegas 2 is the game that I make reference to when I play all other FPS games, or see future FPS games being made. Simply put it is one of the most customizable first person shooter games ever made. The assortment of weapons is amazing, the number of attachments are all there, the way you can load out your character with multiple accessories is great. If you want to use C4, you can. If you want to use grenades and spam, you can. If you want to snipe, you can, if you want to spray and pray, you can. This game gives you enough variety to never feel like it keeps you stuck with the same style of play. Having played through the game in its entirety over four times, I can tell you that each time was a blast.
This isn't your standard run and gun FPS game, it is a tactical shooter and the best ever made, even years later, it has no comparison. The only game that comes close would be splinter cell conviction, which is a great game in its own right, but has less weapons, you only play as Sam Fisher for the story, so it never feels like a character you created, and you never want to try out any of the other weapons, because the silenced weapons with the most "marks" are the best hands down. The levels have different ways to tackle most obstacles, sometimes grappling down a rope to crash through a window is the best way, or just blasting through the front door using a smoke and clear. This game appeals to every time of player, the go in guns blazing works if you are quick enough, and the take your time set up the perfect ambush works great too.
Pros: Great weapon selection of all types.
Deep customization for your character.
2 PLAYER CO OP SPLIT SCREEN... I have brothers, I've played games with them since NES, two player games are so rare now.
Fantastic gameplay, everything feels great, the graphics look great, even for its age I never play this game and go "wow this looks ancient."
Controls are tight, motions are smooth, everything runs at a good frame rate.
Multiplayer via Xbox live, you can even do co-op on the scenario modes, or terrorist hunt modes with long distance friends.
My only complaint is why isn't there a sequel? It went platinum, it is very popular, and it needs more in the series. For Ubisoft to let this one slide for so many years without a sequel is just wrong. | video-games_xbox |
Mass Effect "light. note: I played this on the xbox 360.
cliff notes version - 5 out of 5 for story, 4 out of 5 for gameplay.
Overall, I consider this Mass Effect light - Great story like the first game, but very simplified gameplay. If you liked the first game, you will probably like this, and if you hated the first one you will still hate this second incarnation. Like the first game, you recruit a team of people to help you save the galaxy. With the exception of a couple of missions, you can do things when you want, and there are a large number of nebula with multiple star systems each for you to check out. The interface has received a slight tweak from the first game, but is still easily recognizable. Some of the changes:
No inventory - all you pick up is ammo, med packs, cash, and minerals for researching upgrades to armor/weapons/your ship (ok, there are a few guns you pick up, but they become available to the squad, not individual use).
simpler leveling - you only have 5 or 6 skills to invest in, each with 4 ranks (costing 1, 2, 3, or 4 points per rank respectively) gaining 2 points per level to 20, then 1 point.
simplified combat - gone are the vehicle missions from the first game - all combat is with your chosen 3 person team shooting/sing powers to clear your way. Combat is also very predictable as it occurs in similar physical settings with lots of cover.
simplified missions - mission maps are very linear, and are more or less handed to you - your team members have side missions, but you get them when you get a notice the person wants to talk to you, so your interaction is minimal. For mini-missions on other planets, you scan down a location from orbit (and use a probe), but when you land its all done on foot.
What I didn't like was just how predicable combat was (you always know its coming once you pick up on the physical layout patterns), and the mining for mineral which was extremely boring (you scan from orbit, launching probes to collect ore, and you will need to do this in order to research upgrades).
I also should say I took about 40 hours total to do everything in that first run through, and most of the prospecting I did was early in the game, so you should be able to finish is less time without much problem, | video-games_xbox |
Glitches and Repetitive Gameplay Ruin the Fun. Overlord 2 is an action, adventure, real-time strategy game, where you play as a dark lord with an army of evil gremlins. The sequel takes a few steps forward from the original in terms of gameplay features, but unfortunately takes a few steps back with repetitive and glitchy gameplay.
Story: 9/10
You play as a Dark Lord who is unearthed by a horde of evil minions during the reign of the Roman Empire. You assemble an army of gremlins and take over the world. Throughout the adventure, there is hilarious dialogue poking fun at fantasy, elves, Romans, good, evil, etc... This is the overall strength of the game. If you're a fan of fantasy or the books by Terry Pratchett, you'll really enjoy the humor.
Gameplay: 4/10
You control an army of minions by sweeping them with the Right Analog Stick. They move through the environment, destroying everything in their path. Later in the game, you get different types of minions: Reds - Fire Minions, Greens - Stealthy Backstabbers, and Blues - Healers. Most of your minions find mounts later on in the game, which extend the gameplay. You use the minions to solve puzzles in the environment and fight against the forces of good (if you can call Romans good.) How you use your minions, will determine your overall success in battle. You can also cast simple spells and swing a weapon at your enemies, to help them out.
What hurts the gameplay, is that there are quite a few places where it is really difficult to figure out what you need to do. There are also a ton of cannot continue bugs and the save points are few and far between. The Overlord often gets stuck in rocks or trapped by moving parts of the environment. If this happens, you have to go back to your last save, and usually play the last 20 minutes over again. This is a deal breaker for most folks. Also, many of the mission objectives are tedious and unfair. For example: You can brainwash or kill 100 villagers of a town. Hold the button down for 3 seconds to brainwash them, hold it down for 4-5 seconds to kill them. However, if you accidentally kill one of them, by targeting the same one twice, or holding the button down too long, you cannot get a 100% completion bonus without quitting and loading a saved game. Another drawback to the game is that more focus is spent on using the minions to navigate through the environment, rather than battling enemies. I didn't become a Dark Lord to micromanage a gremlin through a timed maze, I became one to cause mass destruction!!!
Sound: 7/10
The voice actors are good and the soundtrack is ok.
Graphics: 5/10
Although it is stylized like Fable, the graphics look dated and the draw distances are extremely short.
The landscapes are cartoony and the characters are twisted caricatures of fantasy creatures, but the style is hindered by the dated graphics engine.
Bugs: 8/10
This is one of the buggiest Xbox 360 games that I've seen. The main character gets stuck in the environment, checkpoints and mission critical objects don't appear sometimes, the AI stops working at times... This game is a mess.
Replay Value: 4/10
There is only one difficulty setting and the game is linear, but there is a multiplayer mode where you can battle other Overlords online.
Maturity: T There's some suggestive humor and cartoon violence.
Overall: 5/10
What could have been a really fun and humorous game becomes bogged down by repetitive level designs and gameplay bugs. If you're looking for a humorous budget title, you might enjoy this game.
Buy it if you love the first Overlord.
Buy it if you love fantasy parodies.
Rent it if you have about 16-20 hours to finish it.
Avoid it if you are a graphics snob.
Avoid it if you hate gameplay bugs or repetitive level design.
Avoid it if you like complex combat in your RTS games.
If you like this game, you'll like the first Overlord or possibly the Fable series. | video-games_xbox |
Thought Provoking, Entertaining, and Fun. Seamless blend of epic storytelling and FPS gameplay!
Concept: 10/10
Bioshock Infinite adds a whole new dimension to the Bioshock Universe, literally. Bioshock Infinite introduces dimensional / time travel and explores a utopian US City that seceded from the Union and rose above the clouds. The people of this city are extremely religious and blindly follow their leader, a self-proclaimed prophet named Comstock. The gameplay is fairly linear like the other Bioshock games. You must use special abilities called Vigors and an arsenal of weapons to battle your way through powerful enemies to rescue a mysterious girl named Elizabeth, who has the power to open rifts in space and time.
Story: 10/10+
The story is well told and very well acted. It's the kind of alternate history / sci-fi story that makes you think. The themes are about nationalism, hope, faith, and alternate universes. You play as a former agent named Pinkerton DeWitt who is sent to a city in the clouds to rescue Elizabeth, a girl with mysterious powers. She is held captive by the government and is under constant observation, so they can study her powers. As the story develops, the bond between DeWitt and Elizabeth grows and builds throughout the story.
Gameplay: 9/10
The levels are a mix of fairly open ended spaces, and very linear room to room combat. At any time, you can press UP on the D-Pad and an arrow will appear, showing you where you need to go. There are plenty of places to explore and find extra gear, weapons, ammo, health, and salts, which power your special abilities called Vigors. There are also vending machines where you can purchase Upgrades, and more Health and Ammo. The path through Bioshock Infinite is heavily story based, so it's linear and it goes in one direction.
Combat: 8/10
Booker and Elizabeth team up to fight hordes of enemies. Booker uses weapons and Vigors. Elizabeth can pull things through dimensional rifts. Health Power Ups, Money, Automated Machine Guns, etc. Elizabeth is the ultimate support character! You have Health and Shields, and your Shields regenerate. If you die, you are resurrected in a nearby area and you can continue the fight with half of your health. The enemies also get some health back too, so you need to earn your way through every battle. The combat system really rewards aggressive play. You're usually low on ammo, health, and Vigor, so you need to blast your way through the enemies to get more. This isn't the type of game where you hide behind some cover, pop out, and shoot. My only problem with the game is that the enemies can overrun you. They don't recoil very long when they are hit, and if two of them flank you or attack from the front and the rear at the same time, you're pretty much dead. They also fire a bit too rapidly, so if a rocket hits you and you stagger, the second rocket will also hit you and finish you off. If you were a bit faster, or the enemies recoiled just a bit longer from being shot, this would seem more fair. This is a fairly minor gripe and overall, the combat is fun.
All of the Vigors involve dealing damage to enemies, making them fight on your side for a while, or laying traps. The Vigors are great, but I just wish I could use them more often. It's like being a powerful wizard, who can only cast 3-5 spells in a battle.
Graphics: 10/10
The graphics are excellent both from a technical and artistic standpoint. Columbia, the Utopian City in the Clouds and every prop in it, looks great and contributes to the overall theme of the game. The characters are stylized and look just a bit cartoonish, instead of hyper-realistic, and they animate very well. The special effects and enemies also look great! Elizabeth, your constant companion, is exceptionally well rendered and acted.
Sound: 10/10
The music, sound effects, and voice acting are all top notch. The music takes you back to the early 1900's. The sound effects punctuate the action. The voice acting really makes you feel for the characters.
Replay Value: Once
Because this is a linear game with no multiplayer, the only thing you can do is play it again on a harder difficulty. There are 4 total. It should take about 12-15 hours to finish the campaign, depending on how much you explore.
Maturity: T
There is a bit of animated violence, but nothing that the avid anime fan hasn't seen before. There's no sex or nudity either.
Overall: 10/10
This is a GREAT GAME, and you don't have to play the other BioShocks to enjoy this one!
Buy it if you love great storytelling.
Buy it if you own the other BioShocks!
Buy it if you like FPS with some strategy behind the fighting.
Rent it if you have 12-15 hours to blow through the campaign.
Avoid it if you need your FPS games to have multiplayer.
Avoid it if you want an open world game.
If you liked this game, definitely check out the other BioShocks. If you like the tactical Combat, check out FarCry 3 or Deus Ex. If you liked Elizabeth, check out Prince of Persia. There's a great dynamic between the two characters in that game as well. | video-games_xbox |
Works Great with Windows 8.1 64 bit. 5 Minutes or less to Set Up. Satisfied Customer. Windows 8.1 (64 bit). The adapter works great for me. I just bought it a few days ago. It took me 5 minutes to get it installed. I put the disc in the drive in case I needed it, but then took the following steps:
*Do not plug the adapter into a USB port yet.
1) Go to your control panel. You can search apps for control panel. I have pinned it to my Start menu.
2) Click Hardware and Sound.
3) Click Device Manager in the Devices and Printers Category, the topmost category.
4) Look at the screen and then plug the adapter into a USB port. You should be able to find an unknown device in the list. It will have an icon out to the left indicating their is a problem.
5) Right click on the unknown device and choose Update Driver.
6) Click "Browse my computer for driver software" the button to choose the driver.
7) Click "Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer"
8) The list of drivers may automatically show up. If so, scroll to the bottom of the list and choose the one at the very bottom "Xbox 360 Wireless Receiver for Windows Version: 6.3.9600.16384 [8/21/2013]".
**The list of drivers may not show up automatically, but instead you may receive a dialog box in which you have to identify the type of device. You should be choosing "Xbox 360 Peripherals, and then the list will pop up and you should find the above driver at the bottom of that list."
9) Once it finishes, you can click "Complete," and don't worry about restarting unless you want to.
10) The last step is to pair your device. Power on the controller by pressing the Xbox button in the middle of the controller, and it should start blinking. Press the connect button on the Receiver. Both should be blinking now. Last, press and hold the tiny connect button on top of the controller for a few seconds and release (just to the right of the LB button and to the left of the charging slot). The controller connect button LED should start circulating and then stop, and the LED should light up on the number 1.
Done.
I tested with a Portals 2, and it worked great! | video-games_xbox |
Undisputed, and unexpected. Conventionally, I wouldn't have bought this game. But I like getting a new game every once in a while, and the recent string of games haven't been up to snuff. So I took a risk, and I was surprised.
THQ also makes those wrestling games, which I played a little while back and decided weren't my thing, which was no surprise because wrestling in that sense wasn't my thing either. I was dubious now that they had delved into the world of real fighting.
The controls are like Skate. They say they're intuitive, they aren't, but once you get the hang of them, the learning curve is huge, and they make enough sense. I've gone back to the tutorial not once, not twice, but three times, because every time I learn some more about the game and feel the need to brush up on the finer points.
Options are limited. This isn't some shooter type game where you can alter every last detail. You pick the number of rounds, the arena, and if you really want, which referee you have. And you only have three to choose from. The depth of this game lies in the gameplay.
I personally feel that the game is progressing as I am, and that every time I learn something new the fighters in career mode are just that little bit harder. I rarely play a game with such remarkable pace and challenge from beginning to end. Nothing is ever impossible; nothing is ever simple either.
Certain elements of the career mode, like just basic training, are annoying and time wasting. Other elements, like the camps, are actually useful. While playing, I consciously think "man, I need to work on my ground game", or something similar, which is a feat, because the game is actually making me think like a fighter.
Is this game perfect? No. And I won't make some statement about it coming damn close. But quite frankly, this type of game has never been done before, and it's been done pretty well-without any frills or gimmicks to distract me. Undisputed makes me act and think like fighter, gets me involved, and challenges me just enough. I'm satisfied. | video-games_xbox |
Fire is the cleanser. This is only the second game in the "Call of Duty" series I've played, the other being "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare". I'm hard-pressed to say which I like more. "Modern Warfare" was quite good, but so is "World at War".
The plot of the solo game, such as it is, has you fighting out parts of World War II playing either a US Marine burning your way through the Pacific theatre, or a Soviet soldier fighting the Germans.
First, kudos to the game for resisting the urge to focus, as so many games in this time period do, by showing off the D-Day invasion. The only time I want to see that in a video game again is if you're playing the Germans. Might make it more interesting than watching the opening scenes of "Saving Private Ryan" played out yet again.
Second, they did a great job on the presentation. You get archival footage mixed in with modern computer graphics showing all sorts of stats and things like that. Very, very well done!
The combat is what you'd expect from a first person shooter and parts of it are slightly jarring due to the differences in tech between this game and something like "Modern Warfare". Time and again I was thrown off by single-shot weapons or magazines that didn't hold 50 bullets.
On the other hand, you get a flamethrower during parts of the game, and, oh, what a lovely beast it is. First, it looks great up on the screen. Second, it's just so darn useful! Sniper in the tree? Set the tree on fire. Machine gun nest inside a bunker? Flames through the gun port. Team member annoying you? Give them the ultimate hot-foot and laugh as they try to beat out the flames! Ah-he-he-he-ha! Fire is the cleanser! (takes some mood stabilizers) Ah, much better.
The online component of the game is about what you'd expect. At level 1 I was matched up against a group of people where the lowest level was 40. Yeah, that's good. But, hey, if you can survive your first few games and don't get overly annoyed at teenagers calling you a fag and whining because you're using the Juggernaut bonus, you'll be fine and have a good time.
All in all this is a really fun game and highly recommended for fans of the genre. | video-games_xbox |
Red Dead Redemption's father. Before I begin this review, I would like to warn players that this game only works on the Original XBox console released in 2001. If you try it on the Xbox 360, it will only work for a third of the game where suddenly, everything freezes. I just wish that Rockstar could rerelease this game as a game on demand like they did for Red Dead Redemption, its sequel happening in the 20th century.
Now for Read Dead Revolver, released in 2004, this third-person shooter is an awesome hommage to the elements and figures of this legendary movie genre. It is the tale of a bounty hunter called Red Harlow who, after the murder of his parents when he was in his teens, goes on the search of his parents' murderers. During this adventure, he will have to fight ordinary outlaws, bounties, and psychotic criminals while uncovering a big conspiracy surrounding his parents' death. At the same time, it is a game where the player gets to use not only Red Harlow, but other characters such as Annie Stoakes, Jack Swift, Shadow Wolf, and other fascinating characters. Each of those charecters are used in distinct levels which are all introduced with a stylish animation featuring each character doing moves in front of a silhouetted background, a visual treat that I found excellent. As much as the slow-motion shooting feature that was first used in Max Payne and that other western games like Gun, Call of Juarez, and Red Dead Redemption have also used.
Of the story, I found it as explosive and entertaining to watch that I just wanted to keep playing this game over and over again, even when the game was finished. Why, I loved so much the characters that I wish that they could have introduced Red Harlow in its sequel's storyline.
Visually, the game's models might seem dated and simple compared to other games released at the time like Halo, however that aspect didn't matter to me since the models looked pretty much like those in Gun Theft Auto and Bully, and also because I felt the game's real concern was to make the most memorable spaghetti western tribute in a video game. First in Red Harlow's Clint Eastwood designs, then to the movies' grainy image quality, in its villains and the towns that they fight which look exactly like the movie sets in those movies, and in the soundtrack which used important music from Spaghetti Western composers such as Ennio Morricone (A Sky full of Stars for a Roof, Stark System), Piero Piccioni (Minnesota Clay), Francesco de Masi (Seven Dollars on the Red, Ranch of the Ruthless,etc.), Bruno Nicola (Django Shoots First, Dead Men Ride,etc.) and other composers that each have contributed to the Spaghetti Western movie genre. Personnally, I was disappointed that they didn't release a special feature in the game, or a CD soundtrack, with all the tracks used in the game and that we could be listening again and again. It would have been a treat to the game players, but also to the fans of those movies.
As such, Red Dead Revolver is a game that should have had the same recognition that Red Dead Redemption got in 2010-2011. | video-games_xbox |
Finally decided to give this series a try. Not sure why I waited so long to give this game a chance, it never really drew my attention to invest full retail seeing how there is no replay value to the game. I personally try to make the best out of the money I invest into.
That being said, the game play is very repetitive, and if your not for repetition, I would stay away from it. However, I personally enjoy the game, being a hardcore gamer, this kind of repetition isn't that annoying seeing how there is a plot behind it. To break down my review even further in a simple pro and con.
Pro's
- The game's graphics for 2007 is great, really nice landscapes and the crowd interacts with what you do.
- the amount of stuff you can climb and jump on to is outstanding, the gameplay itself is quite fun, I mean c'mon, you're an assassin jumping roof to roof, you can choose either to be silent with your kills or be an all out war hero and take on 20+ and live to tell the tale
- Very comfortable game-play, not a huge learning curve for those who aren't that great with the game.
- Did I mention the random comments made by the citizens are hilarious? not to mention some of the death animations
Cons
- The storyline really drew me off when I realized the game was taken place in the present of today's time with technology instead of it taking place back in the past. It was a huge turn off but I am sure everyone complained about that, but it's really not a reason to avoid the game.
- Very repetitive mission
- Very annoying achievements if your an achievement/trophy collector. You have to collect about 100 maps for certain regions and it's quite time consuming.
-Certain dialogues sound repetitive very well and lack a sense of emotion, but then again it's an older game, they did what they can and I am sure as you climb into the series, you'll only want more.
Overall I give the game a 4 out of 5. I would recommend snatching it for a low price, buying it new would be only if your willing to collect the game for shelf purpose, this is a must rent or buy used game seeing how there's only single player available with no replay value aside from collecting/killing things for achievements. | video-games_xbox |
Known defective revisions - avoid LOT 541, 542, 543 if you receive them. There are different manufacturing revisions, and some of them aren't compatible with certain controllers.
On the bottom of the box, There is a "LOT NO/DATE". The last 3 numbers is the same as the last 3 digits in the serial number for your chatpad.
If you have 540 and 545, they should be compatible with all models of Xbox One and Xbox One S controllers.
If you have 541, the audio doesn't work with the revised controllers such as the one with the new audio port, the Xbox One S controllers, or the made-to-order Microsoft ones. You will get a constant static crackle or hum, and it is the chatpad rather than the headset.
If you have 542 and 543, they do not even fit into your newer controllers (ones that are Bluetooth enabled). The pins are mis-aligned by a millimeter. The guides line up, the USB-looking port looks like it lines up, but it will not fit. You should hear metal-on-metal clinking if you try to force the chatpad into the controller, and if you follow the official Microsoft guide of "rock the chatpad until it slips in", you'll hear the pins grinding against each other but never slotting in.
Do not force the chatpad into your controller. You may eventually get it to go in, but the chatpad will not function since the only way to force it together is to break a pin or to break the port on your controller, pushing the port into the cavity.
Microsoft does not publicly acknowledge this defect. Customer support does not have any documents on this issue, but if you can have Microsoft Xbox Customer Support create a ticket and send it for review to their engineering team, the engineering team will confirm this issue and replace the chatpad even if you are out of warranty. It may take multiple sessions and different Customer Service representatives before they agree to create a case and send it up to their supervisors or to a different department, but if you can get them to create a case, you can get a replacement even out of warranty.
Note that the chatpads have a 3-month warranty.
It would be easier to just return the product to your retailer and re-purchase a different lot/revision. The "LOT NO/DATE" is printed on the bottom of the packaging so you do not need to open the product to know whether you received a defective version. | video-games_xbox |
Falls short of the hype. Perhaps I was influenced by all the hype this game received, but I truly believed this was going to be the game by which all next-gen games would be judged. If so I'm depressed.
First the graphics. They're certainly good but to me they appear to be crisp renditions of animated characters. The environment everyone raved about in reviews is again good but monotonous. How many burned out cars can you see? It just didn't overwhelm me as expected.
Now for the AI. I heard how "intelligent" the enemy characters were. Truth is they aren't. Not at all. Even playing on the hardcore difficulty level I tired of watching enemies run forward to hide behind an obstacle only to immediately stand up and start to back-pedal back to the obstacle they just left. If you don't eliminate an enemy quickly this same repetitive pattern of gaining territory and voluntarily and inexpliocably abandoning it occurs over and over. Occasionally the enemy will try a flanking move but so far its usually very obvious, easily defended, and once the flanking position is gained they'll give it up using the above mentioned back-pedaling retreat.
The only thing that makes the competition difficult is the fact that despite executing a perfect head shot the enemy somehow manages to continue to fight unfazed.
Your squad mates? Lets just say I'm tired of saving Dom over and over again.
Gameplay - tedious is an understatement. I find myself forcing myself to continue to play just to finish the game and be done with it. The game is completely linear with you running from one objective and one obstacle to another fighting essentially the same recycled enemies. Its call of duty without the realism or entertainment value.
Oh and there are plenty of glitches. I just turned off the console after one of the enemies climbed over a concrete barrier and remained suspended in mid-air, completely unresponsive and unable to be killed and thus unable to move on in the mission. I've also actually had to shoot a teamate to make them move out of the way of a doorway so I can continue the mission without having to turn off the console and start over.
Overall not worth the money and if this is next-generation without hope of improvement I'm depressed. I'll keep playing and see if the game improves figuring with all the hype I must be missing something, but somehow I doubt it. | video-games_xbox |
I want to love these headphones. I want to love these headphones, but I've come to only really like them. But, with that being said, they probably still are the best headphones for Xbox One X/S.
Starting off with how comfortable these headphones are, they are alright. I might be a little biased because I own a pair of Bose QuietComfort 35s and they are by far the most comfortable headphones I have ever owned. And I'm sure that anyone who owns them would attest to that. But I have a hard time believing that Turtle Beach could think these are that comfy. The top of the headphones are too snug on my the top of my head to the point where it hurts a little. I stop noticing it while I'm playing but still. I am have a bigger head too so I have to extend these headphones all the way in order to put them on. That's weird to me because these are the only headphones I have ever had to do this with. The ear cups are pretty comfy though, making the noise cancellation amazing! If it weren't for the mic monitoring, i wouldn't be able to hear my own voice for sure.
I haven't had an issue with the pairing of these headphones like other people were saying. They hookup to my Xbox every time I turn my Xbox on without a problem. That should always be a given for a $250 headset.
Now to the most important part, the sound. The sound is what truly makes these headphones top of the line. I was using the Artis 3 before getting these and the sound was exceptionally better. I turned on the surround sound on Battlefield 1 and was blown away. Everything sounded so real. Props to EA for that as well. But these headphones made me feel like I was in the action. The bass is deep but not too deep that it makes any type of distortion. And the highs are just right. And the best part is that they can get LOUD! I never have them up all the way in fear of going deaf because of them but they can really crank out some serious sound. I can easily pinpoint where enemies are in shooters and I can feel the rev of the engine in my races games as well. I love the presets that come with it. They make a difference with whatever game or movie or song you are listening to.
I like the positioning of the buttons that are on the outside of the ear cups. They make it super easy to control volume of both the game and the chat. You can mute, change your preset, or even turn on and off the noise cancellation. Very sweet. Only thing that bothers me about them are the fact that I can easily leave fingerprints on them because of the glassy material they are made with. Very minor detail but still.
These could easily take over my Bose if they weren't so bulky and ugly to look. I would highly recommend these headphones to anyone who wants to up their game and get more involved. | video-games_xbox |
A key to unlock your fantasy and imagination. Here is my 2 cents... Since I ever played the game on my friends PC last christmas I have been hoping it would launch on my Xbox (my PC is terribly outdated...). So when it was launched in Xbox I didn't even need to think, I purchase it and started my own wild sci-fi fantasy all day long. Playing American McGee's game has always been a wild imagination. Scrapland somehow has deliver the same spell on me. Once I turn on my Xbox, 36" TV and my 5.1 Surround sound system, my place just suddenly turn into a Sci-fi world. I am urge to play it everyday once I get off from work to find out what next... the game is very story driven. Moreover it has been a while I can play a game while my girl friend won't be sitting beside reading books or gossip magazine. She is watching me playing on the time and asking me what she missed and what happen to who... so on the graphical, sound FX and story I would give it a 5 STARS! Since only a 5 Stars can turn my world upside down without me being notice it until I shut my Xbox off...
Speaking of it's gameplay and it's features... well not very hardcore but good enough for being a game which I could spend hours and hours on mastering it. Driving a car with a physic we all know of was not really a challenge... but driving on a spacecraft with heavy artillery on it is kinda of a challenge. You need to watch the traffic and innocent NPC around you while you take out your opponent is not an easy task at all. Moreover the spacecraft you drive it totally custome built... Another core features is to transform... Well I have been a old school gamer and Scrapland reminds me of the old school Commando or the 3 Vikings (3 Vikings, each of them have different functions, Sheild, Axe and Run) Scrpaland has elaborate on it with 12+ different character (simple yet mindful). To acheive your goal you need to pick what to transform and how to make good use of every character you are capable of transforming. Gameplay and features I will give it a 4 Star...
So to conclude... Well it might not be a game of what most of us has been used to for the pass few years... (hardcore gameplay and features driven game)... but it is definately a wake up call to us all of what game use to be. You play because you enjoy it. That I myself think has long been forgotten... If you are looking for a game to chill out abit and relax, Scrapland is definately a MUST buy! | video-games_xbox |
Why Call of Duty 4 is better then Halo 3 . For the sake of argument i'm going to compare this game to Halo 3, simply becaue i believe that if you are looking to buy this game or have done so already, chances are Halo 3 is already in your gaming library.
THE GOOD-
1st off, if you don't have multiplayer, you still have a reason to buy this game, the single player campaign is great, albeit short(about 6-7 hours straight through), ofcourse if you spread it out, about a weeks worth. Halo 3's single player campaign was...rushed and dirty(one driving level i'm thinking of towards the end was straight crap), it felt more like a multiplayer game with a single player add-on.
-Great graphics and sound, being in a massive gun fight and seeing dogs run towards you or rockets fly by is pretty intense.
-Some great scripted sequences.
-Multiplayer is some of the best FPS you'll do online, with a ranking system similar to Halo, but extremly deeper and more gratifying. Where in Halo you really only move up in Rank if your team wins the match, so if you're playing a team slayer for 15 min and loose, then that's essentially 15 min wasted. But in COD 4, you gain XP for doing almost anything, shooting someone through a wall, falling 250ft, running a certain distance, my point being, even if your team looses the match you still get XP for how well you played regardless if you win or lose, meaning that your character bumps up in rank much faster.
-Let's just say there is a lot of unlockables in multiplayer by moving up in rank, which is an added addiction. Also, the rewards for getting 3, 5, 7 kills in a row without dying is awesome( i don't want to ruin the surprise)! The fact that they help your whole team and not just you is a great touch!
THE BAD
-One of the huge advantages of Halo 3 compared to COD 4 is their save/film/picture system which allows you to go back and watch your multiplayer and singleplayer games like a movie. That was a great idea Bungie. If there was that great moment where you sniped a grenade in mid air, or blew 5 guys up at once, well you can relive it and show all your friends. There is nothing like this in COD 4.
-Halo 3's multiplayer maps are more open, focusing a lot of the action out in the open, which i personally enjoy more, COD 4 is more of a creeping through rooms and sitting in bushes and waiting type of game, not to say it's not action packed, it's just that when the action goes down, it's quick.
-Halo 3 has vehicles, COD 4 doesn't.
In short, if you are a serious gamer, play games has a hobby, or just play occasionally for fun because you have nothing else to do, this game is a must, especially if you enjoy first person shooters. | video-games_xbox |
First of all, you should know I'm typing this with my middle finger. First of all, you should know I'm typing this with my middle finger.
2nd, I'm a huge halo fan. I was super exited to play this game with my friends who I used to play with on halo 2 like 10 years back. Wow was I dissapointed.
Honestly, I didn't mind the broken multiplayer at first. I figured it was caused by a crazy ammount of players and would be fixed in a few days. Well, here we are two weeks later and nothing has changed. I thought, "well, I still have the campaign and forge so I should be fine. I can wait." But since then I've encountered several other bugs as well....
1. Occasionally when I go to save a map in forge mode( I hit the start button and click on "save as new map") the game freaks out and drops to about 10 fps for no reason whatsoever. Then every time I try to save the map it just brings me back to the start menu. Seriously? I can't even save my forge maps now. I put 8 hours into a map once(which was probably the best map I've ever made) finally I finished it and I couldn't f*cking save it! What a waste of time. After that I've decided not to use forge anymore because I don't want to risk losing all my work.
Also the file share is nonexistent so you can't download or upload any maps.
So there's a multiplayer that still doesn't work, a forge that I can't trust, the only thing that works is the campaign.
So basically I played $70 for a campaign that I already own on the 360. Such a shame, this was by far my most anticipated game on next gen, but this was such a fail. This game had so much potential and could've been so much fun. Bottom line is, I wouldn't support 343. I'm not saying don't buy halo 5 when it comes out. BUT DO NOT PRE ORDER IT. Wait till it comes out and your sure the game is finished like it should be.
Although i must say, Halo: the master chief collection was very good at finding new ways to piss me off. Yep. It sucks. Unless you only want to play the campaign, save your money. | video-games_xbox |
A Fantasy Vacation for only 50 bucks. Let's get some stuff straight first.
There is NO NUDITY. NO SEX. That's not the point here.
The point is, despite this, the ladies of Dead or Alive, some of the most popular videogame femme fatales yet. Forget Lara Croft. Forget all those polygonal princesses. Kasumi, Tina, Christie and the rest of the DOA babes will out-pose them all with this game.
DOAX lets you spend up-close and personal time with the DOA babes; this is pretty much the point of the game. Part 'Temptation Island', part volleyball game, part shopping/gift-giving game, part girlwatching and modelling sim, DOAX is pure fanservice with a nice but simple volleyball game and some gambling elements slid in.
There is no point or goal set by the game; you set it, or just basically turn the game on to enjoy yourself. You choose a character then spend the rest of the two-weeks of game time making friends and cash, buying any of the hundreds and hundreds of items, swimsuits and unlockables, and best of all, watching the Dead or Alive girls stretch, play, relax, nap, exercise and pose for your enjoyment (and you control the camera!).
The volleyball game is simple but has surprising depth that will be pleasing to most gamers but may leave hardcore sports buffs finding it shallow.
The girlwatching elements are short but OH so sweet... you can see stuff like this on a beach, but can you zoom in? Nope. DOAX lets you do that.
The Casino games are fun and well done.
But best of all is the relationship game, where you try to win over potential teammates by giving gifts and doing little subtle things like wearing gifts given to you, winning games and others.
DOAX was originally made as a fanservice game especially for DOA fans, but it can be appreciated by anyone who loves beautiful women and is not easily offended by gratuitous but ultimately harmless (and yes, laughably juvenile) cheesecake.
In short, don't take this game too seriously and just have fun, and you can play it everytime you want to lay back and enjoy.
Graphics: 10
The sexiest and most incredible character models yet in a videogame. Team Ninja just can't be beat when it comes to sexy videogame women. This lets you get in close and... WOW.
Sounds and Music: 9
A reggae-based soundtrack includes tracks from the Spice Girls and Christina Aguilera, but you have the option of using your own soundtracks... so this is as good as you want.
Gameplay: 8
Simple but engaging and strangely addicting volleyball, a fully-working casino, a funny and sexy minigame and the ability to ogle beautiful babes in bikinis. Works for me.
Lasting Appeal: 10
Tons of stuff to unlock and buy will mean you'll be playing this for hours to get that prized bikini or to befriend that beeyotch of a girl. And when you master it all, you have world-class swimsuit babes to ogle whenever you want. DARN!
Rating: 9 (10 for DOA fans)
For anyone who has Dead or Alive 3 or loves the DOA games, this is a MUST buy. For anyone else, sexy fun that's worth a look and a visit from time to time.
Not recommended for those who are easily offended by sexy women! | video-games_xbox |
This game is almost the same as the first one. Like many people who bought the first game, I have been looking forward to the "improved" version of Assassin's Creed ever since I saw the first trailer. Though my thirst for an intriguing medieval era adventure game was not quenched by the original, I had great hopes that the second game would succeed where the first one failed. Fueled by glowing reviews by Gamespy, GameInformer, and other heavyweight review sources, my dreams seem destined to come true. I would have bought this game the very day it came out, but I was too distracted playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. I ended up borrowing this game from a friend after he'd finished it. Looking back, I'm glad I didn't waste my money.
The game started out slowly, but I did my best to keep my impatience under control as I worked through the tedious introductory missions. Finally, after doing too many of those "go-talk-to-this-person-and-come-back" quests, things started looking like they were going to start moving at a faster pace. They didn't.
Before I go into exactly what I don't like about this game, I'll mention a few major things that weren't seen in the first Assassin's Creed.
#1) The villa that you can upgrade, and will send money directly to your personal bank account. This was a cool idea, and (at first) an interesting one.
#2) The ability to hire various kinds of help to make completing a mission easier.
#3) Quick travel. Throughout the map, there are vendors set up where you can purchase instant rides to other areas on the map. This can be a godsend, especially since the map the area is so enormous.
#4) Vendors that sell many different weapons and armor.
#5) Many side quests have been introduced that can be used to draw out the game if you so desire.
There are a few more improvements that I could mention, but they aren't really worth talking about. Now I have to start being a lot more negative. Every one of these improvements suffer from the same ailment: namely, they are utterly unimportant for any purpose but to distract gamers from the fact that this game is exactly like the first one.
Yes, the villa is cool, but the upgrades can be purchased very quickly, and afterwords you have so much money there is no need to do the side quests. Hiring help for a mission can be fun the first time, but you quickly realize that it is unnecessary. There is no enemy you will run into that you can't kill just as easily without the help. There are several quests where you are required to recruit help, not because you need it, but because "the odds are stacked too highly against you if you don't!" Really?! I found myself wishing that I could find more than 5-10 guys to fight at once! "STOP making me sneak in through the back! Just once I want to storm the front gate and be challenged!!"
The vendor idea was a good one, but rarely serves a purpose. Yes, you can purchase armor, but it quickly becomes obsolete when you unlock Altair's set of armor from Assassin Tomb exploration quests. The weapon selection lasts a little longer, at least until you check your bank and pull out the 42,000f you need to buy Altair's sword.
Now for a brief word on the side quests: There are many more of them than in the original AC, but they are all the same. You can deliver a mail parcel, assassinate a random person, run a race, or go beat up a cheating husband. That's it. They are all very simple, straightforward, and boring.
There is one aspect of this game that is consistently challenging: the frustrating control system. I'm sure every one of you who have played this game can identify with the feeling of annoyance from running up a wall you never wanted to touch, performing an unintentional suicide by leaping off a wall you never meant to let go of, or wanting to jump one direction, and shooting off in another instead. In short, I never died once from combat, but at least a dozen times from these sort of accidental deaths due entirely to the controls being so touchy.
In closing, the same feeling of tediousness that was so glaringly evident in the first Assassin's Creed pervades the second one, but hides a little behind the incredible attention to detail that was obviously used in creating the landscapes. That is the only reason I'm giving this game 2 stars instead of 1. I feel like I have to give the developers some credit for making a game that looks so good, but is still so bad. | video-games_xbox |
Very Excellent Game. In "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" you play as Charlie Bucket as he, with the help of the Oompa Loompas, has to rescue each of the naughty children from a horrible fate. The game design is really beautiful with a lot of detail put into each room and characters. The story is told by storybook like cut out characters that move and talk, which at first seems strange but you get used to it, but the opening and end story is computer animation which the characters look like something out of "Nightmare Before Christmas", not to say that the storybook look of the in-between stories is bad, it's just that they should have made each in between story CG.
In game play, you must solve a series of puzzles with the help of the Oompa Loompas to help rescue the children. Sometimes the puzzles are easy but every so often, some of the puzzles are challengingly confusing and you find your self stuck on a puzzle for thirty minutes trying to figure out what to do next. Overall, the game play is fun. The Oompa Loompas are hilarious and really fun to work with! When they are standing still, they begin to do push ups to pass the time. This game is a lot like the Lemmings or Pikmin as in you have to get them to do things to solve puzzles. Grandpa Joe also helps, press a button on your controller (depending on which system you have) and he gives you advice on how to solve the puzzles if you get stuck.
You use candy powers during game play; you throw Everlasting Gobstoppers at your enemies. You use candy balloons to reach high places; even Fizzy Lifting Drinks make it on to this game as you use it to fly! And belch to come down of course.
The game does have a few bugs. When you sometimes tell an Oompa Loompa to do something, it will begin to run in circles or get stuck behind something, but a gentle nudge or follow command will fix that problem, it's not a big deal at all.
The characters are great; sadly Johnny Depp doesn't appear on this game as Mr. Wonka, but the Charlie from the movie does talk for Charlie on this game. James Taylor, doubtful if it really is the singer James Taylor, does a good job in Depp's place as Wonka, almost identical voice of Wonka from the movie.
The rooms and scenery in this game are amazingly detail and at times very beautiful, it is very exciting to actually walk through the Chocolate Room. I loved it.
At the end of the game, after the Mike Teavee stage, you are given a choice to either use the elevator to go up and out and end the game right there, or you can help Willy Wonka collect secret ingredients in three rooms. What you have to do is collect golden W's and when you collect them all the game will end, but you will also have unlocked a bonus menu screen. In it, all of the stories you have seen will be available to watch without having to play through it again. Also, in the bonus menu screen you also unlock two trailers for the movie "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and a photo gallery for the new movie. I recommend doing this, movie trailers are cool and collecting the golden W's is easy.
Overall, don't believe the reviews that say this game is bad, it's not. Maybe because I'm a huge fan of the book and both movies so naturally I would love the game. It really is the next best thing to being there yourself. So if you love the story and want something sweet; take a bite out of this game, but if you're not a fan it may for some reason taste sour, but I don't see why. I had fun with this game; after all, it's like being a kid in a candy store. | video-games_xbox |
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