text stringlengths 503 33.4k | labels stringclasses 23 values |
|---|---|
Fun game that's a blast to play. Just bought the game without ever having played the beta. I've been yearning for a Timesplitters-esque game for quite some time. (Timesplitters 2 and Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath are 2 of my favorite FPSs of all-time). Overwatch reminds me of Timesplitters in its visual presentation and that alone was enough to draw me in. There are 3 things that I want to make note of real quick:
1. As a parent with small children I'm very particular in what games I play due to little ears and eyes observing the game while I play it. Overwatch doesn't really have any blood, and there are a few curse words, I think I've heard "d@mn! t" by a character a few times and one character (Reaper) yells "die, die, die" in a wispy tone for his ultimate move that's pretty audible and is my biggest issue with the language. Overall, Overwatch is very tame compared to other FPSs and I applaud Blizzard for that. Also, there's nothing too revealing with the way the women are presented.
2. No single player campaign. This has been stated over and over again. I'm hoping some type of campaign is added as DLC down the road.
3. This game is FUN! I tend to stay away from multiplayer only games (I'm a complete noob and I'm very upfront about that in games, and I don't appreciate being cussed out through my headset by someone who takes a game waaay to seriously). With that being said, Overwatch is fairly newbie friendly and I'm extremely glad that they gave us the option to play against AI bots in multiplayer. $50-$60 is a hefty price tag for a game and I'm counting on lots of free DLC to be added down the road. You don't need a headset to play this game and it's nothing like the endgame content of Destiny, which absolutely required massive amounts of communication and a steep learning curve. Overwatch has a nice "pick up and play" vibe to it and is quite unbiased, meaning that if you can only play a match or two a day you can still have fun and won't get destroyed in multiplayer. The heroes are all diverse and the character design is fantastic. The "loot" rewards are all cosmetic which means a person who plays 8 hrs a day isn't going to have some suped up weapons that annihilates the person who only plays a few minutes each day.
Give me a decent single player campaign and maybe some local co-op and it would be hands down 5 stars. | video-games_xbox |
Yes! Nice changes for the better. A Nice Surprise. I've been jonesin' for a good baseball game since the good old days of Acclaim Sports and the EA versions of MLB. When 2K locked up the MLB franchise and locked out EA I was really disappointed in the 2K game play, the controls, and many other things. I've only played 3 games with the new 2K9 MLB but the difference for the better was immediately noticed. YES! Nice coding 2K. You notice nice little improvements everywhere. Lets go right to gameplay: I hated pitching last year, this year is soooooo much, much better. 2K9 has clearly labeled just about everything in the game that was a mystery last year. This makes a huge difference. And they've provided a nice practice mode with CLEAR explanations for Pitching where you read what to do and how to throw and then can practice till you're comfortable. They've moved a couple of buttons in pitching to more logical places but for the better. Don't worry, the buttons are all where they supposed to be if you've played baseball games before. There is a second practice mode for how to run and steal, a third for for fielding where you shag balls and try to throw out stealers. Again improvements with the buttons making it much nicer and more intuitive. This year you can throw to the base in last year's style with the RS, OR new in 09 you can use the 4 buttons to throw to bases! Both methods work right out of the box without changing settings. There's a batting practice mode as well with helpful big letters that tell you how you went wrong "VERY LATE SWING" "LATE SWING" "VERY EARLY SWING" etc. This is very good, it's not an earth shattering change but it's easier to learn how to hit. I can't emphasize enough how the general feel of '09 now that makes it easier to get up to speed on any aspect faster. Things make sense because they are now well labeled. The announcing is very good because it is less in your face. Last year's Miller and Morgan patter was a 10 on the tiresome scale because the same raps came up over and over again. (The passed ball from the 1941 World Series line.) This year it blends so much better and will probably not be tiring as the season goes on. The gameplay is so much more like the good old days of Acclaim Sports and EA Sports baseball. Hitting, pitching and fielding all feel great. You can actually pick guys off the bases this year. A nice promise appears at the beginning of the game. When you log in for the first time the game asks your permission to let 2K rabidly keep your rosters updated with the very latest changes in baseball on a daily basis if necessary. If they really do this, it's a VERY smart move and it's going to make for a great season. I've only had this one day (it came out today!) but I am thrilled. I expected it to be crappy like last year. Way to go 2K and thank you! A Nice Surprise. | video-games_xbox |
Was good now definitely trash with no BR, the most distinguishable weapon of the game that set Halo apart from the rest. Game was great in October. Since then, they've updated and ruined the multiplayer. Probably for noob players. BR is destroyed. Now it's just a shoot-fest, and many shots miss. I was around a 38 on Halo 3, rarely colonel. I was Gold 5 now I'm Silver 1 lol. I don't even care anymore, I play COD. At least people actually die, my shots get located, the game is fair. No cheating going on.
Sure, COD is arcadey trash kind of. It's not highly intellectual, you just run into walls and die. However, Halo was/is cheating me out of kills in order to make sure good players don't kill bad players, or at least that's the only way I can figure it. They've also got a weird algorithm that sets me up in teams that are destined to lose with the worst players. Ranking doesn't matter how good you are, only if you're buddy-buddy with a platinum+ grinder.
I also get tired of having to shoot a million times because hits don't register, players disappear, lag occurs all the time. It's funny because COD doesn't have that. Why am I letting this trash game take up 100gb of memory?
It felt so good to play again, after not playing any games for about two years. Then they eschew the Battle Rifle for 12 yr-olds, and suddenly every dynamic I was used to is cast off as nothing. All my skillz went away.
I would consider coming back if players didn't float 10 feet every shot since the updates. Why do you keep updating and breaking this game? 343 appears to be trash.
Can't even put together a decent game anymore. How do I successively drop two levels after being on the eve of platinum only 3 weeks ago? Sometimes I'll get a decent connection and slay, most often I have no chance. I have no lag problems with COD. Don't know what's up, or what they keep doing, or what they keep changing, but it's turned into an unplayable trash fest.
Enjoy your cheap toy.
Oh yeah, they changed a lot of other weapons too and it's mostly for the worse. I must have been too good, so they made it impossible for me to win. Who wants to use the loadout pistol as a BR? It just feels wrong, and it misses like all the time. The mini machine guns were fun but now they're ineffective. The orange lazer weapons were then fun and then they lessened their power. Now every gun is egalitarian and I don't know what to do, with the lag, and the insane normalness. It doesn't feel like Halo, it feels like a Halo imposter.
Nothing in gaming was as satisfying as the BR headshot. If you ruin that then it's not Halo. I'm not a grenade launcher person etc, but I always thought cheap power weapon kills and death were hilarious. I don't even take joy in those however, anymore, since I have no common weapon to fight them.
Do you know how difficult it was in Halo 3 to get good with a BR? It's what used to set apart trash and normals. I'm not an elite one-shot zoom in sniper, but was at least ok. I don't have the patience to shoot the regular loadout machine gun for multiple games. No gun is interesting because no gun except the godforsaken needler is overpowered.
You WANT to embarrass people. This game was about strategy, it was chess. You've turned this horrible mess into checkers. Heck, I get more strategy in COD now. Players need options, they need fun ways to kill people. No little kid, and no older person is going to have fun shooting mediocre normy guns at each other all day. Vomit.
I bought xbox one s for Halo 5. Luckily COD WWII released and I can play that now, otherwise I would really be peed off. And of course the 4k blu ray player, it was really for that. Big cinephile.
I hope this isn't the route you guys are going to take with future games. Battlefields need elites, normies and trash. But most of all we need hit detection, and cool weapons that are overpowered and deadly. We want fun, not for mom and dad to step in and take the fun things away because they're too fun.
This is no longer Halo, it's a broken game. Give us weapons to shoot with.
It might even be time to dramatically rethink this game and make it a lot more fun. Why can't I see a final kill cam? How about domination or something?
Or maybe I missed that playing too much ranked slayer, but social slayer feels like a waste.
Hope 343 fixes the issues, and stops with useless updates. Also needs more maps. | video-games_xbox |
CounterStrike Worth the Buy? Sure, but only. Counterstrike has to be one of the most famous online first person shooters, if not, the most famous online game. Most computer junkies have played it and become addicted the moment they get thier first "frag." With all that said, Valve, the developer of Counterstrike, has just been released for the XBox with all the same aspects and you can play online using XBox LIVE. But does it live up to it's PC version?
The graphics virtually have no improvement from the PC version. Which is a bad thing because the graphics are not impressive at all, but to the contrary, the level designs are. Some are vast, some are small, but all of them are very well designed. Each level you play matches in has many areas to hide and get cover from enemy fire.
The sounds of gunfire, explosions, footsteps, and the voices are all very well done. Counterstrike also supports the custom soundtrack, which is very cool. Imagine fragging all your friends online while jamming to your favorite rock or rap group. If you have the music CD, you can listen to it while playing Counterstrike.
The gameplay is where Counterstrike shines. It's pure pulse pounding action playing it online. When I first played it using XBox LIVE, the bullets were flying, the bodies were piling up, the people were yelling, and I was in heaven.
The only problem I have with Counterstrike is that there is no multiplayer. For the love of God, why is there no split-screen multiplayer mode? Did Valve feel like making us video game junkies angry? Or is Valve trying to make us subscribe to XBox LIVE to have some multiplayer fun? Whatever the case, this game doesn't feel complete without split-screen multiplayer mode.
So if you don't have XBox LIVE and don't plan on subscribing anytime soon, don't bother with Counterstrike. Counterstrike for XBox lives up to the PC version, and it's arguably better than the PC version. So if you have XBox LIVE and you wan't some ballistic action, then I suggest you run to your nearest game retailer and buy Counterstrike.
Hit
+ Great gameplay
+ Great online fun
+ Great sound
+ Supports custom soundtrack
+ Great selection of weapons
Miss
_ No split-screen multiplayer mode
_ Not much of a reason to own it without XBox LIVE | video-games_xbox |
Don't waste your time please. I've tried and failed twice. This is my first review I've taken time out to write, and it's solely because I don't want anybody like myself, who reads these reviews frequently to get a fair assessment, good and bad, to waste their time...
I hate admitting it but this the second unofficial hard drive I've bought for my 360 in the last year, and it's the second time I've been burnt - which essentially means I could've saved myself all this trouble, spent an extra $40, bought an official one from Microsoft, getting a free game and insuring I had a working hard drive. Here's how the cycle goes, at least for me:
I receive the package, open it, no instructions but the hard drive looks great and fits perfectly. Everything but the package seems official. I get excited, and start loading games on to the hard drive, a game install or two, this time GTA V and FIFA, my old downloads, and my old saves. No music and no movies. Things go fine for a week or two. Whenever I get to about 267 Gbs (give or take this thing comes with about 290 of usable space) I start running into trouble: first, maybe a file is corrupted. GTA V will not load right. It begins to freeze. Next the system will start turning on w/o recognizing the hard drive. The system itself will slow down dramatically, you'll think it's the cache, you'll clear it and then continue to have problems. Then it won't work altogether. I actually got an e67 error this last purchase which is a hardware failure. That was refreshing because that actually lets you know a connected component isn't working properly. System still works great, just not with the hard drive inserted - which in turn, means this thing is s***.
I saw a lot of good reviews on here, which is why I took the leap again. First one came from ebay from some Chinese vendor I can't remember the name of at this moment, and the second one from a vendor here on Amazon, which I thought would be a little bit safer of a bet. Maybe this will work for you, and maybe it's my system - but probably not considering I bought the 360 in February but hey, maybe.
I will say this: at this point, spending the extra money on the official is worth it. It is still way too expensive and I get that, that's why I did what I did twice, but now I wish I would have taken the $80 I've wasted (well really 40, I at least got to return this one) on an official hard drive a year ago (w my last 360) if not just for the piece of mind. | video-games_xbox |
Fantastic (edited. First, I can't compare to GT5 as I don't have a PS3.
I can only compare it to Forza 3 and it blows it out of the water.
MY ONLY GRIPE: I wish the Force Feedback on my old MS wheel was more realistic. After playing F1 2011, this game's cars and tracks feel "dead". Every car has the same "weight" - in other words, whether you're driving the vintage Lotus Elan or the brand new AWD GTR Spec V, they "feel" the same through the wheel. The physics are, of course, drastically different - but they have the same wheel weight. The wheel weight doesn't get progressively less as you go faster, either - in reality, a steering wheel is very heavy if you're barely moving and it lightens as you pick up speed. Not so in Forza 4.
And that's my only gripe. The rest of it is fantastic!
So... I feel kinda dumb. The way my MS wheel is, I tend to left-foot brake. Not realistic, especially in the old cars. But, that's how the old wheel is, no clutch (and I'm not excited to spend $400+ on the new Fanatec, though I'd sure love to get it... someday I guess). Anyway, the point is, I only blip downshifts in cars and sims where I have a clutch (where I use my right foot for braking)! So the simple and rather embarrassing fact is: I wasn't blipping my downshifts. Of course, if you don't blip your downshifts, the rear wheels lock and the car goes all over the place. Well guess what? That's what happens in Forza 4. Now that I figured out to blip my downshifts, the cars feel perfect! I've only ever played in expert mode and there wasn't a jolt from *not* blipping the throttle, so I didn't notice until I was driving the TR at old LM.
OLD (and incorrect, left for continuity): The cars are no longer understeery - they're now naturally oversteery. Not necessarily any more realistic, but certainly a lot of fun.
My favorite feature is the use of Kinect to and its head-sensing. It's fantastic. If F1 2011 had the head-sensing Kinect and Forza 4 had the force feedback options of F1 2011, both games would be even better. | video-games_xbox |
Expensive piece of cheap plastic. I bought two of these last Christmas for my brother and I. Both of us are avid gamers who play on pc. When I saw this I saw extra buttons which I assumed could be set to a different command in Xpadder. Thats not the case. Instead they are merely hot keys for buttons already on the controller? Which to me is absolutely the dumbest thing I think I've ever experienced. So for me it went from being everything I wanted to just another Xbox controller. But that's not all. About three months into using it, my left trigger would bug out and stick which proved extremely frustrating in racing games as my car would just slam on its brakes randomly. Besides that, the right bumper is loose I have to basically center it before pressing it otherwise or doesn't register. Now my brothers controller on the other hand, his left bumper broke completely, just wouldn't register at all. Eventually the wire from his started to fray and became so badly frayed that it became completely unusable. This is a controller that markets it's cord as being durable, threaded and actually being part of the controller. Now, technical issues aside, the hot key triggers on the bottom loosen up and fall out even when not in use. The rubber pads they send in the event you don't wanna use those triggers fall out and don't fit flush with the controller. The controller itself is made of plastic and could honestly be broken if your squeezed hard enough. All in all, you couldn't pay me money to get another one of these. I have never in my life had a problem with the normal Microsoft controllers breaking. Ever. Those are forty bucks, these we're 90 a piece when I got them and I expected a tough durable five year lasting controller. Paying ten bucks a month to use this for the 9 months I had I is disgusting. All in all, I would advise you don't buy this product. Its cheaply made, absolutely illogically designed, and the price is just ridiculous for the product you actually get. | video-games_xbox |
Honest review from a long-time racing simulator fan. Let me start by saying that Forza 4 was the best racing game I have played. Ever. I spent over 200 hours driving to acquire the "Bucket List" achievement, and I enjoyed every minute of it. The music, the tracks, the cars, everything fit perfectly. That game (Forza 4) came out six years into the Xbox 360's life cycle. Two years later the sequel (Forza Horizon doesn't count) is released on a new system and everyone is up in arms about how terrible it is. Shockingly this opinion seems to be felt only by the Amazon community. Most of the reviews I've read seem to be from trolls or casual Forza "fans." Here it is from someone who has spent a lot of time playing racing simulators, with over 1,000 hours invested in the Forza and Gran Turismo series.
Graphics: This is probably the first thing you will notice playing a next-generation system. It is hard to describe how I feel about the graphics in this and Battlefield 4 (the only other game I own). I would say that the textures look similar to previous-generation systems, but the amount of graphics displayed has increased tremendously. I first noticed the crowds in the stands and the track-side detail. It is impressive. There is just a lot more "stuff." In Forza 4, the Sebring raceway seemed very open and spread out. In Forza 5 it feels intimate, close up. I don't know how to describe it other than it feels like you're driving through a real place.
Content: In Forza 4 there were over 500 cars and 26 tracks. Forza 5 has 200 cars and 14 tracks. It is easy to recognize that you're getting about half of the content of Forza 4. The big fear is that Microsoft will try to sell the "missing half" as DLC. This remains to be seen, but I will pass on the DLC and wait for the sequel if it comes to that. As it stands, it is better than what I expected for a launch title. Everything has a very high level of polish and fits well. The game seems designed to attract new players, as a lot of the menus and layouts have been simplified. I honestly wish they would have borrowed more from Forza 4 in this case, but I can understand why they chose a different path.
Driveatars: This is probably the coolest addition to the game. I love that as I write this, my driveatar is out there earning me credits and racing against other players. It is really neat to watch the other cars race, as it shows you how other people handle the courses differently. I've actually copied some of the driveatar techniques I've seen to see if it makes me faster.
Global standings: This is a minor point, but when you finish a race your fastest lap time is ranked world-wide. It has definitely motivated me to re-race a couple of tracks just to get my time down.
Physics: The cars seem to have more "heft" than in previous Forza games. It feels more realistic. One of the complaints I had about Forza 4 was the glued-to-the-track feel of the cars with TCS on. It feels much better with this one, you're no longer invincible with TCS on, the tires will break if you over-do it.
In-game currency and micro-transactions: This is where everyone is bashing Forza 5. I honestly didn't notice the micro-transaction stuff until I read some of the reviews on here. It isn't as "in-your-face" as everyone is making it seem. The primary complaint revolves around the super-expensive cars, like the 6,000,000 credit Ferrari GTO. If you want to pay for it in "tokens" it translates to $63.00 in real money (or somewhere in that range). So let's be honest about this. You can grind, as I did in Forza 4, to EARN this car or you can be an idiot and pay real money for it. It is your choice. I acquired the GTO at around the 180 hour mark in Forza 4, and trust me, it isn't anything special. The only reason I bought it was because I had around 40,000,000 in game credits so I just bought all of the most expensive cars (achievement unlocked!). Forza 5 is a little more conservative with doling out credits. The main reason for this is that the credit multiplier has been reconfigured significantly. I would earn 115% in credits in Forza 4 because of the way I set the difficulty. With similar settings I now earn an additional 45%. That said, I was driving my two favorite cars (Eagle Talon TSI and Dodge Viper ACR) within an hour of playing the game. I'm sitting on around 500,000 in in-game credits with about 10 hours of gameplay. And I've bought and modified several cars. Bottom line, if you actually play the game, you will get the super-expensive cars. There aren't as many cars in Forza 5, so you don't need as many credits as you did in Forza 4. If you whine and complain that you can't drive the GTO on your first race you're not a gamer. Go play "Angry Birds" on your iPhone. If you are stupid enough to waste $63.00 on an in-game car, well, you know what they say about a fool and his money.
Music: My final point and biggest complaint about this game. Forza 4 had one of the best original soundtracks for a video game in my opinion. It was done just right. They tried with Forza 5. You can definitely tell that they tried. Unfortunately it falls flat on it's face and comes across as one of the most pretentious and douchey soundtracks that I have ever heard. It sounds like a bizarre combination of the soundtracks from the Lion King and Titanic, mixed in with big-band music from the 1950's. It is very strange and has no place in a video game about cars. When I listen to it I try to imagine the person who developed it. I guarantee that whoever it is drives a Toyota Prius and can't tell you the difference between an air filter and a cabin air filter. And they don't know how to drive a car with a manual transmission. | video-games_xbox |
rent BEFORE you buy. Originally I skipped over buying this game because I saw a bad video review for it on youtube and opted instead to buy Left 4 Dead GOTY (which I am SO happy for as it turned out to be one of my favorite games ever) but after buying Left 4 Dead 2 where they added too many changes to the game thus screwing up the brilliant simplicity of the original, I was talked into buying Dead Island. And the reason why I originally avoided buying it proved true. Not only is the game too slow-paced too often, but you are constantly repairing your weapons or else they break and you lose them for good. Yeah, I know, breaking weapons sounds more realistic, BUT 1. it takes away from the fun when you have to repair a baseball bat after only 9 or 10 zombie hits, and 2. why would i have to repair a crowbar or solid steel pipe or anything else that obviously can withstand a lot of real-world damage, and 3. why in the HELL do i have to repair a crowbar as often as i have to repair a wooden stick??? Yes, the durability of the weapons in this game is that screwed up.
The Hit Detection is horrible in this game (Zombies can magically hit you while having the same reach as you and yet you can't hit them unless you move closer), and the Aiming of the crosshairs in this game is spazmatic. Literally. You move the crosshairs to aim your next attack and it wobbles around the screen like someone having a seizure is controlling the analog stick.
What's REALLY stupid is that in this game you have to go around collecting money to not just buy things like weapons (which is a given) but you have to pay to repair and upgrade and modify your weapons. Sounds like something inconsequential to gripe about, right? Well you repair/upgrape/modify your weapons by collecting things around the island and then you find a workbench and your character chooses from the free things you have gathered and for some reason then have to pay to use them. Umm, if i collect a roll of duct tape and a knife and want to 'modify' my baseball bat at a workbench by taping the knife to the end of my bat, WHY do i have to PAY to tape that knife to my bat when I'M the one doing it and it's MY stuff that I collected??? It makes NO sense, but obviously then needed to institute some sort of system. It's just a crappy, unnecessary system.
The game looks good, but even the nice graphics cannot stop the boredom from creeping in. There's a LOT of walking (or driving, but i'll get to that in a minute) around, then you see a zombie or 2 and kill it, then a lot more walking around. Basically nearly EVERY mission is a "Fetch" quest where someone needs this item so you go from point A to point B, get the item, then return back to point A where you learn you need to get another item, so you then leave point A and go to point C, get the next item only to return to point A again where now at point D theres another item you need to fetch. Basically that's the missions of this game. And THAT would be fun IF there were a lot more roaming zombies and a lot better fighting/hit detection system in place.
Something i REALLY hate is because the weapon system is crap you find yourself using the melee attack button often, the only problem is there are only 2 preset controls and neither have the melee attack assigned to a more "convenient" button. One is the default with it assigned to the L Bumper, and the other changes it, but ALSO changes the controls into some weight "analog" fighting control scheme I've never seen in any game before that's just awkward and confusing.
And now the driving. yes, you can drive, and if you DO play this game remember to get the truck fixed ASAP as if you wait you will be doing a LOT of boring walking around. BUT driving is almost as annoying as walking because the viewpoint from inside the truck is so awkward you are constantly driving into things and getting stuck because it looks like you'll clear by it but you don't.
The island IS big, which is cool, and the zombies seem to randomly respawn so it's not like you clear an area and then its forever rid of zombies, BUT with the little amount of zombies sprinkled around the island AGAIN you will find yourself getting bored every few minutes before a short action burts, then back to the boring traveling again.
I LOVE Zombie games, and it's hard for me not to like Dead Island as i really tried, but there's just too much wrong with it -even with the free dlc the GOTY comes with- to recommend it for anything more than a weekend rental. TAKE MY ADVICE: if you're looking for a fun zombie game, BUY LEFT 4 DEAD GOTY. It's literally one of the best games I've ever played, one of the funnest, and it beats Dead Island HANDS DOWN in every category.
Also, this GOTY version has a new character and stuff but the game only comes with the original game booklet which doesn't say anything at all about him or his skills or specialties or anything. You'd think they'd at least update and put in a newer instruction booklet.
I give this game 2 stars. Fighting the zombies is just too annoying because of the shoddy hit detection and the annoying spazzy crosshairs, having to repair your weapons CONSTANTLY (at least until further in the game when you can PURCHASE upgrades) is just plain annoying, and there's just too much wandering around where nothing much of anything happens while you're on one of the too-many "Go Fetch This-Or-That Item" quests. Maybe I've given it an unfair lower rating because I can't help but compare it to Left 4 Dead, but that only confirms my advice to DEFINITELY buy LEFT 4 DEAD over this game any day of the week, and twice on Sunday.
And REMEMBER: I recommend the ORIGINAL Left 4 Dead Game of the Year edition, NOT Left 4 Dead 2. Although the second one is fun, the original is MUCH better. The second one added in a melee system so you can use bats and axes and whatnot (and funny enough their melee system is WORLDS BETTER than that of Dead Island, too) but they also added in a wider variety of special-type zombies, and the types they added are just annoying to the point that you wish they would have kept everything the same as the original but just made the second one a bunch of more levels.
Anyways, there you go and i hope this helps. Just don't blame me if you don't heed my advice =-) | video-games_xbox |
So many options, is this a good one. To answer the question of my topic, yes. The 360 is a viable option IF you luck out and get a Jasper chip set (despite some review claims, not all of the holiday bundles are Jaspers, mine is). I've owned a PS3 for well over a year and a Wii for about a year now and after running the 360 through it's paces, I give it a solid 3 stars. So for ease of time and interest I'll provide 2 variations of the same review:
Quick and clean
===============
The 360 Holiday Bundle gives you everything a young adult gamer might need. Easy to hook up, easy to update and intuitive to maintain. Most gamers will benefit from the tight controls and great graphics. Solid library of titles in a wide variety of genres also helps the 360 player get into this generation of gaming.
The dark underside of this system as compared to your options are many but depending on the customer, may be irrelevant. Out of the box you DO NOT get; wireless networking, rechargeable controller (uses archaic AAs), online play with friends (a pay service), high-def movies, or a stable platform (bump your 360 with a $60 game in it and your game is probably ruined). {EDIT: Hi-Def movies can be played but not through any disc formats, the controller does feature rumble and can be "upgraded" to rechargeable batter pack at an expense and further expense for a charger. Want to keep this fair :) }
The factors above are not a concern for many so if this is you, go get a 360 but MAKE SURE it is the newer chip set. Go google "Jasper" and make an informed decision on the system. Now for those that want a little more meat, here are the rest of my thoughts;
=================
The failure rate of the 360 hardware should be a great deciding factor when purchasing this system. 100%, I repeat EVERY SINGLE person I know who owns a 360 for more than 6 months has had to repair or replace their system. In contrast, out of nearly a dozen PS3 half a dozen Wii owners in my circle, only one has had to have their PS3 serviced. {EDIT: The very day I posted this review, the laser on my PS3 went out, oh the irony. Can still play my downloaded games but I think I'll send her in for repair}. If you are buying something like this system as a gift, bear in mind that you may be saddling somebody with a system that needs frequent attention and even further investment to keep running. Microsoft claims that many of the contributing factors to the hardware issues are gone with the new configuration so take this into account. Subjective BUT the 360 controller, though an improvement over the original, are unwieldy for many fighting games and just don't feel as tight as the PS3 controller. As a note, 360 controllers also do not support rumble or motion detection features like the PS3 or Wii.
The good news?
Games look great on hi-def entertainment systems but using a standard tube, you'll have no issues with picture or text on screen. Sound is great through RCA cables or digital and streaming my media through Windows is actually a little more constant than through the PS3. Menus are bright and fun and games can now be installed on your hard drive to cut down load times and save cycles on your optical drive.
I hope that the reader has found some useful bits of information here even if you didn't find anything new. I tried not to nitpick and keep my criticism out of the subjective realm of controller ergonomics or game library quality, there are plenty of reviews on those. To sum up, the Xbox 360 is a fun piece of hardware and for a responsible, careful and educated gamer, is a fine option as a current generation gaming platform. If you find yourself accident prone, have a high traffic household with children, are looking for a more condensed center piece to your hi-def entertainment system or just don't take Microsoft's word about their terrible hardware being a thing of the past, look to the other options. | video-games_xbox |
A refreshing boost to the FPS genre. As a long-time first person shooter player, I had started to get bored of the games I once sunk hours into. Even the Halo franchise, which I have enjoyed for a long time, gets less and less play time, and I have spent more time in other genres. To put it plainly, the shooter genre just got stale. Nothing really new or compelling had come out in a long time, and the existing mechanics weren't enough to keep me around.
This changed with Titanfall. If nothing else, the movement of the game is enough to keep it from feeling like any other FPS out there. Jumping through second story windows, running on walls, and hopping from rooftop to rooftop just makes it feel different than any other FPS out there. The myriad ways you can traverse a map means that even if you have a general direction you like to travel on a given map, you have myriad ways of arriving there.
Throw the Titans into the mix, and this where things start to get really interesting. It essentially adds another game into Titanfall because the mechanics between being on foot and being in a Titan are so different. Where being on foot allows you visceral, fast movement and freedom, the Titans are a little more restrictive. You can only go certain places on the map, you are a hug target to any enemies on the map, and you need to think more about cover because being in a few-meter tall mech makes it harder to dodge fire. However, mastering the different Titans (there are three) and their various loadouts to give you the perfect combination for a given situation is very rewarding.
Speaking of rewards, although the game is short on story (the campaign mode is 9 missions that can be played from the viewpoint of each of the 2 factions), the various weapon rewards will keep you coming back for more. Whether it's getting the new scope for your carbine or unlocking the rapid fire mod for the Titan rocket launcher, there are some compelling upgrades that you're going to want to nab.
I've been having a blast with this game (more than any other shooter I have played in the past couple years), and suspect I will be for quite some time. Hats off to Respawn for breathing some new life into a genre that had otherwise begun to become very stale indeed. | video-games_xbox |
Nothing I liked about this game. I first played through the campaign in this game before I went online; that way, I didn't feel like a total noob. This game as a whole is just gruelingly generic. Everything about it says "Yup, I'm a first person shooter and nothing more." The entire campaign pins you against AI that can see through dust, snow, bushes...just everything that you can't (and there's a LOT of debris to obscure your vision in this game). I found that at some parts, I just had to sit back while my AI buddies took care of the enemies that would just wait for me to poke my head out. Trying to sneak around the perimeters of the map was the way to go, but this usually wasn't an option, because the maps purposely bottle-necked you into gunfights through narrow areas just full of bushes and whatnot that you couldn't see through. And if you try to find a way around those bottle-necked areas, you're punished by a 'you're leaving the area and only have 10 seconds to turn back' timer. The story is so bad that I'll tell you what it is - the evil Russians are invading America. The evil Russians do evil things, and you and your invincible buddies kick their ass on behalf of America. Are you waving your flag yet? No? Yeah, me neither. In the campaign, you get to partially use ALMOST every vehicle once. I didn't like using any of the vehicles because they were all weak, had crappy camera angles, bad physics, and crappy controls.
A couple of my friends always played the multiplayer and bragged about it so much. I thought it was going to be this complicated, team oriented, engrossing experience that would keep me entertained for some time. After the horrid campaign, I was hoping that they were right. When I first went to multiplayer, I saw the modes...all 4 of them. And one of the modes is just a different variation of another. So I pick one mode, and it gives me the option to play from a whole whopping 4 maps. I start playing, seeing that I can't customize any of my classes at all. I find a vehicle and hop in. Ah crap. They're just like in the campaign - weak, bad camera angles, bad physics, bad controls. I hop out and start blasting guys with my crappy gun. I keep putting half a clip right into guys before they fire off one bullet and kill me. I don't even make it through my first multiplayer match and I quit out.
Screw this game, I'm done buying generic 1st person shooters. And I hope that game companies would stop making generic 1st person shooters, at least that way when an original game comes along I can at least see it before the next Battlefield and Call of Duty come out. | video-games_xbox |
Highly under-rated and misunderstood game. ... first off, it is not a shooter game. For all intents and purposes it is a real-time-strategy game, but only because of the control-schematic (it doesn't have any resource-gathering or civilization-building; you can't even increase the size of your teams, which are usually two teams of 4 soldiers per team). The first "Full Spectrum Warrior" was one of the most exciting and satisfying games I had ever played on the XBox; "Ten Hammers" was even better. It deserves recognition for the sheer ambiance - the entrancing combination of environments and musical score make it a game worth coming back to just to re-experience the locations and situations.
The game-play is by no means easy - if one of your soldiers gets shot even once, they are out of play, unless you can get them to a Medic (this is true even on the easiest difficulty setting). The game-play demands genuine and serious tactics and strategy - there are absolutely no sections of the game where you can come out blasting like Yosemite Sam, all guns blazing, and expect to survive (more often than not, even a moment of exposure to possible enemy fire will get your teams killed).
Rather, you have 2 teams, usually of 4 soldiers each; in Ten Hammers you can also divide each team of 4 into 2 smaller teams of 2 men. With these teams, you must make strategic use of your environment in order to avoid getting shot, while out-witting and flanking your enemy in order to neutralize their threat. Ten Hammers has the added element of allowing you to sharp-shoot an enemy under certain conditions, but doing so requires a moment in which you're taking aim and exposing yourself to increasing risk of getting shot.
How can I stress the extent to which I enjoyed this game? Well, having finished the XBox version on the easiest difficulty, I'm working through it again at medium difficulty, and seriously considering obtaining the PC version in order to take advantage of the (presumably) quicker control offered via mouse/keyboard.
Do I have any criticisms? Only one that I can think of: on occasion, graphics/glitches will bounce your grenades (whether thrown or launched) off surfaces you didn't anticipate (like when you were certain you were aiming past a corner, but find you were actually aiming at the corner). If one of these grenades lands anywhere near your team, they're dead. All the more reason for cautious strategy :)
If you're intrigued whatsoever by the idea of a game focusing on modern military strategy, and one that is based on training-software developed by the U.S. Army, then definitely check out the Full Spectrum Warrior series - and especially check out Ten Hammers. | video-games_xbox |
Good, but predictable. First and foremost, I absolutely love the Souls series. At a time when my love of gaming had started to dwindle, the original Dark Souls rekindled that love. The mystery, exploration, epic bosses, and lack of hand holding, these were all elements that I felt many games lacked as they tended to focus on shoving you down streamlined linear paths filled with scripted events. So, the last thing I ever wanted to feel is that the Souls series had become a bit formulaic and predictable. Something closer to a Call of Duty release than say, a Shadow of the Colossus.
.
But, here we are. Its 2016 and since 2011 I have personally played a Souls or Souls-style game every year. Many of those I have played through multiple times. The unpredictable elements of the Souls series have becomesadly predictable. So, Im trying to think of a single way that Dark Souls III truly surprised me and Im just coming up empty handed.
None of this is to say that Dark Souls III is a bad game. It still has all the elements that made the previous games so memorable. The bosses are still epic, and challenging while being (mostly) fair. The world is still beautiful , and the art direction is simply head and shoulders above the competition. The world still feels vast and mysterious. The combat is still well paced and deadly. I'll always have a soft spot for this series, and the gameplay has always been polished to a point that it really makes you realize how shoddily put together much of the competition has become.
But, maybe the series could use a break. Take some time off and come back reinvigorated with some new ideas. Preserve some of the integrity and beauty this series has come to represent. There doesnt have to be a Souls style game every single year.
The original Dark Souls had a heart unlike any game I've played before. The way the world intertwined and overlapped on itself. The tension of finding that next bonfire. The surprises awaiting around every corner. I'd like to see From Software go back to the drawing board and come back with something that truly captures some of that magic again. | video-games_xbox |
Star Wars Strikes Back. A long time ago in a galaxy far away... Star Wars was starting to lose face. At least some critics would say. Some would say that the prequel trilogy was a disaster and that George Lucas had lost his touch; thats debatable. Some would say that the last and best Star Wars game was Knights of the Old Rebublic. Well if your a Star Wars fan like I have been for pretty much the last 20 years, when I first saw the original on broadcast TV one night when I was about 7 years old. Then you know that Star Wars is so extremely entertaining and fun that a game like the Force Unleashed is pretty much your bread and butter!
To start off with this game looks great at 1080p resolution! Man does it look good. More than once I have found myself actually rotating the camera around the Apprentice and soaking up the visual candy that I see. The worlds are beautifully created and definitely feel like a Star Wars game should feel on its next generation console debut. The game really is beautiful to look at in HD whether its 720p or full 1080p and I'm sure it looks great on standard tv's too. All 360 games do.
The controls for the game are near perfect. The control scheme is mapped very well to the 360's controller and the responsiveness of the action buttons, as well as the silky smooth camera rotation, is dead on. I recommend turning the camera's sensitivity all the way up so you can easily turn and saber swipe that next guy as quickly as possible. The only noticible fault with the controller scheme is the RB button which is used to lock-on to an enemy or object.
In order to fully utilize the lock-on button you need to place your hand on the controller so that your index/pointer finger is over the RB button and your middle/bird finger is over the RT (right trigger button). When your Right Hand is placed on the controller as mentioned its a little difficult to use the lock-on function as expected. I feel that its intended to work better on the Playstation 3 rather than the Xbox 360's controller. I know because I happen to have both systems but only the Force Unleashed for the 360. Quite a few games for the PS3 use a controller set up where you use your index and middle finger on the same hand, and it works alright on the PS3, but not so much on the 360.
The level of customization in the game is an awesome selling point for any Star Wars fan. You can change the color and power orientation of your lightesaber. Which to any true Star Wars fan is a dream come true. The apprentice also has a whole wardrobe of costumes to choose from. And man do the COMBOS flow. You truly feel like a Force weilding master with the adreneline pumping combos you can unlock. Along with undoutedly the most action packed lightsaber fights and combos ever recreated for a video game, you also have force abilities (force push, choke, repel, lightning, saber throw...) All of which are upgradeable and stunning to witness in action to any Star Wars fan. They definitely got the title of this video game right.
The story is in my opinion a very good, origianl story for the Star Wars Universe and it does add some insight on the years that proceed Episode 4: A New Hope. There is still roughly 2 full decades that can be, and hopefully will be explored in future movies,tv shows,or games. I kinda feel that there were a few missed opportunities regarding the story, mostly with the Apprentice as an individual. Now keep in mind that I'm about half way through the game, and I do feel that I have played enough of the game to give a more than adequate review.
I have read the comic for the game and if its at all true to the game, and at half way through it is, then there is never an explanation for the Apprentice's extreme force powers. That's just shocking! How could you not throw in a twist that Vader had been secretly experimenting with the Apprentice in a lab or somehow elevating his powers artificially. But no explanation is ever given. Maybe that's an intentional artistic choice by the developers. I really don't know. I just feel that more explanation of the Apprentice's extreme powers would have given the story that extra push from good to great!
Well to wrap it all up I definitely recommend this game to any Star Wars fan or action fan for tha matter. It does an excellent job at recapturing my enthusiasm again in for a sci-fi series that has entertained me for two decades. The game has its very minor flaw that in no way hamper the over-all experience. this game deserves 4.5/5 stars, 90%, an A. Star Wars fans its time to do what we do best, flick the saber switch to on and go to town! | video-games_xbox |
A great eerily suspenseful addition for any gamer. I recently finished playing this game and was amazed at the amount detail found both within the graphics as well as the storyline. From the very begining the graphics had me hooked. The water and structures were the most realistic I have seen surpassing even Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. This amount of detail continued through out the game, although once the game has gotten moving, which isn't far from the beginning, your focus is soon immersed within everything else that is going on around your character, namely trying to stay alive.
In this respect, there wasn't much of a delay as you are pretty much immediately thrown into action, if not a little preemptively due to the music, which I will discuss later on, and the atmosphere of your surroundings. And although the controls take a little getting used to, this can be said about many games and should not be a deterent. One nice feature is the ability quickly switch between weapons and plasmids (which I will not discuss, because they are something that are better experienced rather than talked about). This ability allows you to better battle against tougher opponents such as Houdini Splicers and the infamous Big Daddies.
Concerning the storyline, I often find it hard to get caught up in a game unless it has a decent overall storyline, and this definitely didn't disappoint. There is a series plots and subplots and little twists enough to keep anyone's attention, unless of course you are in the middle of a battle, then there is generally just one thing on your mind, survive. There are also a number of surprises, both intriguing and eerie. The only parts of the story that I wish had been gone into further are the backstory of the Big Daddies and the Little Sisters and the events that led to the current state of the underwater city, although it is possible that I just missed some of the audio diaries along the way.
Finally, I wish to talk about the sound, or more specifically the music. Once again, the music is fantastic from beginning to end. Although I don't remember anything more recent than the 1950s, each song seemed to fit what was happening at the time adding a classic feel to it (with the time period taking place not too long after WWII) as well as superbly creating the creepy feeling that there is something waiting for you just around the corner. Besides the musical selections, the normal audio was also very suspenseful. Between the sound of dripping water, distant falling objects radio transmissions, and the sound of nearby enemies it is like an eerie symphony more effective than any horror/suspense movie I have seen for a long time. | video-games_xbox |
Yup! Tiger does it again. Every year, Tiger is the game that keeps on giving. In my 22 game collection, Tiger is the one that keeps popping back into my 360 for several reasons. 1) Superb create a player, I even uploaded my pic using GamerNet and the face match was nearly uncanny. My friends comment "Wow, that really does look like your goofy self". 2) Player progression is the key ingredient. You play for hours on end because you want to improve your character by increasing his/her attributes. And not just that, but you use your earnings to buy new clubs, new clothes and accessories all which give improvements to specific attributes (Tiger hat looks awesome plus it increases my Driving and Accuracy). Without player progression, Tiger would be another golf game but Tiger has mastered the art of Player Progression and is the reason you keep coming back to this game. You can go from Scrub to Legend but it will take some serious experience. 3) Golf, oh yea let's not forget the core of the game. Using the thumb-stick to hit the ball has been the greatest thing that has happened to golf and this year's edition is no different. A clean back to forward motion gives your ball a straight hit, slight movement to the left or the right will slice or hook your ball. What's new this year is the ability to set a draw or fade on your ball prior to your swing simply by pressing the RB or LB buttons. I really like this feature as other golf games try to incorporate a "if you swing from left-back to right-front this produce a fade etc" concept. Tiger eliminates the goofy control mechanisms and allows you to pre-determine your fade or draw. You have plenty of things to worry about like hitting the ball straight, using the right club, adjusting for wind, calculating percentages, percentage of swing and putting spin on the ball. Shoo! Sound like a pro because you'll need to be one. Yes, hitting A to get a boost of power on your ball while swinging is still an option. As is putting spin on your ball in any direction while the ball is flight. Your 100 yards from the pin, wind is blowing left to right, you're slightly in the rough and there is a tree right in front of you with high branches, the green is shallow and fast, slight gradient hill facing towards you. Your Iron hits at 140, take 10% off for rough. You could hit a punch shot under the trees but you might fall short of the green. Your only option of going for it could be to fade it around the tree. You opt for that but not too much as the wind will help the fade. Your going slight up hill, so you know you need a little more oomph!. You determine that you need to hit the ball at 80 to 90 percent that means your backswing should not be fully cocked. You line up, take the swing, stop your back-swing just short of full and make contact with the ball making sure to take a full follow through, in your mind the green is fast so you place back-spin on your ball, it hits the front the green rolls fast but slows due to your back spin and crawls inches from the cup. The crowd erupts because they know your shooting for the bird on the final hole of the final round to take the lead and take home the cup. Yes this round will earn you monstrous dough to buy new equipment and clothes, a sponsorship, a trophy, respect and more attributes to highlight the selective areas you have done well on. Welcome to Tiger! and this is just the beginning. 4) Game modes, every game mode and multiplayer is available even including the odd-balls like Bingo, Bango, Bongo (first to the green, closest to the cup and lowest score). Play The Tiger Challenge where you'll face off one on one with real Pros, EA characters and game scenario challenges through a tree to reach tiger. Each event you can earn bronze, silver or gold. A trophy will grant you access to the next event in the tree. Or opt to play on the PGA tour, going through ever major event on every major course until you become a legend 5) Superb fluid graphics, so far the best of the series. Lush, rich, dynamic environmental graphics. Trees blowing in the wind, superb water reflections and ripples, grass detail, shrubs, sand and the whole nine yards. Great player animation as well with a slew of customizations that could make your head hurt. 6) Loads of
New features:
1)Draw or Fade, use RB or LB before the shot to pre-determine your fade or draw. You will notice the arch in your shot reflect the fade or draw prior to swinging.
2) Putt Preview, see the most likely path of your ball prior to taking a putt. You have the grid and the putt preview this season. Putt preview can be used once per putt.
3) Slight more realistic gameplay. Starting off as a no-name in this game is no joke, you'll take you sometime to progress before you kick the habit of shanking your bal. Don't worry though, you'll earn enough experience or attributes to improve your game. And even when you eventually do become a Pro, earning chip-ins and holes in one are more difficult than previous seasons. Earning cred from the very beginning of your create-a-player is definitely an uphill battle that may seem unfair at first because your hitting drives off the tea at the proficiency of a little girl while your matched up against real pros. You may or may not like this aspect of the game but you'll eventually play catch up and when you finally that point of out driving the pros, it'll be well worth it. But getting there, especially early on in your progression, is no cake walk.
4) Photo Face. Yes, yes! Upload your photo on GamerNet and EA will do the rest by producing a nearly uncanny depiction of your ugly mug in a beautiful three-dimensional rendition. Match that up with height, weight, facial features, body attributes and you will really like you've earned your place in the PGA. But really your just another geek with a joystick sitting on your couch.
5) Shot confidence. Every find yourself writing down on notepads on how well you played certain holes or what you would do differently if you faced the beast again. Well Shot Confidence tracks that all for you, let's you know exactly how well or poorly you played this hole in past, what your confidence level is and hints at what you should do differently. | video-games_xbox |
Fun for All Audiences. Having spent several weekends in a row studying for the GRE exam, I wanted to take a break from hours of dense reading. So I looked into some reviews online and bought a xbox with HALO-- it has turned out to be the best decision I have ever made (on video games.)
The best feature that I like about HALO is the playability. I'm simply amazed by the graphics and how everything else is choreographed with it. Not only that each character is well designed down to the very minor detail, the Artifical Intelligence that the developers put in the game is even more incredible. Not only do your enemies hide when they are hurt or low on ammo, they also know how to take cover to avoid your grenades. They even have a strategy. Whenever you are confronted with a number of elites and jackals, they tend to send the durable elites to take you head on and have the shield-wielding jackals to flank you from the side. When the elites run out of ammo, or about to run out of ammo, they will charge you and attempt to engage you in melee. 2 to 3 consecutive knocks from these things will put you out of the game.
You also have A.I. controlled Marines to help you. But they are only useful on Easy and Normal difficulties, mostly because on these levels they tend to send just 1 or 2 elites at a time, they will never send a horde of jackals to back them up. These Marines only make good entertainment with their one liners, ie, "Who's your Daddy!?", "Let me make sure he's dead!" then walks up to the corpse and puts another 3 rounds into the dead body. Marines aren't very effective, however. They are only effective against the foolish grunts and maybe 2 or 3 Jackals-- 1 elite will tear them apart if you don't help.
All in all HALO is a great game. The number of vehicles that's included in this game could have made HALO a racing game in its own right. You also have the option to play co-op through the campaign with your friends or against them through death match. If you are into a great first-person shooter game, you definitely will like HALO. | video-games_xbox |
A ton of potential, but not a lot of energy. Crazy Taxi 3 might have seemed like an awesome, whatever-you-want driving game if only GTA3 and GTA: Vice City had not come along. Against Vice City, Crazy Taxi 3 seems like a small mini-game.
Crazy Taxi 3 does have nice graphics, as you drive through 3 cities that approximate San Francisco, Las Vegas and New York City. Each city has its own personality, and you get to choose from a handful of taxis (and drivers) for each city.
In essence you grab a fare and have to take the fare to their destination. You rack up cash for doing so and the more fares in a row you can do, the better. There are also an assortment of minigames like 'jump through the flaming hoops' and 'pop the balloons'.
It this had come out say 3 years ago, the driving-whereever-you-want would have been amazing. The fact that you could just cruise the streets, plowing over sidewalks, taking shortcuts and looking at the nice graphics would have been great. Unfortunately for CT3, something else came along - Grand Theft Auto. Grand Theft Auto HAS taxi missions, with the same earnings and time limits. But in GTA, that is but one tiny part of a huge gameplay system. And when you don't feel like doing timed missions, you have the luxury of driving anywhere you want, in any car you want, and exploring the world you have.
You can say that GTA3/GTAVC is for the PS2 and Crazy Taxi 3 is for the XBox. But what does that mean? That because they were programming for the XBox, Crazy Taxi 3's developers could only put out 1/20th of the game? At least if they were going to solely concentrate on taxi-like things, they could have put in more cities, or more taxis, or more missions, or something. But the game comes across as an arcade port (which it was) that didn't have a lot of energy behind it (unfortunately). What they put out as a 'complete game' is something the Grand Theft guys kicked out as a fun little side toy. I am a HUGE HUGE fan of arcade games, and also a HUGE fan of driving games, so I really had high hopes for this. But unfortunately the game turned mindlessly repetitive too quickly.
I'm disappointed that the PS2 has the Vice City/GTA3 shining as their 'driving in a city' showoff and that the XBox can only hold this up as a comparison. It's time for the XBox developers to take the brilliance behind Halo and show us that they CAN have a Vice City like incredible experience on their platform.
Summary: Fun for a short while, but not something that grabs you for weeks or months. | video-games_xbox |
Seems like some people need to get their TVs replaced. "Terrible graphics!!!"
That's what stands out when I read all of these reviews. I find nobody that thinks these are great graphics. Hmm. I'll get back to this.
Anyway, Star Ocean: The Last Hope is the fourth of the series. Its roots are in space and time travel, and often takes place on faraway planets, though its protagonist is generally from Earth. The first Star Ocean (Blue Sphere) never came stateside; instead, we got Star Ocean: The Second Story. During a time when the first PlayStation was hurting for role-playing games, this was a breath of fresh air. It introduced concepts that were new to gamers but taken for granted since: synthesis, cooking, and customization. In truth, The Second Story was really a 100+ hour game if you wanted to accomplish all there was to do.
What The Second Story also brought to the table was challenge. Other games were hard, but TSS is known even to this day as having one of the worst final bosses in RPG gaming history, a man known only as Indalecio. His original form was bad enough, but when you went to a certain private action, he became "Unlimited Indalecio", a true GOD that gamers were not worthy of. Being level 99 didn't do you any good either. That's not even counting the bonus dungeon's boss, Iseria Queen, who is even worse. Bottom line - the game was blatantly difficult near the end.
Star Ocean: Till The End Of Time was released on PlayStation 2, and it wasn't well received by gamers, mostly because for the most part it deviated from what made Star Ocean so good. But what gamers don't see is that the third game actually added a piece of gaming goodness to the overall series. It introduced a new character in Welch Vineyard, adored by fans, almost to cultish dimensions. It also had a lot of small "throwback" things like science centers named after famous inventors in the previous and subsequent games, and bonus dungeon battles with notable characters from the past. It wasn't a bad game really...and didn't get the fair shake it deserved.
Not too long ago came two PSP remakes: Star Ocean: The First Departure and Star Ocean: The Second Evolution, based on the first and second Star Ocean games, respectively. While the gameplay is identical, these are definitely remakes in that a number of things were changed, most notably the difficulty of the second game being toned down and the skill tree being a lot more friendly than before. For those that never played the first game, First Departure was a great opportunity to find out what the first game was about, and when you play it, you get a better sense of the overall storyline.
Enter The Last Hope. This story takes place prior to the events of the first Star Ocean (using First Departure as a reference point), so if you never played the other games, a lot of the things you'll notice won't go over with you, but if you did play the others, you'll hear music that will remind you of each game, and meet characters that you either recall from the other game or who must be related to others from the previous games. There's definitely a lot of fan service to be had here.
Your protagonist is Edge Maverick, a young crewman on the Calnus. A disaster on Earth has rendered the planet unsuitable for human life, and the SRF (the organization you belong to) has been ordered to seek out habitable planets to identify their viability as a new place to live. If that story sounds familiar, at least somewhat, it's actually quite close to the story in Star Trek III: The Wrath of Khan, and one of the Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes where terraformers are attempting to find planets that would be suitable for colonization. Unlike those however, a space "bubble" knocks you and your other ships off course, causing you to crash land on your first planet. While the plan appears to be quite like Earth, there is a darker side (this story is commonly seen on the original Star Trek). You can hopefully see where I'm going with this...there's also some instances of time travel that are quite interesting, yet infuriating at the same time. You'll end up hopping from planet to planet to achieve your objective.
Now that you have a sense of the basic storyline, let's get to the game itself. As mentioned before, it spans three full DVDs; that's over 13GB of data, for those too lazy to do the math. You can do the install to the hard drive, but be forewarned that there is a going speculation that doing so causes the game to freeze. I did experience a freeze, but I can't confirm for a fact that the install was the cause. I do installs to keep my drive from going out, and don't intend to stop anytime soon. Part of the problem with the spanned disks is that different planets are so large that they literally exist on specific discs. I know other games have the same issue. The problem is that if you wanted to go back to an older planet (and you will have to, for mining and such), you need to insert that disc. What I don't know yet is whether or not you can just install all three discs and avoid the disc swapping altogether. I assume you can, but haven't yet tested that theory. Seems though that you'd still need to swap discs, since the 360 requires the disc be in the drive in order to even access the stored data.
The music in the game is quite excellent, but for the fact that the tracks are quite short indeed. Older Star Ocean games also had short tracks, but keep in mind they were limited by the space on CDs during the PlayStation era. Either they kept the tracks short in order to emphasize the nostalgia, or they just didn't have the space left over to accommodate the music tracks in full. Of particular exception are the tracks from older planets like Roak (First Evolution) where the music from that game is playing, instantly inciting nostalgia. The extremely short, repeating nature of these beautiful tracks is the only issue here. As far as the voice acting, people are complaining about it, but I found it quite good, honestly. I mean compare this voice acting to Infinite Undiscovery or Tales of Vesperia...and you see there is no comparison. At least in this game, the personality of each character is brought to life extremely well, except for maybe Reimi (because she sounds like every other video game heroine). Part of the measure of good voice acting is whether you are emotionally moved by the character when they're speaking about something - and yes, some people don't get moved at all by game characters - but when someone like Lymle is expressing how sad she is, in a way a child definitely would in the same situation, you can't help but appreciate the voice acting that much more.
In terms of challenge, I found the game to be quite balanced compared to other RPGs of this style. Regular enemies for the most part are not difficult; you do get multiple difficulty settings to choose from, but even on the harder settings you can still reasonably work your way through the majority of regular enemies. They're aggressive, but your characters are even more aggressive. Once you master all of the nuances of battle, you will find yourself breezing through the majority of battles without a scratch. The challenge comes in when you encounter bosses though - these behemoths (and they're always behemoths, aren't they) will almost always give you at least a slight challenge, whether it's juggling you in the air, blasting you with flames or freezing you to death. But that's how it should be, in my opinion: regular enemies are moderately challenging, bosses even more so, but neither so difficult as to throw your controller against a wall.
Speaking of battle, the gameplay engine in The Last Hope is a throwback to the older Star Ocean games who really pioneered the action battle along with the Tales series...but The Last Hope threw in just a little bit of uniqueness to break the mold. Here you control your main character as he hacks his way to victory, and yes, you can take control of your other characters as you see fit. But this game offers some flavor. You can do some short range jumps in the four directions; so to the left/right, toward or away from your enemy. This is great if you need to dodge, or cut down distance to your enemy to effectively defeat them. You can also transition from the jump into the Blindside attack, which allows you to quickly run behind your enemy. If done correctly, not only will you dodge the attack, but you will surprise the enemy and do critical hits on their backside. From there you can throw regular or special attacks; even chain special attacks together if you've got a skill that allows you to do so, racking up major damage. Rounding out the feature is the Rush attack, which can be best described as a limit break. When executed, you and another team member will unleash a flurry of blows to one enemy to multiply the damage dealt. I found myself not really using this, simply because it takes a long time to build up the gauge that drives it, and the damage wasn't all that great compared to regular attacking and special moves.
As you fight and pull of special attacks, you'll build up slots on the Bonus Board, which gives you various bonuses such as Exp and Fol. It also can give you free SP which can be used to build up your skills, or HP/MP to heal you after each battle. But be careful; the enemy can destroy part of your Bonus Board if they hit you hard or frequently enough, so you really can't just bull rush every single fight. You need to pay attention and stay on the move in order keep the advantage. The Bonus Board also apparently disappears when you save and cut the game off, which I understand, but don't care for.
Making a return in a toned down fashion is the item creation feature. In Star Ocean 1 and 2, you could create items anywhere you wanted just by having the skill active. That meant cooking, alchemy, blacksmithing, etc...could all be done on the road so you could get stuff ready for that next cheating boss. Star Ocean 3 (Till The End Of Time) did away with this and centralized Item Creation to Welch Vineyard, with some exceptions. The Last Hope forces you to go back to the Calnus whenever you want to do any Item Creation whatsoever. While this does increase the strategy, it becomes a bit of a chore, because not only do you have to do the creation back at the Calnus, but also the recipe creation (you can't just find the recipes out and about and you can't just randomly mix ingredients to make stuff like parts 1 and 2). Some characters are better than others at specific skills, and unlike the previous games, you won't have a situation where the entire team can do blacksmithing or alchemy; each character has a specialty that they stick with, and while each character might have tendencies toward one skill or another, they will never do it better than the one who owns the skill. It is good to see Welch back of course, but her "edginess" has been toned down from part 3. No more witnessing her 'special dreams' here, as she's really just a holographic projection from Earth headquarters.
The Last Hope boasts some rather massive landforms for each planet and expansive dungeons. It will take you a couple of hours AT LEAST to complete a specific area, assuming you're not rushing. This has to do with the size of the areas, but also some of the puzzles that are thrown at you, which honestly aren't bad as..say...Equinox (SNES game), but they're certain to get on your nerves. What's funny is that often the item you need or the door you need to go into is just very cleverly concealed, and when you do find it, you'll likely groan at just how hard you made stuff on yourself. That's what the game does well: force you to feel bad about yourself because it seems like something is really difficult, when it actually is dirt simple.
Okay, boys and girls...the graphics. I save the best for last. All I've seen on every review is how the graphics are poor. Quite honestly, I think people need to upgrade their TVs or they don't know how to configure their TVs properly, because on my DLP LED 61" Samsung (http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-HL61A750-61-Inch-1080p-Powered/dp/B001415FIG/ref=cm_cr-mr-title), this game is as beautiful as they come. I've heard people say Lost Odyssey looks better? Nuh uh. The individual hair strand detail of The Last Hope blows Lost Odyssey away, and at times the true 3D effect is so pronounced as to be mind blowing. The draw distance is the best yet, and looking out on some planets makes you truly feel as though you've traveled to another place; Roak is a prime example of this. I believe what people are having issue with is the bloom lighting effect; it is somewhat strong, but no more so than Gears of War, which is what this game looks like. It uses the Unreal engine, I'm told...as did Infinite Undiscovery, another beautiful game - and the game is simply gorgeous, all the way around. There are some intermittent places where the blending was not done properly, most notably in some shadowed areas, but it's the exception rather than the rule. Setting contrast just below maximum, brightness at max, and sharpness midway results in just a striking game. People...upgrade your sets please.
So what are the game's issues? In a nutshell, I wasn't happy with the fact that the Blindside doesn't always execute. You'll follow the conditions explicitly, yet nothing will happen, and then you get put in a spot where you are getting pummeled. Or you'll do the Blindside, it executes, but you get cut off by another attack that didn't even touch you. Or my personal favorite, when you try to dodge enemies on the field, and get stuck behind an invisible object (hit detection issue with some of the scenery) and get attacked from behind. All issues with the engine, and not the overall game, which I find to be quite excellent. Not perfect, just excellent.
In summary: I have no idea what these other cats are talking about putting this game down. This game clearly pushes the 360's capabilities more than most of the other games that are out for the system, and hopefully KOEI and others can sit up and observe how it's done. This is a must buy, in my opinion, and I hope to see other games like this. | video-games_xbox |
Better than Unity for sure. If theres one thing Ubisoft has taught us over the years, its that history is full of people who need a good stabbing. The latest Assassins Creed, Syndicate, sends us to Victorian-era London to take on the Templars as twin Assassins Jacob and Evie Frye.
As the game opens, the already Assassin-trained Fryes have decided to leave behind their less-than-exciting home town of Crawley, feeling that their talents are wasted. With sights set on breaking the Templar oppression of London, the twins jump a train and start making their mark on the bustling city, reclaiming the city piece by piece for its citizens.
The twins themselves are one of the best additions to Syndicate. From the very beginning, their differing approaches are made very clear. Jacob is brash and headstrong with a preference for solving problems with fists and blades, while Evie is a planner who prefers to move stealthily and unseen. Likewise, Jacobs primary focus is expanding their influence in the city and killing Templars, while Evie is intent to find the Piece of Eden artifacts and explore their history. Its a smart dichotomy between the two primary factions of Assassins Creed players combat versus stealth, action versus lore. The ability to swap between the twins in the world map at any time without having to go back to any kind of character swap location means you can always play as your kind of Assassin.
London itself has to be one of the best playgrounds that the Creed franchise has given us to date. The city is huge and sprawling, with environments much more spread-out compared to last years Unity. This is done to accommodate the citys heavy cart traffic and industrial leanings. While Paris always felt busy and bustling, the narrow streets of Unity made the density more of a hassle than anything else, as pushing through crowd after crowd made staying on the ground level feel like a waste of time. Here, there are plenty of people out and about in the city, but theres still breathing room to move and navigate around them with ease.
Moving across rooftops also has a new element to it in Syndicate with the wider spread of buildings in London, its not so easy for the Fryes to jump from building to building. After a few story missions of dealing with this unassisted, you're introduced to the rope launcher to help in your traversal. Essentially a grappling gun, the launcher allows you to ascend the citys much higher buildings with ease and quickly cross wider gaps between structures. It takes a little while to get used to the range and allowable angles for the rope launcher because its not as free-form as, say, Just Cause 2s grappling gun.
To use the launcher you must be either standing on a level platform or perch, and cannot launch from a climbing position. Movement can be a bit slow if you are crossing between buildings at an angle that doesnt allow gravity to push you downwards, flying-fox style. Its a handy traversal mechanic but at times lacks the zippy quality that would make movement across the massive city of London truly seamless.
As youd expect from past Assassins titles, there is plenty to do in Syndicate.
As youd expect from past Assassins titles, there is plenty to do in Syndicate. On top of the core story missions, split between those for Jacob and those for Evie, there are plenty of side mission sets, diversions and collection activities. Races, fist-fighting arenas and Unity-style incidental encounters such as bullies or thieves litter the world of Syndicate, with fights in particular a good point of access to some easy cash as you start out.
Youll also find side mission chains revolving around famous Victorian-era people such as Charles Dickens, Karl Marx Alexander Graham Bell and Queen Victoria herself as you explore the city, each with their own goals and self-referential nods to their respective parts to play in history. Bell is focused on establishing his telephone network, Karl Marx is espousing his Communist Manifesto and Darwin is having very polite but passionate arguments over his Origin of the Species. Add to this missions revolving around characters added as part of the games story, the usual collections of collectibles to track down, loot chests to open and mysterious tombs to unlock, and youve got a very busy map to explore.
All this, and I haven't even gotten into gang wars. At the centre of the story and mechanics of Assassins Creed: Syndicate is the turf war between the Frye twins newly formed gang, the Rooks, and the existing gang that has a stranglehold on London. Each borough of the city is broken up into sections, with each having a specific gang war activity to undertake to free that portion. Ranging from rescuing child workers to stealing cargo, hunting down particular targets or infiltrating strongholds, theres plenty of variety as you dismantle the Templars hold on London. Liberate every part of a borough and you're free to challenge the leader of the area and fully take it over. Doing so not only lets you punch and stab a bunch of guys (and girls!) to prove how great you are, but lowers the enemy numbers in that zone to allow you easier travel from A to B.
As you move around town, youll see members of the Rooks and the red-jacketed Blighters coming to blows in the streets, really making the turf war intrinsic
Its a familiar mechanic in the series, but having it rooted in gangs or, one could say, syndicates really makes it feel natural. As you move around town, youll see members of the Rooks and the red-jacketed Blighters coming to blows in the streets, really making the turf war intrinsic instead of something that merely happens when you step onto the right map marker. On that note, combat feels a bit more intuitive and complex than previous instalments. Its not at Batman: Arkham levels, but combat does feel more tactical rather than button-mashy which is a step in the right direction. With counter-attacks, blocks, gunfire and bombs to deal with, youll need to think before you leap rather than just spamming attacks to make it through.
Environmentally, London is a tad drab. Full of smog, coal and generally greyish people, there are still highlights of colour in the world. The stark comparison of the monochrome world helps them to pop, such as the bright reads and greens of the gang members or signs and advertisements littering the walls of buildings. The soundscape of the city is excellent; Syndicates world is really brought to life through an aggressively fun soundtrack.
Rather than the series usual composer Jesper Kyd, Austin Wintory (Journey) has taken the reins for Syndicate. The Frye twins aren't afraid of the occasional tussle, and the soundtrack reflects this. Combat music is energetic rather than intimidating, and Wintory has made reference to the fact that waltz music is a big part of the formula. To the twins, a fight is nothing more than a dance; both Fryes toy with their opponents because they know that theyll win. The noise of the city folds into this well, with the bustle of people and carriages supplanted by the heavy bass of industrial machinery.
Syndicates biggest take-away is just how much fun the Fryes are to spend time with. Jacob and Evie are diametrically opposed in their approaches to the Assassin life, but their family bond ties them together well. The interplay and sibling banter makes their interactions more than just a vehicle for story infodumps, and gives the narrative more flavour than some previous protagonists have been capable of. All in all, the game feels like a proper step up from last years sanctuary for bugs, Assassins Creed: Unity.
With the games surprisingly small day-one patch installed, Ive only had one bug of any note and it wasn't even that big of a deal Evie got stuck in a doorway and everyone spent the cutscene talking to the spot where she should have been. Whether this is due to more thorough QA in response to Unity, from lessons learned working in current-gen or because Ubisoft Quebec took the lead on Syndicate is unclear. Nevertheless, it adds up to a more stable play experience and thats all that matters. Assassins Creed: Syndicate gives us a more immersive and fun-oriented Creed outing and is definitely worth a look, even if its previous instalment gave you some cause for concern. | video-games_xbox |
War...war never changes. 2008 was the year of great games: Dead Space, Fable 2, Gears of War 2, GTA IV, Metal Gear Soild IV, Left 4 Dead (too many 2's & 4's!) and this game. If Fallout 3 was not great, my game of the year would be Dead Space or GoW 2...but their not. Fallout 3 is a RPG with shooter elements, 1st or 3rd (you can switch on the fly.) But lets talk about the game. First up: the story.
Story: The main storyline of Fallout 3 is probly the best story ive seen since Dragon Age: Origins. You go from your first day of birth, to your first steps, your first Pip-Boy (best gadget EVER,) and you take the G.O.A.T. But one day, you (19 years old) found out your father had escaped the Vault. You set a quest to find him: from the simple town of Megaton (a town named after a live atomic bomb...yes, i said a LIVE BOMB)to Rivet City (a town built on an old ship.) But along the way, you face danger around every corner: raiders, feral ghouls, rad scorpions, super mutants, and >shivers< deathclaws. Now not to spoil anything but you do find him, but nothing more.
Controls: The cotrols are good, nothing to talk about here.
Grapics: On a HDTV and on 720p or 1080p, the grapics...are AMAZING. From the most simple crack in the wall, to the open world running with the trees and rocks and destoryed buildings, and the enemies. I could spend nearly 30 mins. to an hour just looking at the grapics alone.
Sound: Another thing that won me over with this game. The way the guns sound, sound of footsteps when its quiet, and of course...GNR with Three Dog!
But with everything great about this game, theres also the bad.
THE BAD: This game has ALOT of gliches. Textures pop in and out, enemys models freak out (flying, droping in the groud, gliched in doorways, just to name a few.) And the dreaded Freezeing. A buddy of mine had this happen and he thought his 360 just RROD. It didn't, this game and all other games made by Bethesda had this happen. But a way around this...and it won't FIX IT but it won't happen AS often, is to install the game disc to your Hard Drive. It kinda goes around all the gliches and makes the gameing exp. better.
Final Judgement: If i had to give it a rating, id give it 4 1/2 stars out 5. Great story and sound, amazing grapics, weird gliches, and all-in-all fun game to play.
If you like this game, than you'll like: Dragon Age: Origins, Borderlands, and Mass Effect 1 and 2. | video-games_xbox |
The BEST racing game I have ever bought. I've had this game for a month or so now. Let me tell you, I was never really a racing fan UNTIL I tried out the demo for this game. I enjoyed how tight the control was. I was pretty responsive, the turns were easier to do, I felt more in control of my car. After the demo, I felt an urge to get this game. I thought about it for a few more days and decided to go for it. I am glad I did! I've spent hours just racing multiple cars around Australia. I had a baby blue bmw to start things off. To get used to everything. Then I began to build up my festivals in order to get credits to buy new cars. When you level up, you spin a roulette. You may have a chance to win a new car or get more points. Racing around the island, hitting CR signs and find XP signs helps you build up. I also use the no damage option so I can enjoy the game more like burnout. I can destroy fences, signs, poles, and get extra points as well. Also you can get double points when the DJ plays a certain song and you race or destroy during the length of the song.
Customizing the car is amazing. I took my baby blue BMW and made it completely gold! It looks so pretty in the sunlight and at night, reflect all lights I drive thru. There is also an option for auctions! You can bet credits and get cars that would take more time to get early. This is pretty cool as I got a Ford Raptor and a classic Aston Martin in my collection. Currently, there is a racing league which you can sign up. Whether beginner or experienced, you can race others through xbox live and gain more points. So far with the time I spent, I would be clam playing this game driving away enjoying the bass radio which has diplo! As you unlock more festival areas, more music tracks open up. Also, there is an option for microsoft groove. I have not played with that yet, but if I can add more tracks and customize my list, then its an amazing feature! So far, I have only about 6 percent of the game finished in terms of collections etc. I can literally spend hours just driving around at very fast speeds learning better skills and leveling up.
You earn skill points which you can unlock new perks. These perks will help you in game and online. Some of them are double points during festivals and one vote count as two when online. This will take time to get everything but for the price this game has some longevity. On a standard xbox, this game looks incredible. I am sure on the one s this would look amazing in 4k .I have a 4k tv but do not have a one s. From a guy that loves RPG's, shooters, fighting games, and some sims, this game was a must buy for my library. I play it almost every day even if it's for a short time. It gives you that option to have a race or too, let off some steam from the real world and just relax and enjoy what the game has to offer. I will update this review as time goes, but for what it is now, this would make a great xmas present for anyone. This is to me, probably the best racing game I have ever played. It does not get boring and I lose myself in this world. And that's what makes a great game is to forget reality and go into another. | video-games_xbox |
It sure sucks to be the chosen one. It sure sucks to be the chosen one.
The Bard's Tale for Xbox and PS2 is a new title in a very old gaming franchise. Before talking about the game directly, let me tell you a brief bit about the history of its genre.
Once upon a time (80's, 90's), you could've roughly split up computer and console role-playing games (RPGs) into two groups: Japanese RPGS and American RPGS. Japanese RPGs tended to focus strongly on a plot. The game mechanics were just a mechanism to move the story forth. Character advancement was not nearly as important as story advancement. Ask anyone who has ever played any Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior game and you will find this is true. Enjoyment of the tale the game presented was the main goal of Japanese RPGs.
American RPGs on the other hand tended to be very open adventures with a very heavy emphasis on exploration, character development, and game statistics in general. The `story' of these games worked more like a general game playing guideline than a strong dramatic plot. The stories presented would give you a rough idea of what needed to be done next, but would rarely push you into doing anything in particular until you really felt like unlocking some new area or getting some special item. Players would often run around the game world trying to build up their character statistics as high as possible. The emphasis of these games was enjoying the gameplay, not the story. Two series that were the hallmark of this type of game were Wizardry, and The Bard's Tale.
This trend has even continued into the new century. Just compare Morrowind to Final Fantasy X: an open book versus a staged Soap Opera. Both titles are good games, just very different.
The original Bard's Tale was a classic example of one these open, statistic driven American games. You created a party of characters using Dungeons and Dragons like statistics. Then you would run around a pseudo 3D dungeon, kill monsters, and collect treasure. After that, you would return to the inn to gain levels, heal your party members, and then repeat the whole process over again.
This new Bard's Tale eschews that type of design completely, opting for instead a Diablo type action RPG style of control and play. The menu based combat of old is replaced with good ol' hack and slash button mashing fun. You control a singular character from an overhead view, while partaking in multiple story and non-story related quests.
Another difference with this Bard's Tale is that it is a humorous game. Unlike the previous titles which had somewhat serious stories to follow, this game is a laugh all the way through. It parodies other games in the genre, picks on common elements such as killing rats, opening random treasure chests, chosen ones, and has a very witty script to back it up with. I found the Bard's dialog to be a constant source of amusement. The character you control and the games narrator often banter with each other, usually to humorous effect. This humorous script writing even shows up when you engage other characters in dialog. You are often give at least two response choices, a nice response, and a `snarky' response. You quickly find out being nice doesn't help you get what you want.
And, in another departure from traditional RPGs, the character you control isn't your typical hero. No wide eye farm boys, elven princesses, or honor seeking knights here. He's a roguish bard who takes advantage of people whenever he can. He is very fond of beer and the ladies, and doesn't have any loftier goals than finding a warm bed to crash in at night, preferably accompanied with a barmaid. This is an attitude that never changes in the game, fortunately.
The basic story is that your character of the Bard gets drafted into being `The Chosen One', and ends up trying to rescue to a trapped princess. You quickly find many other `Chosen Ones' who have met a sad fate, and also discover that all is not as it seems...
The controls are fairly simple. You use the primary buttons to attack, block, jump, and activate things with. The left and right trigger buttons activate your summoning spells. Summoning can get a little tricky in the heat of battle so you generally want to do that in advance. Over all I found that the controls worked pretty well.
I was happy with the graphics. Nothing overly special, but nothing shoddy either.
Other than the script writing and humor, the other place this game shines is the sound effects and music department. The sounds always seem to be on cue, and I loved all the amusing sing-a-long songs they had in the game.
Overall, I really enjoyed this game and highly recommend.
One would never think that such drunken lout would make such a great chosen one. | video-games_xbox |
Purchased a refurbished set that had apparently not been completely repaired. Perhaps the fault is my own. I did purchase a refurbished product to save a bit of money after all. However, when I buy a refurbished item, I do still expect it to work. Such was not the case with these. The headphones themselves worked fantastically, the microphone was a whole different matter. It's the detachable type, which I had thought might be convenient....it wasn't. When everything was hooked up to my computer it was able to detect the mic and knew something was there, but couldn't pick up any sound from it at all. After a great amount of time spent troubleshooting the mic and attempting to fix the problem in case it was an issue with a driver, my computer, or simply user error I was finally able to narrow down the problem. The connection between the microphone and headset was simply broken. I'm not sure what exactly the issue with it was, but if you spent enough time wiggling it around and then held it at just the correct angle...it would work for a second or two.
Amazon was wonderful and handled the return quickly and easily as always and I already had a credit on my account for the product the next day...while the headset is still sitting boxed up on my couch waiting for UPS to come pick it up.
I don't really like having to write this review as I still have a lot of faith in Turtle Beach, but will be more cautious about purchasing their refurbished items in the future. In fact, I actually went ahead and ordered another set by Turtle Beach as my husband has used them for years and loved them, while I have typically used Logitech and have been equally happy with them. However, since I'll be using these for transcription work as well as gaming I wanted the more comfortable feel and noise cancellation offered by the headset I eventually ended up purchasing. Ironically enough...I still didn't buy a brand new set. I purchased one of Amazons open box deals. In this case, however, it states that the product may not come with the original box intact or with the instruction booklet, but that the headset itself has never been used before. Here's hoping I'll be back in a few days posting a great review of the new headset and not another poor one proving that the problem isn't Turtle Beach or Amazon, but me...for being too cheap to suck it up and pay full price. | video-games_xbox |
The game is great, just not for the XBox 360. Dragon Age is a series that I've loved, so when I heard that DA:I was coming out, I pre-ordered the Deluxe edition as soon as I had the funds. Unfortunately, I ended up really, really disappointed within a good two hours of playing the game, because there are A LOT of problems with the 360 port. While I can deal with the graphics being low-grade, it really shouldn't look worse than Dragon Age Origins, which it does. Understandably, that's probably because the game wasn't optimized for the 360 and PS3, but it's so freaky to look at that I was constantly torn between laughing and crying every-time someone's hair shone like a lighthouse beacon.
Characters are constantly popping in and out of the scenes, the ice on the ground looked like blue plastic, pop-in happened every second, there were weird audio glitches where characters would suddenly speak in gibberish, and the game froze my XBox a LOT. Add this to the fact that you can't seem to install the game to the hard-drive, so it makes your Xbox a veritable explosive-sounding furnace. (None of this happened on the PS4 copy I later bought.)
That being said, it is a good game! I can't count how many times the story left me breathless and moved, and I was genuinely sad to see it end. The companions are all well-voice acted and likable, the romances were lovely, the plot was intriguing, and it recaptured the monumental importance that Dragon Age Origins had, rather than the small-town feel of DA:2. You explore places between Orlais and Ferelden with maps so huge and detailed that I was reminded of Skyrim. The landscapes are all iconic and unique which is a major step forward from the recycled maps of DA:2.
The game does have it's problems, and it shows. Minor quests can be unbelievably repetitive and boring, and are almost as painful as ME3's scanning the planets. The sheer size of the maps makes things overwhelming and hard to keep track of, and the need to jump around the map makes it hard to get places at times. The game doesn't level with you, so it makes the game really difficult in the beginning and laughably easy at the end. Knowledge of the lore is needed if you want to enjoy the game to it's fullest, which makes it hard to jump into for new players of the series. One of the biggest problems is that the main story line feels short without the padding from the extra side quests.
That being said, if you can't get a XBox One or PS4 copy, it would still be a good buy if you can get past the flaws on the 360 port. It still has the Dragon Age feel that fans should fall in love with and is a good addition to your gaming library. | video-games_xbox |
A Must Have. First off, I have had my Xbox 360 for over 2 years now. I like many went through the RROD (Red Ring of Death) scenario (not once, not twice but 3 times). Once I got a working version, I had a helpful Best Buy employee advise me at the time to get an Intercooler for the 360. Thankfully the version I got was not the original one that melted around the plug-in. My version was the EX (the version with the metal insert). I have had to go through 2 of them in the time I have owned my 360 but let me assure you my console gets a lot of play. That being said, after my 2nd one went out recently I went to Amazon to see about purchasing a replacement. To my surprise I happened upon the Intercooler TS. Here is what I have discovered.
First off, if you have owned an Intercooler by Nyko, you will instantly see the difference. First off it is much smaller. Compared to the older versions it is about 1/4th smaller. It is still easy to install but took a little bit more shifting to put it into the holes compared to previous models. Secondly, it is clear, allowing you to see any dust or debris that might have gotten into the fans (and believe me it does). Another thing is, to me it is a bit quieter. It's not very evident but you can tell the diffence. One more vital change is that the Intercooler is now Temperature sensitive. What this means is that rather than running the whole time your 360 is on, the Intercooler lays dormant until your system heats up. Once it does, the fans kick on and proceed to cooling down your system. Lastly, and the most important change, is it comes with its own adapter. THANK YOU NYKO. You finally heard the cries of the many Intercooler owners. Up until this point the Intercooler had run on the power of the 360's power cord. This would not only cause it to heat on the connection but rob the 360 of precious processing power. This also allows the Intercool to continue to cool down the machine long after the power is turned off the 360. I found myself shocked by this one day when I heard the Intercooler kick on about 30 - 45 mins after I had stopped playing. This was a pleasant and welcome surprise.
In closing, if you own a 360 you MUST get this item. While I am not happy with the price increase from previous versions, I can understand the cost coverage of the adapter as a possible reason. With the cooling effect this has on the 360, this is a necessity if you want to keep your 360 running for as long as you can.
Pros:
- Added Adapter (No longer runs on the power of the 360)
- Efficient Cooling (System is much cooler with)
- Temperature Sensitive (Kicks on when needed not before)
- Small / Light / Easy to Install
Cons:
- Increased Price
- Little Tricker to Install | video-games_xbox |
One of the most overated games of all time. How can this game get game of the year? I have been very disapointed with two RPG games I recently have bought Morrowind and Ultima IX. Ultima IX a game the critics pounced on and gave horrible reviews I feel was actually a better game. At least Ultima IX has a more interesting story and better quest system. I loved this game the first couple hours I played it, but after the first week my interest in the game started to diminish. In the begining I assumed it would get better later on, I assumed there would be new monsters I would face, I assumed after I explored my first dungeon that they all would look unique and be different, I was wrong. Many of the monsters seem to inherit the same look as other monsters the only thing that differentiates them is the name at the top. For instance a slave, a vampire, an npc, and your own character all can look exactly the same if say they are all dark elfs. I was very dissapointed with the vampires in this game. I was expecting to see a monster with pale skin, wearing a black cape, has fangs, and floats across the floor. Instead vampires look just like any other NPC or character of that race. I was also disapointed with the bosses in this game. In Diablo II and Baldurs Gate bosses had a unique look and actually looked fearsome, not so All the dugneons and caves in this game look like they were just cut & pasted. In Baldurs gate and Diablo II each dungeon looked different and had a unique theme with mosnters unique to that dungeon, not so in morrowind. After you have been in one dungeon you have been in all of them. I also was expecting the dungeons to have a more creepier look and really did not care for the U.S. Steel look.
Oh and the missions, well they were really fun at first, but after a while you relize they are the same fed-ex type missions. Go kill so and so and report back to me, go steal/buy something and report back to me, please escort John Doe somewhere and report back to me. I was expecting a more origional quest system implemented than simply the Everquest Fed-Ex system. After a while all this runing back and forth gets very annoying, tiring, and old. | video-games_xbox |
Still Hitting Hard. The original Ninja Gaiden was an incredible feat of gaming. It alone brought the franchise back in full force into the 20th century. Assuming you don't require Ninja Gaiden II to do the same thing, it will be the best action platformer of the year if not longer. This game doesn't do anything new, which in many ways isn't a bad thing at all! It takes exactly what was great about Ninja Gaiden and made it faster, stronger, bloodier, harder and more beautiful than ever before. I have to admit, I believe they did have to tone down the visuals on the environments a bit to maintain a steady 60fps (frames per second - 60 fps is what game developers strive for to provide fluid gaming experience), but this doesn't degrade the gameplay a single bit. In fact, if you would just stand there to look at the environment there is a good chance you would become headless very shortly.
"Why should I buy this game?" Instead of going into all the details regarding what rank the graphics, gameplay, sound, etc are 1-10 i'll just say why this game might be worth purchasing or not.
WHY I SHOULD BUY: The game has solid and fluid gameplay complete with amazing visuals are great mechanics. The game is a great challenge complete with a nice variety of weapons, all providing you different fighting styles and advantages, as well as making the game extremely hard to put down.
WHY I SHOULDN'T BUY: The game is a great challenge, but it's also so hard that sometimes it might make you put your controller through your TV. To some that is nice but to casual gamers that can be a turn off. The Story, though many will argue isn't important for a game like this, is almost non-existent. The Camera can be very annoying as well. Often you are attacked by people you do not even see. This can be avoided by using the left shoulder button and the right trigger button at the correct times to keep the camera behind you or looking the way you want. Eventually if you get into the game enough, hitting these buttons becomes part of your fighting style but a lot of casual gamers do not want to invest that much effort into something many other games make automatic.
_____________________________________________________
I would greatly recommend this game to hardcore gamers and casual alike. They have an easier mode this time around for someone just getting into the world of Ryu (main character). There isn't much that goes wrong in this game but it's not for kids or those who hate gore.
Go get it! | video-games_xbox |
RAW IS RAW, BUT NOT QUITE A WAR. Drooling over the THQ website at the WWF RAW trailers, seeing big, bold graphics and as close to real as real can be likenesses of top WWF superstars, I thought for sure that WWF RAW for XBOX would absolutely blow away every single other wrestling game out there. Well, as Diamond Dallas Page would say in this case, "There's some bad things and some good things."
The Good: As to date, WWF RAW for XBOX presents the big, brightest, and most in depth detail of the sports entertainment saga known as the WWF. Never before have the wrestlers been so big, bold, and animated...from mannerisms to tattoos. The actual RAW opening from the television show sends electricity through your veins and the superstar entrances are the best ever in the video game realm. Undertaker comes out on his motorcycle (and yes, the tires do actual spin. Unlike Smackdown, where the bike basically just slides.), Kane comes out to an amazing fire display and to my liking...Billy Gunn comes out as "The One"... On a graphics scale, WWF RAW does deliver, but like most wrestling games, it does not take full advantage of the XBOX's graphic capability. Theme music is perfect. Blood and sweat are present with plenty of items to use against your opponent. Best yet, you can ruin your opponent's flashy entrance by interfering.
The Bad: Picky, picky, picky...actually WWF RAW is not all that bad, but if you're coming from the perspective of WWF Smackdown...you're bound to notice the differences. Biggest differences of all is the lack of match options. WWF Smackdown is loaded with different match types (exception: there is no casket match). WWF RAW delivers one on one encounters and variations of that (tag team, three way, four way) and the battle royal. The lack of steel cage, hell in the cell, ladder matches definetly will disappointment most wrestling fans, especially if fans want to recreate ladder matches with Hardy Boyz and The Dudleys. Other minuses include the new interference option. When your opponent is introduced you can push the Y button and run out and attack your opponent. The computer takes control of your grappler, runs out of the ring and attacks...after that you're in control. Also, there is a four hour learning curve to this game. Plug it in and you'll be bashing in your controller over frustration. You'll be limited to kicks and punches for a while until you start to experiment with button combinations. Note: This game contradicts itself greatly. Kicks and punches are used more than anything else in this game, yet if you punch and kick too much you bore the audience and they start rooting for your opponent. There really is no health meter, there's an advantage meter at the bottom of the screen which fluxuates during the match accordingly. Finishing moves work when the meter flashes in your favor. Once it does so, grapple with your opponent and push A & B together.
The Ugly: The game contradicts itself a lot. As stated before, the game is practically a brawler, but yet when you brawl too much you lose your advantage. Punch and kick to make your opponent groggy and distance yourself. Then try a move or so.
Also, there are no season or story modes. You basically choose a title to fight for and go for it. Secret characters are unveiled after acquiring titles. Unfortunately, the secret characters don't differ from Smackdown. Ugly for Smackdown gamers, Shane's theme music in RAW is his WCW's "Money" and not "No Chance" like in Smackdown.
Once you learn the game, things will become funner. It's easy to become frustrated, but at least it brings more to the table than WCW Nitro or Thunder. In that case, I would go to THQ headquarters, find room 3:16 and burn it to the room.
WWF RAW: A good start, but a ways to go. Things are only bound to get better. Definetly rent before you buy. Unless you're a hardcore fan...then it'll be worth your time, but not neccessarily the money. | video-games_xbox |
AWESOME. Found this jewel for less than $100 in like-new condition, yet some merchants were charging $500+ for it, yes over $500! Shame on them. /:o
This groundbreaking and phenomenal game was released before Bioware was forced into the choke-hold by EA to change their engine into what ME2 became, so sad... Not to say ME2 was a bad game, it's just that I think it was a crime to lose what Bioware, ScaleForm and Unreal Technology did for this game...
Everything a masterpiece;
Game physics, motion capture character/player control, movement, and most importantly the semi-open world freedom of being in the Mako vehicle for missions, and being able to exit the vehicle half a mile away from the objective, pull out the sniper rifle and stir up a nest of mercs and have them shoot back at me was priceless! And u could send ur squad .5 to 3 miles away to deal with enemies was great too! With ME2 or 3 the squad can only be a max of 75 meters or something before they come running back to u is soo annoying, and i don't get any sense of freedom with ME2/3... Plus vehicle missions in ME2 SUCK! ME3 doesn't even have a vehicle mission! What the hell is that??? Bioware could have begged EA to allow the player an option of flying the Kodiac transport vehicle down to the planet and using it's (very powerful) weapons to clear the area before set down, or for planetary exploration of at least 20 miles!
So for this collector's edition I was impressed with a cool galactic codex book, beautiful concept/production art, and making of ME1 DVD. Yet i do wish the package contained all downloadable content PLUS 1 rare armor for all squad characters and an exclusive squad mate addition! But most importantly, this special edition should have included the PC version, as this is the way ME1 should be enjoyed, on the PC, with Xpadder mapped PC controls on a white Windows Xbox 360 controller. I have both Xbox and PC versions of this game and i must say that playing the PC version with: Texture mods, all settings on max, running on a super premium gaming PC in full 1920 x 1080p active 3D on a 40" 3DTV is coolness beyond words! Especially using console commands, u know what i mean. I actually put the PC version into this collector's box along with the other goodies...
If anyone needs Xpadder mapping hints for the PC version let me know. :)
-ENJOY!
PS: Do not pay more than $100 for this, make sure if it is used, that it is NOT RUSTY or DENTED in any way... | video-games_xbox |
For what follows War, but Ruin. Darksiders - Circa 2010
GOOD:
- Tight controls and easy to use moves make doing combos as well as overall combat fun and furious.
- Fun environmental puzzles that test your ability to recognize ways to solve them and progress. This really harkens back to a time when many games had environmental puzzles like Soul Reaver and other great of yore, most games today are only about the action and forget the exploration and "good" puzzle solving.
- Great comic book inspired art style nothing in this game looks bland and all the enemies look/move great. Also the game has a great uses of color and gets away from using the many grays, browns, and blacks found in many other action games found today.
BAD:
- The story here is pretty by the numbers and forgettable but is sort of connected to the end of the world concerning four horsemen from the Book of Revelations in the Bible.
IF IT FITS YOUR TASTE:
- A 3D action beat-em-up type of game similar to that of Devil May Cry, where your beat up enemies using swords ands such with "flashy combos" just that this title can be over the top with violence it uses in its finisher moves like that found in God of War.
- The game also has many environmental puzzles like that found in the famed Legend of Zelda series where you use items like boomerangs, gliding, and grappling hooks to find your way through the world and to your goals.
- You play as mostly a silent protagonist named War (supposedly as one of the four horsemen from the Book of Revelations in the Bible) who is big as a tank (he would fit in with the crew from Gears of War bulk wise) but strikingly nimble and fights with a large sword.
- Much like Zelda as well as Devil May Cry you can backtrack to any area and get items you missed and at certain points in the game you have to go back and backtrack to complete objectives. There is also a warp system to make travel easier.
- At one point in the game you ride a griffon to get to a far location, this plays as an on-rails shooter and is very similar to gameplay found in Panzer Dragoon (Sega Saturn) or REZ (PS2).
- Killing enemies grants you souls of different colors, green for health, yellow for your abilities meter, and blue for currency.
- Almost all your upgrades, weapons, and items you have to buy from an in game store using collected souls of enemies that you slain (blue souls). There is a demon that runs this store and is a bit funny.
- You also at different times in the game get a scythe as well as gauntlets for hand to hand combat, and even a gun.
- Towards the end of the game you get an ability to make portals to a limited degree, this works much like the popular Valve game Portals, even to the point of having blue and orange colored portal openings.
- About halfway into the game you get a Horse name Ruin, this horse can only be ridden in certain areas in the game (namely the desert area). While riding Ruin you can still hit enemies with your sword as well as shoot at them with your gun.
- Pretty early in the game you will get a yellow meter under your life bar that fills when you get yellow souls, you can use the energy in this meter for a few different abilities like making spikes shoot from the ground to harm enemies, stone skin for extra defense as well as a poison mist that will harm enemies.
- Later in the game you will get a type of rage meter that fills when you kill enemies, when this meter fills you can turn into (for a short time) a huge red and black looking demon that does massive damage and is invincible.
GAME ITS MOST ASSOCATED TOO:
- Dante's Inferno (360, PS3)
- God of War 3 (PS3)
- The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii)
- Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver (PS1, Dreamcast)
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- All the art for the game was done by Joe Madureira AKA Joe Mad of 90's Marvel comic fame, Joe Mad also had a popular but short lived comic series called Battle Chasers.
- Those that pre-ordered this game or got it very early enough got a slip of paper with code to be entered at the THQ website for a free copy of Red Faction: Guerrilla, As well as a mixed media DVD with Darksiders videos as well as art. | video-games_xbox |
EA sports is a video game developing company that makes this game and they also make very well known games like: Madden. NHL 2017 is the new hockey game that EA sports released for the year of 2016. If you are any young adult, or beyond that, boy or girl, and have a passion for hockey, then this game is meant for you. The game is rated E for everyone, which means that it is suitable for all ages. Parents have nothing to worry about when allowing their children t play the game. The game is a fast pace, adrenaline inducing style of game, which is sure to get you in the zone to play some video games. EA sports is a video game developing company that makes this game and they also make very well known games like: Madden, NBALive, and Professional Wrestling. One thing that EA Sports is well known for is the consistency in every game they make. They never have a down year, producing games every year, for almost every sport.
One thing that puts the game over the top is the gameplay and fast pace that it is. When you play baseball games they can sometimes be laid back and relaxing. NHL 2017 is a very fast paced game, with a great gameplay. The features that it comes with are major upgrades from what they were last year. Now you can play multiplayer mode online through Xbox Live, and can play against your friends on just one console. The graphics on this game are out of this world. Every year the advancements in technology keep improving and amaze me. This game when played on a high definition television makes it seem as if you are at the game, or watching a live game on the TV. With all these features that the game developers have added over the year I was certain that the price would increase. That is not the case; the price is still $69.99, a very affordable price compared to other games.
I am a proud owner of this game and would recommend the game to anyone that ask. If you are a fan of hockey and want a game that will make you feel like you are in the skates of the players or in the front row banging on the ice at a professional game. you should really consider NHL 2017. Even if you are not a huge fan of hockey, much like myself, and just want to get the game to give it a try, you definitely should consider NHL 2017. | video-games_xbox |
Awesome game, but still some issues. Pretty much, I'm not going to beat a dead horse here. The game is EPIC. Check 2K did an awesome job in actually giving the stadiums actual feeling. It is way better that the past Top Spin titles, as you couldn't tell you were in a frenzied environment. Most of the time, it felt like you were on a golf course with no one around. In this game, you actually FEEL like you are in the heat of battle, and as long rallies commence and continue, you feel great anticipation, and actually feel like you're fighting for every single point. That's a huge feat, and a great job.
The controls are more fluid, not like last year's jumbled, and somewhat cheap, mess. Now, everything is streamlined, and definitely for the better as you don't have play ridiculous split-second mini-games of chance. It's now all about timing, and that's where it should be. Because players in real life do not have a meter that they need to get correct to hit the ball right, the have to time their shots to get the better power and technique to nail cross-court, ripping, shots, and this game does an excellent job at doing this.
The atmosphere and the controls are huge pluses on the scale, and make this game really fun, and really challenging, to play.
But, don't be fooled, there are still a couple of short-comings that needs to be addressed. Firstly, the controls are not very intuitive, and sometimes unresponsive. This make the game a little more trying on the nerves. I know a couple of times that after hitting a shot, I try to either; go to the center, or try to go back for a ball shot behind me, and the player seems "stuck". Other times, I have also noticed that I am jamming on a shot button, and the player just stands there, like I haven't pressed a thing. And still, running shots become even more difficult, as you might have a combination of the two, or both at the same time, and that can drive up the aggravation level.
Another issue is that this game is carrying over the momentum system from last year's game, with some irritating results.
If you don't know, the momentum system is a system in which once someone gaines an advantage, they seem to be a super-human form of themselves, that they can't miss shots, and that they can make impossible shots easier. If you've read about what I've just put down, you would see what could be the result, a friend and I have been the victim of such a thing in multiplayer, once someone gets a full-blown momentum shift, he is almost always unbeatable while you will be missing shots you had no problem hitting a couple of seconds ago.
It's actually a major issue, as it could create a very unfair advantage (including in the harder stages) as you might end up dealing with a player, in the finals, with a huge surge of momentum, that'll only end if he makes a mistake, not you making him make one. This can be a very serious problem with the game, and something that needs to be evened out so that the person without full momentum can still stand a fighting chance (you know, like in real life).
This should be that even though he has full momentum, he can still mishit and scratch his momentum back down to normal. Because, I don't know how many times in real life, even in the elite level, I have seen a player get full momentum on his side, then misses a shot, and all the sudden the other player starts gaining an advantage. As in other words, a real life game ebbs-and-flows, in this game the game ebbs one way and ends up staying that way (which is the wrong thing to do), this and the sometimes unintuitive controls hurts this game to me.
Other small gripes:
- No Wimbledon? Come on?! If you make a tennis game, could we PLEASE get Wimbledon, and all it's bleachy-white goodness?
- No challenges. Again, the game changed considerably from the past, and now point challenges are now commonplace. It should've been inputted into the last game, and to not have point challenges is inexcusable and needs to be in any modern tennis game.
- More hot female tennis players! (Come on, like I wouldn't want more hotties on my T.V. screen)
So, in closing, although I seem to be focusing a little too much on some of the negatives, don't be misled, this game is AMAZING. It just needs little tweaks (and hopefully will be updated and fixed in upcoming patches), and this game will be one of the best games ever!
I am a proud owner of this game, and if the fixes occur, this game will be a classic! | video-games_xbox |
Good Stealth Action Sandbox Game. I was really on the fence about this game because it was reported to be very short yet as I played through I found myself taking much longer than the reported game length. First, this is a beautiful game and the controls and gameplay are excellent. The new engine for this game is really well crafted providing an amazing next gen experience. Another complaint was about the price, this is a game that has a huge team and is obviously AAA material so the price is basically right where it needs to be. If just completing a game is the goal of the player perhaps they will not be happy but for the player that takes the time to explore the world that is provided there is quite a bit of content. The game is littered with items that range from weapons and collectibles to additional story information and side missions. After the main mission is completed side missions unlock giving the game more gameplay than I expected. The missions vary from guns blazing extractions to stealth executions and the freedom to do them how you like. Considering that it is only one large base that serves as the stage for this new Metal Gear experience there really is quite a bit of content, I've been messing around with it for about eight hours now and still only have a 13% completion rate so far. Ground Zeroes is just a big sandbox for the player to explore and it really showcases what to expect from The Phantom Pain. I love sandbox games and this really appeals to those that enjoy sandbox gameplay and a stealth game that should appeal to any player that is fond of the genre providing many different approaches to the missions. Also there is a companion app available on both Android and IPad that functions much like the AC4 companion app providing map and intel on a second screen which can be quite convenient. Overall I would say this is one of the better buys of the available games regardless of platform but as far as the new consoles are concerned I would consider this a game I wouldn't want to miss. I will put it this way, if you play games as merely a mechanical objective based system without regard to the actual gameplay mechanics or interest in the story I will recommend not buying this. If you play games as the character and really embrace the systems and role play through the game I will recommend buying this. | video-games_xbox |
Campy Fun in a Starter RPG. Baldur's Gate is a hugely popular RPG series for the PC. With Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, console gamers get a taste for what makes this game so much fun.
First, remember that this is a console port of a very rich PC game. That means that instead of having lots of choices of male/female or human/elf/dwarf or fighter/thief/mage/cleric, you have three. You can be a male archer, a dwarf fighter, or a female sorceress.
The graphics are really quite good. There are numerous pools of water for you to run around in, to watch the ripples and wakes shimmer and merge. The lighting is lovely, the detail in the buildings and towns and dungeons look great on even large TVs. The sound is good too, and sitting in your living room with friends while the stereo sound surrounds you is tons of fun.
You can play single player or two-person cooperative, which makes couch-play even more fun. With a large bowl of popcorn and your favorite drinks, you can hack and slash your way through numerous hours or a weekend of play.
Now, the down side. Again, console port. Really, you're playing Gauntlet. You run around hacking up barrels and crates in your friend's cellar. Is this exactly the nicest thing to do? You hack at rats and enemies, look for things in barrels. Yes, you get into lever-pulling and puzzles. But in the end the game is pretty linear and the monsters don't regenerate. So whatever level you're at when you get to a certain point, you can't build yourself up more strongly.
This can get to be a real pain when you hit a strong boss. You can't go buy more gear, because there's no way to make more money. You can't get stronger or more skillful, because there's nobody else to kill "behind you" and you can't go "ahead" until you kill the boss. So you're doomed to keep trying to hack at him until you get past him ... somehow.
Another big complaint I have is that the gamemakers seem obsessed with the female form. The guys in the game are all pudgy and uninteresting. But the girls! The first woman you meet, the bartender, has jiggly, wiggly breasts and she shakes them around non-stop during her long, long discussions with you. Everyone I showed the game to was mesmerized by them.
And playing the female sorceress character, I found that no matter how hard I tried, I could NOT get her clothed well. Every outfit involved a cut-off top, skimpy leather boots and not much else. Ahem, she's going into a deep, dark dungeon to face dire enemies? And she's doing this in beach-wear??
Still, the game was campy fun, and definitely draws you in. A fun weekend-play game for real RPGers, and an easy way for those new to the genre to learn what it's about and to get a taste for the fun. | video-games_xbox |
BLAZINGLY BAD. What a colossal waste of time! Blazing Angels is to video games what the WNBA is to spectator sports - second-rate and totally unnecessary.
Ubisoft completely and utterly missed the mark with this aerial abomination. Unlike Ubi's Crimson Skies, this game is an unmitigated disaster - the Hindenburg of X-Box flight sims.
Angels is nowhere near the same calibre as flight action games such as Heroes of the Pacific and Crimson or even Secret Weapons over Normandy.
The game play is beyond tedious. After just a few minutes of play time, I not only wanted to shoot down every enemy plane, I wanted to flame every one of my annoying wingmen. The endless and sophomoric radio chatter was enough to make me go kamikaze several times out of sheer frustration. Sure, you can mute the dialogue with the controller, but you shouldn't have to resort to that.
The visuals are not even close to the jaw-dropping eye candy of Heroes. You can't even tell you're shooting at aircraft until you are right up on them. They appear as small red markers. There is no radar, no compass, no altimeter, no speed indicator, no ordinance indicator - Basically, you have no information except that all bandits are red and all allies are green. Yippie. Thanks Ubi.
Unlike Heroes, you have only two options when it comes to the player's aircraft viewpoint - third person shooter behind the aircraft view and target lock view. There is no cockpit view option.
Worst of all, there are absolutely ZERO options when it comes to your choice of aircraft or your aircraft's armament. That decision is predetermined by the game for each mission. That is extremely annoying.
The control layout is confusing and after several hours of game play, I found myself wanted to launch the handset through my television. I can fix my plane while it's flying if I hit the correct combination of buttons!? You have got to be freakin' kidding me.
Thank GOD this was only a rental. Now, if I could only get those three hours of my life back. | video-games_xbox |
Defective Headset - Awful Support. So, this review may be a little rushed, but at the same time there is no excuse for this defective product. I received the headset and noticed that the sound was really good in game and had very good lows, mids and highs. It sounded very good and the awesome EQ options really allowed a lot of freedom in choosing either bass-heavy or treble-heavy sound.
The problem, though, was with the XBox 360 chat... it did not work. The microphone did not function and I also could not hear any chat through the headset. After looking at various forums, I tried changing my console settings as well as holding down the "mode" button on the headset for about three seconds to change the chat volume (two beeps for chat audio, one beep for mic). This did not work and I ended up needing to call Razer support.
So... I call Razer support and spoke to Walter (if Razer reads this, I called at 8:08 p.m. EST on Wednesday, November 9). Walter was very nice on the phone, but he had no clue about how to assist me with this product. After I explained to him that it was the chat feature that wasn't working, he still had me go through and check the inputs on the dock (which I explained were connected properly and that the optical audio input would not affect chat on this headset because of the 2.5mm connection to the XBox 360 controller). Walter put me on hold for nearly eight minutes and then returned on the line to clarify what was actually occurring. I had to repeat myself multiple times, and he still didn't get this. I also explained to him that I had tried two different 2.5mm cables (I had a cable from a pair of Turtle Beach X41s). He mentioned that he would escalate the request right then... so I asked if they would call or would I be transferred. He said they would email me.
When I buy a product for $150+, I would expect a support line to at least pay attention to me and seem interested. Instead, I received dead-air when talking to Razer support. I have had nothing but good luck with all of the Razer products I have bought in the past (Onza, Naga, Anansi, Death Adder), but Razer really did let me down with this headset being defective and not seeming to care about it.
I'm not going to give this product one star because the audio did sound great. I will give it two stars, mainly because a product should be rated on functionality and these did partially function.
Razer - If you read this, train your support staff better, especially regarding customer care and how to speak to customers properly on the phone. | video-games_xbox |
excellent graphics/combat,but story was sacrificed for that(not a good trade. square should've listed in game that when leveling up choosing to booste com, rav, sen, etc it doesn't add unlockable abilities, it just makes that role stronger (even if when characters r maxed all abilities r available certain roles would b helpful early on for specialized char.[for example ravangers,or comandos],i've yet to meet the person to actually read the manual) btw random battles should only be for overworld maps,& ff 13 (still the best) style battles , should be used out of an overworld. finaly gil was rare in ff xiii(until the end, when farming turtles,or sacrifices) ,but it's extreamly plentifull in xiii 2(about 400-1000 gil every battle, more if u sell the spoils). i know lots of ideas are pitched,but these ideas seem simple for even the most mistaken person.
weak time travel explanations, angry white boy battle music, unupgradeable items(best thing about 13), no classic victory jingle,& cinematic battle actions where u need to repeatdly press buttons(i used to b equiled in that area only by 1 person, i could siezurlike vibrate my arm at will,but i can't now thanks to a vicious wreck 6 years ago,& doctors). i hate to say this,but square has really dropped the ball with the ff 13 trilogy,but i have an idea for 3, yoshi,& the power rangers gain the ability to time travel ,& set out to right the wrongs of sepheroth.
another review for my fellow south parkateers
i'm trying to finish ff xiii 2,but u have a 3rd character slot thats filled with a creature u capture,& train(i keep hearing
gotta catch em all
gotta catch em
catch em
catch em
chimpokemon
that might b a normal side effect though)
i finished ff xiii(should've been only 1, like highlander)to c if it was explained y lightning was a warrior priestess of valhala,&y caius is attempting to destroy everything,but unfortunately i was disapointed yet again(later in the game its explained,but i was confused when this game just started like that). i'm trying to finish this game to c if there's a reason its on so many top 10 list. i must agree many of the problems of ff xiii were corrected (the greatest was combat,& splicing creatures like a mad scientist for the 3rd character),but new problems arose in their place which mostly have to do with angry white boy battle/chocobo (chocobo=giant chicken/horse) music(chocob's seemed so calm,& peacefull before),& crappy storyline(excellent combat doesn't make up for bad story/music on an rpg, not even close)
the ff xiii trilogy needs to undergo a quick,& relatively painless abortion to save us consumers time/money that would be wasted on future abominations (hope, alyssa, sazh,& dajh[sazh's boy] all seem to b vampires[never age], it was much cooler when vincent from ff 7 was a vampire, now all the worst characters r in the elite vampire fraternity). i'm playing augusta tower 400 AF,& i just learned that the AI went rogue,& started killing all the humans(all i could think of was skynet had just come to power ,but where r the terminaters)
2 major ways it improve on 1: the collecters catalog is way better, the collecters, connesuers,& survivalists catalogs needed to b used separately before(they would detract from other each others spoils),& all items can be aquired at any time, all on 1 disc (but no treasure hunter achievement/trophy this time)
i like fang alot more than lightning, lightning,& snow(isn't he a self proclaimed hero?) should've created the pillar to hold cacoon aloft,& let fang "save the timeline"(the time properties make no scence, how does affecting the future affect the past?)also y did etro share her heart with caius? (a person destined to b killed by a successor eventually,but if etro's heart stops beating the chaos of valhala'll infect the world, it seems to me that armagedon was the goal sought after)
i just read my new game informer (magazine),& this game was on the top 50 games of 2012 list. they conceded that the time travel story makes no scence(i would have to agree, after 300 years hope still looks 21),but it doesn't matter because the combat is great(the action can b great,but without an equally good story i don't care) as a parting shot i didn't realize how much i would loath moogles(my moogle is an idiot who can't go 2 sentences w/o saying kupo, if we're expected to like all knowing sagelike metal detectors, don't make them repeatedly say stupid things) | video-games_xbox |
Extremely fun game! but lacking in other departments. PROS:
-Kinect based gestures that really makes you feel like a superhero!
-Good variety of suits with a few surprises from ubisoft!
-uplays support for this game adds great content for free!
-split screen multiplayer and xbox live support!
Cons
-Cant turn of music
-Game still seems to have glitches
-short campaign
PowerUP Heroes may seem like a childish game, but i have to say, it is one of THE BEST Kinect games out there! The feeling of being a superhero and acting out your superhero moves is.....just....plain.....AWESOME! Not only that, but kids love it too! And you can easily become the big brother/fun uncle while fulfilling your secret childhood fantasies at the same time! What can beat that!?!?!
Jokes aside, Powerup Heroes really is a fun game for all ages and the Kinect controls are GREAT! You may need to fine tune and calibrate your kinect to your play area, but once you do, you can execute moves pretty well and the kinect sensor will capture them and execute them on screen at what seems to be 90% accuracy, allowing you to really get into the action. As for the gameplay, its your standard fighter, with the storyline being as generic as possible. You are basically fighting this unknown yet dark evil villian, malignance, from another galaxy who sends out emitters around the world with corrupt people and turn them into villians. You obtain your emitter from Volta, a hero who dies after trying to "buy earth some time" against the villian and he gives you his emitter which then makes you into a superhero. And from then on, you continue to fight villians with these emitters in them. everytime you defeat one, you gain their power suit with new abilities and powers. After the first fight, you're allowed to choose two suits, which you can change during battle, effectively giving you two sets of super powers each round. You can also level up in the game and each level up gives you a powerup ability that supplements your powers (i.e. punches cause more damage) As you progress through the game, you learn that beating your opponents effectively requires that you "chain" your attacks to deal out huge amounts of damage. You can even chain attacks by switching to different suits. That being said, the single player campaign is very short, though for you couch potatoes out there, this game will give you a nice workout. Also, the last boss is unforgivably hard, which is surprising since every single opponent you deal with is more or less on the same difficulty level. So I'm sure most people who go through the game will be frustrated at the last fight, as I am, and will be scouring the internets for guides and walkthroughs. Also, by the last boss fight, you only get to level 3 and have only access to 2 powerup abilities. It would be nice if the game let you choose more abilities by the end of the game.
This game also includes split screen multiplayer, which is great when you and a friend/family member duke it out in an epic superhero battle. You can also battle it over Xbox LIVE and see if your skills are good enough against real human players. You also get access to ubisoft's new Uplay portal, which is a nice add on. You can earn points for in game achievements then redeem them for specific add on content for your game. Its nice because it doesnt cost any money but its a HUGE incentive to get those game achievements since the add on content they offer is definitely worth it! I was able to get the thief suit thanks to my uplay points!
However, no Kinect game is perfect, and this one has its share of quirks. For one, you cant turn off the music, I'm not sure if this is ubisofts way of saving money but it really gives the consumer less choice, especially since this is an option thats been in every game since sega genesis and other developers continue to give consumers this sought after option. Also, this game is glitchy. There have been two instances where I switched suits only to see the gestures not match up with the correct suits powers. Its almost like the hand gestures (shown at the bottom right of the screen to remind the player which gestures invoke which super power) belonged to the current super suit you were playing but the pictures next to the gestures were icons from the super suit you previously had on. Maybe ubisoft can send us an update to fix this glitch, as it catches the player off guard and can cause them to lose the fight very easily. I've only seen this glitch happen on campaign but thats because I haven't tried xbox live at all, but I won't be surprised if a glitch like this happens on online fights, too.
All in all, this is one of the best kinect games out there with a huge fun factor. It is marred by lack of options and glitches, which normally would cause me to give 1-2 stars, but the fun factor really tips the balance. | video-games_xbox |
Worth Checking Out for RPG Fans. Fantastic. I pre-ordered this game solely based on the hype it was received during the original PC release. In preparation for the game, I even bought Witcher 1 off Steam and forced myself to play it on the mediocre capacity of my Mac. Truth be told, I wasn't completely sold after playing the first game. The voice acting was subpar and I had some difficulty getting attached to the characters and the world -- however, the experience was still enjoyable.
I went into the Witcher 2 with high expectations from the reviews, combined with doubts after Witcher 1. I personally found the game a bit difficult to get into in the first 2-3 hours (namely getting used to combat and figuring out story progression).. but that is usually the case for me when I start a new game. By the middle to end of the first chapter, the game truly began to grow on me. The voice acting, graphics, and combat are considerably better than the first game without question! I found a lot of joy in reading the journal entries and seeing how the entries changed depending on how far I was on the story and what decisions I made.
There is a lot of versatility in the way you can approach combats.. although, as you increase the difficulty level, you really do have to get used to mixing up bombs, traps, signs, maneuvering (parry, riposte, dodge, etc.), potions, and oils. Combat is really a treat! Particularly in Dark Mode, when you can't just rely on hack and slash.. and a mistake could mean starting over again. I felt that the damage dealt by enemies and Geralt felt balanced.
In regards to the story, I felt that it was compelling and immersive experience! I did feel a bit confused as to what was going on with Geralt's flashbacks. I got a decent sense of his background, however, references to Yennefer, The Wild Hunt, Ciri, etc. were a bit over my head as (I believe) you need to have read the novels to fully understand what's going on. BUT.. that's not to say that you won't understand what's going on in the PRESENT during Witcher 2. In that aspect, you know what's going and what your goal is. At the end of Chapter 1, you are given the choice to side between Ioverth or Roche -- this decision impacts how the rest of your game plays out. Chapter 2 entirely changes based on this, and two playthroughs allows you to fully appreciate how much attention to detail was paid to how characters fate's are changed based on where you go -- i.e. one path allows you to decide the fate of a prince, whereas another leads to an inevitable demise. The dialogue was great, and I actually felt myself getting angry or laughing at loud during certain parts of the story. It's without a doubt a game that rewards the choices that you have made.
The characters are top notch and are presented realistically, in that every person has a flaw. They are not perfect and there is no clear good vs. bad. The characters stay true to who they are presented as. CD Projekt's ability to create believable characters was solidified for me when I found myself appreciating characters that I truly hated. Despite not agreeing with certain character's viewpoints, motivations, or actions (really HATING them).. I would be absolutely against writing them off from the story. One sorceress that plays an important role in Ioverth's path, in particular, was a complete b**** (pardon!) in every sense of the word, but, WOW! What a character!
I could go on and on about this game and how much fun I had with it, but it all boils down to one thing: PLAY THIS GAME. Especially if you are big on story and decision making. | video-games_xbox |
a great game, but very frustrating at times. prince of persia is one great game to add to any xbox collection. it has some some really fantastic graphics, some of the best ive ever seen for a console game. the gameplay is great but also at times very frustrating, let me explain this all.
the graphics, like i said, are outstanding. not only is this game gorgeous to look at, but the graphics really expand on the overall atmosphere and mood of the game. the sound is superb, but sometimes its kind of misleading, for example, a huge bridge could collapse from right under your feet, but it sounds like your dropping a pebble on concrete.
the gameplay itself is pretty intense, the puzzles can be really mindboggling, you spend a lot of time figuring some out. the traps can also cause confusion, as you have to stop and plan how you're going to get around them. the worst, and i don't put this lightly, WORST part of this game is the horrendous fighting. sure, the acrobatics are amazing, and you can pull of some really awesome moves against enemies, but most of the time your spent running around frantically trying to stay away from enemies, who most of the time are surrrounding you. you won't get any breathers, so if you're low on health and go for a drink of water, too bad, ALL the enemies can transport and smack you into next week while you're taking a drink. to add on to that frustration, the ONLY way you can kill them is if you stab them with a dagger while they're on the ground or slice em up while they're frozen in midair. thankfully, this terrible fighting system was dramatically changed in warrior within.
another thing i noticed is that the game isn't very long, i beat it in about 6 hours. however, the replay value is incredible because you can unlock the very first prince of persia games, which is very cool.
overall, sands of time is a fantastic, and while i may not consider it to be one of my favorites or a game of the year, it certainly stands out from many xbox titles, get sands of time and warrior within, i promise you will not be disappointed. | video-games_xbox |
Great, comfortable, headphones for gaming, everyday use, movies, and music. My experience with headphones is somewhat limited - I've only just started using them for gaming and movies - as I've moved into an apartment and I try not to disturb my neighbors at 2am. Before that I would use built in speakers, or occasionally earphones.
After using those I may never go back to speakers again.
The surround sound quality on these is amazing. I've only really tested one of the gaming and one of the movie settings so far, but there are multiple settings to play around with and test. And it's easy to switch from one setting to the other right on the back of the ear pieces - though it takes a little practice to toggle through all the options.
I'm not usually one for reading directions - preferring a plug and play approach to most things - but this is one item I defiantly recommend sitting down and reading through the included instructions before experimenting. Getting a handle on the options, the best way to break these in and how to care for them properly, will help when you put them on your head.
I synced these to my laptop via bluetooth for movies and music, and found no issues with connection. Everything was seamless. The sounds clear and bright. The bass incredibly deep. The mics are also fantastic. I had these on and connected to my phone for music when a call came through. I answered on the phone - not sure if there's a button on the headphones that would connect the call yet - and the person I was talking too said they had no issues with background noise or clarity.
I haven't tested them to the stated limit of the their 10 hour battery limit yet, but will update when I do.
In terms of comfort - I was worried by their size that they would be too heavy. I switched to earphones long ago as I was getting headaches from the way that headphones sat on my head. But I wore these for 3 hours straight with no discomfort. They're light, the headband adjusts easily and precisely to find the right fit, and the ear cushions are soft - providing superior noise cancelation without being too tight. | video-games_xbox |
although story is good, and combat can be very fun. What a game. I'll make sure NOT to put any spoilers in this review. You do NOT have to have ANY knowledge of the xbox 360 game with the title Prey. This game is more of a spiritual successor than a sequel, thus the title PREY, instead of PREY 2. This one is not about story or combat, although story is good, and combat can be very fun. This is about exploration of an unbelievable space station. It's a marvel of video games, and Arkane studios has delivered a modern masterpiece. If you like the 2 dishonored games, and your are a fan of their, you should definitely be at home on the Talos 1 space station. The alien enemy designs can be a little underwhelming, and the human graphics are amazing, very reminiscent of the art style of dishonored. I just wish you spent more time fighting humans. The way you explore the space station is very free flowing. There is a place you start, and there is a end game area, but there are definitely different ways to get there. I spent around 75 hours exploring Talos 1, and I beat the game only once. I was very thorough in doing the things I wanted to do. I did not play this game as a completionist, and did not get all the achievements. I did go for the achievements that I felt inspired to get, and had a great time playing. I could have easily beaten the game in half the time, or maybe even less. I could also go back and put in twice the time, trying to get all of the achievements. This is part of the games charm, as many of the tasks are your choice, and not required. I feel that this is a game that ALL gamers should play, and much like "the last of us', "dishonored", the "UNCHARTED" series, and the "bioshock" series, to name a few, this game shows us what a game can be, what games are capable of. It's a strong representation of games as a form of entertainment. If you put the games I mentioned in a time capsule, you would be sending our best games in. Anyways, I hope I'm not overselling it, and it's definitely for a more mature gamer. I'm sure teenagers can handle the content, but this one is NOT for small children. Also, the difficulty is not over the top, but there are some definite challenges in the game, although a lot of them can be skipped, which again, is part of the charm. If "Gamer" is a title you would give yourself, then this game is for you. Don't hesitate, just get this one. It's a modern masterpiece | video-games_xbox |
dead mallrats. Ok I am a big fan of zombie movies. And this game reminds me alot of Dawn of the Dead. I liked that movie with the whole concept of being locked in a mall with hordes of zombies everywhere. This game exceeded my expectations. You play as Frank, a photojournalist that is dropped off at the mall cause he hears that something big is happening. Something big is definately happening. Stranded at the mall for 72 hours, he must fight to survive if he wants to make it out of the mall alive. Frank can use almost anything in the game as a weapon or sheild from the zombies. He also is equipped with a camera and you have to take pictures of the events to earn points so that he can level up. There are missions you can accomplish or choose to ignore. People you can save. Food you can eat. Vehicles you can drive. etc.... But the zombies aren't the only thing to worry about. You have some very bad people that you may have to fight in order to survive. And eventually the special forces who will stop at nothing to try and cover up the zombie outbreak. The graphics are amazing. The only complaint I have is that the text it sometimes too small and when you get the missions via cell phone, you are forced to read the small text and it is sometimes hard to find out what exactly to do especially since I don't have an HD tv. I don't understand why you cant actually listen to the conversations. This is 2006 and we have had audio in videogames for about 10 years now... Oh well I guess that was just a bad design problem. But overall I would give this game 5 stars as far as fun is concerned and 4 stars for the overall since that small text problem really does bother me alot. (I even have played it on an hd tv and it is still small, I just don't understand it.) Normally I would just look past it, but it does effect the overall enjoyment of the game slightly. But design issues aside this is an extremely fun game. Its got everything, playability, action, gore, freedom, likable characters and more. I love this game and it is the best game I own so far for the xbox 360. | video-games_xbox |
The Turtle Beach Stealth 420X are hands down the worst headphones I've ever used. The Turtle Beach Stealth 420X are hands down the worst headphones I've ever used. They tend to garner positive reviews because out of the box, they're great! Decent sound coupled with true wireless freedom makes for a comfortable, convenient gaming headset. The headaches start a couple of months after you purchase them. First, the power jack goes. It will only allow you to charge the headset if you hold it at a 45 degree angle while putting gentle pressure on the charging cord while standing on your head on alternate Sundays. Only a slight exaggeration. This makes a significant problem for a headset that relies on an internal battery with no other charging problems. Want to charge it overnight? Better hope it doesn't shift a few millimeters during the night or it'll be dead in the morning.
Ok, you think, the charging thing is annoying, but I'm ingenuous. A few books to prob it up, a little duct tape, and some 550 cord and I'll have it propped at the precise angle for charging in no time. Then the sound goes out. Judging by the lights on the headset it's still receiving a signal, it's just not turning it in to sound. Just to make sure you've got a $150 paperweight on your hands, the mic won't work either. After playing around with it for a couple of hours, you discover that the headset will work as long as you maintain a steady pressure on the upper quadrant of the right earpiece. Queue the jokes about playing one handed...
Fed up, you discard the Edsel of headphones and plug in your old headset. The sound sucks and it's wired, but at least it works right? Wrong! Not content with crapping out on you, the Stealth 420X has overridden your XBox's ability to detect other microphones! You can hear just fine, but you might as well be in space since nobody can hear you scream. Still working on a fix for mic issue. If only the XBox allowed you access to the drivers...
At any rate, avoid this product at all costs unless you enjoy playing with your right hand permanently pressing on your right ear piece, your left hand holding a charging cable just so, and the controller presumably at your feet. The good news is, since the headset is wireless you can comfortably place the controller on the ground and play with your toes. | video-games_xbox |
Cool. I guess I missed the big sale I read in some of the reviews - I paid 49.99 but that's cool. It was indeed kind of scary when I saw the thing spinning making me wait for the code but it only took about 2 minutes & I was on a wifi connection that acts kind of shady at times. I didn't want to switch to the hardline connection during the processing because I didn't want to mess it up and not get the code. The code popped up, we entered it via the xbox and it was quick and easy. I still have about 2 weeks left on the current monthly and it added the 12+1 to begin after my current subscription ends in 2 weeks. I thought I was going to lose the 2 weeks I had left which would have been fine because I was really only trying to take my CC off the MS Live account. It would not let me remove the card due to current subscripton still active. I basically had to enter a code to put the active subscription on something other than my CC. Unfortunately I still have to wait the 2 weeks to remove the card. Good news is that the card no longer says auto renew so I'm glad it's not going to charge it again. I had it set to monthly because my son is only 10 and I wanted to try it out first before going 12 months. I did the monthly for 2 months and I wanted to remove the card because I hate auto payments. Plus my son might get trigger happy and start downloading a bunch of games. Well hopefully the points can be added digitally as well via Amazon - I don't want Live holding my CC hostage anymore for sure. Not that I had any problems or that I don't trust them, I just feel better knowing it's not on there. If I have any problems in 2 weeks getting the CC off I'll certainly post it - and then cancel the card like I had to do when Netflix kept charging me. I miss Netflix too - but Blockbuster is cool.
5/8/2010 - it's kinda 5/7 but it's a little after midnight so.... :) (why am i so goofy)
Anyway, I totally forgot that I said I would update this if I had a problem getting the CC off. I did. Yep and I was not a happy camper but I totally googled and did all kinds of binging and stuff to finally get a phone number to call xbox and they handled it for me. It was not that simple but the bottom line was they got the card off and then had to totally cancel my acct but emailed me codes for a new subscription. I was extremely happy because I was like a big cry baby spoiled brat "GET MY CARD OFF THAT XBOX LIVE" b-word. I think if I wasn't afraid that my son would buy xbox points w/o my permission, I would have left it there because I can tell they're trustworthy. I'm just goofy. LOL.
XBOX LIVE was awesome handling that for me, although I think they should have a little button to click that says "GET MY CARD OFF OF HERE NOW" but they don't. | video-games_xbox |
Gets Old Pretty Quickly. I had such high hopes for this game because I've been so disappointed with Xbox360 games over the past year or so. The beginning of the story mode is interesting. You are revived from death at some point in the distant future when alien forces have conquered the majority of our solar system. You choose what type of player you want to be (gender, appearance and class). I chose to be a hunter. You start off on Earth and work to achieve different missions throughout the locations given. The problem is that in the story mode, the game become repetitive very quickly. All you do is move from one place to the next shooting the different types of aliens. Once you've achieved your mission on Earth, you move to the moon, Venus, Mars and then the asteroid belt. I'm on about level 17 and I've pretty much just quit playing. It has simply become boring. One of my pet peeves is that you can't play unless you're logged in to Xbox live. That irks me because we don't have the greatest internet connection at home. If my husband and daughter are both online, I either end up with very slow load times or am unable to connect at all.
The home base feature is really nothing other than a sort of store for exchanging items for weapons or collecting on bounties. It's kind of a useless feature which requires a separate "trip" which means more loading time.
There are a number of different venues in which you can play on teams in Xbox live matches which earn points and bounties as you play. That kind of thing is okay but I'm more into the story playthrough so that didn't really add a lot for me.
The graphics for this game are nothing stellar. They're just okay. If I were looking at this without knowing what it was, I would assume it's a game from several years ago like maybe the original Dead Space time period. They could have done so much more with the scenery and aliens than has been done.
While this is basically open world, the problem is that once you kill off all the aliens in an area and then leave that area, the exact same type and number repopulate so that when or if you go back through a previously cleared area you must face off against them again. This happens repeatedly. It gets to the point that you know what to expect around every corner. And, as you get into levels past about level 9 or 10, it becomes ridiculously easy to kill even the toughest enemies with the more powerful weapons. There's very little challenge at all.
I had such high hopes for this game and even had it preordered. Once again, I am disappointed. | video-games_xbox |
Black Mesa, Orange and Blue, the Combine, Gordon, Lamar!, and you. Considering the amount of reviews, I will not add too much. The one thing I do want to say is that there is quite a bit to have in this set-up. First you have Portal, which is a game based a simple premise. You are a test subject, promised thewonder of freedom and cake, and you get to move forward by completing tasks. The first few tasks are simply ones that teach you how to do things, and the nexyt ones are ones you get you use the Portal gun on.
The gun is a device that allows you to fire an orange and blue circle onto solid object. One alows you to ente,r one to exit, and they allow you to go around normal things. This allows you to get involved in new tests, to do interesting things, and to keep it all keeping on. The entrance and exit are not slaves to gravity, to speed, or to general laws. So, running or faling into a hole means that you leave doing that same thing. That sometimes means being flung, bouncing through the holes, and doing all sorts of other stuff thatis limited only by the user's imagination.
If it has a downside it is this: some of the stuff is not easily done. It is an easy game, ending in 8 hours max (and that's going slow), and the song at the end will make you laugh and possibly make you port it to an I-Pod (I jhad to because it stil makes me smile). you get a lot of comedy, a lot of fuin, and it is all worthwhile. This is a solid 5 with the note that you want more (and more is coming in 2011).
Half-Life 2 picks up with Gordan Freeman after the Black Mesa incident. It places you on a train in a mysterious place called City 17, where a force called the Combine is taking over. Here you do all sorts of stuff, going through the city with people you know from earlier games in the hope of liberating everyone.
Good luck with that.
The controls are easy, things go from first person, and you can sprint fast. The only flaw is perhaps jumping, where you barely clear anything unless you get a nice condition. Still, this isn't really a downside. you have a gravity gun (you can pick up stuff and use it as a weapon, plus you can shock the living crap out fof stuff), a crowbar, a submachine gun, a pulse rifle, a shotgun, a magnum pistol, a regular pistol, grenades, and a powerbow and sometimes the rocket launcher. Each has an up and a down, and you can get really good with anything. You also have some ammo that allows for some amazing stuff, giving you some cool extras on you guns.
The combine have a lot of stuff to throw back. Thye have people, things that make "zombies" out of them, machies, camerbots, floating devices with bblades, floating gunships, and so much more. They also own the world and, well, the world is a weird wreck. This leads to 12 - 15 hours of play AND it has a lot of exploring area. It is a sexy game, too, and really gets a 5.
Episode 1 picks up after this and it is the same in a lot of ways. It has all of this and a little more, with the storyline going on. It ends rather suddenly, too, and has around 4 hours of playtime. I say 4 for it, but a solid 5 when added to the whole.
Episode 2 is bigger in scale and it involves saving someone as well as the world. Gordon gets a little love crush in these games and, wel, you get used to it. This is a great thing here because I actually wanted to save the girl. It is the same in a lot of respects, has some amazing shootouts, and has an ending that leaves you feeling - odd. It is solidly a 5 in my book and adds around 6 - 8 hours of play.
and team fortress - i am not a player in this respect so another reviewer must go here.
Five games at this cost - why would you aviod it? i love this set; I recently started playing it ahgain and, in the years after i beat it, it hasn't lost a thing. You need to get it if you don't and love it. One note, however. i hgad a copy and it simply stopped playing. I could do anything with any other game but, with this one, I had to replace it. After i did so, it was like nothing happened. So, that can happen. Still, I have heard this with other games and it isn't a game-related thing in and of itself. 5 out of 5 - sexy stuff. You will love it long time, | video-games_xbox |
So much to say, so little time. In recent years, the first-person shooter genre has seen a significant spike in games that give the player a gun in one hand and a special power in the other, Bioshock being the most effective and well-rounded game in this new phenomenon. Although this game lacks the storytelling of someone like Ken Levine, it's remarkably fun and is one of the better "left-hand gimmick" titles out there. Some minor spoilers lie ahead.
Graphics/Sound: 7.5/10
I found the world of Katorga-12 (or however it's spelled) to be really beautiful (if largely uninteresting on its own), particularly in the early levels. One of this game's subtle strengths is that, as you progress across the island, the environment changes. I never felt like I was exploring the same place twice, except during time-travel sequences when you're *supposed to see how the world has been affected over time. Sound design is forgettable, and some of the voice acting is plain, but the graphics are lovely and varied.
Gameplay: 9/10
This game does a good job of not trying too hard on the guns. Each gun is sort of a "plain-Jane" but effective demonstration of its class in the videogame world, e.g., the shotgun feels like just about every other video game shotgun. Because we've seen all of these guns before (save for one or two), the designers had the opportunity to blend the left-hand gimmick -- in this case, a hand-mounted device that shifts an individual object's place in its history -- flawlessly. You can't rely on one or the other, and nothing is quite as satisfying as freezing your enemies in a time-bubble, pumping mountains of rounds in with them, and waiting to see all of them fall at once.
Even before you get the "Time Manipulation Device," though, it's great. The beginning of the game sees you fighting off only a small number of very powerful creatures with nothing more than
Unfortunately, Singularity was a bit confusing on one front -- boss fights. There are two bosses and one miniboss (who's really just an annoying, 1-time enemy) in the game. The first boss, about a quarter of the way through, is tough enough to keep you on your toes, but he won't kill you more than once. The second is one of the biggest, most challenging fights I've seen in a shooter. After two fights, I was expecting the boss battle to be an integral part of the gameplay. I was wrong, and it left me wanting.
Story: 10/10 AND 3/10...?
The destroyed island of Katorga-12 is littered with documents and tapes left by its long-gone civilian, research, and military inhabitants. Even horror games like Dead Space never got my heart going quite like the opening of Singularity did. Your character is alone, barely armed, weak, and he keeps seeing weird time-residue events left over from a singularity (like the title!) that occurred in the research facilities. It's a great, great premise. In terms of immersion, think Bioshock. If you liked the tapes and the sense of ruin in that game, you'll probably like the same stuff here.
Then they brought time travel into it.
Spoilers: Early in the game, your character is cast into a time rift and rescues a man from a burning building. When you return to the present, the course of history has changed because that man, a Dr. Demichev, took over and created a singularity that destroyed the island.
But wait... the Singularity was a part of the world in the original timeline. Demichev died in a burning building... so, just by chance, the singularity still occurred? Like, by accident? How convenient.
Once you save Demichev, he kills the man who invented the time-technology, Dr. Barisov. Barisov wants to keep the technology safe and limit its power. So you save his life in ANOTHER time rift, and... it's all very confusing, but basically, you change the course of time a lot.
That leads to the biggest problem with this game: All of this is explained to you in a video by an organization called "Mir-12." For some reason, they keep track of all of these events and are unaffected by the changes you effect on time. Or something. It's stupid and and only brought up once or twice. The writing is confusing and kind of rushed. Had it been explained better, this could have been one of the best games of 2010. I found it very frustrating to be simultaneously so immersed and so detached. They should have picked an idea and stuck with it.
Ignore the story, though, and you're in for a really fun shooter with some of the most fresh game mechanics in years. That's hard to beat at 12 bucks. | video-games_xbox |
In the dark shadows of the city, only you can decide your fate. True Crime: New York City Score: 8/10
True Crime: New York City is the second entry from Activision into the world of cops and robbers. A sequel to the 2003 True Crime: L.A... It's a gritty surreal world created in the likeness of New York City. In TC: NY you play Marcus, a young man from the streets who starts his life as a thug, but tries to turn it around by becoming a police officer in the NYPD. And that's were you come in. It's your job to guide Marcus through his new profession and help him decide if he wants to truly follow the path of the law, or just bend it to his advantage. In the dark shadows of the city, only you can decide your fate.
Graphics- 8
Graphically this game is very well done. From the cars to the buildings you really get a feel for New York City. With its dark corners, constant traffic, and its colorful occupants, it's all here. Everything is done quite well in TC: NY. The cars look great. They take damage as they should; everything is very high detailed, right down to the brake pads to the wood paneling on the dash board. The building, while a bit repetitive, do look like they should so that's good. The people look good, with the main characters looking great. And you can constantly change Marcus's clothing, so that helps a lot. Even the weather looks really nice, as in rain looks like rain, and wet roads, well they look wet.
Game play- 10
The game play in TC: NY is were this game shines and "oh" how bright it shines. Since you play a cop, you pretty much have all a cop would have at you disposal. So you can fight street crime, as in arresting hookers, dissolving riots, searching cars, chase car thieves, pull people over, frisk random people, heck you can ever write traffic tickets. And as I said before, this is both a good cop and a bad cop game. So you can also shake people down, sell off evidence, take bribes, beat down suspects, and generally just make a complete nascence out of your self while burning down the town. All this while trying to solve major cases and taking down normal street crime. Plus if you get bored there are other things like street racing and fight clubs to entertain yourself with. There is a major amount of things to do in this game
Sound- 7
Sound wise TC: NY is good, but nothing super great. The sounds of the city are great and most of the music id good, it's just not perfect. As in the music selection is pretty big from hip hop and rap to rock and techno, it's all here for you. The gun's all sound good and the traffic is dead on. But the pedestrians only have maybe 10 different things to say and about 5 voices doing them all,, so that gets a bit repetitive after awhile. Plus the in game cut scenes sound is based of the music volume. So if you turn down the music, next big cut scene will be turned down too. The game gets a huge boost from its all star cast though. We're taking Avery Waddell, Christopher Walken, Laurence Fishburne, Mickey Rourke, heck it even has Traci Lords were can you go wrong. The sound is great and all, but it could have been better.
Control- 8
The controls of this game are a bit rough, while they work fine; it's a lot to take in. The game allows for total freedom and the controls try to mimic that feel. There are multiple controls depending on what you're doing, driving or walking. On foot you've got buttons for fist fighting, gun play, object interacting, taking cars, flashing your badge, changing up fight styles, lock on, and all the good stuff. Then they through in a few button commands for the cool things. Like double tapping the jump button lets you do this neat little slow motion gun dive. Or holding the block button then taping grab allows you to counter an enemies attack. Same thing goes for driving. You get a gas, break, e-break, lock on and trigger buttons. Plus as before you get neat combo buttons like holding brake and gas lets you do a burn out or taping brake twice while holding a direction let's you do a complete 180. All in all great controls once you get accustomed to them.
.
Overall- 8
This is one of the best games out on the market to date. From the sheer freedom it allows, to the star studded cast, Christopher Walken and Laurence Fishburne people! Even Mariska Hargitay from Law and Order is in this one and they all do a perfect job with the voices. The pure fun had in this game is right up there with the best of them. Following the extremely well written dialog and story or just smashing it up in the town, TC: NY delivers. Of all sequels to come out as of late this one delivers on all angles and over shadows its predecessor in all ways. No one should miss out on a game this fine, if Oprah rated games, this would be at the top of the list, that's how good this game truly is. | video-games_xbox |
Halo's a bit tilted, but it still shines bright. I came into Halomania with Halo 2 on the original Xbox. During the time we waited for Halo 3, I played Gears of War online with an expanding circle of friends, including the Geezer Gamers (look 'em up). We chafed at the eight-man team maximum and were itching to play in the larger sandbox that was Halo 3.
My wife bought the Halo 3 Limited Edition the day it came out. Did I mention I love my wife?
There's been so many reviews about Halo 3 that there's little new I can contribute here. The campaign is serviceable, but takes itself a little too seriously. Viewing the web site for Halo 3 is unintentionally hilarious, treating the game like a World War II memorial, as if it has that much emotional gravitas. It doesn't; the hinted-at relationship between Master Chief (Steven Downes) and Cortana (Jen Taylor) gets a little silly at times, the stalwart allies die heroically, bad guys become allies and then betray you later, and aliens natter on about setting off the Halo rings and destroying the universe. The talking plant known as the Gravemind (Dee Bradley Baker) doesn't make an appearance, but his voice is ever present. In fact, the game uses the awful method of flashbacks, both from Cortana and Gravemind, to interrupt game play and force the plot down your throat. It gets old fast. The game reaches a rollicking conclusion with a crazy Warthog chase across collapsing platforms that recaptures some of the fun of Halo 2. The ending is predictable but well earned.
But forget the campaign. The real beauty of Halo is the multiplayer game. I play the game every Wednesday night (look for Talien) and we play Team Slayer with sixteen people at once. It's great fun, and the boards provide an endless array of challenges that make Halo 3 the excellent multiplayer experience we've come to expect.
There are some changes. The graphics are better, but not much better. I miss the value of a perfect reload from Gears of War. Speaking of Gears of War, Halo's environments aren't as destructible. And my favorite tactic, two-fisted Needler-ing, has been rendered obsolete. In fact, Needlers don't track nearly as well as they used to.
There are new guns and vehicles, but the biggest change is the ability to remove heavy machineguns from their mounts and walk around the board, mowing people down. I've had more kills using this new tactic than using all the other weapons combined. As for vehicles, there's a new bike and an enormous beast known as the Elephant that I'm fond of driving (I flipped an Elephant once, ask me about it some time). Speaking of war stories, there's also a neat function that allows you to view replays and share it with friends.
The packaging of LE of Halo 3 isn't very practical. Made of metal, the package I received was warped. Since the piece that holds the disc in the box is also made of metal, the disc was banging around inside the case. Even the booklet, which is in the center of the container, was warped. No wonder the discs in some copies were scratched!
Despite the changes from Halo 2, Halo 3's multiplayer can't be beat. It's a testament to the game's staying power that we come back to it every Wednesday. | video-games_xbox |
Contends for game of the year already. While the PlayStation 4 tends to put out a higher resolution, the difference in Wild Hunt across the two platforms is negligible as Witcher 3 on the Xbox One is the systems best looking game. Period. Sure Destiny, Shadows of Mordor, Tomb Raider, and Grand Theft Auto 5 look great, but none of those games hold a candle to the pure graphical quality of the Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on the Xbox One. In the prelude/tutorial section Geralt walks out onto a balcony overseeing the land surrounding Kaer Morhen and it is breathtakingly gorgeous. Surrounded by mountains, Kaer Morhen looks over a lush, pine-filled valley that stretches as far as the eye can see.
Husky-voiced and gruff Geralt even comments that it is a beautiful vista and yet, for as stunning as it is, the view is pale by comparison to some of the other views that you will be rewarded with throughout your travels across The Continent. For those that took the time to read through my blasting review of Witcher 3 on the PlayStation 4 you will find that I had numerous issues with pop-in and entire sections simply not appears (leading to me falling through the world). With Witcher 3 on the Xbox One that is not the case, though there are a few spots where textures would take a half-second to appear, I found that it only happened if I was galloping Roach and then suddenly rounded a blind corner (whipping past the windmill in White Orchard was the most common location for this); the world would be there but everything would be fuzzy for a quick moment then the text would appear. Far better than what I found on the PlayStation 4.
The utterly annoying issue of igniting / extinguishing candles, accidentally looting (aka stealing) from a merchant's table still exists, however CD Projekt Red has announced that they will be addressing that issue in their next patch so it is a small annoyance, especially given the fact that I am aware of it. New players may run into a few issues with it, especially if they are standing in front of a merchant's stall in Novigrad or Oxenfurt and accidentally steal something since the guards will utterly destroy you. I do have to say that I have seen only a couple of the t-frame animations issues on the Xbox One and those were limited to a merchant that was wandering the roads and to a bandit that I ran into while raiding a bandit camp; outside of those two points I have yet to see an issue where NPC's failed to load correctly or were stuck in a t-frame. A refreshing change from the difficulties of the PlayStation 4 copy.
Like the PlayStation 4 version, the audio is simply spectacular, were we still reviewing individual aspects of a game (the way we did a few years ago) The Witcher 3 would easily score a perfect 10. It has some of the absolute best voice acting I have found in a game, whether it is Geralt's raspy voice, Yennefer's sultry tone, Ciri's driven and commanding acting, or an NPC that has a distasteful view of mutants (Witchers), they are simply put, perfect. To accompany such splendid voice acting comes a soundtrack that rivals the best of Inon Zur, famed composer known best for the Dragon Age soundtracks. From the sweeping scores as you overlook a stunning sunrise to the heart pounding and adrenaline pumping combat themes, the music is stunning. Though for as wonderful as the music is, you may find yourself turning it down just to hear the ambient sounds of the environments. Walking through any of the larger towns or villagers will assault your ears with a bevy of environmental effects such as birds chirping, dogs barking, or the sounds of day-to-day life and it truly brings each area to life. Though wandering through the wilderness is dangerous, taking a stroll through the absolutely gorgeous forests is excellent as you hear the wind whistle through the trees, causing the branches to creak and class. Walking along the coastline in Skellige will present you with the sounds of gulls and the splash of the tide or meandering through a crypt or cavern will be suitably eerie with the echoes and scratching of distant rodents. The Witcher 3 feels alive and I fully believe it is due to the superior sound engineering as it is near-perfect.
Gameplay has much improved over previous titles; Geralt feels more alive and spry, though unlike The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings, he does not feel as grounded. I felt that Witcher 2 had a bit more weight to it, from the way that Geralt would dodge or run to the way that combat felt, Witcher 2 just felt more solid. The Witcher 3 feels more fluid, almost like a dance, whether that is walking through the crowded streets of Novigrad's Temple district, through a masquerade thrown by the local nobility, or when you are in combat with a half-dozen bandits or a pack of wolves. Timing in combat, like the previous games, is everything. Simply smashing the X or Y buttons works, but tends to be clumsy and reckless. Timing your fast attacks, strong attacks and the use of your Signs properly will yield far more satisfying results. I cannot help but feel at times like I did in the Batman titles as Geralt flies from foe to foe dismembering or disorienting as he goes. It is truly wonderful and there are times where I feel a little let down because there are simply not enough enemies on screen to demolish. On the flip side though, there are plenty of times where the challenging combat can throw a mix of enemies at you which makes it extremely difficult. If you get flanked, you will get pounded into the ground so crowd control is a must. Which is where Alchemy and Bombs come into play
More so than the other games, Alchemy will play a massive part in Wild Hunt; there were long stretches in the first two games where I would simply forget to apply an oil to my blade or drink a particular concoction and was still able to get through whatever challenge I was confronting. In Witcher 3, the farther you go into the story the more important it is to pay attention to your quests and apply the correct oils or drink the correct potion because if you do not, you are in for a world of hurt. The same goes with the grenades that you have access to, as some enemies, like foglets or ekimara's have special abilities that allow them to go invisible yet there is a bomb that you can make that prevents them from slinking into the shadows and using it will exponentially increase your survivability. Some enemies, like Ice Elementals are naturally vulnerable to fire so the Dragon's Dream bomb, which deploys an ignitable cloud of gas that you can explode with the Ignii sign for massive fire damage, or Dancing Star bomb, which sets anyone in its path on fire, can turn the tide in a challenging fight.
On top of Alchemy and Bombs, crafting plays a huge roll in Wild Hunt and I found that I was constantly gathering materials to have numerous weapons with various runs implanted in them so I could take on almost any challenge. Runes will go through and add effects such as freezing, burning, poisoning, staggering, bleeding, and stunning to the various weapons and I found that having a few steel blades in my inventory with varying Runes was incredibly helpful (the same goes for the silver Witcher swords). It made inventory management a bit difficult, especially since I would carry around an extra set of armor, but it was well worth it. The one thing I did notice though is that with crafting and the correct mutagens Geralt can be far more powerful than he should be as in some cases I was able to take on enemies that were 8-10 levels above me (even playing on the Death March difficulty, with careful preparation and a ton of patience, it is possible).
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is massive and can easily take upwards of 200 hours to complete, though the main story can be burnt through in about 30 hours. I strongly recommend focusing on completing the game to 100% as the story, side quests, and minigames (like Gwent or the fighting rings) are all interesting, something not found in a lot of RPG's with "busy work." Unlike the standard "go-fetch" quests of other RPGs, the side quests in Witcher are generally "go destroy this beast" though there are plenty of treasure hunts available. What is unique is that while most Witcher Contracts all follow the same formula, the small stories that go along with each one differ just enough and yield results that can be wildly different. In some requests you will receive a small pittance and maybe unlock new merchant or blacksmith, others if done one way will see entire settlements wiped off the map or emptied of civilians. More so than any other game I have ever played, each quest or decision in The Witcher 3 has consequences and that is simply glorious.
Playing The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on the Xbox One was a completely new and eye-opening experience. Far more technically solid that its PlayStation 4 counterpart, the Xbox One version yielded far better results and framerates than anything I saw on the other system. When I reached the "Oxenfurt Drunk" quest that caused the biggest disruption in forward progression on the PlayStation 4 I was hesitant to even try it so I made six separate saves before getting into the quest. Fortunately I did not run into the glitch that I did on the PS4 and I was able to complete it successfully with little trouble. These lack of technical issues made me see the Witcher 3 in a complete new light and allowed me the simple pleasure of just playing the game that it was meant to be, and it is one hell of a game. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt on Xbox One is THE game to beat and even with the impressive 2015 lineup of games to be released, I am not so sure it will be done. As of this moment, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is my absolute contender for Game of the Year. | video-games_xbox |
Some great improvements, but buggy and frustrating. Christmas day was very frustrating.
-First it would not boot, stuck on the green screen. After visiting the support website to learn how to reset it (power off, unplug for 30sec) finally it booted.
- Could not connect to wireless network. Found out there appears to be a bug in the wireless setup. The SSID on my router is not broadcast as a security measure so it needs to entered manually (I have since learned that not broadcasting SSID does not help security). The first time my son misspelled it. After very carefully trying another half dozen time and failing I noticed that that the error message from Xbox had the same misspelling from the first attempt. OK, you would think that doing the reset procedure would clear that from some cache, but no, I couldn't get it to forget the original misspelling. Finally I gave up and ran a Cat5 cable from the router in the closet to the Xbox.
-Another 1hr and 3-4 reboots it finally starts working.
- Now we are excited to kill some zombies. Just put the disk in and ready to go! But no, it needs and update and install on the hard drive. I read about that in the reviews and thinking it will only take a minute. 45 minutes later it finally downloads the 5GB! update and is ready to go.
- 3 HOURS from the time it was plugged in to actually playing a game, and I still have a CAT5 cable running along my floor because I gave up on the wireless setup!
Microsoft has been working on this product for years. Unlike PC's they have complete control of the hardware and software installed so they have no excuses as to why this is not perfect. It is mind blowing that they would deliver something with so many issues with all they have at stake with this platform.
After finally getting it working there are some things to like/love.
-The new Kinect is impressive. It's actually useful and won't thrown in a box like the last one.
- Impressive graphics and responsiveness. As you would expect from the new hardware.
- The OS and Metro interface has some great features. There is some of the usual "I preferred the way they did xyz in the old version" but mostly it's an improvement. I expect updates will fix any real issues.
-New controller is better without being very different so there isn't a big learning curve.
I wold give 1 star for the first day experience, 4 starts when finally get to play. | video-games_xbox |
Another masterpiece by Rockstar. The Good: Revolutionary motion capture technology, using this to interrogate suspects is unique, great story and characters, variety of cases, historically and accurately renders Los Angeles
The Bad: Repetitive investigation process, shooting is average, not much to do when driving around, the interrogation feels like guess work most of the time
When you see Rockstar's name on a box you expect a dark, mature, and innovative single player game and L.A. Noire is just that. Meet Detective Cole Phelps. A World War II war hero who was given the Silver Star. He is now LAPD's newest officer and you start rising up the ranks. The game has four desks to play as you move along which are Traffic, Homicide, Vice, and then Arson. The story is very weird because about 2/3 of the game is just case by case and the overall story doesn't really start or pick up until the very end. It's nice to have little stories within a huge one, but the ending is riveting and shocking so expect something good there.
The game play consists of walking around realistically rendered crime scenes and finding clues to add to your notebook. You will hear music playing in the background indicating there are still clues in the area. When you walk by one a sound will chime and your controller will vibrate. When you pick up a clue you can manipulate it by rotating the analog stick or some times you will have to investigate further by opening something, or finding certain info on a piece of paper. There are so many different types of objects in the game it's insane. Everything is beautifully and realistically rendered and this helps make the game one of the best looking ones to date.
Los Angeles is rendered fairly accurate from the time period with the use of actual city logos and protocols for LAPD. Real street names are used and even landmarks from the city are accurately rendered in the game. This also helps in cases because you might actually know where the area is if you are familiar with it. Going back to investigating there are so many different types of cases that I could spend days describing them all. The variety is great, but the actual procedure is repetitive. You drive to the marked spot on your map, investigate, search for clues, then go interrogate. Rinse and repeat over a dozen times.
interrogated and questioning people is what makes L.A. Noire such a big deal. The new motion capture technology for facial animations is just 100% realistic. Every muscle moves, you can detect twitches, neck muscles move in their neck, you can see them swallow hard when nervous, this is the first game that has true realistic facial animations. You will be stunned when you first see this and it's also kind of creepy how real it looks. Of course this ties into game play because you have three options which are Truth, Doubt, Lie. After each question (which is why finding clues are key or you may not be able to question them properly) you choose one of the three. If you pick the right one you will hear a certain tone. Accusing someone of lying requires showing evidence so really make sure you have it before doing so. If you have trouble with this you can use intuition points that will take away an answer or you can ask the Social Club community.
I love this game play mechanic, but a lot of the times I felt like I was just purely guessing because someone would make a straight face and you think they are telling the truth, but the next person may be doubtful when they have that face. Cases get longer and more complicated with lots of clues to sort through and I got frustrated thinking I had the guy then later found out that I failed a case because I didn't accuse the right person or question them right.
Of course there is shooting and it's average. There is a cover mechanic which is a bit finicky but it works, and the guns are 40's era weapons, but the shooting sections don't come up often and I found this was fine. The driving in the game is just like GTA and pretty much works the exact same way. The cars are familiar to the era, but all pretty much drive the same. There is one side mission type and that's fighting street crime. Some times a call over your radio will give info about a street crime and you can respond to it. There are 40 in all and they usually consist of on foot chases, car chases, or a shootout. These get repetitive as well after a while, but it's there to make you feel like a true cop.
Overall L.A. Noire has amazing motion capture technology that's revolutionary as well as superb storytelling and great characters. Investigating cases is fun and exciting, but the overall process grows tiresome after a while due to the same steps being taken over and over again. The shooting is average and the driving will get old after a while since there's not much to do there. L.A. Noire is a must have for fans of Rockstar, crime fighting, or excellent single player games. | video-games_xbox |
A great game when new, even more so at the cheaper price. When Angels fall and claim godhood, the real God tends to be none too pleased.
Story
The story of El Shaddai is (loosely) based off of a religious text 'The Book of Enoch' and follows Enoch, a heavenly scribe chosen by God, to find and return 7 fallen angels to heaven, the game explains this over a series of small cutscenes and novel-esque pieces. These fallen Angels have taken shelter on Earth, creating a veil, or false sky, to hide from God, the humans who once prayed to God saw they Angels as gods as well and began praying to them, eventually forgetting their true God. Since these people are praying to these false gods who have been corrupted by 'The Darkness', they do not ascend to Heaven when they die and instead become creatures of darkness themselves.
Graphics
If you ask anyone what stands out the most in El Shaddai, they'll say one of two things, the anime-like art style, or the remarkably amazing visuals (hopefully the latter). El Shaddai makes up for the lack of story with graphics that will leave you mesmerized, the coloring and lighting are done EXTREMELY well and make everything pop. The changing color scheme, which happens often, makes things come alive to a leel I have never honestly seen in gaming.
Normally, graphics are nothing special and remain unchanged from one game to another or differ slightly, in El Shaddai they are breathtaking and stunning, while they aren't realistic, they are some of the best (if not the best) artistic graphics I've ever seen.
Controls
The controls are rather simple to grasp, but can be tough to master. You have your standard jump, attack and guard buttons (A, X/Y and RB respectively), as well as a purification button (LB) which allows you to purify, or clean, your weapons as they get 'dirty' from attacking enemies. While they are rather basic, the timing is critical, a block at the right moment can send the enemy reeling, allowing for Enoch to follow up with a series of blows, attacking at the right moment has the same effect.
I mentioned Purification you must purify your weapon regularly as it builds up darkness gained from enemies, if you don't purify, your weapon will inflict less damage and have a reduced chance of staggering the enemy, so you should really purify after every battle.
Music/Sound/Voice
There is little music generally, it is rather quite and almost harmonic with everything else that is going on in game, you can hear it but it will not stand out on most occasions. Somehow, this works well with the games settings, so I personally didn't mind the ambiance it brought.
Sound is done much tot he same effect, you'll hear somethings on some levels and nothing on others, these can be as simple wind blowing or fireworks going off, small things that add to the games ambiance.
Voicing is done very well for an anime styled game, which are usually quite over-dramatic, granted there's very little talking outside of confrontation or narration, but what little there is is done quite nicely.
Other
One of the negatives, or positives, depending on how you look at it, is the fact that there are only 3 weapons in the game, the Arch, the Gale and the Veil (you can also use your fists, so technically 4). Each has their pros and cons, they are sort of like rock-paper-scissors, one beats the other which loses to a different one.
The Arch - A bow like weapon that is really a sword, the bow stings are sharp blades. The Arch is an all-around average weapon, average strength, speed and recoil.
The Gale - A series of shard like crystals that can be hurled at enemies and easily linked together. The Gale is very fast but also very weak and causes little recoil.
The Veil - A giant shield, broken in half allowing Enoch to easily wield it. The Veil has the best physical and defensive capabilities, causing recoil at a high rate, it is very slow however.
Once you've beaten the game, you can play through it again with extras such as outfits, higher difficulties and you are also graded in each level and leaderboard ranking.
Overall
El Shaddai is a rather unique game for both it's reference to real religious texts and for its amazing art, any fan of action/hack and slash titles should check this out.
8.5/10.0
Pros
- STUNNING visuals
- Simple, yet complex combat
- Interesting real life reference
Cons
- Limited weapons
- After you've mastered combat it's very easy
- Story takes awhile to take off
See the complete review at lvgrb.blogspot | video-games_xbox |
Please don't bash Halo if you haven't played. I have a confession.... I LOVED Halo. But I do see why some people would find issues or have problems with it. Some of the levels were slightly repetitive, and in some cases it could get slightly old for a short period. But it always switched to something new, and different, which is something I really liked about Halo.
But I would have to say that my favorite thing about Halo is that there actually are multiple ways to play. I can give one example, where the first time through, I was moving towards a certain objective building, and I had to cross a bridge over a canyon, then work my way down through different floors in one wall of the canyon, before working my way on the ground towards the building. Anyway, when I stepped out onto the bridge, two of the covenant jumped into banshees (like airplanes) and attacked me. The second time I played through, I found out it was possible to get there quickly enough to beat the aliens to the banshees on that bridge, and fly to the building, skipping everything in between. I can't think of any other game which has given me that much freedom to choose different paths.
I do have one thing to say to other reviewers out there: if you haven't played this game, please don't review it because you dislike Microsoft, or the Xbox. Such as the following review:
"What is the big deal about Halo. It is one of the worst and stupidest games I have ever played. I think people like it because all you do is kill aliens that are extreamly stupid. In one mission you can kill like 100 alien things and you die 4 times. The aliens even speak english. How would a thing billions of miles away from earth know how to speak english. I think that is just stupid. Theres only like 10 weapons and 4 things you can ride in in the game. In the game the warthog and earth cars can never break or explode but the alien stuff can. Another stupid thing is the missions are way too long. It takes abouut 1 hour to finish a mission. And once you die you come back to life. So anyone can beat the game. Some aleins have invisible shields on them and you have to waste a lot of ammo on them. All you can carry is two guns and grenades. And since theres only like 10 weapons you allways pick up the same gun. Theres only about 8 differnent kinds of aliens and they are all stupid. Hunters are big alien things that are almost impossible to kill, little stupid aliens that speak english and run away from you, little aliens with shields, big aliens that have invisible shields around them and they chase you, Floods that when you kill them little ball thing with no guns come out and jump and pop on you, theres more but they are mainly the same as the ones I just wrote but they are different colors or are bigger or smaller. If you like combat games don't buy this because all you do is kill dumb aleins. It is not hard at all. Dont buy it."
First of all, I'd like to say that some of these complaints are common to all first-person shooters....Sure, you kill a lot of the enemy, and your own player doesn't die as often as the enemy.... This is true for most first person shooters with a plot. If the Master Chief (your character) died an equal number of times as Covenant Grunts, you'd never beat the game. So yes, it isn't completely realistic....but neither are any first-person shooters. But it is clear that if you don't like FPSs, you probably won't love HALO...although you might still like it.
But beyond this, I must say that I don't understand many of these complaints....The aliens speak english...sure, it's a little unrealistic, but it's really cool when you hear them respond to what you do (e.g. he's coming around the side! or "Run, grenade!"). The bit about coming back to life if you die, "so anyone can beat this game" is the entire idea.... If you had to start the whole 10-15 hour campaign over every time you died, people would say they'd been ripped off...and they would have been. This is not an arcade game where they get a quarter every time you start over, you've payed cash for the whole game...it's nice to be able to play all of it.
The complaint about the number of weapons, and only being able to hold two. Come on, man, what's with this? First you complain about unrealism, then you complain about this? So it's realistic to be able to carry 30 different weapons at the same time? Besides, this adds a huge amount of strategy to the game. Every weapon is useful in some circumstances (yes, even the needler--great for depleting elite's shields), so choosing which two requires serious strategizing.
But more importantly, I think this review was just incompetent. I don't mean in general, but he's just REALLY bad at this game. I mean, the description that Hunters are "almost impossible to kill" is just wrong....they're some of the easiest, as long as you hit the right spot (there are orange parts that aren't covered by armor where they'll die with one shot from the pistol), but it would explain why he took so long on some missions....They take forever to kill otherwise.
But the big problem with this review is that it describes the aliens as "stupid".... If there is one word I would use for the AI in this game, it certainly wouldn't be that. The AI is pretty brilliant. The Flood aren't that bright...but they aren't supposed to be. But the Covenant will throw grenades at you, duck behind cover, run into stationary defensive guns to gain an advantage over you, call in help, and run away if you destroy a more powerful Covenant and they realize they're overmatched. And your allies (the marines) will call warnings to you, do all the things the Covenant do, make comments on everything from your looks to thanks for saving their butts, and will even fly vehicles (in the PC version at least--I saw one flying a ghost).
Sorry this review was so long, but I just had to point out that the negative review I'd just read was flat-out wrong. I live in Bangkok, Thailand now, so I haven't had the chance yet to check out Halo 2, but I can't wait. | video-games_xbox |
2K9 ... The Year of the Glitch. I picked up MLB 2K9 at midnight on release day from my local videogame store. I had high hopes, since 2K hyped this game as much-improved over the disappointment that was MLB 2K8.
At first, 2K9 looked to have some promise, but then a number of game-killing glitches entered the picture.
First thing I noticed was the inability of user-controlled outfielders to catch can-of-corn fly balls. I was controlling Ichiro of the Seattle Mariners in one game, and I watched him allow a ball to smack him squarely in the head before he made a motion to attempt a catch. Other instances of this glitch had the ball fly past a fielder before any effort to catch it was made, resulting in an in-the-park home run. I lost more than a few games thanks to this glitch. And no matter what anyone says, these fly ball problems still occur post-patches.
The next batch of glitches that turned me against MLB 2K9 are Franchise freeze and stat issues. I started several different Franchise modes with several different teams. In each instance, I made sure to save several times so I had back-ups in case freezing occurred.
All of them encountered freezes! Simming past the freezing point helped at first, but as I tried to advance to the third season of my third Franchise, the game locked up and wouldn't progress to the next regular season. Unacceptable.
As for stats, I had 10 players in the majors with the exact same stat line in one Franchise. While not a problem at first glance, the stats themselves showed that each player played over 300 games in a single season, driving in over 200 runs a piece (an MLB season, for those who may not know, is 162 games long...and top-level hitters tend to drive in anywhere between 100 and 150 RBI in a season). These players were then awarded all year-end awards due to their inflated stats.
There were also instances of players changing their skin color after returning from minor league stints, players unable to be taken off the disabled list unless they were sent to the minors, and many other shake-your-head-in-disbelief moments. Franchise problems ruined the game for me, since I strictly play Franchise mode in sports games.
Another angle of frustration is the apparent lack of care for the consumer that 2K displays. Thousands of people have viewed a Franchise freeze thread on their message boards at [...], yet they are unable to say whether a fix is in the works or not. This kind of lack of communication is making me never want to purchase a 2K Sports game again.
Needless to say, I sold this game in early April, just over a month after release. <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/MVP-Baseball-2005/dp/B00075GLUG/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">MVP Baseball 2005</a> for Xbox and <a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/MLB-09/dp/B001O0EGLO/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">MLB '09</a> on PSP provide much better baseball experiences on videogame consoles.
Do yourself a favor and stay away from MLB 2K9. | video-games_xbox |
A Worthy Mid Level Headset. I just got a new XBOne and needed a pair of headphones so after some research I decided that these were the pair for me. These had everything I wanted in a pair of gaming headphones. Setup was easy, updating controller only took about 2 minutes and I was gaming in a short time.
Pros:
-It came with it's own audio controller that connects to the XBOne controller . The headset connects to the audio controller with a 90 degree 3.5 mm connector.
-Removable mic.
-Mic monitoring, so you can hear yourself talking
-Although they only emit stereo sound, I could distinguish particular game sounds that came from my left or right side coinciding with the left or right speaker. Sounds came through clear, mids and highs were crisp, and the bass is strong, but not overpowering or distorted at high level.
-Multi-step bass boost. I like that this gives the games that I play that extra "oomph."
-I have a size 7.5 head and the headsets fit perfectly without any discomfort even after 4 hours of playing games straight. There's some cushion on the headband and the ear muffs flex to accommodate fit.
-The ear muffs have nice cushioning on them and block outside noise quite well, immersing one into the gaming world.
-Used with Skype and was told that I came through loud and clear.
-Listened to music, watched YouTube videos, and played games on my smartphone and the headset performed beautifully.
-When I first plugged them into my laptop the sounds coming out from the speakers was "tinny." But I then went into speaker properties and changed some of the settings to my liking and now the headset sounds amazing.
Cons:
-I would have preferred the master volume to be just a tad bit higher, but that's just me. I like my games LOUD and BOOMING.
-Will drain your controller battery faster. Invest in rechargeable batteries!
-The ear muffs do get warm after prolonged use.
With shipping and handling, I paid $87 for this headset. I know that there's a plethora of XBOne headsets on Amazon so my advice would be to shop around and read the reviews. I'm a casual gamer, not a hardcore audiophile either, so I can't see myself spending hundreds more for a pair of headsets. To be honest, I was also looking at the Skullcandy SLYR which was priced $20 more than these. However, the Skullcandy SLYR didn't have the extra bass or mic monitoring that these had. I will say that I feel that these were worth the money I spent for them. For me, they are comfortable, sound amazing, and have all the bells and whistles to make them a worthy purchase. | video-games_xbox |
The new shooting system is horrible and extremely annoying to use. To Whom It May Concern:
I am not one to normally due this, but with my recent purchase of NBA2k15 for the Xbox 360 something needs to be said. The game promises upgrades and new game play, story, and a realistic immersion into the world of the NBA. The game does not live up to these promises by any standard. The new shooting system is horrible and extremely annoying to use. You have given us absolutely nothing new and exciting to keep me interested in your franchise.
As a fan of the NBA2K franchise since 2006, I have to say I am extremely disappointed in the way you upgraded your game. NBA2K15 is literally the same as NBA2K14. Actually let me clarify, the game is FAR WORSE than its predecessor. Even the character simulation is disturbing, as some of the players in the game look nothing like their real life counter part. Everything about it is disappointing and unsatisfying. It is so bad that after playing for 2hrs I threw the disk in the garbage and began playing 2K14 again.
After spending $60 on a game that I was exciting and anticipating, you have crushed my basketball spirit. It is simply unfair that you produce a better product for the next generation systems and leave us, unable to upgrade to those fancy new consoles, with this steaming pile of dog s***. Why is it that we pay the same amount of money as the game on next gen and receive what seems like of the game play. Where is my career mode story? Where is my adventure in the NBA? Why must you look down upon us gamers who have not yet upgraded to the new system?
It is inexcusable that you present a game like this to your loyal fans/customers. Im not only pissed about my purchase I am livid. My warning to those who wish to upgrade to NBA2K15 is this. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME, YOU WILL BE SEVERELY DISSAPOINTED!
I have already made it a point to tell all of my friends that play 2K not to purchase this underdeveloped piece of s***.
Sincerely,
A FORMER NBA2K Fan | video-games_xbox |
Overdone hype but awsome game. Personally all this hype was blown out of proportion. All done for more marketing sales to make Microsoft very happy of course and to squeeze every last dime out of Halo fans by creating three types of editions. I was there for the midnight release and played Halo3 for a good two and half hours until I crashed out on my couch. I'll break this review down into a few cat orgies.
Gameplay: The game to me has improved on many levels. With new enemies with better AI, they don't just stand there waiting to get killed. Along with the same layout has Halo 1&2, 3 is pretty much the same (point, shoot, cover), but you have more areas to get creative with new content. Halo3 gameplay was given a polished look and finish and even though it can feel old at times, it's really all about finishing the fight and finding out the storyline.
Graphics: I was quit surprised to see how clean and detailed the graphics were on my regular TV. Bungie really went to attention to detail and left nothing out. I have a 24' HDTV but with no speakers so I have to resort to my older TV, but if Halo3 looks as good as it does on regular, I can only image what it would look like HD.
New Content: Who doesn't like new content? Halo3 has more to offer then ever. There is new equipment to help you defeat your foes when it gets rough. New guns, new fighting tactics, its awesome.
Overall: I gave this 4 stars out of 5 because the gameplay feels the same in certain parts of the game, but with the graphics and new content I can easily get over it. Only reason why I got an Xbox 360 was for Halo3, since I found out there was no plans to start working on a PC version of Halo and I didn't want to wait long to play.
Advice: Don't play Halo 3 until you played Halo 1&2, get familar with the storyline and controls, otherwise this game won't be "the hype" you expected. Remember, when Halo first came out, there was mixed reviews, playing Halo 3 first is no exception. | video-games_xbox |
Fantastic game. When this game first came out in 2005, I loved it. To this day, it's one of my favorite games! I'm glad I decided to buy it on Xbox recently. I have an original Xbox, but I've mostly been playing it on my 360 - and let me say, it runs better than any other original Xbox game on the 360! I've experienced no lag, the game still loads very fast, controls all function, sound is great, etc. As long as you have an original fat model with an official Microsoft hard drive, you can play this and many other Xbox originals on your console. All you have to do is connect your console to the Internet via wifi adaptor or ethernet cable, insert the disc, and download the update when prompted. That's it!
Now, for my review of the game:
Destroy all Humans! takes place in the 50's, ans you play as Cryptosporidum-137 (or Crypto for short), a clone of an alien warrior (a race known as Furons). Crypto is equipped with several weapons, such as a battery operated gun that shoots electricity, a weapon that disintegrates enemies, a "grenade launcher" with a detonator, and the humorous Anal Probe. Additionally, Crypto also has mental abilities including telekinesis, hypnotizing people into cause distractions, reading people's thoughts, ability to disguise himself as a hologram version of a human, and ability to extract people's brainstems, awarding him with DNA (used to purchase upgrades). Crypto also has a flying saucer, which is well equipped as well.
Missions range from using stealth to infiltrate military bases, blowing buildings and/or people up, rigging the presidential election (by stopping people from entering to vote), and much more. The game also allows free roaming when off missions. There are five "invasion sites, in this game - Turnipseed Farm, Roswell (a parody of Rockwell), Santa Modesta (parodying California's Santa Monica), Area 42 (a military base making fun of Area 51), Union Town (a dock with a military base), and Capital City (Washington DC). Every invasion site has it's own set and variety of missions, side-missions, Alien Probes (collectables that also award you with DNA), and a decent size open world to explore.
Destroy all Humans! has a B-Movie feel to it. For example: the game is a very humorous, poking fun at various topics including alien sightings in the 50's, old TV shows, future events (ex: reading somebody's mind and them saying they're thinking about inventing the internet, drive-throughs, etc. but then thinking it's a stupid idea), and refrancing many movies/shows (even one's that are later than the 50's). | video-games_xbox |
Game for less. Many people do not own this arcade version, because of the pro version seem to have more features like hard drive, HD component cable, and headset. Like the holiday always offer free item(s), for example games. Many people had complain with old Xbox 360, because of the failure rate are so high due to red ring of death. Well Microsoft had fixed the problem, with new graphic card (cooler version) and with the new falcon chip (fasten the dashboard ). They may have reconfigured the cooling system or installed a more durable clamp. This arcade version is good for starter/casual gamer or replace your old one(because your old Xbox 360 broken or want the HDMI output).
There are many complains and questions about this version, So I'm willing to tell the truth and how to solve your problem of the Xbox 360 arcade version.
"I can't play my old Xbox games."
*All Xbox 360 are backwards compatible, but require download from Xbox live or you can download the backwards compatible on [...] and burn the CD, then upload to your xbox360.
"Can't play game in HD, because this version only include Standard AV cables."
*To play truly HD on your HDTV, you need HDMI cable. The arcade version support HDMI and 1080p resolution. Which you can buy HDMI cable for less than $10 on amazon.
"Is the arcade games trial or full version?"
*All five arcade games are full version. (one disc)
"It doesn't have a headset"
*Well, the headset is not included in this Xbox 360 arcade version. Note: the Microsoft headset are poorly design it will break less than a year. Go and buy a better one. Beside you can get it when you buy the Xbox live starter kit.
"It doesn't have a hard drive."
*It included a 256MB Memory unit, it's enough to save all of your games, except Xbox live download contents for example new maps, arcade games, and videos. You can buy used hard drive for less than $50 on ebay.
"Well, is the arcade version same as pro version?"
*Yes, the only different is the pro package included 20GB hard drive, component cables, and headset. They're both new version of Xbox 360 with 3 years warranty from Microsoft. They are not likely to cause more problem.
Overall it's up to you to make a choice which version to buy. Because this version is basic and cheap for standard gaming, but you can always add on. This Xbox 360 arcade version is must have for anyone who doesn't have Xbox 360. | video-games_xbox |
Not family friendly. We have owned Xbox consoles since the first generation. We currently have 3 Xbox 360s consoles (4 if you include the dead one).
I finally broke down and bought an Xbox one for Christmas. I had been avoiding purchasing an xbox one, because it is not backward compatible with 360 games and because there are not many games available for the console that I am interested in playing. So, now we have to keep at least 1 360 console to play the majority of our games.
First, we ran into the problem that many other reviewers have mentioned... xbox live was down. Because xbox live was down, we could not even play a game from disk. The console had to download an update before it was usable at all. Since live was down, we could not download this update.
We finally were able to download this update and begin to play with the console. The dashboard is an unusable mess. This is the most confusing, unintuitive dashboard I have seen, and the 360 dashboard isn't exactly pleasant.
Also, it appears that every profile requires an xbox live account. Setting up a live account seems to require either 2 e-mail address or 1 e-mail address and a cell phone #. So, for each of the 5 people in our house, we need to set up live profiles. Really MS? Way to be kid friendly.
I am regretting this purchase already.
Update (12/26):
This morning, we started "installing" the Halo collection. After about an hour of "installing," it is 1% complete.
Update 2 (12/26):
After reading some forum threads regarding slow installs, I found that disconnecting the xbox one from the internet BEFORE installing the game speeds up installs. If you have already begun installing a game, but not yet finished, you will need to delete it from your install queue and re-start the install.
Update 3 (12/26):
Halo installation from disc (disconnected from internet) was much faster. However, when we tried to play the game, it said that an 18GB update was required in order to play the game. With our internet, that will probably take an entire day of downloading. Anyway, we were already downloading the 2.4 GB update for Shadow of Mordor. This is ridiculous.
Update 4 (12/26):
Ugh... now, when we put in brand new discs, it'll tell us "Unable to read disc." We have to eject and re-insert to get it to read discs that have absolutely no blemishes.
BTW, this is our 2nd day of owning this console. So far, we have been able to play 1 game: Minecraft. Hoping that we can make that 2 games once the update to Shadow of Mordor finishes downloading. | video-games_xbox |
Must have been gone too long. First, I'd like to consider myself an RPG fan, been playing since I got hooked on Phantasy Star2 for genesis ages ago. Since, played almost anything rpg for snes,n64,pc,gameboy, and (what little there was) xbox. So I heldoff on my 360 til xmas 08' to ensure a healthy selection of quality games, and began reviewing my favorite genre, RPG's. In the end , when the dust had settled, my most prominent candidate was Tales of Vesperia. I had never played any of the other tales series games since I'm not a PS fan, at all...but the reviews were overwhelmingly positive so I went for it.
Like a naked man running through thorn bushes I felt violated with every step. I probably forced my way through about 15-20 hours before I hit the immovable object that finally sank me.
There were some good points , the interface and options, and combat was a change from turn-based that made for a bit of excitement, but so many things were missing from what I've considered quality rpg's. The action maps were terrible, so linear and uninteresting with obstacles that most wedges of cheese could figure out. It gives you the feeling that you could actually play blind-folded and eventually stumble through the area. The towns are very similar, huge cities that comprise of about 50 in-game yards of running room.
I can't advise on the story since I didn't finish it, but I am very disappointed overall w/ the actually writing, no one would say these things...and if the ever did get them far away from me.
The game has a crafting feature which I was looking forward too and very nice cinematics. It also has a very detailed AI management feature for your party. In the end it felt more like I was watching someone else playing...than actually writing my own heroic epic. The final slice of the blade came when I tried to leave a town after saving a giant tree that was a living barrier for it's people and was promptly slapped in the face with a huge on screen warning !!"You're going the wrong way"!!
and was abrubtly turned around. I just as quickly withdrew my Tales cd from my 360... | video-games_xbox |
GAEMS is for Gamers, and Everyone Else. This is a bit long-winded sorry but bear with me as I'm trying to be thorough.
I preordered my Vanguard back on Sep 29th when I stumbled upon it while browsing Halo 4 stuff. I had previously seen the G155 unit in action, and while thoroughly impressed with that unit, I had always hesitated to pull the trigger because of minor qualms such as the viewing angle and the speakers not being quite powerful enough for my liking even though they were plenty loud.
When I saw in this product's description that the viewing angle had been overhauled to allow for viewing from just about any conceivable real-world use scenario, and that on top of that they upgraded the speakers for a more robust audio experience, I decided to bite.
Needless to say, I am not only not disappointed, but the unit and the overall customer service experience has exceeded my highest expectations and then some! I have already ordered a 2nd Vanguard from them.
Display
--------
My litmus test of the display was for bright-lighting scenarios. I placed the unit on my kitchen island with my Halo 4 console strapped in and ready to go and popped in the Halo 4 disc. My kitchen window at that time of day lets in direct sunlight, and even with the brightly lit room the contrast on the screen was absolutely superb, with zero glare on the screen thanks to the matte-finished outer layer of the screen. I wish my 50" plasma TV had this type of outer layer, seriously. I was even able to take a picture using my crappy cell phone camera of the cinematic with Dr Halsey without even being able to pause the playback and the picture came out crystal clear. My cell phone is not known for pictures that good of moving images, speaking further to the crisp resolution and glare-resistant display.
Audio
--------
You can read reviews all day but you seriously have to hear this thing to believe it. I've had high-end gaming laptops in the past the likes of Asus and Alien Ware, and these speakers blow most of those out of the park. You could use this unit as your home television if need be, the audio is THAT good. I'll almost be sad to have to use the headphone jacks when my wife is watching the big TV when I'm gaming, because I just loved the sound of these speakers. Now if I REALLY need to be truly nitpicky and find a single flaw, the bass isn't going to boom you out of your seat. Don't get me wrong. It's plenty loud even at 40% volume; full, rich, and deep and allows for appreciation of the full range of the orchestral score in any AAA game or movie, but don't expect the thumping you hear when some teenager drives down the block with 24" speakers in his trunk that are rattling his windows loose. I could not detect any audio distortion even at max 100% volume either. Why anyone would play with the volume THAT loud is beyond me, but you could if you wanted to.
Build Quality
-------------
The case itself feels very solid. While I wouldn't want to, I also wouldn't freak out if my unit gets dropped by some less-than-attentive airport security official. The pad under the Xbox feels like it would absorb any shock from short drops if it lands on its bottom, and if it lands on its side or top the straps have just enough stretch to absorb some shock without letting the Xbox come loose and damage itself or the screen. My one minor qualm with the case's build is the hinge between the base and the top portion that contains the screen. The hinge itself works fine, but it just feels a tad bit "soft" compared to the rest of the case. I can't describe it very well, but basically when the hinge rotates when you're closing the unit, it has a tiny fraction too much play in it, meaning you have to make sure you align the perimeter of the top over the edges of the bottom to properly and securely close the unit. I think this stems from the fact that the hinge ends a couple inches or so from the edge on either side, allowing for a slight bit of torque or twisting of the top portion as you're closing it. Perhaps in future iterations GAEMS could run the hinge all the way across the back of the unit to prevent this or rethink how the hinge mechanism works. This is a very minor qualm and doesn't bother me all that much, but I want to mention it so people don't think there's something "wrong" with their unit if they purchase one. Overall though the build quality is superb.
Portability
------------
This unit is definitely tops in portability. It's so light that even with my Xbox, power brick, and controllers in it I don't feel like my arm is going to fall off carrying it through the airport. I haven't travelled yet but I carried it around my neighborhood for about 30 minutes and had no problems. Even if your arms get tired, the shoulder strap that comes with the Vanguard would solve that problem. I've been looking around lately just to see what else is out there because I've never really known of similar items prior to seeing their G155, and there really just ISN'T anything else like it out there. Making console gaming portable was definitely an underserved market prior to GAEMS, but any new contenders in the arena are going to have a decidedly uphill battle on their hands because I can't brainstorm any better alternatives. Even pie-in-the-sky scenarios I try to come up are too far in the future based on technology limitations. For the foreseeable future, GAEMS is the end-all of what we as gamers both want and need in making our systems travel-ready. They have some other things in the pipeline that aren't out yet that will also take this to the next level.
Customer Service
----------------------
While I don't normally include customer service in reviews, I think it bears mentioning here. If you read the GAEMS Vanguard discussion here on Amazon you may see some "heated" posts by users upset that they didn't get their unit on Nov 6th as anticipated. This stems from two main factors: hurricane Sandy possibly disrupting shipping channels, and GAEMS being inundated with preorders far surpassing expectations and thus creating a demand larger than initial supply could keep up with. The Vanguard unit (perhaps not Halo-themed, but the same basic build) was originally slated for a 2013 release. GAEMS ramped up their schedule to meet a request from Microsoft and 343i to have the Halo-themed version ready for Halo 4's launch. With preorders growing more rapidly than production could keep up with, a bottleneck arose that led to some frustrations.
All that said, John (co-founder of GAEMS) personally answered numerous questions and went so far beyond the typical canned-response actions we've come to expect as consumers that it deserves praise. I had resigned myself to receiving my unit in mid-December rather than Nov 6th. To my surprise it came via overnight FedEx on Nov 8th. GAEMS made the decision themselves to make sure buyers got their units as fast as possible, including overnight-shipping most (to my knowledge) if not all of existing preorders as they became available. Overnight shipping is costly and cuts into their profit margin, but they are making sure they make the experience as pleasant as possible for us.
Beyond that, they actually WANT us to send back units that have even the most minor flaws such as 1 or 2 dead pixels. Every, and I mean EVERY high-def TV or display I have ever owned has had the stray dead pixel or 2. I just assumed it was normal and it doesn't bother me. I'm typing on a screen with a few as I write this. Despite the commonality of this, GAEMS says NO, if you have dead pixels send it back to us and we'll replace it. Usually you have to fight with a company, or at least REQUEST an exchange, even for more significant problems. For GAEMS to preemptively tell their customers that they want to make sure we swap out our units for even the slightest most insignificant of flaws so that we receive a "perfect" product speaks volumes. Speaking with John on the phone, I could tell beyond doubt that what they say about their company is true. They are Gamers building products for Gamers, not just suits out to make a buck. They will be my go-to for gaming-related gear from here on out. | video-games_xbox |
An excellent game of choices. The Good: Wonderful presentation, superb voice work, morality system really makes a difference, unique game play ideas
The Bad: Absurdly linear, over simplified combat, not the longest RPG, very shallow in content
Fable is a strange soul. Right off the bat this game is big in variety but no so much in depth. When you enter Fable don't start expecting the depth in games like Final Fantasy or even WoW because it's not there. The game is actually absurdly shallow and linear. What makes the game so great is the presentation, story, art design, and variety of game play mechanics never seen in an RPG before. You are a boy only known as the Hero who's family is killed in a Bandit raid and a powerful wizard, Maze, comes and saves you. You start the game as a young boy before all this to get a hang of the main game mechanics. After the fire you do the tutorial which is cleverly disguised as part of the story.
Once you finish you're training you can go out on side quests and main quests in typical RPG fashion. Leveling up is a bit different since you have Strenth, Skill (bows and stealth), and Will (magic), but you can only level up in the Mage's Guild. The game has a teleport system for easy transfer but it's not hard to get lost do to the game's absurd linearity. Unlike most RPGs there really no exploration here since you're stuck on a one way path everywhere you go. You can go through Demon Doors to find super special items under the Door's parameters and what not but there is only maybe 30 different types of armor and weapons and you can get the strongest half way through the game. There are little quirky ideas like mini games to earn gold such as Black jack, memory etc. You can show off your trophies from main quest missions to earn reknown and make yourself the top of gossip. All of this is grand and all but there is still little depth to the game.
The combat is satisfying yet oversimplified. While you can parry, attack, and use magic all in real time it just always feels too simple. You don't learn new combos but only new magic powers which always seem to feel weak. With ALL of this aside the best aspect is the morality engine in here. You can veer down a dark path then in key moments through the story suddenly alter that. It really does make a difference such as people will scream in your presence, cower under your feet, and praise you for your good deeds. You can even use expressions to attract ladies and get them to marry you for more gold income.
While all of this is great it's enough to be declared the best Xbox RPG ever made. I can't wait for Fable 2 and if you have an Xbox system you must own this. While The Lost Chapters doesn't have enough for people who beat the original new comers are warmly welcomed. | video-games_xbox |
My advice is to pass this game on by and not look back. This Homefront Revolution game is nothing but serious problems. I ordered the GOLIATH edition that came with season pass and added DLC extras. NONE of which worked!
The game itself is plagued with all sorts of issues. NOT just for XBOX one games but as well as other consoles. Aside from the DLCS not working from day the game has so many issues that litterally makes it impossible to progress through it. After spending countless hours since released and unlocking everything, you get to this fourth area and All missions are BLOCKED until the Hearts and Minds is completed, but my Hearts and Minds in my game WAS completed and shows 100% for everything except that Srike Points even though shows 4/4 (100%) it was still displaying colour red like it broke and didn't acknowledge to unlock the Hs&Ms . and still every missions is still blocked making the game unabe to progress any further..
In the previous area there waa also another mission that had a glitch where I was supposed to take out gas nozzles in a garage, which I DID and the area cleared but the mission says I DID NOT! and still shows up on my mission list as NOT complete!
The developer's forum is FULL of complaints and issues regarding this game since day one. All the developer posts as responses is "They are Sorry this is happening" and they claim that are releasing patches to fix ALL the issues! But they want to thoroughly test these patches out before releasing to make sure that they will not cause any more problems making everyone assume that they NEVER did that for the game itself and released it prematurely!
They did however released TWO patches just with in the past week. First one that claims makes the game to NOT freeze every time the game saves. Well that made it only worse because NOW the game freezes everytime you talk to another NPC in the game which never did that before.
Second patch supposed to fix the issue with the Hearts and Minds mission in the fourth area.. But THAT patch NOW corrupted MY game saves.. and NOT just mine but alot of other peoples on their forum! I can NOT load any of them anymore without the console crashing back to dashboard. . At least before the patch I was still able to go in and AT least shoot enemies and work on some of the achievements like KILL counts, to AT LEAST make SOMETHING of this game that I paid for! NOW i CAN NOT even do that!.
When I complained to the developers about what happend with the latest patch, they had the gull to send me a PRIVATE Message on the forum and request me to give them permission to access to my Xbox Live account to get my game saves. I am NOT going to allow a company that can NOT even release a working game and/or working DLCS from Release day to have access to my XBOX Live account, specially when the ONLY way for them to access it is from the Cloud and that is the ONLY way XBOX ONE gamers can keep backups. NO way i am SORRY they will NOT have access to that! I don't even know why they would even want to ask!
Starting the game over from scratch is NOT an option. After spending hours upon hours unlocking everything in the game to find out BLAM!! You are NOW stuck and can not prgress... WHO is to say that it will NOT happen again?! My advice to everyting reading my review, please READ thier forums first before even thinking about purchasing this game!
With the NON working DLC that i paid for, and a Game that had issue upon issue with it just within the first month since release and NOW is completely broken and unplayable and the LACK of support from the developers, I am NOW claiming this as a LOSS and will NOT ever recommend any of thier games to anyone! | video-games_xbox |
Has "X-Cellent" been over done? Too Bad. I have a special place in my heart for anything of the X-Men persuasion. In the video game world, the X-Men have been largely confined to fighting games. I, for one, have enjoyed them, but I just might be the only one. Luckily for me and the gaming community at large, the X Men have finally got a game that does them justice and is equally appealing to X Men fans and video game fans overall.
X Men Legends is a 3-d "Action RPG" It features great beat-em-up action with the depth of character growth and customization along the lines of a Dungeons and Dragons style RPG. It has been compared to the great Baulder's Gate Dark Alliance games. While it does have some similarities with those games it also stands apart as a great title of its own.
Combat is fast and intense, switching characters is handled easily and allows for some variety of play styles. If you wish, you can micromanage and switch characters continuously, or you can just pick your favorite X Men and keep with them for the most part. At first the prospect of controlling four characters seemed daunting, but its becomes second nature. Like Baulder's Gate games, defeating enemies gives your experience points (XP) that allow you to level up your character, gaining stat points (as in D&D) and upgrading and unlocking new mutant powers. The focus in on melee and many character can add their mutant powers to punches and kicks making it even more cool to beat people.
As in Baulder's Gate titles, there are items and "potions" that can be found and bought. The potions system works great and is pretty much identical to Baulder's Gate and Diablo and the like. They are even colored red and blue. Items come in the form of armor, backpacks and belts. While these items are important, they are not essential to have in order to have a powerful character as in other action RPGs. Characters upgrade enough on their own that you don't need the most powerful and expensive armor to complete the game. That works well as it fits in well wit the style of the game and the universe it takes place in.
There are some aspects of an RPG that don't mesh well with the X-Men Universe, mainly currency. A currency system feels out of place, but the "tech bits" used in the game are the best way available to make it fit in with the story.
So if this game had only its depth, great combat and above average graphics, sound and music, it would still be a great game for anyone. Luckily for comics nerds such as myself this game is OVERFLOWING with treasures for X Men fans. There are mini games that test your X Men trivia knowledge, you can peek into each X Man's room and look at little bits of their personal history. Characters act and talk "in-character," there are cameos by other characters. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the goodies that are in store for fans. The naming and empowering of unique armor and backpacks is done specifically for fans.
Of particular note is the ability to play "flashback" levels that let you play encounters from classic issues of the X Men comic books. My favorite one puts you in the original 60's uniforms back when Iceman looked more like Slushman...
X Men Legends finally give the greatest comic book ever a legitimate claim to game fame to match the status of their great movies and its a joy to play. Highly recommended | video-games_xbox |
Can Only get Better from Here. I'm not one to be obsessed with anything, but man can this thing do it all. I find myself using my Xbox one for everything because that is what it was built for. I play video games with great graphics, watch TV (Football usually) even while playing a game, and using Xbox fitness to get in shape while having fun. That's generally speaking; now let's get into more detail.
[Downloading] So the first thing right off the bat that you will notice is having to download many things including the update, apps, and video games to the hard drive. Luckily my internet speed is above average and I was able to download the update within 8 minutes, but the game downloads take closer to 25 minutes due to size. Fortunately the Xbox allows you to start playing once the game is half way done downloading, but not all features are ready by that point. Considering that you will not be downloading multitudes of games at once except for the very first time, it is not too much of a hassle. You can explore other features of the Xbox while you wait. 4.5/5
[Graphics] Whoa whoa.. whoa.. whoa.... whoa.... Louis this ain't my Batman cup. Alright but seriously, the graphics have blown my mind into a million little pixels of mixtures of RGB colors that create a satisfying sensation in my brain that increase my levels of serotonin. In translation, THESE GRAPHICS ARE FREAKING AWESOME! I currently own Madden, FIFA, and Battlefield. Battlefield showed an amazing difference in graphics that left my jaw dropping to the floor. The details in every inch, the vivid and accurate colors, the mass destruction, all brought the battlefield to life. Given that Battlefield is along with the very first Xbox one games, the road ahead is very long and the capabilities the Xbox has is sometimes hard to believe what is possible in the future. There is not much difference between the graphics of PS4 and Xbox one so that should not make you choose one or the other. But compared to the last generation, this is a huge improvement that is worth the money just for the graphics. 4.9/5
[Features] Well this is where the Xbox goes passed the PS4. Some things like Netflix and Amazon video are still there, it is the things like the ability to Skype, watch cable TV, do Xbox Fitness, and watch NFL games, and using snap, that really had me go towards the Xbox. There is almost no lag when watching TV through the Xbox which is something that was very well done. But the main feature that I find the most helpful is Xbox Fitness. There are not as many workouts as I had hoped but I think as time goes on they will continue to integrate more videos to work with the Fitness app. I was very surprised with how well the kinect was able to register my body movements. It was very fun how they would set a multiplier for doing to the move correctly and setting challenges in order to get achievements. This really makes exercising fun, which is something I REALLY need. The snap feature was also one of my favorites. I am able to play video games while another family member can be watching some TV, kind of like a PIP. A lot can be done with the Xbox, and I'm expecting many more apps to come out. 4.7/5
[Controller] Xbox 360 had the best controller by far. There was nothing better that I could ask for. Guess what, it got better. Xbox has been making a big deal out of the D-pad. It is true that it functions much better, but it wasn't worth making such a big deal about. The Bumpers on the controller are a little bit annoying. They take some getting used to because they are positioned slightly differently and make a very loud and annoying sound. The thumbsticks are smaller which is somewhat better and also have the edges a little tighter which keeps it from tearing like it did on my 360 controller. The positioning of the home button is much better in that it doesn't get in the way of the buttons. When my Dad plays, he might hit the center of the 360 button in the middle of the game, but this controller helps avoid that from happening. Overall it is similar to the 360 controller and I believe it is easy to get use to the new layout within a day or two. 4.6/5
[Design] Now this is an ugly ass Xbox, but that was kind of expected now wasn't it. The upside to this is that we will not have to go through the horrible red ring of death. It is capable of keeping cool and will not overheat even if on for 24 hours straight for every day, I would know. I'm sure within 2 or 3 years we will have a redesigned Xbox that is smaller, just like how the Xbox slim was released. Another upside is that the Xbox is very quiet which is quite surprising given the size and consumption of it. But until then, just be content with the fact that there is no more red ring. 3.5/5 (The 3.5 is mostly due to the upsides)
[Xbox, Record That] Well the Xbox is constantly recording the last 5 minutes of gameplay so you can easily record anything, either automatically or with a voice command. Unfortunately I have been having trouble with the voice command so I have been stuck having to do it manually. Sharing videos with friends is very easy thanks to this. Hopefully people will reduce the uploads of their uninteresting videos and keep it restricted to only the ones worth watching. 3.9/5
[Movies] Finally a blu-ray player, I have been wanting this for many years. Although I already had one in my living room, I could really use one in my basement. Sometimes you just want to watch a movie by yourself without being disturbed or by disturbing others, this is why this came in handy. Now that I get almost all my movies either streaming or Blu-ray, the Xbox is my number 1 movie player. It is true that you have to download an app to play the blu-ray, but it's free and easy. 5/5
[Kinect] Well, well, well, so you add a Kinect Microsoft and you bump up the cost 100 bucks more than the PS4?... NO PROBLEM! I am not disappointed at all. The Kinect is amazing; 10 times better than the old kinect. I can say anything and the kinect will do it with ease. Also, almost all games have at least some kinect functionality. Battlefield lets you turn your head in order to turn your head in battlefield when in a vehicle which is really cool. FIFA allows subs to be made just by saying it which is also cool. As time goes on, I feel that the kinect will be more and more useful in these games. In the end, this is a great addition to the Xbox. 4.6/5
[Overall] With everything the Xbox has to offer, there is no other thing I would rather have. I give it a 4.46/5 for now, but I think I will rank it higher as time goes by. It has been great for everything, mainly gaming with revolutionary graphics. And remember, it can only get better from here. | video-games_xbox |
Even If It's Not Exactly Like the Franchise It Ties Itself To, It's Still Not a Bad Game. I've never played any of the Gothic franchise on PC, but I've always heard people rave about how great the games were and about how open-ended and immersive they were. The most open-ended and immersive game I've ever played on a console was Oblivion and I loved it (still do from time to time), so I was curious when I heard that this was coming to the Xbox 360.
Now, from what I understand, this game takes a step away from the previous games in the franchise in order to, 1.) Appeal to a wider range of players than just the 'hardcore' ones devoted to Gothic and its particular quirks and, 2.) Give a company other than Piranha Bytes a chance to show what it can do with the Gothic title. Piranha Bytes took their original concept, tinkered with it a little bit and came up with Risen (itself an excellent game) and I've read that THAT one is almost exactly in the same vein as the original Gothic, albeit optimized for the console systems. Playing both, I can tell you there is a huge difference between these two.
I can see many players of Gothic dissing this game for taking such a departure from the originals and I can understand their point; if something's not broke, don't fix it. Still if you take this game and judge it on it's own merits (and I think that's what Jowood was trying to do by listing the main title here as 'Arcania: Gothic 4' instead of being JUST 'Gothic 4'), it's really not a bad one at all if you're the type that enjoys western-style fantasy roleplaying games.
GAMEPLAY-3 Stars
I'll say this right off the mark; the game is heavily directed in leading you to the end. It's got one big story and it WANTS you to focus on it. The island of Argaan that you find yourself on is quite large in area to explore, but it's partitioned off in segments related to how far you've progressed through the main quest and until you've completed certain plot points, you will NOT be going to those areas you can see off on the horizon. It does give you enough to do in each of those segments to take up anywhere from 3 to 4 hours of adventuring, whether it's for running around killing monsters to grind for experience or picking up ingredients to brew potions you can make when you receive the appropriate recipes or just mapping out the place and seeing the sights, although if you get tired of travelling by foot, there are teleportation circles that activate that you can use to reach any previously explored areas. The game won't let you kill any non-combatants, so you don't have to worry about any guardsman running after you for any accidental wrong-doing and apparently none of the communities you visit have any sense of personal property, because you can walk into someone's home in the middle of the day, pick the lock on a chest sitting in the middle of the living room in front of them and not have to worry about whether that person's going to raise a hue and cry for the city watch; they won't. There are merchants that you can buy from, but most of the best gear you get in terms of weapons and armor are when you progress along the main quest that's received from prominent figures in the various areas and, at least at first, your best gear equips automatically when you procure it and much of it has a regenerative function, so you heal over time. The main use of those merchants is in the side quests they can give you for the experience upon completion so you can level up.
The challenge level has been toned down in relation to other fantasy games (ESPECIALLY when compared to either Risen or Divinity: Ego Draconis or most Japanese roleplaying games). I never really felt threatened in combat except for a couple of times against boss opponents. Anytime else, no matter how badly I got swarmed, I went through the fight fairly easily. I'm assuming playing at higher difficulty levels mitigates this. Arcania also sets up invisible barriers when you come up on a ledge. You don't have to worry about falling off accidentally. You can JUMP off to the area below, if you choose to commit suicide (so to speak) if the fall is long enough, but the game engine protects you from screwing up by mistake. Usually, you injure yourself slightly and your gear will heal you back up in a short period of time. This is useful if you're weaving around in combat, but you want to be careful around certain objects, like the trees is the marshlands next to the Great Tree, because you'll find yourself shooting up those objects like you're on rails and have to jump back down, again possibly injuring yourself in the process.
The roleplaying aspects of this game are in the skills and spellcasting abilities you can obtain and improve over the course of your adventure. You won't find statistics like Strength, Agility or Intelligence which define your character (indeed, that seems to be the current trend in roleplaying games these days). You have three basic attributes: Stamina, Health and Mana. Stamina is the endurance you have to attack with special melee moves. Health is the amount of damage you can take before you die. Mana is the amount of magical energy you possess to cast spells. The skills are 'Mettle', which affects the damage you cause to opponents in a fight and your stamina recovery, 'Discipline', which determines how many blows in a row you can rain down on your enemy, 'Vigour', which is how much punishment you can soak up before keeling over and 'Precision' which governs your accuracy in ranged combat. 'Stealth' simply allows you to move around without attracting undue attention and possibly setting up ambushes against enemies. 'Zeal', 'Serenity' and 'Dominance' are all spell-like abilities which enable you to affect your environment and enemies with elemental forces. As you adventure, you gain experience. When you reach an experience threshold, you gain a level. This increases your basic attributes by a certain amount and you get 3 skill points to use to increase your skills and abilities. If you take the effort to investigate each area of the island in depth you can level up quite quickly. I was 18th level by the time I reached the area with the Great Tree.
STORY-4 Stars
The plot, while fairly generic, isn't half bad. The King of Myrtana, Rhobar III, has become possessed by dark forces and has launched a campaign to conquer the rest of the world. You play a lowly shepherd who's trying to woo the daughter of one of the village elders. In the process of performing various tasks to prove to her father that you are the right man to take care of her, your home is attacked and destroyed by the king's soldiers. Left destitute and without much hope, you travel to one of the neighboring islands on a quest for revenge against the king and, in so doing, start on your own path to greatness.
SOUND-4 Stars
The musical score is classically epic and fits your adventures quite well. The ambient tunes that are in the various establishments are appropriate and go a long way to set a fantasy mood. It differs depending on whether you're questing during the day or at night and becomes appropriately gloomy when travelling through the underground caverns. In short, a job well done.
The voice acting could use a little polish. Some of it is portayed with a classic British accent, while others are unmistakeably American. Most of it is fairly high-quality, although there are a couple of instances where it comes out as over-the-top foolish.
GRAPHICS-4 Stars
I personally found the visuals quite appealing in Arcania. The draw distance is pretty much line of sight for everything but the most minor rocks, shrubs and trees. I saw very little pop-up when I was running around. The texture mapping is extremely intricate and the graphics engine makes good use of dynamic lighting and shadows. The character models are better than most of the RPGs out there, although I do wish there was a little more variety for the generic NPCs.
The one major problem I found was in the frame rate. It holds at about 20 per second and doesn't seem to improve no matter how much or how little stuff is on the screen (the positive side is that it doesn't seem to WORSEN when you're attacked by multiple enemies). The stuttering animation of the environment can get distracting and gives my girlfriend problems with her epilepsy and she ends up having to leave the room after a while. Dreamcatcher might have delayed releasing Arcania until Spellbound had a chance to tighten this up a bit more. Maybe they'll release a patch for Xbox Live.
REPLAY-2 Stars
This game has ONE story to tell and not a whole lot else. Arcania doesn't offer a lot of variety in what you can do differently if you're inclinded to go through this more than once, and with a total play time of roughly 30 hours (when the typical length for a roleplaying game runs at about 70 hours), I find it hard to justify having to pay what the going rate on what the average game of this type runs for. Let's hope Spellbound develops a good bit of downloadable content to help balance this out or they may find the volume of sales not quite at what they'd wanted when it's all said and done.
OVERALL-4 Stars
Sure, I might have some complaints about Arcania (just like I have with most of what Dreamcatcher puts out on the market), but there are a lot of positive things about it too. For all its flaws, this was not a bad game. It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. It was entertaining enough for me that I greatly enjoyed roaming around the island of Argaan during my off-hours, and because I can get something different out of a game every time I play it, I could very well see myself visiting the kingdom of Myrtana again, revenging myself upon the King. One and a half thumbs up.
Peace. | video-games_xbox |
Zombies + Mall + mayhem & carnage = bloody fun time. Capcom's Dead Rising stands as one of the most fun titles to come out for the Xbox 360 since its initial release in late 2005. From the makers of the Resident Evil series for past console systems, Capcom has taken a new approach in adding to their growing library of zombie titles. Dead Rising is a semi-freeroaming action-horror game which takes the classic premise of George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead --- survivors trapped in the mall teeming with flesh-eating zombies --- and makes a fun and exciting game.
The game takes place Willamette, Colorado, population 53,594 where nothing exciting happens in town outside of visiting the local mega-mall which seems to dominate the entire town. Dead Rising uses a time-based mission system and the intro cutscene in the beginning of the game hints at this. You play as freelance photojournalist Frank West, who never fails to mention that he's covered riots, wars, and all sorts of dangerous events, who gets a tip from an unknown source that something big is happening in little old Willamette. The intro both introduces Frank West, flying over the town to bypass the military blockade and cordon of the town, and the controls for the photography mechanics of the gameplay. It's in this hands-on tutorial part of the intro that we see a bird's eye view of the crisis that has befallen Willamette. From there you're dropped onto the roof of the Willamette Mall where you meet one of the few survivors of the town. The rest of the game moves on from there at a very frantic pace.
It's the game itself that shines for Dead Rising. Despite a save system that could've been done much better (more on that later), Dead Rising's gameplay mechanics has quite abit in common with Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto games. From the get-go the player as Frank can just go down into the mall and begin killing zombies left and right, and everyway from Monday through Sunday. All manner of items stocked in the mall walkways and stores can be picked up and used either as a weapon, a change in clothing attire, and/or food. This is where Dead Rising will get most of its mention for being fun. When Capcom programmers decided to allow the player to use anything that could be picked up as a weapon they meant it. It's been reported in many sites and gaming publications that there's over 250 useable items to be picked up as a weapon. These items range from the gore-inducing lawnmower (an homage to Peter Jackson's Dead Alive zombie film), chainsaws, and excavators (a garden tool that has one of the bloodiest and funniest killing animation) to the ridiculously funny use for CDs, shower-heads, novelty masks, teddy bears and skateboards. There's also the more traditional weapons such as a pistol, shotgun, submachine gun, machine-gun, swords and axes. Being a game developed by Capcom, Dead Rising has more than a few wink-wink acknowledgement to other Capcom games such as Mega Man and Resident Evil.
One could spend all their time just killing zombies, but the strict time-based missions in the game might make zombie-killing take a backseat to actually solving the mystery of whats caused the zombie outbreak in the town. There's two types of missions Frank could try solving. There's the mandatory Case missions which deal directly with him trying to solve the mystery with-in the 72-hour time limit. Each case mission must be solved in a linear order to open up the next case. The second set of missions are named Scoops and act more as sub-missions that can be taken on and accomplished or ignored. They really don't affect the availability of further case missions. What they do give Frank are prestige points that can go a long way to levelling him up to gain more skills and abilities. Most scoop missions usually entail finding scattered survivors within the mall and leading them back to the safety of the security office near the roof. Some survivors could be armed with extra weapons Frank carries and defend themselves when attacked, and some survivors are so incapacitated that Frank must carry them to safety. While carrying a survivor Frank will be unable to use a weapon so this type of mission usually takes several tries before the player figures out the best path to safety. Like most game AI, the survivors need abit of constant attention from the player to make sure they're actually following you and not stopping every second to fight the closest zombie. It's not a gamebreaker but the survivor AI could've used abit more tweaking to make them follow much better.
As mentioned above Frank can level up to a level cap of 50 by acquiring prestige points (called PP in the game). Prestige points can be acquired through many different ways within the game. Taking pictures of different nature and quality will give Frank prestige points as high as several tens of thousand. Shots with poses that follow a certain genre gives more points than those that are just generic poses. Such genres that shots can be taken of are shots of burtality, horror, outtakes, drama and erotica. Erotica shots are pretty much just photographs taken of survivors and zombies (abit creepy) in sexually-suggestive poses. Brutality shots are usually pictures where extreme violence and fighting poses are framed and photographed. Horror is pretty much self-explanatory. Drama shots usually involve pictures with survivors and main npc characters in dramatic poses. Outtakes usually entail photographs taken of survivors and zombies involved in any sort of funny situations. Usually them slipping and falling down or wandering around aimlessly with novelty masks over their heads.
Other ways to gain prestige points will be to finish case missions and scoop missions. The PP reward for finishing part or all of each mission usually range from several thousand to as high as 50,000 PP. The high amount of PP reward for taking on and accomplishing these two types of missions go a long way to levelling up Frank. The most fun way of getting PP, though not as much and takes a long time, will be to kill zombies. For every 50 zombies killed Frank gets 500 PP and everytime Frank reaches 1000 zombies killed he gains 20,000 PP. It's a much slower path to gaining PP but it's surely the most fun of the three ways.
The main storyline in Dead Rising was actually a very good one. Like most games outside of the role-playing game genre, storylines were usually the weakest of all the games had to offer. In Dead Rising, Capcom was able to create an intriguing storyline that didn't rip-off the Dawn of the Dead story that the game was usually compared to. There's conspiracies, betrayals and just outright weirdness to help tie together the mystery of why Willamette, Colorado has suddenly gone zombiefied and why the U.S. military and government were quick to quarantine the whole area. There's not much that could be said as scary about Dead Rising. The game itself leans more towards comedic horror than outright horror. There were some cutscenes and plot developments that were downright creepy and scary, but most of the time you'll just laugh in glee at all the carnage you're causing within the mall. The characters of Frank West and those npcs he has to deal with in the context of the case missions were pretty well drawn both in animation and personality. As the game progressed and certain characters were put in danger it was hard not to feel saddened by such tragic events. It helps that the voice-acting in Dead Rising was pretty high quality. The spoken dialogue during the cutscenes were pretty well done and one could sense that Capcom wanted to really capture the cinematic tone they were going for with Dead Rising.
Now to the one glaring negative in Dead Rising. The save system in this game could be called unforgiving and that's saying it lightly. The game only allows for one save per memory unit. This means that you can only save the game once if you only have the 360 HDD as your memory unit. This means that once you save over a previous save then thats it. If you're current save doesn't give you the chance to finish your current case mission then you pretty much have to start the game over. This would sound terrible if not for one saving grace. Dead Rising allows the player to start the game over with all skills, abilities, levels and PP acquired to be transferred over to the new game. This lessens the impact of having to start the game over. It also helps in power-levelling Frank to a level high enough that you can breeze through the case missions. Starting the game over and over with stats and skills included also gives the player a chance to try different methods of solving a case until finding the one thats easiest to do. I know of players who have done nothing but just kill zombies and try on a few case and scoop missions to gain PP to level up then start the game over then repeat the cycle again. This makes the game much easier in the long run, but also takes time.
The graphics in Dead Rising is top-notch and really makes use of the 360's graphical power to put as many zombies on the screen as possible. There's barely any slowdown in frame-rate as the action on the screen gets heavy and crowded. The animation is not on the same level as Bethesda's Oblivion and Tecmo's Dead or Alive 4, but what lacks in near, photorealistic graphics it more than makes up for the high level of figures on-screen. The look of the mall itself was also well done. Each store and utilitarian room has their own unique look with most items rendered with enough detail to be recognized as either weapon, sustenance, etc...Dead Rising looks great when played on a HDTV-capable TV or computer monitor. The game itself utilizes Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound and each sound has a distinct quality to them that you can tell the difference between an acoustic guitar smashing noisily a zombies head into pulp to one where you use an electric guitar instead. The sound effects of zombie-killing makes great use of all the squishy, gooey, and splatter noise effects horror movies have been well-known for.
Overall, Capcom has created a great game with their action-horror/comedy Dead Rising. With a choice to either play the game in the free-roaming style of Grand Theft Auto to a more time-based, linear mission-style of an action game this game more than makes up for unforgiving save system its developers decided to give it. With summer time being the dead zone of new game releases, it's been a breath of fresh air to have a game like Dead Rising to play and take up hours of time before the start of the holiday season. Outside of the save system which keeps this game from reaching excellent status, Dead Rising is a great and fun game that should remain fun to pick up long after the player has finished its main mission. | video-games_xbox |
Most Underrated game of the year. If you ask anyone what their favorite game is, most of them will say either Halo, Call of Duty, or Bioshock which are good games in their own right. However, Mass Effect definitely wins the most underrated game award of the year. I was just casually surfing Amazon when I came across this gem, and decided to order it. It was well worth it, let me tell you. The game sequences are beautiful and the characters are so finely detailed that there is no need for cinematics. The plot is deep and rich, with twists and turns around every corner leading the gamer into new problems to solve and information to use when playing through the game. The controls are very easy to learn and master, giving you varying levels of control over your AI teammates so those who are new to the game can concentrate on playing while those who are already adept can use the AIs to the their best advantage.
The Mass Effect world could almost be compared to the world of Star Wars. Every object has its base in the Mass Effect history, and through an info bar in the start menu can be used to give the gamer a very in-depth account about the weapons, ships, armor, and prothean structures that are used throughout the game. This allows the gamer to become very involved in the Mass effect world. Combine that with almost no loading times and you get an experience that is hard to find in any other game.
There are very few cons about this game, but they can be annoying ones. Due to the complexity of the game and all the interactive people walking around, the game experiences many glitches. During a fight with the Matriarch my character was "Knocked out", forced to the floor and squiggling all over the place. This rarely happens, and all I had to do was load my last save. Two other things I dislike about Mass Effect is the autosave feature and the elevators. The autosave feature does do what it is designed to do, but doesn't save nearly enough. You really need to remember to save at regular intervals in order to prevent having to redo multiple areas. In Mass Effect the elevators are used instead of a loading screen, which contributes to the overall game experience but makes the elevator rides very, very long. (Plus, with their advanced technology you'd think that they might have faster elevators? Yes? Well, apparently elevator speed wasn't on the top of their priority list.) There is however, some amusing dialogue between your characters during the elevator ride which managed to grab a few smiles from me during some of the more comical moments.
Overall, Mass Effect is an amazing game with a whole universe that is begging for you to explore. If you like Role Playing Games, I strongly suggest you at least rent this game and try it for yourself. I bought it and was hooked from day one. | video-games_xbox |
Non-stop Adventure. GAME:
Disney Universe has a very unique thing about it (besides the name Disney in the title) it has unlimited replay ability! There is just so much you can do in this game! The basic idea is to go through different "sets" of Disney movies that use to be a part of a Disney tour where the characters could relive their favorite movies, thanks to bots and VIC (Virtual Information Cube). But suddenly all of the bots turn evil when HEX takes over Disney Universe. Now it is up to you to go around and stop HEX, save different cast members, and make the Disney Universe good again! The way you do this is by finding gold Micky coins (used to buy characters and sets) and completing the 3 levels (3 parts per level) in a certain world. Now the unlimited replay ability comes into play when to unlock ALL cast members you have to play each level twice! Each time the level has something new just for you courtesy of HEX. There is also rankings, and one of the achievements is to receive a gold trophy per level, which is fun and challenging. There is also little collectibles that you can collect to unlock bonus content (Art Concept, Music, Character Models) however you have to go out of your way to find these collectibles, but it is well worth it. Finally, you can upgrade your cast members, they start out at level one and go to level four. Each time you gain a upgrade for your weapon (for example, Mike from Monsters INC. starts out with a crutch with a glove (each weapon relates to character from movie that they were in) and then 2 levels later he upgrades to a Microphone which does 3xs amount of damage. There is also an achievement to upgrade all cast members from a certain world, so that is fun to achieve. The levels are fun and entertaining. It is great to see your favorite Disney/Pixar film come to life. The worlds include Pirates of the Carribean, Alice in Wonderland (newest movie), The Lion King, Monsters INC., Wall-E, and Aladdin. The only problem is that you die so easily in this game, no matter how hard you try, or how many high level damage attacks you do, you will most certaintly die, so if you get frustrated easily, you might want to try the demo first.
Overall 4\5
Controls: Controls are perfect and fluent, until you start driving. The driving controls tend to be a bit awkward, but you don't use them that much, so it is not that big of a deal.
Overall 4/5
Final Grade: 4/5 I defiantly reccommend this game to any Disney fan, gamer, or someone who wants to start. One of my favorite games on console, right next to Call of Duty, Assassins Creed, and Gears of War. | video-games_xbox |
2 Recruiting Tricks For You . NCAA 08 FOOTBALL is the best college football game out right now. It has some gameplay flaws, commentary glitches, stat compiling errors, my game tends to constantly freeze at times, I also don't like that you can't simulate to end of game in Legend mode, but I like the fact that you can takeover an existing palyer in the Legend mode, gives you a chance to create the perfect legend.. If I am blowing out a team and my coach won't sit me, I AM TIRED OF PLAYING!! They should have kept the Heisman presentation, they may have, but I have not seen it. But this is what I like, the RECRUITING, it is time consuming but it is worth it.
Here are two tricks that I have learned:
How many times have you created a super 5 star prospect directly for your team and he always signs to a big time school. NO MORE !! All you have to do is go to coach options, create a coach and then find a job. SEE when you create a coach he can go to any school out there. Once you do this, you can manipulate any schools recruiting board ( and depth charts if you want ), remove the prospects you want from their recruit boards and add another player. This will take away their interest and they will maintain the recruit board. TRUST ME the recruit can hate your guts but in the end, IF YOU ARE THE ONLY SCHOOL OFFERING HIM A SCHOLARSHIP, HE WILL SIGN !! You can tuggle teams by pressing Y , you can delete the coach or coaches once done and the default coach will return to the team and maintain the board you made. Like I said it is time consuming but it's worth it, you can have the top recruit class every year. Be sure to watch your recruits late in the season, because some schools will show up again with offers when they loose other recruits, just do the create coach again you can do it anytime. Make sure you do this in the beginning of every season, because in off season recruiting, these same teams can show up again, and you won't be able to control it. If this happen, you want a player to have full interest in your school. If you do it during the season the better chance they will sign during the season.
If you want to find the strong pitches for recruits, just save dynasty status, find pitches for recruits and just load the dynasty everytime you find the right pitches. THEY NEVER CHANGE! Hard sell the ones you are good at. BUT THEN AGAIN IF YOU DO THE OTHER TIP THIS DOES NOT MATTER !!
I LOVE this game total control ! Needs to get rid of the gameplay bugs. I hope that whole real roster bug is not true, don't know yet, but I give it 4 stars so far. | video-games_xbox |
great game, too bad it's unplayable. Lost Odyssey is essentially what Final Fantasy 13 should have been. The combat system is reminiscent of Final Fantasy 9, where you have characters with different classes, and you learn new abilities from equipment. I found it fun (up to the point where you get the game-breaking spell Gamble, which can one hit kill most enemies up to the fourth disc). The story is somewhat lackluster, but the game makes up for it by featuring a wonderful cast of characters. Seriously, this is the only game I've ever played where the comic relief character was actually LIKABLE. I didn't even play to progress the story; I just played to see what crazy, ridiculous thing Jansen would do next. Probably the most notable feature of this game is the "thousand years of memories." Many of the characters are immortal, and you can go about trying to recover their memories over the past thousand years. Sure, they get a little repetitive after the first dozen or so, but if you don't cry during at least one of them, it's because you have no soul.
So why did I give it one star? The came comes on four DVDs, and Microsoft decided to package the game in a standard size box. That means you have three CDs in the standard size case, set on a single spindle. I played through those three discs with no problems. The fourth disc didn't fit on the spindle, so they packaged it in a separate paper sleeve in the same box. Apparently this sleeve left some kind of residue on the disc, because my fourth disc is unplayable. (If you do a quick google search, you'll find this is a common problem.) I tried cleaning the disc several times, but it's unreadable. I contacted Microsoft, figuring they'd replace it for me, being that it was their packaging error in the first place. Nope. They offered to sell me another copy, which would in all likelihood have the exact same problem. I put about 50 hours into the first three discs, and now I'll never know how the game ends. I really can't recommend this game in its current, unplayable state. | video-games_xbox |
Sonic 06. Sonic 06 is an ok game but has lots of flaws 1. characters 2. story 3.glitches and we begin with number 1.
1. Character's
The game has many characters but in story mode u can only play the selected characters
Silver is a new chracter but i call him Pothead the porcupine. He has pyschic powers and is SLOW!!!!!!! Then there's Blaze from Sonic rush with speed, double jump and a fire dance attack, Shadow has fighting moves and sonic's got mach speed sections.
2. Story
I call this the game that never happens after Shadow the hedgehog cause i feel this game is a time paradox game and has lots and lots of story. Might aswell try to talk about it.
In Soleanna (inspired by Venice) the Festival of the Sun's opening ceremony is disrupted by the arrival of Doctor Eggman who seeks the Flames of Disaster from Princess Elise and captures her, before Elise tosses the blue Chaos Emerald to Sonic the Hedgehog who arrives there. He meets Miles "Tails" Prower and they rescue Elise, Tails distracts Eggman's robots while Sonic and Elise escape. Meanwhile, Shadow saves Rouge the Bat, who dropped the Scepter of Darkness that unleashes Mephiles the Dark, a creature in Shadow's image who reveals Shadow sealed him within the scepter ten years ago, before opening a wormhole which transports Shadow and Rouge to the future and post-apocalyptic world that is caused by the Flames of Disaster and a fiery monster named Iblis. There, Silver and his friend Blaze the Cat meet Mephiles who reveals Sonic as the Iblis Trigger, and sends the two back in time using the purple Chaos Emerald. Silver and Blaze are separated upon arrival, with Silver witnessing Eggman's attack on Soleanna and Sonic's departure. He meets Amy Rose who accompanies him to find but defends Sonic when they find him, while Eggman recaptures Elise. Sonic flees and meets with Tails and Knuckles the Echidna, before Eggman lures them into a trap sending them into the future where Tails discovers Elise and Eggman died one day before Iblis was released. Shadow and Rouge find a shutdown E-123 Omega, and reunites with Sonic, Tails and Knuckles. Using two Chaos Emeralds, they return to the present. Shadow faces Mephiles, but learns in the future he was imprisoned by Omega, blamed for the destruction. Shadow and Omega returns to the present-day.
Shadow and Silver travel ten years into the past and learn Iblis and Mephiles are parts of the Duke of Soleanna's project to harness the power of the city's god Solaris. The Duke gives Shadow the Scepter of Darkness, which he uses to seal Mephiles, while Silver and the Duke seals Iblis into a young Elise's tears, the dying Duke asks his daughter not to cry for her tears could release Iblis. Sonic fails to reach Eggman's destroyed ship with Elise inside it, but Silver sends Sonic back in time so he can save Elise. With Shadow, Rouge and Omega defeats Mephiles' clones, Silver and Blaze (at the cost of her life) stop Iblis in the future.
After surviving Shadow's attack. Mephiles holds up the purple Chaos Emerald in use and kills Sonic with an energy blade behind him, causing Elise to cry and unleash Iblis. Mephiles bonds with Iblis, recreating Solaris to rip the time-space continuum apart. As everyone mourns Sonic's apparent death, Silver notes that seven Chaos Emeralds' power would revive Sonic, telling everyone to find all of them. As they are all gathered, Elise gives Sonic CPR which allows him to transform into his super form who copies some of his powers to Shadow and Silver, and together they defeat Solaris. Sonic and Elise go back in time, finding Solaris' original form as a single white flame. Elise blows out the candle to erase Solaris from existence and the story's events so that Solaris can befriend Elise again, rebooting the time-space continuum. The game ends with Sonic watching Elise in the festival to show signs of recalling their friendship.
3. Glitches
There are many that are hard but i will explain 1 when u first fight Silver as Sonic u get to a certain part near a wall and silver will throw u outside the boss fight zone and some times in the air to the point it game breaks.
Music is great the final boss fight u can use Super Sonic, Super Shadow, and lastly Super Silver.
Finally the game has flaws and story problems but otherwise an ok game | video-games_xbox |
Upgraded from an Original Xbox One to the One X and couldn't be happier. I decided to upgrade my Xbox One Halo 5 Edition, as the original Xbox One was bulky(Like more of the first gens are). I was able to get all the Enhanced content pre-downloaded and moved to my 8TB hard drive before the One X arrived.
I received the One X early in the morning and opened it up. It looks very nice, and I love the smaller footprint and love that the power supply is fully built in now. I plugged it into my LG 4K UH8550 TV and started the setup process. The One X has a nifty special intro when powering it it on, so that was pretty neat. I also liked the fact that it had a physical power button unlike the original Xbox One. Once setup, I started the transfer process of all my games to the One X. This took about 2 hours to move everything. There was 20 games, but not all of them had Enhanced assets.
One thing that I don't like(at the time of this writing), is that there is no easy way to just see if the 4k assets downloaded. Microsoft says to just change the drop down to Enhanced and that will show you everything you have that is Xbox Enhanced. I feel that they should make it easier to see if the assets have actually been downloaded, something like "4K Assets Downloaded", or show the 4K assets as a download under the game itself.
One of the first games I tried was Gears of War 4, as looking at the 4K and HDR videos looked amazing. It delivers. The quality of graphics is amazing. I am normally a PC player, but I can say that these graphics are on par with some of the best PC games. Next, I tried out Halo 5 in 4K, which also looked fantastic. I can't wait to play through the campaign again. In terms of speed, this system is so much faster than my original Xbox One. It install games faster, it boots up faster, loads games faster. Just...faster.
Another thing I thought was a mild disappointment and which is why this is only a 4 star review is that this being a "special" edition, I wish they would have done something a bit nicer than just a gradient color effect on the console itself. The box that it came in was a throwback to the original Xbox, I think they should have done that to the console itself. That would have been a great special edition.
On a side note, I have noticed users complaining about the size of the HDD, and why they don't make it an SSD with 2TBs of storage. This would drive the price of the console up significantly. SSDs are getting cheaper, but a decent 500GB SSD will still run you around $120, and a 1TB SSD is around the $300 range. The Hybrid HDD is a happy balance, plus if you need more space, you can find cheap external drives to plug in. Wasn't that what everyone was complaining about on the 360? You couldn't use external drives?
In the end, I am happy that I upgraded to the One X, and can't wait to play some old games with new 4K graphics, and can't wait for new games to come out and take advantage of the new system. | video-games_xbox |
Exactly what the REAL reviewers said Down Right Broken. So this was supposed to be apart of Sonic's so called comeback ( I thought Unleashed was his come back what no?)but out of all the crappy Riders series games this one takes the cake. True the Kinect sensor seemed like a great Idea for this game as a matter of fact it would have made this game better than even Colors but sadly it didn't and why you ask well lets begin. First off the controls are very unresponsive I was right in the middle of a race and just like that it didn't respond to my actions it took me 4 times to get a race right. And when you are getting the controls right it can be absolute murder on your body you have to lean forward to accelerate and if you lose balance you lose control same goes for turning you have to lean to the side and to get a perfect turn and if you go to quickly once again you fall and fail. Tricks can be diffacult as well unlike the previous riders games you just simply push a button with this you have to jump and move and time it right after so many attemps at a perfect trick I ended up with a sore back. Then theres the very panned 2 player mode which may make the game a little bit fun but if you are too close its a nudge to the face a kick to the side and another fall and fail not to mention the hold hands feature can get a litte weird just saying (unless your playing with a girl. Now lets move on to the story this story is basically like every other riders story corny and crappy and its based off a so called news cast of a race aside from the usual babalyon garden story that made the riders games unique and unlike the animated cutscenes these cutscenes are just pictures of the characters talking on a news screen (real creative SEGA not!). This game is also testing ground for the new voice cast which is a hit and a MAJOR MISS now I will admit the following voices in this game are good Rouge Cream Vector Storm Wave (In a way) and of coarse Dr Eggman but the rest like I said before unfit! Sonic sounds like the 30 year old surfer jerk SEGA wants him to sound like and thinks will be a key element (Not!) with annoying shouts Tails sounds like Sakura pretending to be a boy (like a said wasn't bad at first but tends to lose momentum) and Knuckles a whiny version of his pervious voice Dan Green (who was far more supirior IMO)Amy OMG just listen to a few lines and you will see what Im talking about Shadow like a old man serial killer streatcing his sentences and Jet like a punky new yorker (when he says lets go sonic the hedghog get ready to cringe)but I really have nothing against these actors most of then play my favourite anime characters but when it comes to Sonic the 4kids cast was Superior in every way (well most of them anyway). Now I'll admit the graphics and the music especially score major points for this game but when you get down to the basic game play its DRB (Down Right Broken) with unresponsive controls that leave your body strained corny cutscenes that make you switch to Japanese of mute or skip are what makes this game so bad so take most reviewers like on the angery joe shows advie and either don't bother or get a refund. | video-games_xbox |
A lot of fun, but not without frustration. Obviously if you're looking to buy this game now, you've probably seen it and know what it's about. I say that for the most part it's fun. It's "Call of Duty" meets "Mirror's Edge" without the complex parkour mechanics that "Mirror's Edge" required. All you have to do is hold down one button and you're parkouring your way like Alex Mercer in "Prototype."
The class system is interesting. Everybody has their own pieces of equipment that they can use, and their own job on the battlefield. If teammates work cooperatively, people can use the abilities of their own class to a great advantage and get a lot of experience points, and lead their team to an easy victory.
The "Body Type" concept is also interesting. Because the came revolves around parkour and guns, the "body type" concept makes the combat and parkour realistic. You can either choose to be a heavy, muscular man with a slow sprint speed and limited parkour abilities. Yet you will be able to handle heavy, damaging machine guns and be able to sustain great damage. Or you can be skinny, really fast, and be able to run and jump to places that other body types can't. But at the same time, your guns won't do much damage and you will not be able to sustain much damage at all. Or you can be somewhere in the middle.
However, there are quite a lot of things that are frustrating and confusing about this game. Most of them have to do with the pros and cons of certain classes.
1. The SMART system is nothing innovative. It is simply the first time that a video game has adaptive parkour for a first-person shooter.
2. Why do "Soldiers" (technically everyone is a soldier on the battlefield) carry and set the bombs necessary for destruction objectives, yet Engineers have the landmines?
3. Certain classes get to carry special types of grenades. Soldiers get to throw napalm, flashbang, and molotov cocktails. Operatives get to throw caltrop grenades and sticky bombs. Medics get to throw grenades that heal teammates in the surrounding area. And Engineers are strictly limited to regular frag grenades. It shouldn't make a difference what class you are. You should be able to choose which grenades you want to carry with you. Obviously, you shouldn't be able to carry EVERY type of grenade with you, but you get the idea.
4. While on the subject of grenades, Soldiers are the only class that can buy a special ability to reload their grenades faster and do more damage with them. However, these special abilities only work with regular "throw grenades." These special grenade abilities are negated if you use a grenade launcher attachment, which is much easier to use because you can actually AIM in the general direction where your grenade will be, and they explode on impact, rather than on a timer. They should allow EVERYONE to have these grenade abilities and use them whether they choose to throw them, or shoot them.
5. They need to get rid of the "recharge time" for grenades. You should simply have a limited supply of grenades, throw them whenever you want, and be able to scavenge them from dead enemies and teammates or retrieve a greater supply at a supply command post. BTW, soldiers are the only class that can scavenge from dead enemies (if you buy that special ability).
6. When you're playing with just the A.I., your teammates seem primarily concerned with capturing the command posts, secondary objectives, and don't care AT ALL about completing the main objective. Enemy A.I., however, seem to be much more intelligent and actually work as a team.
That's the end of my criticism. So, when playing this game, I have a few suggestions.
1. Definitely consider the class you are in when choosing a body type. Certain bodytypes work for certain classes.
Soldiers: medium or heavy. Soldiers definitely need to focus on dealing damage on the battlefield. Buy the kevlar buff and the armor piercing ammo buff and the grenade buffs. A heavy soldier with the right gun can definitely deal some damage. You also need to be able to sustain damage while planting a bomb.
Engineers: medium or heavy: Engineers also need to sustain damage while doing their repair and build objectives. Their roles on the battlefield will also require some combat because you can stop in the middle of a repair/disarm objective without losing progress, so they will need to deal damage also.
Operatives: medium or light: Operatives will need to get to their assigned places quickly. They need to move fast while looking for downed opponents to interrogate and impersonate. Also, when an operative successfully completes a hack objective, they will often need to rush somewhere with the stolen data, so speed is required. This role will require some combat, but not as much as engineers or soldiers.
Medics: medium or light: Medics need to be quick! Their primary goal is reviving downed teammates and buffing health. A medium body type might do well when escorting a slow-moving person, but a light body type is better overall because you must reach downed teammates in time. If the medic is doing his job, his role as a combatant will be very minimal. | video-games_xbox |
Let me save you hours of research. First, let me say these are worth the money. And they were also the cheapest. I got them for $139 here on Amazon. Must have been on sale because they went back up the day after me and a friend got them. I haven't heard any other headsets so I can't say Brand A or B sucks or is better than these. I know these sound great and they do what I was looking for: quality 5.1 surround sound that stays in my ears. No matter which headsets you look at, someone thought the other pair was better. So you can be your own judge and buy what fits your needs and budget. If you got the money, just get these. You will be happy.
If you want to know which headsets are better (i.e. Turtle Beach X41, Astro A40, or these) the only true way to know is to:
1. Go to a place that has them for testing, which I don't know of a place.
2. Buy all the headsets you're interested in and test them extensively.
If you are like me you want to know which is worth your money. Let me say this. Unless you are a complete audiophile and need the best sound possible for the most money then it may take lots of tests, which one reviewer has done on here. But if you want great 5.1 sound with the ability to distinguish directions of where sounds are coming from then these are all you need. I spent 3 days looking between these and the TB X41's and a couple other brands that weren't as popular. I don't care if they are wireless or not. I don't sit 25 feet away from my XBOX. I sit about 6 or 7 feet and this cable doesn't impede me or anyone else from getting around the house and it is more than long enough. I also didn't want to spend close to $200 for the X41's either (also, if you have a plasma TV I read the X41's can cause problems). I'll put it like this. I hear gunshots, I run to them. I hear explosions and helicopters and everything else in the game as they sound. I actually looked to where I heard the helicopter. I didn't need the map to distinguish where it was at and then spend 5 seconds trying to spot it in the air. And COD players know how valuable a second can be between death and your next killstreak. I know that I hear guns with a distinct crack and I hear footsteps from around the corner, and I know that they are getting closer or going further away and if they are on my right or left. These things will pinpoint any sound within a reasonable distance.
Comfort. This is very important. These aren't too heavy or anything. They fit very nice and engulf my ears like a headset should. I like the cloth which adds a nice feeling to it. They can get warm after a while but I think any headset can do that. If you keep your ears enclosed, your body develops heat naturally. So expect your ears to get warm after a while.
Now....
I got these due to late night gaming (wife) plus wanting to experience what others were telling me about the sound quality of using 5.1 headphones. I got these mainly for Black Ops. Let me say that these are great headphones. Out the box they worked as advertised. Took me a few minutes to hook the wires up but not bad at all. There is only one wire that you will have from your headphones to the 360 or PS3 with an in-line audio adjuster for your surround sound. The volume is adjustable for each channel. I must say that I love these headphones. They bring out lots of sounds you won't hear with even a surround sound unless it's cranked up, which I can't do because I have neighbors in my apartment. As for sounding "tinny", I don't know. The sounds are the same as they are coming out of your TV or surround sound speakers. Plus, I don't have the time to analyze those small details. I just know where they are coming from and that I need to get there so I can shoot people. It will definitely help you pinpoint where people are in terms of hearing shots, explosions and footsteps. For some, it may be a little difficult at first because the sound is right there in your ear. I wasn't used to it at first but after a match or two it gets easy. The clarity is there, the bass is there, and everything else that you really want in a pair of headsets is there. Also, for those who may read about hissing. I didn't hear any hissing. The only noise I heard during silence was while the match was loading. It makes small beeps like a hearing test or something, but when the game starts all you will hear is the game.
One more thing. If you don't have an optical output on the back of your 360 (which the slim's have, but not most of the older 360's) then you will need an audio dongle, which I bought on here for $12. Optical output is necessary for these headphones to work due to the audio processor.
Update: I no longer use these due to Tritton's lack of customer support. 5 emails (I live overseas) and no replies. I can't believe they don't respond. And I found from reading others complaints that there phone system isn't much better. But I'm sure people have had better experiences than me. I just needed my in-line controller replaced, but could not get a person to reply. These are good in their own way, but the PX5's are definitely better. | video-games_xbox |
Wary? (initial review. I see now there's a review but I thought I'd post mine for those with the same concerns I had.
For the longest time, this title didn't have any reviews and that made me hesitate for a while before I bought it. Not because I worried the game wouldn't be worth it - I was always going to buy it regardless of how well the game scored - but because I was worried maybe the game wouldn't work or the seller wasn't legit and just selling a bad bootleg or something. After some research I did learn this game would play on my console. And I looked at the other titles pqube has sold before I bought it. For reference, I live in America.
First, pqube delivered two weeks faster than projected. It was due to arrive 9/30-10/14,and it's only 9/17 and I just got it.
Second, it is a legitimate copy. Proper case and shrink wrapped. Only difference from what I'd get from any American store is the rating system on the box is the UK equivalent of the ESRB.
I popped it in my xbone and it installed just fine. I've only begun playing the actual game but so far it's running perfectly.
I know this isn't much about the game itself but I thought I'd quickly review the seller and assuage any fears of region locking for anyone worried about getting ripped off or not even being able to play a UK game on a US console.
So, for any Canadian or American fans who don't want to wait for whenever this game releases in our countries, it's safe to buy here. And for $35 (shipping included), it's cheaper than it'll probably be when it DOES release here.
As far as the game itself goes, like I said I haven't played much yet. I plan to update this when it get further in or finished.
However, initial reaction: graphics have improved greatly from C&P, the last title. Any critic reviews seem to focus on how different Sherlock looks but he's still recognizable compared to Watson, who appears to have aged backwards 15 years. This isn't necessarily bad, just a bit of a shock. A thing I really like so far is that you can adjust the difficulty now. I felt like C&P held the player's hand a bit too much. | video-games_xbox |
Ive had the Elite controller since release its a great controller but i cant stand how easily broken down . Ive had the Elite controller since release its a great controller but i cant stand how easily broken down it already is. When said made for "PRO" gamer that means 5-10hrs of game play a day. However the controller isn not handling 3-4 hours of game play a day and little on weekends very good. 1 Paddle spot is mostly worn out and works very little making me remap/relearn paddles again this is indeed where the button clicks inside the controller wearing down. The rubber grip on the right side is also starting to come lose and giveaway with the texture pattern on them all but gone. The controller does have some syncing issues, however after returning it to Microsoft and getting it back the issue has gone away (They blamed faulty hardware). This controller will overall improve your FPS experience due to being able to aim and use A,B,X,Y without taking your hands off that aim stick, however i find the controller utterly nonsense for anything besides FPS since its the only real game you need be able to aim 24/7 along with jumping.
Pros
Paddles
Hair Pin triggers
Different height joysticks
Cons
Paddles wear down fast
Rubber Side Grips becomes almost super slick after awhile
Not good for basically anything besides shooters.
Hair Pin triggers not supported for 70% of games (This list games from FPS, MMOs to RPGS)
Overall this controller is great for FPS games if thats what you mainly play like i do, i don't think its worth 130$+ for anything other than FPS to be honest. Overall its 3 stars due to the fact it was marketed for a "Pro Player" When in reality the features ARE but the overall quality of the materials and controllers are far far from it by any means. If you want a little edge up with smaller trigger pulls and able to aim 24/7 i would overall buy it if you have the spare cash. | video-games_xbox |
Final Fantasy Fan says Fan-tastic. I've found something to love about every Final Fantasy game I've played thus far, and FF13 is no different. I really appreciate Square Enix's latest trend of shaking up the gameplay with each new release while still hammering out some of the best looking RPG visuals for that particular generation. For example I was head-over-heels for the graphics in FF12 and absolutely loved the real-time battle system because of how unique and refreshing it was.
FF13 continues that trend in a most excellent manner. The new paradigm system has AI controlling and choosing character attacks for the most part, thus "dumbing down" the gameplay in a certain sense. However, the upshot is that the action is engaging and frenetic with the AI constantly performing some of the coolest looking attacks I've seen to date.
Because of the game's extensive attention to visual detail and motion, the combat is fast-flowing and awesome to behold. Since I personally play RPGs precisely because I usually consider them to be mindless forays where I get to sit back and appreciate all the gorgeous artwork, the "dumbing down" aspect and the increased action that results are both welcome in my book.
FF13's story is also actually quite good. It was surprising to find myself swept away by the story and the characters, eager to find out what happens next. That hasn't happened to me since Final Fantasy 8... (I unfortunately did not play 9) so it's been quite a few years.
All-in-all, a most excellent purchase for anyone who delights in RPG-romps, especially at $20.
A few more thoughts: if you prefer better visuals and own a PS3, consider getting the PS3 version of the game instead. While most console games typically look better on an Xbox 360, in the case of FF13 it was originally made for the PS3 and then later ported to the Xbox. Apparently the port was not of the best quality, and the result is that the PS3 in-game visuals are supposedly crisper and cleaner. Additionally, because the Xbox version uses DVDs, the game is split up into 3 discs with certain assets (audio and video, like the CG cutscenes) compressed. When playing, I noticed that the CG cutscenes had artifacts present, which is typically the product of lossy compression. I'm inclined to believe (based on my readings) that the PS3 version, being on a Blu-ray, maintains completely uncompressed assets and thus the CG cutscenes have zero artifacts, like Blu-ray movies. Lastly, apparently some small cutscenes were removed from the Xbox version to save space, so take that as you will. Nevertheless, on my HDTV, the Xbox version still manages to look stunning, CG cutscenes and all.
One advantage of the Xbox version however is that you can edit your save file far more easily. Apparently the PS3 saves have delirious amounts of encryption on them to prevent editing, but the Xbox saves can be easily extracted and modified using existing tools. Just sayin' ;) | video-games_xbox |
You have to be joking. Like many others, I was very excited about this game. However, I quickly saw reviews piling up after its release, and they were not good ones. Yet I still persisted. I mean, it's Lord of the Rings. It can't be that bad...
Can it?
It can. I was horrified to find out that for most of the models they just took the same faces and gave them different hair and clothing. Landscapes are vast, but are relatively devoid of detail. Actually, landscapes actually aren't that big. You'll find fences you can't jump over, invisible walls that keep you on a set linear path... Hell, you can't even jump in the water! These big empty lands are filled with the same creatures over and over again. There's little variety. Lots of wolves, lots of spiders, lots of trolls, lots of evil plants, but they're even lacking different skins to give you some feel of variety. Then it's all topped off by ho-hum boss battles that are extremely repetitive in almost every sense. The graphics are decent at the very most. The whole game feels very bare and empty. The only time the graphics are truly taken advantage of is when you enter the mines of Moria, and even then they could have used some work.
One of the most annoying things in this game is that you feel like a freakin' errand boy. You'll spend your first moments in the game running around and dealing with a bunch of miscellaneous wastes of time. It gets even more ridiculous when it comes to your first evasion of the black riders. You reach the gate to leave, only to find out that it's broken, forcing you to run all the way back to complete some unnecessary task. Um, excuse me, but the gate is at freakin' shoulder height. Are you going to tell me you can't hop over it? Christ, you can even crawl through it. This is the same illogical triteness that sometimes plague games like Resident Evil. You've got an an explosive, but you can't open a locked wooden door?
Voice acting is horrible and characters often lack personality. Frodo mumbles on in his typical deadpan, Merry and Pippin are squealy annoyances, Aragorn is hollow and monotonous... It's as if the game made it an objective to completely blow off all the character development the book and the movie made. Along with the thoroughly dead and lifeless characters is the shoddy transition of things. One minute you're in a wagon safe and sound, the next minute your gang of retards are all lost around the woods for no apparent reason at all. The transitional devices are a joke. You're camping and given little idea as to what to do. So the game expects you to run around and explore the are for relatively no reason. Go down the hill and collect an item. Whoops! Frodo seems to magically notice (from the bottom of the hill) that everybody is gone! So then you run around a bit more and waste time trying to find your buddies. In fact, that's basically what the first part of this game. Save your pals from a bajillion different situations because they're so damn incompetent.
To make it short: This game is a let down. It's a disappointment in almost every respect. What really angers me is that the developers have the nerve to take the most prominent and amazing fantasy classic and gunk it up to the way they see fit. How people here can call this game "good" is beyond my comprehension. I think anybody who can see this game as worthy of purchase would have to be insane. Yes, this game is for die hard Tolkien fans. That's because nobody else would put up with this load of crap. | video-games_xbox |
Good quality, good fit to stock controllers, minor swap fit to OEM Elite sticks. I purchased this kit to upgrade the stock controller (w/3.5mm jack) that came with my Xbox One to be interchangeable with the Elite controller I purchased later, it is very good quality but the fit isn't quite as good as the Elite OEM parts.
With some minor tweaks I was able to get them to work as well as the Elite OEM parts, but there is a slight issue with using them as the left stick on the original controller since the controller is not calibrated to use magnetic sticks (all Xbox One controllers use hall effect sensors for the triggers, ideally recalibration of the left trigger would be ideal if using with these stick bases).
Another reviewer noted that his standard Xbox One controller left trigger always activated when he put in these, in my case it was the opposite, the left trigger had a larger deadzone. The sticks have no magnets, so the polarity of the magnets in the bases doesn't matter, I suspect that the ones he received just had the magnets mounted in the opposite polarity to the ones I received (or the controllers themselves had opposite magnetic polarity in the triggers and was just factory calibrated to compensate).
I was able to get my controller to minimize the deadzone problem by raising up the stick on the potentiometers by adding some UV cure resin (Laserweld/Bondic) inside the stick base hole. I was also able to get them to fit the OEM Elite sticks better by adding a thin coating of that same resin inside the grooves of the base (Laserweld cures to a slightly rubbery consistency, so it eliminated the stick wobble). I also coated the inside walls of the base so that it would have a better fit to the potentiometers (this is not a knock on these sticks, I did the same thing to my OEM elite stick bases)
Summation points:
1. Fits well to the controller pots (as good as OEM)
2. Same feel as Elite OEM components
3. Decent interchangeability with the stock Elite OEM sticks/directional pad (very minor slack/wobble, correctable though)
4. Almost visually indistinguishable from the Elite OEM components (internally the sticks alignment wedges have different ramp angles, and the rubber on the stick ends has slight casting flash).
5. Great looking upgrade to the stock controller.
I suspect if there is the problem with left trigger always on, the magnet can probably be popped out of the base and flipped, switching it to the deadzone problem instead, which wouldn't matter much in FPS games. I had to go the extra mile because I mostly do racing games and needed it to be compatible with the same in game settings as my Elite (this is my "backup" controller for racing leagues), but if it's a primary controller in game deadzone adjustments can be made with a slight sacrifice in resolution (probably around 20% activation deadzone to take out the slack).
All in all I would buy these again in a heartbeat at the price, I would think them a no-brainer for PS4 controllers where the sticks aren't over the trigger hall effect sensors.
Note: in the photos that is my standard xbox controller, the face buttons are swapped over from my elite however (stock controller normally has buttons with colored letters, I found they were slightly taller so they evened up the button height between my controllers when swapped over). It also has YTTL chrome bumpers and triggers instead of black. | video-games_xbox |
Improvements all around. Even with all the high profile games that came out this year and especially this fall, one that I seemed to want the most was Assassin's Creed II despite my hate/love with the original. Like many, I thought the original had a great concept, looked stunning and seemed to at least break the mold of action games only it got bogged down by repetition and an open world that wasn't quite as open as one would like and let's not forget those ****ing flags. Taking the complaints and suggestions from fans and critics into account, Ubisoft seemed to go all out in presenting a game that felt more bigger and better than the first game but then the crux of the matter is did Ubisoft just deliver what the first one should've been or actually went beyond? Well this game shows that there is legs in this series and whereas the sequel to the first one was inevitable just in terms of sales, this looks like it has the makings to be an actually worthwhile franchise as a whole and it starts here...with nitpicks I hope they fix.
Story: You once again "control" Desmond, a bartender turned captive by Abstergo Corporation who's using him to locate the Pieces of Eden, mythical artifacts tied to mythology and history. When him and technician Lucy Stillman break out, they bring him back into the past via a new Animus into the life of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, an Italian living in 1476. After his father and brothers are betrayed and executed, Ezio becomes an Assassin and takes to the streets of Florence, Venice and many other places to track down the conspirators behind his family's death and how it ties into Desmond's struggle in the future.
One thing I will say about the story is that 2 things: one, they definately changed the structure of the game and it's no longer repetitive and some missions do take a different take and give you a lot more options to proceed. Not to mention the story is a lot more engaging and while I was at times concerning the many, many names that pop up and figuring out who was the last dude I had to kill versus who's actually a friend, it's a more compelling story and when it combines mythology, paintings and historical photographs, it's a really cool storyline they got set up.
Graphics: Can't fault Ubisoft in the graphics department and like this, Far Cry 2 or Prince of Persia, they have a really great idea for amazing looking visuals and it goes right down to the architecture and I wouldn't be surprised if they recreated Florence or Venice perfectly. Character detail is good, animations during parkour are fluid and certain graphical details such as the "glitches" you'll occasionally spot look awesome. As far as actual glitches or bugs, I barely ran into any and if there was, I didn't catch them. My one complaint is that the "countryside" areas where it's more forest and meadows look a bit too barren and not really full so to speak.
Sound/Music: An absolutely stellar soundtrack with some really haunting and peaceful themes playing throughout and the more dramatic or action-y moments are nicely done. Voice acting as well is spot-on with many voice actors actually sounding like they're from the era and place as opposed to Altair's odd American-sounding accent and it's not the fumble that was Far Cry 2's voice acting. As far as sounds are concerned, everything works and the annoying comments when you climb buildings ("what's he doing, he gone mad?") have been toned down so that they're no longer heard EVERY time you climb something. Oh and I'd recommend playing with subtitles because characters have this habit of switching between English and Italian very frequently.
Gameplay: While the basics are the same, there's been so many improvements it might be hard to replay the previous game since you don't get access to the new parts. For one combat has been improved and counter kills have now given way to disarming opponents and using their own weapon against them, double assassinations, smoke bombs for easy getaways or poisoning them so they go crazy on nearby NPC's. Don't want to fight anyone and slip by unnoticed? Hire courtesans to distract them, thieves to lure them away or mercs to fight for you. Not to mention there's a lot more added missions with the familiar races but also there's assassination contracts, courier missions, beat-em-up parts where you pummel cheaters and many others. As far as collecting is concerned, there is some of that found in the feathers but there's only 100 as opposed to 100 in each city but then we have glyphs. Uncover a building and find an icon and you'll see somewhere on the building is a glyph, strange markings easily found by using Eagle Vision and scanning them prompts a really intriguing story about Subject 16 where you decode messages, find clues embedded in photographs are doing some riddle solving. While some are really taxing, they're kind of fascinating. Oh and found in Italy are assassin's tombs, basically a mixture of Prince of Persia-esque platforming sections and some combat where you'll uncover treasure; find all 6 and you'll get a cool gift as opposed to just an achievement/trophy and that's it.
Another added element is the idea of money. Remember those "please sir I'm poor and sick and hungry, just a few coins!" women from the first game? Well remember how you never actually had money to give her and you just had to push her away or if you were feeling devilish, stab her? Well now there is money (though no beggar women, though there's these lute players that get on my nerves) and they can be spent on upgrades such as better armor, better weapons, replenish your poison blades, smoke bombs, buy paintings or tint your cape. Buying paintings or upgrading your villa, a sort of central hub of sorts, will give you more money and like most sim games, depending on how awesome your villa is and the more visitors you attract, the more money you make. One element that isn't as successful is the idea of notoreity. Do more killing and bad stuff than the city can tolerate (which isn't much) and the guards will be more suspicious of you so while before they're a bit more suspect of you, at full notoreity they'll practically want to kill you on sight. How do you bring it down? Find posters that no guard would see, kill officials that don't exactly run that fast or bribe heralds and naysayers instead of...I don't know, roughing them up mafia-style and threatening to break their knees?
My one complaint about the game and it's a somewhat big one is the controls. I don't know if Ezio is too sensitive or he needs too precise commands but at times you'll find yourself swearing at him for doing something you never intended to do. He'll drop and hang from a ledge when you intend to jump, he'll run up walls when you intended to go into a door should your aim be off and most unfortunate, he can fall and sometimes to his death because he decided to jump off a building instead of up it. It's of course fun to do the parkour elements but to drop completely to the bottom of the streets cause of a missed jump or not judging the distance right can be frustrating. Oh and while it's a welcome change from Altair's snail pace, the parkour elements up a building are a tad unbelievable and athletic ability aside, you'd wonder how the hell Ezio can even climb half of this stuff at the speed he does. Oh but on that note? Ezio can finally swim and while he can't go underwater and dive like Mario, he can actually go in the water and even use boats as transports though rooftop travelling tends to be faster.
For those of you curious, I bought the Master Assassin's Edition so I'll detail what was in it. Found first inside of course is the game but it comes with a bonud DVD where you can listen to tracks from the soundtrack, watch trailers and developer diaries but the soundtrack looks slightly skimpy for a game this size and the "Part One" with no inclusion of any others bugs me. Oh and the developer diaries were far more numerous online than what we have here. Underneath that is the really cool artbook showcasing weapon detail, character designs and concept art for the cities. Still doesn't beat the Fallout 3 book for me but it's a notable one nonetheless. And of course under that is the Ezio figurine with some cool details and in a pose like seen on the cover. He's not posable but meh, it'll do. Included also in the game is 2 "bonus" areas: basically at a certain part in the game, an icon will appear on your map marked a "templar lair" and these are basically obstacle course type levels which'll yield a nice big cash sum at the end. Nothing completely awesome like new weapon or different armor but they're cool nonetheless. Also, in a welcome move on Ubisoft's part, apparently these areas will be made available for download sometime later as opposed to "either pre-order it or you'll never get it" offers given by other developers.
Is it my Game of the Year? Hard to say given the sheer amount of great games that came out this year but I'll say I definately enjoyed playing the game issues aside and would love to say a part III very soon. | video-games_xbox |
It's Really not that bad. This game is really not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. Yes there are glitches, what game doesn't have them, and there are some things that are just odd. Some things I noticed:
-Outfielding is difficult, you have to really control your movements and can't start and stop on a dime, weird, kind of like real life. once the player is in the dark circle, very little movement is needed.
-First basemen off bag: While this is odd, it typically only happens on throws that cause him to pull off the bag, I've played about 12 franchise games and its happened twice.
-Pitching is easy, mastering it is hard: The computer AI likes to swing, and gets A LOT of hits, you have to throw balls in order get them out, you can't just throw three straight strikes and expect a strikeout, they are big league hitters after all.
-Batting is very easy on lower difficulties, as difficulty increases, fastballs are faster, and offspead pitches are more drastic, making things more difficult. Influencing with the left analog is just stupid because its so easy and it shouldn't be that way.
-The Umpires like to make a lot of calls that are terrible. A lot of the tag plays are pretty much a coin toss. There is very little consistency; some plays the runner is clearly safe and is called out and vice versa.
Aside from these things the game is actually fun, I've had games go into extra innings with the cpu, games where i get smoked, and games where i smoke them. The game is visually very good looking, the graphics are awesome, aside from players not sensing contact with other players. The show is not that much better, it has had the same announcers and pretty much the same animations and presentation since MLB 2005 on PS2. This game is not the worst game ever, if you have an XBOX, i would recommend getting it if you are a baseball fan. If you want a game that is perfect without bugs, works just the way you want it, and is more realistic; pick up a glove and go outside. | video-games_xbox |
This Game Never Should Have Sold. I am serious. This game never should have sold. Not because its a bad game; far from it, this game is just about the ultimate ideal in video gaming history. Create your own martial arts flick while playing a video game. Nay good sir, the reason this game should never have sold is because it seems as if it was created specifically for me.
I mean, this is the game that I have been waiting my whole life for. A game where I am more than just a ninja on the screen, I'm an actor/ninja movie star! Okay, that sounds really stupid. And yet its true. And this is more than a ninja game alone. Want to be an aging but still lethal martial arts master? Done. Want to play as a "Lone Wolf and Cub" inspired samurai, also done. Want to play as a deity from Chinese myth, fairy tale and feature film? Equally done. Should you desire to be a gaseous Mexican wrestler, well, that comes later in the game. I was, of course, Ninja Fu Hiya, star of such films as "Did Somebody Order a Ninja," and "Ninja Cry Too."
The point of this game is to create a martial arts masterpiece called, Kung Fu Chaos: Face Full of Fists. You first play through the long movie production in order to unlock characters and sets and such, then you can use these to create your own kung fu films. The problems on set range from members of a clan of bloodthirsty ninjas trying to kill you, to difficulties trying to extend your bathroom/coffee breaks. This is, oddly enough, classified as a "party game."
I say that this game is almost catered to my interests and mine alone (which I know isn't true, but poetic license and all that allows me to continue) because there are many things which will ultimately turn many others off. The controls are overly simple. I found this somewhat refreshing from all the complicated combos out there, but that's me.
Also, the director of the movie you're starring in, a little fat man named Shao Ting, is constantly assaulting you with a barrage of insults. Some people, amazingly enough, find being insulting, um, insulting.
But these aside, this is just about as neat as it gets. I do wish you had a little more control over how your finished movie products look, but this game can be the first step in a new kind of ninja movie making. This is best summed up in the immortal words of Ninja Fu Hiya: "No! Ninja taste bad!" | video-games_xbox |
Unfortunately more bad than good. This is a multiplayer only review. Unfortunately the current state of this game is pretty bad.
Positives:
1. Most of the streaks are ground based which are less annoying to deal with.
2. Maps are more interesting and larger than BO2 maps, thank god, but don't get too excited until you read the negatives below.
3. Hit detection is much better in Ghosts than it was in BO2
4. No server host migrations
5. Character customization is a cool feature but it seems like a chore to unlock anything.
6. Most of the Assault Riffles are great!
7. There are 6 solid maps
8. The guns seem decently balanced within a class, minus the SMG's. There are only two SMG's worth using and they barely compete with the other classes.
9. Knifing is great. In MW3 it was OP. In BO2 it was useless. In Ghosts it feels just right.
10. When the spawning system isn't spawning you in front of someone the game can be a lot of fun!
Negatives:
1. Most of the maps are too large and have way to many places for campers to hide. (This is the exact opposite of B02 where almost all the maps were too small making the game a SMG fest!) Almost all of the rooms have multiple entry points making it impossible to hold down a room. While it seems like that would discourage campers, it doesn't. Most of the maps have way too many ways to shoot someone in the back or side.
2. Spawns are terrible. You will spawn and instantly get shot in the back many times. This is the biggest problem with the game.
3. Health is too low. Core is now like Hardcore. If you get hit, you will die 98% of the time. There is almost no chance of surviving a gunfight unless you fire first. This really needs to change.
4. SMG's are pretty useless due to the size of most maps, and even when playing on a small map, the recoil is too high on most of the SMG's to be useful beyond point blank encounters.
5. All but one or two maps have a very dark color theme which makes it almost impossible to see enemies across the map. It also makes them look drab and depressing. There is a reason why Octane is the most played map. I wish there were more maps like it. It's size, layout, and color are perfect.
6. The point system is kind of annoying. Why is there no point counter in the create a class menu telling me how many points I have left when I'm creating a class! Am I blind or is it just not there? I hate that I have to choose between a secondary weapon and a much needed perk. I like having a secondary on a few weapons for faster mobility and close quarters combat. But it's not worth loosing a 3 point perk that's necessary to survive!
7. Secondary weapons, which aren't very good, may as well not be in the game. You would be foolish to choose one over a good perk.
8. Ranking up is a bit slow. And now that you can buy the "best weapons" right away instead of having to wait to unlock them, it's not very exciting. By having to unlock them in previous games, it forced you to use weapons you might overlook due to the stats. Some of those weapons turn out to be great!
I wasted a lot of time in Ghosts buying weapons I thought I would like, based on the stats and reviews, but ended up hating them.
9. I almost forgot about Riley AKA Rilenator. Seriously this dog is so OP. It has Twice the health of a human so it takes twice as long to kill him. Not to mention he can go anywhere and take you out in one bite from about 8ft away. It's super annoying! I would have no problem with Riley if he had the same health as the human characters.
10. I.E.D's are supper annoying. They will kill you almost every time you encounter one. They detonate super fast and people are starting to throw them everywhere! It really ruins the game. You can use the Blast Shield perk to counter it but that would require giving up something like Quickdraw, Stalker, or Focus to acquire it. It's just not worth it.
If Infinity Ward can fix the low health and spawning issues, and make some good, more open, medium and small maps, the game could end up being very solid. Don't get me wrong. I am still enjoying Ghosts more than I enjoyed BO2, but I enjoyed MW3 more than BO2 and Ghosts. The only thing I like better about the SMG spray fest that was BO2, was the spawn system. Treyarch knows how to make a good spawn system. | video-games_xbox |
Return of the classic. I got this game 2 days before the release date. I played it before on PC so I didn't really expect anything new. In fact I only bought it for cooperative multiplayer mode (split screen). It was a nice surprise straight out of the box. Not only you get additional levels (beggining only), new weapons but AI is really impressive to. This game really forces you to rethink your strategies. Stealth is really more important than both guns blazing open approach. Yes it's a still good fashioned first person shooter. Yes you still get to fire big guns. You just have to think and rationalize many times if it's worth to shoot the guy or just use stealth to stab him. Now pros and cons of the game.
Lets start with pros:
- multiplayer mode: both for xbox live and cooperative on the single unit. I'm sick and tired of competing against my friends. Usually one who wins is one who has the most amount of hours behind the controller. In cooperative mode both of you can work together and since most likely you sit next to each other calling out moves, shots and pick ups makes it fun.
- extra levels. I knew that some of them will overlap what I had on the pc but extra levels right off the bat was really nice. Levels are well constructed so the flow of the original game was not interrupted.
- weapons. Real performance and realistic sound effects. Firing in small room changes the way that weapon sounds. Reloading is crucial and since you don't really get that much ammo you really have to be careful. New weapon: shotgun. Good ol' American pump action 12 gauge is a perfect cure for them pesty Nazis.
-controls. Straight out of the box, natural for any gamer (very intuitive).
-special items. I mean it's a good thing that they are there but in the end I happened to very rarely use them. But that's maybe I finished this game once (PC) without them so I didn't see where would they fit.
-AI. Enemy is well conditioned, they listen and attack the right way. Yes every now and than one of the soldiers make a dumb move but hey they are grunts, not all that bright.
-Bonus game. After you finish playing the one player game you will get a full original Wolf 3D. How cool is that?
And cons:
-Graphics. Don't get me wrong they are good but not as good and clear as halo or pc version of Wolf. I guess since environment is so intense some of the details had to be sacrificed.
-Automatic load function. Lets say you run out of ammo and than pick up some. Last weapon you used will be loaded. But if you picked up just 4 or 5 rounds and your last weapon was a machine gun it doesn't do me any good. I will not really hit much due to poor rifle accuracy. I would have much rather have the pistol loaded.
-Difficulty level. Sometimes it feels like that just by running around you get stuff done. I mean setting a higher difficulty level will generate more enemies and will make it hard to kill them but the basic idea to find and pull the switch is the same.
-Super natural element. Aliens, zombies and robots really have no place in WWII based game. That's just my opinion. But on the positive note it adds variety.
-weapon scrolling. With full arsenal it's a pain to get to your favorite weapon.
-no saves in cooperative split screen mode!! That's just plainly wrong. Of course once you finish the game in single player mode you have access to all the levels anyway.
In the end it's a good game. Maybe not as good as Halo, little different than Medal of Honor but quite fun. Multiplayer for Xbox life is excellent gives this game a high play value. I can see my self already replaying certain missions over and over again. I think I played the Airfield assault like 10 times. It's just pure fun. | video-games_xbox |
It Gets Good After about 5 Hours. Every bad review I've read on this game was done by someone who picked it up, played for an hour or two, and got frustrated and quit. Those kinds of people describe it as difficult and linear, which it is not. No one I've talked to who actually played the game to the point where you get good weapons gave it less than 4 stars or so
When you start out, you're equipped with a silenced pistol that is basically useless, and nothing else. The whole game is just you sneaking around trying to avoid vampires, much like Theif or Splinter Cell. Tons of sneaking, not much else. I hated it
Then, as you complete a few levels, you gradually get better weapons, and the game becomes much more action-oriented and less stealth-oriented. There is still alot of stealth in it, but its not 99% stealth like the first 2 or 3 levels are.
Once you get the sniper rifle, you're free to sneak up to buildings and snipe at some vampires. Generally you don't have enough ammo to kill them all, but you can choose your own routes to your objectives and clear some of the vamps from whatever route you pick, making this game non-linear. You do not have to follow a set line unless you waste all your bullets, then there may only be one way for you to do it at that point, but that's not the game's fault
As you go, you get new weapons, which add to the non-linearity and give you more choices. Shotguns are great, and kill several vamps at once, but are loud and will bring every vamp on a level running unless you use them indoors or underground. UV knives are silent but single-use, and you have to sneak close to use them. UV mines are good but you have to set them in a vamp's path and then set them off, etc. Not to mention that some of the later levels are you and your team taking on vamps in a full on shoot out, more like Rainbow 6 or Ghost Recon than Splinter Cell
So basically this game is what you make of it. If you want stealth, its there. If you want to use your head and kill specific vampires with the right weapons, its almost a shooter. But you have to give it more than a cursory try to get the real game out of it | video-games_xbox |
Takes a lot of lessons learned from other Souls games, but does lack a little of its own identity as well. Dark Souls III is a combination of different games, pulling influence from earlier the earlier Souls and Bloodborne games for inspiration and lessons learned. To that end, Dark Souls III is a complex, challenging game that continues to reward perseverance and punishes those unwilling to adapt to its distinct style of play. Ultimately it is a rewarding title that fans of the series will enjoy, though I did come away with the distinct impression that it was less its own game and more a culmination of the prior ones.
By no means is that necessarily a bad thing. Certainly Dark Souls III is 'more of the same' - and fans have made it clear that they want more of what they have come to love from the series. When you think of the Souls games (and Bloodborne), you think of dark, brooding, challenging games that will test your reflexes and your puzzle solving. No, not puzzle solving like burning bushes or pushing blocks in action RPGs, but in trying to figure out the riddle of enemies. Chris went into some detail in his PC review of the game on this, but the long and the short of it is that Dark Souls III gives you the tools to succeed - but you will have to fail a few times before you get it right.
The early guys, the zombie-like undead can be dangerous in their own right. They are fast, they can attack in packs and they certainly are more menacing than the typical shambling undead found in many horror films. They are also simple, usually leading in with a single very predictable attack that you can counter, dodge or simply lunge in to beat them to the punch. Later enemies provide a much more varied type of challenge, however. They will adopt attacks and attack patterns reminiscent to old NES games. You remember those old 2D boss battles where you had to memorize a specific pattern and then respond accordingly, looking for that narrow opening that led to a supreme feeling of success, right?
This is a crystallization of what the Souls games have to offer, and Dark Souls III provides this in spades. While the calling card for the series has always been its tremendous, memorable boss battles, there is something to be said for many of the more interesting enemies nestled throughout the labyrinthine levels as well. Some enemies come across as mid bosses almost, capable of felling you on your best day let alone if they catch you by surprise. Enemy design is varied and generally excellent. Certainly some are more frustrating than others, but you will adapt and learn to play by their rules, by the rules of Dark Souls - or you will die.
Let me correct that. You will die regardless, but you will die more if you do not adapt and improve your skills. There are ample opportunities to grind and farm, and naturally having more health or being able to deal more magical damage with your spell is an advantage not to be taken lightly. However, you will not grind your way to a maximum level and then sleepwalk your way through these encounters. While there are plenty of RPG elements in this game, it is an action title through and through.
Many have token note of how the game seems faster than prior Souls titles, and that is accurate. While it is nowhere near as brisk in pace as Bloodborne, Dark Souls III provides the quickest combat in the proper Souls series. I was actually a huge fan of the overly aggressive tones of Bloodborne, so I was not heartbroken to see a faster pace played out in Dark Souls III, but this title never matches the all out offensive tactics Bloodborne requires. Defense is still key, and shields are still a great means of staying alive. You might decide to bulk up with heavy armor and a massive shield, or perhaps your style is better suited to staying light on your feet and relying on rolls to dodge out of the way. Regardless of your preferred form of defense, you will not simply slash or blast your way to victory.
One of the issues I had with Bloodborne was the somewhat limited weapon selection. Between the different shields, spells and myriad of weapons at your disposal, Dark Souls III offers up more variety in gameplay than any other title in the series to date. Weapons have different styles, leading into unique combinations. Some work better in close quarters, others try to keep your enemies at a distance. Some are more suited for the close confines of a hallway passage, while others have arcing sweeps meant to keep multiple enemies at bay. You have to carefully manage not only your swings and how vulnerable they leave you, but how your stamina is impacted as well. I found myself playing with almost every new weapon just to see which ones I liked, because I never found a 'one size fits all' strategy. Some enemies and in particular, specific bosses, simply were more susceptible some attacks over others.
The level structure here is a throwback to the earlier games in the series. Dark Souls II was a much broader, flatter feeling game as you trudged from one bonfire to another. Bonfires are still key to your survival, but the stage design is far more creative here than in the last entry. Shortcuts abound, secrets are waiting to be discovered and the complexity of level design is on par with the best in the series once again. I always found myself overjoyed when I would open up a gate or lower a bridge or create some sort of a shortcut back to where I had been. Because I knew I would eventually die, but this would expedite my future return.
Despite all of these familiar aspects to the series that have been honed to a razor sharp edge, it is clear that this title was made with newcomers in mind. The early stages are not nearly as hard as in the prior games. Maybe it is simply because I am already a veteran of the series, but there was more direction here, more structure and yes - less forced failure right off of the bat. It was as though the game was designed to be slightly more welcoming, with a gorgeous cinematic to open things up and a well-designed introductory stage that should serve to interest gamers instead of punishing them.
While the audio design and visuals are as good as they have ever been in the series, aside from a few small touches here and there along the way, Dark Souls III comes across a little more generically than past titles have. There are plenty of beautiful vistas to observe, with smatterings of light and ruins in the distance that tease of your future along the way, but it all feels a little bit more like generic fantasy than in past releases. The ringing bells of the tendril faced keepers in the prison cell stage of Demon's Souls and the haunting Gothic horror vibe of Bloodborne created more memorable stages for me than most of what Dark Souls III could muster up. It is as though the game lost a little of its own would-be identity in taking cues from the prior games. Certainly lessons were learned and formulas and mechanics tweaked and improved upon, but one of my only complaints is that for all of its polish, Dark Souls III had fewer key moments for me than its predecessors. Almost as if it lacks its own clear identity at times.
There are some technical hiccups to note as well. There are places where the framerate does suffer. So many things in the game look amazing, from the slightly burning armor and cloak of your character to the grotesque and twisting forms of your enemies - but when the action is at its height and perfect timing is paramount to survival, the last thing you want is any hint of stutter. Especially in a game that punishes mistakes so badly. While very few actual enemy encounters felt unfair in their design, the same cannot be said of those dips in framerate that impacted my timing.
All in all Dark Souls III is a spectacular fantasy action game that relies on its tried and true formula of risk versus reward, trial and error and a real sense of danger as you progress through the content. There is a bit more story to be had here than some of the earlier installments, but it still largely leaves you to your imagination as you skulk through its hauntingly beautiful ruins to battle monsters right out of your nightmares. While the game and systems are beautiful refined (despite a couple of technical hiccups that will no doubt be resolved soon), Dark Souls III did lose a little of its own personality along the way. It is subtle, and still incredibly enjoyable for me, but when it was all said and done, I had fewer of those truly memorable moments that I did from earlier games in the series. By no means should that sway fans away from playing it, because Dark Souls III is a fascinating and complex game that is slightly more welcoming than prior Souls games - but in the end just as hard as one would hope for an expect. | video-games_xbox |
Looking to the Future. Halo 5: Guardians is, of course, the highly anticipated fifth installment in the core Halo franchise on Xbox One. You cant say Xbox without Halo (Im sure its in the fine print somewhere). The MJOLNIR armored Master Chief has become the icon of Microsofts system since 2001 when Halo: Combat Evolved launched alongside the original Xbox. High hopes were built on Halo 5: Guardians with the largest marketing campaign on a Halo an outstanding Hunt the Truth ads (which, sadly, isn't much of a factor in the game itself).
Since taking over from franchise creators Bungie in 2010, the internal 343 Industries has proven divisive with decisions in Halo 4 and Halo 5: Guardians, but I feel that, for the most part, theyve shown that they're fans of Bungies original games, but also want to tell new stories. It would have been easier (and perhaps more fan friendly) if theyd stuck to Master Chief fighting the Covenant and Flood indefinitely, so I'm happy to see they're willing to take risks with the property.
Short Review:
Halo 5: Guardians is a the best looking game on Xbox One and offers an outstanding update to the franchises gameplay and a must have for any Xbox One owners, but some fans may be disappointed by the weaker campaign story.
Long Review
Story- Following the events of Halo 4, the UNSC has and Elite forces led by the Arbiter are on the verge of defeating the Covenant Remnant. Spartan 117 (the Master Chief) has been reunited with the surviving members of Blue Team (long-time fans will know them from expanded universe novels) and is in the process of finishing an op when suddenly he has a vision of former AI companion Cortana. His loyal squadmates at his side, the Chief sets out to find Cortana without any warning. Alarmed by his departure, and with the ominous Prometheans on the move again, the UNSC dispatches Osiris Team, a new generation of Spartan IVs led by Spartan Locke, to bring the Master Chief back.
Now that the introductions out of the way, whats new in Halo 5? Well, for starters, this is the first main-series Halo game since Halo 2 that puts players in the armor of someone other than the Master Chief: Spartan Locke. Also along for the ride are the members of Master Chiefs Blue Team and Lockes Osiris Team (including Buck played by the always enjoyable Nathan Fillion, last seen in Halo 3: ODST). The game also features the return of The Arbiter (voiced to perfection, as always, by Keith David), and a wonderful new AI character named
Yes. Does it deliver? Yes, and no. Yes it delivers giant set pieces, awesome vehicles, and gunplay we all know and love, but the campaign is flawed.
Sadly that Hunt the Truth campaign turned out to be grossly misleading (but I won't deduct points from the game for it-- marketing team does their job, devs do theirs).
Lets get this out of the way: There are problems with Locke, but they're not the reason many negative reviews have been calling out. Ive seen numerous reviews calling Locke boring, one-dimensional you know, the exact same reasons critics (see: buzzkills) insulted Master Chief in Bungies original trilogy. People criticizing Locke seem quick to forget that Master Chief didn't even show much humanity until Halo 4 (traces here and there in Halo 3, but not enough to dispel the illusion). So, no, the problem with Spartan Locke isn't his curt, military personality. Halo 5s narrative problem is that Spartan Locke doesnt have personal stakes in the hunt for Master Chief.
The greatest problem is that I don't feel as if I experienced a full story (. Halo 4 started 343s Reclaimer Saga and, while clearly setting up the plot threads for future games, I still felt like a complete experience. Halo 5 feels like the first step in what could be a great story, but one that well have to wait 2-3 years to see the payoff (up to 6 years if we have to wait for Halo 7 to finish off these plot threads).
(P.S. The other problem people have with Halo 5 is the villain. I won't go into spoilers, but, in all honesty: I didn't mind the choice 343i made for the antagonist. If anything, Im happy they're willing to try new things with the Halo franchise.)
(P.P.S. Yes, the game ends on a cliffhanger, and yes its annoying but not as annoying as Halo 2s cliffhanger ending. I think people are wearing nostalgia goggles if they're 2 did a cliffhanger better)
Music Composer Kazuma Jinnouchi (Metal Gear Solid 4) provides an outstanding score that captures the epic qualities of Martin ODonnells original score, while also allowing room for Junnouchi to leave his own musical stamp on the series. (Note: Jinnouchi began work as 343s music supervisor with Halo 4, but only was able to compose a few tracks. This is his first time composing a complete Halo game)
Graphics Halo 5: Guardians is a honking 60+GB download (almost as the 4 game Master Chief Collection last year), so, suffice to say, this is the most graphically advanced Halo game ever made. If you want a game that will showcase the Xbox One at its best this is a no-brainer.
Gameplay Top notch. This is Halo for a new generation. Diehard fans nostalgic for Halo 2 will undoubtedly find reasons to complain, but, from my perspective, this is Halo gameplay for 2015. Some people feared that the ability to look down the sights would make Guardians Halo: Call of Duty, but I couldn't disagree more (besides: good Halo players will still play without looking down the sights a single time).
Multiplayer Im not much of a Halo multiplayer, despite having been a fan for over a decade now (shocking, I know). From what Ive played its been fun. Im sure hardcore devotees of Halo 2 and 3 multiplayer have things to complain about, but as someone who only plays multiplayer casually, Ive had lots of fun with Halo 5s multiplayer.
Verdict Halo 5: Guardians is a good game in a great series, and although its campaign won't rank among the series best entries its still a must-own for Xbox One (with fingers crossed that Halo 6 and 7 fully deliver on the storylines introduced in 5). | video-games_xbox |
Excellent headphones. I had the opportunity to test the new SA-807 headphones. I am very impressed with the functionality, clarity and performance of these headphones. These headphones were designed to serve multiple platforms to include Xbox, PlayStation, PC and other audio devices.
Style: The 807's are over the ear headphones with an external adjustable microphone. The earpieces are lined with thick padding to provide extra comfort. There is additional padding on the headband. The headband is extremely flexible. You won't have to worry about your kid breaking these or them getting damaged if they are dropped. The 807's are extremely light so don't expect neck pain from heavy headphones. Overall these are some of the most comfortable headphones I have ever worn.
You will not find headphones as clear sounding as these within this price range. I tested these by watching movies, games and music. I am pleasantly pleased with the sound quality. Bass was just right. I did not detect any modulation, fluctuation or distortion from high volumes. Music sounded great. It had great sounds with gaming, explosions, gun fire and online chatting. Sound came evenly across both speakers.
The microphone was very clear. It is extremely flexible and can be manipulated and adjusted to your own preferences. It is an omnidirectional microphone so it will detect your voice clearly from any angle. I spoke with some gaming friends to test this microphone and they did not detect any distortion. The mic came across very clear and they had zero issues hearing me clearly.
The microphone comes with a standard single 3.5mm audio jack. This can be plugged directly into a computer or audio device. There is an Xbox 360 adapter included. I did try this and audio and sound came in clearly. It fit securely into the controller without sway. The last adapter comes with a double 3.5mm audio and voice jack. This adapter worked great with my PC. There is a volume control slide and Mic on/off switch built into the cord halfway up the cord.
Overall this is a great headphone platform for a great price. I was pleased with all aspects of the 807s. Some strong aspects I liked was the sound quality. These headphones are extremely comfortable to wear. The microphone is fully adjustable and omnidirectional. Overall these are very sturdy headphones and I would recommend these to anyone looking for a multi-platform headset. I rate these 5/5 stars. I did receive these at a discounted or free rate for my honest and unbiased opinion, but all opinions expressed are my own. | video-games_xbox |
Def Jam Weirdness. This game is retarded. Sorry that I have to start my review like that but seriously, this is one of those games where I try to explain it to people and the words fail me every time.
I'm not saying it's the worst game I've ever played. For one, the graphics are really impressive and the way the levels are affected by the music is pretty interesting. Looking at the character models, you can tell exactly who you're looking at, i.e. The Game looks like the Game, Big Boi looks exactly like Big Boi, etc. The fighting engine is okay, if limited and not overly responsive. The music is okay as far as today's hip-hop goes (sorry to say it but rap music these days is in a sorry state... that's a whole other conversation though) but luckily you can upload your own music to play with and this feature works well.
The premise of this game is what makes me scratch my head. I mean, a typical scenario in the game would go something like this:
The record label exec you work for needs you to sign an artist, but Ghostface Killah might be there to stop you, so you two have to duke it out.
As ridiculous as it sounds, that's pretty much what the game is and it also has a lot of fighting which gets repetitive fairly quickly. The game has a weak frame around it which attempts to incorporate a kind of lifestyle management aspect like what to wear, how much to spend on your girlfriends, how much to spend on artists and their records.... but it all gets boring pretty quickly, especially when you're really just having the same fights over and over.
I've played online and like with most fighting games, I found the lag times to be a bit of a pain. Sometimes I'd have a clean match and other times, my opponent would be teleporting all over the level.
I'd have to suggest a rental on this one first or at least try the demo out. Seriously, this game is just really weird in too many ways to count to make any kind of recommendation.
There's one other thing that I should mention. I find it kind of sad that this game promotes the exact same kind of violence that gets the rap industry into so much trouble all the time. While it's all handled in a tongue in cheek way (I mean, fighting Sean Paul for whatever reason is just plain silly, no matter what), the fact that this is an officially licensed product from a well known record label makes me wonder what the intended message is. | video-games_xbox |
A Worthy Finale for the Mass Effect Saga. Mass Effect is a real tour de force in the gaming world. Few videogames have been able to deliver an equal to its complex and engaging story, and none have ever taken the player's actions from previous entries in the series and worked them seamlessly into the narrative. While there have been some hiccups in gameplay and presentation, one must applaud Bioware for their tenacity in showing us a whole new level in gaming, one that few had ever dreamed of before. They have certainly earned the right to be called Masters of the western RPG.
So how does one wrap up one of the greatest science fiction stories ever told?
THE PLOT
**Mild Spoilers Ahead**
The third and final installment of the Mass Effect trilogy begins with Commander Shepard on trial for his (or her) actions in The Arrival DLC for Mass Effect 2. However, just as he is defending his actions, the Reapers appear and begin an all-out assault on Earth. Shepard makes his escape in the Normandy SR-2 (now commandeered and retrofitted by the Systems Alliance), and must gather the strength of the various alien factions scattered across the galaxy in order to retake the Earth. Unfortunately this proves to be easier said than done. The Reaper invasion begins to threaten dozens of worlds, and many of the alien species hold old grudges that are not so easily set aside. The Quarians seek the chance to reclaim their lost homeworld from the cybernetic Geth, and the Krogan remain antagonistic to the Turians and Salarians, whom they blame for nearly annihilating their species. Commander Shepard is forced to act as peacemaker in his attempts to enlist allies, traveling to familiar places such as Tuchanka and The Citadel, and also visiting new locations such as the Quarian homeworld of Rannoch. All the while the remaining Earth forces gather their strength using whatever Shepard can send them in preparation for the final battle to retake Earth.
THE PLAYER
Players will be able to import their unique Commander Shepards from Mass Effect 2, carrying over all of their important decisions and several bonuses, such as character levels and resources for the war effort. While not necessary to experience the full game, it does add another level of enjoyment for those that have been playing the series from the first game to see their decisions come back to either reward or haunt them. Those that start this game fresh will find that they can pick from a list of certain plot points, usually regarding who has lived and died throughout Shepard's previous adventures.
To the delight of many long-time fans, Bioware has found a balance between the RPG-esque advancement of the first game and the run-and-gun shooter that was the second. The leveling system has been refined, giving you more options on where precisely to put your points, and weapons can now be upgraded thanks to equipment enhancements that can either be found in the field or bought from a store.
GAMEPLAY
Both the enemy AI and combat systems have been improved from ME2. Enemies now work harder to flank you, and the addition of simple things like ladders to multiple levels greatly adds to the tactical feel of the game. New enemies types make their presence known quickly, such as the shield-wielding Cerberus Guardians, or the massive Brutes, which are a horrifying amalgamation of Turian and Krogan fused together by Reaper technology.
Players will find that they have more of a tactical choice in regards to their armaments. Weapons are no longer restricted to certain classes, allowing Adepts to use Assault Rifles right off the bat, but this comes at a cost. The more weapons you carry, the longer it takes for your powers to recharge, effectively crippling you if you run in strapped with every weapon available. Choose carefully.
One of the largest complaints players had in previous games was the lack of an effective melee. This has been changed. Tapping the correct action button (depending on your platform of choice) allows you to initiate the usual butt-strike with your weapon, but holding it down causes Shepard to rear back with a unique attack depending on his class. (The two I've seen are an omni-blade as a soldier and a psionic punch as a vanguard.) Melee is now yet another powerful weapon at your disposal, and incredibly useful when the Reaper hordes get too close.
System exploration has been simplified, which may come as a welcome relief. No longer are you scanning every barren inch of a dead planet in order to find the last drop of platinum. Instead, you send out small scanning pulses from the ship as you fly about the star system. If your ship detects something on a planet, you may fly in for a closer look. However, don't get too greedy. Every time you use the scanner increases the chance that the Reapers will be drawn to the system to investigate, and it's Game Over if they catch you.
These are just some of the many tweaks and changes made to the game, all for the better.
DIALOGUE
The voice acting cast has seen a boost, introducing new actors such as Freddie Prinze Jr. as the indomitable Vega. (Yes, that FPJ...) Old favorites return as well. Martin Sheen reprises his enigmatic roll as the Illusive Man, and Jennifer Hale and Mark Meer return for their respective genders as Commander Shepard. Some of the new characters seem stilted and oddly out of place (Such as Jessica Chobot, the bizarre nerd-favorite of IGN.com.), but for the most part the voice cast is excellent.
The dialogue wheel introduced in ME1 was one of the most innovative dialogue systems ever devised. It allows you to pick and choose from a selection of options, usually running the gamut from goody two-shoes to orphan eating monster. This allows you to craft your game into an experience that is uniquely yours. Be very careful though. Actions that might appear beneficial at first can have unforseen consequences. One "good" option I chose led to the death of two longtime favorites of the series.
THE CHOICES
Bioware has been hyping for years about their choice system having repercussions in later games. We got a taste of that in ME2, but many of the larger choices were barely mentioned, if at all. This game is where it all comes to fruition. The Rachni, the genophage, whether you let the Geth heretics live or die, all come back to affect the outcome of the final confrontation. If any characters died in previous games, they will sometimes be replaced by other generic characters, or not at all. This will effect what assets you are able to bring to the final confrontation, and will determine whether you are eligible for the best endings.
Note: Players who intentionally got the "bad" ending in ME2 where everyone died will not be able to import their character into ME3. Your character died, silly!
MULTIPLAYER
For the first time in the series we are being allowed to fight with other people around the world against the Reaper threat. As of this writing the only mode available is a classic cooperative "Horde Mode", which pits you and up to three other players against 11 increasingly difficult waves of enemies. There are three factions to fight against on at least six different maps, and players are able to choose from 6 different classes with three races from each. The unique thing about multiplayer is that every time you level a class to level 20 you are able to "promote" him, which transforms him into a resource for use in the singleplayer campaign. The multiplayer is fun (if not quite on the replayability level of Call of Duty or Battlefield), and will most likely be the target of the majority of future DLC.
NITPICKS
Mark Meer does a decent job as male Shepard, but I feel like his performance isn't as nuanced as Jennifer Hale's. While playing or watching videos of both performances in the same scene it seems as if Meer comes off as Generic Space Marine #4772. Hale seems to have a wider range, and I was very impressed with the hints of a softer side poking through her steely exterior. Can't complain too much though. At least they didn't cast Nolan North...
Apparently Bioware felt that the Firewalker DLC for ME2 was a failure, since there appears to be no vehicle portion to this game. Neither the Hammerhead nor the Mako make an appearance in drivable form, though we do get to sit through a couple on-rails portions where we briefly fire from a moving lander or man a gun turret on an escaping shuttle. Yay?
Those that have played it so far generally agree that the ending was a bit of a letdown. I would not normally agree, since I thought it was a fine way to send off the series, but then I have to remember all of the reports where things were cut from the first two games because of budget or time constraints. The entire third act was cut in the first game, with Sovereign just unveiling himself to the player instead of the gradual leadup that was originally planned, and the whole Dark Energy threat that was foreshadowed in the second game is completely scrapped. I can't help but wonder what these games might have become if Microsoft and EA hadn't been holding the financial leash. If Bioware were an independent company like Valve, we'd probably be looking at the greatest games of all time instead of just the best games of this generation. Then again we'd probably never see ME3, so I guess I'll take what I can get.
THE BAD
Unfortunately the game sometimes doesn't have the sense of urgency that the story suggests it should, especially in regards to the sidequests. Earth has just been invaded, literally billons of people across the galaxy are being murdered, and yet I can easily find the time to help someone find their little brother. This is a classic problem in RPGs that many longtime gamers will recognize, but it's especially glaring in this one. When all sentient life in the galaxy is threatened with extinction, do I really care about some dumb kid who probably got eaten a couple of weeks ago? I most certainly do not. If Bioware were to include a couple more quests along the lines of "Retrieve the ammo depot before the Reapers hit!" instead of "Save the kitty from the tree!" it would have gone a long way towards making me care. Luckily these quests are largely optional for those that don't care about 100% completion. For everyone who wants the best ending though, better get to saving those poor orphans!
The consoles are also really starting to show their age. (And since the PC version is a port of the consoles, it suffers as well, though not as much.) Texture pop-ins are less abundant, but probably only because there are more loading screens. The Normandy has been sliced into even more pieces, requiring you to wait around while the next section loads. Graphics that blew us away in 2007 are beginning to look dull and lifeless in certain parts. Anyone who has played more recent games such as Battlefield 3 or The Witcher 2 on a PC built in the last three years will be able to spot these issues immediately. Character lip-sync and facial expressions sometimes border on the absurd. The female Shepard's run animation is especially atrocious; it feels like Bioware just took the male Shepard's hulking muscular frame and compressed it down into a lithe female, causing her arms to flail wildly to the side as if she had another three inches of muscle on her shoulders. It's painful to watch for 30 hours.
SCORE
GRAPHICS: 8/10
GAMEPLAY: 10/10
DIALOGUE: 10/10
AUDIO: 10/10
STORY: 10/10
OVERALL: 9.6/10
IN CONCLUSION:
Even if you haven't played the first two games, this one is a fine introduction to the series. It may have its share of flaws, but this climactic finale to the trilogy is a worthy sendoff to the legendary Commander Shepard. I personally cannot wait to see what Bioware comes up with next. | video-games_xbox |
Does it live up to the hype. Halo 3...first the hype. How can ANY game live up to the hype that surrounds a game like Halo 3? They can't. Probably no other game on the planet has more to live up to.
I have only just begun to play the single-player game, as I've been spending more time on Xbox Live, and really, there is nothing to complain about there. Sure, people will mention the graphics could have been better...but it's Halo, that's the art style. You either like it or you don't. But the online game has so many options, is so customizable, that it's true, people will be playing this game online for the next 3 or so years...without a doubt. Take that into consideration when you hear people complain that they finished the game in 6 hours, and that it's not worth the money or they got ripped off. How will YOU play? I think for $60 or $70 beans, you get A LOT of game here...a lot of value, IF you play online.
Also, what skill-level are these people who finish the game in 6 hours? I have only played a little on Heroic, and it's pretty hard. I'm not incredible at FPS games, but I do love them. I see myself finishing this game in 10 or so hours, which for me, at my age, is plenty long enough, especially considering how much I will get out of the online multiplayer.
Bottom line: if you love Halo 1 or 2, you will love this game. If you only play single-player FPS games, you may not get your money's worth, because you are not experiencing everything this game has to offer.
If you love multiplayer co-op or competetive games, there is no question this game is the best value out there, period.
Saved Films: This is such an amazing feature, that it's a shame EVERY next-gen game does not include this. People say that in the coming generations of games, when graphics do not improve by much more, game designers need to innovate in new ways...THIS is what I want in next-gen games. The ability to save, and share accomplishments in a game, single or multiplayer.
Hell, I recently bought Madden '08, and I can't even save a replay of a kickoff return TD! That should be a STANDARD in this generation.
Guess what? Halo 3 gives it to you.
Buy this game. | video-games_xbox |
Like a bad Hollywood sequel. I've been looking forward to this game since I first played MUA1 (my ATF game). I probably should have known better. The online hype machine was in full-effect early, but pre-release game review or demo DL never materialized. I was expecting another Epic experience, including a full spectrum of characters produced by a team that truly understands/appreciates Marvel history... but I came away unfulfilled.
Essentially MUA2 is a stripped down version of MUA1. You'll read a number of supporters (whom I suspect could have been compensated) tout the improved graphics. I notice no such improvement, primarily because I can't see what's going on half the time. It's often hard to discern where your character/s are on the screen or what is actually happening. Lots of explosions and no real story, ergo my bad hollywood sequel analogy. Ofcourse this sequel doesn't include the starring/returning cast (voices). I'm not sure what happened here, but it's not the same studio/team that brought us X-Men Legends 1, 2, and MUA1... and it SHOWS.
Disappointments include:
- Fewer powers (from 8 to 4)
- Fewer customizations (a maximum of 1 alternate costume per character, which has no effect on powers/abilities)
- Enhancements locked out (depending on Pro or Anti-registration)
- Many characters locked out for much of the game (again depending on Pro or Anti-reg)
- Poor voice-overs for some (especially Spider-man & Thor)
- Powered down characters (I'm usually all for this, but Cap & Iron Man are complete wimps in this game)
- Confusing gameplay... busy effects, and hard-to-differentiate characters leave you hitting buttons and hoping for the best
- HORRIBLE camera that only works 25% of the time
- No on-screen Map
- Non-playable guest 'ride-along' AI characters... a nuisance which often look just like the 'bad guys' you're supposed to fight
- Missing favorites (e.g. Cyclops & Spider-woman)... I admit many people didn't like Spiderwoman as much as I did
- Returning favorites who who are now less enjoyable (since 4 past powers no longer exist)
- New characters: Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Penance??? does anyone really care about these guys?
- Enemies: Soldiers, robots, and more soldiers. BORING as heck. No sign of the refreshing variation of Asgardians, underwater battles with Atlanteans, Arcade clowns, etc
- UI displays powers as A,B,X,Y instead of some graphic to remind you what each does during game-play
- DLC content more expensive. MUA1: 500 MS points for 4 characters or 800 MS points for 8 characters. MUA2: 800 points for only 5 characters... and 2 of those are Black Panther and Cable, sheesh!!!
- Boring Boss battles. No chance of facing off against the classic X-men here
- SHORT. Feels about 30-40% shorter than MUA1, but in all honestly I kinda wanted it to end already.
Few bright spots:
- New playable characters: Jean Grey (Phoenix), Green Goblin, Songbird, Juggernaut
- Online multiplayer allows you to use previously saved (offline) attributes
Overall, it seems that Marvel or Activision, or whomever cut corners or just didn't understand what made the first game so great. It feels pieced together, sloppy, and stale. Did they knowingly decide to cut the budget?, or truly feel this was a quality product? I'd really love to see Marvel redeem themselves with a 3rd installment, but they'd first need to understand how this iteration missed the target before I'd buy again. | video-games_xbox |
Great game to start, let's hope it continues. So far, this game does not disappoint. The game has a massive, and detailed, world. It is a cover based 3rd person shooter, which makes it impossible to play if you're not someone who wants to utilize protection. There are enemies that will destroy you in seconds if you aren't smart about it. Overall, the game offers a lot to do, but I imagine as you get into the later levels, it becomes nearly impossible to do much more than discovery based missions on your own.
Pros:
-Huge world, beautiful graphics, and so many things to look at / discover / explore.
-So many missions, powers, weapons/armor categories that you will have plenty of content to justify the price.
-Excellent multiplayer co-op. Jump in and out with friends, search for people if you don't have friends available, and SHARED XP!! I am a huge fan of sharing XP based on some games where it only gives credit to the person who gets the final shot on an enemy. It's a huge focus on playing as a team, which is what you will need to do in most missions.
-Boss battles! Instead of just having enemies with more powerful weapons, bosses also carry layers of armor, making it a true boss battle. It's a lot of fun as a result. Certain games focus on leveled enemies but not true boss, just someone who's a little higher in power or level.
-So many ways to play (collect items and sell for money or supplies. Build your own, find your own, buy your own weapons and supplies, focus on being a healer, defender, or aggressor, etc.).
-Plays like a regular shooter and less like a Tom Clancy shooter
Cons:
-Must maintain connection online at all times. This is not an issue for me as I have Gold and stay online at all times anyway, BUT, if you lose connection, see Con 2.
-No save mid-mission to return to it if you need to log off. This is an issue as some of the main missions are LONG. This can be avoided, but also remember that if the servers go down, as they have a few times based on updates and changes, and you are mid-mission, you will be losing your progress.
-So much to do that the map can get cluttered and confusing. Many icons. Just keep this in mind as it's not a true con, but you may not be interested in having to do so many different things.
Overall: This game is awesome to start. I have put in hours already and I don't feel like I've made a dent in the game. It's going to be a blast to continue leveling and discovering the city. Keep your eyes open for ladders and sewer entrances. There are so many things to open and explore. I can't wait to get further along into this game, but even the core game is going to be well worth the $60 price of admission (though cheaper for me and other Prime members). | video-games_xbox |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.