Review of Final Fantasy Protective Skin Decorative Decal for XBOX 360

Customer Ratings:

Say true,This game I like it so much,I play it so much time,The game's story so exciting CG so beautiful,If you never play it you can try it,I still looking for the game's accessories,So I hope you have more about the game's accessories

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Review of Star Wars Republic Commando - PC

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List Price: $9.99
Sale Price: $5.74
Today's Bonus: 43% Off

This is a game I've had since it came out originally in 2005, and I keep coming back to it. The action is great, the graphics hold up well, and the squad controls (and the squad members themselves) are brilliant and very easy to use. This game also holds the distinction of being the only shooter I've died in because I was laughing at something (fortunately dying is no big deal since your squad members can resuscitate you...unless they go down too)

As a star wars game, it succeeds brilliantly in capturing a much more in-the-trenches feel of the clone wars than the movies even though it takes us to the same places (geonosis and kashyyyk). This is partially because with one small, green exception there are no jedi in the game, which leaves you and your squad to do all the work without any forcepowered cheating :P The other thing that bears pointing out is your squadmates themselves. Despite being clones, they all have a unique character and provide a good amount of comic relief, Sev and Scorch especially. They're very much one of the strengths of this game.

There's a technical problem with nvidia 8000 series graphics cards where you have to set the bump mapping to low or the game won't play. Hopefully that'll be fixed in a driver update sometime soon.

The worst thing about the game is the ending leaves it wide open for a sequel...and three years on, no word of one. Delta squad has appeared in the republic commando novel series, so, their future may play out there. Still hoping for Imperial Commando, though :P

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A really fun game, very well designed.

Three Star Wars locations are explored: a desert planet, a huge spaceship, and the Wookie jungle planet. I liked the environments a lot. I think the sign of a great shooter is how well you remember certain locations, almost feeling as if you've actually been there. This doesn't match the genius of Half Life, but it's quite good.

The enemies are interesting. There are several types of droids, some flying insectoids, and some orc-like creatures. Each is vulnerable to a different type of attack. Animation and graphics are really strong in this game very realistic.

The action is intense, but there are plenty of places to take a breath, too. I consider this a challenging game, even on Easy. There are times when you and your team are scrambling madly to hack into a computer while fighting off waves of enemies.

And speaking of the team, they might be the best part of the game. You get a nice level of control, and it's very easy to designate soldiers to snipe or grenade, or to heal you, each other or themselves. It's a very nice addition of strategy.

Sounds are great, and the voice work (done by the actor who played Jango Fett in the movie) is excellent. He has an Australian accent, which somehow works perfectly in this military sci-fi game.

All in all, this really is excellent, and as of late 2008, you could get this game for about $10. A no brainer a very nicely done shooter.

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I'm not a big fan of Star Wars and I'm only lukewarm to squad based shooters, but this game did a nice job of making the squad a useful addition with a short learning curve on giving them directions. They can revive you if you're incapacitated and you can revive them to keep up team strength.

Many typical FPS weapons were included: Standard was a pistol with infinite energy-based ammo and common through out the game were assault weapons with separate sniper and grenade attachments (which counted as separate weapons with different ammo), rocket launchers, and various grenades. Less common were bigger brothers of these weapons that you usually retrieved after killing certain enemies. There were also turrets that could be captured and used.

Health is available at health stations throughout the game. You can also direct your squad to charge up their health. The health stations do not become depleted with use, so you can go back to reuse them if you need to rather than waiting to come across a new one. They also come in groups of two or three allowing you to restore the health of multiple squad members at one time.

The settings were nicely created, but not stunning. There are a variety of enemies throughout the game, and while some are pretty difficult to kill, there are no level bosses. This game reminded me of Halo in the sense that some of the enemies seemed almost cartoonish. Voice acting was about average, but there were some funny lines that were entertaining even though they were repeated a bit often.

Graphics are smooth, but not particularly demanding for a higher end system (I have a 3GHz core 2 duo and dual SLI-linked GPUs). There were no patches required and I had no problems at all on my Vista x64 system. The game loads quickly and offers manual saves, quick saves, and regularly saves automatically at checkpoints that are fairly frequent. It tells you when you've reached a checkpoint, but it doesn't overtly say on-screen when you hit the quick save key. I would have liked the feedback, but that is only the most minor of complaints.

I found the game to be fun, well crafted, challenging at times, but generally not overly difficult. I thought it was quite long even by 2007 standards, which was also a pleasant surprise. I highly recommend this game especially considering the $8 price I paid from one of the third-party sellers on Amazon. Definitely a lot of bang for the buck at that price.

Honest reviews on Star Wars Republic Commando - PC

I felt myself enjoying Republic Commando a lot more than Battlefront 2 mainly because of the smoother interface, weapon pickup ability, and because it wasn't modeled after a multi-player conquest game or capture the flag. Even the Jedi heros didn't make BF2 a more enjoyable experience. The weapons are more interesting, especially the different grenades the commandos can use. Republic Commando is essentially Rainbow Six Vegas or Call of Duty 4 set in the Star Wars Universe, except you can jump and use a melee weapon. The graphics and music are very appealing, even for a game that is 3+ years old. The action is scripted and a lot of the levels are frustrating wherever there is a major choke point. The Super Battle Droids are extremely tough to destroy without the right weapons. A "headshot" using the sniper attachment doesn't take them out quickly enough. It's bad enough when you encounter a lone Super Battle Droid, but when 5-10 start to gang up on you along with a complement of normal Battle Droids it starts to get hairy. The worst part? (Yes, there is something even worse than that...) The enemy respawns in unlimited numbers if you stay in one spot. If your teammate(s) die in an area, you cannot plow ahead and clear the enemies, then come back to revive them. When you walk back, the same enemies respawn and the whole process repeats. I am not sure how the Republic and Empire ever won any battles but it isn't surprising the casualties were so high. Their weapons and armor sucked the big one. If they re-developed their blasters to kill droids with 1 shot, it'd make life a lot easier. I often wished the Commandos would use lightsabers and just slash through the enemies.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Star Wars Republic Commando - PC

I originally got this game for my son about 5 years ago on the "Greatest Star Wars PC Game" DVD package Lucas Arts released in 2006. Out of the the 5 games on there this was and still is his favorite game. However in the last year or two when I tried putting this on my Newer PC's with better graphics cards it would install fine and even allow me to go into the intial Title screen but as soon as I tried to start a new game it would go to start and then just kick me back into Windows and from reading some of the reviews there are other people having the same problem.

Anyways, so after my son gave me a ration of crap (I'm a certified MCSA) about not knowing how to make one of his favorite games work on his new school/gaming tower I did some googling and finally found out why the game would pop back into Windows whenever you went to actually go into Republic Commando from the introduction screen. When LucasArts was designing this game the game code made use of a graphic card option called "Bump Graphics", which were available on most of the Video Cards during that time (crica 2004-2005), However starting with the higher end ATI (Now AMD) Radeon HD 3000 series Video Cards that option was removed and no longer supplied on the updated drivers. about a year or two later Nvidia followed suite. However here is how you can circumvent this problem...

Star Wars Republic Commando fix:

The following Fix should work for the following Windows Operating Systems running the newer Video Cards from 2008 on...

Windows 2000 Professional (Have not tested the game on this OS but should work)

Windows XP (32 Bit)

Windows XP (64 Bit, Have not tested the game on this OS but should work)

Windows Vista (32 and 64 bit)

Windows 7 (32 and 64 bit)

1) Run Republic Commando as administrator (If you are not already logged in as one by default).

2) After selecting your profile, click Options > Graphics

3) Set the Bumpmapping setting to "Low", It should have originally been on "High". (Any other option other than "Low" will kick you back into Windows)

Please Note: Leave all other graphic options either in default or high for best game graphics experience.

4) Close Republic Commando

5) Restart Star Wars: Republic Commando and it should work just fine.

The game should start right up and is a blast to play in Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 (64 bit), the game maybe a little short but my son has had alot of replay value with it.

System Specs: My Sons Desktop

Intel Core Dou 2 Quad socket 775, 6mb cache processor

Intel DP43TF MOBO

8GB of DDR2 800mhz PC6400 RAM

750W Antec PSU

750GB SATA HDD

24bit 5.1 Creative Sound Card

1GB intergrated Intel NIC

ATI Radeon HD 6450 PCI-E 1GB

Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 (64 Bit)

27inch LCD VE276Q ASUS Monitor

Discount Winter Stars - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:

Winter stars is okay but we found a few things that could have been done better. The directions couldb be more clear. Levels for children would make it better too.

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We bought this game to play curling but first you have to go thru many challenges before it unlocks curling.

Reviews of Perfect Dark Zero

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List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $8.69
Today's Bonus: 57% Off

Perfect Dark Zero is one of my favorite release titles for the XBox 360. The graphics are gorgeous, the main character (female!) has personality, and it's a good combo of shooting, stealth and puzzle solving.

We've been of course testing all of the release titles, but we keep coming back to Perfect Dark Zero just for sheer fun of gameplay.

First, the basic mission tree. You are Joanna Dark, daughter of a bounty hunter who follows in her father's footsteps. You're athletic, nimble, smart, and maybe a bit fool-hardy. The game is set in the future (Joanna was born in the year 2000) and you get an interesting mix of locales to explore as you take on your assignments.

The graphics in this game are simply GORGEOUS, as you might expect from the XBox 360. I highly recommend you play this on a HD TV I've done screenshots comparing HD to low-def and the difference is rather impressive. The water ripples, the light plays off the rippling water, the rippling water reflects on the textured brick wall, you name it. You get red and blue lights shining down from the ceiling and the lights color their surroundings and even combine where they cross.

There are of course some amusing issues this still isn't photo-realism of course. There are times that a red laser beam has slight "ripples" in it, for example. Still, the quality is far better than anything else on the market.

I suppose you could complain that Joanna goes running around in high-heeled boots and low-cut pants, but heck, I was impressed that her chest size was reasonably normal. Compared to most other video games out there, with their mostly-naked women with inflato-boobs, Joanna is quite demure!

The sound is aiming for a James Bond feel here. I think that is pretty clear from the intro credits. You get a boppy rock soundtrack through much of the game. The dialogue is reasonably well done, and you can't really say much about how gunshots sound. They sound like gunshots.

Gameplay is a mix between Splinter Cell and a FPS. There are times that being stealthy and quiet really pay off. There are other times that just running fast and blasting away will work. There are cool lockpick puzzles, too. I do get frustrated that you can't "jump" though. I'll see a nice, inviting open window at less than waist high, and I have to walk right by.

I have mixed feelings about co-op mode. On one hand it's fun to have two females working side by side and taking out the enemy. On the other hand, if one person decides to quit, it shuts down the whole mission. I really like it on other games where a person can pop in and out as necessary. This especially is helpful if a less experienced gamer is stuck and needs help just for a short while.

There's also deathmatch style gaming available, both on local gameplay and XBox Live. This lets you sneak around and head-shot your enemies with great glee.

We've played this for many hours and haven't noticed any problems with lag or crashing. There are certain moves that don't happen instantly for example, when you shoot from cover, you have to wait for Joanna to "rise from a crouch" before she fires. This is quite realistic. The game also has cinematic sequences when things go into a Matrix-like slo-mo which seems to be in many current movies.

If you play this game on easy mode, you can probably zip through all the missions in a single very long gaming session (say 14-16 hours). The harder levels of difficulty are of course more challenging. Really, though, all single-player gameplay is is just a training mode to help you prepare for live gameplay. Once you've gotten your skills sharpened on the computer players, prepare to take on the real challenge, with real live opponents!

Highly recommended.

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Seriously, this game on any system, not just the 360, is not fun to control and there's no feeling of accomplishment when you pass each mission. The feel of the character during movement and shooting is inexcusably remedial, very slow, very tedious to aim, and like others said it takes far to much effort to drop 1 guy.

The game reminds me of a poor man's Red Faction 2 for XBOX with noticeably better graphics, but as far as 360 goes, the other 6 games I currently own surpass PDZ in the graphics department.

So the reason for my title is that for those who game this game 5 stars...where exactly are you standards? I can think of at least a dozen shooters off the top of my head for the regular XBOX that I'd rather be playing than PDZ, and Doom 3 in my opinion has better grahpics than this game. Halo, Halo 2, Doom 3, Project Snowblind, Mace Griffin...the list goes on and on, and obviously Quake 4 and COD 2 for the 360 trump this game.

Do yourself a favor, even if you love spy-type storylines and you're in need of a shooter, rent it first and you'll see what I mean. It's maybe worth 10 bucks when the price comes down, but definitely not worth 40-50, and most definitely not a launch console seller.

I know everyone has their own opinion, but giving this game 5 stars, even if your basing it on the so-called innovation this game brings (which it doesn't), you skew the standard of a shooter so far in the wrong direction it baffles me.

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In PDZ, you take up arms as Joanna Dark once more, except this time as a teenager and a bounty hunter with her pops Jack Dark. Once her father is killed by the evil corporation of dataDYNE on a mission, and a conspiracy begins to unfold around the same company, Joanna teams up with Carrington Institute to try and topple dataDyne...and to avenge her dad's death as well.

You see the world through Joanna's eyes as she runs around blowing away enemies with an assortment of weapons including a shotgun, the Superdragon, a "Shockwave" sniper rifle (remember the FarSight in the 64 game? Well this is the equivelent of it), the DY .357 magnum, and many more. You get to use turrets, hover crafts, and this mechanical walker thing with an M60 on it so that was cool too. You can use ziplines to get from one building to the next, and you can even press up against walls for cover and precise firing.

Lets talk a difference between this title and it's masterpiece of a predessor on the Nintendo 64. For starters, in Zero before you can do a stage you have to select your weapons and make sure you have enough space in the item slots for it. So in essence, you could really only carry one assault rifle and one SMG. That is VERY lame in my opinion I don't play a first person shooter to manage inventory. Moving on, in order to unlock new weapons say a CMP150 SMG that wasn't in your beginning inventory -for use in other stages, you must complete that level while having the CMP150 as one of your current weapons; WHICH means you must toss a weapon, take the CMP, and beat the level with it to have it for further use. Another lame idea. So if you are currently wondering, yes I am missing a bunch of weapons in my inventory. However, Perfect Dark 64 didn't have any of this and equaled out for a much better experience.

The multiplayer is somewhat redeeming, but still no match for PD64. You choose a level, how big it is, your weapon set, character/team, bots, and gametype and go at it. There are some interesting games like Infection or Hacking, but it's been done before. However, this game pretty much took out the in-depth character & bot customization process the 64 version had as well as being able to command your team, and in turn, lost a lot of points and was almost lackluster. Furthermore, you must actually beat the game to unlock all the bots, teams, and characters to get the most of the multiplayer ahem, LAME!. However, it will still provide you with some fun if you and a couple of your friends are looking to just blow each other or some bots away. There is also a Co-Op mode which was pretty fun I'll admit.

I'm forced to admit, but this is the best looking game I have ever seen. Everything looks incredibly realistic, the lighting is superb, the characters look humanlike and move as fluid as one as well. The enviroments, be it vast jungles, dense cities, or huge mansions are truley breathtaking. Perfect Dark Zero definitley showed the power of the X-Box 360, and really set the standard for future games. HOWWWWWWWEVER, and this was inevitable to avoid on this review, was the fact that I despise what they did with Joanna Dark's look. She was never a punk rock chick, nor was she a supermodel she was grotesque in the 64, she was british, she was something that could pass off as a secret agent... sigh, why Rare, why?

The music has it's ups and downs. Some songs, like when you are..grr..managing your inventory..are techno-esk and remind me of the glory days of PD64. Then there are the heavy metal / rock sections which help you get pumped up for a big battle. Then, there are the actual rave tunes which truley ruined it all for me. It was ridiculous and didn't help the overall atmosphere of the game at all. The voice acting was good for the most part, except Jack Dark who was just annoying.

The ending was flat out bad, but from what I have seen recently, most games are. You destroy the main villian/CEO of dataDYNE (can't remember his name at the moment) who underwent some transformation and became something that reminded me of a Dragon Ball Z character with the kamahamaha blasts and super strength. Anyway, you kill him, and officially join Carrington Institute hence setting the stage for Perfect Dark 64... not worth it in the least bit.

And I'm not going to lie this game is hard, and then incredibly harder on other parts such as the Jungle stage. The good news? It's short, with a mere 13 missions.

With all the hype surrounding this game, and with the memory of how awesome the first game was, I'm actually really dissapointed in the overall experience I had. Perfect Dark Zero had it's moments of decently intense firefights and pretty good multiplayer, but for the most part it was just a run of the mill FPS albeit with excellent graphics. I suggest a rental, nothing more.

...Also, in the club mission, if you look around at the videos on the wall...they are the from Windows Media Player. It was Microsoft's own little plug, just like in Condemned.

Honest reviews on Perfect Dark Zero

I know, this game is old, I picked it up at launch. But after seeing it under the "recommended for you" category on Amazon, I felt compelled to warn others to NOT buy this game.

As a person who LOVED Perfect Dark 64, I was thoroughly underwhelmed by this game. I cannot describe what a totally different game it is. I'm not sure if Rare lost their talent, but manit is different, and NOT in a good way. This game has frustratingly poor level designit's laughable. It's so bad that if you don't move for five seconds, arrows light up on the ground to send you in the right direction. That should NOT be necessary. The plot is pretty clichedit's not helped that it's a prequel, but it IS thoroughly predictable, particularly towards the end. Of course, Carringtonn makes an appearancewith a thick Scottish accent not present in Perfect Dark 64 in any form whatsover.

Online play is extremely mediocre too.

Avoid this game. It's not worth $20.

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I am a HUGE FPS fan, and have played nearly every major game in this genre since the original Castle Wolfenstein and while not a fan of console versions of what essentially is a genre best left in the PC arena, the original Perfect Dark on the Nintendo 64 was a spanker of a game.

I was thrilled when I read that a sequel was to be released, and rushed out to buy it, fondly remembering those late-nate PD gaming sessions, now to be converted into HD glory, with more features and thrills.

I tried so hard to like this game, I really did. However, beyond the hype and opinions of those who have never experienced what a great FPS should be like, here are the facts of life.

1 Awkward aiming. Unlike most console shooters, PDZ requires near-perfect aiming there is not much aim-correction for using the pad, and you play the whole game thinking 'I wish I had a mouse and WSAD keys..', which seems what the enemy must have, because they have less than no trouble getting headshot after headshot on you.

2 Crap storyline. Cheesy, dull, terrible dialogue. Only the youngest of gamers would be excited with any story-based content on offer. The stereotypes are on display and proud of their corny lines, reciting them with sarcastic gusto. Cut scenes soon are skipped.

3 'No jump' feature. Sounds silly, especially as the original didn't have a jump button, but with the new levels and their detailed environments, you might find yourself screaming at the TV when your hard-earned skin-of-your-teeth cinematic escape is marred by clipping an inch of your leg on a small rock and taking a busload of fire in the process.

4 bipolar AI. Enemies and friends alike switch moods between deciding to be tripping, hobbling cannon fodder to head-shot assassins. There is no feel of realism, no sense of game world stability, and the game never levels out between ridiculously easy and so hard the only way to move around a level is to perpetually roll.

5 Rolling\Cover. On that note, the 3rd person feature is a waste of time. The 'roll' feature, presumably, exists to help one stylistically evade the enemy's fire, but you never seem quick enough to dodge the bullets well enough. On harder modes, you'll find the only way to conserve health is to become this constant gymnastic ball, pausing only to inevitably take damage while you return fire. The 'cover' feature is awfull, and exists only on selected scenery little help when you actually NEED it. It generally feels like a useless addition for the game-enhancing-cinema-style-experience ethos that designers really ought to dump. The problem is that it has a split second pause before taking effect and that you have to be perfectly in position to do so. One problem of this is if you do it in the wrong place, you actually expose yourself to the enemy and face the opposite way a hail of enemy fire later and you're frustrated meat. Lastly, once you're actually in cover, you have a second's window to lean out, aim, and get off at a maximum 2 shots before the guy you're shooting at clocks you.. and don't forget the 2 or so guys coming around you to mash you up in close combat. After a few of these situations, you'll be using this feature rarely.

6 Dull multiplayer. I'm sorry but it's true. PDZ multiplayer feels half-paced and as an afterthought. There are a handful of options compared to the pages of game customisation the original had eg. slow time, game modes, etc.. None of this for PDZ.

7 No innovation whatsoever. Now THIS is the area I wanted the game to shine in, excusing the rest of its problems. Sadly, its a bog-standard affair that never excites and thrills the way its predecessor did.

There are other things I could mention, but honestly, the list goes on. Graphics are NOT the be-all end all, and I never experienced one moment of genuine excitement at the gameplay or game world. It does not immerse the play the way, say, Condemned does, having you gripping the controller in real thrill.

All in all, roll on Halo 3.

Best Doom 3 Deals

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List Price: $19.99
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Wow. Doom 3 on the XBox... does it deliver? You bet!

Graphically, I was expecting to be blown away by the visuals but worried about the frame rate, especially having played the PC version on a high-end PC which still ran sluggish. My worries were unfounded though; D3 on XBox is smooth as silk with little difference in terms of detail from the PC version. The lighting, the locations, the textures all blend to fully emerse you in the levels. Never before have I felt so deeply swallowed by a game's emersive graphical atmosphere. (And let's not even discuss playing this game at night with the lights off!)

Sonically it's top notch. The breathy wails, the voice recordings, the mechanical creaking of the collapsing station all work in unison to convey the best sound experience you'll have. There's subtlety to the sound effects too if you're leaving a particularly noisy area and a security door closes behind you, the sound from the previous room disappears. Open the door and just stand there and it's back even though you didn't move. That kind of level of sound control is phenomenal and is used very effectively.

The control system is excellent and the button layout intuitive you can even assign favorite weapons to the D-Pad. I had no problems navigating the levels and felt any death was entirely due to my lack of skill and not a bad control layout.

And you WILL get killed in this game it's a tough one even on the easy level. During play, pure fear urges you to run through the level hoping you'll escape with engaging the demons, but skill and patience should be the order of the day.

Gameplay it's Doom. It's not GTA; there's no missions, sub games or careful strategies. Like the original (and games like Serious Sam) this is a straight forward linear slugfest with very little thinking required.

To be honest, even though I was aware before purchase the game was lacking in the gameplay department, I thought D3 might be 'boring' or repetitive... but it's not. It's an adrenaline filled, genuinely scary game that works despite the simplistic gameplay and 'samey' first half.

If you liked System Shock 2 and thought that game was scary then you'll be blown away by D3. Nothing comes close to it in terms of graphics and no other game has more 'boo-mammy' type moments.

Doom 3 is a unbelievable sequel to D2 and should be a part of every XBox owners' game library.

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I picked it up last night and so far I think its absolutely awesome. I have never felt this immersed in an FPS environment since I first played Half Life on the PC. The graphics are simply jaw dropping, but I think the vaunted sound effects are a mixed bag. The radio chatter is great. The dependence on sound to alert you to the presence of unseen enemies has never been done better. On the other hand, some of the weapons sound pretty weak. And in some instances, crucial sound effects such as dialogue, gunfire, and monster noises are too drowned out and muted by background noise. But still, these aren't really major issues.

The whole idea of having to switch between a flashlight and your weapon does seem ridiculous from a logical perspective, but I quickly forgot about this and began loving this mechanic while actually playing the game. It definitely adds a strategic element to the game and enhances the overall creepiness and immersion.

Although the actual gameplay mechanics are very basic, this is unlike any other FPS I've played in awhile. The feel of the old Doom is definitely there though. But this time the presentation is 100 times more effective. But as far as FPS games go, this is not a Halo style shooting rampage. Its more of a 'survival horror FPS'. The pacing is more similar to that of a Resident Evil game than Halo. In the Halo campaigns you always feel like the unstoppable predator. But in Doom 3 you feel like you're the prey... like YOU'RE the one who's being hunted. You're not running forward, spraying bullets like a juggernaut, as in Halo. You're moving slowly and very cautiously. You're shining the flashlight in every corner of a room before you dare take another step forward. There's a constant sense of tension, and the effect is just awesome. I'm not necessarily saying its better than Halo. Both games are great in their own way. But they have a very different vibe from one another, which I find refreshing. Although its too soon in the game for me to know for sure, I'd guess that Halo probably has more longevity in the long run. But there's no denying the powerful experience in Doom 3. Its very obvious to me that the Id Software folks are true masters of the art form. Only true masters can stick to such a simple barebones gameplay formula, yet make it so fresh and effective.

To those who might be worried about the game being repetitive, I'd remind you that the entire FPS genre is repetitive. An FPS game is basically built around one moment of fun repeated over and over again. But when its done right (such as in Halo or Doom3) it keeps you enjoying every moment. Here's one scenario that has already happened to me numerous times in Doom 3: An imp pops up in the dark out of nowhere. I crouch just in time to avoid the fireball he chucks at my head (sometimes he hits me). I strafe/duck to avoid a few more fireballs as he closes the distance. When he's almost right in my face, I explode him like a watermelon with a well aimed shotgun blast. As I said, this scenario has happened numerous times, in a bunch of slightly different variations. And not once has it failed to put a big smile on my face. Doom 3 is great!

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Single Player*:

Doom 3 is avant garde in the sound and lighting department. The strange sounds you hear bouncing along the piped walls seem to get more frequent the more time you take. You have no idea if they are in the distance, if they are right in front hiding in some unlit place. Hell, you hear them. A rattling corpes falls , dangling from the ceiling, it was this the rattling noise, nothing more, nothing less. Next noise and you might not be so lucky, cause the service lights of the complex just went out. Should you hold your favorite artillery in the dark or hold your flashlight to see your way through? Balance it out, perhaps, switching mindlessly between light source and twitching trigger finger.

This is Doom 3 and it's a perfect upgrade of what I'd expect the Doom 2 classic to be today. The graphics and mood are built with as much realism I've ever seen in a game. Things pop out from dark corners and lunge through opened doors, making you jump back more than once.

The controls in the game utilize the XBox R-type controller perfectly. The D-pad allows you to assign direction (^V) to your favorite lead/plasma/rocket/soul stocked wrist cronies. This allows for quick access. The concept of quick access is driven further with the incessant need to switch flashlight/artillery.

The single player story is told through dead people's PDAs. Pick em up (they're not using 'em anymore) and find access codes and tales of their experiences in their UAC Depts. It's an interesting way of telling a story that's been told before. I enjoyed this medium.

Online Co-Op*:

This is a great addition to the game, one that any XBliver will be very happy to have. Grab a buddy and go through the game together. I haven't solved the game in this mode, but the levels for Online Co-Op seem to be a little fewer and/or peared down from the single player game. It's a fun experience especially with a friend.

In closing, Doom 3 is a great dark masterpiece. It's very reminiscent of the old Doom games you remember from PC, seeing upgrades of your enemies and all that. You'll also remember that the enemies will come right at you, head-on, in a rather dumb sort of fashion, meaning they lack state of the art AI. That's a reason I chainsawed a star away from being a 5 star title. Don't expect flanking or running and hiding on the vermin's part. They come right at you. Many times this makes you jump back.

*The reason I structured this way is because I found the Single Player game the best experience of Doom 3. Don't cheat. Single Player meaning no spectators in the room and lights out. Stereo sound if you have it. The game is less atmospheric if you are talking to someone in the room or joking with your XBox live buddy at how fat his ex-girfriend is.

Honest reviews on Doom 3

Doom3 is by far the most intense FPS ever made. I bought Doom3 the day it released and played through it in about 3 or 4 days. This game has it's pros and cons as every game does.

Pros: Great Graphics

One of the most frightening games I've ever played

Demon models are fantastic

Cons: Doom3's multiplayer could be alot better

Story can be a little confusing

Either way, Doom3 is a must play. Everytime you load up Doom3, it will be the most intense gameplay you've ever witnessed. If you enjoy this game, be sure to look out for the upcoming expansion for Doom3, Resurrection Of Evil for PC as well. To maximize the intensity, make sure you play at night, turn up the volume on your TV, and enjoy your experience.

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And of course... like anyone would say, this makes the perfect horror/1st person shooter.

Doom 3 takes place on Mars, where you, the main character(can't remember the name) are thrust into an underground base full of dark corridors and technical anomalies. It's kind of the same setting as Area 51, just a lot darker. Anyway, most of you know the story, and though there may not be much to spoil, I want to keep what happens kind of secret because it's the reason why you'll get so freaked out playing this. Which is also a good reason why some people may not want to invest in this one. Yes it is a hell of a lot of fun... notice I said HELL. But it is also very gory and sometimes disturbing. In some later levels, you begin to see places where possible satanic rituals may have taken place, and even people crucified to upside down crosses. For younger people, they might want to stay away from this one.

However, this stuff doesn't bother me, it's what makes the game great, and so scary! So lets talk about gameplay. Overall, it is very repetitive, you walk down a corridor, a pentagram emblazes on the ground, an imp starts tossing fire balls, you duck, oull out your shotgun, and blast away. This happens throughout the whole game, minus some levels and the incredible Hell levels. Which may I please take some time to discuss. The developers on this one have done a fantastic job of bringing Dante's Inferno to life. Of course the hell in Doom doesn't look how Dante described it, but it's everything what many of us would think this place of torment looks like. The walls break away to form bridges, and screams and moans can be heard through the blazing walls. Trust me, when you get there, you'll get chills up and down your body. It doesn't help to hear the great dark ones cackles either.

All the weapons are great, including a pistol, shotgun, machinegun, chainsaw, rocket launcher, plasma gun, chaingun, grenades, BFG, and the Soul Cube. The best arsenal to defeat satan's dark forces.

Graphics are also really good. The lighting is very technical and put to great use in this one. Lights flicker, come on and off in a matter of seconds, and show some demons doing some frightening things. There are even times where it's pitch black and you can see absolutely nothing, except for your flashlight in front of you and the sudden imp that pops up behind you.

By the way, what is such a big deal about switching between your flashlight and gun people. It takes less than a second to press the white button once and then again. Personally, having this process to do also adds to the game, and makes it even scarier.

In closing, I would definitely recommend Doom 3... I still have yet to finish some of the campaign, and I also have to try the multiplayer, but I've played every level and know what happens. Anyway, go buy Doom 3, lock yourself in your room with the lights off, shades down.... and jump into hell.

Tetris Review

Customer Ratings:

Tetris is the best! Once you start playing you just can't put your gameboy down. Me, who's 9, my brothers who are 19 and 20, my sister who is 23 and my mom who is 38 are all in love with tetris. My guess is that 7 year olds to adult will enjoy tetris. I can't think of one thing that I don't like about tetris. You just have to buy it.

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I have by accident TWO copies of this original game, one I paid

for and other was later a gift.

This is a "never-ending" game which I have derived much pleasure

using. It never ceases to amaze me and I play it often.

I have other tetris games for other platforms, but I still come

back to this one game. I love it!!!!

The play is excellent and always offers even a seasoned player

multiple opportunities. I hate to admit it but I'm over 60! If you have it already keep it, if not then BUY one!

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Was introduced to Tetris in 1992 by my daughter and grandson. I quickly became addicted, so much so that I raced out and bought Tetris 2, Tetris Blast and Tetris Attack. While I love all of them my very favorite is Tetris2. As a senior citizen who hates to make decisions I find that this game keeps my reflexes and mental processes sharp by forcing me to make quick decisions and it increases and strengthens the flexibility in my hands. I am never bored waiting in long lines, a doctor's office or on long trips. The only times I DON'T play are when I am driving or online.

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Amazing game looks new works great not disappointed at all. I didn't even have to blow in to it. Amazing

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I love this game! This game is a classic. I have a Game Boy Advance Sp but it is compatible and I can play this on it. It is twice the size of the games that go this the GBA Sp but I don't care. I play this all the time. I love the music in which I get stuck in my head all the time :)

Command and Conquer The Ultimate Collection Reviews

Customer Ratings:

First of all, let's just get the value out of the way. 17 games for standard retail price is fantastic. Sure some of the earliest games are available for free online anyway but honestly, those aren't the best reason for buying this package anyway.

In today's world, Real-Time Strategy games are certainly less prominent than they were 10 years ago but the one's we have are phenomenal. In comparison, some of the older Command and Conquer titles feel dated. The single mouse button system, the poor graphics which make it difficult to tell what units you're moving and the lack of any type of tutorial or unit descriptions. All of these are artifacts of a previous age of gaming. Still, since the original Command and Conquer is one of the earliest RTS games, it can be a fantastic reminder at how far the genre has come.

Even though the gameplay for these early games can feel ancient, the storylines are still phenomenal. The Tiberium Wars with their science fiction take on the future of our world, the Red Alert games with a more light-hearted campy look at how our world could have looked and the Generals series with a more modern warfare take on the series. For some, the storylines will make the older games worth playing through even without the nostalgia factor for long-time fans of the series.

The real reason to buy this game is for the newer titles in the Command and Conquer series. Red Alert 3, Generals and Command and Conquer 3 are the stand-out titles in this collection and make the whole thing worth buying. For anyone looking for great RTS games, these three plus their expansions are each easily worth the price of admission.

There are a few downsides to this collection though. The first and most upsetting problem is that none of these games are available on disk. In fact, this is really just a code making the games available through Origin, EA's download service. As far as I can tell, you don't have to remain online once the games are downloaded but I haven't spent much time offline gaming. This could be a serious problem though for those who may not have reliable internet access or aren't fans of Origin. The second problem is that some of the older games took some serious troubleshooting before they would work on my 64-bit Windows 7 OS. Every game from Red Alert 2 on worked without any problems and Tiberium Dawn worked fine but the others took some work and EA's tech support required several emails before they could solve the problem. Still, I did manage to get every game on the collection to work eventually. Last, Command and Conquer 4 is certainly a low point of the series and it can act as a painful reminder as to why they haven't made a C&C game for quite some time since then.

This generation has had some great value packs and this is no exception. If you are a fan of Command and Conquer or RTS games in general, this collection has some great selections. It does have its drawbacks but if you can look past those and are willing to put a little work into making a few of the older games work, it's a wonderful series and this complete collection of all 17 games can provide a lot of fun. As an added bonus, buying this collection will give you early access to the beta of the new Free-to-Play Command and Conquer when it is released.

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My childhood through teen years and now were always filled with Command and Conquer games. These RTSs were what really got me into PC gaming and even to this day they're still a lot of fun. It's awesome to have these games all in one place now. Having to use Origin really isn't that big of a deal because you can play the games even if you go to offline mode. It's actually nice because it syncs your saved games to the cloud so if you spend a lot of time away from home playing on separate computers you don't have to start over. All games are great, but see the one issue I have below.

So the reason I docked it one star is because of the fact that not all games quite work on all Windows 7 systems, but with some tweaks I was able to make it work. On my home gaming computer all games work fine without any needs for tweaks. However, if the odd resolutions bug you, you can go into the .ini files for Red Alert II, Tiberian Sun, Renegade (which can be found at /Program Files(x86)/Origin Games/**CNC Game Name**), Generals (found at Documents/Command and Conquer Generals) and change the files manually to a custom resolution (ex: 1920 1080). If you're unfamiliar with this, google "changing .ini files". Red Alert III and Tiberian Twilight are changeable to modern resolutions so this isn't necessary.

For those of you out there using laptops with Nvidia Optimus technology (changes between integrated and the Nvidia card to save power) here is how I made Tiberian Sun and Red Alert II work. I couldn't get either to work on my Alienware m11x R2. After lots of research and troubleshooting I found that going into the Nvidia settings and go to "Manage 3D Settings" and finding the games and forcing it to use the Integrated Graphics instead of the Nvidia card. Then go to your Intel settings, go to "Power" then change it to "Maximum Performance". Do this for both Red Alert II and Tiberian Sun, and if that doesn't work add the .exe files manually from the game folders and change it to only use Integrated Graphics. I just felt like this is a common issue so I wanted to share so others don't have to waste hours trying to fix it. Hope this helps!

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They finally got it right they didnt remove any content like they did in the First Decade but they added Origin DRM to it. Can be removed if you know what to do

Games run if you your self did the compatibility modes yourself. If you are having troubles installing your original Disks aka in a 64bit windows this is one easy way to do it but over priced. Command Conquer Red Alert does not have the 3.03 Patch oddly enough but a smart user can just download it and do it yourself. Additional Content is Music Hits, wallpapers, 2 Videos for next F2P CnC (sigh if only westwood still owned CnC) For Updated Lan or Network play for the 2d Ones the good ones visit one of the fan sites even for IPX lan fix. There is no Remastering just so you know they claim to have remastered for new systems not at all....

If CnC Red Alert 2/Yuris Revenge or Tiberian Sun w Firestorm Crash look up the ddraw.dll User fix it fixes this on newer computers

Honest reviews on Command and Conquer The Ultimate Collection

I bought this collection to save myself the, small but existing, hassle of keeping track of physical discs and the need to install from them.

But instead of making the games Windows 7-compatible they have made them Origin-compatible and thereby made them mod-incompatible.

After wasting HOURS trying to install a simple mod that allows me to zoom out, just a little bit further, I have now unistalled Origin completely and I will never install it again.

Since EA only release games on Origin this probably means that I will never buy anything from them again.

All they had to do was to save me a little bit of time and effort and I would have given this product a 5-star review.

I would have prefered that they had just stolen my money instead of both stealing it AND wasting my time.

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The programs in this package have major compatibility issues, and the origin client is a complete waste of time. Very frustrating digging in forums for no solution and trying to get service from a customer service agent who was barely competent enough to tell me he couldn't do anything about the refund.

Review of Xbox 360 320GB Hard Drive

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $129.99
Sale Price: $99.95
Today's Bonus: 23% Off

I bought this to improve a sale priced 4gb 360. I still saved money doing it this way at the time compared to what the 320gb 360 packages were selling for.

The 320gb hard drive came with a code to download LEGO Star Wars and the 250gb does not at the time of this review.

There is a grill door on the side of the 360 where you simply insert the drive, and like magic, your 4gb slim 360 is now a 320gb model that can store games, movies, music, etc. This hard drive works with the newer slim 360's and not the older models I believe.

With this drive, I can now upload the entire contents of the game disc for improved play and performance. To be honest, I cannot really tell the difference. You still need to have the disc inserted to play the game anyway...I wish that was not the case.

I really only bought this so that Battlefield 3 can be played with the high definition graphics, as the standard 4gb on the 360 I have is only flash memory, and won't support that feature without a hard drive.

Overall, it works and it was easy to install.

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The reason this product says 293 GB on the data screen is this.

Sizes go as follows from large to small

Gigabyte, Megabyte, Kilobyte, Bytes

1 GB = 1000 MB

1 MB = 1000 KB

1 KB = 1000 Bytes

But computers can't divide by 1000 because they have to use the binary system. This means they have to divide by 1024 for every division, so here goes the math.

5 GB are taken out of every hard drive for system use.

315 Are now left over

315 GB x 1000 = 315,000 MB

315,000 MB x 1000 = 315,000,000 KB

315,000,000 KB x 1000 = 315,000,000,000 Bytes

Now Let's divide these by 1024 instead of 1000

315,000,000,000 Bytes / 1024 = 307617187.5 KB

307617187.5 KB / 1024 = 300407.40966796875 MB

300407.40966796875 MB / 1024 = 293.366611003875732421875 GB

Rounded to the nearest whole number, 293.366611003875732421875= 293 GB

Hope this review can help some people breathe a little easier

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I purchased this drive as an upgrade to my previous 250gb slim drive. It IS the official Microsoft 320gb slim hard drive and it comes with a full copy of Lego Star Wars III. Not sure what the previous review about it not being Microsoft was talking about. Not much else to say. More space, works great.

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I find it extremely hilarious that people are claiming to be computer literate, but complaining that the hard drive only shows 293 gigabytes (GB) after installed. So let's have a lesson. Hard drive manufacturers advertise 1 GB as 1,000,000,000 bytes. All manufacturers do this, and this is correct. Computer operating systems (OS), including the OS running on the Xbox 360, see a GB in terms of binary (2^30 bytes, or 1,073,741,824 bytes). This is also correct.

1,000,000,000 bytes = 1 GB reported by the manufacturer

1,073,741,824 bytes = 1 GB formatted by the OS

The OS sees 320,000,000,000 bytes on the hard drive (the manufacturer didn't lie), and reports it in terms of binary GB. The math is as follows: (320,000,000,000 bytes)/(1,073,741,824 bytes PER OS formatted GB). The result is approximately 298 OS formatted GB. Microsoft has firmware, OS, games, and other info on the hard drive built in, which takes up about 5 GB. This is why the Xbox reports a new drive as 293 GB.

The drive works, and works well. It is a snap to install, and there are no initialization steps to take. It just works. Don't rate something low because you're not intelligent enough to know how operating systems report GB.

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Just recieved in the mail... it may be expensive but its an official MS product... There another guy on here named joseph martin or whatever his name is, claiming its a third party that doesn't work...

I can tell you his review is missleading, bottom line its an official ms product and it works

Discount Time Crisis 4 (Includes Guncon 3) - Playstation 3

Customer Ratings:

Time Crisis has never been known for its deep gameplay and complex strategies, but it's still a darn fun series and TC4 is the best one so far.

Time Crisis is basically a target game built around a lightgun, which was/is its major draw at the arcades. The name comes from the limited amount of time you're given to complete each stage; usually you feel like you're running behind the clock.

Sure, you're shooting "people," but there's no blood, dead bodies, exploding body parts, or other gratuitous violence found in many other FPSes. Honestly, I'm thankful for this.

Graphically it looks great, as can be expected of most PS3 games.

The classic arcade version runs "on rails"--your character is moved from position to position by the game, all you do is point, shoot, and RELOAD! (The announcer always screams "reload" for some reason.) TC4 adds the ability to look left and right in some scenes, a gun flashlight, and some interesting new opponents, but otherwise is pretty much the same formula as the earlier games--make it through each chapter without getting shot too many times and fight the boss at the end.

TC4 includes an FPS mode where you can move around using the Guncon's builtin joystick, but I found this frustrating and not nearly as fun as the classic arcade version.

TC4's Guncon is based on the "LED marker" technology used by the Wii and several other new controllers. Older Guncons used a video-sensing lightgun, but that method doesn't work with LCD/LED/plasma/projection TVs. The new design works with any TV, but I've found it is harder to calibrate and it really doesn't feel as accurate as the previous Guncons.

(Note that the new Guncon can't be used with previous TC versions, and old Guncons will not work with TC4.)

Time Crisis can be played with a gamepad, but it's a pain and I don't recommend it--moving the targeting cursor around the screen with a joystick is slow and awkward. The game's sole basis is really the Guncon; believe me, I've tried playing it without (as the old Guncons didn't work with my rear-projection TV....)

Should you buy TC4? For fans of the series it's an easy purchase, especially at the new low prices. If you're unfamiliar with the series, keep in mind there isn't much depth to it as there's no real strategy involved--it's just shoot, shoot, shoot. But for mindless fun and excitement it's hard to beat.

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Duck Hunt to Lethal Enforcers to Time Crisis 4...to be honest, not much has changed. TC4 includes a Van Damme made for TV movie plot of a special forces team trying to take down an organization with secret bio-weapons...good enough justification for a game that includes nothing but you shooting at bad guys and insects and dodging their bullets.

Down to the nitty-gritty: the feel of the game. Replacing the arcade pedal, which allowed you to dodge and go into firing mode, is a B1 button, located just above your thumb on the shooting hand. To dodge and reload, you have to lift your shooting hand thumb (righties) and press down just behind the hammer. Easy enough, but you'll find your hand getting a bit sore from extended play. You have two analog-toggle controllers where the hammer is and in the section that juts out abruptly from the side of the gun. The first-person free movement is nothing special for experienced gamers, and is a moderate learning curve for beginners.

Accuracy: the game's setup includes two sensors that you manually hang from above the monitor; they're about an inch square and have a non-intrusive rubber-weight system to hold them into place. You'll spend a significant amount of time calibrating the gun to get just the right feel; it's a bit shaky to start, and for a 42" monitor, you have to stand at least about five feet away from the screen. But that's what the mini-games are for.

The mini games are, by far, the funnest part so far. If you've ever played the Point Blank arcade series, you'll enjoy approximately 15 shoot-the-moving-target type games in this section. You can play alternating competitively and also with a second GunCon. Simple fun, which, in essense, sums up the entire game.

The release of more thinker-oriented, patience required games such as Assassin's Creed, Bioshock, Mass Effect, etc., will definitely be a load for gamers...TC4 provides that well-needed break. The free movement merely adds a non-revolutionary variation to the arcade game. It's a true-to-the arcade translation for the home; what you get at Dave And Buster's is what you get at home, plus the mini-games.

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i just recieved time crisis and my accuracy is fine. if you run through the 5 point calibration correctly it should be pin point accurate. in fact i was able to snipe people really far away with a pistol. also to comment on the problem of it being to complicated. for me it felt good. of course it took a few minutes to get adjusted to it but i like the controls. as for the price issue. this is only 20 more dollars than a regular ps3 game. so you are basically paying 20 dollars for the gun.they are planning to release more games for the gun so this is a good deal. i recomend this game to anyone. i give huge credit to the creators of this gun as it operates very well for shooting and moving at the same time. and the controls are simple after a little practice. i have ordered the wii zapper and can only pray it functions as well as the guncon.

Honest reviews on Time Crisis 4 (Includes Guncon 3) - Playstation 3

Despite horrid reviews and people bashing this game for bad accuracy and a cheap gun, it's really not as bad as they say. In fact, it's not bad at all, it's great.

Starting with the gun itself. It very accurate. You can do a standard or 5 point calibration which works very well. You can make the gun as accurate ( or inaccurate as you like). One thing i've found though that may lead people to think it has poor calibration is the tv, not the game. Look at the screen used in the arcade. It's small and square. When you take into account a 40 plus inch widescreen tv, you've got more screen space to shoot at which means you must move the gun to a greater degree that in the arcade. If you unintentionally just move your wrists to aim the gun like i do sometimes, the accurracy is horrible ( so it seems) But it you were to look down the sights of the gun while you had your wrist flex over, you'll realize that it's shooting exactly where your pointing. SO you have to shoot the way you calibrated it. If you hold it like a cop does and shoot the five targets looking straight down the sights, you need to play the game like that. If you lax your grip and lower your gun, then yes, it's not going to be accurate because that's not the way it's calibrated. I believe this is where the whole "horrible accuracy gun" claims derive from.

As for gun quality. It's great. It's definatly not like the arcade, but then again if it was, you would be paying a whole lot more that $75 for it. The bright orange color is the main reason it seems cheap. The plastic casing on it is quite well, the seems are quite smooth and the texture of the plastic is unison. It doesn't have the platic swirls that cheap plastic toys do. The buttons are fine and very functional. the only thing I don't really like is the joysticks. The knobs that pop out are small and they aren't rubberized so my thumbs slip A LOT. But overall, the guns fine.

The game itself is fun too. For all those that complain about bad storylines...well, you don't play a light gun game for the story. It's basically a straight port from the arcade. So if you like the arcade version, you'll really love this because you don't need to constantly feed it quarters.

The FPS mode is unique. It's nothing to write home about. But it's definetly fun to try out. But it gets tiring quickly though because unlike something like Resistance, you have to constantly hold both arms up to shoot.

Overall, if you like TC. This is a no brainer. If your interested in this, you'll definetly find something to like. But if you have no interest in light gun games or TC.....then why are you reading this? =P

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Time Crisis 4 (Includes Guncon 3) - Playstation 3

The Time Crisis series has been an Arcade and Playstation hit for years. With the evolution of the Guncon we now have a PS3 version. Now some of you may be wondering is an $80+ game worth the price. For me it's a resounding no. Of course on the outside this game has quite a bit of potential. Two versions of the game and even some mini games to keep you busy. It sounds like quite the deal but sadly isn't.

Setting up this game is not easy either. When you open the large box you get the new Gun Con 3 with an 8 foot usb cord. The game also comes with two infared devices that go above the t.v. These also connect via usb. For those of you who have a 40 gig PS3 you have just used both your usb ports. Setting up for calibration is not very easy and seems to be rather inaccurate.

The biggest shining light for this game comes from the exciting arcade edition of Time Crisis which still looks good on the PS3. The arcade edition is a lot of fun and feels exactly like the arcade game with all the action. Point down and the gun reloads. Simple controls for an overall good game. This was my first experience with this game and it was really quite an enjoyment.

The major downfall of this game was the PS3 edition of Time Crisis that was made especially for the PS3. Unfortunately where this game lacks is in it's complexity. What really hurts is the several functioning buttons on the Guncon 3. When I say several buttons I mean as many as a normal PS3 controller. I couldn't make up my mind whether I was playing a first person shooter or a gun game. From the beginning you not only go thru the normal shooting but the movement. Trying to get the calibration to work correctly was not very easy. I noticed several times that my shooting was off because of this. I was beginning to feel this would be done much better on the Wii. Having to worry about moving your character in every direction and shooting several enemies is no easy task. I played long enough to realize I didn't want to have to deal with remember the functions of a half dozen buttons.

I have played several Time Crisis games and this one fails on being too complex. Nothing felt natural about having to use a gun to move my character. In all this game had a lot of potential but tried to go way to far. If anything they would have made a simpler game for people who just want to shoot. I would not advise this to anyone unless they are a die hard Time Crisis fan and even then it would be ill advised.

Review of Crash Bash - PlayStation

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Ever since the debut of Nintendo's "Mario Party", the multiplayer party genre is suddenly popular. Now the PlayStation's mascot, Crash, is jumping onto the bandwagon with "Crash Bash". It's the first game developed without Naughty Dog, who created Crash's first four games; instead, it's developed by Eurocom and Mark Cerny. For a first shot, Eurocom has done a great job with living up to Naughty Dog's legacy.

You can play as one of eight characters: Crash, Coco (Crash's sister), Dr. Neo Cortex (Crash's enemy), Dr. N. Brio (Cortex's rival), Tiny, Dingodile, and Koala Kong (Cortex's henchmen), and Kangorilla (a new character). There are also some secret characters, including Ripper Roo (a psychotic kangaroo in a straitjacket) and Penta Penguin.

There's a total of 28 different games to play. One example is a game where you ride on polar bears and joust each other while trying to avoid falling off of the slippery, swaying iceberg on which you're battling. In another, you bounce on pogo sticks and try to make the bricks of the platform you're bouncing on a solid color. There's even a game where you drive through a maze in a tank and blast each other with missiles and mines. Some games, though, are variants of classic games, such as air hockey, racing (although in this, you race in bumper cars rather than go-karts), and standard fighting, e.g. throwing TNT at each other and using your special 'power', etc.

The game allows for 1-4 players, and offers so much fun, you'll get addicted instantly. You'll definitely enjoy it!

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Chrash Bash may is as good as Niendo's Mario Part, if not better. The gameplay is based around different mini-games (like Mario Party), set into four groups. The groups include the likes of playing with pogos, bouncing balls, playing in the snow, ana a jungle level. In my opinion, the mini-games are much more developed than in Mario Party, however there are is a fewer variety. The level of fun, is without a doubt, better than Mario Party. However, the games are much more lengthy. You must have patience when playing each game because you must win three trophies to win a mini-game. This should be in everyone's Playstation library as a classic game.

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As I said before, Crash Bash is ultimately the most fun I've ever had with the wonderful Crash Bandicoot Series. I'm 14, and I got my first Crash Bandicoot (Crash 1) when I was 9 years old, and I have enjoyed the entire series ever since. Crash Bash has it all; a great storyline, superb graphics, and, most importantly, an unbelievable replay value. It's as almost if I could keep playing this game for 2 or 3 more years (and I probably could!). Crash Bash provides 8 characters to start out with. They are Crash Bandicoot, the star of the series, Coco Bandicoot, Crash's sister, Dr.Neo Cortex, Crash's arch nemesis, Dr.N.Brio, Cortex's old colleague, the huge Tiny Tiger, Rilla Roo, a brand new villain, Koala Kong, and my favorite, Dingodile. Each has their own strength (and weakness) such as Crash's speed, Tiny's strength, and Brio's ability to fire a laser gun. There are 3 modes of play. They are Adventure mode, which is when you travel from warp room to warp room duking it out with the other players for trophies, crystals, and gems and battling bosses, Battle mode, a freestyle competition where you can pick your character, level, and difficulty and just get rollin', and finally Tournament mode, where you can select an arena of four levels and collect trophies as you go, and hopefully, win! The levels are spectacular, ranging from a level where you can mercilessly bombard your opponents with an assortment of crates and weapons to a flat out frenzy on pogo sticks! This game is one of the best games I own. I look forward to playing this game every day, no matter how much school homework I have assigned to me!! Trust me, you'll love every ounce of this 3-D masterpiece. And as for the people who think this game stinks, well, they're full of it. If you don't have this game, well then by all means, go out and snag a copy, put it into your PlayStation, and get ready to have a blast!!!

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My husband and I (30+ year olds, I have to admit) bought a playstation on a whim several years ago. Crash was one of our introductory games. As they keep coming out with new ones, we're on it. Crash Bash is the first time we have played the game simultaneously and what a blast. The graphics are hilarious and inventive. The game lets you pick which character you want to be, and I was a little reluctant at first rooting for anyone but Crash. I quickly got over that. It was good enough that he was on my team. It is hilarious. The big characters riding around on little polar bears is a kick. It is pretty tricky, but not enough to frustrate you. And, again, it is inventive. One of the games has 4 characters on 4 corners of a floating ice block that tips toward the direction of most weight. It is a riot. The final "challenges" are tough, but again, not impossible. They make it just difficult enough to make the game last and not become boring, but not too hard to frustrate the player. I recommend Crash as a must-have with a Playstation.

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"Crash Bash" is deffinently the best of the Crashes. It's challenging, fun, and hard to quit. The levels are hard yet still fun to play (even though you loose half the time). And after you beat one level, they develope new ways to play that same level in a different way (My favorite levels are the Crash Box Bash one's). But I have to say that the best, best, best part of "Crash Bash" is.......... THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE CRASH!!!!! That's right. You can choose from a total of eight charecters (Crash, Coco, Dr. Neo Cortex, Tiny, ect.) to lead you through the game. You can also battle other people, go through tournements, or do the regular adventrue mode. So this is the reason I think that Crash Bash is they best of the Crashes.

Best Turtle Beach Ear Force Z22 Amplified PC Gaming Headset (TBS-6052-01) Deals

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List Price: $89.95
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program The Turtle Beach Z22s aren't a bad piece of kit.

In the box you get the headset with the mic permanently attached (this is non-removable, unlike the other TB headsets I have). The piece that works the magic is the in-line amplifier. This point is important, it's IN-LINE, I'll explain in a minute. You also have the ability to plug a music player into the amplifier for music playback (say you want to listen to music from an MP3 player/phone).

Setup is pretty much a breeze. Plug the headset cable into the in-line amp (there's a little painted headphone icon on the amp). Plug the USB connection into a free USB port and plug the 3.5 mm connector (on the same cable as the USB connection) into your PC. You might say "but why do I need the 3.5 mm connection when I get the audio just fine straight through USB?" The answer is, you want to have independent control over chat volume AND game/PC audio. If you just plug in the USB connection, you will get the audio, sure, but the problem is that you will NOT be able to use the chat volume knob on the in-line amp to control chat volume, it will only control over all master volume. You also lose the ability to utilize the treble/bass controls on the AMP if you don't use the analog audio connection to your computer.

Once you have everything plugged in, assuming you are using a Windows based computer, you will want to configure the audio. Right click the speaker in your taskbar. Choose "playback devices." IGNORE THE Z22 OPTION HERE! If you choose Z22, you will have the above USB audio/chat mix. Make sure your main sound card is chosen (mine is a Conexant 20585). Next, click on the Recording tab. Highlight the Turtle Beach Z22 Chat device and click on "Set as Default" at the bottom of the page. Close the window out and you are now ready to ROCK!

Sound Quality:

I believe the drivers in these headphones are the same as Turtle Beach's newer headsets. I say this because they seem to have the same aural qualities as the newer sets I have for the PS3 and 360.

And I have to say, bass is nice and deep. Highs are high. Mids are right where you want them to be.

Being able, via the in-line amp, to control the game volume and chat volume independently is great. Compared to TB's higher end headsets, this is a little lacking as it is completely manual. TB's higher end headsets all do dynamic voice/game audio adjustment (if you let them). The thing is, I've found this setup works just fine. I just have to set it per game and I'm good.

Chat Quality:

In game chat quality is quite nice. Clear and crisp. I've used this headset w/ Skype as well and the quality is just as good.

One thing you will need to become accustomed to is hearing yourself in the headphones when speaking. This allows a level of aural feedback so you aren't screaming, or whispering, with your chat partners. It is controllable via the in-line amp as to how loud your chat dialog is, so it CAN be turned down/off or up as needed. If you hear hiss without anything playing, chances are that the gain on the mic is turned up. Turn it down and it should disappear.

Phone:

So you can plug this headset into your phone for audio and talking. In this case, the in-line amp doesn't do anything but get in the way. Sound quality isn't bad and my dialog, according to my phone partner, was no worse than my normal phone (nor much better). It's a nice feature, but don't buy these headsets for that.

Build Quality:

The headphone band is high quality and well padded. The ear cups wrap your ears, not rest on them, and are quite comfortable. They are made out of some kind of fabric, not leather like the much higher end TB's, so they don't heat your ears as much.

The amp feels a little cheap, and if you pull the headphone cable out you will actually see the blue lights from the front indicators bleeding into the inside of the device. It's not flimsy or anything, so I'm not worried about damaging it.

What about that in-line amp comment I made above? So here's the thing. The amp, if you aren't accustomed to having a 2 inch by 1 inch brick hanging off of your headphones, it can be a little annoying. The nice part is that the cables are all pretty long, and the amp has a belt clamp on the back, so you can just slide it over your pants, belt or onto your shirt if you want and get it out of the way.

Overall:

These headphones, if you're looking for stereo audio, sound fantastic. Deep bass really accentuates explosions as needed.

The price, for what you get, is not bad at all. The headphones use a high quality driver and the in-line amp adds to the depth from the headphones.

If you're on the market for budget, PC gaming audio, this is a great pair of headphones.

Recommended.

PROS:

Great quality stereo sound

Great chat quality

Well built

Amp controls work well

Independent chat and computer audio

Cons:

In-line amp (you get used to it, really)

Must be configured properly for chat (don't push everything through USB)

Stereo only (I like stereo for my music, but surround is nicer for in game)

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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Over the past few years I've owned 4 different versions of Turtle Beach headsets and a pair of TRITTONS and Corsairs. While most of these headsets were used with either my xBox or my PS3, I have also used several of them with my PC for gaming. My first impression of these Ear Force Z22's when I pulled them out of the box was while they looked just like some of the nicer Turtle Beach headsets out there, but the build quality felt a bit cheaper. At that point I plugged them into my Windows 7 desktop and decided to try them out for a few hours of online play.

After some time using them, I found they just didn't feel quite as cushioned for long gaming sessions like some of the other pairs I've used. But I believe this is also reflected in the headsets price point, since the more comfortable sets do cost a bit more. These are light weight, which can be good at preventing discomfort when wearing a headset for long periods of time. But it also tends to give away their cheaper build.

The sound of these Z22's is good, and it seems what this set looses in cushioning they make up for in sound. One thing I appreciate that Turtle Beach included in this set is their "Dynamic Chat Boost". My first headset with this was the Ear Force XP300 that I use with my PS3, and it makes all the different in a game when you need to hear group chat. The chat boost lowers some of the in-game sounds just enough to hear better when people in your party are chatting. It doesn't mute everything, it just brings game sounds down a notch. Then as soon as people in your party aren't talking any more, the game volume goes right back up. I love that Turtle Beach included the Chat Boost in this new set, since it works so well.

It's a very easy set to set up, basically just plugging in two cables. Plug one cable into an open USB port and the other into the headphone jack on your computer. Make certain that your audio in your PC's control panel is set to send and receive sounds from this set and you're up and running. It's just as simple as that.

Sounds from the mic come through very clear and you can adjust your mic and your other volume levels right on the inline amplifier. With the flip of a switch you can also mute your chat so that you can turn off all sounds from going into the game should you want to.

There is an included 3.5mm auxiliary cable for using with your MP3 players, iPods, tablets or anything else you have music on that you would like to listen to while playing in game with the headset on. Using this cable you can play your music, chat and hear everything going on in the game, all at the exact same time. You're able to hear your music but no one else does. To use this feature, just plug one end of the cable into your earphone jack of your music player and the other end into the earphone jack on the inline amplifier of this Z22 set, then turn on your player and play the music. The music will play through this headset just like they were headphones, however you can also hear everything going on in your game on your computer as well.

It's a great set for those looking to hear awesome in-game sounds and the ability to chat, but without breaking the bank while doing it. It's by far the best headset I've used for under a hundred dollars.

Best Deals for Turtle Beach Ear Force Z22 Amplified PC Gaming Headset (TBS-6052-01)

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program Up until recently, I'd been a staunch supporter of Turtle Beach and their headphone products. I used them primarily for PC gaming (and music but mostly gaming) for years. I started with the HPA2's years ago. The first one lasted several years before the really small connector holding the ear cup to the main frame snapped. I bought a new one and that snapped after about a year. Then I was screwed because they stopped selling them. Turned out they were prepping for the launch of a new line which became the Z6A's that came out a couple years ago. I'd set up a preorder for that sucker months in advance.

I remember checking their booth at PAX Prime in Seattle to see if they had them and they did! I cancelled my pre-order (it was slated to ship out the next day) and bought a pair right there. It was even discounted (though Seattle sales tax took care of that discount). When I got back and started using them it was great for a few months before the sound started dropping out and then completely cut out on one side. I ended up sending it in for repairs and got back what seemed like a new pair. Tried those for a few months more and they ended up breaking...again with that tiny plastic connection to the ear cup. At this point I was outside of the original warranty (the "new" pair I got were considered included in the original warranty, not a new one) so it was pointless.

That preamble is mainly setup to explain that I've had a long and not so great history with Turtle Beach in recent years so I wasn't expecting the best experience here. This is gonna be a bit detailed. Feel free to scroll to the bottom for the summary if you don't want to read it all. I tend to take gaming headsets seriously. :)

In general, though, this headset (so far) isn't bad at all. Let's break it down (not literally):

The headset, similar to the earlier incarnations of the HPA2 and Z6A, comes in two pieces: the headset with a short cable and an amplifier box with a longer cable. In this case, the cables are different in that the one coming from the headset ends in a standard 3.5mm connector. You'll understand why that's important in a second. The amplifier box's cables end in a USB and a 3.5mm connector as well...but I don't get what the 3.5mm connector is for since it did nothing for me. Plug the USB cable in and you're golden. The extra 3.5mm connector becomes dead weight. No sound goes through it if it's used solo and it's sort of pointless to try to plug a USB and 3.5mm connector (especially since they aren't always close together--though my case actually does have them close enough together in front). I figured it was an alternate option if you're using the headphones on a machine without enough USB ports handy. Dunno. The instructions make it look like you should plug them both in but USB sounded just fine to me (and the mic worked as well).

The amplifier box has all the controls you should need to manage sound through these headphones. The interesting thing about this product's set up is you can actually plug in (with an included male to male cable) to your smartphone's jack (for example, the iPhone's jack supports this connector). The idea is that you could effectively switch over and answer a phone call without having to take off your headset or walk away from the action. It's actually pretty brilliant if you think about it. Just switch a manual switch to change the mic's output from the computer to your phone and a separate volume control for computer input vs mobile input lets you hear the conversation better while still funneling sound from the game you're playing. There's a separate dedicated port for connection to an Xbox controller (but no extra cable to support both phone and Xbox...probably unlikely to be common but still it would've been nice to see an extra one).

In addition to separate controls for computer/mobile sound you also get one for the passthrough volume off the mic. This is something that, if you've used a Turtle Beach headset before, you'd really appreciate. I remember when I started using the Z6As...I realized the mic audio was being routed back so I could hear every sound picked up by it...including breathing and just all the sorts of stuff that the headsets usually filter out. Turns out it's effectively a monitor feature so you can hear what it sounds like when you're talking. Good if your friends are complaining about background noise so you can hear what they mean. Bad if you really don't need to hear your voice over your friends' voices. In this case, they decided to give us a dedicated volume control so you can just turn that down. Nice.

The mic itself is permanently attached, no plug-n-play here. The stalk is nice and bendy so you can tweak it to suit your needs/style but you have to push it up and out of the way if you're not using it...can't take it off the headset if you don't want it.

The earcups are smaller than I'm used to. Between the previous Turtle Beach headsets I've used and the current Rosewill one (Rosewill RHTS-8206 USB 5.1-Channel Vibration Gaming Headset (RHTS-8206)) I'm using, I prefer the complete over the ear coverage since it reduces background noise and focuses sound...especially useful when you've got 5.1 surround and want to know if someone's about to backstab you in BF3 or CoD. :) The earcups on these as I said are smaller but manage to still cover my rather large ears. It's not quite as spacious--it's sort of scrunching my ear a bit to fit--but it does cover. For longer gaming sessions, it can start to be a bit uncomfortable but your mileage will vary depending on your ears and what you're used to.

The strap connecting the two earcups is padded and the earcups don't twist if you want to slide them down and out of the way temporarily. It's a fairly simplistic setup and the materials feel nice. The overall headset is relatively light.

The audio is basic stereo and sounds great in general. Music and gaming are fine though I might be a bit biased because I tend to favor analog 5.1 surround sound headsets (basically full drivers for all channels as opposed to simulated surround sound from headsets like Razor's Megalodons) so it isn't quite as rich or deep as what I currently use. It's not noticeable everywhere. For example, Skyrim sounds fine but when I played Mechwarrior Online, the sounds felt muted. So, your experience might vary a ton depending on the game's audio stack, which is to be expected.

Now the tricky bits. First, I mentioned the headset alone (without the amplifier) has that 3.5mm connector. This means you can actually just plug them straight into any device that supports (and powers) that sort of connection. For example, you can plug it into most smartphones. The great thing is that you can finally take "serious" headphones and use them on a mobile device. You can supposedly use it on a PS Vita and "many mobile devices" so it could be really solid with portable game devices. I just don't have any so I can't vouch for that.

That said, when I tried to use that dedicated connector cable to plug my iPhone 3GS in so I could switch between that and my PC, there was a huge amount of distortion and noise. At first I thought maybe it was a bad connection but twisting the cable in the port did nothing. Maybe the cable's bad but I doubt it. When I set the volume for that port to max, I can hear the same distortion just faintly. Maybe this is a defective unit, or maybe it just doesn't work with my dated phone. Either way, I'd suggest caution if that's the main reason you're buying this. I haven't had a chance to try their tech support so it's entirely possible there's a fix.

Second, if you're not used to this sort of amp-on-the-cable setup, you might be annoyed by it. When I used to run with my older headsets, this used to frustrate me. There's enough cable to sort of try different configurations and all but in the end, I usually end up with the amplifier box dangling from my leg (if I let it dangle completely loose, it'll catch on the edge of my chair every time I bend down a bit). Not a deal breaker necessarily but for some people it might be annoying enough to stay away.

Lastly, the price. Lately, it seems like gaming headsets have been shooting for the moon in terms of pricing. When there's a sense of craftsmanship, I can appreciate a higher price. That Razer Megalodon I bought while trying to find alternatives to the epic failure of the Z6A sets is simulated surround and sometimes sounds like I'm in the middle of very large metal container. Even so, the headset itself is solid. Metal frame, nice cups, braided cable and a ridiculously big amp box but it's miles away from the headset so you can actually rest it on a desk and still have enough cable to sit back. This product is $90 retail. It's nicely constructed (not a lot of obvious weak points like the the HPA2 had) but it feels flimsy. I'd understand the price if we were talking multiple drivers and some sort of surround sound setup. But you're getting normal stereo sound. These should be half the price. That Rosewill headset I mentioned earlier? $70 retail (more like $45 here on Amazon at the time I'm writing this) and it's got 5.1 surround sound with dedicated speakers for each channel...not simulated sound from two main speakers. The Razor equivalent (theirs is 7.1) is something like $140 but again you're getting full surround sound in a solid headset (assuming they make them like the Megalodon). It just doesn't seem like a worthy purchase from that point alone.

To sum up, these headphones are nice and get the job done while adding interesting features (and at least one saving feature!). Despite that, for the price, I think they're not worth it yet. Maybe if the price swings south a bit more (more like half), then they could be a great set you could use whether you're on a PC or on an Xbox. I like that they support Macs since I've got a Mac laptop for traveling and work. But, in the end, the extra features don't justify the price. Plus, with Turtle Beach's history with flimsy headsets despite good sound quality, I'd be worried about investing $90 in a headset that might not survive more than a year. Time will tell but even if they last, for $90 I can buy two 5.1 surround sound headsets (the Rosewill's are great despite a lack of name recognition in the gaming community) or save up $40-70 more and grab a Razor Megalodon or the Tiamat 7.1 surround sound set.

Honest reviews on Turtle Beach Ear Force Z22 Amplified PC Gaming Headset (TBS-6052-01)

Not bad, nice features but the audio quality is a little less than I'm typically used to. Frequency range seems narrower than advertised and the drivers are easily overloaded. certainly won't be replacing my studio quality monitors but these will work fine for on the go.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Turtle Beach Ear Force Z22 Amplified PC Gaming Headset (TBS-6052-01)

Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program A good gaming headset needs the ability to be customized by a gamer's demanding requirements, which may include support for separately adjustable play sound volume and chat sound volume (of other players). The Turtle Beach Ear Force Z22, like other gaming headsets, implements this by using the USB connection for play volume control and the analog 3.5 mm audio connector for chat volume control. These two functions account for two of the five thumb wheels located on the in-line amplifier box. There is also a monitored variable microphone control wheel which allows you to change the volume of sound that the other parties will hear you. And then there are thumb wheels for treble and bass that you can tailor to your liking. Lastly, there is a microphone switch which you can set at Mic On High, Mic On Low, Mic Mute, and Phone Call Mode.

While this headset is primarily intended for use on a PC gaming hardware, it can also be used with a mobile gaming device with or without using the in-line amplifier. It must be noted that in amplified mode, there needs to be a USB power source.

The Turtle Beach Ear force Z22 produces very good sound for gaming and I like its ability to be customized for different user preferences and gaming requirements.