Reviews of Xecuter X360 USB Pro v2

Customer Ratings:

Worked great! Installed jungle flasher on my laptop, and I was good. You'll need a way to power the device during this. Don't use the xbox360!! I used "AGT External 110V Power Supply 12V DC 4-Pin Molex SATA Adapter Cable" or you can use a molex from your desktop. If you don't have a dektop computer or don't know what a molex is, get the Exteral power supply.

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This is a great tool. For all of you guys wondering it comes with everything you need except a molex power supply (you can use your motherboard but its a lot easier with the molex adapter). It works great and haven't had any issues. Thanks!

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DATA FEATURES

Connect any SATA device to any PC or laptop via USB

Compatible with All Phat 360 DVD Drives Hitachi, Samsung, Benq & Liteon

Compatible with All Slim 360 DVD Drives Liteon & Hitachi

Compatible with Xbox 360 Hard Drives (Phat & Slim)

Repair your Xbox 360 DVD Drive within minutes no more weeks of waiting!

Easy Drive Key Extraction & Updating

Full access to your Xbox 360 Hard Drive

Convert any WD Hard Drive to be 360 Compatible using X360USB PRO HDD Hacker tool in Windows!

No SATA Port Required

Fully compatible with Jungle Flasher

No More Driver / OS / SATA / Compatibility Problems

Fully Upgradeable On-Board Firmware

Supports Mass Storage Mode As Default

Dual-Mode PORTIO & WINAPI

Enhanced WINAPI speed for tools such as Xbox Backup Creator

Power, Status & Activity LED's

POWER FEATURES

100% Compatible with all 360 DVD Drive models both Phat and Slim.

100% Compatible with all flashing tools inc Jungle Flasher

JungleFlasher-Controlled Power ON/OFF/CYCLE

Manually-Controlled Power ON/OFF/CYCLE

JungleFlasher-Controlled Eject Open/Close/Half Tray

Manually-Controlled Eject Open/Close/Half Tray

JungleFlasher-Controlled ModeB

Manually-Controlled ModeB

Molex replaced with SATA Power Connector Prevents connecting power cable incorrectly

Molex to SATA convertor included if you don't have a Sata PSU

Self-Resetting PPTC Fuses for added current protection

Extra power filters for a cleaner, safer design

Extra USB AUX Power cable if PC USB port doesn't output a true 5v

Auto/Manual Mode LED's

Power On/Off LED

ModeB On/Off LED

RIPPING FEATURES

Convert any stock 360 DVD into an 0800 ripping drive without modifying the firmware

100% Compatible with XBC (latest version required)

Even works with Hitachi 0500! (Liteon DG-16D5S 1175 Support Coming Soon)

Supports all formats inc XGD3

No CFW required! Works with any stock 360 DVD Drive

Supports the maximum possible speed that the drive can handle

We recommend all rips are run through ABGX to get the perfect median AP2.5 Profile.

OTHER INFO

Custom-Designed Case

Trusted Xecuter Design

Proven Track Record of High Quality

Superior After-Sales Support Forums with 220,000+ Users

90 Day New Replacement Warranty

Official Product Website: www.x360usb.com

Packaging Includes:

X360USB PRO V2

SATA Cable

USB Cable

DVD Power Link Cable

SATA POWER to MOLEX Adapter

Honest reviews on Xecuter X360 USB Pro v2

it is said that it doesn't work at latest hardware version of x360

so I only suggest poeple to buy this one when

your x360 box is old

Chrono Trigger Reviews

Customer Ratings:

Pros:

+A very well done storyline

+A good battle system

+Several sidequests to undertake

+Some new content to experience

+Lots of replay value

Cons:

-There's a good amount of new content but it might not be worthwhile to those who've already experienced Chrono Trigger before; likewise, there's no improvement in the visuals... this may or may not please some gamers

In 1995 Square released Chrono Trigger. A game commonly hailed as one of the greatest games of all time. In the years following it became one of the most highly sought after Super Nintendo games of all time. The game saw a rerelease on the Playstation in 2001 along with Final Fantasy IV in the Final Fantasy Chronicles package. This marks the third time Chrono Trigger has seen a release since it first debuted. The game has aged very well but some gamers may find there needs to be more of an update.

Chrono Trigger has a well known story but it never hurts to go over it for some who may not have played this gem. In the year 1000 AD, the Kingdom of Guardia has the Millennial Fair. You play as Crono, who goes to the fair and bumps into a girl named Marle. After wandering the fair with her for a while, Crono and Marle decide to check out his friend Lucca's new invention, a teleportation device. When Marle steps into the device, it reacts to her pendent and she is suddenly transported through time. Feeling somewhat responsible, Crono decides to go through time after her. What begins as a simple rescue mission turns into something so much more when you go into the distant future and see that the world has ended. Now, in an attempt to save the future, Crono and his friends will stop the apocalypse from happening. Their adventure will take them through time and they'll meet several interesting characters.

It is because of the characters and the well put together story that Chrono Trigger is so memorable. This version features a newly translated script that is much better than the original (as if the original needed a tune up).

Another aspect that makes Chrono Trigger stand the test of time is the gameplay. You'll roam the field normally until you come into contact with an enemy. Where as most RPGs have to transition from the field mode to the battle mode, Chrono Trigger instead has your characters spread out and pull out their weapons. The battle system itself utilizes the ATB battle system from Final Fantasy for some fast paced action.

Where the game truly shines, however, is its Tech system. Every character has a series of unique techniques that they can utilize. At first the system doesn't sound that interesting, but your characters can combine their techniques together to pull off double and triple techs. It helps to make battling more interesting and fun. It also assures that you'll try using every character at least once just to uncover all the double and triple techniques out there. More than that, however, it adds a lot of strategy to the game given that each characters techniques are unique to them. You may find that what makes the difference between sending a character into battle and not has to do more with their techniques than their base statistics.

There are plenty of side quests to keep you busy, and the time traveling element makes some of them more fun to partake in than others. As if that wasn't enough, the DS version also includes all the animated cutscenes from the Playstation release. If you'd prefer to enjoy the game in a completely classic way, you can turn them off if you desire. There are also a few extras added to the DS version such as new dungeons and touch screen controls. The touch screen controls themselves work fairly well, although you may still find that using the buttons and D-pad is still much easier.

Chrono Trigger is by no means a challenging game. It's also a fairly short one. At most you'll probably take twenty hours to complete it your first time through. Veterans may find themselves completing the game in less than fifteen hours. Chrono Trigger makes up for being a short game by having a lot of replay value. First there's the New Game+ feature which lets you go through the game again carrying over your techniques, items and equipment. The game also throws in multiple endings, which will encourage you to play the game again.

Musically, Chrono Trigger has one of the best soundtracks around. Some of it sounds better than the original Super Nintendo game. Many tunes will be stuck in your head for years to come, mainly because so much of it can convey so much emotion.

Graphically, however, is where Chrono Trigger can be a mixed bag. The character models and backgrounds look incredibly detailed, and in the DS port some things have been smoothed out. Artistically, Chrono Trigger will probably never fade into oblivion. On the other hand, Square-Enix released Final Fantasy IV and Dragon Quest IV earlier this year with improved graphics, bringing the games into 3D. Final Fantasy IV, in particular, showed major improvements in its presentation that made the story more emotionally gripping. It's a wonder why Square-Enix wouldn't do the same with Chrono Trigger. It would've been stunning to see some of Chrono Trigger's best moments in a new light.

The good news, however, is that Chrono Trigger hasn't had many releases, and there's so much more added than simply a new dungeon. This means even if you did play an older version of the game, there's a good berth of new content worth checking out. Whether or not it's worth forty dollars is subjective.

Chrono Trigger is a remarkable game. If you've played it before, one more go can't hurt. If you've never played it, this is the definitive version. Every RPGer should play this timeless classic at least once. Age has not slowed Chrono Trigger down one bit.

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Finding Chrono Trigger for the DS was like finding a free $100 bill on the ground when you're starving for a dollar cheeseburger.

This game is an immense breath of fresh air, and is a time-tested classic RPG that delivers on every element of what a good RPG should be.

The story is intricate, the characters are colorful and inviting, the gameplay is smooth and interesting, the graphics are pleasant and crisp for the DS, and there is never a dull moment. I found myself playing Chrono Trigger with the same ferocity as reading a good book you can't put down.

The menus are customizable and easily navigated, especially with the use of the touch screen (which is optional). The battle system flows in a very traditional style, with the options of using Active Time Battle or Wait styles. The story has a multitude of endings depending on the choices you make in the game and other factors, guaranteeing even more playability past the first run-through.

This is, hands-down, the best RPG for Nintendo DS (and maybe other platforms) I have played. It has a sense of beauty and intrigue that transcends modern RPGs, and will have you playing until your hands cramp up.

It has successfully been ported from the Super Nintendo to the Playstation Entertainment System and now to the Nintendo DS with new dungeons and touch-screen capability.

A must for RPG lovers everywhere, and a great Christmas gift idea!

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If you consider yourself a gamer, and have not experienced this title, you owe it too yourself to pick it up. It doesn't have to be on the DS, though I believe that version to be the definitive one.

The SNES version is the original masterpiece and I just bet you could find it here on Amazon.

The PSX (Play Station 1) version has all the extras of the DS version but loses stars for strange load times before and after battles and while opening the menus which can detract from the over all immersion of the experience.

Sound:

This is the only video game I have ever ordered the sound track for! Haunting melodies from the forests of Guardia, epic themes while rocketing through time, and a sweeping final theme you may find yourself humming for hours. The battle music is standard Final Fantasy fare, but hey, is that such a bad thing? The sound effects are witty and even though this is still midi sound you can tell a lot of thought went into putting it together.

Graphics:

This is a game for the Super Nintendo. It has sixteen-bit graphics. No particle effects, no bump/mip/or any other form of texturing, no specular lighting or bloom effects, but let me tell you... the art direction and simple, yet sometimes powerful animations of the characters convey a sense of nostalgia that's hard to come by these days.

Game play:

You won't find another Final Fantasy game like this. And I find that hard to understand. The tech system is brilliant, combining techs to create effects is sometimes a greater joy then that last 10 minute mega summons you pulled off in the last Final Fantasy game. you just can't wait to get to the next one and see whose battle strategies it will effect.

Presentation:

Highly customizable. Everything is tweakable right down to the backgrounds you look at on the text and menu screens. Battle speeds, active/wait battle gauges. Best of all the battle menus are now removed from the play field and pushed down onto the second screen so you can watch everything unfold without any clutter.

Lasting appeal:

If you grind through this epic game the first time, you'll find a feature waiting for you the next time you fire it up(and you will!!)on the menu screen called new game plus. It allows you to keep your stats and items collected from the previous game and go through for another round. Which is handy becuase beating this game at different stages of the story will give you new endings. There is a multi player mode for raising monsters(haven't had time to review this yet) and two new dungeons that seem to be placed just right for grinding out those 99 levels for each character. They also add some new story elements and a new ending.

Just go get this game...you won't regret it, and if you do, well, it makes a great christmas present for that other nerd you know with the DS....happy time traveling!!.....

Edit: I stand corrected....you will find all the extra content from the playstation version on here....as well as quite a bit more...including much much more powerful weapons and armor for each character...if you can put the time in to find it. And if that doesn't tweek an RPG enthusiasts interest, I don't know what will....

Honest reviews on Chrono Trigger

There's something to be said for nostalgia in games; the games that were awesome then might be a little formulaic and even boring now but still, that game managed to entertain for long, long periods of time back when cartridges had to be blown into to get to run and the war was either Sonic or Mario. Now with so many high-tech graphics, vast amounts of sidequests and things to do as well as multiplayer options, is it worth going through "Chrono Trigger", an old-school RPG with appropriately old-school graphics. Well if you're a DS owner, the question isn't "why would you" to "why haven't you by now?"

Story: Taking place literally across all ages, Crono and his friends Lucca, Marle and several others they encounter throughout time have to prevent a possible future from happening: that of the being Lavos and his complete destruction of the world in 1999. Together, you'll travel from the dinosaur-laden Prehistoric times to apocalyptic 2300 A.D. and hopefully stop the world from falling into ruin.

Graphics: Square Enix released a port of "Final Fantasy IV" originally for the Gameboy Advance with some spiffier, less pixelly graphics while also providing a remake of the game with more improved graphics and CG sequences for cutscenes. What does Chrono Trigger do then? The former. Not that I mind since the game's a classic either way and the art style is still as strong as ever for each era and the cutscenes made for the "Final Fantasy Chronicles" package on the Playstation are here (though rather compressed quality), it's not the most technically accomplished game but I welcome keeping the original look intact despite cries of outdatedness...as opposed to the "why can't we have the original" cries.

Sound/Music: Arguably, Square Enix's most well-known composer to work on their games is Nobuo Uematsu though they also have another musical weapon, that of Yasunori Mitsuda who also provided the soundtracks for "Chrono Cross" and "Xenogears", his 2 masterworks. His soundtrack here is just as noteworthy with several notable themes and unlike some soundtracks which work solely with the game, this is easily a soundtrack to own. Voice acting? Pssh, don't be silly.

Gameplay: Typical RPG with levelling up, new equipment, specialized attacks for certain characters though there's a couple unique features. The more popular "enemy on screen" system is here rather than random encounters and it doesn't take long to be thrown into battle so thankfully no stylish battle entrances here. Characters have unique attacks called "Techs" which can be combined with other characters for even more special attacks/benefits. The techs also can hit more than one enemy should the attack be close enough so for example, a straight fire attack by Lucca might eat one enemy but line up enough and it can nail them all. This adds a bit of strategy since a well-timed wide area attack can clear the battle arena much faster.

The usual sidequests are a-plenty here, not a single character is wasted and the story is quite engaging but is there more to see beyond just re-experiencing the game's greatness? Well it's common now but back then the concept of New Game + and multiple endings were relatively new if not brand-new and should you defeat the final boss at a certain point in the story the second time, you got to see a different ending which ranged from the interesting to hilarious. As far as new DS content, it's really just new dungeons, touch screen controls for battle (though being able to specifically click a menu page than scrolling like the original is welcome) and a handy map is good to see.

Ultimately,if you're a DS owner and you like RPG's, Chrono Trigger needs to be bought right now. I know its 10$ more than most but honestly, it beats the absurb Ebay prices. No longer an illegal download or a rare and expensive find, every DS owner can now experience the timeless game that is "Chrono Trigger".

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Chrono Trigger

Ever since its debut on the Super Nintendo way back in 1995, Chrono Trigger has remained one of my favorite games of all time. I had played it over again so many times that I had the game script memorized. When Chrono Trigger (CT) was announced for the DS in 2008, I rushed out to pre-order a copy. In fact, this game was the reason I bought a DS. I was in no way disappointed in my decision!

What makes Chrono Trigger great

The original game was ahead of its time (no pun intended) and groundbreaking in many ways. The graphics and music were jaw-dropping in their day, and while they have no doubt aged, there's nothing ugly about them. Toriyama's style definitely comes through, characters' expressions are clear, and tech attacks look like they would actually hurt! The music is moving and always fits the situation. The story really shines; I have not seen another RPG (or any other game for that matter) before or since that has incorporated all of the aspects of time travel the way CT has. You travel back and forth through time, from prehistory to the post-apocalypse to try to find a way to stop the inevitable evil coming to destroy the planet. Your actions in one time period have consequences, affecting an individual or even an entire town in the future. And there's never a place in the story that feels slow or seems to drag on. The characters are also unique, ranging from a robot from the future to a feisty, barefisted cavewoman, to a chivalrous knightly frog-man. Each character's magic or "tech" attacks are unique to them and can even be combined with other teammates to perform devastating (and just plain cool looking) double or even triple tech attacks. This is such a fun and cool idea and adds so much more to the battle experience and game strategy; I wonder why Square hasn't incorporated this into other games.

As others have pointed out, the game is fairly short for an RPG, especially by today's standards. On my first play through, I completed every single side quest and the DS extra content (more on that later) and still finished the game in about 26 hours. But this isn't so bad. I've found that in RPGs of the last decade, there's usually a point in the latter part of the game where I'm just ready to be done with it and that the story feels unnecessarily dragged out just for the sake of having extra hours of gameplay (I'm looking at you Final Fantasy!). But as much as I've played CT, I've never felt that way. The story moves forward and concludes at a good pace. And this game is definitely meant for replay. CT was one of the first (if not the first) games to introduce the New Game + feature. This allows you to replay the game but with all of your previous experience and items. This makes subsequent playthroughs easier and faster, and you're also able to challenge the final boss at just about any time, which allows you to unlock the game's multiple endings. The game boasts 10 different endings, ranging from just silly (Good Night) to showing the consequences of beating the game before certain storylines or time periods were concluded. There are also variations on the standard ending, ranging from small to great, depending on how you faced the final boss and what actions you took or didn't take beforehand. And as much as I've played and re-played CT, it seems like I always find something new I had missed before.

DS Version = better Chrono Trigger

In my opinion, the DS version is the definitive one. Keep in mind that this is a port of the original 16-bit game, not a complete remake like, say, Final Fantasy IV DS. The Playstation port was nice in that it included anime cutscenes by the game's art and character designer, Akira Toriyama (of Dragonball fame), and also the extras feature that allowed you to unlock art illustration, music, a catalog of the endings you unlocked, etc. But I didn't like how the game had to load between each "map" (sometimes a single room, walking from one door to another) or how the background music would reset itself if you went to your menu, got into a battle, changed rooms, etc. And the music is definitely great enough to want to listen to. The DS version has everything that the PS version had (cutscenes, extras feature already unlocked) plus new content, without any loading or slow down or resetting.

You can choose to play the game in classic mode or DS mode, which moves menu choices and enemy data in battle to the lower screen, effectively freeing up the top screen. Outside of battle (in both modes), the lower screen displays the map of whatever area you are in and also allows you easy access to different menu functions (items, magic, equipment, changing characters, etc.) with a simple tap. Wisely, the developers made the game so that you run by default while moving (because who walks all the time?) and only walk by holding down a button.

DS Extra Content

Had this game been released without any extra content, I still would have snatched it up and loved it. These extras that are included are nothing spectacular but a nice little bonus.

Arena of the Ages this is basically a monster raising/battling mini-game, where you train up a little monster that resembles a nu. I personally don't care for these type of games. I played with this the first playthrough and have not bothered doing it again since. For me, it distracted too much from the real fun of the game, which was the story!

Lost Sanctum This extra town/dungeon appears near the end of the game and spans two time periods. It involves a lot of "go-fer" quests that can get annoying. But doing so can earn you many rare and new items and weapons/armor that can even rival your already-ultimate weapons/armor.

Dimensional Vortex opens up after beating the game for the first time. The vortices span three time periods. It's a mixture of randomly-generated previous-dungeon rooms plus new areas with new monsters (mostly palette-swaps of previous enemies). Like the Lost Sanctum, completing these provides more better-than-ultimate gear and maxes out the stats of your present-age heroes. It also unlocks a new final boss (and ending) and works to tie together some story elements to the game's somewhat-sequel, Chrono Cross (another good but very different game). Very cool. Definitely the best of the extra content IMO.

New Translation Controversy

I feel like I should mention this since others here have brought this up. The DS version does have a new translation so that dialogue and the names of some items are different than how they were translated in the original game. I suspect this won't matter to anyone but people like me who have played the game enough times to have the original Ted Woolsey translation memorized.

I feel that, in some areas, the new translation has improved the game and in other ways it hasn't. I don't think it would be fair to call it a "bad" translation just because it isn't the original. On one hand, I think the original translation had a certain light-heartedness to it that added to the humor and fun of the experience while the new one seems to add some depth and seriousness to the game. The Woolsey translation was also overly PC in that it edited out references pertaining to alcohol, etc., which did cause some (unintentionally?) funny moments (Taban: "Yum! Lemonade sure tastes great outdoors!" when he's clearly chugging from a large beer stein. And soup races with Ayla??). I do miss some of the jokes from the original, such as the references to the Knights of the Square(soft/EA) Table. Frog's Shakespearean speech is also missed since it added so much to his chivalrous character. On the other hand, the new translation clarifies and adds humor to some otherwise odd moments in the game (Dalton's: "what's that behind you?" and Nizbel II explaining why you had to fight him after walking right past him).

The DS at least acknowledges Woolsey's creativity by letting most of the names of characters remain the same. For instance, the three villains from the Middle Ages, Ozzie, Slash, and Flea, are all named after rockers; in the original Japanese, they're named after condiments I believe. But why are Mystics renamed as Fiends? I'll never know.

All in all, there's nothing in the new translation that doesn't match the essence of what's contained in the original one. Sure, I admit I'm nostalgic and I miss the original one many times, but I personally don't think it's fair to knock an awesome game to a one star review just because of that.

The Verdict on Chrono Trigger DS

To summarize what I meant to be a shorter review: This is a truly great game. And this version of it on the DS is super. I have never come across another RPG (or game for that matter) before or since that has matched it in its variety and depth of story, its simplicity and fun, and its replayability. This version has everything that the PS version had and more. And it's going for such a bargain price right now. I bought the game at full price (30-something dollars!) in November 08. I just recently bought another copy here on Amazon when it was going for $16 (because three save slots doesn't seem like much sometimes). That should say something about how great a game it is. I can highly recommend this game to anyone looking for a superb RPG. If you haven't experienced CT before, you owe it to yourself to see what this game is all about!

Cheap Brunswick Pro Bowling (Requires Kinect) - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $21.99
Today's Bonus: 27% Off

I waited several months in anticipation for this games release. I had the Wii version which was really bad, but Crave promised this one would be better. Let me say it is NOT. If anything, it is worse than the Wii version. Let me explain why.

1. The Kinect controls are absolutely terrible. It is not the Kinect sensor at fault here. It is the code written to use the Kinect sensor that is bad. The controls are truly unstable. It is very difficult to lock the cursor on any control. The cursor moves away from the target without any hand movement at all.

2. There are very few options. You have to tell the game which hand the bowler will use, every time you start up a new game. If you check the bowler profile, it knows which hand the bowler uses, but still Crave makes you select which hand the bowler will use.

There should be an option to skip the NPC player / players. The way it is now, you have to select each and every time the NPC bowls whether to skip his play display. I should be able to tell the game up front which NPCs I don't want to watch bowl.

There should be a saved setup that determines which bowlers are NPC bowlers. The way it is now you have to set that at the beginning of each new play session.

3. The Wii version told you each time your bowler increased his stats. The Kinect version does not tell you anything. Each time I check the bowlers stats they are unchanged, so it appears they do not even change, which means you are doomed to bowl the same lousy way every time you bowl.

3. The targeting is just terrible. It does not seem to matter where you aim, the ball is going to roll where it will. It often will go to one side or the other, sometimes directly at the 4 pin or the 6 pin.

4. Lastly, this game is not fun. You would think the Crave devs would understand, if a game is not fun, people will not buy it.

The xbox 360 provides a method for publishers to patch their code. I certainly hope Crave reads these reviews and will attempt to fix their game. Until that happens I would recommend not buying this game. I think you will be disappointed as was I.

I will wait and see if they do patch the game to make it better. If that happens I will change this review.

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Being a former PBA member and Information technology specialist, I've played just about every computer bowling game ever devised. Some didn't even attempt to capture the essence of bowling and were just arcade games, while others tried to be realistic but failed miserably. The best bowling game in my opinion before this review was Brunswick Pro Bowling for the PC. The pin action was very realistic and there were changing oil patterns and a few balls to choose from. Then came the Kinect where you are the controller along with Kinect Sports that YES!! included bowling. I was stoked and bought it immediately. It was fun, but once again the game attempted to appeal to the masses and was more an arcade thing than a bowling simulation. It required the player to perform strange body motions to hook the ball and there were no lane conditions or ball choices; very disappointing.

Then I saw that the Brunswick Pro Bowling franchise had created a game for the Kinect. I was immediately excited and started reading reviews, and was again disappointed. Every review I read hated the game and rated it as almost unplayable. Since it was available so reasonably, I decided to purchase a copy anyway. I am so glad I did. This bowling simulation, and I do mean simulation, is probably the closest thing to actually going bowling without visiting the local alley. Five different alleys are included with very different oil patterns. True to bowling, the oil patterns vary slightly between lanes at each house. This means that you still have to adjust your shot between games even if you have figured out the pattern. There are a huge amount of ball choices and each ball does something different as far as skid, roll, and hook attributes. There are realistic leagues, tournaments, and one on one matches. The sound effects are very realistic as well as the pin action. Like I said, a person would actually have to go bowling to beat this experience, and it wouldn't be by much.

Now the down sides. If you are looking to have a quick bit of fun without any learning investment, this is not your game. Go buy Kinect Sports and play their bowling game for that. I can see why so many people have given this game a bad rating. Even I, as excited as I was and being a former professional, became a little frustrated at first trying to learn the body movements and figure out the game's control strategies. However, the more I played it, the more I came to appreciate how accurate the game really is to actual bowling. I also learned that the game is harder at first until a player invests enough time in leagues and tournaments to earn money and buy items. This was very frustrating at first, but at the same time was the real beauty of the game. It keeps you coming back for more to buy shoes, balls, hats, and wrist guards that improve your bowler's and thus your ability to hook the ball, be accurate, and throw as hard as you want.

Next, to make the game this accurate and sensitive to your body movements, they had to push the Kinect device to it's limits of sensitivity. This has a cost. Annoying things happen if you are not careful about all your body movements while anywhere near the Kinect's veiwing area. Make sure other players and pets stay away from the sensor limits of the Kinect as well or you will find yourself aiming and throwing suddenly without warning even though you did nothing. Ambient light must also be controlled. If the room is too dark or too bright the game may not function at all. If you have enough space in your room, steps can be taken just like in real bowling. This is my favorite way to play and really enhances the perception of actually bowling. However, when swinging through to throw the ball and create hook, the player must finish in a relatively small zone in relation to the Kinect sensor to get the best results. Once again, this was frustrating at first until I realized this also made one be accurate with where they started, the length and speed of the steps, and the timing of the follow through and hook motion. All these things actually enhance the bowling experience once mastered.

My last complaints are about the computer bowlers. If you are by yourself and want to bowl league or team tournaments, you can choose to have the CPU control the other players which is great. However you have to skip every single other player each frame to get to your turn. This means you will be standing still with your arm rigidly outstretched for over a minute between each frame to skip seven other computer players on the average league. This gets old in a hurry and there is no setting to change it. Finally, my last complaint is that all the computer bowlers throw straight balls down the middle with no hook at all. Every now and then a computer player will throw a hook at a spare, but 99% of the time it is just a sliding ball straight down the middle with no hook or roll. This is true all the way from beginner CPU players to the pros. In my opinion this really misses a chance to make the game even more realistic. It's fun to watch others try to figure out the lane conditions and sometimes watching helps you to figure out where to play on the lane and what ball to use. This aspect is totally absent since the CPU throws the same shot every time with the only difference being how many strikes it gives itself.

In conclusion, if you love actual bowling, would like to experience something very close without going bowling, or are just an avid computer sports fan, this game is for you. You will have to invest some hours in learning the movements and acquiring gear just like in real life and will then be rewarded with satisfaction and a bowling experience that will be increasingly realistic. There is also the opportunity to have friends over and bowl realistic leagues that could span several weeks.

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I bought this game and had issues with the screen shaking all over the place and very slow movement, I then went and read the reviews that were on this site and found that installing this game onto the hard drive eliminated all of the issues that I was having, in fact this game is very precise in the detailed way that you can control the speed, rotation and movement of your ball during approach and release. I was amazed in just how accurate this game is and would recommend it to everyone who is into precise bowling games.

Honest reviews on Brunswick Pro Bowling (Requires Kinect) - Xbox 360

I have been playing this game and have none of the issues that people have been saying they have. I have to wonder if they are tying to play from the disc and not instaling the game to the Hard Drive. I have solved almost all of my play issues with other games by installing them. Now for the review, I felt like I was really bowling. I was surprised at how much the sounds and the Kinect enhanced the experience.

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Is it for you or not? I really enjoy this game and so does my family. I played it four hours straight the first day I got it. I am currently playing in career mode which is a lot of fun. The bowling simulation is realistic and entertaining. I really do not understand the low ratings given by the other reviewers. It may be wise to rent first because of the other low reviews, but this has become a family favorite in my house.

Reviews of Final Fantasy XIII Original Edition

Customer Ratings:

I'm about 20 hours into the game more or less and I love it! It seems like it would be difficult to understand at the beginning because of all the tutorials but it's easy! Yes it's linear but that's not a big deal to me. Got it on time. Great game! If you have an HD tv get an HDMI cable. It makes a great difference in the graphics. Music is spectacular and plot is tremendous.

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This game has some great and fine qualities that are overshadowed by bad development.

ABT (Action Battle Time). Taking turn based gameplay to the next level of if you're not paying attention, you'll lose and fast. Now, this is a feature I actually really enjoy, because it requires a lot more strategy over normal turn based games.

Free roam? Huge worlds? Don't count on it, FF XIII is extremely linear until the very end where the world opens up slightly. You will be running down what seems like never ending paths. Don't get me wrong, the scenery is beautiful. Square Enix never lets you down on breathtaking worlds that can you leave you watching cutscenes over and over.

Class system? It's beautiful. You can't freely pick abilities like in other games and class advancement is linear. However, the ability to change classes live in battle on all characters (setup as paradigms) is crucial to your victory in the game. If you're getting pounded by some flying monster just switch to a tank, healer and buffer. You're good to go for a revenge all out offensive in no time flat.

Personally, I would recommend this game if you can get past the idea of linear maps and running for hours. If not, skip over it.

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I Love this game, i don't mind the "linearity" of the game, because ALL JRPG'S ARE LINEAR! Plus the story is great, the characters are awesome, and graphics are phenomenal on the 360. I was lucky enough to get the LTD. Edition for the game and game guide for XIII-2, and plan on pre-ordering Lightning Returns Final Fantasy XIII later on this year. "Die-hards" don't like this game, i say get over yourselves, and admit this is a GREAT game, and more than worthy of the title Final Fantasy.

Honest reviews on Final Fantasy XIII Original Edition

Excellent graphics,sounds and camera movement.

Good enemies, it's an amazing game.

Square Enix is the best company of RPG games!

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I would always recommend a final fantasy game, but with this amazing game and the amazing scenery and graphics... You just cannot go wrong.

Buy Skate 2: Platinum Hits Edition

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First skateboarding game I played was Tony Hawks, 1&2. The best skateboarding game of its time. Decided to take a look at the Skate 2 demo (mind you, I've never played Skate 1). I was BLOWN AWAY. Tony Hawk, move aside, Skate 2 is the new and improved kid in town! I shortly bought it after not getting enough from the demo. Well worth the money. What a revolutionary title! Forever more, skate 2 is gonna be known as the skateboard game that changed it all. No longer do you get to add stats to your player (speed, Air, jump, etc) everyone is on an equal playing level. If someone else can pull off an amazing trick/jump/flip, I can do it too. Anything is possible! There are little challenges and what not, but honestly, if this game came without the challenges, I would be happy. I just do them to do them. The people over at EA really did a good job with the city design. You will never get bored cause there is always something new to attept. Recommended! You won't regret it.

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dont forget to vote yes/no whether this helped or not ^_^

so rarely do we see a sequel so true to the original yet better in every way. Skate 2 takes the basic mechanics of the original and creates what is possibly the best skateboarding game ever, but to be fair to the times, the early years of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater are legendary.

Graphically theres little to complain about, great character models, great lighting effects, and generally great use of textures, aside from most foliage and some lackluster water effects everything looks solid. the bruising/body damage from bails is nicely implemented as well.

the game controls just like the original with that fantastic analog control. if you havent played it, the let stick controls the skater, and the right trick controls the board for ollies, manuals, flip tricks, ect. similar to the ideas behind NHL 08/09 and Fight Night Round 3. and dont forget the replay editor. gameplay can be paused at any time to edit your replays. you can change camera angles/styles and the speed at which each clip in the video plays. any of your replays can be uploaded for all to see.

Create a Spot you can now, at any time, pause gameplay and create a box to designate the trick area, set the score on given ramp/gap/rail/ect, and upload it for all to see and compete for the high score.

challenges/activities abound from tournaments and races to individual spot contests, competing for the best trick. they even added online for this one, all the styles of activities available in career can be chosen for online competition, as well as online freeskate with your friends. unfortunately all online modes are limited to certain areas, so you can forget traversing the whole city with your friends GTA IV style. a small complaint. actually my only real complaint about the whole game.

the soundtrack is great too, varying from oldschool rap to modern rap, classic rock to modern metal.

on top of all that Skate 2 features one of the most advanced physics engines in any game except maybe GTA IV (why didnt that have a replay editor?!) every bail is unique to the situation. everything moves as it should whether you're nailing a grab over a staircase or slamming into a knee high steel gate.

all in all its slated to be one of the best sports games of 2009, right up there with Fight Night Round 4 in terms of respective quality. it could be one of the best games all year period.

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I'm going to compare this game a good bit to Stoked a snowboarding game. The reason for this comparison is that they both came out at nearly the same time, they both have received similar reviews and scores, and they both use similar control schemes. Lastly, there are some things in common between snowboarding and skateboarding.

I purchased Stoked and ultimately Skate 2 because I was looking for something different. I was tired of driving games, shooting games, and there were no good RPG's on the horizon. I needed a change.

I bought Stoked because it was $10 cheaper. Bad mistake. I rented Skate 2, and ended up trading in Stoked (and a few other games) to purchase Skate 2.

The controls between both games are similar. Left stick "steers," right stick controls jumps and pivots and tricks. Of course in Skate you can push yourself around, in Stoked well, you're just sliding down a mountain.

Skate 2 wins the comparo for a bunch of reasons. San Vanelona is a living town with pedestrians, traffic, security, and other skateboarders. Stoked takes place on a relatively-lifeless mountain, with some stationary onlookers at various "trick spots." Skate 2 is a "sandbox" oriented, whereas Stoked though certainly not linear, still only lets you slide down the mountain, restart, and slide down the mountain again. If you miss a trick in Skate, you simply push yourself (or walk a welcomed addition to the game no matter how awkward the controls) back up the hill and try again. You can even set a "waypoint" at the start of a hill, railing, obstacle, etc and with the press of two buttons, return to the waypoint to try again. If you miss a trick in Stoked, you have to restart at the top of the hill, FIND the area you were in, and try again.

The control schemes seem a little easier in Skate at least until you scan through the trick guide. Stoked is all about holding a button and moving the right stick in a certain direction. It basically requires memorizing a lot of button combos, or pausing frequently to check the instruction book. Skate 2 relies on a similar structure, but most of your stunts are done by moving the right stick in a specific pattern. The good news is that you'll often do A trick. It may not be what you WANTED to do, but you'll get points at least. I have not yet run into challenges were a very specific trick was required, though I have read that this may occur later. Skate 2 seems a bit easier to play as you can "fudge" your way through the challenges a bit easier, being creative as opposed to just checking off a list of required stunts.

As someone who is entirely new to the Skate series, and skateboarding games in general, I found Skate 2 very easy to get started in and enjoy. Moving around is very easy and intuitive. Learning the basics like ollies and grinds was very easy, and let me get a decent way into the game before I had to broaden my horizons. I also like how advancing through the game opens up "contacts" which allow you to do things like draining pools, removing "traps" that inhibit skating, and even requesting a little "muscle" to help with security. The various missions and "spot" challenges can be pretty fun, and though often times they require multiple attempts to succeed, somehow it never becomes very frustrating. I'm not a big fan of doing things over and over again, but maybe because it all happens pretty quickly, you can run the same challenge many times in a single minute especially with the "waypoint" system mentioned above. I cannot tell you how easy that makes Skate 2 to play.

As fun as the challenges and missions and side-jobs can be, simply zipping around San Van is a lot of fun in itself. It's really a welcome changed in a sandbox game to be able to entertain yourself without shooting people or worrying about health or a "wanted level." Many times I'll find a railing that I want to practice grinding on, or a ramp that I want to practice jumping from. Drained swimming pools are incredible fun for flipping, grabbing ledges, grinding, etc. Skate 2 also gives you an awesome feel for your height, your speed, and your frequent-impending doom when you realize halfway to the ground that "this one isn't going to go so well..." But even the wrecks pay off though with the "Thrasher Hall of Meat," which adds a hilarious and even profitable twist onto bone-snapping crashes and accidents. Wiping out in Skate 2 makes me laugh over and over again. Never before has failure been so much fun.

Skate 2 is a great game that encourages creativity and is packed with lots of different things to do. It's entry-level access is great for new players and old fans alike. The controls could be a little tighter, the walking technique could be greatly improved, but most of the nuisances become pretty insignificant when you catch that air and nail the landing.

Honest reviews on Skate 2: Platinum Hits Edition

I love this game, the story offers many paths from doing danny way 100 foot gaps to draining pools and uncapping rails. I love the graphics and physics of this game, also the swing stick trick ability is wonderful. The online modes whether they're ranked or freeskate offer flexibility and fun to anyone who enjoys pulling backflips and quad-heelflips. I bought this game knowing nothing about the skate series, and it will never leave my game room, absolutely amazing game, 5/5.

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The first SKATE never really stuck with me I got 1/2 way through and found that the environment and mechanics got stale. Now it might be that I never truly got the hang of the controls the first time around (partially true), whatever the case I just didn't find myself coming back time and again as I expected. The new SKATE game feels entirely the opposite, the layout of SV is an addictive blast, the easier to use PLACE a MARKER feature is an essential for the forgiving restart event system that has you trying every challenge one more time until you check it off. The controls are finely tuned and really the heart of the game, truck adjustments really make a difference if you are turning too loosely or vice versa. And the flick system opens up simply and then just keeps getting better as you perfect the usual set of fliptricks,grabs etc.. and really feels good as things like manuals,footplants,hippy jumps,caveman drops,skitching fall into place naturally within the control system. Most satisfying of all is the double handed tuck down steep runs. The thrasher hall of meat is back and wrecks are a twisted affair as you can send your skater flailing on purpose into all sorts of gory mayhem. The challenges feel like older skating titles at times but offer the right amount of reward and challenge level for the most part as well as a nice amount of variety, street races etc. The details are all top notch with a soundtrack that almost feels played rather than old school, SFX and voice over work are above average though. I am not a big fan of the SECURITY GUARDS that police parts of the game and the collision system with them can be buggy, (it is the only place I have had the game freeze on me).The character builder also really makes a pretty goofy looking face no matter what you do. But with controls like this who cares, just kicking around this game for awhile can be an ultra addictive experience This one is so good I wish I could try the online offerings out but as it is the single player is more than worth it.

Discount Fallout Trilogy - 3 Pack Compilation

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $14.99
Today's Bonus: 25% Off

Never haven played any Fallout games before, I didn't know what to expect. I knew they were most likely great games after hearing PC Gamer magazine go on about the greatness of the original Fallout games all the time. Even then, I underestimated the games. I started playing Fallout and found that it was fun, addicting, and really immersive. The world's are beautifully crafted and will make you wish YOU lived in the post-apocalyptic world. The story's are great in all the games. Each character has their own original personality. And being made ten years ago, they are perfect netbook games. You don't need me to tell you these games are great, just buy it. You won't be dissappointed.

P.S. Despite what other people might tell you, there is no DRM. No disc is required to play (also a plus for netbooks) and there are unlimited installs. But hey, it's only twenty dollars. Why pirate it?

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If you don't mind the limitations of a 1980s program, this is a great package. If you haven't ever played the fallout series, I envy you. You may be in for a pleasant surprise. A lot of love when into these games. They are not just "good for the time", they are just plain good.

The original fallout was a winner. Fallout 2 was even better in many ways. Both of them were very absorbing with a lot of replay-ability. Both quickly developed a fanatical following. Fallout Tactics is not really the same kind of game. I believe it was a result of lots of fans screaming for a sequel. It's basically a 3rd person shoot-em-up and not in the same league with the first two, but still lots of fun.

In fallout and fallout 2, Your actions determine how others react to you. You can play the game as a shooter, or a talker, or evil, or nice. Each type of play is not only possible, they are all fun.

Both Games have a fairly straightforward story line with a few cool twists and a LOT of other stuff to do. You can mess around in the wasteland for a LONG time and never see it all. You can play a different type of character and have a completely different gaming experience.

The NPCs (especially in fallout2) are very memorable. Sulik, one of your companions, is staunch, dependable and has a hilarious way of expressing himself. Once the game ends, you find yourself missing him. Marvin (a teenage boy who wears red sneakers) is also pretty funny. Try leaving him behind and he panics and offers you bribes not to ditch him...(try playing a female and watch Marvin's hormones kick in...funny stuff.) The NPCs also interact to some extent with each other. All of this is achieved without overpowering the game's story line. It's there if you like it, or you can ignore it. In fact, you can totally ignore the story line and just go around throwing dynamite into outhouses. (try it)

A word of warning. The GUI takes some getting used to. Once you master it, the GUI is very playable and ergonomic, but it's probably not like any game you have ever played. If you are tired of all the first person 3D shooters with lame stories, and are starting to get bored with spectacular graphics... You might be ready to play a lower-tech game with some substance. Give fallout a try.

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I ordered Fallout Trilogy from a Private Seller through Amazon. What I recieved was the European Version. Both the Images (Box Art) and certain Reviews conflict with each other. If you plan on ordering from a Private Seller make sure they have their product placed correctly. One is distributed through White Label (European Version), the other by Interplay (US Version). Aside from the distributer, the European Box Art is different from that of the US. The main contrast in the UK Version is the removal of children. This takes away from the original game as well as removing certain quests. Aside from that, if it's important to you, some Violence Animations are removed and a minor Language filter is present. Although not completly unplayable, if you are like me you want your game as it was intended by the developers.

Honest reviews on Fallout Trilogy - 3 Pack Compilation

You can kill all the children you want! Yes! I always hated the youth of today, now I can blow them away in the Fallout Trilogy.

Interplay is back! And they brought the Fallout Trilogy with them! How awesome is that?

Okay, now to the good:

*Not Censored! You can kill children in it, and all the good stuff it came with when it first came out. This isn't some lame European edition.

*They all work. I tested each game on my Windows XP machine. They all work just like they did many years ago. I have not had a problem with any of them yet.

*Bonus material! Now don't get excited, this isn't that big of a bonus. Included with the game is the option to be able to install extra content when you install the game, such as community mods and Windows XP/Vista fixes.

*Games come patched.

*This is released by Interplay! Interplay! Interrrrrrplay! It feels good buying an Interplay game again.

*It's Fallout 1, Fallout 2, and Fallout Tactics! What else is there to say?

Now on to the bad:

*The packaging isn't all that great. The game comes in a DVD style case, with no manual. You do get the game manuals on .pdf format. They are located in the game's folders.

*Icons! I won't spoil it for you. Check the game icons for Fallout and Fallout 2. Unless my memory serves me wrong, they weren't like that in the original. It's fun for a laugh, but I had to change it.

I'm a huge fan of Interplay and the original Fallouts. As a fan, this package is a good purchase.

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Good set of games for a good price. Everything works, except Tactics, on my XP Pro system. I can get the installer to work, but when I go to play it tells me to Insert a Fallout Brotherhood of Tactics CD. The CD is in, I've uninstalling and reinstalling many times. The patch you get with the game didn't seem to fix the problem... other than that, Fallout 1 and 2 work perfectly.

Review of TONY HAWK SHRED XBOX

Customer Ratings:

This is a great product and well built. Make sure to buy the game and board together. I would recommend this product.

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very upset did npt work at all..would not even turn on..bought several batteries for nothing would never purchase again..very dissapointed

Buy Culdcept Saga - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:

After having played the PS2 version, I was extremely excited when I found out that they were going to make one for the 360. It's basically the same game with some added features, and that's EXACTLY what I would have wanted.

Some people may find it slow-paced. Think of this as a board/card game, not a video game.

Some people may find the voiceovers/plot horrible. This is not a game you play for the story, but for the pure gameplay alone.

Some people may find the graphics subpar. This is not a game you play for the shininess.

If you can get past that stuff, you have a serious gem on your hands with Culdcept Saga.

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I got a copy of Culdcept and can not put it down. The game is a mixture of board games and trading card games. I never really liked trading card games as a kid, but for some reason the concept really grows on me here. I have played about 4 hours so far, including some multiplayer. The game, simply put, rocks. It combines all the luck of rolling a die with the strategy of building a deck of cards. I am totally hooked. I hope the graphics would be better since its a 360 game, but for my $40, the game is worth every penny.

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When i was a kid i was really into collecting Pokemon cards. Then yu-gi-oh came around and i was collecting/creating decks with that. I am now 21, and when i found out about this game i knew i had to pick it up, and i am not disappointed at all. The online community is amazing. You don't get your singing kids, loud abrasive screaming idiots of cod4/halo 3. There is an unlimited amount of depth in this game. There are endless amounts of decks you can make from over 500 cards to collect. This is must buy for strategy fans, and collectors alike.

Honest reviews on Culdcept Saga - Xbox 360

It's a great game and made my son think. He had to consider the various creature abilities, what changes in strength and health various items/spells would provide. While he may of been a tad young in some folks eyes (he just turned 7), he really enjoyed it. He knew the various creatures by name and if there were limitations (territory , strength, health ) etc. Just like a board game but more interactive.

I give this game multiple thumbs up and am now looking for another game similar.

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Just as you have heard its exactly the like card game "magic";Nevertheless its super fun, you may even become addicted. With Video games the word addicted isn't bad, Apparently; It means the game must have something that can draw a person in and keep them interested.The most absorbing ,and intriguing parts for me were finding\locating all the cards,Messing around with my "decks".

At first you might be like huh?..Especially if you've never Played the real "Magic card game".

I say give it time;Either way, fulfillment is what you'll get.

Their is more then enough helpful information. Every question you may have is answered and explained right in the help menu supplied on the disk.Its one of those games you get a pen an paper for,To remind yourself of the little things.Like what character gave you the most green cards,Spell cards, etc. I found myself jotting down the best spells and creatures, What map/land was easiest/hardest. Also what deck helped me to gather what i seek.

You get to create a bunch of decks,Packing them up with whatever you wish.From neutral,earth, water,Air,Fire,items,Tools,Armor,scrolls,Spells

(single-target)(Multitarget)cards.Changing book covers and naming them keeps everything in order. Also it keeps records & stats of how you did on each map.You unlock new clothes such as hats,weapons,capes,etc;As you play more and more an defeat different Characters.Who you also get to play as after defeating them.You may re fight them again and again to unlock more things.

Culdcept Keeps you and throws you off many times, Example:By randomizing the characters on the maps,just when you thought you had it down. Leaving it not so predictable and easy.I remember getting p1ssed off more then a few times with a couple of the characters, but that just makes you want to play more.

I personally can't say enough about this game ,Their are many different lvls of play ,an Thinking involved. Its all about Strategy and does require Patience. Ran outta room lol

Review of 5 Pack of HDMI 6FT Cables: 1.3a Category 2(Full 1080P

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List Price: $15.99
Sale Price: $5.80
Today's Bonus: 64% Off

Because of other reviews, we tested all 5 right away and they all worked fine. Great price, so we're happy.

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These cables are great to have on hand they're cheap and they work great. You can't beat the price of these cables and convenient 5 pack.

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The product performs as expected. I have no complaints about the functionality of the cables. They are a bit narrow, almost insubstantial, maybe a bit cheap-feeling. The connectors do feel quite solid and well built. No real complaints at all.

Honest reviews on 5 Pack of HDMI 6FT Cables: 1.3a Category 2(Full 1080P

The quality is as good as other cables and the value of this 5 pack is amazing! I got 5 cabled for less than most stores charge for one.

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Cables a bit thin for my liking but otherwise working great so far. Will continue to use them to see how they hold up.

Buy Halo 4 Tritton Warhead 7.1 Dolby Wireless Surround Headset for Xbox

Customer Ratings:

Have used this headset since day one my biggest concern is there is no replacement no microphone if anybody noes where to get a replacement without spending another $300 I would appreciate it but I 're recommendand this item just wish I could find a replacement mic

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Best Star Wars the Force Unleashed - Xbox 360 Deals

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List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $19.98
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First of all, you should know that this game is kind of short. I received it yesterday and it took roughly 10 hours on standard difficulty to complete.

Yet the fact that I didn't move the entire 10 hours is testament to this game's ability to be loads of fun to play, regardless of game-length.

THE GOOD:

The opening level places you in command of Darth Vader, giving you a preview of the absolute power of the force... that you realize you can't match at first with the apprentice. As the developers have stated, this is to give you a chance to realize what you can become.

The absolute awesomeness of this level really sets the tone for the game. Marching down and eliminating Wookies while ATAT's walk down below from the cliff and Star Destroyers, troop transports, and TIE Fighters fly all around left me feeling like this was really Star Wars.

The leveling in the game gives you a chance for character customization once you take control of the apprentice. Want your force-grip to be able to grab two enemies instead of one? Spend your force points in upgrading force-grip. Also you can wear various costumes, make your lightsaber one of nearly 20 colors with various special effects, and really make your character your own.

The gameplay is solid, with a few questionable level designs toward the end of the game.

THE BAD:

The story is 'good' but as I gave the writer of the novel a hard time for not delving deep enough I have to say that the cutscenes were chopped down to the point where you really can't grasp the full impact of the story which was more clear in the novel.

The Romance:

The love dialog/romance is worse than George Lucas if that gives you any indication. These characters develop feelings for one another despite Juno Eclipse being little more than a 'professional imperial' who forgot to button the top 5 buttons on her uniform and having no dialog really outside of a few sentences in the cut scenes.

Then again if I saw a woman dressing like that I suppose it wouldn't take much romance for me to develop feelings for her either.

Multiple Endings? There is a dark side ending and a light side ending, but this isn't Knights of the Old Republic. 99% of the game is the same regardless of what you choose to be/wear/do. The final 'choice' is made 30 seconds before the final boss fight. Regardless of how you play the game it comes down to what you do 30 seconds before you fight the final boss. I was hoping for a variety of missions or at least a change in objectives.

Frustrating objectives:

Sometimes your objective is very vague. I spent more than one level wandering in circles and jumping off cliffs trying to figure out what to do because the mission objective was something like "Pick out the hydrospanner from the flexoregulator" which is probably something you would know if you were an uber-geek who knew what either was. Guesswork and trial and error. Also in the second Raxis Prime level the force controls at the end LIE to make you die quicker.

Bugs:

Few and far between, but I had some ATST decide to despawn (which was good for me) and a few hiccups. For the most part the game was solid.

OVERALL:

Despite the flaws, I sat through the entire 10 hours and couldn't stop because it was extremely addictive. The game is simple but it works and is fun. You can tell a lot of love went into this, but you can also tell that the cutscenes feel disconnected from the rest of the story in terms of dialog because of spotty editing which leaves you wanting more.

This is better than anything else LucasArts has had in a while, and you really feel like this is Star Wars.

Bottom line: A step in the right direction. A+ Gameplay, CStory.

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Game was way over hyped but isn't every semi-major title these days? I had a lot of fun with the game but once I finished the SHORT story mode I was left with a feeling that I should have waited to rent the game from Hollywood Video. Granted there are things to find, achievments to get all that good stuff on mutiple play throughs, but I could not bring myself to play through more than once. I will be selling the game once I find the time. PLEASE RENT, you won't be dissapointed. It's a fun game but with no multiplayer there is little left after you complete the game.

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It took me no time at all to become a fan of The Force Unleashed. The game starts you as Darth Vader himself, fighting your way through the Wookie planet to eliminate a rogue Jedi in hiding that the empire has discovered. Vader lets you experience what some of your force abilities will be throughout the game as you later play his apprentice. And while is was very entertaining, I found something a little disturbing about killing dozens of wookies. They howl at you as they die and everything...

Soon you are playing Vader's apprentice, trained by Vader himself in the Sith arts. Your abilities are much more limited from what Vader himself had; I'm guessing to leave Vader as a benchmark to what you can aspire to become. Still, TFU doesn't waste any time and throws you right into the action. The force abilities you are given are incredibly fun to use against your enemies: foring pushing them into walls, picking them up and chukcing them like dolls, picking them up and chucking them like dolls into TIE Fighters, lightning, force repulse and the good old fashioned hack and slash with your lgihtsaber. You think that killing dozens of rebel and storm troopers alike might get old, but it really doesn't. The more of them you kill, the more force points and combo points you build up and you get all new ways to eliminate them. And even though you seem to be an unsoppable killing machine, the game is still challenging in spots, and I'm only playing it on the medium difficulty. Battling other force users is one point where the game can get challenging and also more fun. Matching wits and strengths jedi to jedi is a very fun gaming experience. Upgrades also add a nice element to the game, collecting points for new force combos, upgrading your abilities and upgrading your character's stats. This adds an extra addictive element to the game in a mild RPG fashion.

And then there's are the visuals. They are amazing. The character designs, the lighting, the action; they are all flawless. The backround settings and environments are also gorgeious and have an almost painted look, like a mural. This might sound out of place but it actually looks really amazing. You might see what I mean when you first arrive on the junk planet. My only complaint here is that some of the close up textures look a little bland, mostly on the fungal world that I've noticed.

Audio is great too. Much of the score is old John William's classic, so there's no complaint there. A lot of the affects seem to be taken right from the movies, which is also fine. Sound affects for explosions and force sounds seem about as good as I could expect. And I especially like how the troopers plead for their lives as you pick them up with the force and wave them around.

The story itself is also very well done. It bridges some of the gap between episodes 3 and 4 and actually explains some of the continuity. It also manages to do this without recycling old Star Wars stories and themes which is nice.

So I enjoy this game a lot. One complaint I've read in reviews that I only partially agree with is slightly clumsy controls. There is some room for improvement there (when using force grip, throwing an object and getting it where you want it to go can be difficult.) But every game for me has something about the controls or gameplay that I don't like, and I usually look past it. Another complaint of mine is lack of multiplayer. This could be an awesome game multiplayer.

To reiterate:

Pros: Mostly great graphics, fun and addictive gameplay, awesome force abilities, good story

Cons: Some clumsy controls, graphics could use work in some areas, no multiplayer

The Force Unleashed is a great game for the Star Wars fan or otherwise and I recommend it.

Honest reviews on Star Wars the Force Unleashed - Xbox 360

I really can't believe some of the high marks some people have given this game. It glitches out so many times; at least two or three times I had to manually turn off my x-box and restart because of a glitch. Many other times I got stuck on some invisible wall. The AI is horrible and does not live up to the hype.

It's not all bad it's always fun to kill storm troopers with a lightsaber. The cutscenes look pretty, and the voice acting and music are good.

This game tries to follow the God of War formula and apply it to Star Wars: slash and hack and level up with new combos. It's not a bad idea, but it's so poorly executed, you'll wish you were playing the old wire-frame x-wing game.

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If you've ever played the Star Wars Revenge of The Sith game, you've pretty much played Force Unleased, just another button mashing action game. Its not really bad, but it isn't anything special.

Pro's

Fun for about 2hours, a pretty solid story, AMAZING Graphics and Sounds, lots of good cameo's with great voice acting, force powers are actually pretty cool. Leveling is kind of cool, but would have like to have seen a more dynamic system. Clothing and saber options that rival Jedi Knight Academy.

Con's

Fun for about 2hours, Story felt dumbed down and shorted, it feels like an insult, like we don't care about a good solid story we just wanna kill stormtroopers in a thousand different ways. Saber fighting is combo based (yuck, I was hoping for more of a Oblivion or Jedi Knight Academy style) No Multiplayer.

Overall I'd say that it is about a 7/10, but it feels like a lot less cause the expectations were soooo high.

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Customer Ratings:

This is better than I had expected. I picked up the Day One edition, but since that won't be sold anymore outright, seems pointless to review on that one since they're identical other than the words on the controller and the code for the achievement. I'd rather the review is useful on the one people will be buying moving forward.

Well packaged. MS is finally picking up some from Apple in how well they design the packaging and how they fit things into smaller spaces, like they did with the Surface.

There was a 500MB or so update to run as soon as it was hooked up, which I did at work before I got this home.

The initial setup was easy. Since I have a gold Live account, I just told it who I was and away it went. The only thing that threw me off was I had been used to the extra layer of security on the 360 so I had my "app password" all set to set this up, but apparently they did the security on the Xbox One so that if you're like me and have two level security enabled on your Live account, this doesn't need the app password but can use the actual Live account password, it just needed me to put in the additional verification code it texted to my phone.

I got it home, and since I'm keeping my other Xboxes, I found a spot for this in my cabinet. I have ATT Uverse, so I ran the Uverse box to the input here, and this to the receiver I use as my HDMI switcher as well as sound.

I had spent time the past week trying to find things in google searches about whether or not it would use the HDMI to command the cable box or if I'd need some IR blaster, but hadn't found anything. Fortunately, it's all HDMI.

You specify your TV type, and it tests to make sure it can control it if the TV supports that via HDMI. Same with a receiver and the cable box it will try different controls until it succeeds and you say "Yep that worked." Then it's set.

The unit is nice and quiet. I have five Xboxes in the house, although I'm giving the oldest one away since I don't need more than three 360's for what we use them for here. The one I'm giving away is the original one from 2006, still running, never had a red ring of death, but sounds like an F-14 taking off from a carrier. The Elite was quieter, the Slim quieter still, and last month I bought a new 360 E so I'd have a 360 still in warranty for a while since we need to keep one for all the games we have. I thought that one was nice and quiet, but the XB One is even more silent. It's so nice to NOT have all that fan noise even at idle.

The Kinect is pretty amazing. I've enjoyed the first generation one since its release with my now 10 year old son, and thought they did an amazing job with that, but this one just blows it away. I like that I have Live accounts for both my son and I, and if I'm in the room when I turn on the xbox, it recognizes me and signs me in automatically (and you can enable/disable this feature BTW). If he's the one it sees, it signs him in. I tested with both of us there, and wanted to see if it would offer which one to sign in, but it simply signed us both in. Impressive.

Voice control it's surprisingly effective for everything, my only irritation is with the guide. That's where I dinged a star off of it. Telling it who my provider was, my zip code, and it gave me a guide. But I'm not a fan of the guide, it takes up way too much room, leaving you with a very narrow window of things to view as far as channel lineups. I am looking to try to see if I can collapse it some, but so far I've had no luck. But I'm expecting there will be several revamps over the next few months with updates and patches since this is all new release.

My Harmony Touch remote works great with it, Logitech made sure they had the Xbox One as a device on launch day.

Since I use multiple devices for my things, I don't just use the "xbox on" or "xbox off" to turn it on and off, but it's been spot on for my testing, it never fails to turn on or off via voice. Navigating the menus with voice is just great, making things quick and easy to get to. Watching TV could use a few more commands though, such as "channel up" and such.

The controller is nice, feels great. I always preferred the Xbox controller to the other consoles I have, and this one is a nice next version of it comfortable, positive feeling on the buttons and triggers, not heavy.

In the settings, there's a Kinect setting where you can click "what does Kinect see" and it changes through different view options. The night vision is amazingly effective in a dark room. I was impressed.

The only game I have so far is Battlefield 4, and it's a thing of beauty.

This does support surround sound for your cable box, but it's disabled by default, and turning it on under the settings it shows as "beta", since apparently they had a couple bugs with a couple specific cable boxes, but it works well for me with Uverse so far.

I like the interface, easy to navigate and while some people think it's more cluttered, I actually think it's the opposite. There's less things there to get at on the top level, which makes it more pleasant to navigate.

The Kinect doesn't move at all like the old version did, and the cable is MUCH thicker. Keep that in mind when you're figuring out where to place it. For now I have it in front of my TV, and I've preordered an "above the TV mount" for it so it'll be up there next to the 360's Kinect and out of the way.

Other than my dissatisfaction with the TV Guide and navigation of the guide with voice, I can't find anything at all that I felt disappointed about with this new system. Blu Ray playing software was a free download from the store, and there's apparently a service for XB Live members to stream videos for free, something along the lines of what I get from Amazon with my Prime membership (which also ties in well here).

I'm so fed up listening to the fan boys of each side argue about the PS4 vs. the XB One. I have a PS3 but I have it for only two games, Little Big Planet and Infamous. Everything else, I've always preferred to play on the Xbox or Wii, or now the Wii U. I'm not worried about which has higher specs, since if someone REALLY is concerned about that, they'd be building their own high end gaming PC anyway that would blow both of these out of the water. PS4 has some things better, but the XB One has some things that are better for me as well. Both have their place, and hopefully both keep forcing the other to innovate. The complaint about the Xbox being $100 more is offset when you get the camera setup for the PS4 and puts it right back at the same price anyway, so I don't care that the PS 4 cost less, because you GET less. I'd expect to pay more when I get more.

All told, this is just an amazing piece of technology. I don't know if I'm going to leave the Uverse running through it or not, since I don't know how important it is that I control that via voice. I don't watch that much TV, and most of what I watch I record and timeshift to watch later anyway, either for me or for my 10 year old.

But in every respect, this is a solid hit. Worth the money to me.

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I'll start by saying that Xbox One is a console that has a lot of potential, and little of it is ready yet. I bought the standard edition on release night. I also bought Call of Duty Ghosts to go with it. I'll break my review down a little bit to talk about the good and bad things that I have noticed so far:

Kinect:

My first impression is that it is much larger than the original Kinect. The picture quality seems on par with my Samsung Smart TV camera, although it's nice that I can be much closer to the TV and still be seen. At first it wouldn't work with any games (for gestures). I had to go into the configuration settings several times before it finally pointed out that it couldn't identify my floor (I have very dark carpet). It allowed me to adjust where my floor was (by raising and lowering a virtual floor image) and then it worked. Movement is working ok at this point. Voice control is very hit and miss. I usually have to speak commands at least twice to get it to respond to my voice (and I speak and enunciate very clearly, and I don't have any sort of accent). It does not understand my wife at all no matter what. It's also pretty buggy as far as recognizing the people that are in the room. It will usually sign me in, and it sometimes will recognize my three-year-old daughter, but it never recognizes my wife. I always have to manually sign her in if we are switching profiles. My last gripe is that there is really no way to currently mount the new Kinect on top of the TV set as it's pictured in most advertisements. There is no official peripheral from Microsoft, and the only potential solution that may work is coming from PDP and is not yet released. I had to actually use tape to hold it on top of the TV (didn't want it below the TV because my kids would get at it).

Controller:

The new controller is also a little bit disappointing. It connects and responds just fine. It feels a little smaller in my hands than the 360 controller did. It definitely feels cheaper as well. The plastic that makes up the body of the controller is noticeably thinner and feels much less substantial. I'm pretty sure that it wouldn't take much to completely break it if someone accidentally stepped on it or dropped it on a hard floor (which I've done with my 360 controller with no adverse affects). The sticks themselves are noticeably smaller and have much less surface area than on the 360. I do like that there is more grip on the top of the stick, but I don't like that only half of my thumb fits on it when I'm using it (I have average sized medium hands). The sticks were much more comfortable on my 360 controller. The D-Pad is definitely more responsive, but has a loud annoying click when you press the buttons (which is intentional according to a recent developer video). I'd rather have a quiet controller, but this is my personal preference. Other than that, it works as expected.

Performance:

I'd have to say at this point that I'm really not getting a "next-gen" vibe from this console. Yes, the interface is different, but they could have done this with an update to the existing 360. They used a standard 5400 RPM hard drive inside, so loading times are just as long as they were on the 360. It switches Apps quickly, but then has to sit and load each one for a decent amount of time. It would have cost them about the same amount of money to put a 60 GB SSD in the console and then allow you to buy an external HD of your choice for larger games. This would have made the whole console a lot more responsive and would have felt a lot better. The only games that I've been able to play so far are Call of Duty Ghosts, Kinect Sports, and Killer Instinct. Call of Duty Ghosts looks identical to it's 360 counterpart. There is nothing that looks graphically better about it. I've seen other reviews that confirm that I am not the only one that feels this way about this particular game. In the same vein, Kinect Sports and Killer Instinct also look like they could run at the same quality on an existing Xbox 360. I am very much aware of the hardware that is inside of this console (I built a computer for a friend earlier this year that had similar components), so I have an idea of what it could potentially do. I also remember the first launch titles for the Xbox 360 and how bad they looked. I know that games will begin to look better on Xbox One as developers learn to get the most from the new hardware, however they haven't done much with it yet. And I also realize that I have not had a chance to test any of the other titles for the new console. I'll talk about that next.

Content:

This is the real subject that is upsetting me about the Xbox One. There is hardly any content to really jump into with this console. Yes, there are around 15 launch games, 90% of which will set you back at least $65. If you're a normal hard-working family man like me, there is no way that you can buy more than one or two of them in addition to the console's $500 price tag. They could have easily offset this problem in two ways. One is that they could have released some $10-$15 arcade titles to go with the console on launch day. There are zero arcade/indie type games on the Xbox One. There isn't even a section for them on the dashboard or in the store. Even Sony at least threw a couple of these in the mix with the new PS4. So it's really just crazy expensive games or nothing at this moment. It's a little bit hard to swallow after enjoying the pricing on Steam and on my iOS devices for the last few years. The second fix could have been with releasing a few demos of the new games to help get people excited about the potential better graphics and game diversity. There are ZERO demos on the Xbox One. In addition to the lack of content to play, there are only a small selection of Apps to try out on the console. We're talking about 30% of what is currently on the Xbox 360. This I don't understand at all. I realize that it takes a little bit of effort to build these Apps, but why weren't they here for Launch day? We're seeing that developers can make huge games in time for launch, but that other developers can't build a simple App? Essential Apps like HBO Go are nowhere to be found (although they are advertised as coming at some point). So instead of the Xbox One becoming the center of my entertainment experience, I constantly have to switch back to another device to enjoy content that should be on the Xbox One. What this basically boils down to is that I am mostly left twiddling my thumbs without much to do on my new console (and that's after a $600 investment to get a game and the system).

TV: TV is actually working ok. It was very easy to get the Xbox One to recognize my Samsung Smart TV and my Directv HD DVR receiver. I can easily pull up the guide and switch between content. You cannot currently control anything that has to do with DVR content, which I hope will be enhanced at some point.

Bottom Line:

The Bottom Line is that this console was clearly rushed out before it was ready. There is very little content, and essential content is not there. There are no little inexpensive games to fill the gaps. There are no demos to get a better idea of what this console can really do. The Kinect has yet to prove that its vastly superior to the original Kinect, and the controller feels a bit like a step back compared to the 360 controller.

With all of that said, these are mostly launch-window sorts of gripes. There is obviously more content coming, and hopefully some of it won't set me back $65 per purchase. I am also sure that some of these short-comings will be fixed with future updates. My review is mostly based on the lack of things to do with my new beauty and I'm sure that I'll be much happier with it in 6 months when I can do more with it.

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First day:

Unboxing and setup went relatively smoothly. My internet download speed is 3.0 Mbps, so the initial update to the console took about 1 hour, but I expected that. The only setup issue I had was the Kinect's attempt to communicate with my DirectTV box (using the "channel up" command). I suspect the problem is related to the DirecTV box (model = H20-100) and not the Xbox. I could have the receiver set to IR (with no line-of-sight) and not RF, which could be a factor. Also, I plan to try a different (newer) DirecTV box I have in another room to see if it integrates successfully with the Xbox.

Apart from the "channel up" issue everything else went great with setup and I was able to use all other voice commands.

I downloaded several apps (YouTube, Netflix, NFL) with no issues (took 10-15 minutes each with my slow download speeds).

Gaming: The only game I currently have is Dead Rising 3. Upon inserting the disc into the BR player, the XBox immediately signaled that an update was needed. I clicked Continue and the game started installing (and I assume downloading the update via the internet). However, the install progress got stuck on 1% for 20 minutes not good. I cancelled the install, rebooted the console and tried again. This time it got stuck on 0% for 30 minutes aggghhhh!

To get around this, I again cancelled the install, but this time I disconnected the Xbox from the internet and tried again. This time (not connected to the internet) the Xbox did not alert me to the need for an update and the game installed in about 20 minutes or so. I reconnected to the internet and started playing the game (DR3 is great by the way) and did so for about an hour. After quitting the game and returning to the Home screen I noticed that the update to DR3 (which apparently had automatically started and was happening in the background) was 97% complete it took a few more minutes to complete and the update was done.

Possibly the Xbox (and my slow download speeds may contribute) has difficulty installing from disc to HD AND downloading updates from the internet at the same time??? Just a guess at this point.

Hopefully, I can update this review later as I get more into using the console and playing games,

Honest reviews on Xbox One Console - Standard Edition

This is really the future of the console, yes if you are a hardcore gamer there might be some things you consider 'trade offs'. But the multitasking, the speed, and the kinect showcase a world of entertainment in the living room. While everything isn't perfect this is still an eye opening experience and something I've loved so far. There is a bit of a learning curve so be patient and watch the tips and tricks on the dashboard.

If this is the future count me in.

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This is a review in progress and will updated in often in the coming weeks.

The good:

1. The Kinect works much better than its predecessor.

I've mostly only used the new Kinect for voice commands and facial recognition, and these things are a bigger emphasis than motion at least at this point. Voice commands work most of the time, and facial recognition is actually pretty cool. I like being logged in just by sitting down.

The Kinect doesn't actually have true voice recognition. If two people who each have profiles sit down and one says "Xbox Go Home" it will take you to that person's profile. If the other says the same thing, it will take you to that person's profile. But this isn't because the Kinect recognizes your voice. It actually recognizes your face and can tell where your voice is coming from. Either way, it's a neat trick.

Navigating menus with Kinect works pretty well most of the time, and being able to say "Xbox Go Home" and zip out of the game you're playing without losing a beat or having to pause is a pretty cool feature. You can also "snap" programs to the side of the screen so that you can have your game loading off to the side while you watch TV, or whatever other little multi-tasking thing it is you're doing. This is handy, but like so many of the Kinect voice features it's not necessary.

2. The User Interface is very clean and accessible.

At least, the Xbox One UI feels much simpler and easier to navigate than the bloated Xbox 360 UI. Actually, I think it's cleaner than the PS4 UI which relies far too heavily on social streams. Then again, I'm the type of gamer who really doesn't want to be bombarded by social media while I play games (or games while I play social media, for that matter.) But I still prefer the XMB system on the PS3 and PSP though clean, simple, and it just worked.

Of course, we'll have to see how the Xbox One UI evolves, and once ads start popping up I may change my mind. For now, the UI is broken down into three pieces: The "pins" on the left, the home screen in the center, and the store on the right. It's all neat and tidy, and the home screen shows your most recent activity which is convenient.

3. The Xbox One has an OK lineup of games.

I think the PS4 dropped the ball on launch titles. Microsoft has done a better job, bringing us games like Dead Rising 3 and Killer Instinct. Mind you, these are not terribly memorable or important games, but they're a better lineup than Sony's.

4. Amazing, comfortable controller.

Why fix something that isn't broken? I'm not sure the triggers work as well, and that's a problem, but the controller feels very at home in my hands. There's nothing revolutionary here, but the controller has a nice grip. There are also rumbles in the triggers themselves, and some games (such as the new Forza) take advantage of this new sensory input.

I'm glad not too much was changed from what was already a perfectly fine controller. Sony needed to make major changes from the DualShock 3; Microsoft didn't for its Xbox One controller.

What I don't like about the Xbox One so far:

1. Kinect isn't perfect.

It isn't perfect all of the time and it really needs to be. When it doesn't get the right voice command, it can be frustrating. Frustrating enough to turn your back on this newfangled thing and just use the buttons on the controller. This is the trick with Kinect: It can't be mostly good, it has to be always perfect. Until Microsoft gets it always perfect, it's still just a work in progress and we're all just beta testers.

2. Load times are still a bit slow.

I really wanted the next-generation of consoles to have no load times at all, ever, period. Being able to basically instantly resume games is a nice touch, but initial load times when starting a game are still longer than I'd hoped. This will most likely approve over time on the developer side once they begin to optimize games for the Xbox One.

3. Graphics are okay but not great, at least not yet.

Ryse: Son of Rome looks really good; Dead Rising 3 looks pretty good; Crimson Dragon looks terrible. The graphics on Xbox One are all over the map, and they aren't nearly the sort of generational leap many hoped for. I'm not a graphics nut, and when I want really spectacular graphics I play on my PC. And I also acknowledge that we're very early into this generation so games will continue to look better and better but--there's always a but--I still think Microsoft could have come out with a machine capable of putting out better looking games.

These are good looking games, but not a huge leap from the best looking games on PS3 and Xbox 360. The last huge leap we saw in terms of graphics was when the Sega Dreamcast released, and blew everything currently out there away.

4. The Xbox One has a huge foot print, and to top it off, there is a huge power brick that is necessary to power your Xbox One. How was Sony able to cram the thing into a PS4?

Overall, I would give the Xbox One a 4 out of 5 stars. It's a solid system, especially since Microsoft reversed some of those ridiculous restrictions early on. Still lots of improvements and potential to be made with the Kinect.