Rogue Legacy Reviews

Customer Ratings:

This game is wonderful in so many ways. The ever-changing castle that you must fight through each time you die. The different choices of characters you get to select from on each play through is varied enough that they don't get tiresome. You can grind for gold to upgrade your hero as well as seek out loot for upgrades to your weapons and armor (all of which change the appearance of your character).

At first the game seems to be a simple jump-and-slash platformer. But as you level up your highly-varied skill tree and armor, you realize the game mechanics are much deeper. This game is often referred to as one of those MetroidVania games, which is an apt description. You can openly explore the castle, but you may quickly find out which areas are too tough for you until you gain more experience and loot. The enemies are varied for each section of the castle, and the bosses are challenging enough without being 'cheap'.

The best and most innovative part about this game is the fact that when you die (and you will die often) you return as one of your heirs. Each 'hero' has their own set of attributes. Some are bald, gay, dwarfs, dyslexic, OCD, etc. While some attributes are benign, others give you certain perks or hindrances. Eventually you will come to see which ones suit you best, but going through them is quite amusing.

I have not had this much fun with a platformer in years and I highly recommend you check out this hidden gem.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

It's definitely a good game, with solid platforming. I guess for me though, is that I just didn't buy into the hype surrounding this game and for good reason. There are plenty of issues with this game, first and foremost is the feel of the controls though. Controls were good, but felt just a little sloppy, not nearly as tight as say a Super Meat Boy or a Shovel Knight. There was also the issue of the difficulty, it just didn't feel right and I'm a very experienced platform gamer and had some major issues at times getting through certain areas. Overall it's good, just not as great as some other games in this genre. Definitely give it a go if you're into Metroidvania-type games.

Best Deals for Rogue Legacy

I heard about this game in an episode of Extra Creditz, and I went out and bought it immediately. I was not disappointed. It has fun hack and slash gameplay and is a literally endless supply of fun! If the idea of a 2D platformer with randomly generated rooms interests you, go and buy this game. If it doesn't interest you . . . I . . . I'm sorry, I can't help you with that. Maybe you should speak to your therapist about it.

Reviews of Train Simulator 2013

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $26.25
Today's Bonus: 12% Off

I have been a train lover since I was a kid and this game brings it all home. The switching in the yard is tough, a lot going on you must be aware of. I got the USA collection and almost every train you could want to run is here. The steam locomotives have a deep learning curve. I ran out of water the first couple of times. You cannot run these like diesel. You must balance the regulator and reverser just like a real steam engine. Keep the water up, I got stuck a few times on Donner Pass with the Cab forward and had to build up steam before I could get going again, but what a rush when I made it. The scenery is also beautiful. I live in Reno and have taken the Amtrak to Sacramento many times and the route is right on. I am a diehard Southern Pacific fan and they even have the SD40 tunnel motor to get through the pass's tunnels. I also enjoy the European trains, very different and enjoyable. If your like me and could watch trains all day then you will love driving them in this game. A railfans delight. Gotta go, makin a run to Mojave.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

My first ever Railroad Simulator was the one you see in the title, I won't get into it here but my experience with it was truly awful. It is riddled with bugs.

Out of frustration I looked for another Railroad Simulator and found Railworks 2, as I bought it so close to the release of Railworks 3 I got a free upgrade to that via Steam. Nice touch. The game has simply loads of scenarios to drive, as I'm Irish I particularly love the BR Blues and Sommerset Dorset Steam Railway. I would prefer some Irish railways but it looks like I'm going to have to create it. That's OK, it's easier to create sceanrios in Railworks 3 and make good ones at that. Give me a few years to put the Irish Midland Great Western Railway rail network together. I have no idea how to design locomotives but first things first.

Since I moved to the Unites States and living not very far from a Union Pacific Switching Yard, I've become interested in them. Driving their locomotives over the Cajon Pass is great fun, more so because I see them all the time. Another project is to recreate this town, Eugene at the height of it's railroad era. There are spur lines going everywhere, I need a map before I can begin.

I could compare both simulators side by side and each has both good and bad points over the other. The main thing that sticks out about Railroad Simulator 2012 is that it doesn't work. It's something I call "Irritainment". Railworks 3 on the other hand does work, I wish the cab view and controls were more like RR2012, but they're not, still the simulator WORKS. The executable has a tendency to stop working on my machine sometimes. It just drops out and I'll have to restart it. It has been known to do it a lot in some particular scenarios it seems to have a lot of problems with "Call of Duty" with Union Pacific on the Cajon Pass Route and crashes eveytime you approach Castlerock Intermodal Load/Unload. It can also get quite tempermental about Quitting and Reloading if you try it more than twice. Overall I have to say it's been an enjoyable ride, there's tons of DLC, so I'm not going to be stuck anytime soon.

So in summary Do you want to drive trains in the USA, England, and Germany? Then this is the one to go for.

Best Deals for Train Simulator 2013

I ordered this simulator thinking that the pretty package with "Train Simulator" all over it would actually contain a CD with a Train Simulator program on it, that I could install on my computer and use to learn how to drive trains. What I got instead was a CD (with Train Simulator all over it) that contained nothing but a mandatory account setup for "Steam", which turned out to be a time-consuming and invasive online account that I had to set up before I could do anything else. After all, am I buying a train simulator, or a machine gun permit?

Once that laborious process was complete, I had to mess around their complicated menus to find out that I actually had to download the entire program from the internet, which took 30 minutes. In the simulator program itself, there is no "Help" menu, instruction manual, or tutorial about driving a train. You are thrown to the wolves on this one, and if you don't already know what you're doing, good luck with the learning curve.

When I buy software on a CD, I expect that software to be ON that CD, so I can install it. Sure, we're all used to getting online to download updates to our newly installed software, but this package added a bunch of hoops to jump through that made this process way too complicated. Why should I wait several days for a CD to arrive, when I have to download the actual simulator anyway? Furthermore, this game CANNOT be played unless you are connected to the internet. So, if your signal is down, you are SOL. None of these facts were stated on Amazon, but are vaguely stated in the fine print on the back of the CD box.

After writing down 53 keyboard commands for the train I chose to drive (yes, there is no on-screen help menu, unless you want to pause your scenario EVERY time you need to figure out what button does what), I finally got the train moving. I even figured out how to stop it, no thanks to this non-intuitive software. And if you do pause, be prepared to wait a long time for it to reload and resume.

For my first exposure to a train simulator, I was very disappointed with this nonsense, and consider it a dismal failure. I want to play with a train, not get an online "account", be part of a "community", or jump through a bunch of password and registration hoops just to download what should have already been on my disk.. I also expect an instruction manual, like the ones that come with all the other software I've ever bought.

Buyer beware....if you get this package, you're going to waste a lot of time just getting to the point where you can actually see a train....then good luck learning to drive it. Furthermore, the customer support is nonexistant. LakePlaceGames dragged me through a drawn-out correspondence that went from "We don't know what you're talking about" to "Are you SURE the game is like that?" to "It's not our job to explain every detail in the products we sell" to "Sorry for your luck". Once in awhile, you deal with a business that would rather quibble about a $35 refund, than to accommodate a customer and stand by their product. This is one of those businesses. Their attitude is, it's not their job to advertise their product accurately, and if you're dissatisfied, it sucks to be you.

Honest reviews on Train Simulator 2013

I concur with reviewer David Owens. Although I purchased the game as a dvd,

I was still required to establish a password and user account with " STEAM "

in order to install the game and run it. And each and every time I want to play the game I have to log in and if the user and password are forgotten or mis-placed, changing them can be " hoop-jumping-through ".

I was willing to tolerate this but the final insult came when I opened the game folder where Steam stores the computers specs and settings and not only was that info listed but everything residing on the hard drive was listed, programs, utilities etc. I mean EVERYTHING. At that juncture I decided that that was too much information for a solitary program.

Why would STEAM need to know what all is on my computers hard drive ?

What personal information is being sent back to them ?

So I promptly uninstalled Train Sim 2013 and did a system restore to remove any and all traces. I can understand them needing Copy Protection but this carrying it a bit too far and the end-user should not have to log-in to the Internet each and every time to play a video game he or she just purchased at a brick and mortar store. It's a good game but comes with uncessary baggage.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Train Simulator 2013

I found the program installation was a bit difficult. You must install "Steam" first then add this program to "Steam". There after you start "Steam" to use the program. Steam seems to be a carrier for games, it is said this is the best way to use your games. This is all new to me, (There could be other ways to install). I do not have many games so this review is not from one who has a lot of experience.

The instruction did not inform me to install the way I just mentioned, I quite by accident found this out when I tried to install it the way I have installed programs for years. (Double click on the xxx.exe file or auto start the installation, select from a menu) The program is well laid out, graphics are great (just make sure you have a good video card). Be prepared for the learning curve to get up and running with out selecting the "easy" method.

Cons: Not to friendly a installation. It broke the Train sim from N3V already installed and working fine.( had to reinstall it) The more powerful the video card and computer you have the better. (My set up: video card ge Force 550 ti, w/1GB memory, CPU Intel i5 2600k) 8GB memory) with this setup thing went rather smoothly just a small hick up here and there)

Reviews of NCAA Football 08 - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $13.98
Today's Bonus: 53% Off

Let me start off by saying that when your playing in a game scenario, this game can be fun, But problems start rather quickly. One of my biggest complaints is in the passing game, the lack of location based passing makes throwing the ball nerve racking, often times on a crossing route your receiver will have to spin around backwards just to make the catch. And if your hoping to throw over your receivers shoulder where a defender cant reach it.... good luck, once again, most of the time he will spin around and try to make a dramatic catch, often times losing the chance to get extra yardage. Then theres one of my favorite pass plays, the deep comeback. This play is insanely frustrating, your reciever will go out the usual 10-15 yards, the problem is, when he turns back for the pass, he comes back a few yards, you throw, he catches, BUT KEEPS COMING BACK!!! It takes him so long to turn back around, that when he gets tackled he has turned what should have been a gain of 10-15 yards or more into a gain of 4-8 yards. And also if your not a fan of using tight ends in the passing game, you better be damn good at this game, because in the harder difficulty levels it is extremely hard to get the ball into your receivers, since the defense is so tough. Make friends with your tight end, he could save you. And also make good use of your hot routes and motions, and remember, just becuase your pass isnt a huge gain, as long as your not losing yards, your doing pretty good. My next problem is the running game in campus legend mode, when you are the quarterback, or any other position, your running back is often a lame duck, unless your on a team with a excellent running back, even then you will have to turn your running backs AI waaayyy up so that he doesnt just do a spin move and get dropped in the backfield. Also in Campus legend mode, when you are the quarterbackback, you want to make sure that you do choose a balanced or running quarterback, otherwise you may be on the wrong side of a sack very often, especially since the offensive line this year is very inconsistant. Now I know that your gonna get sacked sometimes, that obvious, and also part of the game. But what i mean by inconsistant is that, one play the O-line will do a pretty good job, but then on the next two of your guys will grind together trying to pick up a block, and allow the whole D-line to get through and take you down (thats why you want a mobile quarterback). The load times are long, which can be frustrating, especailly in campus legend mode, where the games are considerably shorter since you only play when your player is on the field. But one place the 360 version of the game shines over the ps3 version is the framerate, which is at a lovely 60 frames per second, while the ps3 struggles at 30fps. But so many frames a second can cause some hiccups.

The main menu can be frustrating and confusing at times, but nothing too hard to overcome. i also find myself wishing there was more to do with your player during the week in campus legend mode. Every week goes as follows: Practice, night event (you only read about what you did that night), then comes the next day. You do this all week, then you can play the game at the end of the week. the night event can earn you stats (which will help you for the week), and popularity points (Which will help fill up your legend meter). You cant even do anything during the offseason, no training, no mini camps, not even a spring game. :(

Thats not to say that everythng is bad in this game. Like I said, this game can be pretty fun. The new ESPN.com feature is very nice, and does a good job keeping up with stats, although often I find that a team that was ranked 25th or lower in the BCS one week, is ranked in the top 5 the next, which for anybody who knows college football, can be irritating since this is NOT supposed to happen. To be fair, I have not played on defense very much, so I can't really discuss that. But let me just say, being a middle linebacker is tough.

All in all this isnt a horrible game, its actually very addicting, its just easier to point out the flaws than it is to talk about the good stuff. The frustrating things do happen, but if you love college football, its easy to overlook...Creating your own highlight reel can be fun, but if your like me and dont have box live (at the moment), its just a sad reminder of how you cant show off your skills. The Stadiums are well done, as well as the whether effects, in the winter you could be having a snow shower, then the next thing you know, it has turned into a blizzard that has completely covered the field. Oddly though, you never see a player slip on the slippery surface (as in Madden 08). The Announcers do a good job with the emotion factor. I cant really say much bad about them. They are a little inconsistant though. For example: they will be very excited over the 4th game of the season, but then in the National Championship, they will be very mellow.

If you have a problem with little irritations and flaws, pass on this game, but if you can overlook these thing, trust me... this game makes for a satisfying experience. I just hope this review has helped all who are reading. and i hope it didnt take too much time out of your day.

Thanks for your time! :)

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Normally I just dig right into the dynasty mode expecting to lose a few games learning the particulars of the game engine, but this time I started by trying out some of the other features. First I tried the minigames of Tug of War (you get 1 play to move the ball and then the opponent gets the same, first to touchdown wins) and also Bowling (10 yards to goal, each yard is a pin with two shots at the end zone).

Next I moved on to Campus Legend Mode. And to be honest it is good enough that I have not left it. First you start out by designing a player and picking a position for them. Next you select your home school and state (high school that is) and you get put right into the high school state playoffs. I picked ROLB to start with figuring that defense is a good place for me. So first off, the only person you can control is the player you have created, so many plays are just not going to involve you. Although there is a lot more pressure because when you blow a coverage or tackle you can't switch to another nearby player to make the tackle. Once you have completed the high school playoffs, you have to select the college that you want to go to. In my case I picked Penn State because I would not be a starter, but I also wouldn't be 3rd string.

Your college career consists of 2 things per day. First is practice where you get 10 reps at various plays (coach calls all plays in both practices and real games). When you make a play it is worth points. These points eventually will earn you a spot on the starting line. For me, I earned my starting spot right before the 3rd game in the season. The different strings make it interesting in the game as well. When you are second string, you are hoping for a blow out so that you can get some field time other than on special teams, where as you hope for a close one during regular play.

One of the nice things in this mode, and frustrating is that the games tend to be really short. This gets a tad annoying as the load times in this game are incredibly long. Another drawback to this mode is that you may play your heart out and do an incredible job, but the team could still lose because the other half of the team is unable to get the job done. Besides the long load times, I have also seen a lot of very screen stutters and lots of xbox 360 fan and drive noise. Just seems to be slightly too intensive.

Graphics wise, this game is good, but not really something you are going to shout from the mountain tops about. Sounds are incredible and after 9 games, I can't complain about the announcers yet. So with all the problems, I still give this game a must buy for Football fans. It is just as fun as it's previous versions (I have played NCAA 01, 04, and 05).

Best Deals for NCAA Football 08 - Xbox 360

I've been a fan of the NCAA series for the past 5 years. I owned last year's version on the original Xbox and thought it was great. Now that I've moved to the 360, it feels like the game has regressed (except in the graphics area). There are too many bugs and problems and it really seems like the game was rushed to meet the shipping date. I think it would have been a lot better if extra time were taken to test and work out the kinks. The basic gameplay is still good but the number of interceptions is completely insane. I found I can beat any player on-line by not throwing any passes while my opponent will usually have 5 or more interceptions. Since I don't even take control of the DBs, it's totally the game's AI that's doing it. I hope that next year's version can iron out these problems as it will be the 3rd year on the 360 and blaming being on a new platform won't be a valid argument anymore. With all this being said, I wouldn't recommend skipping the game since it's still plays well overall, but I would be prepared for a number of annoyances and frustrations.

Honest reviews on NCAA Football 08 - Xbox 360

My major issue with this game is the lagging of the gameplay as well as the announcing. It seemed it took a quarter of a second too long to switch between players on defense, which of course can cause undesired results. The gameplay was akward as well especially on defense. I found playing on the defensive line was nearly impossible. I could never get any pressure on the QB. The graphics are out of this world and the game is very nice to look at overall. The football aesthetics is aplenty but the gameplay needs to be fun in order to have a good game. I found the gameplay and the lagging was too much to overcome. I sold the game and have not looked back.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for NCAA Football 08 - Xbox 360

This year's game is a step ahead from last year's...except for in one (and the largest i.m.o.) category fps. The gameplay is so slow a lot of times, imagine the worst lag you've had playing online in Madden or any shooter game; that's what normal off-line gameplay is like on ncaa '08. If you played last year's title, the offline lag is worse this year...Other than that it's a great game and EA is almost there in terms of a great game. The graphics are wonderful, the gametypes are extremely fun ("You decide to veg out on the couch and watch movies with friends...Popularity +1"), and the achievements are a little more challenging this year (getting six interceptions with one player in one game....grrr).

Overall, it's a fun game to rent and play for a weekend when you have nothing to do, but I wouldn't buy it...next year's should be the one to put the series over the top.

Reviews of Xbox 360 Head Set Communicator

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $7.95
Today's Bonus: 60% Off

If you're playing on XBox Live, you really need a headset. Most games involve voice coordination between people on the same team, and sometimes even discussions with your opponents.

I'm not sure why my experience was so different than the previous reviews. Maybe they got an older version of the headset? It definitely seems to be the same unit made by Microsoft, for the XBox 360, the basic model.

This headset is relatively inexpensive, and has a padded earphone and microphone. The earphone is adjustable, to have the headband part expand and contract. This lets it fit on larger and smaller heads. The microphone rotates, so that the unit can be worn on the left or right side. It only spins down to just under a 90 degree angle, though, so this forces you to wear the headset with the band right over the top of your head. At that spot, the microphone is pretty much right in front of my mouth (I prefer it a bit lower) and the opposite-side "bracer" part is digging into the skin just over my non-earphoned ear.

I don't know what it is with these headset creators but at its smallest setting, the unit is still too large for several adults I know. That makes it even worse for teens and kids! That being said, I find this problem with a lot of headsets, so it's something you just have to deal with.

There's a relatively long cord, and it plugs right into the base of your controller. It doesn't interfere at all with wireless controllers. The base part has a mute button as well as a volume control.

I didn't have any problem at all hearing other players when I was online their voices came through very clearly. Also, the unit fit very snugly into the base I didn't have any problems with static or dropped signals. In fact for a while I was letting my boyfriend drive in PGR3 while I talked in the headphone/mic, and even with the cord stretched out between us two I could hear fine. Other players could hear me. I didn't notice any issues with lag, our conversations went back and forth rather quickly.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I ordered this headset, thinking it would be an original Microsoft headset, and was disappointed to see a cheap knockoff after opening the package. The microphone can only be used on the left side, which sucks because I usually have it on the right side. The pictures all show a Microsoft XBOX 360 headset and the manufacturer even says "Microsoft". Totally false advertising. I will never buy from this seller again.

Best Deals for Xbox 360 Head Set Communicator

I liked this headset that came included in the pro xbox360, though I'm not a big fan of the headset wrapping around the top of your head like traditional headsets, I would have liked it to wrap around the back of your head like the original headset for the original xbox. The headset was good to decent quality in terms of the way it is built but seems a bit to plasticey and not of superior quality but its good enough, it has a good microphone and a good loud speaker and comes with volume control and a mute switch. Its a good headset for general use and decent if you compare it to better ones made by plantronics, but the sad part about this product is that it had an early death. The microphone dies after a while making the entire headset useless, even with good care it died. After a about a month or two the microphone first starts making a lot static on the other gamers recieving end and then the microphone just doesnt pick up any sound at all. I take good care of my headsets, I still own 2 of the original xbox headset (which are years old) and have a halo 2 headset and all work perfectly. I also have seen this headset have the same failures to many other fellow xbox live friends and all have had to revert to other headsets.

Honest reviews on Xbox 360 Head Set Communicator

I am an adult gamer and I've owned 4 (FOUR!) of these headsets including the "new and improved" version and have given up. The wire connecting to the controller is so incredibly thin that it breaks even if you take great care of it. My last one lasted exactly 32 days, 2 days after Best Buy will take returns.

It all boils down to Microsofts profits. The thin wire that connects the headset to the controller actually has 4 wires inside of it, giving it almost no hope of any long term survival

Plus, you can't even turn voices up loud enough to hear your friends well anyway.

Look into headsets made by someone other than Microsoft!

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Xbox 360 Head Set Communicator

I had one because my Xbox 360 came with one. It worked for a while, but considering how well I take care of my things, I didn't expect it to suddenly stop working. It's cheap and not very comfortable. I preferred the original Xbox headset that went around the back of the head. I also never had a problem with that one. It lasted as long as I needed it to. I would suggest using this until it breaks, and it will, then move on to something else. Perhaps the wireless headset. You can't really play online without some sort of headset.

Review of Alien Hominid HD

Customer Ratings:

The Good: One-of-a-kind graphics and style, great weapon powerups, cool bosses, neat level design, PDA games are fun, gore!

The Bad: Difficulty is sometimes unbalanced, no downloadable main game levels, you can play this for free on the internet

I remember seeing this game back when it came out on consoles but the mixed reviews kind of turned me off from it. After picking up the GBA version I loved the game and now it's even better on XBA. This is a 2D sidescroller shooter that is very funny, fun, gory, and simple. You are an alien who is being chased by the FBI and you have to make your way back to your planet and on the way this one single kid helps you out. You can pick up weapon powerups which are cool and fun such as lasers, ice bursts, and slime. You also have a knife for when you are up close to enemies you can slice them apart. You have grenades as well and your default zapper gun that has infinite ammo. You can also jump on enemies and bite their heads off and what not. What's another great feature are the PDA games. They are 2D stick drawn graphics where you have to get to the end of the level without dying. You can also buy and download new levels for only 150MSP which is great. The only real gripe is the difficulty and sometimes be too hard and bosses are really neat yet take FOREVER to kill.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Alien Hominid HD is great fun. Simple to learn, yet it takes time to master. The graphics are cartoony and great, and the missions are sure to make you smirk. The weapons are a lot of fun but not very different in the end.

Best Xbox 360 Official NFL Buffalo Bills Controller Faceplate Deals

Customer Ratings:

My husband loved this! It did not interfer with his gaming. The faceplate lays almost flat with the controller so you don't notice it.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I got this controller faceplate for my husband because he is a huge Buffalo Bills fan and he loves it! It snaps on the front of the controller and fits perfectly. We use it on a white controller and it looks good. It's really smooth hard plastic. It doesn't make it difficult to push the buttons or anything like that. Highly recommended buy for any Bills/Xbox360 fan.

Reviews of 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Fast Speed 7200RPM

Customer Ratings:

Got it. Transferred my data to it with xbox 360 transfer cable (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003S9WJ9A/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_2)

Plugged it in and got to use it for a few days and all of a sudden my xbox goes black. HDD makes strange clicking noises. Xbox shuts down. Turn it back on to find E68 error message. Unplug hard drive. Plugged in my other HDD and Xbox worked fine. Tried to plug this one back in and same error message. It was this Hard drive for sure. Not even remotely interested in a replacement after this. Lost all data transferred to it. Buy at your own risk. 3rd party HDD. = unreliable. Also did not notice any faster load times. Stick with Microsoft HDD if you can. Expensive but worth the extra $. If the seller handles the refund ok I'll still give them alright feedback. If not, well....

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

It was honestly worth the wait for this hard drive. The amount of space is great and it is a working product.

Best Deals for 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Fast Speed 7200RPM

works great, I transferred all 120GB of data from my old black elite hdd to this one without any problems,

however since it's not an official Microsoft hard drive you can not use it with original Xbox games..

I only have like 3, so not a big deal, but if you want to be able to play halo 1/2 or other classic Xbox games, DO NOT BUY THIS!

Honest reviews on 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Fast Speed 7200RPM

This hard drive worked just fine. It's a gray color so don't expect it. To match exactly to the color of your black Xbox if that's what you have. Also fairly easy to set up.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Fast Speed 7200RPM

I bought this hard drive 5 months ago and while I don't notice the slightly decreased load times, I do notice the massive amount of space available for downloads. If you own the classic Xbox 360, do yourself a favor and pick this up instead of the officially licensed, over-priced 120gb or 250gb versions. My only regret is buying a 120gb drive for $90 last year when I could've just picked up this beauty and had enough storage space for the rest of my consoles life.

Reviews of GamerPack by KontrolFreek (Vipr Black)

Customer Ratings:

I've just must leave feedback for this!

The FPS FREEK is just amazing. It took me 5h to get used to it. But after that I just smashed opponents in multi! The trick is that You can play with speed of 8-10 on sensivity scale with aiming abilitys of 1 in sensitivity scale. Headshots with this are extremly easy.

I have this set mounted on 2 dualshocks cause there is no sense in putting this on left sticks (movement).

I would give -1 for this set cause speed freek are not so great. If You want buy this particular set and you mainly play FPP go for FPS FREEK itself. No point in buying this with speed freek.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I really like the paddles, but I haven't quite gotten used to the extension nubs. You'd have to spend $300-$400 to get a better racing control. With the $10 ($20 for the set of 4) you can't go wrong.

Best Deals for GamerPack by KontrolFreek (Vipr Black)

I got these to use on my PS3 and my Xbox 360. I have the Speed Freeks on my PS3 controller to help play GT5 and wow do they help. It's much nicer racing with these than without em. Totally worth the money. I haven't had a chance to play Black Ops yet with the FPS Freeks but I'm sure they are good as well. Also if you have a PS3, do yourself a favor and get a pair of these. PS3 Dual Triggers. WOW are they amazing. Those combined with the Freeks = one amazing controller. A++ WOULD BUY AGAIN!!!

Honest reviews on GamerPack by KontrolFreek (Vipr Black)

These actually do seem to help. I love FPS games, but I'm not all that great at them. But this did improve my multiplayer performance a good bit. Only giving 4 stars because after several months of use, it started wearing away the rubber coating of the right analog stick. I rotated it and it holds in place just fine now, but over time it's going to ruin that controller (which admittedly is a very well used wired controller).

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for GamerPack by KontrolFreek (Vipr Black)

I bought these as a little gift for my husband (who is an avid CoD player) and he LOVES them.. he says that the finer level of control makes a big difference in game play (particularly in scoring headshots). I also really like them too; I can't imagine playing NFS: MW without the u-shaped clip, as there's a noticeable difference when cornering.

Cheap Zone of the Enders HD Collection

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $9.99
Today's Bonus: 67% Off

Man, where do I even start. Let me just start with this: Zone of the Enders 2 is one of my favorite games of all time, and easily my favorite robot game ever. That's probably why I'm even bothering to write this review. When I heard Konami was going to re-release the two games in HD, with a brand-new animated cutscene, and with the special edition of ZoE 2 (which was never released in the USA until now), I was looking forward to playing the 2 games again for the first time in a while.

However, despite 2 being on this collection, this is probably the most disappointing game-related purchase I've made since Metroid: Other M (big Metroid fan here). I know that I'm not changing much by writing this review, but I hope that it can shed more light onto why many people are complaining about this collection and that, in the very slim chance that a Konami rep is reading this, a patch will be made to alleviate the problems with the collection.

Let me make this simple:

3 Pros:

-The Metal Gear Rising Demo is fun, despite being short (especially if you skip the cutscenes).

-Zone of the Enders 1 looks and runs as it should.

-The animated opening cutscene is masterfully done and, arguably, the most interesting part of this collection. Check it out on Youtube if you haven't!

3 Cons:

-If I had to take a guess, Zone of the Enders 2 runs about roughly half the speed or so of the original PS2 version. The whole point of the ZoE series is to be a fast-paced robot action game. When the game plays as if I'm playing heavily drunk, something is wrong. I mean seriously, it's barely playable in this state and it's definitely not as fun to play as the PS2 version was (which had very minimal slowdowns). I understand that the game was not made for the PS3/360, but come on, Konami: there's, more or less, no excuse why the game can't run properly. The Metal Gear Solid HD Collection runs almost flawlessly.

-Zone of the Enders 1 isn't nearly as fun as it used to be back in the day. It's also incredibly short at only a few hours long. Somewhat of a weak argument, I admit. However, it is easily the weakest part of this collection.

-You're essentially paying $40/$60 (depending on what collection you purchased) for a demo, a really short (2-4 hours or so on your first playthrough), mediocre game (in my opinion), and a decent-length (6-8 hours or so), incredibly fun game (also in my opinion) that's been absolutely butchered by incompetent programmers. This package is, in its current state (as of November 1st, 2012), worth no more than $20, in my opinion.

Anyway, hopefully Konami will learn from from this mistake and make some sort of attempt to patch the 2nd Runner as soon as possible.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Make no mistake, I love the Zone of the Enders games. Next to Virtual On and the newer Armored Cores, they are some of the most fast, fluid and intense mecha games ever created, with the added bonus of a compelling sci-fi narrative masterfully crafted by Hideo Kojima. So why do I award this "HD remastered" collection of the two PS2 ZOE games one star?

Next to the dire Silent Hill HD, this is one of the sloppiest HD collections yet released. The porting work was farmed out to High Voltage Software, an American studio notorious for putting out licensed junk like White Men Can't Jump, 50 Cent: Bulletproof, and Dora the Explorer. They have very little experience with HD consoles, zero experience with porting other developers' code, and clearly had no idea what they were doing. Compared to the PS2 originals, the framerate of these ports is a complete joke.

Make no mistake, the games will stutter, lag, slow to a crawl, and possibly even crash across the course of a mission. In the scenes that tax the hardware the most, like certain boss battles, the game is practically unplayable. A huge amount of my enjoyment of the original versions came from how fluid the "high speed robot action" was, where you truly felt you were in control of these gorgeous floating monstrosities. That's all but gone here. The unacceptably low framerate also has the unfortunate side effect of rendering the difficulty of some previously challenging battles inconsequential, since you are given so much more time to react to your enemies.

If you are playing the PS3 version, the framerate will be even worse. Konami has claimed that the games play at a smooth 60 frames per second, which is an outright lie. They have also claimed that these ports preserve all the subtle graphical touches and effects of the original versions, which is also untrue. They are mostly intact in the 360 version, but if you are playing on PS3, motion blur is downgraded to be barely noticeable and certain particle effects are entirely removed. There are also strange glitches in background and facial graphics that make it look like you are playing poorly emulated versions of the games.

There are other major problems that could have been solved by a longer development cycle and more competent programmers. For example, getting a trophy in the PS3 version will often freeze the game for minutes at a time. But they are beyond the scope of this review. Suffice to say, Konami needs to release a major patch for this game to fix its numerous issues. It took them a very long time to do this for Silent Hill HD, and it was hardly a panacea. If the ZOE collection is patched and the hardcore fans determine it to be an adequate fix, by all means buy it. Until then, stay the heck away. These amazing games deserved far better treatment.

----------------------------------

UPDATE 7/18/2013: After a prolonged wait, a PS3-exclusive patch has finally been released by porting experts HexaDrive. It fixes everything wrong about ZOE2 and more, making this by far the definitive version of the game now. Only problem? It doesn't affect ZOE1, which still retains all of its performance problems. Admittedly, it doesn't have it as bad as ZOE2 had it before the patch, but it's still a major flaw. Note that the patch is over half a gigabyte, in case your PS3's hard drive is nearly full. I've raised the overall score to 3 stars, with the "fun" score referring specifically to ZOE2.

Best Deals for Zone of the Enders HD Collection

I have been holding off on gettings this because of all the negative reviews about performance. Apparently the game has been recently patched though and decided to pick it up.

I have only played zone of the enders 2, wasn't a big fan of the first game, and so far it seems frame rates stay at a steady 60 fps.

Honest reviews on Zone of the Enders HD Collection

I have been a fan of Zoe since it came out on PS2 many years ago. So far I have beat the first ZOE and I am halfway into ZOE 2. I have had an occasional hiccup every hour or so. I am running it on the latest software for a slim PS3. But I HAVE NOT had constant freezes or frame rate drops to where it is unplayable or even crashes. I do not want to disregard the other one star review but I highly doubt Konami would release a bad port considering they are working on a sequel.

What did upset me a little was that they remade the main opening movie but didn't touch the opening movies for the individual games or touch the cut scene animation. It is a bit of an awkward balance in graphics. Especially for ZOE 1. I felt they could have redone those considering it has been nearly 10 years since the originals came out.

Either way, I got two of my favorite games on a disc for $40, even though I already paid about $40 per game on PS2 and the PS3 hardware is capable of playing them but Sony took that feature out. But at the end of the day, $40 for two games and a demo of MGS:R isn't too bad of a deal. The actual game play does look better, no frame rate or lag issues, I would recommend renting it then buying it.

Edit: I have been playing ZOE2 daily now. It still has not crashed or froze on me as others have said. It does lag a little transitioning from cutscenes to the game but it is livable. I have not experienced frame rate drops in combat either.

Edit 2: after playing ZOE even more, I got a software update to 1.4.something and now the game plays very silky smooth. I am really not sure why the others who have wrote negative reviews are experiencing low frame rate. I'd say rent before buying.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Zone of the Enders HD Collection

Konami should be ashamed that they allowed High Voltage Software to be the developers behind the Zone of the Enders: HD Collection. Their track record in recent history has been spotty at best, and this is just another strike on their record. Despite having this purchased from a physical retailer, I feel that I should warn as many people as possible to avoid this product, particularly since at this time, reviews for this product on major gaming websites are either grossly misleading or non-existent.

I own PS2 copies of Zone of the Enders 1 and 2. Both of those versions run at higher and smoother framerates on a consistent basis, with slowdown and frame drops occurring usually where you'd expect the PS2 to have had serious slowdown. The model of PS3 tested while playing the PS3 version was a CECHExx, originally purchased as part of the MGS4 pack released in June 2008. To confirm whether or not the console was the source of the slowdown, I played Tekken Tag 2, Killzone 2, Killzone 3, Dead or Alive 5, MGS HD Collection, and Uncharted 1-3 after upgrading to the latest firmware (4.31). All of those games run just fine. PS3 owners should avoid this collection at all costs, as their version runs at a lower framerate than the 360 version, and suffers from more severe slowdown even when there is no action. Demonstrably, the game suffers from slowdown just staying still in the training mode chamber, while only ONE enemy is present during the basic movement tutorial.

This isn't to say the 360 version is dramatically better. While it does maintain a higher and more stable framerate than the PS3 version, it still suffers from slowdown and frame-drops at all the same points that the PS3 version is. This version of the game was tested on a Xbox 360 250GB edition system. To see if the Xbox was responsible for any of the issues, I also tried out Halo: CE Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo Reach, Dead or Alive 4, and Ace Combat 6. Those games also ran fine on the hardware.

The bottom line is that the Zone of Enders HD Collection is a low effort port of two PS2 games that does not run well on modern gaming consoles capable of playing far more visually complex games. If Konami is hoping this will drum up interest from newer fans who were not fortunate enough to experience these games when they first released on the PS2, they have shot themselves in the foot. If for some reason we do not get Zone of Enders 3 (despite it being announced fairly recently that the game is being worked on), all of the blame should rest firmly on the poor sales of an poorly made compilation made by High Voltage Software.

As an aside, until Konami, Sony, or High Voltage Software acknowledge and address the issues with a patch on both consoles fixing the framerate and overall performance, I would not only avoid purchasing the product, but I would not trust any reviewer claiming the game runs well. At worst, they are paid advertisement shills. At best, they are just fanboys attempting to defend either their console of choice of the franchise they love.

Review of Xbox 360 NFL Miami Dolphins Controller

Customer Ratings:

Firstly, it's the freakin Miami Dolphins XBOX 360 controller.

Secondly, it's corded, and the cord is about 7-9 feet long, perfect for a dorm room college student who doesn't like to waste his money on batteries.

Thirdly, the sticks and triggers are made of a hard, more rugged feeling, plastic than the original 360 controller's. This takes about ten minutes of game time to get used to; however, after wards it has a better feel to it than the original.

Fourth, this is a little smaller than the original controller, and it has grips along the side to keep sweaty hands from dropping it in those intense plays that require a firm grip on the ba--controller.

Fifthly, the only way it could be better is if Dan Marino would sign mine.

"The slightly smaller size also gives you a slight advantage in that you can get to the buttons just a little bit faster," so my friends say, but they just have slower fingers than I do.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I am very satisfied with how fast I recieved my purchase. I also am please with the condition it was in. The controller is a lot of fun.

320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Highest Capacity Reviews

Customer Ratings:

I'm a cheap bastard and this was good for my price point. I was worried as first as you know this is some cheap-ass possibly stolen part from some backdoor of some factory in china. But then so is the full price MS part, minus the backdoor "sales"...

When I got this is was exactly like the MS original 360 HDD part but without the MS stamp and stickers, like EXACTLY the same, and about half as much money...can you even buy real ones this big? Either way, whatever your politics/buying choices, this part worked PERFECTLY!

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I purchased a 320 GB drive. The enclosure is identical to my old official Microsoft HDD. No issues with fit or appearance or structural quality.

Looking through the holes in the enclosure, the drive used is a factory recertified Western Digital. Some people may not feel comfortable with a refurbished HDD, so if that's the case for you, you may want to go with an official Microsoft HDD at the higher price, or make your own DIY HDD (Google search: "xpgamesaves how to make low cost" or "how to make xbox 360 hdd").

If you are upgrading from a smaller HDD and want to transfer a significant amount of data, you will need a data transfer cable.

The only drawback here is that the drive will not play original Xbox games on disc as it comes from the seller. It is missing information in the partition 2 that allows for emulation of original Xbox titles on disc. It plays online and anything downloaded from the games marketplace just fine, the issue is only with original Xbox titles on disc. For the majority of people, this will not be an issue at all (since most people are not going to be playing old titles on disc). However, if this is an issue for you, it is easily fixed.

For a tutorial on how to restore partition 2 to allow for the play of original Xbox game discs on your 360, Google search: "xpgamesaves how to create partition 2 xbox" or "digiex xbox 360 partition 2". Both of those locations give straightforward tutorials and point you at the program and file you'll need to do this. You'll need a PC and a data transfer cable to most easily accomplish this.

Overall, I can't complain at all about this generic HDD. Tons of space for cheap; great upgrade. I'd give it 5 stars if the seller had stated upfront it's a refurb.

Best Deals for 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Highest Capacity

Please ignore the star ratings since this is not a game. It should say "How do you rate this PRODUCT overall?" Still, I give it 5 stars.

I bought my Xbox 360 about 4 years ago with the ridiculously small 20 GB hard drive (ridiculous considering that if you are on Xbox live, you are bound to run out of space really quick with everything it offers) because the ones with the bigger drives cost more. I think it was about 2 years ago Microsoft gave us the option to use a thumb drive to extend our console's storage (and btw, don't bother with anything bigger than 16 gigs as that is all that the Xbox 360 will register). But yet again, I found myself running out of space after purchasing many of the Arcade games, etc. and frankly, I was getting tired of deleting things just to have more space. And I care little for modifying/ hacking some other type of external drive, I wanted something quick and easy.

Alas, I decided to purchase a bigger hard drive but even the 250 GB from Microsoft @ about $100 was unreasonable, never mind the 320 drive! So about 2 weeks ago I came across the reviews for the "320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360" by JACOBPARTS. I read some wonderful reviews and whether or not this is a refurbished drive, and not an "official" Microsoft drive, I was convinced enough to order one, and at about $60.00 for 320 GB, why not?

The JACOBPARTS hard drive, visually, is identical to the original Xbox 360 hard drive in every way minus the official Microsoft seal. BUT, please note that this drive does not come backwards compatible; it will not play the first Xbox CD games (I don't know if it plays downloadable Xbox games though). There is however, a way to make the hard drive backwards compatible so that it will play Xbox games (check one of the previous reviews for the link; can't remember off hand) but somewhat unfortunately for me, every time I downloaded the software, my anti-virus was triggered due to a "Trojan horse". Ultimately I figured since I have my original Xbox anyway, I didn't really care about making my 360 backwards compatible. So please, be very cautious!!

OK, besides the backwards compatibility issue and not having the "official" Microsoft seal, this drive works the same as Microsoft's. It has been only about a week since I installed it but so far everything is just perfect! Oh, just make sure to purchase the "Xbox 360 Data Transfer Cable" (about 8 bucks) to transfer data from the old drive to the new one. Once you have both drives connected with the transfer cable, turn on the 360 and follow the onscreen instructions. 20 gigs were transferred to the bigger drive in about 8 minutes or less! All my downloaded content and other purchases, EVERYTHING, has been transferred seamlessly!! My 360 boots up normally, (no lag, etc) all my save files are there and the 360 CDs and downloaded games start up normal; everything is perfect and I still have roughly 280 plus gigs left (the 360 uses the other 40-50 gigs for Godknowswhat, like all PCs , lol)

Overall, I am very happy with the product. I don't have the cash for the slimmed down 360's or Microsoft's "official" hard drives. So 320 gigs for roughly $60.00 (don't forget the transfer cable for like 8 bucks too) seemed like the best alternative. I hope my review helps!

Best wishes to all!

Honest reviews on 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Highest Capacity

Shipped fast and good price. Hard drive works great, just take your time putting it in the xbox because it's new. Thank you!

320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 Highest Capacity

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for 320GB Hard Drive HDD for Xbox 360 - Highest Capacity

I replaced the 20GB hard drive on a first generation XBox 360 with this one. Initially I had no issues, but I started to experience intermittent freezes and error messages when playing games, especially games that had been installed to the drive. Initially I thought that they hard drive itself may have been defective, so I cracked the case open. Inside was a perfectly fine SATA Western Digital hard drive.

Figuring that it was unlikely to be a hard drive defect, I swapped cases, putting the new 320GB drive in the case of the old 20GB drive. Voila, no more issues.

I can't speak to the overall quality of the cases -perhaps I just got the rare dud -but consider that the internal drive is a standard 2.5 inch SATA drive. If you're willing to do a little surgery (and have some jeweler-sized torx screwdrivers) then you may be able to purchase the hard drive separately and replace it yourself for a bit less.

Buy Saints Row 2 Collector's Edition -Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:

I'm not going to compare this game to GTA IV or anything because they really aren't the same game. I hate when people argue for one or the other without playing them both. Personally I have played them both and love them both and I don't see why I should hate one or the other.

Saints Row is an amazing game. It's a blast to play and it really goes tongue in cheek, petal to the metal all the time. I love insurance fraud and mayhem the most out of everything one can do in this game and those are just activities, not missions. I've played through quite a few of the missions and the cutscenes are sometimes incredibly funny especially if your character is walking around in a costume (hot dog suit, ninja suit or like two dozen+ others) or half-naked or just wearing everything mismatched. You can customize everything just like it tells you in the product description and on the box cover. (clothes, body, gang, etc.) I would not recommend the game for children though (because of the sheer amount of sexual and drug references) but if you're mature then it's a great game to play.

This game understands what it is it's supposed to be, pure fun. Do whatever you want, be whoever you want, drive whatever you want and do things you wouldn't ordinarily do or even think of doing. It isn't a game that focuses on realism (which is a popular trend right now) and I love it for that. Don't judge it before you play it! (there is a demo of the first saints row on xbox live...how I knew I had to get into the game)

NOTE: It does glitch. It doesn't seem to glitch to any particular thing though (which is actually a good thing) and it usually doesn't freeze, you just need to be a bit patient and the game will start working again. I've played it for probably a good 40+ hours now and it's glitched on me perhaps 2 times where it didn't start up again shortly. IT really isn't enough of a turnoff to the game by a LONG SHOT. It's usually actually really funny. (My character once lit on fire and I was driving around on fire without my health being affected for a few minutes screaming like a maniac and I was just laughing) Honestly an amazing game that is worth the $60 easily. IT ALMOST ALWAYS FIXES ITSELF WITHIN ABOUT 3 MINUTES, which actually spices up the gameplay at times because like I said before they aren't predicable glitches and I've NEVER had the same one twice. (which is actually the MOST frustrating thing about glitches because then you can never do anything) The game autosaves as well so you don't have to do anything over again (unless you want to) if something goes wrong.

Worth the money! (only a 4 out of 5 because of glitches)

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Ok, here's the deal. You can do anything in this game. On the average day, I could leave my pimped-out crib in my birthday suit, flash a few old ladies, stop by the quickmart and grab a hooker, pick up some weed from the same quickmart, hop on a bike I stole from some rival gang members (I'm still naked BTW) and ride across town to do a mission, and, well, you get the idea. There is so much to do, it is overwhelming. In fact, I find it hard to figure out just what is going on in the game because I'm too busy with the side missions. And every day, I find a new side mission to play that's more absurd than the last. I mean, when the mission involves you wearing a flaming suit and driving an ATV across the city trying to blow up as many things as you possibly can, you start to wonder what kind of people think up this stuff.

As I said before, there is so much to do, who has the time? Some people play sandbox games for the story, while opting every now and then to get caught up in the absurd and do something they would never do in real life. Those people will like GTA better. Some people like sandbox games because they allow you to become super human and do whatever you want. Those people will like Crackdown better. And then there are people who like sandbox games because they do everything and find every secret and collect all the coins and finish all the missions, etc. Give them this game. I dare you. You won't hear from them for months. And when you do, don't be surprised if they're buck naked, speaking in ebonics, high, and on a bike.

Best Deals for Saints Row 2 Collector's Edition -Xbox 360

Saint's Row 2 is by far the best sandbox crime game at this time. It's a colorful, vibrant world. The nameless people in the world have enough personallity to make you feel like you are in a living breathing world.

The cutscenes are short and fun for the most part, and the supporting characters are very well done. The story is very easy to follow and keeps you interested.

The missions tend to be the same thing, drive here, blow up this, kill this guy, pick up this stuff, take it back to the hideout, and avoid capture. They are all fairly straight foward, but a few of them will test your patience. The activities are very well thought out. There are just too many to name, but my favorite would have to be the Insurance Fraud. There is just so much to do in this game.

The music selection is great. There are hits from many different types of music. GTA 4 had a decent hip hop selection but lacked any recognizable rock.

Overall I was very happy with my purchace. It doesn't take long to finish the story, but there is so much to do you may never be truely done with this game.

Honest reviews on Saints Row 2 Collector's Edition -Xbox 360

As for this edition, the extras are just okay for the most part (see the description for details) but the bullet-shaped USB drive is cool, and probably worth the extra 10 bucks.

As for the game, this is what GTA should be. No dating, no stupid games within games, just brutal, open-world fun. If you have played SR1, then you know what to expect. A good selection of weapons, a decent story, fun side missions, and a unique cast of characters (to say the least). My biggest gripe with the first SR was the lack of vehicles besides cars, that is taken care of here, in spades. The best part about the SR games is the ability to customize your cars, no two dinky parking spots in this game, you have a magic garage! Also, for once the choppers are easy to fly, I don't want that much realism in a game where I can bash old ladies' heads in.

This is not a perfect game of course. I would have liked more options in the customization ability (but at least it was there at all). The graphics are nothing special either, but given the detail in the other quests, I can live with that. Finally, please, please stop putting stupid things to find or spray paint, just for a few unlocks and an achievement.

The pros of this game far outweigh the cons, so get it already!

My 2¢

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Saints Row 2 Collector's Edition -Xbox 360

I didn't actually purchase Saint's Row 2 until several months after it had already been out. As a matter of fact, the only reason I bought it was because it was on sale, Collector's Edition, and I thought it was a great deal at the price being offered. I had read several reviews when the game initially released, which ranged from good to average. I had the first Saint's Row, but never finished the game, as it just lost my interest.

However, I'm pleased to say that the same was not true of Saint's Row 2. In fact, I played the game continuously until I had finally reached the end of the story. There's a lot of meat on this bone that is Saint's Row 2. There are a number of customization options for you character, from gender and body type to hair and clothing options, even fighting style and taunts. I played through the game as an African American female, but a quick visit to the plastic surgeon will allow you to remake yourself any way you see fit.

People already know that Saint's Row shares striking similarities to the Grand Theft Auto series, and this game is no different. I found that, specifically, Saint's Row 2 very closely resembles Grand Theft Auto San Andreas. There are the clothing options, you can eat to regenerate health, buy property, customize your car or crib, you can even parachute from a plane. There are also a huge number of side missions that you can take on, ranging from taxi missions and races to fight clubs and escort missions. One of my favorites, Fuzz, has your character in the role of a police officer, taking down criminals, all the while being followed by a TV cameraman.

On the negative side, there are some technical issues that arise, such as slowdown during some of the boat chases, but I didn't feel they detracted from the overall experience of the game. In addition to the incredibly deep single player mode, there are also online co-op and multiplayer modes that only help to further enhance the replayability. If you liked the first Saints Row or any of the Grand Theft Auto series, especially San Andreas, grab your piece, and head on down to Saints Row for a 2nd visit.

Review of Velvet Assassin - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $59.99
Sale Price: $19.00
Today's Bonus: 68% Off

I don't see why people are giving Velvet Assassin such bad reviews. Yeah, it's not an 'action' stealth game like Splinter Cell and Metal Gear Solid, but it holds it's own as being a WWII game that DOESN'T involve being in the frontlines.

I've been needing a stealth game for my 360 and Velvet Assassin fits the case perfectly. It's a surprisingly simple stealth game-for some this is good and others this is bad. If you're looking for a stealth game where you get to use gadgets and gizmos as well as climb up walls, use grappling guns ect...turn away now, for Velvet Assassin has none of this. Nope. In this game all you have are your wits to get you through.

You start out discovering that Violet is in a coma in a hospital. Where she is exactly, you don't know-but it's explained as you play along. You then enter memories of the first mission-which is basiclly a tutorial level.

Stealth is extremely simple. Stay in the shadows(and silent), and you're safe. Sneak behind an enemy and pull off as many silent kills as you can. Not only do these look sweet, but you can keep a low profile while doing so.

Firearms are based off real WWII weapons, and ammo for each one is EXTREMLEY limited, so you don't want to waste any shots unless you have to. I've read some reviews from people saying that they don't use the weapons...I seriously have NO clue how that's possible-I find myself needing to use them time and time again for silent headshot kills as well for blasting my way through enemies when the time is right.

You upgrade Violet by finding collectables in each mission. In some missions there are hidden objectives and precious collectables that will chalk you up with a TON of experiance points, so it's good to explore as much of the area as you can. Yes, gameplay is extremely linar-but that didn't bother me at all. I actually liked it due to the fact that whenever I play Splinter Cell I ALWAYS get lost and frustrated. Velvet Assassin dims down the 'frustrating lost' vibe by being linar.

Graphics are-I'll admit-not the greatest out there, but I'm not really one who nickpicks that sort of thing. I play on a standard 24 inch 480pi TV-and the game looks fine to me. Someone commented on the frame rate being bad, but I didn't notice anything. I guess if you're really picky about those sorts of things then you'd notice them.

The Morphine Mode in Velvet Assassin is pretty cool. Violet has the ability to use Morphine to stop time in all missions (except for missions 11 and 12) thus enabling her to pull off kills from the front or get the heck out of there. The screen glows white and Violet is in her nightgown (I'm not sure why...fits the mood, maybe?) with red blood cells floating everywhere. Weird...but cool at the same time.

The enviorments in Velvet Assassin are a mixture between boring and downright scary. The first mission is pretty boring. Once you hit the 'Third Man' mission things get sorta creepy. His mission 10 and you'll find yourself in a creepy little town where Nazis have killed and strung about innocent people. Mission 12 hands down has the scariest envoirment in the entire game.

This really isn't a problem as it is a surprise. I was rather shocked to see that Velvet Assassin actually has dead children in gameplay. It's nothing gory or anything by all means-but this is the first game I've played that actually has children in a village...ya know, where children should be? Every other game that I've played that takes place in a location that SHOULD have children-doesn't. This really did come as a surprise to me though. It's not bad, it's just unsual.

Personally I found Velvet Assassin to be quite fun. I was always eager to see where Violet would go next-and if she would ever wake up. (Oh, and her voice actor is really good) I enjoy the simple stealth system and found it fun to whistle-get someone's attention, and then stealth kill him for his stupidity. But I'm just the kind of person who has a knack for patience-and I don't need a flashy storyline to entertain me. Like I said, if you're looking for an 'action-packed' stealth game then I suggest you stay clear of Velvet Assassin, cuz this isn't the game for you.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Velvet Assassin takes place in WWII and you will play as a Violet a Female assassin working for the British. You will perform several stealth missions and most are fun and rewarding. You're given multiple ways to get through an area. You'll kill most enemies silently with your knife. The Game does provide several areas where other more entertaining options are available to dispose of your foes. A fine example is pulling the pins on an unsuspecting soldier's grenade. You can also use morphine as a super instant kill in certain areas. It gives the player a way out of sticky areas. The game plays well and most of the checkpoints won't have you going to far if you mess things up. The AI isn't very bright in this game. When considering the small confines most of the missions are played in it serves its purpose. The game provides a nice history and story of WWII and if you listen to the text German conversations you get a small glimpse of how terrible the war was.

Now for the bad part, the gunplay is just plain terrible and severely hampers a few areas. Particularly the last levels in the game where they decided to remove most of the darkness and the morphine power. The game also has a glitch in which cut scenes won't play and you'll be unable to proceed without a complete reload. I did find that if you go into your dashboard and select the option to load the game to your hard drive and select the play from the hard drive will remedy this problem.

Velvet Assassin is a good stealth game with a nice historical perspective. If you enjoy stealth games like Splinter Cell or the Hit man series you'll find this an enjoyable title.

Good

Fun stealth action

Nice historical story setting

Bad

Terrible gunplay ruins some sections and hampers the games final levels

Some spots require many tries to master.

Glitches with cut scenes not playing

Best Deals for Velvet Assassin - Xbox 360

In the spirit of spinter cell.

Overall, Velvet Assassain is a great old school stealth game.

Great, vivid, eerie environments combined with a constant sense of hostility makes a beautiful gaming experience fit for only those with long attention spans.

If you enjoyed the original Splinter Cell or any of the Hitman games, this one will not dissapoint.

Just have an open mind.

Honest reviews on Velvet Assassin - Xbox 360

Velvet Assassin has fun stealth sequences, detailed environments, fresh stealth ideas. It does contain flaws, as many games do, all of which are minor, the controls are good, contrary to what I have seen other reviewers say, I rented it first because I was unsure sbout it, from what I have seen of it review wise, I was expecting, crap. But it is nothing of the sort. It is an interesting, fun stealth game.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Velvet Assassin - Xbox 360

First of all, I purchased this item from Amazon brand new. I read all the reviews and I was liking the idea of a simple yet fun game that is not to long as I only get to play games maybe an hour or two a week.

The game play was enjoyable but I have never played a game that was so full of bugs and glitches. Before I get into the glitches, let me tell you that I tried downloading the game to the hard drive to see if that would help but it actually made things worse. I tried playing this game on two different Xbox 360. I have an older model and the new Xbox 360 S. I had the same glitches on both.

The glitches. Enemies would freeze in place often after they were alerted to my presence. Often with their guns pointed up in the air. I could just walk up and slay them. Cut scenes wouldn't play when they were supposed to. I figured this out when I went online to figure out why I was stuck. I would finish a level but the game wouldn't move on and I would be stuck reverting back to a checkpoint or starting the level over. The final straw was the last level. I would defeat the last group of enemies but the final cut scene wouldn't play but I could hear the final speech by my character. I can't even get credit for finishing the game because it won't recognize that I beat the last level. Again, I saw a video of someone completing the game on YouTube so I made sure I was doing everything correctly.

Here are some examples of cut scenes not loading or levels not ending.

One level you have to take out a target in a cathedral. Once I climbed to the top and defeated him, the level would not end. I tried 3 times before it finally loaded the cut scene and ended the level.

One level you have to locate a hotel, climb a tower and sniper an explosive barrel to kill another target. Once you kill the target, you have to escape and cross the lake again. After I shot the barrel, the cut scene wouldn't load and it wouldn't let me cross the lake. I re-played that level about 5 times before it finally showed the cut scene that allowed me to finish the level.

The level where you first come across a sniper, a cut scene is suppose to play but wouldn't load. The last level when you are walking up the hill to the church, another cut scene is suppose to play but wouldn't load. I already mentioned the final cut scene in the game when your character is scratching at the church door wouldn't load. The character would say the last lines while still in game play mode but the level wouldn't end when she was done.

I really tried everything I could but I finally had to give up. No matter how many times I tried or on what system, I couldn't get the last cut scene to play. Very disappointing game in that aspect. The game play was fun and enjoyable but to have to sit and replay areas until the game was working right, took away a lot of enjoyment.

I understand this game is not meant for the hardcore fans but for people that enjoy the 2nd rate games or don't have a lot of time to play like myself, this game should be good but I can't give a good review on game that is full of glitches. Where were the software testers? Did they honestly think it's ok to put out a game with all these glitches? Big thumbs down.

I would not recommend this game. I know I read some other people ran into glitches in other reviews, but I never thought a game would be this bad with glitches.