Reviews of Shaun White Snowboarding: World Stage

Customer Ratings:

We are a family of four and it's hard to find a fun game that is multi-player. This game is fantastic! My ten and twelve year old daughters loved it. It gives you the option of using the balance board or wii remote. Only one person can use the balance board since most of the time you are all four playing at the same time, but that was fine for us. The balance board is a little touchy and hard to use at first, but definitely gets easier with practice. Controlling the game with the wii remote is much easier to learn. The game has lots of customization built in for character clothing and boards. The entire family can play in career mode and all the gameplay you do in career mode counts towards your goals. Definitely one of the best group play games!

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I loved Road Trip, but really didn't think this game was going to be THAT much better. It was BECAUSE I loved Road Trip so much that I didn't think this could do more than measure up, which would have been enough to make the game worth playing. This takes the concept to a whole new level though. Instead of riding around for fun and doing random tricks with the occasional competition, this one is all ABOUT competition on a global scale. Travel all over the world again, but this time compete and gain in ranking as you do so. The levels are amazing and the challenges are plenty. The Balance Board makes this so much fun, adding a sense of realism that you couldn't get with the mote alone. An awesome game in a now awesome series.

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I bought this as a birthday gift for my husband. After watching the 2010 Winter Olympics he and my 6 year old son become Shaun White fans. So when

I heard this game was good for all ages I thought this would be good game for them to play together. I wasn't disapointed! They played for hours and to my delight my daughter loves it as well. This is a great family game good for all ages young and old,

male or female. We also enjoyed the music that is played in the background. I would definitely recommend this game. I didn't buy the snowboard accessory because I was afraid it would cause a fight as to who would get to play on it. They have just as much if not more fun without it. So, if you're worried about not having the snowboard accessory I would say it's not necessary.

Honest reviews on Shaun White Snowboarding: World Stage

Sean White Snowboarding is a lot of fun and at times frustrating. It took me about a week to work through the various stages and two attempts at the world stage to make #1, which makes it a lot quicker to "finish" than a lot of similar games. It takes a bit of time to get the hang of doing tricks (I used the balance board and single remote option) and I still haven't gotten the half pipe down very well, so there is still room to work. My only complaint is that the instructions are not very clear, particularly the player guide, which is rather cryptic, but if you don't mind learning by experimenting, it is a really good value,

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I play this with just the Wiimote and love it. I bought it a couple of weeks after I bought Shaun White: Road Trip but I found this one a little easier to get through than the other so maybe start on this one if you're buying it for little kids. The graphics of the cities and mountains are great and having the crowds there heightens the moment. There wasn't anywhere that I got stuck, because the game rotates the events so you have a few ways to get through and climb your rank.

Only downside I found to this one in comparison to the other was that if you're on a run and do it badly and want to retry, you can't go out and change your character and come back to the same event, because it moves forward in weeks. You can do that in the other game. I can't quite figure out what all the little symbols mean when you're picking a new event either, I don't find it clear if I've completed it or not before I go in and have another try.

Trivial little issues though which don't affect how fun this game is.

Once you reach a milestone (top 75, top 50 etc) you then play as Shaun just for one event, which you have to get through to continue. Once you rank at number one (or maybe five, I can't remember) you unlock the character of Shaun. I got through most of the game using Jasmine and the great Flying Squirrel jump but really liked the control of Shaun once he was unlocked.

Word for the ego: Once you are ranked at #1 you can lose that ranking so remember to continue to be awesome. Music is great in this game, a mix of old and new and adds to the groove of the ride.

Buy this or Shaun White:Road Trip, they are both fantastic games and you don't need to be a snowboarder or even a fan of sport games to enjoy this.

Disney's Planes - Nintendo Wii Review

Customer Ratings:

This could be a great game, except for the fact the instructions are completely useless and the controller is SO sensitive you literally find it hard to fly straight. There are settings when you don't use the Nunchuk for adjusting sensitivity, but the instructions don't tell you what that means and we had it on high and low and it seemed to make no difference. It was slightly easier with the Nunchuk than without, but it really is tough.

It's actually a cool game too but so hard to control I had to give it 1 star because from a playability standpoint my 6 year old was fed up in 20 minutes of trying, and she loved the movie and loves planes in general.

Anyone out there who has figured out how to make this less sensitive, please post a comment I might change my rating if someone can help us out with this. So far, my daughter spent her own money and feels ripped off because she just can't do it (and this is a kid who can play almost any other video game that even adults struggle at).

Graphics 4 stars.

Movie tie-in 5 stars.

Game itself 5 stars.

Playability (due to over sensitive controls) 1 star which is why it gets a one star review!

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For a movie that is geared towards the younger set, this game is hard. Hard for the adults too. The multiple dimension and the sensitivity of the game were just too much for all of us. My little guy (5 years old) is very disappointed because he saved up all his money for a new game.

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My aunt sent this game to my son whom is 4. He was so excited but was super mad because his game came 3 days late. Well once we finally got it he was dying to play. It is hard the controls are a bit crazy but after playing everyday for a week (he only plays for 1 hour) we got the hang of it. I play when he is sleeping to unlock everything for him. Its a good game but not very child friendly

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I am an airplane nut so I enjoy everything about them including animated movies etc. This game is based on the movie so if you liked the movie playing it will take you there! You can't beat Disney for the animation.

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Good game foe te family, but a little too complicated for a 4 year old! However they still had fun!

Best EA Sports Active 2 - Xbox 360 Deals

Customer Ratings:

3 1/2 stars out of 5

The "2" in EA Sports Active 2 is actually a little misleading. The first EA Sports Active came out for the Wii in May of 2009, and the second, titled "More Workouts," came out 6 months later, adding much needed core exercises. This game, in essence, is the third in the series. Needless to say, I've been a fan of the franchise for a while, and it has been a great addition to my workouts. I decided to sell my Wii recently and upgrade to XBOX and Kinect, especially after hearing EASA 2 would be out soon after launch. However, being the third iteration in the series, this title for the XBOX is a bit of a step backwards.

Pros:

+ The addition of a heart rate monitor is great! It's accurate, stays put on my forearm even during the boxing workout, and it's easy to connect.

+ No more Wiimote and Nunchuck getting in your way. You don't have to decide between having the leg strap fall off of you or cut off the circulation to your right foot. This allows you to finally use your own weights instead of the included resistance band. There is even a setting adjustment for players wanting to take advantage of this feature.

+ The included resistance band is much more... resistant than the previous band. Your arms will now feel the burn on curls, raises and presses.

+ Step aerobics and boxing is a lot of fun. Both exercises have seen improvements and work well with the Kinect.

+ The game FINALLY recognizes my jumps! One frustration with the Wii was its inability to recognize jumps during downhill inline skating. No more, Sports Active fans!

+ Intensity is not a problem with this game. I completed medium intensity workouts and my heart rate stayed at about 70-80% of my maximum.

+ Lots of stats. You want stats, you got 'em. This game will tell you your average heart rate, calories burned, percent completion, and will give you graphs to measure your intensity. It will even tell you how many of each exercise you've ever performed, ever.

+ Achievements. Nothing like increasing your gamerscore and getting in shape at the same time, am I right?

Cons:

Motion-controlled menu interface. It is useless. Tip: Once you get your heart rate monitor connected, turn on your XBOX 360 controller as well. If you're expecting to have a controller-less experience with EASA 2, you will be spending a lot of time inadvertently hitting the wrong options and correcting your mistakes.

Voice recognition. I thought this would be a pretty cool addition. Yeah sure, I'd like to pause my workout simply by saying "Pause." But try to do anything else and you'll find out that it's not worth it. Want to skip an exercise? "Pause." "Skip exercise." "Select." (Are you sure?) "Skip exercise." "Select." It's not a fast process and a little more than annoying if what you say doesn't register the first time. Also, during my first exercise, I somehow managed to bring up the radio on two occasions (by voice prompt I'm assuming) and COULD NOT get it to go away. I had to pull out my handy controller again and hit "X" to get rid of it.

"Show Me How" is a pain! My first workout was 42 minutes long, and I bet I managed to accidentally trigger this selection about 30 times. I'm not sure if it was a phantom voice prompt or arm movement that triggered it, but it really put a kink in my workout.

No real-life trainers. It's a small complaint, but I think it's worth mentioning. In the first EASA, you learned how to perform exercises from actual human beings, which not only helped you with your form but also made you think, "Hey, if he/she can do it, so can I." Instead, EA has replaced these trainers with generic computer renderings tirelessly performing alternating jump lunges. Were the developers too rushed to include them? Or just cheap?

Trainer prompts and suggestions. One of the best features of the first EASA was the helpful suggestions given during your workout, telling you to focus on breathing or tighten your glutes. They were spouted often but always changed and were generally helpful. Now, they are overly repetitive and not useful. Yes, I know I should keep my pushups low, but if I go any lower, I will actually just be laying on the floor. Tip: after you've have one go through all of the exercises and heard all the trainer has to say, go to game settings and turn off all trainer input. You'll be happier doing the running drills when you're not being told to keep your back straight every 10 seconds.

Overall, EA Sports Active 2 does give you a solid, heart-pounding workout at home. But it feels as though EA made a last minute port instead of tailoring their SA franchise for the Kinect. Controls are finicky, graphics are a bit lacking, and sometimes you'll scream at your console for once again "showing you how" to do something you already know how to do.

Verdict: If you already have one of the previous Sports Actives for the Wii, skip this one. For 100 dollars, it's not worth upgrading. But if you are new to workout games, have an XBOX, a Kinect and an endless supply of patience, I'd say go for it. You will get a good balance of cardio and muscle sculpting workouts, and achievements will have you chasing new goals constantly.

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There are some ways this product falls short, and others where it excels.

Pros:

-Heart rate monitoring. Your heart rate is an extremely useful tool for getting the most out of your workouts, working out safely, working out effectively, and a very good way of gauging your intensity. Beginners always have a hard time knowing whether or not they're working out with enough intensity, or if they're putting unnecessary stress on their heart. For those with heart conditions, I wouldn't even consider another fitness game.

-Resistance training and weight settings. You can use resistance bands for many of the workouts used by the game, or you can change a setting so that you can use your own dumbbells (up to 30 pounds, as far as I can tell). Resistance training is an important part of any serious workout.

-9 week program. This is a great feature for beginners and those that have been out of the routine for a while. It puts you on a routine with three selectable levels of intensity, four days a week for about a half hour per day. These workouts are great. I struggled to finish the Medium setting the first time through as a former athlete who's spent a little too much time couch gaming over the past few years and eating too much fast food after being too lazy to get back into my routine after an illness. For a while, expect these routines to take as much as an hour out of your day. Another plus here is warm-up and cool-down at the beginning and ending of each day's routine. Other fitness tools neglect this extremely important aspect of a good workout. Where is the stretching? It's unfortunate that good stretching wasn't thrown into the warm-up and cool-down portions.

Cons:

-Customization. I haven't explored this feature a great deal yet, but there doesn't appear to be an extensive level of customization.

-Stat tracking. This is pretty much a joke. The elaborate stat tracking that was posted is essentially just you answering a roll call. Did you exercise today? Yes. Did you eat healthy? Yes. Okay. Its making sure you participated, which is great, but I want to monitor my body's specific progress. It doesn't even have an input (that I've seen), where you can input your weight each day after weighing yourself on a scale, which I find sad considering you can mark down your participation in outside activities and have it count toward your progress. Why can't I record my weight progress, EA? Wii Fit lets you do it, and appears to be a superior tool for monitoring your results progress. If you have both, continue doing your Wii Fit Body Test daily as a supplement to EA Sports Active 2.

As I've said, these are initial impressions and may change. I intend to update this review as I discover new ways it excels and fails. At the end of day one, my body is feeling the too long unfamiliar feeling of a great workout.

UPDATE (11/19/10) Dropped from 4 to 2 stars.

Just completed my second workout and wow... just wow. I am about 8 feet from my TV because my living room is narrow but according to other Kinect games like Kinect Adventures and Dance Central have no problem detecting all of my movements easily. The second routine has a lot of workouts on that involve sitting on the floor, consecutively. Not only does the game force you to be standing at the beginning of each one of these to be recognized by the Kinect, but it also would not recognize anything my legs did while on my back no matter what I did. When I was supposed to be doing V crunches, I was having to kick one leg up in the air as high as I could just to get it to count a rep so I could just move on to the next workout. I tried lying sideways, straight forward, angled, closer, further away. NOTHING worked. I had to skip 2-3 workouts because of this. 8 feet should be plenty. Today, I was genuinely annoyed that I wasted an hour out of my day I could have spent getting a real workout. After this, I am really leaning toward selling it, as I don't have the 10-12 feet this apparently requires for floor workouts.

UPDATE 2 (11/22/10) Still 2 stars.

My wife and I have both done additional workouts with EA Active 2, moving the Kinect both above and below the TV, recalibrating everything as well. This thing still will not pick anything up that goes on when you're on the floor correctly, aside from pushups. It appears to be a result of the couch being at our backs. If your feet get near the couch, it can't detect your feet properly anymore. Again, my couch is about ten feet from the TV; supposedly plenty. If you take even one step forward, it tells you that you are too close once you lie down and won't track the movements anyway. No other Kinect game I've tried so far has had this problem.

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I preorderd this game and had a chance to pop it into the 360 and play it tonight. I own both of the previous Wii EA Sports Active games (for Wii) and enjoyed them both, but ended up falling off of the exercise wagon after a while.

I'm hoping this one can keep me motivated a bit longer.

I'm just going to go through a quick list of the Pros and Cons.

Pros:

Voice navigation through the game's menus is pretty awesome. Being able to skip workout tutorials just by using my is pretty awesome. You can also navigate through the in-game music choices to skip tracks if you feel the need.

Syncing with EASportsActive.com is good stuff. Sometimes during my lunch break I like to check in on my fitness schedule to know when my rest days are. You're also able to change attributes on your account like weight and have it sync back to the Xbox.

Workout tutorials are very helpful. Videos actually show you the way to hold the weights and how to perform the exercise. The trainer tells you where you should feel the burn so that helps you know if you are doing it correctly.

Kinect Sensor makes this game so much easier. One thing I hated about the Wii version was constantly pulling the nunchuck out of the leg strap and having to try to fit it back in there on the next exercise. No more fussing with that. Kinect just tracks your motion with its camera, so there is nothing to hold on to. Some exercises require weights, so the only thing you will switch back and forth between are exercises not requiring weights and exercises requiring weights...

Being able to use free weights rather than the resistance weight band. I grabbed myself a couple of 5 lb. weights and entered it into my game profile and went to town. When you set up your profile, you tell it how heavy the weights are, and it uses that information to help calculate your calorie burn. The game comes bundled with a resistance band if you don't have any weights of your own.

This isn't an EA Sports Active pro, more of a 360/Kinect pro. Achievements are awesome. I have a feeling the lust for every achievement point in this game will be one thing that motivates me to keep playing. Setting up your account and getting through your first workout session nets you about 30 points. I can't imagine how tone I will be after collecting them all.

Cons:

I consider the bundled heart rate monitor both a pro and a con. It is interesting to see your rate spike when you're really pushing it, and I can see how it would give you a more accurate calorie burn reading, but the fact that it increases the price of the game to $99 makes it a little harsh. The rate monitor just isn't that important to me. I haven't tried out two player mode yet, but I don't think the monitor is required for the exercises, just recommended, so no need to pick up a second one if the person you play with isn't super into it. I will probably let my fiancée wear it if she wants to when we work out together because it just isn't that important to me.

The exercise accuracy tracking with Kinect is a little sketchy. Sometimes the machine just has no idea what I am doing, especially when squatting. I'm willing to put part of the blame on myself, I have only had the game for an evening, so I am not in good enough shape to squat as low as it wants me to. I also had pajama pants on rather than my usual workout shorts. I recommend wearing shorts; I think it will help a lot. The accuracy also seems a little off when jogging in place. It really wants you to power jog and whip those arms back and forth to burn more calories. I think it uses the arm movement as a way to judge if you are actually running. Sometimes you really have to exaggerate your movement to get it to pick up that you're actually running in place quite fast. I'm willing to give the machine the benefit of the doubt. Next time I will be wearing shorts and after a few more weeks I should be able to squat lower, so I will try to update this after that. I feel the trade off in accuracy is totally worth not having to flail around with the Wiimotes though. I am hoping now that Microsoft has sold over a million of these things they use the data gathered to release a patch that improves accuracy across the board.

Load time. It seems to take an awful lot of time to load in between the workouts. I am going to install the game to the Xbox HDD, and I think it will eliminate that problem. To be honest, I needed the extra 30 seconds of rest time tonight, but listening to the Xbox wind up like a jet engine between every workout is a pretty scary thing to witness.

I wished the game allowed you to use the voice navigation for personal music selection using music streamed over a network or mp3s that are stored on the Xbox HDD. Rocking out to my own tunes or a podcast while working out would be pretty amazing to me. There is nothing to stop you from putting the ingame music volume to mute and using the Xbox guide button on a remote to get a playlist going though.

That's all I have to say for now. After a couple of weeks I will try to post more thoughts. I played on medium tonight and will be turning it down to easy next time. I am not overweight, just out of shape. The heart rate monitor needs a panic button for out of shape bozos like myself. :) And the only reason I gave it three out of five stars for "fun" is because exercise will never be fun to me.

Honest reviews on EA Sports Active 2 - Xbox 360

I have been using Active 2 for Kinect for 3 weeks and have completed 5 workouts in the 9 week program. I used the original Active for the Nintendo Wii a couple times a month for about a year.

Here's what you need to know if you are considering getting Active 2: it can be frustrating at first but it is a great way to get a workout if you STAY PATIENT and TWEAK YOUR SETTINGS and MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH PLAY SPACE. Kinect seems like a great product to me, but it is a bit touchy and oversensitive, also most of the games out for it so far don't really use it as well as they could, Active 2 included.

Before you even think about getting this game check out your play space. First make sure your Kinect sensor can "see" the floor( it cannot be pushed back into a deep shelf on an entertainment center for example). Then make sure Kinect is at least 4 feet off the ground, and has at least 8 feet of clear space in front of it. These are the minimum requirements for Kinect to function. If you have nowhere that you can get the Kinect 4 feet up, 8 feet out, and able to point at the floor you should stop reading right now and get a Wii or a Playstation Move. These are the absolute minimum requirements for Kinect to function and if you don't have the space, don't waste your money.

Once you have your play space cleared, get it as bright in the room as possible. Open shades and turn on lights. Then run the Kinect calibration program.

If you have the play space and have your Kinect working right, there are 2 things you need to know to avoid the extreme frustration that Active 2 can cause.

First, TURN OFF THE VOICE COMMANDS. They cause the "show me how" tutorial videos to play over and over in the middle of your workout when you don't say a word but somehow Kinect goes deaf when you actually want to use them. Would be a good idea if they worked but they are worthless and you are better off forgetting they exist.

Second, STAY STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PLAY SPACE BETWEEN WORKOUTS AND ON ALL FLOOR EXERCISES. The floor exercises can be the most annoying, horrifying exercise in frustration you have ever experienced. If you don't let Kinect keep track of you before you sit down it will constantly freeze and make you press A to re-connect. Stay standing still directly in front of the camera on the pushups, crunches, arm planks, etc until you see "sit down and face the sensor" on the screen.

If you do both of these things Active 2 will work the way it was intended to about 95% of the time and it will kick your butt, make you sweat, and generally give you a solid workout.

Two player Active 2it kinda works....but.....

Two players works very well on some exercises, especially the running and mountain biking. The floor exercises are completely broken with 2 players. My husband and I could not get the game to stop freezing on 2 player crunches no matter what we tried, the sensor would lose track of the right hand player and freeze immediately whenever we started to sit down. Jumps can get dangerouswe collided painfully on the side to side jumps trying to stay within the play space. There are also many exercises that cannot be played with 2 players and the game will remove them from the workout when 2 players are selected, cutting down your workout time and potential calories to be burned. Two player mountain bike racing or sprints would be fun as a party mini-game. It would also probably work as a serious workout if you create a custom one to eliminate floor and jumping exercises.

The heart rate monitor that comes with Active 2 is simple and works perfectly but isn't really required, it should be optional because it makes the game come in at a pricey $100.

The ability to make your character appear on the screen with free weights instead of the resistance band is nice, it doesn't really change any of the exercises and nothing was preventing you from ditching the band in favor of the weights before. It is still a nice touch though.

Overall, if you have an Xbox, you are planning to use Kinect for more than just Active 2, and you have the right amount of space and a little patience I would recommend this game for a good workout. Because of the small but frustrating glitches and the price tag, I would not buy an Xbox and a Kinect just to play Active 2, it is just too expensive.

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As many have pointed out the pros and cons of this game, I would like to just give some feedback on what I've discovered with the Kinect version in the last 3 weeks of using it. To know what kind of exercises you can expect and the programs connected with it, read the other reviews as they are fairly adequate in their explanations. On some of the game's current shortcomings I just want to add a few pointers below:

SPACE

EA Sports Active needs more backwards space. This is probably the biggest shortcoming of most Kinect games at the moment, and that is that the space to the sides (as you face the sensor) is usually enough, but you need more space at the back. For EA Sports Active to start working 'properly', make sure you have sufficient back space.

RECOGNITION

The game will by times 'forget' who you are. This is rather silly, as you sign in with an idea and therefore should be the still the same person throughout the game. However, whenever the sensor loses you the game goes into re-identifying you. This is a hassle, and you will need patience to accept it as one of its shortcomings at the moment.

Again, stand back. I found that when I'm too close to the sensor it'll lose me -so stand back.

Also, between workouts, be ready to face the camera again at the beginning of each session. If you turn at those points to drink water or shuffle the cat away, it will go into the re-identifying mode again.

When this happens, stand back again in your space and wait. It may say for a few seconds that it cannot find you and that you are now a VISITOR, but just stand patiently and hopefully it'll find you. So far, it has always found me within a few seconds.

CONTROLLER

As mentioned, this game has been clearly designed for the Wii, and then when they found out that PS3 and Xbox will release the Move and Kinect respectively, they quickly transformed it for these consoles. For PS3 Move it'll work, but the problem is that the menus and not entirely Kinect-friendly. Make sure your Xbox controller is nearby at all times, as you will need to hit that green A button frequently to progress through tutorials and other menus. Don't fret over it, that's just the way it is for now. I am positive that EA sports Active will make adjustments for Kinect in the future, but that will only be expected by the 3rd release.

LYING-DOWN EXERCISES

When an exercise comes up that needs you to lie down, DON'T just lie down. Wait until it prompts you to do so, and only then lie down. For some reason Kinect searches for your face first, and when you go lie down it loses you and then goes into re-identifying mode again. You'll have to stand up again and do the whole thing again.

So keep standing, wait, and let the game tell you to go down and then do it. It should save you some time on the identifying hassle.

Then, while lying down...(see below)

LIGHTNING vs FLOOR EXERCISES

Before Kinect was released, I had read that some developers had problems with Kinect in that it couldn't recognize people when sitting or lying down. It was mentioned that some of these developers found other unique ways of overcoming this problem by analyzing the shadows of your body. Knowing this, I can safely assume that EA had this problem when they designed the Kinect version of Sports Active 2. So what I did was to ensure that I had some kind of "shadow" while doing lying-down exercises by having my nearby lamp shine on me from the side. Sounds weird, eh? But so far no problems with lying-down exercises.

Once you accept these shortcomings for this product, things tend to go smoother. From the reviews I had read beforehand I had expected something horrendous, but turns out my workouts had been going pretty smoothly for the last few weeks. As I am not much of a fitness geek (and that's exactly why I got this) I cannot give feedback on the contents and structure of the training, thus restricting my review to the technical issues clouding this game at the moment.

On the positive side: other games have proven that Kinect CAN track well and that menus CAN be designed intelligently to accommodate Kinect. It's now up to EA to ensure that future releases are designed around Kinect, and not Kinect adapted around their Wii/PS3 Move interfaces. Given then that this is their first try with Kinect I'll give them a 4-star rating, but if they cannot improve these shortcomings by the 3rd release of Sports Active, I'll definitely only rate it a 3-star show.

Finally. This game is doing more for me that Your Shape Fitness Evolved. There is more variety here than in Your Shape. The menus run quicker too. Though Your Shape is still a good beginner's experience for now (as we hope future releases will be broader), I'd say if you were to chose between the two then go for EA Sports Active 2...even with the higher price tag.

Buy Disney Sing It: Pop Hits - Nintendo Wii (Game Only)

Customer Ratings:

I believe that a music game is only as good as its songs. In "Pop Hits" you get 30. That's not very many for a karaoke game. I was able to find the song list. Most of them are Disney Channel-esque. I hope this helps!

Colbie Caillat "Realize"

Colbie Caillat "Bubbly"

Coldplay "Violet Hill"

Demi Lovato "Get Back"

Demi Lovato "La La Land"

Demi Lovato "Don't Forget"

Duffy "Warwick Avenue"

Duffy "Mercy"

Hannah Montana "Let's Get Crazy"

Hannah Montana "Let's Do This"

Jem "It's Amazing"

Jesse McCartney "It's Over"

Jesse McCartney "How Do You Sleep?"

Jonas Brothers "Hold On"

Jonas Brothers "SOS"

Jonas Brothers "When You Look Me In The Eyes"

Jonas Brothers "Love Bug"

Jonas Brothers "Burnin' Up"

Love & Theft "Don't Wake Me"

Miley Cyrus "7 Things"

Miley Cyrus "Fly on the Wall"

Miley Cyrus "The Climb"

Miley Cyrus "Hoedown Throwdown"

Mitchel Musso "The In Crowd"

Mitchel Musso feat. Tiffany Thornton "Let It Go"

One Republic "Apologize"

Steve Rushton "Emergency"

Taylor Swift "I'm Only Me When I'm With You"

Taylor Swift "Change"

Vanessa Hudgens "Sneakernight"

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My husband and I bought this game for our 7 y/o daughter who loves to sing along with the radio. She really likes Taylor Swift and I thought this would be a perfect game for her. She likes it enough, but I can tell she is a little disappointed that it only has two of Taylor Swift's songs and those two she doesn't even know since they are rather new ones. I wish they would have more songs that you hear quite often. Instead of having songs that you hear every day on the radio, she is left singing the songs she does know over and over again. I mean who (especially a little girl) wants to sing songs that they haven't even heard before? Over all, it is an okay game which she will play every so often.

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My daughter loves the Jonas Brothers, and wanted this version of Sing It for her birthday, because they were on it. She absolutely loves this game. Not just the Jonas songs, but the entire game... She is constantly filling our home with the sound of her singing. Which makes us all love this game. I would certainly recommend it over the others she has. The songs are done by the true artists and not some studio singers from another country. Definitely prefer this Disney version...

Honest reviews on Disney Sing It: Pop Hits - Nintendo Wii (Game Only)

I did not give it a high rating because this came without the microphone. The ones you buy in the store come packaged with it, on amazon you have to buy it seperately. Since I cannot find the micorphone seperaately in a store, I will have to order online.

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Everything was as I expected. Has been played extensively by myself and my daughter with no problems. Thank you so much.

Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage Review

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I really enjoyed the first Spryo because of the fun and imaginative gameplay that involved fanciful levels and a loveable cast of characters. The first time I played Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage, I was amazed at how much the graphics had improved. If you loved the scenery in Spyro, you'll love the beautiful levels in Spyro 2. In this game, you have several new challenges and abilities. In Spyro 2, you get to swim underwater, which really adds something to the gameplay. Another addition is the orb, which Spyro can get for completing challenges. Although the challenges are sometimes tedious, this is also an interesting addition because it allows you to test your abilities. Spyro 2 expands on the fun and creativity of the first Spyro, and I would recommend it to anyone who loves fun, fantastical gameplay and especially to those who enjoyed the first Spyro.

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As much as I loved the original Spyro -the sequel blows it away.

Everything that I liked best about the original -the interactivity, the detailed and sophisticated environments and fun stuff like blowing things away with cannons -is back and cranked up several notches.

Everything that made the original game sometimes seem repetitive -doing nothing but collecting gems and dragons, the tiny worlds, only being able to use a few moves in any given environment -is dumped.

And while this game really is perfect for kids -the worst thing in it is some cartoon violence of dinosaurs swallowing cavemen and spitting out an enormous bone -it's a hoot for adults, with lots of subtle humor and a game that's challenging enough without having anything as frustrating as Tree Tops from the original game.

An instant classic.

Buy Cabela's Dangerous Hunts 2013 - Xbox 360

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List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $16.12
Today's Bonus: 46% Off

Very fast paced game. If you are looking for an intense hunting game, this is the perfect game. With a new kind of vicious animal around every corner, this game provides you with excitement and extreme fun and thrill.On the other hand, if you are looking for more of a traditional hunting experience, hide in the bushes and snipe, then I would recommend Cabela's Big Game Hunter 2013.

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This game is great if you have friends over and can have some friendly competition! Everyone loves taking turns, and who can have the best accuracy, the most kills, and the highest scores! It is a super fun time!! I can wait for next years! We have started building our Cabela's Dangerous Huts collection! Thanks!

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Our kids love playing this game. It is a little violent but not too bad. It is a lot better than having them play GTA.

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My 12 year old loved the first one so I decided to get him this one, he says it is very difficult but I think when he gives it a chance he will love it to. Was on time and packaged great.

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Made me think I was going to go on a hunt and turns out I'm shipped to journey of desaster of fighting the animal kingdom.

Best Afterglow AW.1 Remote for Wii - Blue Deals

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List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $18.01
Today's Bonus: 40% Off

+ Cheaper than Wiimote

+ Better button configuration

+ Lights could be seen as cool if you like unnecessary lighting on your PC case etc.

+ Same size and shape as Wiimote

+ Not boring colored

The lights are piercingly bright

You can hear the vibration as much as feel it

I bought this because I needed another wiimote and this is cheaper than the Nintendo version. The lights on it are crazy bright. Maybe if you were using it in day time that wouldn't be annoying but then why would you need the lights. It has different settings so you can have the lights always on, always off, or light up when it moves a lot, but even the standard light showing which player you are is really bright. If I need another Wiimote (Unlikely as I use Roku for streaming now) I will be buying one of these.

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It's 10 dollars less than a normal Wii remote, just as responsive, just as durable, and it LIGHTS UP! Seems like a no-brainer purchase to me. The new placement of the +,-, and home buttons are smart. They are covered by the rubber cover, but really, this wiimote is too cool looking to cover up.

I am completely satisfied and 100% recommend this wii remote.

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Bought this extra remote for my 4 yr old son so we could play together as a family. His favorite color is blue and he absolutely loves it. It certainly looks awesome and plays the same as the normal wii remote on all of the games we have (I tried before giving it to him). It even worked well on some golf games that other third party remotes I tried did not work well with. The quality of the remote is great with no play in the battery cover. It fits all of the accessories I have. I thought that the different placement of the buttons may help my younger children not to hit the home button accidentally but alas they still do it frequently. The batter life is not sifnificantly diminished when I have the lights turn on when he shakes the remote. This setting is easily changed by pressing a button inside the battery compartment. Overall I would buy this remote again.

Honest reviews on Afterglow AW.1 Remote for Wii - Blue

Purchased a pair of these on Black Friday. Great product, works fine with Nintendo Wii! I was a little concerned about buying after market controllers, but these will do the job.

Pros:

-Awesome LED color

-Battery cover/pack are identical to the standard Wii-Motes (not sure about Wii+ remotes with sensor built in).

-On par performance with Nintendo product

-fits regular accessories that work with the Nintendo brand controllers

-LEDs are bright enough for light room and the glow is still visible.

Cons:

-If you play in a dark room, LEDs are bright, but I didn't mind it.

-Matching Nunchuks are not as good as the Afterglow Remote or Nintendo Brand Nunchuk

Overall:

Awesome product, cheaper than Nintendo brand and looks ten times better. Buy regular nunchuk and be happy the remote glows!

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We bought this b/c we needed a new remote, and it was cheaper than the regular one and cool looking to boot. It works well, no problems with syncing it to the Wii (the Gamestop owner told me some people had problems w/that-I think he just wanted the extra $10).

Pros:

-easy to sync

-cool looking

-rechargeable battery bought for regular Wii remote works in it

-cheaper than Nintendo brand remote

Cons:

-For some games, like when I have remote turned sideways, the lights are distracting. But I can't remember how to turn off the lights! (threw out the booklet)

-because buttons are in slightly different places, it can be confusing to switch back and forth between remote types

-hard to read buttons when lights are on (writing is in white)

Discount eForCity 6 FT / 1.8 M Premium High Speed HDMI Cable M/M Flat 1080p

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I recently purchased this HDMI cord. I use it with an Xbox 360 and am very impressed. I have just bought two (2) more to replace some of my existing HDMIs.

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This is a nice cable for the money. I read online that it's not necessary to spend anymore than 10 bucks on an HDMI cable, so I went with this one because of its looks. It hasn't given me any trouble at all. If I ever need another HDMI cable, I'll most likely get another one of these. My only dislike about this cable is its flat design. It just makes it less bendable. It's not a big enough problem to rate it any less than 5 stars or to not purchase it again, though.

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I have used this item numerous times and it has worked well each and every time. Is what I expected it to be.

Cheap Espgaluda II Black Label

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There are three releases of Espgaluda II on 360: Limited edition, standard edition, and platinum hits.

The Limited Edition version of Espgaluda II comes in a box with alternate artwork, a soundtrack CD, and a 360 face plate. The face plate is made for the original sized 360, not the slim. This package is the only way to get the face plate. *IMPORTANT* The limited edition version is region locked for Japan only, and will not work on a North American or PAL system.

The standard edition may or may not come with a CD, as it was only included in the first printing. This version is region free and will work on North American and PAL consoles.

The platinum edition is a reprint, and doesn't include the music CD or face plate. This version is region free and will work on North American and PAL consoles.

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Ultra Series - 10ft High Speed HDMI Cable with Ethernet M/M Reviews

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This cable is working as promised. Though i didnt read reviews of this 10ft one, but similar looking same make 6ft cable had great reviews. I took risk to have 10 ft cable for myself.

Oh boy, it works great. The picture , sound is as clear i could see possible.

Great quality. We always love Quality, but we go for cheaper price.

This one has Quality and Cheaper price ;)).

No need to go for 25$ OR 50$ or Higher cables.

Even if you wish to spend that much, I would highly recommend you to try this one first.

Chances are you would never opt for that one.

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Great 3D picture with my Samsung 3D Blu ray player and Sceptre 3D TV. Great price, great cable. Every bit as good as Monster.

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I also have ordered 6.6 ft HDMI cables they are soft easily manageable. Performance is compareable with the shorter cable.

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To ends are so fat it hard to plug in more then one in a row its a tight fit on my tv

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i was worried that these being so cheap that they'd be terrible and break. had these for a good while now and havent faltered yet. great bargin!

Review of Apache: Air Assault - Xbox 360

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $28.40
Today's Bonus: 29% Off

After playing the demo, I was sold. This is the best (and maybe only) helicopter sim on the 360.

The game play is very tactical and I truly like the single screen coop. I think it truly brings two people together and makes it a life or death situation whereas, you must be able to rely on your gunner to get his job done and vice versa. If someone screws up, you will both be brought down, which I believe truly simulates the feeling of flying a copter in the military.

The graphics are pretty good, except I saw one of these copter guns in reallife where it literally turned a guy into a red smear on the ground, and the gun in reallife sounded more menacing then the one in the game. I have to say though that it would have been great to turn a insurgent into a red smear, but, whatever.

The copter sound are very quiet, which is good and the ambience is also very significant.

I would def recommend this game, but some may not like it because of it not being arcadey.

The game has a good mission structure like: escorts, protect forces, and so on. Also, offers single player free flight mode.

Hope to see some DLC for this game

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When I first heard about this game I thought it would suck. Not because I'm another COD Fanboy or anything like that but because it didn't seem like it would be worth the money. I was pleasantly surprised with the demo clocking around 4+ hours on both missions.

Graphics wise I'd give a 4/5. They look really good in hi def but some things never change

Sound is a 3/5 Average but the 30mm cannon sounded really good, as did the radio comm chatter.

Controls are the same as bad company plus a few extra hi-tech gizmos put in like Satllites, FLIR, Laser guided hellfires and sniping with TADS.

Gameplay is a 5/5, the campaign was good enough and the prerendered cutscenes were so cheesy it brought be back to when games like these were considered hi def in the cinematics department. Funny stuff but the game is pretty sick. The Online COOP is amazing and playing with 4 people means you could convince a few of your buddies to buy this and then you don't need to worry about people to play it with. The community is really close knit online and everybody is likeminded and friendly. You'd think with an Apache gunship you wouldn't need to be careful or tactical. I've never played anything as tactical as this in a long while. BFBC2 was good but most people were too damn stupid to do anything useful for your team and Halo is all about Quadruple teaming the enemy.

This game is the best 50$ I've spent since Halo Combat Evolved. Very nostalgic feel and plenty of stuff to kill and blow up.

Move over CODBO here's a real game to play!

UPDATE: I know this is a year late but I wanted to give a better review on this with hindsight 20/20. It gets old. I complete every mission on veteran and coop mission on veteran. After a while you learn everything about this game and depending on who you are can easily master this game and get bored of it easily. Good game if you just like blowing stuff up but it gets old.

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This game is great. Graphics are great and it gives you the feeling that you are really in a helicopter. The sounds are so realistic. You can switch from the cockpit to gunner to third person. I only wish that the game made the UH-60 Blackhawk availavle to fly, but maybe later they will. I would definately recommend this game.

Honest reviews on Apache: Air Assault - Xbox 360

So, a long time ago, back in the days of COM ports and measuring our clock speeds in "megahertz", there was a game called "Longbow 2" by Janes Combat Simulators. Longbow 2 was epic a simply phenomenal game for it's time: a combat simulator that was actually tested and backed by actual pilots of the AH64D Longbow helicopter.

Now, I logged THOUSANDS of hours in Longbow 2. I flew that game so much, I'm still to this day somewhat confident that I'd have a head-start in learning how to fly a real helicopter. And even today I still retain a generous amount of knowledge that the Janes title taught me about helicopter flight in general, and the specific systems and features of the Longbow.

And by the way, despite the title, the helicopters portrayed within are Longbows upgraded Apache helicopters.

Of course, these days, that kind of processing power is laughed at by our cell phones, so I really wasn't surprised by the quality of the inherent technology represented by Apache: Air Assault.

Apache: Air Assault is a HARD game to fly, which is precisely how it should be. I do believe that they were aiming for a simulation here, and I ALMOST feel that they achieved it. Yes there are some exceptions made, such as the "auto-hover" feature, and the missiles that reload while you're airborne... But those are things they had to do or at least felt they had to do to create an entertaining video game. But then they took it too far they scripted the daylights out of this thing.

After just the first mission, I started to notice it enemies popping up the moment checkpoints are reached, being suddenly forced to fly evasively and fire at targets inconveniently placed beneath me. By the third mission, it had already become frustrating.

The problem is, the AH64D Longbow helicopter is far more capable than this game allows it to be. The dome-shaped radar unit above the rotors called the Fire Control Radar (FCR), which is what made Apaches into Longbows allows for unrivaled target acquisition and tracking within the Longbow's 150km combat radius. So when hostiles kept popping up out of nowhere and damaging my helo before I had time to respond, I quickly grew frustrated.

I understand it's a game, and I respect that they tried to make a simulator out of it. But they didn't quite go all the way, and in they end they made a title that was far too challenging for the uninitiated, and not realistic enough for us simulator geeks.

If you're willing to run a mission over and over again until you've memorized where the baddies will be coming from, you'll find a very engaging and challenging game here. If you're looking for a genuine helicopter sim, fix up a bottom-of-the-line PC and auction-up yourself a copy of Longbow 2.

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Good from a sim perspective; not perfect. Fun game. Campaign gets difficult quick. Haven't tried online multiplayer yet... same-console multiplayer is not split screen; the second player must aim/fire weapons from the first player's view.

There aren't very many modern helicopter games; this game fills the gap well-enough. Not quite worth the standard new-game price, but worth the 6-months-later price.

Review of Super Mario 3D Land

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $29.62
Today's Bonus: 26% Off

I'll begin by saying that this game has exceeded my expectations. Upon watching online videos, I figured this would be a watered-down Mario Galaxy title, but boy, was I wrong! The videos DO NOT do the game justice. I didn't think Nintendo would have been able to do it, but this is by far the first Mario game in a long time that has retained the uniqueness and charm of the series as I remember it on the NES. New Super Mario Bros. Wii came really close, but Super Mario 3D Land does it for me.

~ First, the power-ups:

The Tanooki suit's revival in this game is genius. You can hover with Mario's tail for a while and tail-strike enemies just as you can in Super Mario Bros. 3. I'm a little bummed you can't actually fly this time around, but I'm guessing it wouldn't have worked as well in this title anyway. Fire Mario feels great, too. I haven't played far enough into the game to obtain the Boomerang Bros. suit or Statue suit, but I'm sure they will be awesome too based on what I've seen thus far.

~ Second, the levels:

While at first I thought the levels in this game seemed vacuous and dull and too similar to the levels in the Galaxy series based on online videos I've seen, my first hands-on experience with this game proved my initial thoughts to be WAY incorrect. The level designs are brilliant. The designers have packed so many obstacles, enemies, warp pipes, music note blocks, and hidden areas into the levels that the game stays exciting throughout. Also, the levels are not too long since you are timed. Thus, you can get through a level in a few minutes, but if you need more time there are stopwatches you can collect along the way to add valuable seconds to your overall time limit for the level. These come in handy if you want to do some exploring for the three hidden coins in each level. If you're like me and occasionally grow tired of some of the longer levels from Galaxy, then you'll be happy with the quickness yet depth of the levels in 3D Land. The levels look AND feel like actual Mario levels in their design. To top it all off, you'll recognize remakes of some classic Super Mario Bros. 3 tunes, as well!

~ Third, the controls:

Mario's signature moves are back: crouch, backflip, long jump, side somersault, wall jump, and ground pound. There is also a new move the roll in which Mario can roll forward from the crouching position. The only move that hasn't been brought back is the triple jump, but I don't feel as though it would've been useful in this style of Mario game anyway. The moves are easy to execute with the layout of the 3DS's thumbstick and buttons. Furthermore, controlling Mario feels completely natural. For instance, running with Y and tail-striking enemies along the way is both easy and fun to do! As I mentioned earlier, the Tanooki suit's signature moves are back, too, such as hovering and tail-striking, both of which feel great.

~ Fourth, the graphics and the 3D:

The graphics in this game are on par with, if not better than, the graphics in the Galaxy series. Mario, the enemies, and the levels all look stunning. The 3D effect in the game looks stunning, too, and it's awesome to see Mario in full 3D for the first time. The 3D also helps with depth perception, and, as anyone can guess, the ability to see in 3D certainly comes in handy for a platforming title such as Mario in which you have to make perfectly executed jumps. Also, in addition to the 3D slider bar, you can also control the 3D effect by choosing from two 3D options while playing that will provide either a shallower or deeper depth of field, so the 3D is more customizable in this 3DS game than in any other.

FINAL THOUGHTS

If you don't own a 3DS yet but want one, then this is the time to get it. Super Mario 3D Land, maybe aside from Zelda: OoT or Star Fox 64 (both of which are remakes, anyway), is the best original game on the 3DS, hands-down, and it combines everything gamers adore from Super Mario Bros 1 and 3, and Super Mario 64. From the controls to the level design, every aspect of this game retains the fun and charm of the original NES Mario titles that I remember so fondly but have not seen in any Mario title in recent years.

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Back in the days of the original Gameboy, the Super Mario Lands were hailed for being relatively different from the usual Mario experience. Sure you were still stomping and such, but you faced wildly different enemies and got some very different power ups. Super Mario 3D Land is not a sequel to those games in anyway. But like the Super Mario Land games, it takes a different approach to the Mario formula while keeping in sync with what has made it successful. Here the change is mostly the fact that it plays like the 2D side scrolling games in a 3D world. And for the most part it actually works.

Mario has never been a game anyone has picked up for story. We all know what it's about. Princess Peach has been kidnapped by Bowser and it's up to Mario to go and save her once more. It's pretty standard stuff. As mentioned earlier it harkens back to the 2D Mario games in a way. There's a straightforward overworld map to go through and you'll begin in level 1-1 before moving on to 1-2 etc. At the end of each world is either a castle or an airship with a boss waiting in wait. It seems traditional all around and like it offers up absolutely nothing until you're actually playing the levels themselves. For a handheld game, 3D Land offers players quite a bit to experience.

The levels here are well designed. Each one ends when you find the flagpole at the end, but getting there isn't always an easy feat. You can roam around in full 3D instead of side scrolling. For the most part you can roam just about anywhere. Throughout each level there are a lot of hidden goodies as well. There are blocks that house powerups and plenty of enemies to stomp, but each level also has little goodies hidden off the beaten path. There are secret 1UP mushrooms and hidden areas to explore in just about every level. Each level is also uniquely different from the previous one. The game often throws new challenges at you to keep you on your toes.

The stages themselves are pretty short, however. This is obviously due to it being a handheld and being on the go. But there is usually reason to go back and play each one. Like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, there are three Star Coins in each level. For players who want to experience everything that Super Mario 3D Land has to offer, you'll want them as they unlock challenging levels later in the game.

Mario 3D Land also uses the suit system found in Super Mario Bros. 3. For the most part there's fire Mario and Tanooki Mario, but there are times when you'll find something to help Mario out in different ways. For example, Mario can now find a powerup that allows him to throw boomerangs. Much like the 2D games, Mario doesn't have a health meter or anything like that. Rather it's done based on his power ups. Taking one hit makes him lose his power, a second makes him small and a third does him in. Super Mario 3D Land isn't a terribly hard game, but if you happen to fail too many times the game is more than willing to help you out by either giving suit that makes you invincible or by skipping it out right. While this may seem like handholding, those who go about it this way will literally miss out on half the game by doing so. As well as several secrets. You DON'T get Star Coins by skipping a level. On the other hand, keeping your lives in supply is rather simple. There are 1UP mushrooms everywhere. Each level also has a checkpoint. Super Mario 3D Land can be challenging, but it certainly is in no hurry to punish the player.

Up until now the 3D on the 3DS has seemed somewhat like a gimmick. It isn't quite that way in Super Mario 3D Land. While you can most certainly play through the game with the 3D off there are times when having it on will actually make a difference in the ease of play. Certain rooms that contain Star Coins are actually puzzles where you must try and figure out the optical illusion. With the 3D on it actually really helps. You CAN solve these puzzle like moments without the 3D effect but it's much more difficult to do so. The 3D is also done rather well in other ways. Up until now a lot of 3DS games have either been obsessed with having things "pop out" at the player or making the game look more dynamic. But here the 3D actually adds depth perception to the game itself. Where you actually get a sense of just how far away a particular platform is or even how close an enemy in the background really is to getting to you. It may not seem like much from the outset, but it certainly makes the 3D much more than just a gimmick here. But the game is still enjoyable should you decide you don't want to play with the 3D on at all.

In terms of visual appeal, Mario 3D Land looks absolutely amazing. It is very similar to look and feel of Super Mario Galaxy on the Wii. There is certainly enough here to give you a sense of what the future of technology on the 3DS can be. There's a lot of detail to each level. It's just easy on the eyes overall. What may not bode well for the player all the time is the lack of control over the camera. For the most part the camera sticks with you pretty well and moves perfectly in tune with where you are and where you need to go. There are times, however, when the lack of being able to move the camera yourself can leave you baffled on where to go next. It won't cause you to die much, but it will make certain platforming moments slightly more difficult simply because you aren't sure right off hand where the next platform actually is.

Super Mario 3D Land doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it takes the best of the 2D games and combines them with the best of the 3D games and somehow makes it work. The levels may be short but they're plentiful and there's a ton of replay value here. For those dying to invest some time in a 3DS game, Super Mario 3D Land is well worth that time.

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There is no question about Mario. He has not only been the most influential video game character of all time, but has had honestly the most definitive impact on how we play great platform games that have never lost their luster. Over 25 years after Super Mario Brothers debuted, people still love to go for the flag, and try to knock Bowser off his perch all to save Princess Toadstool from the claws of the king. The game franchise has never honestly gotten old, and has stayed just as strong today for every Nintendo era. The last Mario platformer for the go handheld was New Super Mario Brothers for the Nintendo DS. It really was fun and entertaining for the DS, and Mario's Wii games like Super Mario Galaxy have changed the way we play with Mario in zero gravity. But now with the Nintendo 3DS which came out just last Spring, they haven't yet had a definitive Mario platformer. Well, they are about to have one now, and a little treat for the fans young and old of the past 25 years too.

Super Mario 3D Land, is a new and exciting Mario game that still shows how amazing the Mario games have never gotten old. The game brings in a new twist on the classic 2D platformers by bringing back some of the amazement from the classic Super Mario Brothers 3. Just like what New Super Mario Bros. Wii did by bringing back the forgotten Koopa kids and giving them a hard-hitting challenge against Mario. This time it is the beloved tanooki racoon suit returning to the mix from Mario 3 returns, as shown in the story of the game, as well as the classic foe Boom-Boom. As Bowser not only captures Peach, but steals a bunch of tanooki leaves giving Bowser, and his cohorts tanooki powers to try and stop Mario from his wrath on the Mushroom Kingdom. It is challenging as characters like the classic goomba and Boo now can go against Mario with tanooki racoon tails to try and swat you. But that isn't just it alone, Mario also has new elements of power at his side too: including the tanooki leaf, the classic mushroom, as well as the new Boomerang power-up, which Mario can throw boomerangs at his foes and they will come back to him at his side, just like the classic Boomerang Brothers from Super Mario 3.

The gameplay takes all the elements from the classic Mario games in both 2D and 3D like Super Mario 64, and giving them a 3D twist by having you race against the clock trying to make it to the goal before time runs out. There are also classic items to be found including the bonus coins, and warp pipes, as well as a few new treats as well. The gameplay is very addictive from start to finish, and has shown that they haven't gotten old. The controls are also very simple and easy to master on each level, as you leap from block to block, and hopping in pipe to pipe, all trying to make your way to the goal. The sound is also classic Mario as well, by not getting old, and remaining distinctive as before. It takes timing and a lot of guts to master this new adventure, but honestly die hard Mario fans will definitive love this new challenge, as well as new ones too.

All in all, Super Mario 3D Land is a definite must buy game for the Nintendo 3DS. It truly has shown that no matter what the gaming universe has to come around, Mario has still been a great constant in the gaming universe that continues to evolve and be just as fun today as it did back then. I definitely love the challenge this game has, and I know this will be a great game for you to play on the Nintendo 3DS (and only available on the Nintendo 3DS.) There haven't been a lot of definitive games for the Nintendo 3DS since last Spring, but this is definitely one of them that I absolutely recommend.

Graphics: A-

Sound: A-

Control: A

Fun & Enjoyment: A

Overall: A-

Honest reviews on Super Mario 3D Land

It's pretty amazing how successful Mario has been for the 25+ years he has been stomping Bowzer and his army of koopas in order to save Peach. Each Mario release is hailed as a veritable masterwork in the platforming genre, both in 2-D and in 3-D. The reason I say it's amazing because Mario games have all essentially boiled down to the joy of two simple things, running and jumping. Sure there has been a lot of additions to this formula over the years, additions like suits, triple jumps, long jumps, and other things, but it's all on the backbone of traversing the magical Mushroom Kingdom through running and jumping. Super Mario 3D Land does not change this, it never needed to, *but* it does provide quite a few changes to what you'd expect from a Mario platformer. Prior to release, it had a lot of pressure on its shoulders to be the premier "killer app" that would prove the 3DS' worth as a game developed specifically for the system. Let me just say right now, Super Mario 3D Land definitely succeeds in that endeavor, but honestly, this is a fantastic Mario platformer, period.

Do I really need to cover the story here? With some very rare, unusual exceptions and the Mario RPG games, Mario games have always been about the Italian plumber embarking on a quest to free his Princess Peach from the evil clutches of the Koopa King Bowzer. Nothing is different here. The only thing that stands out is the fact that a tree full of Tanooki leaves releases them into the wind and now Bowzer and his minions will, for the first time, utilize power-ups for their own nefarious use as well as Mario. The story is virtually non-existent here, but that's ok. "Stories" in Mario games have always fulfilled their purpose of giving context to the gameplay and then letting that take over, and it does so here.

The gameplay in 3D Land is both a jam-packed package of nostalgic concepts from Mario's history, most notably his 2-D outings from the NES and SNES days, and a game where he seems to continue his momentum of reaching ever forward, as seen in the stellar Super Mario Galaxy 2. Of course, Mario's masterfully intuitive, excellently implemented platforming controls are here. You'll be running, jumping, wall jumping, etc. You won't be triple jumping, however, which was jarring at first. The suit system makes a return, and so does the Tanooki suit from Super Mario Bros. 3. New suits, like the Boomerang Bros. suit, the helicopter block, as well as the 3D iteration of the Tanooki suit, all feel so good to use, and in the form of the hovering jump of the Tanooki suit, can really make the game easier, which is nice. Old returns like the fire suit are also implemented well in this new 3D environment. The level design is exceptional and the journey to the end pole is so fun and satisfying!

Playing this game really feels so nostalgic. In fact, almost everything in the game is really reminiscent of the classic 2-D masterpieces, Super Mario Bros. 3 in particular. It's hard to explain, but imagine your favorite, most masterfully designed Mario Bros. 3 levels, but from Mario's perspective and made into a full 3-D environment. Toss in familiar Tanooki and Fire suits. Remember the classic songs and art design, and re-imagine them with a Super Mario Galaxy 2 quality makeover. Also toss in the linear, flagpole objective from the original Super Mario Bros. game, as well as the type of Bowzer fights that classic offered. Add all of these classic ideas to the more modern 3-D platforming mechanics and that's a pretty good idea of the sort of experience this game offers. Personally, I adore it all. Sure, we've seen many of these ideas before, but never in such a weird, Frankenstein-esque combination. Despite all the familiar ideas, this game felt strikingly fresh playing through, and that is high praise indeed. It's quite large too. I played through the main quest, about 8 worlds, but after beating it, another 8 worlds open up, as well as a new quest to save Luigi from Bowzer's grasp. This latter half of the game is a lot more challenging than the first half. A lot of value here.

The art design here is what you'd expect from a Mario game. It seems to take to the style first seen in Super Mario Galaxy and continued in its sequel. The implementation of this imaginative, aesthetically pleasing design is absolutely incredible. This game looks really, REALLY good. Imagine a portable GameCube (which is essentially the type of power the 3DS has) utilizing that sort of art design, with 3-D added in, and you get a fantastic game. Speaking of 3-D, this is some of the best I've seen on the system yet. This is the first truly great game where the 3-D is actually quite essential to successfully traversing the world and clearing trials, and the way that is put into effect is both clever and a delight to behold. I'm very impressed here. Sure, Ocarina of Time 3D and Star Fox 64 3D had fantastic 3-D effects, but not to the point where it was absolutely essential to enjoy the experience to the fullest. This game really pulls through on fulfilling the 3DS' third-dimensional promises.

The sound and art design is, much like the rest of the game, full of nostalgia. Some of the original effects from the old NES classics appear with no changes whatsoever. Others are reimagined using more modern sounds. Same can be said for the music. I've recognized several OLD classic Mario tunes (especially Mario Bros. 3) that really sent me back in time and that was truly a joy for me personally. You just can't beat the classics. :)

All-in-all, Super Mario 3D Land is a triumph, not only for the 3DS, but for Mario in general. It not only lives up to the tremendous expectations put upon it to be the "killer app" of the 3DS, it greatly exceeds it. Made by the same champion Nintendo EAD team that created the masterpiece Super Mario Galaxy 2, this game continues in their momentous trend of putting out mind-blowingly stellar games. I love Mario as a series, I expect the highest value from its games, and yet this entry actually surprised me in its exceptional quality. So if you have a 3DS and your library is lacking, get this game immediately. If you are a moderate-big-huge fan of Mario (Personally, I fall under the "huge fan" category) and want a great new Mario experience, get this game. If you're a fan of extremely fun video games, period, get this game! You won't regret it. Buy it, run and jump through it, and enjoy its incredible combination of nostalgia and industry trailblazing!

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EDIT: There is Another stage still to unlock after beating all 16 worlds. After you beat every stage with both Mario and Luigi, collect all 3 star coins in every level, and Land on the top of the flagpole in every stage(giving you a gold flag), a NEW level opens up in Special World 8 that has no number. It has a crown instead. This stage might be the hardest stage ever in a Mario game. Good luck trying to beat it if you unlock it.

I've only had this for a day and played through the whole thing. My first thoughts were 1) it starts off very easy. 2)its a lot of fun. For a Mario game, if you're not having fun its not good. This one is a lot of FUN.

The difficulty increases as you play along and never gets too extreme. Like with the Galaxy games it tends to trend towards a medium-easy difficulty. And like with any platformer, the more familiar you are with the stage the easier you'll be able to beat it. For those stages that you have trouble with: you will receive a WHITE Tanooki suit after 5 deaths. The white one makes you invincible to enemies and projectiles but still can die from falling. And if that still isn't enough, you then get the P block that takes you to the end after 10 deaths. Unlike the helper in Donkey Country Returns, in the white suit you can still collect all the items as normal and keep them when finished. Never used the P block so I don't know much about that.

The game play is addicting. The 3D is essential. You can play with the 3D off, however its actually harder to beat because the game is made in a way that the 3D isn't just a stylized visual but essential to platforming well in every stage. And the 3D looks great by the way. Probably the best Yet on the 3DS.

Having played through the first 8 worlds(by the way, the 8th world has 2 more stages then first revealed), after beating the game you receive a photo: This shows Luigi locked up in prison. The implication is now that you rescued Princess, you start over and this time rescue Luigi. *Special World is unlocked where you now get 8 new worlds to beat.

I haven't beat this 2nd mission yet but I've heard you can play as Luigi, so maybe there is a 3rd version after or maybe he is rescued early on. I don't know. And also I heard there is a Statue power up, which I didn't find during the 1st games play through. The Tanooki suit is the most common, the good old Fire Flower is useful in a bunch of stages, there's a boomerang suit, a propeller box, and the good old plain red and white mushroom power up.

In terms of Mario games, I would say this more closely resembles Retro Mario and not N64 and Galaxy Mario. The goal is to reach a flagpole at the end, not collect a star or shine sprite. There is a time limit so each stage is rather quick (a few minutes long the most) and each stage you can find clocks to give you extra timewhich makes you feel comfortable to explore stages even on the first playthrough.

But also, finishing faster will give you extra coins and more lives to play. I easily finished the game and had around 80 lives left over after. And I was playing kind of sloppy too.

It has a timeline similar to DS/Wii's New Super Mario Bros. and The Galaxy games where you don't necessarily have to play Every stage to advance. But you probably will anyway just because its that much fun. Certain parts (particularly the stages unlocked with the big Star coins) reminded me of Mario Sunshine's Retro stages.

Overall, I loved this game. It met my expectations. Maybe didn't surpass them, but since I only beat the first game I hold high enough expectations that the second, harder gameplay will probably surpass my current euphoria of playing it for a day. Which is why I am going to give this 5 stars and not 4.

Highly recommended to any Mario Platforming fans, and even to beginners who have never played any games in the series before. This could work as a nice introduction to All the variations on Mario that exist(excluding the RPG games).

EDIT: Started playing the new rescue Luigi Mission. There are pipes that show up on the map screen/timeline area. Entering these takes you to the Special world where you get New Stages (so its like a whole second game). You also now get new power ups. Like the Statue suit I said I didn't see the first time. There is also the Bad mushroom power up, originally seen in Super Mario Bros 2 (japan) or The Lost Levels. This mushroom will downgrade your power up. You rescue Luigi early and can play as him then.

Reviews of Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack - Xbox

Customer Ratings:

I've been anticipating this for awhile. There's not a lot to it so I'll jump right into the juicy bits first, it's nice they put the auto-update in the package for those who don't have Live, as the gameplay tweaks have a pretty noticable impact. But it's the maps we're really interested in, right?

CONTAINMENT This map essentially plays like Coagulation; the big differences are the larger bases and the series of tunnels and ditches. The opening and closing base doors breed interesting strategies, and you've gotta love a map that has the Scorpion tank as a default vehicle. The explosives on this map only serve as a hazard for the vehicles, as they are too spread apart to be used as a defensive weapon against intruders on foot. The bright white snow makes active camo VERY effective on this map. It's a great 2 flag CTF map and will probably work just fine for other large team objective games.

WARLOCK an INTENSE slayer map and average lifespans tend to be on the short side because of the small space and lack of things to hide behind. This sucks if you're a camper but I like maps and scenarios that force me to get comfortable with new strategies. There are no "power" weapons save for four shotguns, if they count, forcing you to use strategy to gun down your opponent on a level playing field as opposed to blowing them away with a bazooka from a distance. Visually superior to the sterile scenery of the original it was built from (Wizard in Halo 1.)

TURF I've only played Turf in 1 flag CTF but it was pretty fun. The tight spaces are great for sneaking up on the opposition's base, and equally handy for staging ambushes. My only reservation about objective games on this map is that it is so small with such short distances to run with the flag or bomb, a single slip up on the part of the defensive team will most likely cost them the round... games like this will probably be pretty short. However, that same small size will make it a fantastic slayer map. Sadly, there is no sword perhaps Bungie knew I'd "pwn" this map into the ground if they included it [/joke].

SANCTUARY A circular arena, and a fairly large one at that. This is probably best suited for 4 on 4 team objective or slayer games, leaning more towards assault variants. A visually and atmospherically pleasing map, especially on blue team's side where there is flowing water and a humongous tree. There is a sword but wide open spaces limit its usefulness. Again, a map more situated for medium sized objective or team slayer games, although I wouldn't recommend it for free-for-all slayer.

ELONGATION A remake of Halo 1 map Longest. It is asthetically far superior to its predecessor, being based on the space station level of Halo 2's campaign with dials and knobs and lights and various things I will never, ever understand. Great lighting effects on the steel plated walls and a brilliant window view of the Earth and its moon. Removing the ladders was a smart move on Bungie's part not only does it make climbing to the second level much less risky and awkward (and more realistic looking,) but it offers another tight space for close encounter skirmishes. The crates can be an asset as well as a liability as they offer cover and serve as stepping stones, but also make it more difficult to retreat. Great small team 2 flag CTF/assault and small or medium sized slayer map.

BACKWASH Fantastic atmospheric effects on this one, which is based on the 343 Guilty Spark level of Halo 1. The fog is a tremendously significant element to this map as it hides the location of weapons and breaks up the outline of your opponents (which can also work to your advantage.) The soundtrack is very "lush" sounding, complimented by the amusing if also distracting hum of 2401 Penitent Tangent as it occasionally passes overhead. It's set up with two bases for objective games but lends itself the most to slayer varients, with the hunt-or-be-hunted vibe created by the vision obscurring fog and many trees.

GEMINI Visually one of my favorite new maps, designed after the High Charity level on Halo 2's campaign mode. All the futuristic sliding doors and random noises are there, and the view of High Charity's core from the "back porch" area is some of the best scenery in all of Halo 2's multiplayer maps. Due to the small nature of the map, it probably won't make a great map for assault or CTF variants, but it's perfectly fine for slayer variants as well as oddball, juggernaut, et cetera.

RELIC sort of a "storming the beach" style map designed for single flag CTF and assault. Unlike Zanzibar, the water is actually a hazard as you will 'fall to your death' if you swim out too far (something to think about when screeching around haphazardly in your warthog.) This is a very unique map with a very specific setup the defensive structure is extremely difficult to gain access to as you must travel all the way to the back of it, on the opposite side of the island, to find a ramp, with lots of open space and few obstacles to hide behind inbetween. Also, there is a two way teleporter that can be activated from inside the base (a double-edged sword, as you can imagine.)

TERMINAL Probably the busiest/most complicated map in the pack, it can be very disorienting before you learn where everything is. It is based on a train terminal somewhere in New Mombasa and the bullet train itself is a very important aspect of this map. No attack can be launched on the defensive base without taking the train into consideration, which deals out sudden death indescriminately. Your vehicle will not save you. After getting your bearings straight, this is a pretty fun map and a flexible one at that. It's complexity lends itself to large slayer games (at least 8 people because of its size) and the bases are designed in a lopsided fashion that encourages single flag CTF in specific.

And now the bonus content I would not recommend buying this pack based purely on the bonus content. First, the cinematic is novel, and relatively well done, but ultimately isn't about anything. And it's only about 2 or 3 minutes long. The documentary is a lot better and covers each map individually, but in the end it is still too short for comfort I'm sure there is a lot more to tell us and most of this information is available in the booklet as well, if you're patient enough to read it. Overall, the incentive to buy it comes down to permanence of ownership, since now that you have the disc in your hands, you can reload the maps onto your Xbox no matter how many Xboxes you go through or if your Live service goes kaput. A second, morally questionable, incentive is that I'm pretty sure you can use this to load the maps and game upgrades onto friends' Xboxes if you're having a LAN party and discover that one of the rotten b*stards doesn't have any of the new maps you want to play on (I'm pretty sure Microsoft installed a sort of failsafe involving registration similar to Windows XP, so said rotten b*stard probably would not be able to take those maps online.)

Overall, great purchase, great maps Bungie did a fantastic job with these fun, unique maps and asthetically they have outdone the old maps by a LOT. One can only hope we will be blessed with another string of great map add-ons some day in the future, but with the immenant release of the Xbox 360, I'm not holding my breath. Soak 'em in.

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The world's greatest multiplayer game just got better. Take the fight from the streets of the Old Mombasa to the islands of delta halo to the very edges of the galaxy. The nine new maps included in this pack nearly double Halo 2's multiplayer arena. Some battlefields feature tight quartered, intense spaces designed for small scale mayhem. Others are large scale, interactive arenas with explosive vehicle combat perfect for split screen, system link or xbox live.

Nine bran new maps feature a huge variety of locations, from swamp to space station and beyond. Huge landscapes for epic vehicle battles, and dynamic environments for strategic confrontations. New gameplay enhancements intensify weapon, grenade, and melee combat.

BONUS FEATURES: Behind the scenes: Halo 2 Multiplayer pack documentary. "Another day at the beach" Animated halo 2 short side story. Complete game updates, including support for HDTV, improved Xbox live gameplay and cool gameplay enhancements.

MAPS:

RELIC: A battle scarred island rises from the blue waters of the Delta Halo sea. A titanic Forerunner structure juts menacingly from the center like the spine of a beached behemoth. It is outdoor, the vehicles are ghost and warthog. The weapons are: Carbine, Energy Sword, Magnum, Needler, Plasma Pistol, Battle rifle, Beam rifle, Plasma rifle, Sniper rifle, Rocket launcher, shotgun, SMG.

Best for 1-bomb assault, 1-flag capture the flag. There is a two awy teleporter.

TURF: Outdoor, Asymmetrical. Vehicles are warthog. Weapons are: brute shot, magnum, plasma pistol, battle rifle, plasma rifle, brute plasma rifle, sniper rifle, shotgun, SMG.

Best with king of the hill, Oddball, Slayer, Territories.

WARLOCK: Indoor, Symmetrical. No vehicles. Weapons are: magnum, needler, battle rifle, shotgun, SMG.

Best with CTF, Oddball, Slayer. optional turrets. Steam lifts, and active camo.

An ancient ruin forgotten, whether a temple or prison warlock is another key of the forerunners.

Elongation: A cargo cruiser that shuttles weapons and supplies right above earth.

Indoor, symmetrical. No vehicles. Weapons are: Brute shot, magnum, plasma pistol, Battle rifle, plasma rifle, shotgun, SMG

Best with CTF, king of the hill, Oddball, Slayer.

CONTAINMENT: Part fortress, part laboratory. Snowy place.

Outdoor, Symmetrical. Vehicles are: Banshee, scorpion, gauss 'hog.

Weapons are: brute shot, carbine, magnum, needler, plasma pistol, battle rifle, plasma rifle, sniper rifle, rocket launcher, shotgun, SMG.

Best with CTF, Slayer. There are turrets, gates and teleporters and active camo and overshield. This place is huge!

TERMIANL: Once a neighborhood now a place for chaos.

Outdoor, Asymmetrical. Vehicales are: Ghost, warthog, wraith.

Weapons are: Carbine, Energy sword, magnum, plasma pistol, battle rifle, sniper rifle, shotgun, SMG.

Best with Assualt, CTF. There are turrets, trains, and overshields.

BACKWASH: Basically a swamp with many hiding spots with a centerhold that veiws the whole area. Hard to see enemies with dark colors, its freakin foggy. It is outdoor, Symmetrical and has no vehicles. The weapons are brute shot, carbine, energy sword, magnum, plasma pistol, battle rifle, plasma rifle, sentinel beam, shotgun, SMG.

Best in slayer and CTF. There are optional turrets and active camo.

Sanctuary: An ancient place with structures made from brick. The place is identical on both sides and is hard to tell where you are. It is outdoor, Symmetrical and has no vehicles. The weapons are: Carbine, energy sword, magnum, needler, plasma pistol, battle rifle, plasma rifle, shotgun, SMG.

Best with CTF, Slayer, and territories. There are turrets and no devices or power-ups.

GEMINI: The alien ship of prophets. Has a huge model of a prophet in the center. It is indoor, Asymmetrical and no vehicles. The default weapons are: Brute shot, carbine, energy sword, plasma pistol, beam rifle, plasma rifle, shotgun, SMG.

Best with king of the hill, oddball and slayer.

This is a very good map pack and should pick it up if you dont have live, if you have life just downoald them for free. It is rated M for mature for blood and gor and violence. For my opinion this should be rated T for teen, not enough blood and gore to be named mature. So remember if you want to Enhance, Expand, and Engage your Halo then pick this up.

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I can not get over how much this disk kicks ass,1st of all you get 9. count em 9 new multiplayer maps, sure we all love zanzibar,coagualtion,ascension...etc, but those maps do tend to get old after many months of playing. luckily bungie has saved us all from becoming bored with halo 2 especially us who are live less.Although their were alot of small to medium maps they were awesome, i love the bonus movies that come with it as well the day at the beach was a great short story about the marines who were shot down in new mombosa.The killtacular video was great as well showing each of the new maps in their prime as well as giving their feelings about them.Although it dosent say it on the package their is actually 2 MORE bonus movies the original halo trailer from 2000 and the 1st halo 2 trailer ever shown from 2002.Now on to my reviews of each of the maps

1.Containment-Oh my God this map is HUGE it is set in the quarintine zone, their are 2 symmetrical bases on each side which each contain a gauss hog and a banshee and on your outside wall you get a scorpion tank blah,blah,blah thats all old newsright? well littered through out this huge map are fusion cores which create mass damage when hit, and out side each of the bases their's a little switch tower which opens the door to the base which allows vehicles in although it closes shortly after.Over all i give this map a (5/5)

2.Warlock-A small map set somewhere on delta halo this map is reminiscent of the halo 1 map wizard it was actually the basis for this map it is totally symmetrical so its fair the only noticable things on this map are the warps on each side, the grav lifts, and the active camo in the center. i give it a (3/5)

3.Turf-Ah Turf the map that had everyone hopes up for big rooftop battles and climbing atop the fallen scarab well give up those dreams because you can't there is VERY few rooftops you can get on this map, it is a lot smaller than i thought it would be this is a medium to small map depends on your view point.although this map really disappointed me it's still really good not as good as i hoped it would be but it is still a great map which was designed for the game territories great for 2 player skirmishes or even more any way i give this map a (4/5)

4.Elongation-A very small map set on a cargo ship,its not hard to see the base of this map it is none other than longest from halo 1, if you are familiar with this map you should be happy to know that the annoying holes and ladders are gone and have been replaced with ramps and slopes, but the greatest feature of this map would have to be the moving crates that go through the level believe it or not these are actually key to getting to the 2nd floor quicker.this is a really nice remake of longest i give it a (3/5)

5.Relic-Relic now this is an awesome level,set on an island in the middle of the sea of delta halo the greatest aspect of this map is the big tower in the center of the map.This map was designed for 1 flag ctf matches this map is more of a snipers haven than turf is supposedly the only complaint i have with this map is that it dosent support tanks it is definately large enough for it over all this is an awesome map a (5/5)

6.Backwash-The suprise map for me i expected this to be another run of the mill slayer map right? WRONG this map is great its set on a swamp on delta halo similar to 343 guilty spark on the halo 1 single player level i personally love this map its so foggy and strange for ONCE having the sword is a disadvantage because players can see you on the whole map normally you can't see anyone less than say 3-10 feet from you theres a tower in the center which contains a active camo and a bruteshot which is great but the center is very well lit and thats not a good thing everyone will come after you one of the greatest aspects of this level is that it actually supports 1 vehicle although the book that comes with the disk says other wise.this is one of the greatest maps in the whole map pack a (5/5)

7.Gemini-ah yes another remade level although not from halo 1 this time you have to go back to bungies early days to find this ones base it is a remake of the marathon map duality.this map was great a lot greater than i expected it would be theres warps everywhere a nice sniping perch a huge statue of a prophet in the center which is good for camping over all a great map i give it a (4/5)

8.Sanctuary-A great medium to small level this map was made for multi flag ctf, set in an outside environment theres a large temple in the center which holds an energy sword and bases on opposite ends of the maps another symmetrical map it has a nice atmosphere water falls everywhere aquaducts its a nice calming invironment to bad you have to fill it with blood and bullet holes a nice map (3/5)

9.Terminal-ah at last we reach terminal my favorite out of the whole map pack 1st of all the greatest feature is the trains which run through the center every 15-30 seconds anhilating anything in its path this is a large map set in new mombosa theres parking garages tons of sniping spots this is the best map for 1 flag ctf its awesome not so good for multiflag though the sides are very assymetrical, i love the fact that they put the sword in the center of the tracks so now its a challenge to get i love this map i give it a (5/5)

Well theres my review of the halo 2 multiplayer map pack a steal at $20.00 i definately recommend it.Especially if your x box live less like me.

Note:Also included in the map pack is an autoupdate for halo 2 that you MUST download it makes melee and grenades stronger along with the brute shot it also fixes a lot of the gliches that a lot of people were abusing.

Honest reviews on Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack - Xbox

The map pack is a must have for Halo addicts. The new maps are creative, complete and offer new variations within a game that is already incredible.

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I've been playing Halo 2 for quite a while now, and most of the time I play split screen with my brothers. We had gotten bored of the old maps, although many were really cool (Zanzibar, Ascension, Lockout). We had simply played them too much. So when I heard about this new multiplayer map pack I knew I had to get it, to have some fresh new maps to try and experiment with.

This map pack has 9 new maps, which are all unique and suitable for different game types (capture the flag, team slayer, oddball, territories, etc.). Some of them are really huge, the largest being Containment, Terminal, and Relic. Containment is a huge, snow-covered map with huge fortified bases that look awesome, good for 8-on-8 or 4-on-4 team CTF or slayer. This map has new interactive objects on them that blow up if you run them over or shoot them, which can be moved around and used like a mine (watch the mini-documentary called "Killtacular" that comes with the CD you'll laugh at what one guy at Bungie coins these explosive devices). The other gigantic map is Relic, which is a really cool and awesome-looking map. It's a huge island with lots of new scenery and it's also great for big CTF or slayer matches. Terminal is another large level that looks really cool and futuristic, and features a fast train that runs through the middle. If you get hit by the train you die (apparently killed by the Guardians, whoever they are), and there's an energy sword on the train tracks. Since I usually play split screen 2-on-2 team slayer with my brothers these huge maps aren't really suitable, because you get bored if you run around for five minutes before you see someone.

My favorite maps are Sanctuary, Backwash, Turf, and Elongation (in order of descending size). Sanctuary looks beautiful, with waterfalls and really cool tunnels and bridges. It has two distinct bases and some really clever sniping spots. Elongation is an interesting level, because it has two conveyor belts that move in opposite directions. It also has big blocks on these belts which are great for hiding spots. Turf is in a urban street environment, and has alot of hiding spots and tight alleys. This level definitely has the most detail in it. Backwash is a humid and spooky-looking level that's pretty cool and weird looking. It's like a swamp and you can't see far because of the green fog. It's pretty good for close battles with energy swords and shotguns.

The last two maps I didn't mention are Warlock and Gemini. Warlock is an interesting map because it is perfectly symmetrical. This map is dark and has a great environment, and features shotguns, battle rifles, SMGs, plasma rifles, and magnums. This makes it a close-combat type level. Gemini is a very cool and surreal looking level that is supposed to be a holy shrine for the covenants (see the video "Killtacular" for more information about the maps) I really like this map also, although it's a bit too dark.

Overall, these maps are a great addition to the Halo 2 multiplayer maps. My only gripe is that most of the maps are really huge, and the games I play are usually 2-on-2 split screen. I gave this map pack 5 stars because these maps have really been produced excellently, the detail is great, and the originality of the maps is definitely evident. In my opinion Sanctuary and Turf are the best additions. However, you'll probably have different favorites. Basically, the best way to know about these new maps is to play them and see them for yourself, because as they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words." There is definitely a great variety of maps, and these are original maps that are very different from the ones that came with Halo 2. So I think all that's left is for you to purchase this map pack, which I believe is a good deal at $20, considering that you get 9 maps and some neat movies on the disc. Granted, the map pack disc will probably not be touched after downloading the maps and seeing the movies, since the maps will be on the X-Box's hard drive and you'll just play Halo 2 regularly. So if you're a Halo 2 multiplayer fan who either plays on Live or has big multiplayer parties, and you're tired of playing Zanzibar or Ascension for the umpteenth time (like I was), then go ahead and get this Halo 2 Map Pack. The guys at Bungie worked hard to make fresh, new maps so that all of us Halo fans can still have fun playing awesome multiplayer games into the wee hours of the morning.