Konami Classics Volume 2 - Xbox 360 Review

Customer Ratings:

This is frewakin' auesome! Lately you can't find the original contra or any of the games anymore. Thank god they did this! It's ten bucks for 3 games! That is a huge deal! Get volume one as well. It has castlevania and frogger! You can't find deals like these anymore. BUY IT! :)

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Once again Konami and Xbox has put together a great game collection, I enjoy playing these games again and again

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Is exactly like the old fashion games, with no checkpoints, no saves, you remember your childhood whit this excellent game

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This game is fun but its low quality and not what I had expected. This brought memories but it plays on a partial screen and its not fun at all.

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This is a very cheap version of the classic and they just didn't do it any justice. Track and Field was on the mark as well as Rush N Attack, however Contra is horrible. As said in another review, it didn't even have half of the mission in each mission and things were just different. I was hoping to at least have the opportunity to put the (Up/Down-Up/Down) code in but was pissed to see that I couldn't . Don't waste your money because the other two games get boring after about 10 minutes.

Buy XL4 Big Boy Xlerator Wheel Stand for Logitech Driving Force GT

Customer Ratings:

I'm a huge fan of driving and racing games, so as an early Christmas present, my wife bought a Logitech G27 for me. Great wheel, but when I tried to attach it to a fold out table it just flopped around and was too unstable. So I looked at wheel seats, but at $400, that was too much for me and then where to store it. After a little searching on Amazon, I found the Xlerator BigBoy wheel stand. ( because I'm quite a bit over weight ) with the G27 adaptor. It came with free shipping and arrived within a week. Assembly took less than an hour and I was up and driving NFS Shift in no time.

I really like the fact that this stand allows you to sit back in your couch or chair and is very adjustable. Most of the other stands I looked at really made you sit up over the wheel, which could not be comfortable for any long period of time. The stand with the G27 is a great combination, it's light enough to move around after use, but sturdy enough to keep everything in place even under heavy driver `input'. The pedals stay in place even when you heal toe or stamp on the brake. The finish stands up to my klutzy movements haven't marred it yet. You might find the need for a USB 2 extension if you are using this on the couch, but Amazon sells a 3 meter version for about $8.

Again, one of the great features about this stand is that it can easily be picked up and stored in the closet. When you pick it up for storage, the foot print is only as large as the pedals since the wheel / shifter bar rise up. It doesn't lock in place, but if you rest the upper end against a wall or other object it will stay in place.

Lastly, the pre and post sales support from Xlerator is wonderful. They are very response and helpful.

Overall, 5 stars for a excellent product and a great value.

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I purchased this for my husband to go along with his new Logitech Driving Force GT wheel. It arrived quickly, was packaged well, easy to assemble and very well made.

Getting in and out of the chair is easy since the wheel arm pivots up to lift out of the way. It fits comfortably on our couch or recliner and really enhances game play. The frame holds the wheel and pedals in place so you actually feel like you're driving, right from your own comfy couch.

We highly recommend this. Driving games wouldn't be as realistic without it. There is a smaller (regular) version available but hubby is a big guy so we appreciate the extra room of this stand.

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I reviewed this over at PS3Blog.net, since I purchased this to go with Gran Turismo 5 and the Logitech PlayStation 3 Driving Force GT Racing Wheel. Here is the bulk of my review from that site:

The outside legs that wrap around your lap are adjustable (all the adjustments are done with spring pins that you line up with the holes). Since I have a large lap, I had to extend the legs all the way, but it still sits comfortably. You can also adjust the length of the support beam (where the lap bar connects to it) to put the foot pedals either closer to you or further out. I like the design they have with this better than a lot of the wheel stands you get at retail stores and the like (since most of them have a support beam that goes between your legs; a less than ideal setup). The only drawback would be if you use a small chair, as the outside legs are best suited for wide chairs and couches (the Big Boy has a 22 inch spread for the lap legs).

With the main support beam going out and then over to the foot pedal base, your legs are free of obstruction, which makes the driving feel more comfortable. The foot pedal itself is a flat piece of metal that, surprisingly, really holds the pedal base in place quite well. While putting it together, I did lose my footing a little bit and stepped right on it (I weigh over 350lbs), and it morphed, but it was also easily bent back into shape (the metal is still sturdy, but I'm not surprised my weight bent it like that).

Keep in mind, the wheel stand was specifically designed for the Driving Force GT, but the manufacturer does have adapters to be able to use it on other wheels (including the G27 and the 360 wireless wheel). With that said, the stand allows you to pivot the main frame back so you can easily get in and out of your chair (the base and lap bars all have rubber feet, so it doesn't slide around and is pretty stable, even in a vertical position), and to make the steering wheel setup easier. Slide the wheel over the flat wheel base plate and lock it in place.

As far as the actual racing goes and how well it works, the simple answer would be amazingly well. For being one of the cheapest stands on the market, I think it's also one of the sturdiest. No matter how high you have the force feedback settings, and how hard you play, the wheel stand stays in place (it slipped on me once at the base, mainly because the carpet is so worn out that it carries little grip, so being able to find a little bit of traction like that was a plus in my book :lol: ).

Since it is easy to take apart and stand, storage is easily done, too. If you have enough room, you can have it rest in the vertical position in a corner, or you can take the steering wheel support/lap bars off and set those to the side to reduce space even more. Personally, I just either leave it in front of the TV, or move it into the corner of my room. The footprint is pretty small.

Even with my wide body and thick legs, the stand didn't get in the way, nor did it twist and turn while I used the wheel. It's surprising how sturdy this thing is based on how it looks (minimal parts, no flashiness). I think that alone (and being able to pivot the bars back to easily get in and out of your seating area) makes this one of the better, understated accessories out there (similar to PS3 RealTriggers, but this likely won't catch on as fast since it's aimed at a much smaller market).

Overall, though, for $120 ($99 if you get the regular sized one), this is quite a bargain if you're big into racing games and want a very sturdy, and affordable (compared to others), wheel stand.

Honest reviews on XL4 Big Boy Xlerator Wheel Stand for Logitech Driving Force GT

i have been playing GT5 for the last month or so and got tired of struggling with the standard PS3 controller and decided to get the Logitech DRIVING FORCE GT wheel since the G27 isn't fully supported in GT5 the wheel itself is awesome but after using a tray table for @ a week, i needed something more solid so i bought this stand

It came very well packaged and even though the box was kinda beat (thanks UPS) the stand itself was in great condition without a scratch on it

The stand went together very easy and mounting the wheel/pedals was extremely straight forward i was a little concerned about the wobble when the wheel was mounted in the UP position but once you have it "down" in your chair or sofa this thing DOESN'T MOVE ONE BIT

the "arm" the wheel mounts to flips up so if you are playing for a long time or an endurance race & need to snack, do a bathroom run or whatever you just pause the game & flip the wheel stand up

the only complaints i have (minor ones at that)are:

1 no real way to mount the pedals to the base the instruction manual recommends either drilling through base or velcro i went with double sided 3M mounting squares in 3 places & the pedals don't move one bit

2 no way to cable maintenance all the wiring the GT wheel has alot of wiring (i need to use a USB extension cable to get to my PS3)so i would recommend going to a home hardware store and invest a few $ in black cable ties and lay out exactly where u want everything, then put a few ties around the wires & the stand takes way from the sleek look but keeps the wires out of the way while you play

i am very happy with my purchase, very stable & comfortable while playing especially during the Endurance races, quality materials & styling, with this and a Logitech GT wheel its the only way to play GT5!

BEST OF LUCK TO YOU IN LIFE & RACING !

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I ordered this item, so I could sit back on my couch and play GT5 (preordered here in Amazon). The assembly was very easy. My old Driving Force Pro fits perfectly. The actual item is solid, functional, easy-to-store, and fits my needs.

Discount Xbox 360 250GB Elite Splinter Cell Conviction Bundle

Customer Ratings:

This bundle is excellent. Got it at a great price here through amazon. Microsoft should not call this a special edition though, because it is of no such. So the bundle is a great buy for anyone, whether you are a loyal xbox owner or a new owner this is the one to go with. Microsoft's new JASPER models are freakin amazing! Smaller power brick, quieter/cooler, much cooler, system. Played for five hours the other day and the xbox was just warm not on fire. Overall I love this bundle. Great buy, recommended for everyone.

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Don't get me wrong, PS3 has nice exclusives, but I was very tempted to get a XBOX 360, and I finally did. I was trying to decide between this and the XBOX FFXIII bundle, but I already had the FFXIII game for PS3 so I went with this one.

Well, definitely the XBOX has some nice features and exclusives that I couldn't get with the PS3. I ordered a bunch of XBOX 360 exclusives with this bundle and I am glad I did. I am starting Forza 2 and Fable II right now and I realize how much fun I was missing. The feel of the XBOX controls is also much better than the PS3 controls.

Wouldn't say that one console is better than the other. Both of them have cool features. Now that I own both, I have the best of two worlds.

Shipping was free and fast through Amazon. It arrived on the estimated delivery date. Very pleased so far. Got the TS intercooler and it works like a charm!

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Excellent bundle came with no trouble, amazon is as good as always, a must buy if you need a console and you want the whole deal in one box

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I was a little hesitant on purchasing this, but I'm really glad I did. It works perfectly and I've not had one issue using it while playing a ton of COD: Ghosts. The only thing that I'll mention is that this unit like the older models doesn't have WiFi built in. You'll need to buy an adapter. I'm happy with it though and can't complain.

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I purchased this console with the intent to start a xbox360 relationship.It work for awhile at the expense of scratching up game disc, sounding like it could come apart at any moment with all the noise coming from the tray.Well eventually it died so that was the end of that relationship.

Reviews of Minecraft - Xbox 360

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List Price: $19.99
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Even if it is playing with blocks in 2d rendered environment, it the best, safest, fun game you can get for your children, and your husband or even grampa. It is for all ages.

My children have been playing mine craft on the PC, the digital Xbox version, and even the mobile or pocket version for a year. This version that they can see, relate to, and not have to rely on virtual gaming is the best. For some reason, having this on a disc makes all the difference. It is something my autistic son can now relate to. He can just pick up the disc and take it with him to family or friends houses to share. Whereas before they were lugging their whole gaming system.

Anyway mine craft has greatly improved my sons social interaction, his speech, and his self esteem. He realizes that he is the creator of his own world, not only in mine craft but in the real world now. It has opened up so much opportunities for him. It has also taught all of my children the benefits of sharing, and the loving peaceful environments that do exist if only we could all pull together and build them.

You create your world. And there is no game lag with this version. Xbox live is not required. Yeah! You can build almost anything you want with the blocks. Especially if you play in creative mode. Then everything is provided for you. This mode gives you an easy play. Survival mode becomes a small challenge as you have to go out and work for or earn your items and blocks. You must dig for and mine your items. Example. You must first locate 2 sticks, and either 3 diamonds, iron, or cobblestone to make a pick axe that helps you mine blocks. In order to get the iron, you need a stone pickaxe which you make with sticks and cobblestone. The better the pickaxe the better at breaking and mining certain blocks that use to build other items. Or "crafting" in other words. Sort of like recipes. For food you must go catch a pig for pork chops, a cow for steak, find milk, sugar, egg, and wheat and make a cake etc. For the milk you need the cow and craft some iron buckets. The egg comes from the chicken you find. The chicken will follow you if you have seeds in your hand. Other options are for pets. You can get a dog with a bone and keep him. The dog must be nurtured and fed just like in the real world. If you get 2 dogs you learn you can actually get puppies. As for your health and house, you require sleep and food. If you go too far from your house and something happens n you die your stuff you collected may dissappear if you can't find it in time. So if you have a bed and slept in it, then when you respawn you will be beside your bed. Your stuff will be where you died. So the reason you might lose it. But at least in this version you can fly, and have greater chance of getting to your items before they disappear.

There is so much more you can do. I will be happy to answer any questions if you just leave a comment. This game is truly awesome.

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Minecraft is one of My favorite things it's just so enjoyable. Great game although I tend to find myself moving my body instead of the crosshairs to place blocks. I don't mind but the world is only 630by630 blocks it is still pretty big. It does NOT have everything that the computer it is only Missing 1 Daylight sensors 2 Trip wires 3 trading with villagers (there are villagers) In creative there are monsters and Night. it's also four Player Split screen unfortunately it REQUIRES HDTV 720p screen resolution. Biomes snow mushroom forest desert cavern NPC villages cave I think that is all. All in all great game got for my Birthday I love it.

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Anyone who has played Minecraft on PC knows what to expect from the game on Xbox 360. It's the same game, but there are enough differences to justify owning the console version in addition to the PC version.

Firstly, split-screen multiplayer. This is probably the biggest plus for the console edition. You can play with up to four players on your console, and those players can enter your game at any point as you're playing. You just need to be running the console in HD. (I use a generic HDMI cable.) It's great fun with friends!

Secondly, this edition cannot generate an "infinite" world. Whether above ground or beneath, you will eventually run into an invisible wall. Some will disagree, but I think of this as a plus. A limited (but still rather large) world means you can fill in your world map and explore in a way that feels more immediately rewarding, and you won't get lost as long as you have your map.

Thirdly, the vastly improved crafting system. No longer must you arrange items in specific ways on a grid (often having to look up the various recipes because it's otherwise too cryptic). When you enter the crafting menu it shows you the items you can make and what you need to make them. As long as you have what you need you just select the item you want and it's made! Simple as that.

Finally, the game looks and plays wonderfully on the tv and with the Xbox controller. As soon as you start playing it feels like an upgrade to the Minecraft experience, not a console rehash.

The only downside is you'll lose a lot of time to the game and wonder where the day went, but anyone familiar with the game already knows that!

Honest reviews on Minecraft - Xbox 360

Minecraft may be one of the greatest 21st Century games of all time. The things you can do in this game is unimaginable. You can go on an adventure to slay the dragon by yourself or you can add some friends to spice things up a bit. Not much of an Adventurer and more of an Architect? That's Fine! In Minecraft you can Play Survival Mode where you have Health and can deplete Hunger and the goal is the Do what ever you want. In Creative mode you can fly, have an infinite amount of blocks and build on a Super flat world so you don't have to clear out land. Also, you break blocks instantly! If you don't like to adventure and build than you can even just play PVP (player vs. player) on many death-match style maps that either you or your friends built! There is a way to download maps but I won't go into detail on that because is quite complicated. One thing that you may know is that the game is made out of blocks. It may look like a childish game with the graphics but I will assure you it is made for all ages (unless your 1). I'm 15 and I play it, older family plays it and my little cousins as well. It can be a Casual game or a Hardcore game depending on your play-style. I don't want to spoil to much for you so you have a surprise but if you want to play on Survival mode without all the Mobs (monsters) trying to kill you then you can even play on peaceful mode where it takes the bad guys out! I own Minecraft on both my Xbox 360 Console and my PC and I recommend buying it on the PC IF you have a good enough computer! to see if your PC has what is required type in on Google Search Can I run It and go to the first website and test your computer, It will tell you what you need. I say the PC Version is better because it has a lot more stuff in it rather than the Xbox because it is behind on Updates to the game. Either way, This is a must buy on any and all Platforms.

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In minecraft, you can do almost anything including playing survival or creative mode with all your friends or by yourself. Minecraft is a game of creativity. You have to fool around with everything until you know how to play the game. You can pretty much build anything you want! This is a very fun game and it makes your mind think a lot. I recommend this game to everyone!

Powerboat GT - PC Reviews

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I like this game. It has some great graphics and realistic boat handling on what looks like real water. Good job on that! Some of the power boats looks great. Good job on that! You have to win races to unlock new levels and buy new boats. Good job on that! But.... the only way to win races is to launch weapons on other racers and they will launch them on you. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. All in all this game is fun if you have plenty of time.It's worth a try.

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I bought the game for my 9 year old grandson. He likes flight simulator, different race games, everything about cars, plains, space ships. I decided to try boat game and he loves it. Unfortunately I didn't play it. So, my opinion only rely on his. And as I see he doesn't want to get of computer.

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I didn't know how to rate this, because I haven't been able to play it on my fast computer. There's a small chance it's on my end, but it's never happened before, so I thought I'd warn you.

After configuring my character screen, it hangs with "Access violation at address 000000000. read of address 00000000" error message. I have to Ctrl+Shift+Esc to get out of it. Contacted the software "support", never got back to me.

Another thing is, I don't think it will work with a gamepad, it's keyboard only. I cannot drive and accelerate with a keyboard, but some people can.

Review of Xbox 360 VGA HD AV Cable

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List Price: $19.99
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This cable is terrible. I kept on getting 2 refresh rate lines, coming down my screen, I tried a high end LCD and a CRT monitor and both had the same refresh rate lines coming down, the image quality was terrible (grainy). The price was appealing, but they are terrible cables.

I ended up going to the local store and buying the Microsoft VGA HD cables and have never been happier.

Intec is not responding to e-mails (apparently these cables have a lifetime warranty..HA!!)

I would sugged buying the Microsoft VGA cables instead and don't waste your time (as others have suggested)

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I bought an Intec VGA cable kit on base because I was deploying on a ship for 5 weeks and figured I could hook my 360 to my PC monitor during the underway so I wouldn't miss out on some quality hi-def gaming time. It turned out I found a projector that took RCA inputs so I just used that.

Skip forward a couple months and I've got this cable sitting in my desk drawer that I cannot return because it's past the 14/30 day limit... Considering wether or not to sell it, I do some research as to wether or not VGA is better than the component cables that come with it. Pretty much everyone agrees they are. Well damn. So I take my cables home, and hook it up to my 61" Samsung 6187S and the ghosting is immediate and in your face. Where ever there is a sharp color contrast such as the verticle lines on the dashboard, there is a second 'ghosted' line just to the right. Even on the far left hand edge of the TV, there are ghost lines of that edge.

I ran a calibration program I have to see if I could manually rid myself of the ghosting, and no joy. I went back to the component input and the ghosting was gone. It was 100% definitely the cheap Intec VGA cables.

In addition, on the Calibration DVD I was using there were several parts of the picture which were 100% completely missing with the VGA cables. There is one scene with a guy in a black silk shirt with a black silk sportcoat and an moving X hidden in the background to only be seen when the brightness is too high. The point of which is to adjust the brightness until you can see properly and clearly the shade differences between the black shirt and jacket. Moving the brightness to max didn't reveal the X at all, which shows up clear and sharp with the component cables. Opposite of this there was a scene where a guy was wearing a white shirt with white buttons and you're supposed to adjust the contrast until the lower buttons start to dissapear. With the cheap Intec VGA cables, ONLY the top button was visible through-out the contrast adjustment ranges. Again, putting the component cables back on the 360, all of the buttons showed up just fine and completely free of ghosting to boot.

If you're buying these cables for a quality HD experience, even at the lowest level, then you're wasting your money. If all you want to do is save a buck and see a picture on a monitor, then maybe this is for you because it's not for me.

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Im satisfied with this product. There is ghosting but I only notice it on high contrast images ie white text on a pitch black background. The product does exactly what I expected it to. The picture shows exactly what it is, it has a plug for your 360, one VGA that plugged straight into my monitor without an adapter and two RCA audio which I already had a radioshack 1 dollar rca to stereo headjack adapter as I use headphones. I would say if you arent willing to pay 40 dollars this product is a slight gamble but I feel it paid off. The ghosting doesnt bother me as I only notice it with white or near white on black backgrounds. Otherwise the VGA resolution on my 1280 x 1024 monitor is great. I CAN FINALLY READ THE SMALL TEXT IN SOME OF THESE GAMES

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Do not buy this product. Simple as that. I used three different monitors and the quality of the picture was terrible. The colors were muted no matter what the monitor settings were and the video contained duplicated ghost images no matter what was on display.

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This item does exhibit ghosting, although it isn't terrible for the best picture spending the few extra dollars for the OEM cable is worth it. The item feels cheap as if made of thin plastic and the video cable is small and the shielding feels thin, this could be the cause of the ghosting.

The ghosting can be seen in things like text in Halo 3, or any high contrast situation, IE: white text on dark background, will display this problem. Other than that it seems ok.

Buy Mad Catz Street Fighter X Tekken - FightPad SD - Ryu & Ken V.S

Customer Ratings:

These control pads have super short shelve lives. They provide good responsiveness for about a month and go to shit. The D-pad needs more tinkering, because there is crap sensitivity in the diagonals of the D-pad and all of the 8 buttons after a few weeks of play. Do not buy this product. Its not worth 20$. If you can find this product for 10-15$, then I would say you made a decent investment. Since, this controller can be a decent stepping stone to better play, but not for the long term. Madcatz needs to quit putting out the same product with a new face and calling it new, because this controller is the same crap as the originals that also had short shelve lives. Meanwhile, the new variants end up costing 30-50$ for something that performs like a 5$ prostitute. Do yourself a favor and begin getting used to Arcade sticks, because that is simply the most reliable controller platform for fighting games. Nobody knows how to make good D-pad controllers anymore.

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Smaller then the older madcatz series. This product feels a little sticky as compared to older series. L&R triggers could use more play.[

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this control pad might be too small for bigger hands but it has some good functionality when you get used to playing with it

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This is perfect for night time when wife is sleeping and I don't want to make noise with arcade stick. D-pad is good and the button setup is ideal for fighting games.

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its a good control for super street fither 4 i loved it , also have a turbo funtion and the price was ok the product was great.

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King - PlayStation 2 Reviews

Customer Ratings:

This game is really really fun to play! I bought it the day after it was released, and I still haven't been able to put it down. It is such a great improvement over Two Towers that you'll be hooked as well. The story itself centers around 3 different paths: Gandalf as he defends Minas Tirith from another Helm's Deep-sized army, Frodo+Sam on their journey to Mordor, and Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli as they travel through the Paths of the Dead, to Minas Tirith, and so forth. The levels themselves are beautifully rendered, and the addition of weapons in specific environments really makes for a completely new feeling game. The controls are much more detailed, so now if you get surrounded you can easily engage multiple enemies at a time. And finally after all the complaints about it not being in Two Towers, you can also play Co-op with a friend! No more having split screens, you both play on a normal sized screen! This game also features the option to play online, but since I don't have the capabilities to do so, I can't really review that part. The only thing stopping me from giving this 5 stars is that some of the levels are incredibly hard, even when set on easy. I guarantee that you'll go through each level a few times before you beat it. All in all this game is definitely worth the money and your time, so I recommend that you purchase it.

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The first two Lord of the Rings titles belonged to that rare group of worthy film-based games. How many movie tie-in games have been less-than-stellar garbage capitalizing on a film's popularity? With "The Return of the King," EA concludes their trilogy with one of the best games of the year. A warning to those who have not read the books and do not know how the trilogy ends: As expected, the game contains many spoilers.

The biggest difference between ROTK and its predecessors may be the amount of action: Fellowship was mostly plot-oriented, and Two Towers featured one great action piece--Helm's Deep. ROTK, however, thrives on action. From start to finish, this game is non-stop action and adventure: gargantuan Siege Towers, monstrous trolls, bloodthirsty Uruk-Hai--this game gives you all you can handle, and then some. You'll be thankful for the occasional pauses to rest your thumbs--before the next attack begins. The game features voice-work from the film's actors and some of the most amazing backgrounds and environments I've ever seen in a video game, with perfect contrast between light and dark elements Like the films, there's meticulous attention to detail. Character design and appearance is first-rate, and character animation (thanks to motion-capture technology) is smooth and even. In addition, the sound quality (THX, no less) is outstanding--every roar, every clash of steel resounds through your speakers.

ROTK features three distinct playable storylines: The Path of the King, The Path of the Hobbits, and The Path of the Wizard. One can play as Aragorn, Legolas, Gandalf, Gimli, Frodo, or Sam, and beating the game unlocks three new characters. Follow Aragorn on the Paths of the Dead and recruit the undead to fight alongside you, from Minas Tirith to the Black Gate (and you'll get to battle the Mouth Of Sauron in an epic conflict). Follow Frodo and Sam from Osgiliath to Shelob's Lair to Mount Doom. Take the wizard's path, and have Gandalf fight from Orthanc to Minas Tirith. There are thirteen levels, and the three storylines converge in a final level only accessible when all thirteen are finished. Some levels are relatively easy (Shelob's Lair wasn't too tough) and some are barbaric in their difficulty (Paths of the Dead took me six tries before I beat it). Each character has their own unique style and weapons, with plenty of enemies to battle: Shelob, Orcs, Mumakils (Oliphaunts), Uruk-Hai, The King of the Dead, and more. Attacks are pretty straightforward: Quick attack, Fierce attack, parry, or fire (arrows and the like). As you gain experience points from defeating enemies, you can acquire better weapons and skills (such as invisibility and the truly awesome Balrog's Revenge) to combat the increasingly difficult foes one faces as the game progresses. And, one can choose to retain those points for oneself, or share them with other characters.

The game has three difficulty settings: Easy, normal, and hard. Easy is just that: easy. Normal is moderately challenging, but beatable for most average gamers. Select hard, and you're asking for it. The enemies seem to never end, and even the lowliest orcs take incredible amounts of punishment before falling. Hard difficulty may be best tackled with the game's Co-Op mode, which allows a friend to participate. A major problem with the game, however, is that you can't replay a level until you've beaten it. But once you complete it, every level opens up and can be played by any character--which gives the game better long-term replayability than most movie titles (and many non-movie ones, as well). PS2 gamers will have to contend with occasionally slow framerates due to the PS2's low-end processor. This usually only occurs when a horde of enemies are present, but it's still a little annoying. Another thing I didn't like was the occasional difficulty caused by the game's third-person perspective. Like most TP games, certain positions or angles create blind spots. In close combat, this can prove to be a major aggravation. But those are relatively minor things that detract little from the overall quality of this game. For anyone looking for an excellent action/adventure game, this can't be beat. Highly recommended.

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This game, though frustrating at times, is one of the best adventure/action games ever. I did not want to stop playing it. Here is what happens:

You can play as up to 9 characters:

Aragorn

Legolas

Gimli

Gandalf

Sam

Frodo

Pippen

Merry

Faramir

(Pippen, Merry and Faramir can only be unlocked once you have beaten the game)

There are 3 paths you can choose from: The Path of the Wizard, King or Hobbit. The Path of the Wizard takes you to Minas Tirith and eventually the Black Gate. The Path of the King takes you to the Paths of the Dead, Pelennor Fields and the Black Gate. The Hobbit takes you to Shelobs Lair, Cirith Ungol and of course the Cracks of Doom. Most levels are pretty fun and addicting.

Now I'll give you a few helpful pointers. Number one, don't get frustrated with Top of the Wall, the 2nd level on the Path of the Wizard. You have to keep the orcs off of Minas Tirith's wall otherwise the overrun meter will go up causing you to lose the level, whether you died or not. Just hold off the orcs until the seige towers come. There should be four. Destroy the first 3 using your staff. The 4th one is supposed to make it to the wall. Destroy it and kill all the orcs around it the run down stairs to finish the level. The level can sometimes be hard but overall its not to bad and can be a fun level to go back and play several times.

Another hint: Most people think that the final level, the crack of Doom, is hard. Actually its not. This is the first level you can use Frodo. What happens is you have to defeat Gollum. Its really easy. Just get him over to the edge near the lava and do Orc Hewer or something similar like Fierce Attack. Gollum will start to lose his balance and lean backwards. Continue hitting him until he's just hanging on by his hands then do a finishing blow and send him falling. He will continue to crawl back up until his health bar is depleated. Dont worry, its not that hard.

My final hint is for the Black Gate. This level is also pretty easy on co-op mode but if you haven't beat it on single player mode, it can be tricky. First off choose Gandalf. After you defeat the Mouth of Sauron, a pretty easy boss, prepare to fight back 6 waves of orc attacks. All waves come in through the front until the third one when they come in from all sides. Just be sure you guard your 3 fellowship members (if you were Gandalf they would be Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli) if they die, game over. One thing that make a major difference is orc archers. Kill them before they get to your fellowship heroes because the heroes usually just stand there while they get pelted with arrows. After the 6th wave, 3 Nazgul will come. This is why you pcik Gandalf. Shoot them a couple times with your staff and they will die. His staff works way better then arrows. After that, you've beat it.

I hope my hints have helped you. Enjoy the game and happy playing

Honest reviews on Lord of the Rings: Return of the King - PlayStation 2

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE SEEN THE '' TRILOGY '' EITHER IN THE MOVIES OR ON DVD, THIS GAME RELIVES ALL THE SAME FUN THAT THE MOVIES HAD!THE '' TWO TOWERS '' WAS A LOT OF FUN AS WELL, BUT A FEW LEVELS WERE RIDICULOUSLY HARD TO BEAT..THE SAME CAN BE SAID OF THE LEVEL '' MINAS TIRITH-TOP OF THE WALL '' LEVEL.ALL OF THE LEVELS ARE PRETTY MUCH STRAIGHTFORWARD AND SIMPLE TO GRASP, BUT NOT ALL ARE EASY.THE COOL THING IS YOU GET TO PLAY CERTAIN LEVELS AS SAM, OR GANDALF .AND THE OTHER LEVELS YOU CAN CHOOSE FROM GIMLI,ARAGORN,OR LEGOLAS. BUT WHEN YOU FINISH THE GAME YOU UNLOCK FAROMIR,GANDALF, PIPPIN, MERRIN ,FRODO ,AND SAM WHICH YOU CAN PLAY IN ALL THE LEVELS , EXCEPT THE FIRST ONE.YOU REALLY DON'T NEED TO BUY ALL THE CHARACTERS UPGRADES , BUT IT IS COOL TO PULL OFF A FEW COOL NEW MOVES IN THE HEAT OF BATTLE..BUT REMEMBER TO PARRY AND USE THE FIERCE ATTACK TO SHATTER THE ENEMIES SHIELDS .AND PARRY WHILE SHOOTING YOUR ARROWS, AS THE ARCHERS RETURN FIRE.AND LIKE THE '' THE TWO TOWERS ''GAME THEIR IS ALSO A 20 LEVEL FIGHTING ARENA WHICH YOU CAN PLAY.YOU DON'T GET ANYTHING FOR COMPLETING IT, JUST THE SATISFACTION OF SURVIVING IT..SO GET IT TODAY, AND YOU'LL BE ENTERTAINED FOR HOURS..ENJOY '' THE LORD OF THE RINGS ''!!

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First of all, the game has actual scenes included from the movies. Yes, it has scenes from both the Two Towers AND the Return of the King. This is because you fight in Helm's Deep in the beginning of the game and work your way up from there. The actors from the movies did the voices of the characters as well.

Second, the actors are interviewed for the game, and they are shown playing the game themselves and talking about it. A little something extra to make it even more interesting.

Third, the graphics are great! I love how they morph from a scene in the movie to the game characters and vice versa. The game characters look very much like the real actors too. Beware: the movie scenes will morph back to the game characters without warning so you'd better be ready to begin playing again or you may find yourself the victim of a nasty orc or mountain troll.

Basically, you fight in the same battles that occur in the movie, but because it's a game, your battles may involve more than is in the movie. You can play as Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Sam, Frodo, or Gandalf and when you beat the game you get 3 more special characters to play as. I won't tell you who they are I don't want to ruin the surprise. Hint: After you beat the game you will be given secret codes and secret levels. Now, usually I don't like to use secret codes to win, but in this case the makers of the game GIVE you the codes, and they do it for a reason. Once you've beaten the game fair and square, in order to beat the scret levels you WILL need those codes or you won't beat the secret levels! Trust me, we tried it with Aragorn at level 16 and Legolas at level 12 we could not beat "the Palantir of Sauron" without the codes, and even then it's tough to do! Hint 2: After you beat the game, you can play ANY character in ANY path you want. For example, you can take Aragorn and Legolas to "The Crack of Doom" with Gollum instead of Frodo and Sam. Or you can take Frodo and Sam along the "Path of the Dead." It's great, and much more than the 10 hours of play time one other reviewer mentioned.

In the game you choose between three different paths: The path of the King, the path of Gandalf, or the path of the Hobbits. As you level up and win battles you get to learn new techniques and purchase new weapons for your character. You need this in order to win at higher levels. One interesting feature is in the battle at the Black Gate. You not only have to fight the enemy but protect your party as well. If any of your party members die, you lose.

Finally, you can play as a single player, multi player, or if you have network capability, you can go online and play in the online world of Return of the King. My only complaint is that I wish there were more places to save the game. You have to finish a battle before you can save it there's no saving part way through a battle. Also, some of the camera angles are not the best, but oh well. Don't let it ruin your fun. Overall, it's a great game! Of course, eventually you'll beat the game or grow tired of it just like all your other adventure/action games, but that's to be expected. However, if you play as all possible characters and take all possible paths, you will end up with quite a bit of playing time. I highly recommend the game!!

One last word. I've read some people's reviews saying it's just a slashing game well, duh! The movie is one battle after another, not an adventure as it may have been in the Fellowship of the Ring. This is a fighter's game, not an adventure lover's game. If you want to search and explore in a game, and you love Lord of the Rings, I suggest you try "The Fellowship of the Ring." That game is not made by EA, so the graphics are very, very different, but it's a good game none the less, and the storyline actually follows the book rather than the movie. Also, the first four levels of "Return of the King" are NOT fighting the dead. The only place where you fight the dead is in "the Path of the King" ON "the path of the dead."

My son and I have beaten the game, and we still love to play it. It has great replay value, so buy it and enjoy!!!

Review of X360 Slim Vault - Villian Black

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $59.99
Sale Price: $14.99
Today's Bonus: 75% Off

I was looking for something to give my XBox more stability in the upright position. This is a pretty good item but maybe a little overpriced. Cost me just under $30 to get it, seems more like a $20 item. Could have gotten the blue at that price point but the color did not appeal to me. So lets get started.

ArrivalWhen I get the item it is in a very impressive, heavily constructed box. The packaging on this item has got to be a significant part of the price. The pieces are wrapped in plastic wrap which has left kind of a mottling on the pieces. I was able to get that off by wiping it w/ windex but I did not attain the kind of sheen seen in the promo pics. Probably need some kind of polish to get that. There are 4 main pieces, the base, left and right sides, and the controller holder. You don't have to install the controller holder if you don't want to. Good thing since I didn't want to, I thought as much looking at the product pics but if anyone else is wondering the same thing, there's your answer. If you want to lay your xbox flat the controller holder is the right height and on the right side for you to be able to do that. Unfortunately the base is all one piece construction so you will have two of those legs sticking up in the air.

AssemblyPretty easy. My only problem has to do with the screws. If you look closely at the promo pics you will see a silver bar across the top, that is a threaded aluminum tube, there is a matching one on the back. You put the two clamshell pieces around your xbox hold the metal bar in place and hand screw plastic screws into each side. Did I say plastic? Yes I did. Additionally the manufacturing quality on the aluminum tubes isn't the highest. One side of one of the tubes was determined to crossthread, after 6 or so tries with all the different screws I let it have its way and forced the plastic screw in.

Final ThoughtsMy XBox is very stable now. Since the case ends up recessing the touch buttons a little I can actually look at my XBox without the disc ejecting. It does not seem to interfere with any of the ports on the XBox. While the individual pieces are made from pressed plastic they seem to be well made with no detectable burrs or scratches. Unless I was lucky their QC is pretty good.(They probably outsource those aluminum tubes)

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This thing is awesome, keeps my Xbox noticeably cooler. The stand lifts it slightly off the ground helping to increase airflow. And it looks super cool

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this item fits my xbox box perfectly, and do not take up much space at all, minimal assemble is required.

Honest reviews on X360 Slim Vault - Villian Black

This is a great addition to your Xbox 360 if you keep your console standing. It provides great support and also adds a noticeable increase in air flow to help with cooling. The packaging is awesome and each piece is well protected. I purchased the black version, but the other color options are really cool for fitting your console to your gaming style. As I add more consoles to my home I will be casing them with the Vault.

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This is a reasonably price, easy to assemble, and stable stand for your Xbox. I no longer worry about the console tipping over when in its upright position, and the extra lift off the surface increases ventilation.

Reviews of Activision Skylanders Giants Triple Pack #5 (Prism Break, Lightning

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List Price: $24.99
Sale Price: $23.95
Today's Bonus: 4% Off

These things are like pokemon but way more fun!! Got started because of my roommates kid. He loved it, so we got them all. Now he's in heaven.

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If you don't know skylanders, just buy them. They are awesome figures to collect (even without the game), but my kids are addicted to it as the game is easy at the same time it challenges them to know the best creature to use, when, against whom.

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Prism break is almost too powerful, it is hard to do many heroic challenges because he kills everything and breaks everything. we renamed lightning rod " zeus "because he is so strong. Drill bot has awesome homing weapon as well. A triple threat triple pack!

Honest reviews on Activision Skylanders Giants Triple Pack #5 (Prism Break, Lightning

Just what we ordered! I love when that happens!! My son was more then pleased!! Thanks!! We will be returning!

Discount Dead Space (PlayStation 3)

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List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $19.24
Today's Bonus: 4% Off

I have been playing shooters for a long long time. After DOOM, no one had the guts to move away from head shots. Almost 3 decades has come and gone and shooters have remained the same. Woow these guys did get away with it, and they have come out with amazing results. This is the power of creativity.

We have played shooters with zombies in them, horror sci-fi games, different permutations and combinations. All have few different monsters as enemies. Either you shoot them in the head or it is some kind of quick press events to kill the bosses. Here you have to understand what every enemy is, remember how to kill when you see them again. As you walk through the levels, you see clues written in blood on what to do with each enemy.

The game continuously throws new surprises. You have to explore every level to find items to upgrade your weapons. When you first step into ZeroG... the fights gets crazy. Enemies will come from every direction, the map is a big globe. The level design is fantastic. Every single detail from hospital rooms, kitchens what ever that will be required in a big space ship is there. It is not like the super tidy carpeted Trek space ship. It is supposed to be some thing like a dirty mining rig, and you surely get the feel of it.

There is lot of creativity that has gone in.. which I didn't expect from a big publisher like EA. You don't find any M16, AK46, turret gun here. All the weapons are mining equipment. Our future mining equipments are lot more interesting than what we have today. As the main character is a engineer lot of things he does very cohesive with the gameplay. When you actually fix a lever and move things around it feels lot more natural.

I do have to say one thing about this game. It is truly meant for mature audience. Please don't buy this game for very young children. There are few sections where you have to kick and stomp baby zombies. It gets too violent and scary. But as a horror/survival/thriller you need creepy enemies. Also they do give you a reason to keep searching and not quit half way around. The theme may be slightly similar to DMC4 girl friend search... but executed very well.

One gripe I have with this game as with DMC4 is backtracking. The game is quite long by today's standard. The space ship feels much better because you are visiting some of the same areas while backtracking. It is not horrible, but it is there. I wish they hadn't done that.

To give developers credit, they have done enough to avoid the regular backtracking nightmares like lost routes. You can always use your analog stick to show the dotted green walk line.

Previously I thought this one will be like Silent hill, this one is more closer to Resident Evil. Falls more in the creepy, scary game than survival horror game.

Technically, I don't have to say much. Any one who has seen videos of the game already know this game looks stunning. Fantastic way to start the holiday season. Brand new IP, silky smooth game play, really well done game. Go treat yourself.

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After reading reviews that Dead Space was the second coming of the original Resident Evil, I decided I'd give it a try. Review sites were claiming it to be "the scariest game evar!" Hell, when I picked the game up from a local store I was boldly told, "within two minutes of gaining control of your character, you will jump out of your skin!" Eagerly, I rushed home, ready for my next jolt of adrenaline. So, it was with a pair of rubber underwear (I kid...or do I?) and some excitement that I set out to see what dark terrors Dead Space would contain.

Turns out there's not much here we haven't seen before. No, I didn't jump two minutes into the game...and in fact the first chapter felt pretty tame. Monsters pop out of vents or can be seen in the distance, usually followed by a loud "DUN!" from the soundtrack. Maybe I've grown so hardened from my years of playing horror games that the thrills in Dead Space don't amount to much. I'm also wondering who these reviewers are. If Dead Space is so terrifying to them, I'd hate to see what'd happen if they got their hands on F.E.A.R. or Condemned, for example, two games that have made me jump out of my skin.

Things improve as the story continues, though, with some disturbing images (usually involving a crazed survivor) and some stick with me, even now. The game does improve on its terror level, the further in you get and there are some shocking moments, both in terms of graphic depictions but also in a "holy crap, I'm being dragged by a tentacle" way. But, as a personal opinion, I've never really been fond of the silent protagonist. And here we have not only Isaac, the mute, but Isaac the faceless since he's always holed up behind some mask. Sure there is a personal story here for him, what with his girlfriend stuck on the ship somewhere, but it never really clicked for me simply because Isaac felt like a doll and not a real person.

This isn't to say Dead Space is a bad game, just the opposite! I had an absolute blast playing it because what it does, it does exceedingly well. The weapons are never your cliched space marine-type fare, which brings a fresh feel to the game. They can be "leveled up" via work benches, and you can really design both your suit and your weapons to fit your play style. Dead Space also controls amazingly well and you'll never feel like the game is hampering you by horrible movement. The graphics are pretty damn awesome, especially in terms of the grotesque monster designs (which remind me of The Thing) and the animations. The concept of "strategic dismembering" is also a fun little twist of the genre, as you'll find yourself blowing the hell out of their limbs, just to keep them from coming at you.

I also appreciate how each level feels completely different from the last and EA has truly made the Ishimura come alive. When I first heard that the game took place on a ship, I was worried. Usually that means the same old corridors and bad level design, but here it means a fully realized space ship. Breaking up the action are sections taking place in zero-G areas, which are great, and some puzzles that require you to utlize the environment.

All in all, and even though I don't share the opinion that it's the scariest game ever, Dead Space is a terrific game. The plot is very intriguing and pulls you along, but it's everything else that really adds up to making it what it is. In the end, Dead Space feels more like Aliens than Alien, and that ain't shabby.

Definitely recommend a purchase.

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Let's face it: October's a rather crowded month. Literally every single week has one top-tier title that's massively anticipated and will instantly become day one purchases for many. Call it the Summer Blockbuster Season in games, really and thankfully a game like Dead Space has generated quite a bit of excitement and won't become one of those forgotten Ico/Beyond Good and Evil-type gems that barely anyone played yet people who have sing its praises whenever they can. While it's not exactly original and there's incredibly small gripes about the gameplay, Dead Space has all the makings of a great experience and I'd recommend it to anyone...provided you're over 18.

Story: You play as Isaac Clarke (a little nod to Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke, writer of 2001)who is an engineer that gets called in to investigate the distress beacon activated by the USG Ishimura, a "planet cracker" ship that literally rips holes in planets and mines the chunks for minerals and ore. But upon arrival, Isaac and a couple of his shipmates crash onto the ship and have to investigate what happened. But instead of finding its crew, it seems to be infested with new residents: that of grotesque, mutated creatures.

Graphics: This game is different than say Heavenly Sword or Uncharted which had lush and colorful visuals. Dead Space is more about poor lighting, flickering light sources and shadows across the floor. That being said, the graphics are unbelievably impressive and the immersion into the environments is stellar thanks to how the ship is presented. Also notable is the gore which is decidedly ramped up and whether it's you being on the losing end or you besting your enemies, you're guaranteed to run into some gruesomeness.

Sound/Music: Anyone who knows anything about horror is that it's just as much about how it's presented than what and all that is thanks to sound. The sound here is unbelievably impressive with clanks, roars and screeches, the unexpected loud encounter and even faint whispering, the aural design here will definately be effective if you have a killer surround sound system. The voice acting is also quite good and while they're not exactly flashy roles, there's no breaking the atmosphere with awful line delivery or melodramatic bellowing.

Gameplay: Strangely, the PS3 version of Bioshock is being released a week after this game which is a creepy, atmospheric FPS. This is a creepy, atmospheric 3rd-person shooter similar to Resident Evil 4. But what helps the game is the completely intuitive and immediate feel in the controls. While the controlling is simple and seen before, it's the weapons and others where it becomes key since I found switching weapons in previous games slightly clunky. Basically pressing L1 makes you aim and your action depends on what button you pressed. Pressing Square activates your Stasis, a kind of slow-motion weapon for those fast enemies, or just managing the battlefield. X is Reload while Circle activates your Kinesis which works similarily to the Force Grab in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (and not as awfully done either). R1 controls your firing while R2 is the weapon's secondary mode so your first weapon, Plasma Cutter cuts horizontally in default, pressing R2 changes it to vertically which is perfect for arm dismembering while the default is great for legs. You also have several other weaponry to use, all based on mining equipment so you have one gun which has saw blades, a flamethrower or a rapid-fire pulse rifle.

By the way, don't think you can rely on headshots galore in this game since that can make it worse. Instead, you have to essentially take your enemies apart to wipe them out. Blowing their legs off reduces them to a crawl while going for their arms robs them of anything to attack you with (and with Kinesis on the arms, they make for great impalement tools). That also gets a great use as well is the bigger variety in how you kill your enemies. For example, in addition to the arm-blade tactic, you can grab a flammable tank with Kinesis and launch them, creating a bomb or squishing them in doorways or getting them into gravity panels on the floor and launching them towards the ceiling with a nice, satisfying "squish" sound. While we're not talking about Bioshock-levels of variety, it's a great change of pace from just shoot-shoot-grenade-shoot in other games.

The other thing to mention is that in order to completely immerse you in the environment, EA didn't do a traditional HUD with your health bar, ammo and mini-map in the corners of the screen. Instead, everything is on your body with a vertebrae-like meter running up your spine that drops when you take damage to a half-circle for your Stasis meter, a pop-up for Air and a visible hologram for your ammo. It's a wonder that nobody seems to do this more. Word of caution: entering your inventory does not pause the game (that's what Start is for). So this effectively can leave you wide open for enemy attacks so best to wait till the coast is relatively clear. But having video logs and transmissions coming in front of Isaac and not a separate cutscene is great.

Oh, and speaking of air: on occasion you'll hit Zero-G environments where there's no air and you're able to jump to other parts of the room which lets you even stand on the walls, complete with shifted perspective. While it's disorientating and hard to tell what's exactly jumpable until you tried to jump, it quite works within the game and the near lack of sound really helps sell it. Plus let's face it: it's hard not to yell "woohoo!" like you're on a roller coaster every time you jump.

There's a couple parts in the game where I hit a proverbial wall and died a few times (it's reminiscent of "Star Wars" and even has a trophy named after one of Han Solo's lines), this isn't a difficult game so much as it's intense. Only brief times I can recall where I was more overwhelmed by enemies and didn't have a good strategy as opposed to Uncharted where enemies seem to have bullet-stopping skin or Call of Duty 4 where enemies seem to have better aim at 200 yards away than you do. While you can separate the game's experience into sizable chunks thanks to the clear chapter progression, the difficulty is so inviting that you just want to keep playing and not feel like Ninja Gaiden-levels of frustration and "finally for the 10th time!" shouts.

Is this worth a purchase? Well for me it is and I had such a blast with this game but for others, some might not get the big deal or they're too busy playing the other big games of the month to bother but I say definately do not pass this one up.

Honest reviews on Dead Space (PlayStation 3)

Look, if you love Dead Space, have dedicated your life to the game and think its the best thing since antibiotics, then I apologize for the coming blasphemy. I liked so many aspects about this game but overall it just didnt resonate with me. Here's why:

I love the horror/survival horror/action genre, so I came into it with positive expectations. This had Ridley Scott's "Aliens" movie written all over it. I was psyched.

Graphically, the game is pretty amazing, possibly one of the best looking games out there in the space-genre. The atomosphere of Dead Space is remarkable, I've give you that. They really captured the scale and isolation of space, and will positively creep you out with the strobe-lit rooms with random blood spatter. There is much detail here, but I appreciate all the effort in that.

Audio-wise, I think this may be one of the most effective uses of surround I've seen so far in a game. Its so damn eerie at times, I muted the volume. Random screams, metal grinding and breaking free, whispers (or are they?), things crawling through duct work, out of sight...this game does "ambient" better than some games do their main audio. Its almost as scary when things ARENT jumping out at you as when they are, and Dead Space uses that Hollywood scare tactic a lot. A whole lot.

I like many aspects, zero-gravity, the work stations, even the weapons were ok, but why 3 stars for fun? Because I played several sections into the game and realized not only how massive the amount of time it was going to take to solve it, but also how I was going to be repeating so many tasks so many times, and then backtracking through all the areas I previously passed through, like some kind of masochistic scavenger hunt. I can take this for a while, but not for an entire game the size of Dead Space. Even the cool new areas and details werent enough pay-off to make me want to spend the kind of hours I was going to need on this one.

Its an interesting lesson for game developers: beauty, atomosphere, storyline may not be enough to make a game "5-Star" fun if it requires a lot of repetitive work. Many, looking at the ratings, feel differently, but I was surprised enough by this to want to write a "second-opinion" review for those who havent yet played it. You may love it, buy the animated DVD and the comics and pledged your life to it, but you may not, so before you buy, you may want to try (rent).

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There are a lot of reviews here, so I'll just hit a few highs, plus a low or two. This refers to the PS3 version.

I've played a lot of shooter and survival games, but Dead Space adds some great twists that make it fresh and exciting.

First, fighting tactics. As others have said, you don't go for the usual head or torso shots, you go for the limbs. This is great fun.

Second, the graphics. Absolutely gorgeous and faultlessly detailed. No render errors, no load snags, no frame rate problems. None. And no constant reuse of pipes, walls, etc. except where it's appropriate for them to look the same as another spot.

Third, environment and sound. You're kept on your toes by the creepy atmosphere and the sound is fantastic. Distant clangs, soft nearby noises and other sounds constantly keep you wondering if there's a baddie behind the next corner.

Fourth, realism. There are many zero G areas where you have to leap from surface to surface (your boots are magnetic). These are challenging but not annoying and add a nice twist. There are also areas where there is no atmosphere and you have to watch your air supply closely.

Fifth, perspective. For the first time, your health and your suit's special power meters are on the back of your suit itself, not in a corner of the screen. The over-the-shoulder perspective is nicely judged you're not so close to yourself that you can't around, but far enough back to get a good, wide view. Your body does block a part of the left half of the screen, but I've never found this a problem.

The not so good? Mainly two things that are far from a killjoy but could have been better.

One, the on-screen displays when you view your "rig" inventory, the map, and text logs you collect have absolutely puny text. They're almost impossible to read on a 34-inch conventional TV using the 3-prong high-quality video (not hi-def).

Two, you upgrade your weapons and suit powers at "benches" using "nodes" you collect along the way. Both the nodes and benches are few and far between, so you don't get to upgrade as much as you'd like.

That's it. Dead Space is simply the best game I've played on the PS3, and possibly the best ever. It's richly detailed in every possible respect, brings fresh ideas to the 3rd-person shooter experience, and has no functional flaws and no real controller-throwing frustrations.

Absolutely highly recommended!

Cheap MVP Baseball 2005 - Xbox

Customer Ratings:

Ahh, the ability to play a 30 year season after season mode called "Owner Mode" Ouch. Do you have that much time on your hands? Shame on if you do!!

I have 04 and I played it to death, so I was ready for a change, not just roster updates, but a change in the game to make it fresh and appealing. Yes, as you read above, the new Owner Mode will keep you playing until you're in a nursing home, but the the big addition this year of course is the ability to take your skills on XBOX Live which is a big plus compared to 04 and if you have XBOX Live, this certainly gives it more replay value by allowing you to play with anyone anytime.

Putting it to the test, I looked for some other changes in the game. E.A. added the "batters or hitters" eye feature. It gives you a quick glimpse with a flash of light right when the ball leaves the pitchers hand. The ball changes colors as it's thrown to show you what type of pitch is being launched. The ball leaves a contrail, a lot like a comet that helps players to tell the the speed and trajectory of the pitch. The better a player's batting attributes, the longer a pitch will retain its color and contrail as it comes down the shoot. It gives you a split second to determine where the ball will probably end up giving you the chance to swing accordingly. It's definitely in favor of the batter and can be turned on or off in the options screen. For me, its just for a little glitz and something new, but I don't feel it's a neat or cool addition to the game. I also don't seem to hit better with or without it, I suppose in the end, it's up to you.

The graphics are better than last year, this time supporting 780HD TV's and people with wide screen will be in love. The graphics overall have also been heaved up the mark. The players faces looked quite bad last year, flat faces, with no character. E.A. listened, the players faces look more lifelike and show more emotion than ever and you can recognize the big name boys at first glance. Signature batting stances are also more pronounced this year and each year I see them getting closer to the real guys signature moves and stance. I'd like to see a little spitting and player mannerisms before they go to bat, but the stances will have to do. Crotch grabbing also is not one of E.A.'s focuses this year either, thank goodness. I noticed a few more diving catches and some fantastic motion captured throws and dives than '04. I really couldn't notice them at first glance, but the more you play, the more you appreciate the time spent in the varied and countless motion captured moves througout the game. The most important part of any baseball game is fluid gameplay and MVP baseball plays as smooth as you could want especially when you field, it just seems so natural.

The sound is right on the mark, teriffic sound effects, sounds of the bat smaking the ball, trash talking in the stands, screaming fans, good announcing and great Digital Music, they got that right. The owner mode is right on mark too and is the dynasty mode for baseball. It's a bit different than other E.A games though, it's more or less about pricing tickets for your stadium, concessions, and trying to get fans to the games that don't bring in revenues usually. Owner mode is about making money and keeping your players happy. If you got the time, and shame on you if you do, the game allows you 30 years to make your organization successful. 30 years of gaming, hmmm, how do people find time to do this??

But don't cry, sports games is about multiplayer action anyway, and with the ability to go at it online and play with a friend on your couch, that is how the game should be played anyway.

Anyhoo, as many people know, this could be the last MVP baseball, at least for some years anyway due to the licensing issues with other companies, but since E.A. stole the NFL license in return, I'm happy to see someone else do it to them. I find it appauling the world allows rich game companies to buy out licenses to keep other game companies from competing. E.A. may say otherwise, but that is basically what they are doing. Mind you, I love E.A. but with less competition for the future, does this mean less quality for their games? Let's pray and hope not.

Back to the game, this game is very fun. The graphics are a lot better than 04 and I was happy to see it on XBOX Live too. I have to say it plays great so far, and I have not seen any XBOX Lag issues for it yet.I just hope more people join the bandwagon, (I think everyone is playing NBA Street) If you don't have XBOX Live, the Owner mode will keep you happy for 30 years though, so don't think this game doesn't have any replay value. Enjoy it this year, it could be the last E.A. baseball game this decade. Pooh!

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MVP Baseball 2005 is the closest game currently on the market to give you the most in-depth baseball experience possible. In my opinion, the only people not liking some aspects of this game will be New York Yankees fans. It's not only Manny on the cover, but also the intro video, cracks and comments throughout the games and even a song praising Boston's first title in 86 years. Well, all I can say is, if you can't overlook those things, you're missing one fantastic game. Let's break it down:

Owner Mode:

New this year is Owner Mode where you begin with picking a stadium (not one of the existing ballparks, but a starter stadium) and making a few upgrades (seating, lights, whatever you can afford before opening day). You can add a restaurant, set ticket prices, make promotional days and on and on.

You have a financial advisor for the season, budget reports, player contracts, etc. One note: Yes, you can be the owner and play the game just like you would in Dynasty Mode. You can sim, play individual games, manage the game or sit in your luxury box and watch it all take place. There is so much to this mode that I couldn't possibly fit it into this review.

Dynasty Mode:

This mode is essentially the same as last year. Keep the owner happy, the players, do contracts and play the games. It's been updated and tweaked for more user friendly experience. And I can't leave out that this year, you even have single-A teams in addition to AA, AAA, and MLB.

Mini Games:

Instead of just a Home Run Derby, EA has included a variety of features that can teach you different aspects of the game. There is batting practice, pitching practice and also a scenario editor. To me, I found it to be an enjoyable experience especially when hitting the cars and busses over the outfield wall. This seems like a throw back to Triple-Play 2000 when you had target practice.

Graphics:

Simply amazing. Need I say more? The players faces and stances are mirrored to their real-life counterparts. Cutscenes, and animations are gorgeous. The only thing I found a proble with was the crowd...even in 2005, they are still wooden-looking. That's a sacrifice you have to make and it doesn't detract from the game experience.

Gameplay:

What a shift from last year! Pitching is now a lot more realistic with the way you use the meter. Instead on the old meter where you set power and tried to hit right spot, they have upgraded it to you having to stop it and exactly the right moment, if not, you risk and early or late breaking pitch. In rookie mode, it's not as big of a deal as it is in MVP mode. Make some mistake pitches in the higher levels and you're asking for trouble.

Batting is great! When you foul off a pitch, a little screen comes up and shows you how you hit it. Fouling off a pitch is a mistimed swing, same as a swing through. Gone is the animation where you swung, missed the ball and it popped up the crazy box to show you missing it. Instead, this year, they have the popup box, yet include the ball trail so you see how you missed it.

Fielding & baserunning is comparable to last years version with some great upgrades to visuals. There are plenty of dives, showboating grabs, wall jumps, and take-out slides.

Ok, I could go on & on with this review because, like I said, this is the most in-depth baseball game I have ever seen. If you want the best out there, MVP Baseball 2005 hits a Home Run.

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i know that there are still a bunch of loyal original Xbox people out there like myself, and i'm telling you, MVP Baseball 2005 is still one of the best overall baseball games and stands easily in competition with today's The Show and 2K baseball games.

think of The Show but much easier to player and as less high definition graphics.

the game is awesome, very simple to play, commentary is good, and the graphics are excellent.

there isn't much weather option, just day or night, that's it.

soundtrack is good, i just wish you could add custom soundtracks because it's always the same songs and after a while, you know all the words.

MVP has over 100 top prospects, many of real baseball stars but with hidden names.

my only real con against the game is no extras like long sleeves shirts, glasses (Eric Gagne) or walk off homerun celebrations.

my last con is the colors like on the redsox and braves aren't as sharp as the 2k series or The Show, but overall, GREAT game.

If they would update the entire game, rosters, ballparks, jerseys, coaches there would honestly be no reason to buy any other baseball game.

it's that GOOD.

Honest reviews on MVP Baseball 2005 - Xbox

You know what really irks me about the recent exclusivity licenses given to EA (Football) and Take Two (Baseball)? It's the fact that the licenses had been taken away from the games I liked (NFL 2K5 and MVP Baseball) and got awarded to their statistically worse opponents, Madden and MLB 2K5 (at least in my mind they are). Sigh! At least MVP doesn't give a dismal, or even a decent performance in it's final show (for at least a while anyway), MVP stole the show and then burned the stage to the ground! I will be looking forward to the ending of the exclusive licensing of the MLB, since I will have this game to come back to when it ends...

Pros: 1. Owner Mode (Choose to be a George Steinbrenner or a Bud Selig with your franchise for 30 years!)

2. Better fan sound (very loud chants of LETS GO BUCS in my stadium... and I only have a 12,000 seating capacity!)

3. The A league farm teams are added to round out the minor league system (who doesn't want to be the Lynchburg Hillcats?)

4. Oodles and oodles of Unlockables (I haven't unlocked anything yet, but I hear that is is deeper than last year)

5. You can still manage a ball club long after your grandkids are dead in Dynasty Mode (it and Owner mode are two separate modes)

6. Mini-games to give that extra boost to a prospect or star player (in Dynasty or Owner Mode)

7. Common bugs from last year are fixed (progression is less erratic and Players develop into stars and the lefty bug is gane as well)

8. Hitting and pitching are a lot harder this year (realism)

9. Allows for 720p picture on a high definiton TV (If I had my Xbox hooked up to one, i'd still be ogling right now)

10. The Hitters eye (have an easier time hitting... It hasn't helped me though...)

11. Send the manager out and argue with the umpire!

12. Filters on the managers e-mail (no more spam!)

13. Online play

Cons: 1. Hitting and Pitching are a lot harder this year (frustration)

2. Hitter's eye (too hitting-oriented?)

3. The EA Trax stink (the Trax this year are all forgettable and at many times annoying songs from who-the-heck-is-this bands)

4. No custom soundtrack options (this has always irked me about EA. They have custom soundtrack options for titles such as Madden and NASCAR, but they do not have it for some of the other titles)

5. The commentary is basically recycled from last year and with no new dialogue

6. Curse the Vortex from the hitting mini-game... it makes the ball fly back beyond the foul line

7. Online play is just so-so

Final Verdict: Definite buy. This is probably going the be the last MVP title for a long time and even with the limited online options, the single-player modes will keep you busier for most likely longer than the actual MLB Season this year. I probably wouldn't be suprised if some people actually play MVP 2005 until the exclusive license agreement has ended... that's how addictive this game is.

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This game is without a doubt the single best baseball game to ever come out. Surpassing the old All-Star baseball franchise and the Triple Play franchise. The game is rich in color, sound and deep gameplay. The graphics are excellent and all players, stadiums and rosters are accurate as of January 2005. There are several different modes, including; exhibition, dynasty, owner, mini game, homerun showdown, and manager.

The game is just amazing, and so addictive.

Buy it.

Discount Dg-16d2s Phillips Lite-on Drive for Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:

There are a few things to consider when buying a new drive for your Xbox.

1. If you buy this, you cannot just put it in your Xbox and expect it to work. If nothing it changed other than just swapping drives, you will just have a fancy DVD player.

There is a REALLY long key composed of numbers and letters assigned to every drive and every Xbox motherboard. This "key" has to be exactly the same on both the motherboard and the drive. If it is not the same, your console will play DVD movies, but will not be able to play games.

2. You may not need a whole new drive... in fact, rarely do you ever need a whole new drive. You would need one if you have an Xbox without a drive in it...

But if you have a drive that is going/gone "bad". It is probably just the laser.

A new laser is about $12.

Or, it might be the motor... which is about the same price, $12.

Even if it needs both... that is still only around $25 instead of $40.

3. The only way to make this work is by either swapping the circuit board inside, or by extracting the key off of your old drive, and then transferring it to your new drive.

4. There are 3 different firmware versions of the Xbox 360 Liteon drive for the "phat" xbox version. 7000, 8000, and 9000 series.

5. There is a slight... ever so slight... risk of being banned on Xbox live if you don't get the same firmware version as you had before.

Truthfully, as long as you are not replacing your BenQ, Hitachi, or Samsung with one of these Liteons... you are probably pretty safe where you are using the same model with a different firmware revision... But there is always a chance. Microsoft is pretty picky and once you are banned... they don't take it back.

So, just a few things to consider.

While it is nice having a whole new drive. It might save you a TON by just replacing the laser or motor. Or both.

And you will either need to be able to solder and swap the "PCB" (circuit board) from you're old drive to you're new one... Which is safest because you are keeping the same firmware revision...

Or, will need to know how to remove the keys from your old drive and put them on this new one...

Changing keys, for me, is the easiest... no soldering involved.

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I bought this replacement part for my broken dvd drive in my older xbox 360.

First, the drive says that it is the same model and everything on the outer case, but the inside components are a different story. You cannot simply plug in the drive and expect it to work either; I somewhat didn't expect it to work anyway but that is just Microsoft's way of screwing over the consumer and preventing him from replacing anything on a product of theirs.

Secondly, in order to get this drive to work, you will either have to flash the drive "illegally" to get the old console's motherboard to recognize the drive, or you have to swap out the PCB boards of the old and new drives. Swapping out the boards is not a very hard project if you have the right equipment, however, the new drive MUST be an EXACT replacement of the old drive. The one that I ended up receiving had a manufacture date of 2010 and it had an extremely different PCB board than the 2008 version that came in my original xbox. Flashing the drive is risky and not to mention usually costs extra money for flashing software (and if you're not careful, this method could get you banned from xbox live if the big brothers at Microsoft catch you playing online with this type of modification even though it doesn't give you any sort of advantage in gameplay).

Overall, this replacement product is what it says it is, but you really have no way of knowing which model type you will be receiving when you order it, so buyer beware!!!!!!

UPDATE: The seller was unaware of my needs and generously offered to replace this drive with the correct one. Overall, just be sure of what drive you need before buying and possibly e-mail the seller first if you can. You can always just use it as a DVD drive if you can't get it to work out for you.

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I had gotten this replacement drive after my 360's had stopped reading for the third time, the other times I was able get it working again, but after the third time it had had enough. I had planned to swap out the boards in the new one and the old one but after it had arrived I realized it was not the exact same drive, their drive was labeled DG-16D2S and mine was labeled DG-16D2S 09C and both had different years and firmware, which had me worried that if they weren't exactly the same swapping would not work. after contacting the seller, he told me that it would work fine, minor differences wouldn't cause problems, as long as they were the same kind of board. Sure enough, I swapped out the boards, and after reinserting it into the 360, it worked! saved me $70 not having to send it to Microsoft for repairs.

Honest reviews on Dg-16d2s Phillips Lite-on Drive for Xbox 360

As some of these people already explained, you can't just buy this and pop it right in to your XBOX.

Here is how I did it [SIMPLE NO SOLDER] and it worked just fine.

1. Open OLD drive up.

2. Un-plug the THREE cables hooked to the PCB board (they have a safety lock be careful)

3. Take TWO screws out from PCB board.

4. Be gentle but move aside the OLD PCB board (don't mess up wires or board)

5. Now you should see FOUR big flathead screws attaching the guts in place.

6. Remove those FOUR screws (I used Pliers to loosen them up since I didn't have the right screw driver.

7. Take out the guts from your OLD drive.

** Do 1-7 on the NEW drive **

Then Follow the list backwards to re-install the NEW guts into your OLD casing.

This method is the easiest way of doing it for this DVD drive with out having to do ANY soldering.

WOOT I am BACK ONLINE! :D

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Just remember to change switch your logic board to it from your old drive! Does exactly what it was intended to and I feel pretty cool about fixing my own Xbox.