The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past Review

Customer Ratings:

This game was released in the early 90's, a time in which video game makers still focused more on fun gameplay rather than graphics and sound. These days it seems more and more video game makers just want bragging rights for the best graphics and sound, therefore abandoning the most important aspect of the game; rushing out games that are clearly not finished and very little regard to actual gameplay.

With that being said, at the time Zelda:Link to the past had very good graphics and sound to boot. But what kept me playing this game over and over again was the fun gameplay! I originally got this game when I got a replacement SNES and this game was bundled with it. It took me over a year to play it, because I thought to myself, there is no way it could be better than the original Zelda on the NES. One day I decided to pop this game in and realized that I was WRONG! This was the most fun game I had ever played on the SNES even better than Super Metroid in many aspects. It was very easy to pick up and play and easy to learn. Once I started playing, I just could not stop. It took all the aspects I loved from the original Zelda on the NES and multiplied them!

This game was very succesful in capturing the nostagalistic feel of the original game while at the same time allowing me to enjoy a brand new one. Absolutely fantastic.

You still have to search for heart pieces, weapons, upgrades etc, but this game like the original makes it fun rather than tedious and boring. I got a real sense of accomplishment when I found a new item and a even greater feeling when I finally beat the game. This game was fun from start to finish and was never once bored, when I stopped playing this game after a long sitting, it was because I physically couldn't continue, not because I was bored or tired of playing the game. In fact if I picked this game up today, I know that I will STILL enjoy it as much as I did back then!

Its too bad that these days, I am finding myself rushing through a game just to finish it because other than the great graphics the gameplay is subpar and it gets boring after a while. Rushing through a game causes one not to really appreciate the game and it tells me that the gameplay is lacking and the developers did not do enough to keep the player involved.

Honestly, if I had to choose between a game with superior gameplay and OK graphics or a game with superior graphics and OK gameplay, I would choose the gameplay over the graphics everytime. While you get your occasional blockbuster on today's systems, for the most part the games are just all fluff and no substance!

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

What can I say that hasn't been said already? I have an old Super NES system that I play for the nostaglia value. However, I acquired Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past only recently.

While I had played Zelda I and II on the original NES system, I wasn't sure what to expect from this game. I was hoping it would have the fun factor of the original, while having the difficulty of Zelda II (a reputation well deserved, believe me) without the boring "battle scenes" with enemies, which I found quite annoying.

Although this game was released in the US only five years after the original Legend of Zelda, Nintendo made leaps and bounds in graphics and sound quality when they made this game. You can tell this game was a labor of love for the developers. From the minute you begin playing, you become engrossed in an entire mythology...the original Legend of Zelda story is expanded x 10...in fact, this game serves as a prequel to that one.

There are two huge worlds (the Light World and the Dark World) for you to explore. In fact, you will have to explore every nook and cranny in order to beat this game. This game retains the heart containers that were featured in the original. Some you win in the dungeons after beating the bosses. Others you must earn in pieces...either in secret locations or out in plain sight (though not always easy to get to). Your path between these two worlds is the Magic Mirror, a quite invaluable tool that you'll only need to use about 1,000 times to finish the game.

One feature that this game introduced (appearing in later incarnations of Zelda) is the multi-level dungeon. You'll climb/descend stairs, fall into holes, even use a magic cane to create platforms to ride over gaping chasms! There are twenty items for you to find that can be used at will. Other treasures (like flippers, the Moon Pearl, Titan's Mitt, etc) work automatically. Every treasure save one (the totally useless Cane of Byrna) is vital to your progress.

Some enemies will be familiar (Stalfos, Moblins, Armos Knights, and Ganon of course) and others will be brand new. Some of the boss fights in the beginning of the game are a little too easy, but I promise you will fight for your life when you face the bosses of the Dark World dungeons. I found myself swearing a little when I played the Ice Palace, Turtle Rock, and Ganon's Tower near the end of the game just because of the sheer difficulty.

This is a great game because it is literally impossible to beat it in a single sitting. You will become physically exhausted before you are ready to quit...I did, many times.

A nice feature is that once you beat Ganon (provided that you have enough rupees to buy the Water of Life again), you can hit reset, go back, and fight him all over again! Magic is "free" once you can access the Mysterious Pond. The battle of Ganon will truly test your nerve and your wits. However, finally beating the game is well worth the wait. You meet the Essence of the Triforce, then a very cool animation (dated, like the other graphics in the game, but still great) showing the restoration of the people and places in the Light World. The music in the final sequence (when the end credits roll) is quite stirring. If it doesn't move you to tears...well...you're not human.

I know this is a game I will play and treasure over the years. I have not played the newer versions of Zelda yet (such as Twilight Princess), but I am seriously considering it after being wowed by the experience of this game.

Sorry for such a glowing review, but this game is well worth it. Snap up a copy of this game before the last ones get gone. You won't regret it.

Best Deals for The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Wow! A Zelda on a 16 bit system? That's what I said at first when I found out that a new game in the series was coming to the SNES, and what a surprise it was! Those of us who have been with Link since the old school days of "The Legend of Zelda" really appreciated this one when it came out. The graphics were intense the plot was deep, and there were so many new things to find. A person could immerse themselves in this game for hours and even days on end without stopping to eat, sleep, or use the bathroom (yes that was me, well almost). I remeber the countless hours I spent finding heart containers, weapons, and other things in this game, along with all of the good memories that it brought as well. The dungeons seemed immense and endless with the multiple floors that were introduced in this game, and continued throughout the series. I highly recommend this game, and as with everyone else that fell in love with the Zelda series this game is one of my most prized games and I will hold in my collection as long as I live.

Honest reviews on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

My favorite thing about the Zelda games is they take so darn long to finish. In this way, playing a good video game is like reading a good book. It takes a long time, but it's worth it. This game tells a great story, and it really immerses you into another universe. You're placed in a different world with different limits, and it's like you live a whole other life in a few months (or days, if you're a hardcore gamer). You follow Link through trials and tribulations on the quest of a lifetime, and fighting them ugly video game monsters is a nice way to have a bit of fun after a long day.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

This IS certainly the best Zelda game. The graphics are how they should be in any game like that. Well, OoT/MM/WW graphics' were very good (especialy WW with cartoon-like graphics), but ALttP graphs are better. Theres a LOT of dungeons (= lot of fun)

1 : Hyrule Castle (part 1)

2 : 1st pendant

3 : 2nd pendant

4 : 3rd pendant

5 : Hyrule Castle (part 2)

6 : Stones temple

7 : Water temple

8 : Forest temple

9 : Shadow temple

10 : Ice temple

11 : Sand temple

12 : Mountain temple

13 : Ganon Tower

the music is very good, maybe a little bit repetitive but it fits very good with the game (and it sticks in the head)

Wipeout In the Zone - Xbox 360 Reviews

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $29.85
Today's Bonus: 40% Off

Got Wipeout and got home to play with my 6 year old and wife. We all signed in and we played through an episode. WOW! Lots of fun and laughs. Even replays funny shots/hits to the avatar.

Second game, new level. Hmmm. I'm signed in but wife and son have to register again even though we picked play again. Haha, the replays are funny but a lot.

Thrid game, new level. Wife didn't want to play but son had to reregister again. Really?!! Man the replays are a lot and getting on my nervers. Found in options you can turn off. That's better.

Overall it's good family fun and is a party game. I've played through all the levels and think a few things are missing.

1 Would like to set funny hits/replays to be after an episode or calibrate to not be as much. It's all or nothing.

2 Would like the replay level option to keep everyone registered and allow you to remove players as needed.

3 Would like a build your own course scenario.

4 Camara angles for some obstacles (side view for big balls to behind for spinning obstacles) switch without warning. Tends to cause a wipeout till you learn a level and motions. Guess that's the game being Wipeout ;) But it was the one thing that made the wife dizzy. Camaras switching up obstacle to obstacle quickly.

5 After replays it takes a second to know you're back in game and the clock is running.

Wait till price drops to around $25-$30. My 6 year old is almost done with all the levels and he's only played the game 3 times.

***********************************************

Read some reviews of the game not tracking, not stopping, having to jump for avatar to jump or this game is a workout. Tracking issues can be fixed by lighting. Know the avatar commands is simply playing the tutorial; arms out to stop, arms out and jump up to climb... etc is not that hard to learn. You need to jump to get the avatar to jump. Not sure how to respond to that expect, yeah. As for this game being a work out or getting the heart going. I suggest Your Shape Fitness for a month then pop this game in and then you'll blow through all the levels in this game within two days.

The Kinict games we have I'm comparing to; Kinictamals, Fantatic Pets, Your Shape Fitness and Dance Central. This game is not on par with these games when it comes to timing. Kinictamals maybe. Even though this game came out after these games don't expect the same on key reponse. Seems to be minor lag but the game I feel gives you time to recorrect if you are erring. But that's the fun of Wipeout. You're supposed to wipeout. That is till you learn the level and camra switch ups.

Had friends over who played and had to stop cause the camra angles were too much.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

As a owner of the Wii edition, I am glad they finally put it on Kinect, it was soo worth the wait. I like being interactive in the game; with the bonus of a workout. It looks easy on TV but you have no idea until you are actually running the course. Plus it was only $35 at Toys R Us :)

Just like with most games you have to unlock additional courses, this game also has a practice and multi-player. Good family fun, it did not disappoint. Of course I wiped out several times.

Best Deals for Wipeout In the Zone - Xbox 360

Overall, Wipeout for the XBox 360 is a lot of fun. The only downside is that the Kinect doesn't always register your movements correctly, especially when compared to the accuracy of other games.

Honest reviews on Wipeout In the Zone - Xbox 360

Ive tried everything and we just cannot get our kinect to read our actions accurately with this game only. It makes it frustrating and we all lost interest. I would not recommend this game to anyone.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Wipeout In the Zone - Xbox 360

First of all I want you the reader to know that i like the show "Wipeout", it's similiar to MXC which i love, so i'm not a wipeout hater. This game however is a pile of dook, let me tell you why. The whole idea of kinect is to make the player feel immersed in the game, YOU are the controller etc. I played this game with a 7 year and he was getting so frustrated with the delayed unresponsive controls. At first i thought he was having a tough time because he was a youngster, but then i tried and immediately understood his frustration, the controls and delay are unacceptable. There is a good one second delay between your movements and the character actually moving onscreen. Now, in a game where your timing is crucial, this is a HUGE problem. You have to jump a good second before your obstacle to enjoy any success.

My other major gripe with this game, the controls, really bring my piss to a boil. Kinect is supposed to track your movements and make you feel like your that little cartoon character. So when im physically running along and i suddenly physically stop, why does the game character keep moving forward? Oh i remember, because i didn't put my hand out like im directing traffic to get my little avatar to stop.... I mean i could maybe learn to deal with a one second delay, but when i have to motion to the camera with my hands to stop my legs onscreen i have to draw the line. It totally takes you out of the experience, you remember you are playing a crappy TV tie-in game. Why did they make it this way? Did they think it would be fun to learn all the different ways they want you to move? Why didn't they just code it to track your actual movements, that seems logical to me. Anyway, im getting "In the Zone" and sending this one back to Amazon for a trade-in to try and cut my losses before more time passes and this turd loses more value. GO WIPEOUT!!!

Reviews of Ghost Recon Future Soldier Signature Edition

Customer Ratings:

This is the Signature Edition which was offered through Gamestop. If you can get your hands on one I would recommend it because the guns included are excellent. Overall this game is fun whether playing the campaign or multiplayer. The campaign is very good and I don't mean very good for a shooter. Anyone who has played the Battlefield 3 campaign knows how terrible most games like this usually are. The campaign is actually worth playing. It can be played alone or with three of your friends. Playing the campaign helps unlock items for use in the multiplayer game also. I found the story itself to be less than great but the gameplay makes up for it. The use of different weapons that aid the entire squad adds a realistic feel and a reason to have a team. You actually work with other team members and the AI is really pretty good. Squad coordinated sniper kills are very fun to do and the team members find their own targets quickly and accurately. Drones are usable in campaign and multiplayer and can serve as spotters or attack drones. The drones are controlled by the player which gives players a good idea of enemy placements and map layouts. This is fun and helpful. Who doesn't want to rain a barrage of frags on those enemies hunkered down in a well defended area? Multiplayer is fun and challenging. It is based off of team work and team objectives not the number of kills. This makes multiplayer much more rewarding than in other shooters as you get to see team mates looking out for each other and working towards goals. It helps to eliminate the selfish elements found in so shooters today. Give the game a chance or just come back to an old favorite if you are familiar with the franchise and I doubt you will be disappointed.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I bought the special edition for a reason, game came to me with a broken case and no code for the game extrasnone of this was listed on posting. Game disk has no scratches and plays well.

Best Deals for Ghost Recon Future Soldier Signature Edition

good looking tom clancy game! game play is very unique for a tom clancy GRAW shooter. awesome cover system and battle camera effects adds to the realism during fire-fights. good solid strategy is needed to make it through this game holding in the military simulation genre pretty well i think. this is no run & gun game!

Honest reviews on Ghost Recon Future Soldier Signature Edition

Games is ok...kewl,toys to use in the game...i should have waited for the price to go down...wasnt really worth the price

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Ghost Recon Future Soldier Signature Edition

Good game just not my type of game. Multiplayer gameplay is to weird for me. Haven't got around to campaign yet but I hears its good.

Dark Void Review

Customer Ratings:

For a concept of Dark Void, take the PC version of the original Gears of War, add in a jet-pack, knock it down to T-rating, remove the multiplayer and set the whole thing in the Bermuda Triangle in the early years of WWII.

Oh, and upgradeable weapons, too.

The centerpiece of Dark void is the aerial combat blended smoothly with Gears-of-War style cover-based combat. This is made possible by the jetpack you acquire about halfway through the first episode in the campaign. The flying is tricky to learn especially when you turn with the mouse. The first tutorial mission was the most frustrating part of the whole game. I felt like Avatar's Jake sully when he first rides an Ikran. In simpler turms, it sucked. invisible walls were everywhere, i got lost, confused and dizzy. But once you master it, this is the best part of the game, because it's very original. Plus, if you tire of your meager machine guns, you can Hijack enemy planes, I mean UFO's.

That's right. Aliens. Sadly, the originality stops short of the plot. Aliens (called Watchers) want to take over the world and have been manipulating humanity by assuming human forms and disguising themselves as world leaders, notably, the Nazis. Yawn.

But, it is an interesting take on WWII and there's references to the ancient aliens theory, which is cool.

The ground combat is just like Gears of War as I've stated before, so if you like that , you'll like this. the most notable difference, however is the vertical cover system. look up at a platform and press "c" for Will (our hero) to jet pack his way to it and grab it. Press "c" to blast to the next ledge, or "space" to clamber on top of your cover, or simply fire upon the enemies in your way. It's a refreshing take on cover that helps this game stand out even more from the other cover based shooters, and allows a platforming element to seep into the mix.

Now there is DlC coming for this. A survival mode, similar to horde should be releasing on Xbox 360 (2/10/10 400MP) and PS3 (2/11/10 $4.99) though no word yet on a PC version yet (as of 2/10/10), believe me, I've asked. A lot. But, until I play it I can't tell you any more abut it.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I just finished playing Dark Void all the way to the end. For those of you who get window mode, just try the Alt + Enter function for full screen. The game isn't all that bad. I enjoyed the game play, and flying around in a jet pack is extremely fun. I had no problems with just using a keyboard and mouse. However, I had to change the mouse sensitivity when I was flying and when I was on the ground. This wasn't a problem because my mouse includes macros for that, but I could see it being a pain for those without macros available on their mice. The game is also incredibly short. The single player experience is even shorter than Modern Warfare 2. bucks is still a bit much for the game. I'd say its worth about .

Best Deals for Dark Void

The first ten minutes of playing Dark Void I was frustrated beyond belief with the flying controls. I considered uninstalling the game and calling it quits. Luckily I decided to take a break, come back and readjust the controls a bit more. Once I did, I really started to love the game. Set in 1939, Dark Void allows you take on the role of Will, an airplane pilot hired to transport unknown cargo through the Bermuda Triangle. Of course, they encounter an unidentified flying craft causing them to crash on a strange island. Here begins the story of Dark Void and my thoughts on the game;

Pros

+ Some nice graphics. Character models, aircrafts and buildings all looked great.

+ Villains had a really cool look and feel as did the Survivor resistance fighters in their air goggles and oxygen masks.

+ Excellent voice acting across the board, including Nolan North (Drake from Uncharted and Deadpool from Hulk vs. Wolverine) and Paul Eiding (Colonel Campbell from Metal Gear Solid).

+ Very tight controls over all. Some aerial movement can suffer without patience and practice.

+ Lots of aerial dogfights.

+ Most missions are approachable by play style whether it's ground, aircraft or jetpack.

+ Excellent combination of aerial and ground combat. Unlike some reviewers I didn't find the combat repetitive at all.

+ Mission starts didn't feel forced like an arcade game. For example in this stage you'll only be flying and in this stage you're grounded. I really liked how the developers handled these mission combinations.

+ Vertical combat was extremely well done! The fact that you could go from vertical to horizontal on a ledge in combat was great. I've never played a game that handled this type of game play so well.

+ Ability to hijack and control both enemy and friendly aircraft.

+ Commendable musical score composed by Bear McCreary of Battlestar Galactica fame. While I didn't enjoy his work on Galactica I did enjoy this. The thumping tribal drumbeats and flutes fit very well in action sequences. There were only a few grating parts of the score where he used synthesized electric guitar or bagpipes (one of the things I despised about his Galactica soundtracks).

+ Story was left open for a sequel.

Cons

Aerial controls take some tweaking and getting used to.

Dialogue can be a bit contrived at times. The story is also cliché and filled with a few logic holes.

Annoying checkpoint save system. It was difficult to tell when the game was actually saving or just creating an in game checkpoint. After a few setbacks due to the game not actually saving when I quit I learned to just finish the chapter I was on before exiting the game.

Some graphical glitches where the textures would pop in and out, especially the detailing on the jetpack. The ground textures were also often pixilated and ugly.

Game would stutter from time to time at checkpoints. There was also one really awful instance where the game stopped and slowed to a crawl (during the final "Rescue the Prisoners" hangar boss battle). It happened all 3 times I attempted to pass this portion of the game. There was also another level where the mouse controls required double clicks before actually responding which was very frustrating, especially when trying to use the sniper rifle. However, I'm not actually sure if these issues were in the game or simply my computer.

Waypoint markers during missions would sometimes not update to the next objective.

Jet pack couldn't really hover still. It could only burst thrust up and allow you to strafe in all directions. Let's just say it wasn't exactly like Space Harrier.

Protecting the Ark against the Archons was a bit too difficult. It took me about 10 attempts to accomplish and even then I was barely successful.

Vertical bird's eye view stages of the game can be very disorienting if you suffer from motion sickness or are afraid of heights.

Journals (detailing other's experiences in the Void) and a few weapon upgrade points are simply not enough of a reason to explore every area of the game.

Weapon upgrade globes dropped by enemies disappear shortly after opponents are destroyed. Too often you're pinned down or in a heavy fire fight and are unable to retrieve them.

Weapon/jetpack upgrades are too costly.

Two weapon carrying limit was realistic but disappointing in an action shooter like this one.

Hijacking enemy ships took too long to accomplish to be extremely useful.

Enemy transport ships were destroyed way too easily. I realize this isn't Star Trek but why wouldn't large transport cruisers have shields? Many of the smaller enemy ships did.

Too short! I finished the game over a weekend. Just when it started to get really great (weapon upgrades etc.) it was over.

Despite all of my cons listed above I really enjoyed the game and would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in the genre. Sure it was over way too soon and the story was cliché but it was an extremely fun ride while it lasted. It wasn't worth the full price they charged at release due to its length. If you can get for less than $15 then it's well worth the play through. Hopefully Capcom will come out with a lengthier sequel in the future as the story was clearly left open.

Honest reviews on Dark Void

Dark Void is a game made by some of the same people who made Crimson Skies High Road to Revenge and it shows. The flying segments of the game work pretty much exactly like the planes in CS: HRTR which is a good thing. It is easy to control after a few minutes geting accustom to what buttons do what. (I used an xbox 360 controller while playing. I'm not sure how tough it would be with a mouse and keyboard). The shooting aspect of the game is alot like gears of war, you can take cover, hop over cover and jump from cover all with the press of a button. You can also jump up vertically and down off ledges just as easy. It is done very well and I never struggled with the controls. The graphics in Dark Void are good and use the Unreal engine but there are many times where the game is trying to stream information for the level or save a checkpoint which can lead to some horrible slowdown. Its not gamebreaking but I would have rather the developer use a cutscene or something to mask this because it is really noticeable. The art design is done well and you with see areas that are similar to areas in games like uncharted or tomb raider while others have a futuristic look. The character and enemy design is also done well and all though its nothing amazing, overall they look good. The enemies are a bit repetitive but the devs mix up the things you do well enough to overcome this. Dark Voids main problem is that it seems like the developer ran out of time or money to finish the game. I think it needed at least another chapter with 3-4 more areas to tell the story and add a build up to the end of the game. Even the end of the game comes to an abrupt halt just when you think its going to get really good. I think they figured they would fininsh the story in part 2 unfourtunatly I dont think Capcom is going to make another game. Its a shame because Dark Void is a good game that could have been a great series. I enjoyed Dark Void but have to knock a few points of for the framerate issues and the unfinished story. I give it a 7.5 out of 10.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Dark Void

This game gone a TON of flak as soon as it was realeased, and I do not think that's fair to the game. So, allow me to adress the critics remarks one at a time:

1:Bad Controlls

Now, yes the controlls are a bit hard to get used, it is not a game you can just pick up 'n' play. If you are just a casual gamer looking for something easy to play for a little bit, I do not reccomend this game. However, After about 30 minutes (hour tops) you will have the controlls sown pretty good. After a while the controlls just feel right and you can really see where the programmers were coming from.(For Keybored Controlls I have no clue, I use 360 controller, I highly reccomend)

2:Bad Graphics

Partly true, not the best but I think they work for the games style. (Just don't look real close)

3:Repetitive

I strongly disagree. The game blends Flight Combat, ground combat and Car Jacking? Plus The vertical combat I think is really cool, Infact I really wished there was more in it. (However, I do not suffer from motion sickness, It my cause headache, blurred/imparred vision, or nausia, in the weak among you)

4:Short

Yah, the it is about 10-12 hour game. Not Real long, but I have played games shorter. Plus it gives you incentive to go back and play again, and I know that I will be happy to go back and play it a second and maybe even third time.

5:Bad Music

To that complaint I simply say quit whining. People who complain about the music in the game are just TRYING to find negative things, just to not the game. The music, served it's purpose. It set the tone for the level. It gave you a hint of unknown, of fear, of excitment, pain, victory, grief, anger, you get the idea.

So overall I say don't listen to the review that are negative and say it is a worthless game, that is a matter of opinion. I am just telling you the facts of the game. It is not for everybody, but I know some will enjoy it, I did!

Fuzion Frenzy 2 - Xbox 360 Review

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $11.25
Today's Bonus: 44% Off

Many of us fans of the original FF from the original XBOX were anxiously awaiting the release of a sequel. After waiting so long it is finally here.

Back from the original game are the characters we have all grown to love (or in some cases hate). Samson, Naomi, Geena, Dub, Jet, and every annoying Zack. Also in this game is a slew of brand new mini games, as well as some favorites from the original including, Sumo and Twisted System, sadly some favorites did not make it for whatever reason. That is not to say the new games are not as fun, because they are. One game involves you having to sink your opponent's boat using the water that opponents are trying to sink your boat with. Another one has you trying to stay on a waterfall by pressing random button that appears on screen. So the fun factor of the actual mini games is still there for the most part. However the Fuzion Frenzy round from the original game has been replaced with a beat the crap out of your opponents round in which you basically do that, using items and powerups from the environment. It's not as fun as the "Fuzion Frenzy", but still pretty fun nonetheless. Instead of different game zones in FF1, FF2 games take place on different planets, Earth and several other ficticious ones.

Graphics while not a big issue with a party game like this, are pretty well done, but like all of us know graphics is not what make a game like this fun, its the presentation, and sadly the presentation of this game falls way short of the original. The main problem is that the game moves entirely too slow. Instead of going directly to the action, before each mini game, you have to listen to this corny host with a light tie, lights shooting out of his shoulders, and buttons on his cuff links blab on and on, talking about the same thing, which is basically nothing. His voice is annoying as well. Ever so often you have to compete in a mini game to get stupid cards, and every time he says "Now you will play a game which I prepared myself on the ship." Luckily you can skip through this annoying babble and get to the game a little faster. But even during game play the announcer is annoying, always babbling along and he can't even say the characters' names, instead he says "How are you doing Player 1?", or "Player 3 lands an attack", YES he says "Player 1", not Samson, Naomi, Zack or ANY of the character names. Why? I have no idea, even the original version said the character names, surely the 360 version could do the same, but I guess not. This separates the player from the game even more. Even the character dialog themselves seem robotic and no emotion what so ever. I miss the annoying dialog from the original, like Zacks "Zack, shalack lack ack ack". They still saw some smart a$$ things, but nothing like the original.

Adding to the frustration, is that there are now annoying cards you can use before each mini game, which allow you to multiply your point values you earn in the mini game, meaning if you lose in the mini game and only get 2 point, if you use your x6 card, it means you would get 12 points, and if the winner didn't use a card, then you will be declared the winner of the mini game, even though you came in dead last. Cheesiest at its finest. Other cards reverse the effect of cards, so if you use a reversal card and someone else uses a x6 card, that effect will turn into a divided by 6 card instead. Another card allows you to steal the effect of a card from another player. More cheese.

And if that's not enough, only player 1 can gain achievements during game play. This is not a big issue for me, since my wife and I only play to have fun, but for some people this is a big deal since if Player 2, 3 or 4 wins the whole game, there will be nothing to show for it. I don't play online, but for those that do, there can only be one player per 360, so if you have two people at your home hoping you two will get to play online at the same time, forget it, only one player per XBOX online. Clearly lazy developing as they surely should have known players would want to be able to play otherwise.

This game had the potential to be even greater than the original, and when it comes to actual game play, it's pretty close, but the main thing that ruined this from being the incredibly fun game, was the poor presentation. Its like Hudson tried way too hard to make this game into an intergalactic game show instead of keeping it simple and focusing on what made the original so fun. The fun of the games is definitely top notch, but the overall presentation hurt my overall rating of this game.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

First let me say that I am not good at the "regular" games for XBox (360 or otherwise). Anyway, when my husband bought the 360 I was excited to hear that FF2 was coming out for it because my husband & I had a great time challenging eachother and "fighting" during the first FF. So, when we got this a few days ago and started to play a LOT had changed about this. First, there is no Fusion Frenzy (the final game in each stage of the original). Unless, it is a game that we haven't unlocked yet. Which brings me to some interesting things about FF2. One, is that each character who wins the over all game unlocks a new game in a new world. Another is that you choose how many worlds you have to win between 1-5 overall winnings. Plus, this time you get cards that either let you choose the next mini game in the world or lets you multiply your mini game final score by either 2,4 or 6 times the amount. For example, if you use your times 6 multiplier in a mini game and get second place, then you get 6 (your original score for second place) times 6 = 36 points. Then you get first place in that game (which will really irritate the person who actually scored 10 to win first place). You also recieve stealer cards, which means if one person uses a multiplier and you use a stealer then you actually get the multiplier card. And, there is a divider card for someone who uses a multiplier card and you use the divider it will actually divide the persons score instead of mulitplying it. For the first world or so it might seem these cards are not worth it but as the worlds progress they actually seem more useful. Plus, you never know what cards people are choosing so you hope that you are using the right one at the right time. The cards come at random times either by fighting for them in a mini game that the DJ makes or just randomly after a game is won/lost. This game has the same characters as the original as well as some of the original games played in a different type of world. All in all, I think the original FF is the best but this one, once you get used to and get the hang of all of the new things involved is fun. One of the irritating things though is that there are only so many mini games to choose from when you first start to play. It just doesn't look like a lot and it's rather irritating that you can't play all of them but, eventually, you get used to all of these things and the game really is fun. I would say while the other game was good for smaller children, this one should be for slightly older (maybe 8 and over) because of all of the changes and card usage, etc. Give it a try, it is fun, like I said, once you get used to everything. Good luck :)

Best Deals for Fuzion Frenzy 2 - Xbox 360

My friends and I have been big Fuzion Frenzy fans for years. We'd get together and spend hours playing the mini games. They were fun, quick to start and play, and we got a big kick out of the cheesy announcer with his strained, cracked voice screaming out "Fuzion Frenzy!". Yes, we're a silly bunch.

Anyway, my original Xbox died a couple of months ago; the DVD drive stopped reading. I was looking at close to $80 for a replacement (unit + shipping) so I decided to just upgrade to a Xbox 360, and of course buy the sequel to our favorite game, Fuzion Frenzy 2.

I'll say right now, this game, aside from the fact that you're playing mini games, is nothing like the original. The game is non-play animation heavy (lots of long useless segue animations), the structure of the gameplay is different, and there's no Fuzion Frenzy round! To my friends and I, that was the best part of the game! We'd have a blast gathering orbs (from the game field or by stealing them from each other) and avoiding each other and the play field hazards.

Though I expected the mini games to be different in this release, I didn't expect them to be quite so varied in visual and play complexity. Some are very busy visually and require use of both thumbsticks and buttons, where others are visually boring and require button use only. In some ways this parallels the original version, however the levels were never so busy as to detract attention from what you were doing as they are in Fuzion Frenzy 2.

To give an idea of loss of game play in Fuzion Frenzy 2, my friends and I would usually play a 6-stage set of mini games inside a half hour. However, in Fuzion Frenzy 2 we gave up one game into the second round of mini games after 45 minutes. Yes, that much useless animation was added between mini games.

What used to be a fun, mindless party game has now become a more involved, needlessly bloated game that is sure to cause you and your friends to become disinterested in playing it as the game sluggishly moves from one mini game to the next. Aside from better graphics, they really missed the point with this sequel. I definitely did not get my money's worth with this purchase.

Honest reviews on Fuzion Frenzy 2 - Xbox 360

I loved the first game. This one, not so much. Some of the games are mildly entertaining but the presenation and mechanics ruin it. The cards are lame and can ruin even the best player..

but nothing drags the experience down like the "announcer". He simply won't shut up! To be honest after about 30 minutes my friends and I turned this game off and popped the orignal in never to play FF2 again. If they had a game where you got to smack around the announcer for points I might have given this game another star but...

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Fuzion Frenzy 2 - Xbox 360

I have been waiting for this game for months. I loved Fuzion Frenzy on XBox and couldn't wait to see the nex-gen version. I bought this game on its release date and wish I would have waited for a used copy. First and foremost, why did they remove "Fuzion Frenzy" from the game? That was the best part of the game, risking your points and stealing your opponents. Second, the announcer is extremely annoying and his quips are repetitive to the point of hurting the game. Also, how hard is it to announce the winning players name. Player 1 wins the tournament, this is nex-gen and the game can't announce the character. If you loved Fuzion Frenzy 1, you might be disappointed in this "upgrade." I sure was.

Discount The Karate Kid

Customer Ratings:

This stinks to high heaven.The gameplay is absolutley terrible.All you do in this pixelated platform 8-bit mess,is jump around kicking bad guys,dodging opstacles and playing stupid little mini games,like chopping little blocks of ice,or catching flies with chop sticks.This game is a HUGE WASTE OF TIME.Play a different game,go read a book,watch a movie.Do ANYTHING except play this BS.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Ah yes...LJN. That company is notorious for making bunch of the worst NES games ever in history. I do not believe a single game from them has been a good one. And The Karate Kid is no exception. The first reason is the controls. They are pretty bad. If you had played Double Dragon and made a transition to The Karate Kid, you'll find it a weird one. The Up button is for jump, and doing that makes the gaming experience during stage 3 very annoying. The second reason is that there is no variation nor creativity during all of the stages. And third reason, a lot of times, you had no idea what to do. Now, let's go to each stage of The Karate Kid:

Stage 1: The tournament. Believe it or not, I beat everybody without getting hurt by simply kicking. As a matter of fact, I do not believe that I ever punched in the entire game. It's been kick...kick...kick...kick...and kick. Don't waste the Crane Kicks in this one. All you have to do is push Forward + B to conserve the Cs.

Stage 2: Same thing as before. Kick, kick, kick, kick, and more kick. Every time I go to a bonus room, I feel like LJN has a fetish for swinging hammers. A lot of times, I don't even bother going into the bonus rooms. Now, this is the point where you can make the game easy or hard on you, and I will tell you how to beat the game so painlessly. Find a spot where you can do back and forth without a problem. Now, stay there for a while without advancing to the next screen scroll-wise. Keep killing all the enemies that come to you. Grab the C every 4 kills. Continue until you got like at least 60 of them. It can be boring...yeah, but it's a surefire way to win the game. Also, it helps you to gain lives (what the hell with the chances??) per 20,000 points. The best part of the Cs is that they boost the health by a couple of points. When you get bored of farming for Cs, continue to the right and kick your way out of the *blows raspberries* final boss.

Stage 3: This stage is the hardest of the game because it's a lot of work. Same tactics as before: find a spot and work for more Cs. Then, go forward. Every time you see a gap, I recommend not drive forward as you can because as soon as you do that, the enemy tends to jump from right side and kick you, being forced to fall about 10 feet away into the gap. So, time the movements well and jump over the gaps without being interfered with. There is a series of gaps in the middle of the game which can be mastered. As soon as you get to the bottom and you clear the enemies out, start going forward as fast as you can. Eventually, you will finally get out of it. This stage is a lot of work, but with some simple adjustments, you will find this part not so bad at all. Finally, you will meet the final boss, but forget him...just jump up the tree and reach for the girl. Stage over, no fight, easy peasy.

Stage 4: Now, you will finally understand why I said that you need to farm for many Cs and accumulate them as much as you can without spending them in the past three stages. The enemies are much harder to take out with simple kicks; however, by landing a crane kick on them, they disappear right away. Keep doing that all the way to the right; forget the bonus rooms. Just keep moving forward to the right as fast as you can. Finally, the final boss, if you have some Cs left, waste them on him, and the game is over. You won!

Despite what people think, The Karate Kid is an ultra easy game. All in all, The Karate Kid is a terrible game with no replayability value, and I actually hated the movie more.

Best Deals for The Karate Kid

LJN,I hate you. Take the best movies of all time (Back to the Future,Friday the 13th,Jaws) and make them into the worst NES games. This is a good example. YOU PRESS UP TO JUMP,WAY TOO DIFFICULT, AND VERY,VERY,REPEDITIVE AND STUPID!

FIRST STAGE:Karate Tornament.JUST MASH THE B BUTTON AND YOU WILL NEVER GET HARMED.Pathetic.

SECOND STAGE: Moves from fighter to platforming beat um up. REPETITIVE. BOSS: Again,mash B.

THIRD STAGE: Gets very hard. Never passed. MANY PITS,AND ENIMIES,BIRDS,FLYING TWIGS AND THE WIND ITSELF KNOCKS YOU INTO THEM.

There are also 3 minigames and a Vs.mode.

CATCH THE FLIES:BORING

HAMMER SWING:EXTREMELY HARD

ICE BLOCK BREAK: EXTREMLY EASY

VS. MODE:ALSO BORING AND REPEDITIVE

DO NOT BUY, EVEN FOR 2.99,LIKE ME. HATE IT DUE TO UNFUN DIFFICULTY AND EASINESS,POOR MUSIC, BELOW AVRAGE GRAPHICS,BORINGNESS,AND CAUSES CANCER,BRAIN TRAUMA, AND MORE DUE TO OVERALL AWEFULNESS. That is my review,goodbye.

Honest reviews on The Karate Kid

I got this for a buddy of mine. Yes its one of the worst NES games out there but its the Karate Kid!!! You buy this when you just cant get enough Ralph!

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for The Karate Kid

This game takes a while to master, especially the side-scrolling sequences. For a Nintendo game, this wasn't bad, it just took some patience because in the side-scrolling game, you had to earn power-ups to be able to perform special moves, but if you moved through the levels patiently (enemies could jump out) the game was easy enough to beat. This game is about the second Karate Kid film, not the first, and you fight Chozen in here.

Freestyle Street Soccer Review

Customer Ratings:

This game is preety good has gang members pushing shoving and netbreakers. I loved street vol. 2, and NFL Street, but this overdoing it. Next thing you know they're probly going to make kick the can Street. They're some good thing though about this game. You can start off with the gang shakedown, honeys, or skaterboys. You go up to the top gang STREET BALLERS. They're basketball players that play Street SOCCER? You can also pick up objects and through them at people. This game is rated T for strong language.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Best Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition High Definition Game Capture Deals

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $199.99
Sale Price: $166.32
Today's Bonus: 17% Off

To start off, I'm writing this review solely from the perspective of someone using this to record footage from video game consoles (an Xbox 360, in my case), because that's why I bought it and that's all I've used it for so far.

Upon opening the box, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that there was a component cable included, a nice bonus. The first thing you'll notice is how light the device itself is. The all-plastic body and the lack of weight contribute to give it a slight cheap feeling, but this is not reflective of the overall quality of the device, as I'm about to explain.

The HD PVR has pass-through outputs, which means you can plug your console into the PVR and then the PVR into your TV (with the included component cable), eliminating the need to split the signal. I was a little bit worried about any input lag caused by the pass-through, but I was thankful to discover that there is absolutely none. The one downside of this, if any, is that the PVR has to be on for the pass-through outputs to work. It doesn't have to be recording and the software doesn't have to be open, so it's not that big of a deal, but it's just one more device that is sapping power.

After getting everything hooked up, you have to install the included software on whatever PC you're going to be using to record. The software installation was pain-free, although I recommend getting the latest driver updates from their website and the latest software updates through the software itself. Make sure that you do NOT lose the CD, as you can only download the driver from Hauppauge's website, not the included software. One of the downsides of the PVR is that only the included software and a small list of 3rd party software will work with the device. Luckily, this isn't that big of an issue as the included software works great, with minimal issues.

One of the great things about the HD PVR is that it does all of the H.264 encoding on the box itself. In other words, you won't need a high-end PC to record in HD because the HD PVR does all of the heavy processing. You will need a high-end PC to watch and edit HD video, however. Unless you're just archiving or using the PC as a storage device (and then accessing the recorded videos on your 360, for instance), you're going to want a high-end PC to edit and playback the video that you record. There's simply no getting around this: if you want to produce videos in HD, you're going to need the tools for it.

The preview window provides smooth, full-quality video. There is a significant amount of lag between the source and the software preview window, however. If you were hoping to sit at your PC and play by watching the preview window, you can forget it. The input lag will make it impossible.

Overall, the video and audio quality are excellent. This will produce video miles beyond any SDi capture card you have. The device will record in whatever format you input (1080i, 720p, etc.). I would recommend going with 720p over 1080i. The lack of interlacing outweighs the gain in resolution, in my opinion (unless you're taking a screenshot or taking video with little movement). It support frame rates up to 60fps, maybe beyond. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in 720p at 60fps looks absolutely beautiful. The device lets you change the bitrate from 1MBps to 13.5MBps, so you can increase the quality of the video and sacrifice a small file size, if you wish. I find 8MBps to be a good balance. It allows you to fit 1 1.5 hours into around 5GB, and it still provides video that's good enough for YouTube HD uploads and similar casual usage. If you're going for production-quality video with almost no compression artifacts, you can easily increase the bit rate, but you're going to pay for it in file size and the power it requires to process.

All video is encoded in H.264. The software lets you record in 3 container formats: .TS, which is a generic 'transport stream' compatible with many digital media players; .M2TS, which is compatible with the Sony Playstation 3; and .MP4, which is compatible with the Xbox 360. These are somewhat-confusingly labeled "AVCHD", "PlayStation 3", and "Xbox 360" in the software, respectively. It's important to note that *this has nothing to do with what you're recording from* it only has bearing on what device you want to play back the recorded footage. The MP4 format will play back on an Xbox 360, while the other formats will not. I recommend choosing the format that works best with whatever software you're going to use to edit the video, or whatever device you plan on using to watch the video. Note that most software will be able to open/edit an MP4 file, while I've found less compatibility with the other formats. If you plan to burn footage to Blu-Ray disk, though, go with .TS, as it's the format used on Blu-Ray disks and so your video won't require any transcoding, which is very nice (you can burn a Blu-Ray disk in just a few minutes).

If you don't want your footage encoded in H.264, there is an included converter program that can convert to variety of formats, but I haven't tried it yet, so I can't tell you how well it works.

The only two minor issues that I've had have involved the software. Sometimes the capture program will not recognize the device, requiring you to unplug it from the computer and plug it back in, at which point it should work normally. It's not that big of an issue, and it may be specific to my computer, but it's worth noting.

Secondly, the included playback application, TotalMedia Theater, causes a hard reboot whenever I try to start it. This also isn't that big of a deal because there's lots of other software that can play back the recorded files. Based on searches in which I've found only a couple of mentions about the problem it appears to be a very rare issue, but it's still worth noting. (I'm using Vista 32-bit, for reference).

Overall, the HD PVR is great for recording footage from hi-def consoles like the 360 and PS3. It's easy to use, doesn't require an insanely powerful PC, and produces good-quality video and audio in a good format at a reasonable file-size. Although the price is a bit steep, it's worth it if you really want to record high-quality, high-definition game footage from your 360 or PS3. If you have any questions, feel free to post them in a response and I'll try to answer them as best as I can.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Here's the summary:

Not a DVR. This is a pass-thru from audio/video source to PC.

Generates H.264 at Baseline Profile 1.0 only -not the High Profile 4.1 that x264.exe-based programs generate. The Baseline H.264 quality is not as good as the High Profile quality using the same bit rate.

Generates default .M2TS files which are difficult to edit -use the .TS file output instead for easier editing.

Arcsoft software is good for capturing and that's it. The software for creating a disk always seems to re-encode -a process that takes my PC days or makes my PC hang.

After capture, I have to use third-party software to finish production.

The product is not an easy out-of-the box solution. Hookup is easy, and the Arcsoft software installation is easy, capturing is easy, but it gets tricky after that.

When you capture, you can set bitrates. I set my 720x480i broadcast to 4.1 MB/s thinking it would be fine. When I made a disk and played it on the Blu Ray player, the video had a horribly compressed look. That was a straight H.264 file from the HD-PVR 1212 unit to disk without transcoding. But when I transcode some other high-quality 480i video using an x264.exe-based application with 4.1 MB/s the video quality is fine.

Now I made the mistake of capturing my first video in .M2TS. Tried to edit it. Lots of software doesn't like .M2TS. I didn't know that then, but I know now. Fortunately I was able to use the freeware TSRemux to convert the .M2TS file to a .TS file. Now apps like H264TS_Cutter and multiAVCHD are happier. Lots of crashes and failures with .M2TS.

Editing. I use H264TS_Cutter to cut out commercials. This app is handy -you take clips you want to save and create a cut without transcoding. This is important in the H.264 video world because transcoding takes days on my PCs, but the H264TS_Cutter makes a cut in minutes. You can also join two files in this manner. H264TS_Cutter has never crashed on me with .TS files. I tried using a little more complicated app for cutting -TS Packet Editor -but I had to reboot my PC after each file edit.

Creating a video disk. I use multiAVCHD. It lets me make a simple menu for the multiple titles. To get this to generate a Blu-Ray format file structure, I had to (after clicking Start) select the button [AVCHD compatible players] -the button [For all Blu-ray players] wouldn't work in my Blu-Ray player.

The size of the output files determines what size disk I can use. I use Imgburn to burn to DVD-5, DVD-9, or BD-25 -this plays in my Blu-Ray player as long as I choose the UDF physical format and UDF 2.50.

That's the quick way of taking the output from the HD-PVR 1212 and placing it on Blu-Ray compatible disk. If all this that I've described sounds like Greek, be wary of this purchase. You'll need to do your homework on using these 3rd-party apps (though fortunately the ones I've described are free) to keep the production time to a minimum and spare yourself days of needless suffering. Had these tools been included and described in the bundled software for this purchase, it would have saved me about two weeks of trial, research, and error.

Best Deals for Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition High Definition Game Capture

June posting

ok I would have given this 5 stars but this comes with current problem with it, this has optical in for 5.1DD recording at this time hauppuage can not get this to work so you are stuck with PCM 2.0 or audio from the analog imputs, now to the rest, it records video at 1920x1080 at same or near Blu ray discs, you have a choice of bitrate constant from 1 to 13.5 Kb or on variable all the way up to 20.2, this records in the same codeec (AVCHD) as blu ray and HD DVD discs, it will take any component imput, I have mine through my receiver where my Dishnet PVR HD, PS3, HD DVD and Oppo DVD player runs through, just for test purposes I tried all my devices and what I test recorded from dishnet, blu ray, DVD and HD DVD the test disc looked no different than the original source, once you capture your source you can then edit or add chapters then you get to add a real cheapo menu and then put in what disc you need to burn either a DVD-R or a dual layer DVD Disc, it takes about 10 minutes to author your recording to Blu ray standard and burn on your normal DVD as a true Blu ray playable Disc, beware once you burn your DVD as a blu ray playback DVD you will not be able to read it in your computer again unless you have a Blu ray Rom or Blu Ray Burner, once and if Hauppuage ever gets the 5.1 DD fixed this could be the killer to blu ray Discs, hauppuage claims by next driver release they will include the 5.1 fix. Beware this is Xp service pack 2 or Vista operating system only, also you must have a fast computer to use this device and its programs, I have a dual core 3.4 gig Intel, 2gigs of ram, 2 500 sata HDD and had to buy a nvidia 7600 512 meg video card to get this up to speed and at the fastest bitrate 13,500 I cant do anything else on the computer, but this is the problem with Hi def, its power hungry, now I can finally put my hi def movies of all 6 star wars and 3 lord of the rings on DVD for 1080i blu ray playback, you can also convert the finished files over to movie factory 6 to burn on a normal DVD for HD DVD playback also.

August update...

Ok been doing alot of capturing, have made 40 dual layer DVDs for blu ray playback and 10 dual layers for HD DVD playback. the video qua;ity is great if you keep it above 7.8 bitrate, only major drawback is no 5.1DD audio, I am now Beta tesing the 5.1DD audio driver right now, wow this makes a huge difference with the sound. Problems still, wont work with the arch software yet, sync problems, but works with TSmuxer. There seems to be heat related issues with some boxes, mine stays on 7, 10, 15 hours at a time never gets overly warm and never locks up. I have done well over 100 captures with this device. Having an Lg blu ray burner and blanks getting below $8 each, this might be the future for capturing and buring HD content at the PVR's full 13.2 to 20.0 bitrate in the future. If hauppauge can just tweak this 5.1DD driver a bit more I think this will be a great little device.

October update,

I am now a beta tester for hauppauge and I finally got 5.1DD drivers and TME software that works, so now I got a card that finally works capturing movies the way I wanted it to, 5.1DD and can also edit with the software and no more sync issues, burn to dual layers DVD's or $4 blu ray discs.

December Update

Ok Hauppauge support finally has Drivers and software out for general public that makes this device work properly. you can capture 1080i from any component ouput using the 5.1DD and you get a great captured TS or M2TS file ready to burn to a blu ray or dual layer DVD with or without menu. since october I have captured and burned over 50 movies onto disc in 5.1DD and they look great, the ones from the 1080p sources look really great. Now I manually record all my movies, so I do not know how this works with a timer or sageTV.

Feb Posting

some here wanted me to post to let you know of known problems with this and dishnet, I find there is no exact problems per say with the PVR1212 and Dishnet, you should know that sometimes when you use this device with the dishnet you get out of sync problems and digital tears in the picture, most, if no all is the blame of dishnet or most likey the channel the show is broadcast from. Example: I have tried 7-8 times to capture and record Spaceballs from MGM HD channel every time its out of sync and every time its being played out of sync on MGM HD over dishnet before I even capture it. Please keep in mind when using this device, HD content is never perfect and they "big hollywood" does not want you to capture and record their programs. So dont be surprised if "they" are always trying anything to foil you capturing a Hi Def Digital program, be it dish, cable, PS3 or HD-DVD. so far I have captured and burned onto dual layer DVD's 130 movies from all such sources all coming out perfect, be it analog, 2DD or 5.1DD audio. yeah where else can you watch on a disc, star wars, lord of the rings, batman, star trek movies in hi def, way to go hauppauge. :)

Honest reviews on Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition High Definition Game Capture

(2008 HOLIDAY TEAM)As long as you know exactly what you are getting with the Hauppauge HD PVR, you won't be disappointed with the performance of this little black box. It is designed for PC Windows users only, although Mac owners can use it with some add-ons.

First, you'll need to understand and accept what this PVR does not do: without any memory or hard drive inside, it does not store video itself, making the PVR label somewhat misleading, and it does not burn video to DVD. To use it, you must hook it up to a PC or Mac (more on the Mac later) for both recording and playback. And it relies entirely on software running on your computer to record, edit, program, and burn Blu-ray format DVDs. The box itself has no controls other than a power button. It has component, composite, and S-video connections (no HDMI) for video, and optical and stereo audio inputs.

So what does it do? It takes the HD signals streaming into it and compresses them in a format that preserves the HD quality in a savable AVCHD file; you can record/save manually or on a schedule. These signals can come from a set top box, camcorder or other video source that can connect with the above inputs. The included ArcSoft Media software for Windows allows you to record on either the computer hard drive or an external one. Once the files are saved, you may use your computer's DVD-R drive to burn a Blu-Ray-compatible DVD or HD-DVD, edit, play back on your computer or television, convert to iPod-, Xbox-, or PS3-friendly format (MOV, MP4, M2TS, or WMV), or share playback within the same wireless network. The included IR blaster can change the channels on your set top box to the one you've programmed to record. Note: the blaster works with the included software and therefore only on Windows.

Chances are, you're going to have to do some thinking before you decide how to set up the PVR. The conversion box is 7.5" w by 6.5" d by 2/5 " h, so it doesn't take up much space itself. However, you will need a computer next to the HD source. For those who don't have their computer in the same room as the set top box, this may mean buying a computer specifically for video, and naturally, that increases the price of the set-up. However, if you don't plan on recording every day, you can hook up/unhook a laptop very easily just pull out the USB cable and your connection, if any, to the television. Hauppauge includes the basic component cables (HD source to PVR) and USB cable (PVR to your computer), but, if you want to play the video back on your TV, you will need to buy the necessary cables/connections for that. As of June 2009, the bundled PC software includes a program that allows your PC DVD drive to play the PVR Blu-Ray-format recordings. Depending on your set-up, you may want to add a USB hub, an external hard drive, and/or Apple TV.

Unfortunately for Mac users, Hauppauge does not support OS X, which means you'll have an additional software expense. Two software packages currently work with the Mac and the Hauppauge. The cheaper and less elegant solution is a program called HDPVR Capture, developed and sold privately by a Hauppauge engineer. The fuller featured, more versatile option is Elgato's EyeTV , but unfortunately, you can't use several of the features because it doesn't communicate with the IR Blaster to change channels. Both programs are available only online, although EyeTV 3 comes bundled with Elgato hardware products. If you can find a workaround for the blaster issue, the EyeTV 3 will be nothing short of awesome. It converts the PVR files to a wide variety of formats used by iLife programs. Hauppauge really needs to work more closely with Elgato to satisfy the rapidly growing Mac population. If you are a serious videophile and Mac user, you'll probably also want a product like Roxio Toast 10 Titanium Pro.

The minimum systems requirements for the PVR are: Intel Core Duo processor, 512 MB RAM (1 GB recommended), graphics card with at least 256 MB memory, and a sound card. Windows users need either the XP Service Pack or Vista 32. I'm using a three year old Intel Core Duo MacBook without any difficulty. I bypass the MacBook's hard drive to save all my recordings on a portable external hard drive, the Iomega eGo 320 GB USB 2.0/FireWire 400 Portable External Hard Drive 34403 (Ruby Red).

Consumers expecting a DVR with onboard memory and playback may be frustrated with the Hauppauge since it requires a computer, but for those who want to capture HD content and do something with it, you've found your equipment.

With special thanks to fellow reviewer Frank Miller.

-Debbie Lee Wesselmann

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Hauppauge HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition High Definition Game Capture

Let me say on the record I am very experienced with Hauppauge's line of HD PVRs, having owned the original HD PVR for years. When I heard about the HD PVR 2, I was ecstatic. On to the product.

The unit comes in a slightly smaller, stout box than the HD PVR1. It came with the main unit, power adapter, 2 HDMI cables (cheap, generic kind), AV connector, PS3 Component Cable, USB cable, Install CD, and various booklets.

Installation: 3/5

I plugged the unit in immediately to my Windows 7 PC hoping the advertised pass-through would work out of the box. Nope. The unit requires being on and the driver installed. So, I installed the latest drivers from the website. I eventually reverted to the on-disc drivers because of audio being flipped on the website drivers and problems with the component recording side. I also installed the Arcsoft Showbiz application included easily.

Software: 3/5

I'll say right now I'm not a fan of the bundled software, as I was not a fan of the TotalMediaExtreme software from the HD PVR1. This software does the job, but it is sluggish to record. Before you could disable the picture of whatever you were recording, but that option is now out. Initially, the button on the top would work and simply launch the application and begin recording. However, now it no longer works and I have to manually open the application, which isn't that big of a problem since I don't use it. To get to the capture software, you have to open Showbiz which to me is a bunch of bloatware. It would be much better if the actual recording program was separate from ShowBiz, if it was, I might actually stick with their software. I actually use a command line interface which doesn't use CPU or memory at all compared to the ShowBiz software. Google rcTVCap for more information.

Tweaking the encoder overall works fine. You can adjust the bitrate and recording scaling just fine through the encoder settings. The only problem I have is that when feeding a 480p signal (HDMI or component), it doesn't come out through the recording as 16:9, but correctly through the pass-through. I've tried this with both on disc and website drivers. If for some reason you were to feed a 16:9 480p, it'll be 720x480 which isn't 16:9 (854x480 is 16:9). Oddly enough, there is aspect ratio control in the encoder settings, but they'r grayed out, most likely because it's getting the wrong source resolution. But for 720p and 1080p the unit takes 16:9 ratios just fine.

Build Quality: 4/5

The unit looks much better than the original HD PVR. It's also much smaller, I'd estimate about 30% smaller. The unit doesn't get hot, even running or recording for extended periods. The cables included were of course bare minimum. But I think it was a bonus that they included a component cable for the PS3 and 2 HDMI cables to boot. Really, as long as the HDMI cable works, it's just as good as those "high-end" and high priced HDMI calbes (looking at you Monster). As for sturdiness, it's pretty light and I would guess that if you dropped something heavy like a brick, it would break. However, it should be common sense to not load anything heavy on top of the unit. It's sturdy enough for just placing on a table for extended periods.

Pros:

-Cheaper than other HDMI capture solutions.

-HDMI Capture 1080p30 and 720p60

-"Pass-through" for lag free gameplay (i have a couple thoughts about this).

-Doesn't have very specific requirements (i.e. Blackmagic Shuttle) at least for Windows Platform.

-Comes with HDMI and Component cables

-External, no need for PCI-E slot or high-end computer for that matter.

Cons:

-Installation can be a headache for some people

-PS3 can only be recorded via component (not Hauppauge's fault, due to HDCP on PS3)

-Website support and drivers can be iffy

-Component capture doesn't work half the time (have to restart computer to correct).

-Pass-through requires unit to be on and switched to appropriate channel (hdmi or av/component)

Other thoughts:

As for the pass through. I'll just say I don't exactly believe in it providing lagless gameplay. I compared a straight connection from source to monitor to having the unit connected. The pictures differ. The picture out of the HD PVR2 is ever so slightly fuzzier or less sharp. The colors also seem slightly washed out. I also play fighting games with a passion and I can most often tell if there is some sort of input delay. Unfortunately, I haven't tested through the hdmi connection, but from just playing on the PS3 hooked up via component, it felt like there was some sort of input delay. From my understanding, when converting analog to digital, which I assume is what happens when recording through component, there is definitely delay introduced. To not worry about all this, I use a powered HDMI splitter.

Conclusion:

Overall, the HD PVR has its share of plus-es and minus-es. Normally, I would think about returning a product like this. However, it gets the job done. Right now, it's the only way I can effectively record from HDMI (1080p) without need of PCI-E slots, or ridiculous specific requirements. Plus, I'm able to record via command line which makes the unit even better. I mostly use the unit for recording PC gameplay and so far without a hitch. I won't be using this to record anything from the PS3.

PC Specs:

Windows 7

Intel i7 3.4GhZ

Nvidia GTX 670

16 GB RAM

2x 2TB RAID 0

I will try to update this review as I get more experience with the unit and tack on more hours of recording.

Update: Apparently, the delay introduced when hooking up component through the unit is 60 microseconds, which is no where near one frame delay (60fps setting). So my gut feeling about input delay is most likely wrong. Again, I don't have equipment to scientifically test input delay and can only go off conjecture.

Review of 2x CHARGER + BATTERY FOR XBOX 360 WIRELESS CONTROLLER

Customer Ratings:

i always have to swap my rechargeable batteries when it comes to playing madden 12, but i always forget to charge them through my wall charger that they come with, but some, any, or all consequences stack up in game, per se, a interception, sack, miss fg, tackle, fumble in that game, and other games that have any consequences you should know by now.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

Review of Pac-Man Party - Nintendo Wii

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $18.25
Today's Bonus: 9% Off

Our family really loves Mario Party 8, of course nothing compares to it. Mario is the bomb!!! But this game is really neat and plays much like Mario party 8 (at least we think so). It's alot like a board game. I will admit in the beginning I was a little confused, but once you give it a chance and play a few different boards and spend some time getting to know the game, you realize how much fun it really is. The confusing part for me was that when its your turn to go (you don't always see your man moving). It took some getting used to but the mini-board on the side of the screen shows your man moving when its not his turn to see him move. Also, your running and eating cookies (pac-dots as I call them) so, you never really know where your going to land since there is no distinct spaces on the ground like what you have in Mario party 8. This way, I think it keeps you interested and surprised. But its all good, the mini games are really neat and is a welcome change from playing the same mini games over and over in Mario Party 8. I am a pac-man fan!!! I have played pac-man when I was growing up, so it was nice to see the original pac-man game on here (like an extra bonus) along with dig dug and galaga. I would definately give this one a try. I pre-ordered it for the pre-order price, in the end I think it was around $40 something. I'm not sorry either. IF you could get it cheaper go for it!!! Also, about the wii controller, it works good with the game just as it does in Mario Party 8, but I would definately recommend a classic controller for the pac-man, galaga, and dig dug bonuses (it plays better with the classic controller). Have an open mind and remember to play it a few times before making a judgement. The first time we played, I played 5 times (different game boards). Some game boards are longer than others, so if you don't want to play a longgggggggggg game you can play a short board. I like that feature. HOpe all of this helps.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

My 13 year old loves this game. We had the Mario Party 8 WII and she plays it all the time. I got her this WII game and she now plays this one all the time.

Would recommend.

Best Deals for Pac-Man Party - Nintendo Wii

I purchased this game (from my son) for my husband for Father's Day. We love it. The new game is a lot of fun play. You go to different places, try to get castles and collect cookies. If you land on a free spot free castle. If two players land on the same spot and no castle is there yet you get to pick a present to see who gets that castle. However, if you land on a space that has someone else's castle LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!!! The battles are pretty funny (shaving sheep, making pizza, shooting flying pumpkins). You collect the cookies as you go through the game. You get them just moving, when you land on your own castle you get a bonus, and when you defend your castle and win you get more cookies (from the other player(s). The object is to get all the cookies first and make it back to the Cookie Factory. My husband, son (who is 5 years old) and I love it. Now if playing this new way is not your thing no worries. The classic Pac-Man is on this disk to enjoy too. It also has the original arcade classics of Dig Dug and Galaza! Too much fun to miss!!!

Honest reviews on Pac-Man Party - Nintendo Wii

Just received this game for christmas and my wife and I have played it every night since. We have mario party 8 and this game is just a pac man version of it but I like the mini games more and the layout of the boards more. This game is more fun with people that aren't serious gamers b/c of the simplicity of the mini games but for a casual gamer just wanting to have fun I suggest you grab a few friends or family members and gather around to play Pac-Man Party.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Pac-Man Party - Nintendo Wii

If you're not a gamer, you'll probably like this. The graphics are cute but not high quality. The dialog leaves a bit to be desired and the sound effects and music are very repetitive.

It's a board-game style with lots of mini-games worked into it. Great for kids and fun for adults that are willing to try something different. Very simple rules = no confused frustrated googling for answers.

I haven't run into any bugs that actually affect game play, just a couple of lag spots but never during the minigames.

Overall a very fun game, maybe not $40 fun but close.

Review of Two Worlds 2: Game of Year: Pirates of the Flying Fortress Edition

Customer Ratings:

its an ok fantasy adventure game and for 10 bucks well worth it for game and expansion. BE WARNED, it is almost 20 gb download and DOES NOT activate on steam or origin and the process of just installing the game was a real pain for me fyi, my comp is fairly new custom made windows 7. If i had bought this thing near or at full price i would of just asked for a refund.

K so after downloading the 20 gb file, i noticed they split the languages into different FULL GAMES, 2 gb files each. Thats 2 gb for 7 or so dif languages, dont games usually have a more compact way of doing that? Anyways, after the fairly big sized download installing was kinda a bitch. First after downloading and trying to install, it said an error occurred involving the expansions pack not being copied over. I then deleted the file that the download was being installed to and tried again by installing directly in the same file. that way worked. sort of.

HERE IS HOW TO DOWNLOAD IT (worked for me atleast):

-start download from amazon, Remember where you choose to download it b/c u need to find it later!

-go to the file called something like two worlds 2 game of the year pirates of the flying fortress edition, i DID NOT click the install that the amazon downloader said to do b/c i think that could of been one of the many things that messed up my previous attempts

-once in the file click the .exe file with the corresponding language, for english click the one ending in ENG.exe

-I let it install to the default setting which is the same file where it downloaded

-i restarted my comp here

-then go to the newly created two worlds II goty setup file (in the same file where you selected to where to set the download)

-go to install then common then double click twoworlds2.exe

BE SURE to unplug an xbox 360 controller if you have one! this messes up the keyboard layout.

I noticed some glitches after doing certain steps, to fix them i always restarted. If something isn't working always restart instead of re downloading the whole 20 gb AGAIN.

Make sure you have update graphics card drivers aswell.

Also the code for the expansion pack is in the downloaded file ending in flying fortress edition keys.html

I hope this works for you! This is what i did after lookig around the internet. Now time to finally play the damn game!

editu can register the game online and they send u an email saying thanks and give u an ingame code that unlocks something, guess what the freaking code was invalid, just another great example of a good game getting messed up in retarded ways

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

UPDATE It all works now 9/28/2012

Thanks to Dennis the Amazon support guy noted below, it all works fine. I was able to move into the rest of the game. Here are some additional comments.

There is a lot of questing available and a large area to discover. I have read some comments about many worlds not being available except to online players, but I have not experienced any of this yet. If I find out otherwise I will update.

I have seen some crashing of late. The fix seems to be to save the game then reload it so I would guess there is some kind of save game corruption. For example, I was in one of the Tombs and some dead dudes attacked (what else do you find in tombs), and every time I tried to attack the game would crash. So on one of the loads, I ran out of the tomb, then saved, then reloaded and went back. All was fine. I have experienced this issue multiple times and as I recall each time I did the same save/load to get around it. At first I thought it was a DX10 issue so I started the DX9 version of the game but after a short time same thing happened.

Things get easier in many ways when you start spending your skill points to update your skills and improving weapons etc. For example, I am a fighter and now have certain skills maxed and my weapon upgraded pretty well. Now many foes die in one blow, some two, a few three. This is much easier than when I had to be careful to fight them one at a time in the beginning. Pay attention and when the going gets tough update the necessary skill or spend the ability points or improve items etc.

Overall this is as good a game as most I have played. The interface still feels a bit clumsy but overall, very fun. I am upping to four stars now that I can really play it and work the more advanced features.

UPDATE Awesome Amazon Support 9/27/2012

Still no fix for the game yet, but I used the call me now support button from my Amazon digital software library page. My phone rang almost instantly, I got 10 seconds of music, and then a young gentleman answered, said hello, I am so-and-so... how can I help you (at least he sounded young). This guy was polite, and easy to talk to. He could not fix my problem yet but..., he could see the history of my account, read all my emails on the problem in question which I could tell because he was able to quote what I said in my emails, and he could see other history on the problem. Seems the issue is common to all who downloaded this game version, and suspects it is because the game version is bundled with an expansion pack (one reason why I bought it), so there might be an additional key required for the expansion. It was a guess on his part but a good one and shows he has some brains. I wish all the software support people I talk too at work could be as good as this guy. He is going to call me back tomorrow with an update. Now that is service.

OK, so this says nothing about the game itself, but WOW!, to actually have a phone number to call and get a real person I can talk about my specific issue, in just minutes, who actually understands the problem and its history etc. etc. and who has what appears to be state of the art problem management software at his disposal... now that is worth an extra star to me.

Well done Amazon. With support like this, I will be buying more games from you. I will post again soon as there is a change.

Hail Flavius!

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

Could be a good game but gameplay has been stopped till they figure out activation. Here is my summary so far:

Like

* the introductory play is pretty good. It is clearly a "learning" demo when you start and you get a chance to try out the three basic character types. It is reasonably well done.

Dont' like:

* interface takes a lot of getting used to. This is not your DIABLO style interface. As such there is a lot of re-learning to do. I just do not understand the need to deveat from the standard interface these days. I understand the desire to offer a better experience by offering more control but doing so has a learning curve most of us don't want, so it should be optional. For example Inventory should be opened via "I" key like every other game. Not this game. How about "C" for character development? Not this game. And so on.

* game is prone to causing nausea. This has to do both with the way the screen looks overall, and some stupid idea that whenever the character turns, the screen is "tilted" slightly. Someone may have thought this offered a more realistic sensation but all it does it make me want to toss my cookies. Takes a lot of getting used to and really limits game play to less than one hour at a time (that sucks for any game).

* game manual. The one I got from the amazon download is in german (wonder if this is a clue to the activation issues). Needed to get the english manual from a third party download. Additionally so far this manual is hard to follow. I had to read pretty far in before I found the introductory info I was looking for to start playing (like where is the stupid button to open my inventory and character screens?).

REAL PROBLEMS

* but the biggest problem appears to be activiation issues. Activation seems way too complex and buggy. AMAZON itself is apparently to blame for some of it because the activation keys they are handing out are apparently bad and you have to contact them to get a good one. This is my problem apparently. Once you get so far through the game, you are asked for your key. There are in fact two keys: the amazon key you use for online registration, and the vendor key the maker gives you when you register. Neither works when the game says "demo over, enter key to continue". So now I am in wait mode to see if Amazon can get its act together. Still I can't help but blame the maker of the game as well. They just seem to slough off the issue as "someone else's mistake, don't bother us" even though the problem seems to affect more than just the amazon download. Apparently it has also been reported via Steam and other sources.

* not sure if gameplay is limited for single player. In researching the above issue I have seen comments that make me cringe like "you can only get to explore a small portion of the map in single player. You have to do multiplayer to see the rest of map". Wonder if this means additional fees?

So for now, only two stars. I will update when and if I get a working key to continue but unless things get way better, this game is not destined for historical significance.

Hail Flavius!

NFL Fever 2002 Reviews

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.95
Sale Price: $28.45
Today's Bonus: 5% Off

Everyone wants to know "How does NFL Fever 2002 compare to Madden 2002?" The answer is that Fever compares favorably, but is ultimately a different sort of football game. If you always thought Madden was "too arcadey" then you might want to steer clear of this one, as it plants itself somewhere between the simulation efforts of Madden and Sega's NFL 2K2, and the kamikaze kinetics of the NFL Blitz series. Fever is actually a very compelling and fun game once you get over the fact that you aren't playing Madden.

Fever easily pulls off the best graphics ever in a console football game. From the integration of many different intro shots for each play, to the exacting detail which accompanies every hit, jump, and stiff-arm, it is fantastically clear that the developers went the extra mile to really draw you in to the game and create an exciting & colorful world. The players jabber at one another, celebrate successful offensive achievements, and showboat after a steller defensive effort. It really does make Madden look fairly pale and colorless as a result.

The commentary suffers from some uneven choppiness ("FIVE... yard... reception by... ENGRAM!") but does give some timely insight in certain situations ("The defense is in a 3-4, a run would be successful here.") The much-touted graphics are indeed a step-up from Madden, but are not letter-perfect. The detailed faces are a very nice addition, but disappoint when Jerome Bettis looks nothing like Jerome Bettis. He's detailed, but looks nothing like the real guy. But it sure beats Madden's cheesy Kewpie-Doll faces.

The bottom-line really comes down to gameplay, and Fever tends toward "the big play." Interceptions are more common than in Madden, big runs, big returns, long gains, freight-train tackles, all of it brings make Fever seem a little over-the-top, and really makes Madden seem slow & pensive in comparison. Which is why some won't take to this more reactive arcade style of gameplay. Traditional football playcalling & tactics still apply, but the realism factor is purposefully loosened to create a more no-holds-barred atmosphere designed to ramp up the fun-factor.

Honestly, it took me a few times before I was ready to accept this type of football (not to mention getting used to the XBox controller) but once I did, I really started to appreciate the flair and style that Fever brings. I guess the telling thing is that I tried to go back to Madden and really had to mentally shift gears to prepare for a different sort of football experience. NFL Fever 2002 is fun, easy to pick up and play, easy to like, great 2-player fun, and a lot deeper than your average console football game. And they did an admirable job of injecting some life into a stale genre by pushing the fun-factor way up while still retaining the confines of real football.

If too many years of Madden is gradually putting you to sleep, get into the Fever and see how much fun a football game can be.

Click Here For Most Helpful Customer Reviews >>

I first thought of NFL fever as a blow off game like gameday for PSx. but this game is BETTER than madden, at least this yr. 2003 may be another story. i played it at babbages and the controls are basically the same, and Fever is completely new and does show off the power of Xbox.

Ive been playing Madden since it first came out for Genesis, and im surprised to say Fever is better.

Best Deals for NFL Fever 2002

I am one of those diehard Madden fans (aka stat-freaks) and the only reason I get video game consoles such as the Genesis, Psone, DreamCast, Ps2,and now the X-Box is for the Basketball and Football. For all except the Dreamcast, its been all about EA sports. When I finally got my hands on NFL Fever (which was the whole purpose of me getting an x box) I was drooling. I turned it on and I was just blown away by the graphics.....It was unreal....actually it was soooo real! I have the "PIP screen"(picture-in-screen) on my TV, and I put NFL FEVER in the pip screen while I watched my Bucs beat up on the Lions this Sunday, and I must tell you....it actually looked as if I was watching 2 real games. The speed of the game was as close to the real football players as I have ever seen. I started playing and I was not disappointed...well, actually I was..... If only the developers would have included a more variety of tackle animations (I have only seen 4), and include all the penalties ( I have only seen 4)--if they didn't want to include all the penalties they could have provided the option to turn specific ones off ala madden---...also if they could have made the computer AI a little better (realistic) this COULD have been the best game ever.....and that's saying alot comming from a die hard madden fan....BUT THE GAME IS FUN ...

Honest reviews on NFL Fever 2002

You want a football game? This is the one.Great graphics,fast loading time,and realistic players not those fake ones that look like zombies. You can change teames names to the Gladiators, Flowers etc. You can create your own players and set everyting to 100%. It even explains the game to you who have no clue what football is. It has traning modes which teach you how to tackel run, and throw. You can unlock teams in fantsy mode.I hope you get this game. Everyone will have it.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for NFL Fever 2002

After playing this game extensively in a kiosk, all I've got to say is WOW. Madden and the Nfl 2k series are in for some serious competition. This game is incredible. It plays much better then I was expecting it to. The running game is the best I have played, with holes that open up if you hit them right. The passing games is spectacular as well, but no so easy at first. You have to have your QB set, especially if your throwing into the secondary as the pass gets will get disrupted easily. Defense on this game is also top-notch. The pass rushing is incredible as is the receiver coverage.

As for the interface on choosing the plays, it is easy, straight-forward and quick. The graphics are the best amongst football games, and some of the replays are absolutely hilarious. I can't really comment on the sound as I was ata kiosk, I can't wait to hear some of the bone-crunching hits in full 5.1 SS glory.

This game gets 5 stars as it easily beats Madden for football game of the year