Review of El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron - Xbox 360

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We often see the debate rage on about whether games are truly art or not, but rarely do we ask the question: what sort of game would an artist make? El Shaddai would be that answer. You see, the game's director, Sawaki Takeyasu, who was in charge of the game's overall development, has only worked as an artist and even art director for past games he has worked on. Two of them, Okami and Viewtiful Joe, are considered some of the most beautiful and stylistic games ever made. He was also art director for Devil May Cry. His artistic focus, as well as the entire creative teams' purposefully artful approach, is evident throughout the entire game. This game has had a somewhat polarizing effect in the press (Game Informer: 9/10, Gamepro: 4.5/5, IGN: 5/10), with reviews being either universal praise or lots of (undue) criticism. Yes, you need to know what you're getting into when you pop in El Shaddai, a masterfully crafted experience that is meant to immerse and move you.

For me personally, I can already tell you after a bit of time with the game, this game should be bought and bought new to encourage the market to make more products as breathtaking and refreshing as this. It is an exceptional masterpiece that you will never forget, a truly amazing experience. Games this unique and beautiful are extremely rare and El Shaddai ranks among the very best of artistic games. Games like Okami, Viewtiful Joe, Muramasa: The Demon Blade, Odin Sphere, and a few others come to mind. The publishers and developers of El Shaddai need to be rewarded for taking such a huge business risk by putting out a piece of art very different from the 1,001 desaturated shooters that flood the market each year. Also, by buying these sorts of games new, we can show the publishers that we do love beautiful, artistic games, and maybe they'll start making games of this caliber more often than every couple of years or so. With that out of the way, here's some information to help you know what you're getting into with the game. I will keep it all spoiler free. This game is full of amazing surprises that need to be experienced first-hand.

El Shaddai is based on the ancient Hebrew text, the Book of Enoch, found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Anyone who knows a bit about their Biblical history knows that Enoch was a prophet that was active some time before the fabled flood of Noah. The story of his book, and this game, is that he is sent to "cleanse" the souls of fallen angels, called "Watchers," whose job had been to watch over mankind. They however, grew obsessed with humanity, took women as their own wives, birthed monsters called Nephilim, and now lived among people, corrupting God's divine purpose. It's a fascinating story subject for a game, and the fact that it is a traditionally western scriptural text being interpreted by distinctly Eastern, Japanese sensibilities makes it even more interesting. The characters are fascinating and while the distinct quirkiness of Japanese game design are here (although I wouldn't really go as far as to call it "anime style" per say), it's all a very refreshing experience. As Enoch, you will ascend a massive tower, each floor of which is an entire world devoted to each angel, and that's where the art comes in.

You see, each Watcher became obsessed with a different aspect of mankind, and offered their own unique "gift" to mankind as well. This translates to each Watcher's floor being completely unique in its art design. They're all striking and totally unique. In this game, you will transverse entire worlds that range from ever-shifting water color paintings, a world seemingly pulled from a minimalists' abstract painting in a modern art gallery, an organically rendered world, and even a hi-tech city very reminiscent of Tron: Legacy (Cycle sequence and all). I'll stop there because I really don't want to give anything away, as this game is spectacular when you discover for the first time what it has to offer. The enemy designs all fit their respective environments, and are pretty bizarre and interesting. Actually, all of the character designs are very striking, and some are very strange. Enoch himself is shirtless prophet in designer jeans, with white armor pieces that look like porcelain attached to him to indicate his health level. Archangels wearing black skinny jeans, while talking nonsense (at first anyway) on a cell phone? Yeeeeah, El Shaddai is kind of out there on its own in the world, but that is partly what makes it so spectacular. I really cannot praise the art direction in this game enough. It is one of the most varied, unique, and downright beautifully designed games in terms of art that I have seen since Okami, and I sincerely mean that.

The music cannot go unmentioned either. Composed by Masato Koda, who also wrote the music for the Devil May Cry series, this soundtrack is awesome. This game features music from all over the spectrum, ranging from levitical choirs, to Japanese garden zen-like music with harps and other traditional Japanese instruments, to 1970's jazzy-disco, to majestic Post-Rock. It's all here, and it's all quite excellent. I love it.

The gameplay is probably the most polarizing aspect of El Shaddai, and I can understand why (rhyme unintentional). At its core, El Shaddai is a 3rd person action adventure platformer with lots of beat-em-up moments. This is very well executed. However, this game takes another artistic school of thought and applies it straight to the gameplay. That concept is minimalism. You see, there is no HUD at all in the game. The combat is much more oriented on having encounters with only a couple enemies, with a focus on flow and elegance. Even the non-combat gameplay mechanics are very simple that use few buttons, but are executed elegantly. In fact, "elegance" is the word I would use to describe the gameplay in El Shaddai. This is intentional, and it is done with a purpose. Some in the gaming press have missed that and therefore given the review some poor ratings. Some will hate the gameplay, it's to be expected when it is so deliberately focused on being artistic in its execution and flow. You need to know that going in. Personally, I found it refreshing and very enjoyable, all of it.

Really, whether you enjoy the game or not will really boil down to whether you are in the right mindset to play the game. If you understand that this game, in every single possible way conceivable, is meant to actually stand as an immersive, beautiful work of art, you will absolutely love El Shaddai with your whole soul. Chances are, if you're looking at this obscure game at all, then you will be the type to love it. It is a niche title, that will probably grow to having a very devoted underground following (I truly hope it transcends an underground, cult status though). Personally, I fall in that category, and I am so refreshed after playing El Shaddai. It is a beautiful work of art, poignant and affecting, and I really hope that we get either a direct sequel, or at least a spiritual successor, soon. I said this earlier, but I must reiterate: BUY THIS GAME AND BUY IT NEW! Buy it, immerse yourself into it, and be transported to a magical world where games truly can be masterful works of art!

*As I continue my way through the game, I'll post updates to my review if I feel there is anything important to add to what is here in this review. For now, though, I think this review pretty much sums up the game in a spoiler-free yet informative fashion. I hope it was helpful. Thank you and good day! :)

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If the idea of cavorting before a hipster guardian angel who communicates with God on a cell phone and doing battle with minions of a dreadlocked Michael Jackson-alike who vogues in front of the screen whilst you're engaged in combat isn't an immediate turnoff, then El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron might just be weird enough for you.

El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron takes its inspiration from the Apocryphal book of Enoch. The more devout of thee in the audience can correct me if i'm wrong, but from what i could gather Enoch is a character from the Holy Bible book of Genesis who was a man of great faith, that turned out to be the great grandfather of Noah. In the game you are Enoch, a denim jeans clad hero fighting to restore order in Heaven by purifying truant angels to prevent the great flood. According to Genesis, angels had descended to earth and were making babies, known as Nephilim, with mortal women. This act of betrayal by the angels and humans was so detestable to the Big Guy upstairs that it inspired the watery Etch-a-Sketch end of the world. Talk about a jealous lover!

It's a Biblicalish tale with a very Japanese style. Think Bayonetta and Dante's Inferno (the not-classic game, not the classic book) by way of Davey and Goliath on acid. The play style is hack and slash with platformer tendencies. It does both competently. The art style is beyond gorgeous. Any number of screenshots would make decent wall hangings in your suburban home.

The 11 levels of the game sans one take place in a colorful and diversely envisioned netherworld. The one level not like the others involves a bizarre motorbike chase with Transformers-, no, Gobot-like nemesis's (f Michael Bay in the ear for ruining my childhood memories) on your tail in a futuristic Blade Runner-esque cityscape.

Most of the rest of the game involves doing battle with the fan club of puffy pantaloons-wearing fallen angels who don All-Seeing Eye of God masks (more popular in heaven on Halloween than Guy Fawkes masks) in boss battles. It's like if the back of a one dollar bill came to life... and wanted to kill you. Illuminati take note.

And now the verdict, in which rhubarb doom angles for a coveted AGN Game Critic Award. Using a 5 point scale we have...

Gameplay 3.5: The simple control scheme is easy to learn and adequately responsive. It's not uncommon to misjudge jumps, but i'd attribute that more to being dazzled by the purty visuals more than due to crappy controls. All in all a relatively frustration-free, controller tossing-less experience.

Presentation 5: Released in 2011 alongside such visual wonders as Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, Battlefield 3 and Rayman Origins, El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron dazzles with stunningly beautiful graphics. The vaguely decipherable story, based on an excised chapter from the numero uno best seller of all time, is served well by the marvelous artsy fartsy style.

Sound 4: Though the clip above from the Japanese version cannot attest, the voice acting is excellent, featuring a Shakespearean actor in the lead and a guy from the Harry Potter films as your "I've got God on speed dial!" pal and convenient save station. The musical score is fitting if not somewhat unremarkable. Sound effects do their job well.

Replayability 3: There are a whole host of bonuses to be had upon completion of your first playthrough. There are cinematics, sketches, harder difficulties, and extra costumes to unlock. If you're careful to collect all six of the "Prophecies of Ishtar" entries you'll gain access to an outfit that basically makes you invincible, which is handy for repeat playthroughs to pick up any spare cheevos left hanging.

Multiplayer 0: Thankfully, Ignition Entertainment chose not to tack a pointless multiplayer mode onto this little gem. Here is a case where a zed in the ratings category is a badge of honor. No need for multiplayer here. El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is a completely satisfying single player experience.

Final Score 4: El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is a video game not unique by type, but by style, and for that reason alone is worth a long lingering look. It can be had brand new for under $20 here at Amazon and at that price is quite the Eighth Commandment busting steal.

This review originally published with graphics and videos at AdultGamersNetwork.com on March 6th, 2012.

Best Deals for El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron - Xbox 360

Out of all the CoD and other shooter clones that seem to invade the shelves every year, a game that's truly different stands out; enter El Shaddai. The graphics are simply breathtaking; not in a Final Fantasy way, but in an almost metaphysical way. The combat is almost deceptively simple. It consists of pressing the attack button in various different timing combinations, which set of different combo moves which change depending on the weapon, of which there are three. You can also steal weapons from the enemy, called "purifying", which must also be performed every so often as evil builds up on the weapon. Anyway, I will make my review obsolete by summarizing in one sentence. On your way home, stop by your favorite video game store and buy this immediately. That is all.

Honest reviews on El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron - Xbox 360

My son is 12 and loves the game. I have watched quite a bit of it and it is really far out. The graphics are killer and the story line is deep. The fighting is fantastic.

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Let me say that the graphics are really interesting and appealing. but they will lose their appeal quickly, the gameplay just gets more and more repetitive with no sign of any depth in the future.

There are 3 weapons, thats it. You do not level up either, so you do not really learn new skills or new ways to use those weapons. The gameplay depth is what hurts this game the most.

The story is very out there... I still do not know what they were going for, but it's by no means the worst part of the game.

The sound and music are fine...

All in all, it's a game I played for a bit and lost interest in. The graphics and artistic direction are very appealing, but the strange story and shallow gameplay really hold this game back. The whole game turns into a grind fest that occasionally impresses you flashy, trippy, and impressive settings.

The 2d sections were neat though, I enjoyed those quite a bit.

Best Surf's Up - Xbox 360 Deals

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This is one of the last video games I ever would have thought to buy. I usually stay away from video games based off kid's movies, especially ones I didn't like all that much. However, while shopping, my wife and I found ourselves playing the game on an xbox 360 demo unit. We had just gotten xbox 360 (as a wedding gift lol) and I told my wife, there are probably much better games 2 player games for us.

Well, I couldn't find much else I thought she'd like, so I bought her Surf's up. I thought it'd be fun for an hour and they we'd both get bored of some glitchy controls or lack of any fun. Surprisingly, the gameplay, while simple (afterall it's for little kids), is great. The controls are tight and the different characters have varied if not distinct feels to them. With a few different goals to reach on each level and over a dozen levels, we're still enjoying the game. The tricks and scoring are a little simple and too easy for most kids even. However, completing a course with a high score and all the gates gets pretty challenging (though you only have to do one or the other).

Besides having more levels, characters, modes, etc. The one thing that really could have made this game 5 stars would have been more complex tricks, ones that don't just require a button press or two and to give extra points for varying your tricks. Then they could raise the highest scoring goal and give the game a little more depth and challenge.

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"Surf's Up" was a surprisingly great movie and my daughters and I loved it. Typically, games based on movies (especially animated features) can be really lame. Fortunately, this one is as terrific as the movie, and a whole lot of fun! It's easy enough that my 7 year old picked up most of the controls right away. But it's got enough challenges and unlockable characters, boards, environments etc. that we're still playing it and finding it exciting weeks after we first got it. I would say that this is not only how a movie game should be done, it's how all games should be done. A great game all around. "A+"

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I bought this game so that my son would have something to play. What I didn't expect is how much I was going to enjoy it. Easy enough that a 5 year old can understand how to play and have fun with it without getting frustrated, and fun enough that his mom will keep playing after he goes to bed.

You really can't ask for much more.

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Very entertaining and fun for kids about 8 to 12. My 9 year old grandson enjoys it tremendously.

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This is a five star rating because this game is fun filled and exciting. It's a "E" for everyone to play and enjoy.

Cheap FPS Freek by KontrolFreek (Classic)

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List Price: $19.99
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I hate to sound like a broken record reviewer, but like many others before me, I was REALLY skeptical when I discovered these here on Amazon. And like a smart buyer that I am I did my research before taking the plunge. I discovered that a majority of the reviews online were mostly all positive the build is good quality and for the most part, it improved accuracy across the board for a majority of the buyers. Reading that, I pulled the trigger... (YES, that was a pun)

So like many millions of gamers out there, my latest FPS addiction is Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) for the Xbox 360, and the FPS Freeks promise to deliver on higher/better control and accuracy when you put these on. You get TWO per package so I just used one for the right thumb stick only. As promised, the build was solid and snapped on to my controller nicely. **NOTE However, if you have a controller with a WORN thumb stick (yes, you know who you are and what it looks like) then you might have to buy a new controller to take full advantage of these, as THEY WILL slip on worn sticks.**

Now that the build promise is pretty solid, what about the control/precision promise....?

Let me explain my gaming with MW2 for a bit. I'm not MLG pro material, at all, mind you. But I LOVE to play MW2. I have my hot and cold days and I'm certainly not a dominating "beast" when I play. What I can tell you is that my strength lies in my SMG and Close Quarters Battle (CQB) combat. When it comes to Sniping I rate myself as OK. But when you put a Assault Rifle in my hands, I downright SUCK!! I'm not afraid to admit it too. The most powerful arrangement of guns MW2 has to offer, and I have no skills to play them. Somehow everyone else can get a "bead" on me and kill with a single burst or head shot (maybe they're using FPS Freeks!) with little effort. I, on the other hand, seem to ALWAYS overcompensate, even when I'm LDS (Looking Down Sights) I seem to always miss my target. I've even experimented with multiple sensitivities to no success...

Fast forward to my new experience with the FPS Freeks:

Assault Rifles ---> HOLY CRAP YES, with assault rifles I can honestly say I've gotten better with it on. I'm still in the process of finding my new "sweet spot" with the sensitivity but what I like the MOST about having them is the sheer precision that you get by having your sticks extended with these. Now when I gently/slowly move (or flick) the sticks, the targeting overcompensates WAY LESS than before, which usually overshoots the target. I ALWAYS fought with the sticks on being subtle, now its so much less effort. Pick your poison gun at this point!! Hmmm Scar-H or ACR?? It didn't matter, my Kill-Death ratio (with assault rifles) dramatically improved. Again, not pro status, just better. ALREADY worth it at this point.

SMG/CQB (Close Quarters Battle) ---> Already my bread-and-butter setup, I noticed I had to up the sensitivity by a couple notches...and this was a good thing! I'm pretty good at the snap-shoot hipfire kills that CQB brings, but WOW, I can whip 180's in a sec and get my knife or SMG kill on with so much more precision and accuracy it seems illegal! Loving my FPS Freeks even more!!

Sniping/Long-Ranger ---> The MOST noticeable improvement thus far. Key word noticeable -. I'm a tried and true "hard-scoper" (not a cheap quick-scoper) and is ALL ABOUT subtle precision. Holding my breath, leading my target, and taking that headshot has NEVER felt SO EASY!! I'm dead serious!! (pun again) Sure anyone can kill some dummy standing still, but killing a flagrunner from across the map multiple times in a match is sheer brilliance! Again, you may brag on your skills being godlike, but for us "common" gamers, this is an experience that cannot be described. Man oh man, the FPS Freeks have made things crazy!

CONCLUSION: So let it be said. I wanted to buy these to enjoy MW2 more than I'm already doing now. I honestly don't care about KD Ratios and Win-Loss ratios and I don't obsess over it like a lot of my friends do. NOW, I can say I am a more flexible MW2 player and having a boat load of fun doing it even more. FPS Freeks has passed with FLYING COLORS. If you're expecting to be "FPS God", NOTHING can guarantee that. Just like anything else, a tool is only as good as its handler. If YOU want to become better, by buying these, I believe you will. But if you need help getting there (or at least have some fun doing it), then I'm 100% confident that these FPS Freeks are the way to go!

Great job Kontrol Freeks!! Keep up the good work!!

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Initially when I saw these, I was skeptical that they would stay on the controller. They snap on very tightly and haven't fallen off in the 2 months they've been on. I got them for my birthday in July and they haven't been off my controller since, other than to see how much they change the way I play. They are awesome. Within one week of having them, my accuracy on COD4 went up .5%. I know that doesn't sound like much, but considering that it has never improved in the 30 days playing time I have amassed, I think speaks for itself. On their site, Kontrol Freek recommends taking them off to see just how much they change the gaming experience. I took them off for a total of 45 seconds while playing COD4 and discovered just how much they change the way you play. I couldn't hit a thing.

I'm 35 and I consider these to be one of the best birthday presents I've ever received. I've changed my 360 profile to be a billboard for Kontrol Freek in my bio. Totally worth the money. 5 stars isn't enough to completely describe how I feel about these.

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These have exceeded all expectations for such a small, inexpensive item. I bought these specifically to gain an advantage in COD MW2. My accuracy has increased dramatically; fewer wasted bullets and faster kills. I actually sped up the control speed, because these enable me to move slowly and accurately. I'm able to consistently nail headshots on running targets using assault rifles from a distance. Awesome! Definitely worth it... I just don't want to tell too many people!

Honest reviews on FPS Freek by KontrolFreek (Classic)

BEFORE:

While playing Call of Duty, Halo 2 and 3, and any other competitive first person shooter I would always struggle with the balance of the look sensitivity. For exmaple since Modern Warfare 1, I played with a look sensitivity of 4. This setting was great for me and I excelled at it. I could aim accurately but was not able to scan an entire room or quickly glance behind me an then snap back to the front again. To remedy this problem I did experiment with higher look sensitivity settings, like 6 or 7, I loved the ability to snap look around, but alas I lost my precision accuray, finding myself looking way to far past my target and then trying to correct it swinging past the target again, and then I was dead! So frustrating.

TESTING THEM OUT:

So now I tried the FPS thingees, and I have to say look sensitivity level 4 is way to slow, in fact I tried 6 and was pinpoint accurate and able to snap look around, again still under complete control of my character movements and aiming. So I was blown away by these, I had to put them to the test. I joined a Free For All game on Modern Warfare 2, and put my look sensitivity up to the "level 10 Insane" setting. Man, I was striking down foes with ease and spinning on a dime accurate. In fact I won the game! While 10 was sllightly a little too fast, I turned it down to 7 and found my sweet spot.

Testing My Skills without them after a week of using them:

Ok, so I take these FPS thingees off, to tet out my old skills.

Guess, what? I could still play on look sensitivity 7! I was like wow, these have trained me to be able to use this high look setting of 7. The only thing is that the nubby joysticks are actually ncomfortable on my fingers, yea that's right they feel "blocky" like a plastic lego. Another thing is that I actually went back to a level 4 after a week, because it was a hassle to try to aim long distance with pinpoint accuracy without the lower setting of 4 and without the FPS thingees.

One thing I liked about them not being on is that I can more easily hit the "back" button to view the score, which really isn't a big deal.

So I kept the FPS thingees off for a week, and I just had to try them again.

Guess what back to level 7 accuracy.

PS> You can still knife just fine with these on.

OVERALL:

Cheap.

Worth the money.

Improved my gameplay. i.e. accuracy, mobility, and scanning a room quickness.

Was not disappointed.

Still use em, still prefer em.

Highly recommend them!

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I was skeptical about these at first. They take some getting used to, and I only use the one on the right analog stick. But once you get used to them you will wonder how you ever played without them. I play COD MW2. You must also remember to crank up your sensitivity a couple of notches when you use them.

Reviews of LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 - Xbox 360

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My wife and I played through the first Lego Harry Potter game, and we loved it. We've played other lego games, but by far the Harry Potter game was our favorite. So, we were way excited when we got the second Lego Harry Potter today. After playing it for several hours, I am very pleased with how similar the gameplay is to the first game, yet it's different enough to keep it interesting. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who has played and enjoyed the first game. It's great!

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Having owned every Lego game in recent years we were excited about this game, unfortunatly they rushed it out the door for the holidays. The common glitches are using pets and item assembly. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to use a pet for a puzzle and the game will not let you unless you are standing in an exact invisible spot to release the pet. Some assembly challenges had to be abandoned and retried because of lego parts getting stuck so assembly could not be completed at that time.

Game play is similar to previous lego games, but it is not always clear what needs to be done to continue the story. Couple this with game glitches and it can be a frustrating game at times.

If the game maker fixes the glitches in an update then I would change my rating to a 4+. Until them the game is a mixture of pleasure and pain for any age.

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This game is just as fun as the first! There are a few updates to hogwarts and the spells, but that makes everything new and exciting. The game is very in depth, there are so many levels and side stories to play through. I have experienced a few glitches but no freezing unlike all the other lego games.

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I'd wait to get this, a few bugs need to be worked out and it should be about ten bucks cheaper than what it is right now.

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An improvement over the first. They incorporated some elements from the books that were missing from the films. Gameplay and controls work well. Music is film fare which I enjoy. Graphics, well its a Lego game but the backgrounds are done well and the pieces are well done. Overall a funny enjoyable game for fans of the series.

PS2 USB Energy HD 1" Foam Deluxe Dance Pad 4 in 1 Review

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List Price: $69.99
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Purchased mine from amazon in December 2007... It still works just fine.

Pros:

-Great quality (obviously 2 years and it still works)

-Does exactly what it advertises

-Mega simple to use

-*Proven*Works VERY WELL with step mania and FFR (but beware of some lagging issues when using vista)

-*Proven*Works with DDR on ps2 and X-box

Cons:

-$$$ when i bought it, it was $84

Aside from that, there are no other cons with this product. It's awesome and if you're looking, you should probably buy it.

___

*Update* 4/3/2011

Positive: Product is still in excellent condition and works fine with windows 7.(Even after 4 years!) I cannot confirm if this product is compatible with next gen systems.

Negative: I can see that support for these thick old foam insert pads is starting to get phased out. Dance-pads are a bad investment if you aren't already an avid Dance pad user. Basically if you even sorta think its going to collect dust, you shouldn't buy it.

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The pad is great. It works with my dell pc running windows xp. I put the foam in, zipped it up, and plugged in the usb cord that came with it and it was working in 5 minutes with stepmania. 1 week of strenuous use and still perfect recognition of steps. No lags whatsoever. If you want cheap and best, this is it. "

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My old dance pads were wearing out, so I did some research and found these. Everyone said they were the best soft pads, and for once, everyone was right!

The foam on the bottom *really is* non-stick on carpet. I don't know if it would be on hardwood, though. The 1" inserts are a little difficult to put in, but if you're patient, they fit. Just be careful not to get anxious and rip the bottom foam trying to push the insert in farther. The insert makes jumping a lot easier on the knees. I do worry about wearing "dips" in the foam, but since it's replaceable, I'll just make sure to keep this company's address on Favorites.

Putting the unit together took me about 20 minutes, but I was being VERY careful not to tear or bend anything. The unit itself unzips all the way around, you construct the foam insert puzzle pieces, stick it in and zip it up. It takes a bit of maneuvering to get it to fit, but I think the tight pull on both sides helps with the accuracy and stability. Once you zip up the foam, it's literally plug and play.

I couldn't believe the accuracy of this thing! I've been struggling on Light Mode to get mere A's, and with this I could hit AA within one to two tries on a song. It won't be long until I"m trying a few of the harder settings...maybe even Oni mode, which up until this point has been impossible to try. The raised arrows and the different "feel" under your feet between the arrows and the shape buttons helps, too.

Short of shucking out several hundred dollars for a metal dance pad, I think this is the best value. We'll see how it performs after six months of abuse from a 200 pound woman.

Honest reviews on PS2 USB Energy HD 1" Foam Deluxe Dance Pad 4 in 1

As an experienced player of Dance Dance Revolution, Stepmania, Osu, and other rhythm games, I find it only fitting that review the dance pad that I personally use.

Dance pads are a product category where there is a stable supply of uncomfortable, easily torn, or downright useless models. After having played on a variety of plastic pads, a few foam pads, arcade machines, and even my own personal metal pad, I have found that there is one pad that I outright prefer to play on.

The Energy Foam Deluxe Dance Pad

Durability: 7 out of 10

The durability of a product like this is extremely important. When you are banging your feat on something day in and day out it is easy for a non-metal product to tear. This is where a Energy Metal Arcade Dance Pad generally wins out. I have bought two of these pads in my heavy conquest into Stepmania pad play over the last one and a half years or so. The first one eventually lost sensitivity in one of the arrows after around nine months of play. The second one is still in use today and works perfectly. This product can get cosmetic tears and rips from time to time but it takes quite a while to cause it to stop being fully functional. For a dance pad, it is relatively sturdy and reliable but it is not indestructible and may have to be replaced.

Comfort: 8 out of 10

The Energy Foam Dance Pad adds a lot over a Energy Non-Slip Dance Pad through the foam insert. You can use this pad to place on hard flooring with little trouble. It takes about an hour of play a day over a week or two to notice stress in my legs and feet. In that sense, I would compare it to be on par with running around in a decent pair of shoes intensely and every day.

Usability: 10 out of 10

After having used other dance pads, none come close to this one in note accuracy, responsiveness, and easy of moving between steps. Playing in socks is something you generally cannot do safely with metal pads but it works perfectly with this pad. I have reached difficulties as high as thirteen and fourteen using this pad and I believe one day I will be able to manage a fifteen. On my metal pad, I struggle with twelves (Which could be a good thing if you're just trying to work your body out). This pad has worked perfectly for me until death once properly setup.

Design: 7 out of 10

The overall art style of the pad is pretty much fair enough for what it is but it doesn't stand out above other pads. A large plus of this pad is that it has plugs for most consoles and PCs. Compatibility includes Playstation, Playstation 2, XBOX, and PC/MAC. I have only personally tested it for Playstation 2 and PC via USB and it worked perfect for both. However, the area where all the plugs are is shaped like a squid with all the plugs randomly flying out of the main cable. This gets in the way of trying to set other things on the table if you are playing on the PC and the like but that is a fairly minor gripe.

Difficulty of Use: 9 out of 10

It's plug in and play. Once the device has been recognized, I've really only had user error problems in using it. If you are playing Stepmania then you will probably have to go into the game's keybinding configuration and setup the keys to play. I use the "Select" button on the pad as my back button and everything else is as intended.

Overall: 9 out of 10

For a serious player of any pad based dancing game the most important things are how well you can flow between areas of the pad to hit notes, the comfort over long periods of time, and the reliability of the product. This pad does all of those fairly well. Pads are notorious for eventually breaking so the fact that this one lasted upwards of a year at my level of play during the first purchase is actually rather good. Aside from that, the levels of performance I've been able to reach with this pad make it speak for itself. It is a great product in a market saturated with easily broken or malfunctioning garbage so I am happy to have found it and I also heartily recommend it for anyone interested in moderate to heavy play for Dance Dance Revolution or Stepmania.

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I've been using RedOctane pads for about three years now, but when I needed a new one recently, I found they no longer made dance pads. I tried this one as an alternative, and it's decidely mediocre. I regularly play songs up to 200 BPM or so, generally playing 7-9 step songs. With that as a background, here's how I felt about the pad.

The good:

* Fantastic foam insert; solid but not hard.

* Doesn't slip much, even on the carpeted floor that I play on.

* Very responsive sensors; if you hit the step at the right time, expect to get the best rating.

* Works well with Stepmania.

The bad:

* Smaller sensors than RedOctane pads; probably sufficient for most purposes but more restricting than I'm used to.

* The padding that raises the arrows is inside the top of the pad, and is not at all secure. At the time of this writing, three of the raised sections have migrated halfway to the center of the pad, making it very annoying to play on.

* Sometimes the pad just simply stops working for a second or two, and I'll miss several in a row (not even Bads or Poors, but complete misses).

This isn't a bad pad by any means, but I'm not sure it's the best for the level that I'm used to playing at. I'm actually going to try to return the pad because it just doesn't work well enough for me.

Best Turtle Beach Ear Force DX11 7.1 Dolby Surround Sound Headset Bundle Deals

Customer Ratings:

I bought this headset from Best Buy when it first came out. My brother has the Turtle Beach X41, and I've gotta say, I love the DX11 so much more! This headset is much better than the X41s because you don't have to worry about charging multiple batteries since they only last a few hours of playing. The DSS Module is also much smaller than the X41's, and there is only one extra cord you have to worry about (connecting the headset itself to the DSS), but it's incredibly long so you don't have to worry about having to sit too close.

The headset itself is very similar to the X41, but it's not the exact same. This one feels a little lighter and actually stays on my head a little nicer than the X41. There are also no controls on the headset itself, as the bass boost and volume are moved to the DSS Module, while the chat and game volume controls are shown in the picture, which is about a foot and a half down wire from the headset. The mic is the standard mic on Turtle Beach headsets, allowing for near unlimited flexibility.

The sound quality is unbelievable. The bass the DSS Processor produces is amazing. In games, you can hear people's footsteps from far far away. I'm a Call of Duty player, and paired with Ninja/Pro, you can be unstoppable because you can figure out where everyone is. The only problem is that it also makes your footsteps quite loud, so Ninja is almost a necessity. I also plug this headset into my PC to listen to music. Listening to the Final Fantasy XIII OST on here conjures quite possibly the most soothing, amazing, awesome, uplifting, inspiring, straight-up emotional feelings you can get from any music period. The headset is worth the money just by its amazing ability to make any music you listen to so much better.

In all, this headset was the best investment I've ever made! Beautiful music/sound quality paired with being incredibly useful in video games make this headset worth well more than $140. I would also say that after shopping around for months trying to find the perfect headset, this could possibly be the one. Great buy, 5 stars.

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I was a tritton 5.1 ax360 owner for 2 years. My headphone band snapped so I needed a new pair. I came across these and was a little worried. They are only have 2 speakers in the headphones vs my ax360 who had 4 in each ear.

Does not matter. These things sound so much better and event he surround effect is much better. I can pinpoint sounds much better and the headphones overall is much more comfortable.

The beauty is that is your headphones ever break you can buy another pair for $40 and plug it into the box and you are good to go. This is my first Turtle beach headphone and am very impressed when it's connected to the DX11 box. Fantastic product.

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This is a great pair of headphones. Beware, when buying, though: make sure that your X-Box360 is a new model that has an optical port. Without it, or an adapter (sold separately), you will not be able to connect the DSS that gives you the full Dolby 7.1 experience advertised. Without the DSS, these are literally just a $50 pair of X11s.

Also, with regards to price, the $130 tag on Amazon is ridiculous. Best Buy has them on sale for $109 in their B&M stores so, until the prices change, I'd suggest looking locally to buy rather than buying on Amazon.

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I bought these because I didn't want to disturb my family at night while i game and compute. These things are loud and sound great. They feel great and i can wear them comfortably for hours and hours. Build quality isn't bad. I've had them for months and they're still just as good as they were when i bought them. The surround sound is great for pinpointing enemy locations if you're playing a shooter like MW3. You can tell exactly which direction the action is taking place at. The microphone works perfect and I can hear the chat convos perfectly. You can adjust the chat volume and game volume independently of each other, which is great if i want to hear more footsteps and less whining. The only things i didn't like about these was that they were white when my xbox is black. I wouldn't recommend it, but i took mine headset a part and spray painted the white parts black and they're just as black and shiny as my xbox now. Looks great, sounds great, feels great. Definite buy.

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I bought these at Best Buy with some gift cards that I was saving. If I didn't have the gift cards, I am not sure I would have spent $99 to buy them..... BUT they are totally worth it. The sound is amazing! You can hear everything. They are also very light & comfortable. I gamed for hours as well as watched movies with them and they didn't bother me a bit.

I can't compare them to any other headphones but from my experience with these, I wouldn't buy any other ones. The only downfall is the wires but I would rather have to deal with wires than buying batteries all the time. Even rechargeable ones. I don't have to worry about sound cutting out in the middle of a heated battle.

The first time I played with the headphones, I was blown away. I even got some achievements that I don't think I would have gotten without them. My gaming experience has totally changed. You can hear people trying to creep up on you, bullets flying from the left or right side. It feels like you are in the game. You can even control how loud you want the voice chat.

Overall, TOTALLY AWESOME!!!

Buy Super Meat Boy Ultra Edition - PC

Customer Ratings:

I had been watching this game for a bit on Xbox Live Arcade, but hesitated to buy it because I'm mainly a cinematic action gamer, and FPS gamer. However, I made a realization that lately I've been enjoying the smaller more arcadey games. They are easier to pick up and play when I get time now that I'm busy with work and family. So, you could say, SUPER MEAT BOY SAVED MY FAMILY.

No more do I have to spend $60+ on a game that I only play twice! NO MORE, do I have to be slave to hour long cutscenes. SUPER MEAT BOY SAVED MY LIFE.

Get in. Die 249 times. FINALLY reach the end. Win. This game is frustrating, satisfying, aggravating, relaxing, funny, sad, high protein and low fat.

Do yourself a favor, and get Super Meat Boy in some form or another. WHY NOT THIS VERSION? It has things in it which look neat.

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Oh, yes. You will get angry. You will curse. You may even heave your controller across the room.

You will cry out in agony and frustration. You will play the same level hundreds of times.

But, at the end of the day, you find yourself grinning like an idiot.

You just had the most fun with a game since you had your NES.

Super Meat Boy is the most ridiculous game that has been released in a long while, and therein lies its' charm. It is such a unique, quirky idea, it reminds one of NAMCO's gem, Katamari Damacy. I mean, this is a game about a hunk of meat trying to save his latex girlfriend from a ugly robo-fetus.

What's not to love?

The gameplay is the tightest, best controlled platformer I've ever laid hands on. Each of the hundreds of levels seems like it was meticulously designed for the player, with all the narrow misses and 'I ALMOST HAD IT!'s. The game lasts and lasts forever. If you want to complete the light world (the normal difficulty) and the dark world (the hard difficulty) it will take you hours upon hours. And then there are the hidden bandages that unlock awesome characters (including original ones and ones from other games). The look on my face when I was jumping around these levels as Tim from Braid must have been priceless. In between levels you are often treated to hilarious animated cutscenes setting the stage for the next zone or level. They are great, and it almost seems like Meat Boy could have his own cartoon.

The music deserves its own paragraph. A little bit 8-bit, a little bit metal, a little bit electronica, Meat Boys' music will have you rocking out in no time. From the awesome opening theme to each area's unique song, it's all stuck-in-your-head-humming-it-all-day greatness. And the best part? It comes with the soundtrack.

If you like platformers, you have no reason not to buy Team Meats' baby. It's $20, and for that you're getting one of the best platform games in existence. So go to it, and watch out for all the saw blades! ;)

10/10

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This is one of the best games to come out of the last decade. The price is perfect and includes tons of extra goodies. Every pixel is just oozing with personality and quality. This is a must buy for anyone who plays and enjoys games.

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The Good: Pixel perfect controls, tons of charming visuals, catchy music, humorous story and characters, replays are a blast to watch

The Bad: Brutal difficulty, extra characters are hard to unlock

2D platformers are always compared to a 20 year old game known as Super Mario Bros. and they have every right to. That game was flawless and literally created the 2D platforming genre. Super Meat Boy is probably the only game in recent history that comes close to that kind of pixel perfect jumping and tight responsive controls. SMB also has a ton of humor infused with it, and the game is a blast to play and is highly addictive.

You play as Super Meat Boy who is trying to save Bandage Girl from Dr. Fetus. It's a simple story, but its hilarious and the cut scenes are drawn beautifully. The art style is very unique and there's so much detail infused in this game it's nuts. When SMB gets destroyed he splatters his meaty goodness all over the walls and it stays there. He makes a splooshing sound when running and his facial animations are very funny. There are other characters you can unlock by completing warp levels and these guys are just as detailed and have their unique abilities.

The controls in the game are what really surprised me. They're just absolutely perfect. They are super responsive and tight and it feels like your controlling the characters with your fingers instead of buttons. Using the Games for Windows controller (or any other) is essential, but the keyboard works too. Jumping around corners and manuvering though the games brutal levels can be conquered thanks to these tight controls. I'm dead serious about the game being hard because every corner and jump requires extreme precision or you will die 30+ times. Oh sure, you'll die that many times thanks to a quick reset button that has zero loading. What's cool is after you beat the level you get to see a replay of every time you died, so every SMB goes off and you can follow them until the last one makes it. It's awesome, unique, and makes you want to watch every replay and save them for friends to laugh at.

The warp levels bring the graphics back to 8 bit with amazing music and tend to be more challenging than the regular levels. Usually you get to play the characters you will unlock, but game play varies in these levels. You can also find bandages in the regular levels, but these require extra extreme precision (if that's possible), so this game is really for hardcore gamers only. Casual gamers will give up quick and there's no difficulty levels to set. From the frantic boss fights to the constant dishing out of new obstacles to overcome the game ramps up after the first few stages, so you must stay on your toes.

With a crap ton of charming visuals, catchy music, and perfect controls the game shines above all other 2D platformers. It wouldn't hurt to say it's probably the best 2D platformer in the last decade, but the brutal difficulty is very forgiving thanks to the feeling of accomplishment once you trump that level. Try beating the record time to feel even better about that victory! I highly recommend SMB to any platforming fan or even fans of the 16/8 bit eras.

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How much do you value your precious free time and the amount of blood, sweat and tears that you may lose from being frustrated at a game? Well, regardless of what bodily fluids you may lose over playing this game, SMB is an awesome game. It is hardcore tough. Completionists may take a liking to this game because there is a lot to do and masochists...well, you get the point. This game is tough.

You play as Meat Boy, a lovable wad of meat who is trying to rescue Bandage Girl from being kidnapped by Dr. Fetus. Awesome already isn't it? You must get from point A to point B in each stage while maneuvering sometimes very difficult obstacles. There are 7 worlds to beat, usually with 20 stages each, an additional 20 stages that are more challenging, boss stages, and secret hidden levels. There are extra characters to unlock (many of them you may recognize from other games) and each with their own special ability.

Cons: Tough as nails platformer may be a turn off to some looking to play a casual game. Also, turn back now if you don't want to realize you actually have a potty mouth.

Best Spec Ops: The Line - Xbox 360 Deals

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $21.29
Today's Bonus: 47% Off

In a market inundated with shooters, I found Spec-Ops: The Line to be a breath of fresh air. Yes, it employs the standard mechanics of most third person shooters (cover, blindfire, melee, squad commands) but the story is what really distinguishes this title.

When I first started playing this game, I admit, I was fairly disappointed because it didn't seem to offer anything that I hadn't seen before. But then a curious thing happened. The story slowly started to put my head in a chokehold and would not let go. This is the problem I have with some of the games out there in the market. Story seems to have taken a back seat to extensive set piece sequences rather that the other way around. Granted, Spec Ops has more than a few of these sequences, but they come from a natural progression of the story.

What started off as standard action movie fare, slowly unraveled in a story of horror and madness. That seems like an overly dramatic statement but that's what I felt as the game continually bombards you with images of violence and questionable moral perspectives under the theme that even the most honorable of men are capable of doing evil things. For a military shooter, this is pretty groundbreaking. Your enemies aren't just faceless sprites that you pick off one by one as you pump your fists in the air. In Spec-Ops, they are just as human as you and I. I didn't feel good playing this game, and I say that with the highest compliment. It was the equivalent of seeing a car crash in slow motion: you can't tear your eyes away from it and you know it's not going to end well, but you're fascinated nontheless.

A couple of gripes that I have is that the game mechanics are very dated. There's not a lot of innovation and quite frankly, the Gears of War series, a comparable genre, does it better. The animations are a bit stiff and don't get me started on the enemy AI. They flank, which is a good thing, but more often than not, they will start shooting at you out in the open which makes them too easy to kill. The game is also fairly short at 5-6 hours. Some may not be able to justify a full retail purchase for a game that you can complete in an afternoon, but the game's story convinced me that it was worth the price.

I really like this game. It's not as polished as it could have been, but I'm glad the developer has taken the time to focus on narrative which distinguishes it from most shooters these days.

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Just got to chapter 8 on the single campaign, after seeing what I've seen and just went through at the start of chapter 8, it's a really good game. First of all, it's a great story, different than what we've seen over the years. Action is intense, and yes, it's a mix of Gears of War and Modern Warfare, but yet feels fresh and different. Give this game a five for the all around package of single palyer campaign. Have not played multiplayer yet, maybe I'm oldschool, but a game has to pull me in with the characters and story first. After all, that's what got me to switch from the playstation to the original Xbox so many years ago, Halo. This game is worth checking out, be it new or used.

Adding on to my previous review as I just beat the game, simply incredible story that makes you feel like you are losing your mind. A mix of Apocolypse Now, Gears of War, Modern Warfare, and Psycho. Great game with plenty of action, blood, and more.

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To keep it short if you like:

* lots of gore

* mature story

* game full of moral dilemmas

* rich single player campaign

* 4 different ending

* etc

... then I totally recommend you to buy this game!

Spec Ops the Line, basically GoW for mature audience who tired of multi player "abominations" and wants to enjoy nice single player game mechanics with gruesome story line. This is best war (3rd person)shooter I played in years (last one was Freedom Fighters) and it was long time since I hated and liked main character so much.

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I almost didnt get this game after watching a few gameplay videos of the multiplayer, but then I decided to give it a shot. I am very glad that I did. The campaign is long, deep, and very disturbing. It has to be the best story I have ever seen in a game. It really shows that war is not glamorous and that our actions have consequences. In one spot, I was given two options, but choose a third of my own device, and the game adapted. very cool! The shooting mechanic is woderful and every gun has a distinctive feel, and oh how many guns there are. After the wonderful campaign you have multiplayer, which to my surprise, was GREAT also. At first I didnt get into it, but after playing with a few friends grew to love it. There are so many customization options and the controls are fairly fluid. I think i was expecting a battlefield or call of duty multiplayer experience, but this is something different, and that is good. It strays from the cookie cutter shooter approach and delivers a more intimate, deathmatch style arena with a ton of options. In the end, I think it was worth every penny i paid for it.

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Please ignore my five star "fun" rating, because this game is many things, but it is not fun. If you are looking for something to just have a fun time blasting away dudes you will not find this here. Of course this also means you are precisely the audience at which this game is targeted.

A lot of reviews docked a star or two due to unfun aspects of the game play, and, with respect to those reviewers, they are missing the point of this game. While not even remotely comedic, this game is a stunningly insightful satire of the first person shooter genre. The fact that the first hour very deliberately pretends to be a bad Modern Warfare knock-off is part of this.

Play this game for its profound psychology of both war and video games, its understanding of just how destructive modern war is, and its mastery of tone and mood. Play it because no video game will ever punch you, the player, in the gut so hard for trying to play the hero. You are not meant to enjoy the killing you perform in this game. If you like the thought of playing a game that is art, not fun, buy this game. I will leave you with a quote you get on some of the later load screens.

"Do you even remember why you came to Dubai?"

Review of Let's Cheer - Xbox 360

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $15.65
Today's Bonus: 61% Off

Let's Cheer for Kinect is another one of those games that many people will scoff at the idea of, but when you look beneath the surface you'll find a surprisingly well designed game that really shows what the Kinect is capable of in terms of being a simulation and teaching tool.

The target audience for Let's Cheer is obviously teen and young teen girls. But anyone who is willing to toss their inhibitions aside can enjoy it and get a pretty decent workout.

When you start the game, you select a "squad captain" and a color of your uniform. You have a limited choice at the beginning, but as the game progresses additional choices will unlock.

The main menu is simple and consists of three choices: Cheers, Extras, and Select Squad Members.

When you select "Cheers", you see a menu of five levels of increasing intensity: Local, District, State, Regionals, and Nationals. Each of these levels contains a combination of short cheerleading chants (of the "go team go" variety) or longer dance routines to popular music. Some of the chants and dance routines are locked and can be unlocked only as you progress through earlier levels.

For example, on the "Local" level you have the following options:

Defense Attack (football chant)

Let's Get Fired Up (general sports chant)

Shoot for Two (basketball chant)

Celebration (dance routine)

Rebound That Basketball (basketball chant)

That's the Way I Like It (dance routine)

Each chant or routine is assigned a difficulty level of 1 to 5.

Regardless of whether you choose a chant or a dance routine, you'll have three options: Train, Perform, or play as a 2-player team.

As with games like Dance Central, your job is to mirror the moves the on-screen character is making, and if you don't match the motion properly the part of your body that you're not moving will glow red. Also as with Dance Central, each sequence is broken down into components, but instead of dance moves they're cheerleading moves with names like "Blade Clip", "Punch It Up Twist", "Jazz It High" and "Reverse Stop Stop Turn", all identified by icons on the side so you can always anticipate the next move that's coming. For each chant or dance routine you can also choose Easy, Moderate, or Hard which will affect the complexity of the motions within the routine.

"Train" breaks down the chant or dance routine in slow motion so you can learn and memorize the moves. For chants, after you've done it once in slow motion, you'll be able to do it again at full speed. The "hard" setting at any level really starts to approach the complexity of real cheerleading.

"Perform" will have you lead a whole squad in doing the routine you just practiced in a competitive setting complete with announcer and cheering crowds. Your task is to do the routine as perfectly as possible. The better you do it, the more stars you'll get, which will help you unlock other routines. As you complete performances, you'll also be able to pose for pictures on "magazine covers".

"2-Player" is like Perform, except that instead of an entire squad dancing it's just two cheerleaders standing next to each other. Each cheerleader is controlled by a different player standing in front of the Kinect. It's a great way for two friends to practice dancing together, and also to complete by seeing who can do it most flawlessly. The space limitation of the Kinect is a bit of a concern with routines where you're spinning and flailing your arms in all different directions, but for the most part the motion detection was very good.

As you progress through the game, you'll encounter many more football, basketball, and general cheers such as "Come on, Let's Score" and "Big G Little O", which are actual classic cheerleader chants. You'll also encounter a large number of dance routines to popular music, including Celebration (Kool and the Gang), That's the Way I Like It (KC and the Sunshine Band), I Like to Move It , Hollaback Girl (Gwen Stefani), Disturbia (Rihanna), When I Grow Up (Pussycat Dolls), Mickey (Toni Basil), Starstrukk (3OH!3), Just Dance (Lady Gaga), Shake It (Metro Station).

Motion detection for the most part was spot-on. You really do need to match the on-screen character's motions precisely if you want a perfect score.

In the "Extras" menu you can turn on calorie tracking. It's not a very accurate count, since it can't detect how intense your motions are nor what your weight is (which technically will dictate how many calories you burn). But it's a nice reminder that you are burning *some* calories. As with most games of this ilk, you can fake your way through it, but you'll only get a real fitness boost if you put your whole body into it. Under Extras you can also view Stats and view Magazine Covers.

Overall, I wouldn't say this was a particularly strenuous workout game, but it does get you moving. At its core, it's really a cheerleading simulation game, and not a bad one at that. If you have young girls in the house who may aspire to get into cheerleading, I'd say this is not a bad way to get a rough gauge of their interest and their aptitude. And if you have girls who are cheerleaders already, I think they'll appreciate the detail and realism (in terms of cheerleading routines) that went into this game.

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I have a two teen daughters who both cheer for our local football team. The girls and their friends LOVE this game. They are not only having fun jumping and yelling but they are also getting ideas about their own cheer routines. I definitely recommend this game to any parent with active teenagers.

Best Deals for Let's Cheer - Xbox 360

This game is awesome! It's really fun and very realistic... My friends and I love playing it! Great for a Christmas present :)

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Best price we found on this game! I shopped around. My 4 daughters age range 3 to 11, all love this. It's easy to follow and fun to play!

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I like it a lot. My daughter has had a boost of confidence at practice since she started playing this game. It has helped her with her form and yelling as needed for the cheers she has learned at cheerleading practice.

Cheap Bakugan - Xbox 360

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List Price: $39.99
Sale Price: $16.48
Today's Bonus: 59% Off

Although I did enjoy the time I gave Bakugan, in all honesty it may not be a game you'll be coming back to ever again after completion. To begin with, the first series of battles are laughably easy, and although it does raise in difficulkty later, this may turn off someone just starting. The game's main objective is, of course, to win the story mode and eventually own all the different Bakugan and cards, which is quite the trial. Doing so took me almost 20 hours total. The only thing left to do is play versus up to 4 players, which is local only and severely limited since you can't choose what deck you want to use when selecting one of the unlocked characters. All in all, try before you buy.

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really really boring game, my kid hate it and he loves bakugan some of the instructions do not even work

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This was bought as a gift for my 16 year old son, he liked it very much. I need to find more like this for the other son now.

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Got the game for 6 bucks, a very good deal compared to gamestop. Bought it for one reason and one reason only, to bring back the old memories. The game is not very suitable for 13+ as they think its very childish and immature. Can be very fun for a kid though

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I thought that it as a good game! IT gave lots of little moments through parts of it! There were all kinds of little flaws through the game but if your a true gamer you get past those things!

Cheap Vertical Induction Charger for 3 PS3 Controllers

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List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $34.05
Today's Bonus: 32% Off

so i just got this charger and it works great but...

it makes a crazy clicking sound when it is charging.

it is louder than the frig,or my HTPC.

I hope i is just a bad unit because i cant live with this clatter in my living room.

hit the video to listen.

have emailed customer service and will see what they say.

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This charger burned and melted my controller. I immediately contacted the company and, weeks later, got a response asking me to send back the product. I sent it back a month ago and have heard nothing in response, nor received a replacement, refund, or any sort of compensation or communication since. I do NOT recommend this company or its products and warn any and all from purchasing anything from CTA.

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I love this charger. It's so easy to use and it works great. Like others have said it does do a clicking sound, but either it's faded over time or I got so used to it that I don't even notice it anymore. I've had the device for about 2 months now, but now I have a problem with it that I need to figure out.

My third charging section had actually MELTED the controller clip and it stopped functioning. I'm a little worried about using it now (the other two sections that is) as I wonder if the thing is a fire hazard or not...

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This is a great charger. The pieces that fit on the controllers are light and easily go into the controllers. The controllers rest to charge with no hassle. Great solution without worry of damaging your controllers like other chargers. Slightly more expensive, but well worth the 10 or 15 dollars more you pay.

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BLIND:

The City of Cincinnati has requested that you please make the blue glowing LED brighter, as it currently only lights up a two block radius.

DEAF:

The awesome loud clicking sound makes movie night that much better. Who wouldn't want to hear the sweet soothing sound of electrical switches flipping continuously?

DUMB:

It's super great for making that fourth controller of mine feel completely left out.

Also, the first unit crashed and burned after about a week. And one of the three charging inserts doesn't actually work. The good news is its actually made out of black plastic.

Cheap Dark Summit

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List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $3.95
Today's Bonus: 92% Off

An overall great piece of entertainment, Dark Summit combines strategy, action and sports all in one. You can just board around the mountain, go on the scouted game trail, or just play.

The manual has 2 pages solid of tricks you can do, and you can discover secret trick combos while playing. You can also find hidden trails, tunnels and paths through the mountain.

The game takes full advantage of the xbox's quick loading times and hard drive caching, allowing huge levels with unlimited options while playing.

Unlock new characters and boards by doing tricks for equipment points, and advance through the game to eventually beat it.

A must have! It will definitely hold you over until Amped is released!

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this game is very fun, but unfortunatly it is very short and very easy, this is not a game to buy bcuz if u r a good xbox player like me u will finish this game in about 3-5 hours and b bored after that while playing again or multiplayer. If u want to buy it its okay but first RENT THE GAME and then buy it to c if for you it is easy or not

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This is a decent gamenothing more, nothing less. The graphics are OK and the gameplay is sufficient for snowboarding. I congratulate THQ on at least trying to put a different spin on an overexposed subgenre of sports games, but the hokey storyline and ease of reaching the summit left me unsatisfied. The cartoonish aspect is a turn-off for me, but it would make a good game for those in the adolescent crowd who are uninitiated to the world of snowboarding games. Overall, I would give it a true rating of 2 1/2 stars... and I wish I would have bought "Amped."

Honest reviews on Dark Summit

I, for one, like the mission-oriented approach of this snowboarding game. The storyline is good if not remarkable, and it makes the gameplay very enjoyable. You are not just going for pure speed for 30 minutes of gameplay, but have tons of features to explore.

Game graphics is decent but unfortunately does not show off Xbox's capabilities. (C'mon, Microsoft, help Xbox developers do a better job!)

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Dark Summit

This is a decent gamenothing more, nothing less. The graphics are OK and the gameplay is sufficient for snowboarding. I congratulate THQ on at least trying to put a different spin on an overexposed subgenre of sports games, but the hokey storyline and ease of reaching the summit left me unsatisfied. The cartoonish aspect is a turn-off for me, but it would make a good game for those in the adolescent crowd who are uninitiated to the world of snowboarding games. Overall, I would give it a true rating of 2 1/2 stars... and I wish I would have bought "Amped."

Cheap Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! - Nintendo NES

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My sweat lordy. I got back at my a painfull child hood memory. :-)

This was one of my favorite games when I was a lad. I use to spend

hours upon hours in front of the tv nailing Glass Joe, teaching Bauld

Bull a lesson, smashing Soda Popinski, and putting down the Sand Man,

but I never beat Tyson.

This week it was time to bust out the old

Nintendo. After a couple of days of practice, I finally for the first

time put Tyson down. You wanna get back at Tyson too? Here's the

code: 007 373 5963

That'll take you straight to Mike. Be prepared

to get BLASTED by the biggest punk in boxing.

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Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! simply put is the greatest boxing video game ever created. So simplistic, yet so satisfying to play, the game commands your attention from the opening bell. The graphics were pretty great considering the time period and the gameplay is flawless. I'm now 31 years old and can honestly say that this game easily outclasses all of the other boxing games created since. The game is challenging but not too hard, I beat Tyson after two tries. The whole secret to the game is the patterning of his punches. If you can time and avoid his uppercuts for the first minute and a half, then you will be able to get hit and not get knocked down. That is the secret to the game. The other characters are entertaining as well especially Super Macho Man's twisting knock-out punch and King Hippo's oversized drawers which keep falling down every time you hit him. Ah, to be young again...there is no substitute for the original and Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! is the ultimate classic of the NES Classic series. Highest Recommendation.

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I love this game!!! I remember playing this game all the time with my dad when I was little. I still do sometimes. We still haven't beaten Mike. Gotten to him dozens of times but never beaten him. Thats how fun and addictive this game is. All the character models are great for the game being so old. Every character is different and has a different stragety to beat them. Even when you play characters a 2nd time they are different than the first time you played them. This is a great game that is unfortunately is often overlooked

Honest reviews on Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! - Nintendo NES

I have played a lot of NES games in my 54 years, and I consider "Punch-Out" the game that is perhaps the most fun and challenging.

Reviewer's Note: "Punch-Out" comes in two forms a "Mike Tyson's Punch-Out" and simply, "Punch-Out". The latter version substitutes Mike Tyson for a "Mr. Dream". (Nintendo's license to use Mike Tyson as a special Punch-Out!! character expired just before NES transitioned to Super NES). Mr. Dream fights exactly as Mike Tyson did, throwing the same punches in exactly the same order. If you can beat Mr. Dream, you can also beat Mike Tyson.

You, the challenger, are a character called "Little Mac" and he begins his career facing a series of fairly easy slow fighters (Glass Joe, Von Kaiser, Piston Honda). Valuable skills are learned fighting each of these fighters, skills that you will use again and again as you move up the ranks and fight increasingly tougher opponents. You will find a weakness in each opponent (and I won't disclose what each weakness is, as that is half the fun of figuring out this game). Suffice to say, each opponent can be beaten once the weaknesses are exposed. Each opponent also has a unique strength or punching combination which makes him more difficult to beat. Your stategy then is to find the opponent's weakness, and learn how to neutralize the opponent's special talent.

It is also possible to "earn" super punches, designated by a "star" when you hit your opponent in a particularly vulnerable place. Stars are extremely beneficial, if not crucial, for beating certain opponents. Thus, it is important to learn how to earn super-punches against each opponent.

There are internet sites that reveal how to beat each opponent, but why use these sites when the purpose (and fun) of the game is to figure this out for yourself? My advice is to avoid the spoilers, and to work and study each opponent and figure out how to beat each foe yourself.

One hint each opponent usually gives away his punching intent through a unique physical action, so study your opponent well. It is your job to figure out what this physical sign is and then exploit it.

As you rise in the ranks, each opponent gets progressively tougher to beat. The last three opponents, Mr. Sandman, Super Macho Man, and Tyson/Dream, all have lethal punches and extremely quick reflexes compared the the lesser opponents. It is quite normal to get beat many times before you finally figure out a way to be competitive, and eventually earn a win. Be patient and learn from mistakes made. Figuring out each opponent, and then beating each one is somehow immensely satisfying. Not only do you need good arcade gaming skills, such as quick button control, but you need to use your wits to finally get to Dream/Tyson.

Once you earn a title shot against Dream/Tyson, be prepared to lose about 20 times before you learn the skills necessary to beat the champion. You will need extra-sharp reflexes, extraordinary patience, and dogged persistance to beat the champ. You will find the entire process a grand challenge on par with any NES classic game final screen. This is a great game to challenge your friends. Although you cannot fight head to head, you can compare your progress against the same opponents.

Yes, this is perhaps the ultimate in NES technology and fun. Make sure you have a good NES system to play this game on, for you do not want it to "poop-out" on you before you get to the end (there is no way to save your game, although the game will give you special codes that allow you to start at certain achievement levels in the game).

You cannot go wrong with this game. Most highly recommended. Have fun and watch out for Tyson/Dream he has reflexes like a cat!

konedog

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I played this game when I was 5 years old until I finally sold my nintendo 10 years later, and ever since I remember I had truly lost a treasure in Punch-Out. Though the levels are very simplistic and the controls are limited to ducking, hooking, and upper-cutting, Punch-Out is by far one of the most addictive NES games ever made. Starting off as an amateur, you fight your way up the ranks from Joe (someone help me w/ the names?) to the Indian chief to the Sodapop King and finally against the man himselfMike Tyson. The true fun comes in learning each opponents moves and weaknesses as their difficulty increases with each level. Overall I believe I remember there being some 8 10 levels, but I can't give an exact amount. Nevertheless, Punch-Out is truly one of the best NES games ever made and will undoubtedly keep you up all night trying to beat it as it did with me years ago. Enjoy the challenge!