Cheap GAEMS Halo UNSC Vanguard Personal Gaming Environment (Xbox

Customer Ratings:

I'm sure the readers of this product may want more info, so I'll do my best to provide additional details (G155 comparison included):

Case

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The case is made out of thick plastic just like G155, so its sturdy. The dimension almost identical at 20" x 14" x 6.5" excluding handle, which satisfies virtually all major airlines carry-on size requirement. The handle adds 2" and makes the height 16", but no one at airport will realistically factor that in. The screen side of the case is less round, perhaps to accommodate the larger screen. I think this design also strengthens the latch gripping better under stress. The shoulder strap with padding (has UNSC logo) is a greatly appreciated item when an extra hand is needed. The design permits the strap to be attached or removed within a few seconds.

Screen

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With the case having the same length and width of the 15.6" G155, it is remarkable that GAEMS fitted a 19" screen. Actually, the screen measures 18.5" diagonally but looks bigger than that! The lighting on buttons are all blue (G155 is red). The blue background lighting on two sides of the screen is a nice touch not fancy so doesn't compete with the game content. Like G155, my PS3 recognizes it as 1080p with 2 audio channels. The display is much brighter and seems faster in response time.

The best part of the display other than size? It's the vastly improved display angle. Horizontally, I can line up 4 kids in front row and all can see the screen well! Vertically, kids standing up in second row can see also! As for the player, I tried sitting on the floor, sitting on a soft mattress (sunk in deep), and sitting on a chair with Vanguard on higher desk. The display angle passed in all scenarios! This wasn't the case with G155. There is a little kickstand allow the screen side to adjust up by a few degrees, which is really thoughtful feature. Kudos to GAEMS for listening to users on these improvement!

Audio and Controls

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The speakers are located on the bottom left and right corners. The drivers are about size of a golf ball (1.25" I think). They are open and masked slightly by 5 horizontal bars more like the cosmetic mud guards installed on 4x4 SUVs! The sound quality is vastly improved. The Halo 4 main menu music is a STUNNING demo of its range and depth. It's pretty good at high and mid-range. The debris and electrical buzzing effects from Halo 4 are sharp and realistic. Bass can be adjusted in menu, and it's adequate. Voice is still deep and clear! It has pretty good power too. I put Vanguard on 70% volume in a room, then go to kitchen about 50 feet away with 3 walls in between and I can hear the music pretty well. I also didn't hear distortion at 85% volume! With such loudness, there is really no need for external speakers to truly enjoy gaming away from home!

The bottom center of the display panel has the same two headset output, an HDMI input with the 7" cable, and DC 12V input from the power supply.

Console Strapping

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The console rests on a pad. One side has inset shaped to fit XBox and PS3. The other side has a small 9" x 7" footprint, which fits neither consoles (Nintendo Wii?) The two straps are thinner than G155, perhaps to allow better ventilation on the XBox 360 Slim.

The 2 side storage bags can be freely picked up (no Velcro underneath). They are same size as G155. With XBox having an external power brick, one storage bag will be used up for the two power supplies (one for display). This leaves the other for two controllers. Quick thought: since both XBox and the screen display use DC 12V as input, I wonder there is an DC Y-adapter that can allow both device to share one large power supply...

Since PS3's transformer is built-in the machine, there will be extra room available in the storage bags.

Note on Portable powerpacks

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I have two battery-based jump-starters with inverter kept in family cars. I used them to power G155, and will power the Vanguard as well when AC outlets are not available (e.g., picnic/camping). Vanguard consumes average of 90 watts (XBox 360S 4GB w extra 256GB HDD and Wi-Fi active) with medium volume and brightness during play. Here are actual run times with the two that I own:

Duracell DRPP600 Powerpack 600 Jump Starter and Emergency Power Source: 1hr 55min

Wagan Power Dome EX 400-Watt Jump Starter with Built-In Air Compressor: 1hr 3min

I'm sure with Wi-Fi turned off one can run longer times. Same if the HDD is not needed or replaced with SSD.

Summary

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When GAEMS released G155, I was excited finally a practical solution for console gaming away from home. I used it on travel and always in awe just having that ability to play console games somewhere else! Even as a happy user, there is always room for improvements. GAEMS was listening to the passionate G155 owners and all key improvements are in this Vanguard product. After playing with Vanguard for few hours, I'm thoroughly impressed, satisfied, and with absolutely ZERO complaints (for now)! For us console gaming lovers, GAEMS has done a great service to not only make gaming away from home possible with G155, but now with truly immersive experience with Vanguard. It's absolutely worth the price.

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This is a bit long-winded sorry but bear with me as I'm trying to be thorough.

I preordered my Vanguard back on Sep 29th when I stumbled upon it while browsing Halo 4 stuff. I had previously seen the G155 unit in action, and while thoroughly impressed with that unit, I had always hesitated to pull the trigger because of minor qualms such as the viewing angle and the speakers not being quite powerful enough for my liking even though they were plenty loud.

When I saw in this product's description that the viewing angle had been overhauled to allow for viewing from just about any conceivable real-world use scenario, and that on top of that they upgraded the speakers for a more robust audio experience, I decided to bite.

Needless to say, I am not only not disappointed, but the unit and the overall customer service experience has exceeded my highest expectations and then some! I have already ordered a 2nd Vanguard from them.

Display

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My litmus test of the display was for bright-lighting scenarios. I placed the unit on my kitchen island with my Halo 4 console strapped in and ready to go and popped in the Halo 4 disc. My kitchen window at that time of day lets in direct sunlight, and even with the brightly lit room the contrast on the screen was absolutely superb, with zero glare on the screen thanks to the matte-finished outer layer of the screen. I wish my 50" plasma TV had this type of outer layer, seriously. I was even able to take a picture using my crappy cell phone camera of the cinematic with Dr Halsey without even being able to pause the playback and the picture came out crystal clear. My cell phone is not known for pictures that good of moving images, speaking further to the crisp resolution and glare-resistant display.

Audio

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You can read reviews all day but you seriously have to hear this thing to believe it. I've had high-end gaming laptops in the past the likes of Asus and Alien Ware, and these speakers blow most of those out of the park. You could use this unit as your home television if need be, the audio is THAT good. I'll almost be sad to have to use the headphone jacks when my wife is watching the big TV when I'm gaming, because I just loved the sound of these speakers. Now if I REALLY need to be truly nitpicky and find a single flaw, the bass isn't going to boom you out of your seat. Don't get me wrong. It's plenty loud even at 40% volume; full, rich, and deep and allows for appreciation of the full range of the orchestral score in any AAA game or movie, but don't expect the thumping you hear when some teenager drives down the block with 24" speakers in his trunk that are rattling his windows loose. I could not detect any audio distortion even at max 100% volume either. Why anyone would play with the volume THAT loud is beyond me, but you could if you wanted to.

Build Quality

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The case itself feels very solid. While I wouldn't want to, I also wouldn't freak out if my unit gets dropped by some less-than-attentive airport security official. The pad under the Xbox feels like it would absorb any shock from short drops if it lands on its bottom, and if it lands on its side or top the straps have just enough stretch to absorb some shock without letting the Xbox come loose and damage itself or the screen. My one minor qualm with the case's build is the hinge between the base and the top portion that contains the screen. The hinge itself works fine, but it just feels a tad bit "soft" compared to the rest of the case. I can't describe it very well, but basically when the hinge rotates when you're closing the unit, it has a tiny fraction too much play in it, meaning you have to make sure you align the perimeter of the top over the edges of the bottom to properly and securely close the unit. I think this stems from the fact that the hinge ends a couple inches or so from the edge on either side, allowing for a slight bit of torque or twisting of the top portion as you're closing it. Perhaps in future iterations GAEMS could run the hinge all the way across the back of the unit to prevent this or rethink how the hinge mechanism works. This is a very minor qualm and doesn't bother me all that much, but I want to mention it so people don't think there's something "wrong" with their unit if they purchase one. Overall though the build quality is superb.

Portability

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This unit is definitely tops in portability. It's so light that even with my Xbox, power brick, and controllers in it I don't feel like my arm is going to fall off carrying it through the airport. I haven't travelled yet but I carried it around my neighborhood for about 30 minutes and had no problems. Even if your arms get tired, the shoulder strap that comes with the Vanguard would solve that problem. I've been looking around lately just to see what else is out there because I've never really known of similar items prior to seeing their G155, and there really just ISN'T anything else like it out there. Making console gaming portable was definitely an underserved market prior to GAEMS, but any new contenders in the arena are going to have a decidedly uphill battle on their hands because I can't brainstorm any better alternatives. Even pie-in-the-sky scenarios I try to come up are too far in the future based on technology limitations. For the foreseeable future, GAEMS is the end-all of what we as gamers both want and need in making our systems travel-ready. They have some other things in the pipeline that aren't out yet that will also take this to the next level.

Customer Service

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While I don't normally include customer service in reviews, I think it bears mentioning here. If you read the GAEMS Vanguard discussion here on Amazon you may see some "heated" posts by users upset that they didn't get their unit on Nov 6th as anticipated. This stems from two main factors: hurricane Sandy possibly disrupting shipping channels, and GAEMS being inundated with preorders far surpassing expectations and thus creating a demand larger than initial supply could keep up with. The Vanguard unit (perhaps not Halo-themed, but the same basic build) was originally slated for a 2013 release. GAEMS ramped up their schedule to meet a request from Microsoft and 343i to have the Halo-themed version ready for Halo 4's launch. With preorders growing more rapidly than production could keep up with, a bottleneck arose that led to some frustrations.

All that said, John (co-founder of GAEMS) personally answered numerous questions and went so far beyond the typical canned-response actions we've come to expect as consumers that it deserves praise. I had resigned myself to receiving my unit in mid-December rather than Nov 6th. To my surprise it came via overnight FedEx on Nov 8th. GAEMS made the decision themselves to make sure buyers got their units as fast as possible, including overnight-shipping most (to my knowledge) if not all of existing preorders as they became available. Overnight shipping is costly and cuts into their profit margin, but they are making sure they make the experience as pleasant as possible for us.

Beyond that, they actually WANT us to send back units that have even the most minor flaws such as 1 or 2 dead pixels. Every, and I mean EVERY high-def TV or display I have ever owned has had the stray dead pixel or 2. I just assumed it was normal and it doesn't bother me. I'm typing on a screen with a few as I write this. Despite the commonality of this, GAEMS says NO, if you have dead pixels send it back to us and we'll replace it. Usually you have to fight with a company, or at least REQUEST an exchange, even for more significant problems. For GAEMS to preemptively tell their customers that they want to make sure we swap out our units for even the slightest most insignificant of flaws so that we receive a "perfect" product speaks volumes. Speaking with John on the phone, I could tell beyond doubt that what they say about their company is true. They are Gamers building products for Gamers, not just suits out to make a buck. They will be my go-to for gaming-related gear from here on out.

Best Deals for GAEMS Halo UNSC Vanguard Personal Gaming Environment (Xbox

Update: Jan. 23rd, 2013

Still have not heard from them with regard to the missing D rings. I'm starting to think they fein concern for the sake of looking good but don't actual act on it. Come on guys it's just two pieces of plastic probably worth 25 cents. In any event they lost a star because of this...

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I'll keep this somewhat short (not really) and sweet. All-in-all a solid buy. I think it's a great little luxury (I got it as a Christmas gift) for those with the extra cash. Keep in mind this review is relative to the cost (i.e., it's a ~$350 unit and the value your getting for that price point). Is it great? yes! Can it compare to a $2K TV? no, but still pretty damn good.

So here's the nuts and bolts:

I use the plus symbol (+) for things I like, minus symbol for things I don't (-) and tilde (~) for things I'm indifferent about.

Build & Packaging:

(+) Solid product construction.

(+) Great care was taken to package the unit so it doesn't get damaged in shipping. This is a rarity these days.

(+) It keeps your console snug and secure.

(-) My unit was missing the little "D" rings which attaches the shoulder straps to the case. So basically cannot use the strap.

Screen:

(+) Picture quality is very good. I used Digital Video Essentials to calibrate the picture because out of the box (default settings) it was a tiny bit bright and washed out. All sorted after making adjustments.

(+) Bright and crisp picture.

(+) 720P (native) but accepts 1080P input as well. I've done a cursory look and this fact doesn't seem to be advertised on their site. There's a tiny blob about the resolution in the manual but nothing is said on any advertising about the unit or on their site.

(~) I have two stuck pixels but I'm fine with that. Others might not be so forgiving so I'm putting it out there for those who may care more than I do. I don't even notice it unless the screen is completely black and even then you have to look for it.

Sound:

(+) The sound blew me away. Loud, clear and without distortion. I read other reviews saying the sound was great but I was a little skeptical.

(+) Two headphone jacks nice touch.

(~) Volume output for the headphone jack is okay. I had to raise the volume control near max for my taste. I mainly use A40s (MLG edition) headphones but I tried others and still have the same concern.

(~) Cables, connectors and accessory storage is a bit tight but satisfactory (I'm using a non-slim xbox). I have to be careful when closing the unit to make sure the mesh bags (they provide) don't get caught in seams.

(-) In addition to storing all the cables/connectors/power/etc. you'll need to play, you can only store one controller. I was a bit bummed by this but it's really a minor concern. Other folks may not even be concerned about this.

Support:

(-) If I had to have a criticism it would be their support structure. Their site list a few ways to get support: forum, Twitter, etc. so I tweeted them about the missing "D" rings and haven't heard back. Kind of a bummer.

Truth be told I know they pay extremely close attention to Amazon reviews so if I want immediate resolution to this without having to give the gift back to the gift giver and have them exchange it (kind of a pain for something so small) I have to write a review. This is an awkward way to get immediate support methinks...

On the positive side they care about the products they put out. This is evident by their careful attention to reviews and by attempting to address all concerns raised by reviewers in a positive and professional manner. So their you have it...

Honest reviews on GAEMS Halo UNSC Vanguard Personal Gaming Environment (Xbox

I rarely write reviews, but this product deserves a mention. I think we can all agree it's an excellent product and serves its purpose very well. But I just want to add, I had this item shipped to me during deployment. A lot of times, our mail arrives with bumps, scrapes, etc. It is packed onto large pallets and airlifted to our ship and it can take over a month at times to get a piece of mail. I was worried that the item would arrive with scratches or a broken screen. I have to say, that Amazon packed it very well and the packaging used by GAEMS was fantastic. I am sure my box got dropped, kicked, thrown or worse. The outside was beat up pretty bad. But the packaging surrounding the unit was superb and it looked like I just picked it up in the store and carefully took it home in my car. Wonderful. I played HALO for several hours last night on it and it was heavenly. Thank you so much for not just a great product GAEMS and AMAZON, but for making sure it arrives to anywhere in the world in mint condition. AAAA+++++

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Literally stumbled upon the Vanguard a couple of months ago and until then had never heard about Gaems or their products. I genuinely couldn't be more pleased with it or the quality of service/support I've received from the company. Because my 10-yr old son has become more interested in playing on the Xbox I decided to buy a new console. However, we're a 1-TV family and even though I have a 54" plasma I now use my Vanguard exclusively for all of my Xbox needs (my son can have the TV for all I care and my wife is happy that she doesn't have to compete with me either). I also travel frequently for work and get bored sitting in hotel rooms so this baby will be going with me on my trips to keep me sane (not to mention visits to the in-laws). On top of that I realized that I can tote my Vanguard to my office and play over my lunch hour (much to the envy of my IT uber geek co-workers).

The craftsmanship and design are top-notch and I'm amazed at how quickly/easily everything packs up, especially since the Xbox never leaves the case.

Pre-orders for the Vanguard sold out very quickly and far exceeded anything Gaems could predict. As a result there was a slight delay getting some units to customers (mine arrived 2 days later than expected) but the company stepped up and took the initiative. The co-founder, John Smith, stayed in constant communication with everyone, answered questions, worked with Amazon to coordinate inventory/delivery schedules, and sent EVERYONE who was affected by the delay a complimentary gift package to Vanguard customers.

This bears repeating, I couldn't be more pleased with my purchase and becoming a first-time customer Vanguard owner and Gaems customer.

Discount AC Power Supply for Microsoft XBOX 360

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $23.70
Today's Bonus: 53% Off

I got lucky when I showed up to country because the guy that lived in the CHU before me left his xbox 360. The catch? He burned out the power supply by plugging it straight into a 220v...ouch! Ordered this baby, got a power converter, and from there it was plug and play. Product works great, its basically the same one that originally comes with the 360's. No hiccups as of yet and I've had it for a couple of days. If you need a new power supply, I recommend this one for sure.

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It works. Don't spend $40, $50 or how ever much Gamestop wants to charge you. If you know the type of Xbox power brick you need, buy it for less on Amazon or thru the web. I got this power supply for a free Xbox 360 my friend gave me(he bought another one and told me that I could have this one which was only missing a power supply). I didn't want to pay $40 at Gamestop and didn't want to order it thru Microsoft. I realized I need the 203W version and saw this product on Amazon. It arrived early and the Xbox works perfectly. What else do you need. I'm extremely satisfied with the purchase.

Best Deals for AC Power Supply for Microsoft XBOX 360

The product description specifically says "This item does not work for the newest version XBOX 360 SLIM for Kinect" but that is what I received. I ordered an AC adapter for the XBOX 360 Elite (150W) and received the XBOX 360 Slim (135W) version. Pathetic.AC Power Supply for Microsoft XBOX 360

Honest reviews on AC Power Supply for Microsoft XBOX 360

i bought this thinking it was for the old xbox-360 but got the newer one for the 360 slim..it really pissed me off when it arrived and i opened the package seeing the cable

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I'm just going to copy someone elses review because the same thing happened to me:

Despite the description saying:

Product Features

replacement for original Microsoft XBOX 360 power adapter. This item does not work for the newest version XBOX 360 SLIM for Kinect

check back of your XBOX console to determine which power supply is compatible

item works with Consoles that require 203W or less

The item I received was labeled "Xbox Slim" and "135W." The sellers for this item listing seem to rotate rapidly. Mine came from "Super Electronics." Returning and buying local to be sure I get the right item.

Cheap Kung Fu Chaos

Customer Ratings:

Not many good reviews of this game, but I don't think the reviews are being fair. OK. This game does have bad moments such as the multiplayer, but I think the single player mode is interesting and fun. For example, they have some mini games in between levels such as throwing the princess at other players to knock them down. Other mini games include catching as many stuntmens from the roof as possible while trying to avoid being hit by falling cows, tables, and chairs. There is some replay value because you need to complete some levels with 5 stars to unlock hidden levels or characters. If you don't believe me, just rent the game and find out for yourself.

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As a huge fan of Kung Fu movies and just movies in general I found this game to be very amusing. First off the fighting in the game is solid. It is also great for those button mashers out there when you are playing in Battle game, but when in the ninja challenge it pays to know the combos. The game play is very straight forward and offers a good break from your standard fighting game. The closest game I could compare this too is super smash brothers on the gamecube. The game has a lot of depth and many unlockable modes of game play. The miniseries are great and when you unlock them it adds for some great diversion from ninja challenge. In battle mode you have team challenge or free for all and within those modes there are five different ways to play them.

You must first play through ninja challenge to unlock many of the play modes and battle modes as you earn 3 stars or more you can unlock the next level in ninja challenge. The levels are huge and very fun to play through. Though most people will be able to obtain 3 stars in ninja challenge you don't unlock much unless you obtain a perfect 5 stars on levels. This is a challenge and will put you to the test on most levels (though there are a few that you can easily do 5). The single player mode offers a lot but it is the multiplayer mode that really offers up the most fun. Pick up some friends and start saying "I know kung fu" .... This is especially fun to do if you don't want to listen to the games sound track. The game allows the use of the custom soundtrack feature so you can rip your own soundtrack to this wild and wacky kung fu movie. When you are done kickn' your friends trash sit back and watch a great edit of the scene you just made. These are hillarious and I will say it is one of the first games that make you want to watch the replay. So if you love Kung Fu and great lines like "There you are minding your own business when suddenly, ninja clan attack!" This is for you.

Best Deals for Kung Fu Chaos

When I first saw article reviews for Kung Fu Chaos, I was almost certain that it was a stupid game. One day, a friend brought along with two others, this title over to my room to play on my xbox. I almost wanted to smack him senseless for such imprudence. However, after playing this game for five minutes with four players, I was hooked! The game moves at lightning fast speed is extremely laughable along with entertaining. Gameplay never seems to slow down, and the game almost never grows boring. Even playing a 1 player game is a blast, given the fact that the computer A.I. is so clever the player will be challenged to their limits. By the way, the custom soundtracks system is excellent!! The game takes full advantage of the custom soundtracks system, so the player never really needs to worry about hearing the same-old boring dull tunes. After borrowing this game, I quickly ran out and grabbed a copy of it for myself! Anyone looking for gameplay debt similar to "Powerstone," needs to look no further. Kung Fu Chaos has come to save the day!! I can hardly wait for the sequel.

Honest reviews on Kung Fu Chaos

I am serious. This game never should have sold. Not because its a bad game; far from it, this game is just about the ultimate ideal in video gaming history. Create your own martial arts flick while playing a video game. Nay good sir, the reason this game should never have sold is because it seems as if it was created specifically for me.

I mean, this is the game that I have been waiting my whole life for. A game where I am more than just a ninja on the screen, I'm an actor/ninja movie star! Okay, that sounds really stupid. And yet its true. And this is more than a ninja game alone. Want to be an aging but still lethal martial arts master? Done. Want to play as a "Lone Wolf and Cub" inspired samurai, also done. Want to play as a deity from Chinese myth, fairy tale and feature film? Equally done. Should you desire to be a gaseous Mexican wrestler, well, that comes later in the game. I was, of course, Ninja Fu Hiya, star of such films as "Did Somebody Order a Ninja," and "Ninja Cry Too."

The point of this game is to create a martial arts masterpiece called, Kung Fu Chaos: Face Full of Fists. You first play through the long movie production in order to unlock characters and sets and such, then you can use these to create your own kung fu films. The problems on set range from members of a clan of bloodthirsty ninjas trying to kill you, to difficulties trying to extend your bathroom/coffee breaks. This is, oddly enough, classified as a "party game."

I say that this game is almost catered to my interests and mine alone (which I know isn't true, but poetic license and all that allows me to continue) because there are many things which will ultimately turn many others off. The controls are overly simple. I found this somewhat refreshing from all the complicated combos out there, but that's me.

Also, the director of the movie you're starring in, a little fat man named Shao Ting, is constantly assaulting you with a barrage of insults. Some people, amazingly enough, find being insulting, um, insulting.

But these aside, this is just about as neat as it gets. I do wish you had a little more control over how your finished movie products look, but this game can be the first step in a new kind of ninja movie making. This is best summed up in the immortal words of Ninja Fu Hiya: "No! Ninja taste bad!"

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It's a great group game for those that still play on the original Xbox. There is unlockable content, a championship mode, minigames, and singleplayer. Note that it does not work on the Xbox 360.

Army of Two: The 40th Day - Playstation 3 Reviews

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $15.95
Today's Bonus: 47% Off

I was having a hard time choosing between this game, Darksiders and Bayonetta and I think I made the right choice. For starters this game is alot of fun. The graphics are really good, picture perfect. The gameplay is good also lots of duck,cover,and fire. The AI seems way more responsive and better than the last game with different commands you issue your partner,Also you can switch from a right angle OTS to left angle OTS witch is really helpfull for those enemies who are hard to see on either side of the screen. One thing I have a problem about this game just like any other action game that has come out for the ps3 and xbox 360 is the lenght of the single player campaign. I've played the game for 3 hours now and I'm already on the 3rd chapter, I checked my trophie menu on my ps3 and counted only 5 chapters in the game. This is the reason I play rpg's because you actually get your $60 dollars worth. Videogame companies spend too much time trying to make the online gaming experience so great that they make the regular playthrough so short. Not alot of people can play online so they can only hope that the game is long enough to make it worth there while and money.I have not played online yet so I can't tell you if it is good or not, from what I've read it is alot of fun. Oh yeah I didn't mention the weapon upgrades, there are plenty of awsome weapons witch can be upgraded with different components that you either find throughout the game or you get depending on some situation choices that you make during your game. So besides my one complaint about the game beng short, it is a really fun game and probably even better if you play with a friend.

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Although, I haven't had this very long but, from what I've played is extremely satisfying this game rocks. I love the weaponry and cutscenes and dialogue already in this game. The storymode so far in this is interesting, that gives it great single and co-op play, the AGGRO system in here very sharp and pleasing, you should love faking surrenders and faking death in a hard place,the graphicss are good but not as good as MW2. This game does however bring back something I love which is BDA (bullet damage action) if you're using the right weapon and give someone a headshot you blow their head off, which really makes a shooter worthy of M ratings. I played all of the online multiplayer modes and they're all great, they strongly enforce teamwork which is what this type of game is all about. Oh yeah cannot forget about the weapon and mask and armor customization I designed my mask and armor and they're just what I expected them to be you should be pleased too. Now for my ratings STORYMODE 5stars, GAMEPLAY 5stars, GRAPHICS 4STARS, MULTIPLAYER 3stars and CO-OP 5stars. This one kick-ass game you won't regret. ARMY OF TWO: THE 40th DAY 5stars

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Never played the original so this was a new experience for me and won't be able to comment on comparisons to the first one. AoT: 40th Day is 3rd person shooter specifically designed for co-op play, online or split-screen. The premise of the game is to traverse through Shanghai killing bad guys while making moral decisions along the way that will affect the outcome of the game and the relationship with your partner. The game focuses on drastic customization of your weapons (e.g., adding a AK-47 barrel to an M4, or a screw driver bayonet to the end of your shotgun) and the ability to draw fire from the enemy in order to get your partner to tacticlly flank them. There some other features like feigning your death, mock surrenders and syncronized sniper shots.

Overall the game is okay, but it seems the bad leveled out the good. The game does NOT save after you customize a weapon only after checkpoints; if you waste 4-5 minutes toying with your weapons and die...you have to do it over again. Speaking of dying (which will happen a lot), if you die in a fight that required a cut scene you have to watch the cut scene everytime you restart CANNOT BE SKIPPED. Pretty annoying. The bosses are cliched; armored gatling gunner...flame thower guy with weak point in the back. The customization is cool, but some of the stuff is so ridiculous it seems pointless they added it: bubbled camoflauge? soda can silencer? Depsite the stats of some weapons, they basically seemed the same to me. Lastly, this is the only game for the PS3 that ever frozen.

As mentioned this game is decent, but there are way too many other games out there like MW2 and Uncharted 2 that just seem to make this game feel like a waste of time. Will not be conducting a second playthrough.

Pros:

Extremely detailed; added a cool scope to your AK?...it's in the cutscenes.

Nice cut scenes on outcome of moral decisions moments.

Some nice weapon customizations.

Fun co-op, takes some tactical decisions to be made as opposed to rushing a situation.

Cons:

No auto-save feature after weapon customization. Annoying.

Cannot skip cut-scenes. Even more annoying, especially if your stuck on a boss.

Some dumb weapon customizations; who wants a flowered painted RPG?

Weak focus on melee combat.

May freeze on you; could be faulty copy though.

Only 3 pistols? WTF.

Honest reviews on Army of Two: The 40th Day - Playstation 3

I was one of the few who enjoyed the first one. I really loved the co-op play. The second one is much improved. The basic game play is the same but the AI is really improved. Playing with a friend online is great and playing with the AI is still pretty good. The storyline is a lot of fun, although fairly short. There are 7 levels and each one only takes about 30 minutes. I played the online multi player a bit but was not a big fan. It just cannot compete with good multi players like Modern Warfare 2 so I quickly lost interest.

Overall, a good game and a lot of fun to play. Also, it has fairly easy trophies if you are into trophies.

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The first Army of two (Ao2) game concluded with our heroes Elliot Salem and Tyson Rios deciding to form their own private military company together known as Trans World Operations (T.W.O.). The sequel takes place a couple of years after this. While on a routine mission in Shanghai, China Rios and Salem find themselves trapped in a city underseige. Their initial reaction is to locate their mission coordinator Alice Murray and to leave the city; however things aren't quite so simple. They'll have to use their wits, skills, and teamwork to fight for every inch of ground in this city. Along the way they'll have to make life or death decisions that'll test the strength of their bond.

The sequel makes many improvements over the original game while still managing to maintain the best parts of the previous game. This time around if you're playing in solo campaign mode your AI partner is much more intelligent. If you're wounded your partner will not drag you right in to the enemies' line fire so that you can both die. Also it doesn't matter what part of the game you're in you can command your partner to take the lead versus the original game where even if you wanted them to go first at certain points they wouldn't.

Other improvements to the game play include the use of the shield. Instead of always sharing a shield now both people can take a shield and split up to take on the enemy. Both characters' can also sprint at any time, which is really useful in some areas. Now you can customize your weapons at any point during the game when you're not in battle instead of going shopping before and at the end of missions like in the first game. There are now new options in how you engage the enemies. You don't have to kill them all the time, you can tie them up, or you or your partner can do a mock surrender while the other person takes the enemies out. When you're wounded instead of lying out in the open waiting to be shot now you can drag yourself someplace safe until your partner arrives to heal you. The environment is now destructible which presents a new level of fun. Also depending on the type of gun you use you can blow enemies' heads clean off *weg*. Another noteworthy improvement for the sequel is the visuals. Shanghai is stunning to behold especially the zoo level. Once you beat the game you can unlock different outfits for both Rios and Salem including the original Ao2 gear.

Great things from the 1st game that have returned include the aggro meter. The aggro meter is a gauge that indicates which player is the focus of the enemy's attention. Whichever player has the highest Aggro rating will attract all the enemies towards them. This allows the other player to become virtually invisible and thus sneak up to enemy positions. You can still go back to back at certain points, engage in blind fire, perform step jumps, do the fake death, and the emote factor has returned. The sequel features some new emotes both positive and negative that I'm sure anyone can appreciate.

Reviews of Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Lockdown - Xbox

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I was somewhat surprised how much I am enjoying this game. I own the previous installment Rainbow Six 3 and Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow. They are both very well put together games, but the a.i. intelligence was lacking. When I first put this game in and one of the first things they did was set a trap for me and my team I knew I had a keeper... Everything about this game is an improvement, the graphics, the sounds, the a.i., the gameplay. You name it, it's better! Even though I haven't been able to play on live as I have for the previous ones I have heard it is also way better... PICK THIS GAME UP! You will not be dissapointed.

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This game has a very bad rap among hard core rainbow six players and critics, but I thought it was a pretty good game. I guess it wasn't tatical or realistic enough for them, but since I played rainbow six 3, and rainbow six 3 black arrow, and both of those games had me being a "lone wolf" going up against a bunch of terrorists during an entire level, what's realistic or tatical about that? Who the heck goes on terrorist missions all by themselves? (maybe just batman, but he's freekin BATMAN!). I thought these games were supposed to be mainly about commanding an elite squad of people and using team play to get the job done. At least when I went on a lone wolf mission in this game, it made sense. I had to rescue a team mate and I started off the mission by myself, but I wasn't really alone. After I rescued my team mate, there was now two of us to go on the mission. Then we hooked up with the rest of the team and all four of us completed the mission. In R6 Black Arrow, the very last mission had me being a lone wolf and it sucked. I really hated the lone wolf missions in these games (I can do lone wolf missions in Splinter Cell or Metal Gear games). Overall though, R6 Lock Down is a pretty cool game. Although it's old, it's still fun to play.

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I am a huge fan of the Rainbow series, and the first Rainbow 6 for the xbox is one of my favourite games, so i was excited to hear about a new one coming out that allowed you to do such things as customize your teammates and other cool things. How wrong i was!

So much has changed from the previous games, that the only similarities are the characters from the Rainbow series, everything else is different.

The POV has changed so that everything is through goggles, this is not a big deal like all the reviews make it out to be, the outline of the goggles do not get in the way of any of the view, but when you get shot bullet holes appear in the googles glass obscuring all the view. I do not know what kind of goggles these are, but if the person was shot 3-4 times in the eye making these holes they would probably be dead.

The gun selection has been severly limited, and although the names are different from the other Rainbow games they are just different varients and that is why the names are different. It did seem that they took away all the popular guns, like the G3A3, M16,M60 and others, and added many smaller machine pistols. I can not speak for other people but i would rather be killing people with a huge assault rifle than with a gun the size of my hand. You can only use a sniper rifle when the game lets you and the are next to no guns with scopes or silencers(the ones that do have them would definitly not in real life). All the gun sight systems are left to the stock option of needle and hole sighting, which is not typical of any special forces when they have red dots, scopes and lasers. This does get annoying when lining up a target because most of the gun gets in the way when looking at an enemy.

The controls have been drastically switched around, which seems to be for no reason since no new button options were added making the relayout a pointless joke. The way they have changed the button configuration has made it awkward for old Rainbow player, the left trigger used to be for changing weapons, now it throws grenades(real nice when im surrounded by my teammates and i frag them on accident)It seems that the games controls have been made very similar to Halo and other FPS games, just so that those people can get into it quicker.

The graphics are in my opinion the biggest let down, they arent as good as the others, which is a shame because the others were quite good. The guns do not look realistic and instead look almost cartoon like, the scopes on the very few guns that have them do not reflect light or interact with the environment in any way. Every enemy is one of about 3-4 designs, and the environment is nothing special.

The AI of both the team mates and the enemies is disgusting, i dont understand how other reviewers can say that they are intelligent or that they set up traps because the most i have seen them do is miss constantly with their guns only a few feet away from me. The enemy are almost as stupid as your own team mates who in every gun fight hide and switch to the hold option, causing you to go off without knowing that they are at the beginning of the map and you are at the end.

The game would be semi decent if it were not the sequel to the other excellent Rainbow games, and its expectation of being better or at least the same smashed. The game is far too easy, but i have found many glitches that have stopped me from progressing. On the fifth level a door jamned and the only way i managed to get through was by constantly running at it until i fell through it. Other things like terrorists managing to shoot me whilst they are in the reload sequence(impossible) and the heart beat moniter only sometimes working properly have all dampened the game.

The reviews that have given it a low score are from people who have played the other Rainbows, like good games, or expect better from xbox. The reviews that give it a good score are from people that are into quick fast paced games, that sacrafice quality and realism for a game that can be beaten quickly and easily.

I would recommend renting it because there are a few fun aspects to it, but not enough to actually wish you had bought it.

Honest reviews on Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Lockdown - Xbox

my brother really loves this game for a reason I don't know but it keeps him enetertained but it should work

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Rainbow Six Lockdown is set up to be a squad based tactical shooter, where you and your team breach doors, rescue hostages, and take down the bad guys.

You have up to four team members at a time, and you issue fairly straightforward commands to them. They are fairly mindless and sometimes stand stupidly while being fired on. It's not so bad, though the enemy does the exact same thing. Both of you are dealing with not-so-bright comrades so it all evens out.

Really, the thing to remember in single player is that it is all a training mode for multi-player. You always get far better challenges playing against live humans than against computer-driven drones. So consider this your training grounds to get used to the commands.

The graphics are reasonably good, with some rag-doll physics and details in the environment. Certainly not the best game on the XBox in terms of graphics, but not the worst either. The sound falls into the same middle-of-the-road category.

On one hand the game is a bit challenging you can't survive infinite hits with a gun before you go down. It is much more realistic than many games in that sense. On the other hand, once you get even a basic grasp of how the tactics work, you should be able to rip through many of the missions without any need for cover or caution. The enemy is fairly clueless and you can usually kill them long before they start to take action.

The voice commands are a fun addition if you enunciate clearly. You can shout out orders (or just "go! go! go!" for doing the current default) and see your teammates run and respond appropriately. It does add to the realism, if your house-mates don't mind you shouting at 2am!

Certainly in modern times there are better graphics and better gameplay out there, but this is still worth looking into if you're a Rainbow / Tom Clancy fan and want to round out your collection.

Reviews of Sonic Colors - Nintendo Wii

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Don't listen to people who tell you that this game is gimmicky and unfortunate, like most other Sonic games. This is a hedgehog of a different color.

Taking the best elements of Sonic Unleashed and of recent outings like Sonic 4, this game is all about speed, with Sonic taking advantage of the power of the alien wisps to traverse beautiful alien landscapes in a frantic platforming adventure.

The alien powers come in different colors, each one granting Sonic a useful ability. Most of them, with a few exceptions, are fun and keep the game fast and furious, as it should be.

The farther into the game you get, the more of these alien powers you earn. These can be used in previous levels, creating a fantastic replay value, allowing you to traverse levels in a number of different ways.

Sonic doesn't dissapoint this time, this game is pure fun. Aside from a startling number of cheap deaths and strange physics, this game is a solid effort by Sonic Team. Despite it's kiddy premise and storyline, there is much more to this game than meets the eye, and a more difficult, hardcore game can be found beneath the surface. Beautiful graphics and clever gameplay keep this game a step ahead of the previous Sonic disasters.

Sonic Colors is a fantastic game and is extremley inventive and colorul. I commend Sonic Team's efforts, this Sonic isn't as slow as the others, and I give it only my full reccomendation!

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(Wait, was he ever gone?)

Sonic Colors has superb controls awesome levels excellent music ('cept Asteroid Coaster) stunning graphics (for Wii) but the story is silly and the voices are off but there is SUPER SONIC in the MAIN LEVELS!!!!

All right, I'll now decipher the above sentence. First of all, this game proves that Sonic the Hedgehog games still can appeal to a wide audience of gamers. I mean, the professional critics are running out of stuff to pick at! Myself, I am an enormous fan of Sonic, and have played nearly every game he has ever starred in, own and have read nearly all his hundreds of comic books, and watched almost every TV show of his. Obsessive? Maybe, but come on, he's "Way past cool"! (Comics fans will know where that came from) Now, I'm in a strange position, however, because faced with the game that so nearly reaches perfection, if find myself unable to give it five stars, even though it has far fewer flaws than Sonic Unleashed(which I rate a five). But let's get on to the game itself, and compare its many aspects.

+ Controls? Spot-on accurate. Sonic moves when you move the joystick, he jumps when you press A. There's no twitchiness, no lag, no headaches. The camera is fixed, but it's fixed in the proper location for each shot. This game also has a complement of several power-ups. They come in the form of aliens endowed with "Color Powers". One transforms Sonic into a drill, another into a laser, and so on. They make the game have immense replayability, as many areas are unreachable until certain power-ups are unlocked later on in the game.

+ Level design? Beautiful, fast, challenging, and yet intuitive. Did you want a 3D Sonic with levels in the style of the Genesis Classics? Here it is. Over the years Sonic Adventure always seemed to me to be the most like the originals in level design, but Sonic Colors ----if it was transformed into 2D and given 16-bit rendering---would not seem out of place in the slightest. They are expansive, there are multiple pathways throughout them, and their artistic flair, coloring, and details are incredible. And finally, SEGA has given us a game where Sonic can adventure under water! Sonic Adventure is the only other 3D Sonic game where this is possible ----and that came out in 1999! I think a lot of fans have waited a long time for this (I know I have!), and Sonic Team delivered. Plus, if one presses the jump button repeatedly while underwater, Sonic can actually swim upwards! Yes, for those who care, this kind of messes with the whole "Sonic can't swim" backstory, but it makes the game a whole lot funner. Aquarium Park represents the pinnacle of this game's achievement, in my opinion. The soft twilight lighting, the elaborate detail of the Asian pagodas and buildings, the blue-domed sky, the majestic yet haunting beauty of the lumionous sea creatures in the dark water ----oh, it's magnificient. One of the best zones in all of Sonic history, and probably platform gaming! One must also not fail to mention the inclusion of the classic "badniks" from older entries into the series. To see robots like "Crabmeat" and "Buzzbomber" in a modern 3D Sonic game lends such a classic authenticity to the title, reminding me of the Genesis originals and the excellent TV show Sonic The Hedgehog The Complete Series ("SatAm"). In addition to all of this single-player extravagance, there is an excellent two-player area as well. Sonic Adventure 2 Battle (2001) was probably the last main game in the series to have a multiplayer aspect that was worth playing. Sonic Colors has a whole zone called "Sonic Simulator" where two players can race each other to the finish with multicolored "Sonic Robots" or their Mii avatars. The levels are simple, with players pretty much traversing paths through worlds of few colors and backgrounds composed of floating shapes, but this allows the graphics to remain top-notch without succumbing to framerate slowdown. The music is remixed versions of the main levels, rendered in "retro" video game fashion. Players can help or hinder each other, and the competion encountered while playing can be hilarious. The Boss Battles are some of the best in the series, mixing speed and agility in a gripping balance. Some of the early ones are pretty easy, but by the end of the game you will definitely find yourself challenged.

+ Music? Memorable, pleasant, well-orchestrated, and vibrantly detailed. Aquarium Park (there's that place again!) holds top honors; Terminal Velocity guards the bottom of the barrel position.

Tropical Resort has a sort of surfer theme to it. It is fast paced and fun, with a steady beat and a great array of guitars that are not screaching out heavy metal riffs.

Starlight carnival goes a more techno route, and yet is very upbeat and happy ----exactly what one would like in a carnival.

Planet Wisp has a beautiful theme based around a piano. Its soft and thoughtful, somewhat melancholy, yet pretty in its own right.

Sweet mountain is one of the weaker entries here, yet it is still entertaining, what with its mix of 1940s trumpets and early 1960s guitars. Its not entirely memorable, but it's not grating.

Aquarium Park. Heart-achingly stunning! Piano! Violins! Soft yet steady drums! Electronic synthesizers used to perfection! Just thinking about the music makes me want to cry with happiness. It has an Asian-styled theme that is mournful at times, optimistic at others, and always beautiful. These tracks alone would justify buying the soundtrack (which comes out in Japan late December. Check out amazon.co.jp if you are interested). One of my favorite bits of video-game music. Huh, it's one of the best pieces of music I've heard this year.

Asteroid Coaster jarringly shifts into rock, which in a game this artistic in approach felt quite jarring. It has a distinctive pattern running through it, but it just feels lacking compared to the other music here. Even as rock goes, it was not quite fantastic. About the only person who can pull off rock in a Sonic game is Jun Senoue (Sonic Adventure 1 and 2, Sonic Heroes, etc.). A lot of his Sonic music may be on the harsh side, but at least it is memorable and about as "epic" as rock can get. The music here was just kind of bland and irritating. But things can always get worse...

....and they do in Terminal Velocity. Take all of the complaints lodged above (note "bland") and apply that here to the bland whines of this level. Did I mention bland?

+Graphics? Probably the best on the Wii. At times you could mistake this for a PlayStation3 game. Of course on closer observation one could note their error, but "closer" bears key importance here. The imagery is really that good.

Here come the problems with the game.

-The story is really pretty light. Basically, the evil Dr. Eggman claims to have given up his evil ways, and to prove his good will he has constructed an enormous amusement park in outer space. Sonic figures it's just a scheme for power, and of course he's right. Sonic and his friend Tails the two-tailed fox go up to space to investigate. They find that Eggman is using his park as a means to capture a certain race of aliens called Wisps. He intends to use their power to fuel a mind-control ray down to Mobius, the world where Sonic lives. While this premise sounds reasonably threatening (and somewhat comic-book-like), it is executed as a comedy. Is there anything wrong with that? Not really. But it just seems to miss a bit of heart. When I think of Sonic the Hedgehog stories ----whether it be in video game, comic book, or cartoon form---I think of comedy, but the overarching memory is that of a story that really was gripping in an emotional sense. Sonic Advenure 1 and 2 are prime examples of this. Their storys could be transferred directly to the big screen and few would scoff. Sonic and the Black Knightwas imaginative and sad, but had a powerful message. The story in Sonic Colors is about as "epic" as its name (translation: it's not!) Yes, this is a game. Yes, it's a platforming game. Yes, stories are not really integral to this kind of game. But a great story doesn't hurt. This story wasn't bad, but it was just filled with jokes. Non-offensive, thankfully, but just puns and slapstick and childish humor. In many ways it resembled a story one would find in a Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destructiongame(except that, as mentioned earlier, the jokes in Sonic Colors are not offensive). The voice actors for all but Dr. Eggman have been changed. For those new to the series this has little impact. Some familiar with the series will find this welcome. Yet I do not believe I am alone in missing the old voice of Sonic and his friends. This is really getting into minor impact territory, but it still has an impact.

-Semi-minor annoyance: In every other Sonic game, when the player collects one hundred rings, they are granted an extra life. I believe this is the only game in which this is not true, and its absence is sorely missed (especially on those challenging levels!). Here's hoping this is just a one-time event.

-The difficulty is often rather low. Not that that is a bad thing, as this game was designed primarily for younger children. Sometimes though, a little extra challenge would have been nice.

-The game is kind of short. The story mode can be beaten in a day. Even to go back and collect the bonuses does not take very long. I and my siblings have been playing this game since it came out on Nov. 16, and as of Nov. 23 we have finished about 75% of the games side missions.

All in all, this game is highly recommended, and is a brilliant revelation of the fact that SEGA has learned from its successes and failures with the franchise.

It's not the greatest Sonic, but its a high-ranking title in the series.

P.S. ----Did I mention that you can play Super Sonic in the main levels? That is AWESOME! When all of the 180 special rings have been collected, and all of the Sonic Simulator levels have been completed, Sonic can transform into his invulnerable, superfast "Super" form. You can go back and replay any of the main levels in this form (after collecting 50 rings in the level). This game is the first 3D Sonic game in which this is possible. It brings back so many memories of the Genesis classics! A brilliant move that was well worth the wait.

Ryan Robledo

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I've been a fan of Sonic since the first time I picked up Sonic the Hedgehog on my Sega Genesis. Unfortunately, he's tested my will for the last several years with some horrible 3D efforts.

Sonic Colors, surprisingly, gets everything right. As I played through the game, I couldn't help but anticipate something wrong to happen...it was just too good to be true. This time, they throw in some aspects new to the series, in the form of small aliens called Wisps that give you different powers. These are a fun addition to the series, and allows for much more creative level design without slowing down the Sonic speed that we play the games for.

The story is mostly standard, cutesy Sonic fare, with the welcomed addition of some honest, self-aware humor from Sonic Team. The graphics are some of the best on the Wii, in both character and level design. Like the name says, the colors and lighting are gorgeous on this game. Even the sound is good...the voice acting is actually pretty decent!

The biggest plus is the gameplay, which unsurprisingly, plays a bit like a faster Super Mario Bros game. The controls are tight, and the level design is nearly perfect. Sonic still moves fast, and this time it's actually fun to control. There's about 12 hours of gameplay through the story, and a lot of incentive to keep playing to find the challenging red rings in the levels. The game suddenly hits you with a big difficulty curve. I had quite a few moments of frustration that nearly killed the entire game for me. We're talking serious wanna-chuck-the-controller-into-expensive-television moments.

Pros: Great graphics, level design, and gameplay.

Cons: Steep difficulty curve, some menus look very thrown-together.

In conclusion, this is a great game I'd recommend to new gamers, and experienced veterans alike. It's the first Sonic game of the last three years I can honestly tell fans of the series to go pick up.

Honest reviews on Sonic Colors - Nintendo Wii

It's hard to believe that I was a wee young lad of eleven years when "Sonic Adventure" was released for the Dreamcast to all the hype and excitement Sega could muster. At that age, I really did not care to slow down and notice the bugs, glitches, and terrible design choices that riddled the game I was too busy running fast and standing in awe of what might have been the most impressive graphics of the day. However, the game certainly has not aged well. Enter sequel after sequel of bad 3D hedgehog platformers that required the patience of Mother Theresa to play. Does "Colors" follow the trend, or set Sonic back on his speedy path?

The latter, to a certain extent. "Colors" is definitely a step in the right direction, and the game very much reminds me of those moments in the "Sonic Adventure" games when they fired on all cylinders and gave us healthy doses of speed. Thankfully, many of the issues that plagued the earlier games are fixed here.

Let's start with the story. Well, let's call it a premise, since there's very little plot development here (a good thing). Dr. Robotn excuse me, Eggman has built a giant multi-planet amusement park under the guise of being sorry for his past misdeeds. Sonic pays a visit and finds a bunch of aliens called "Wisps" being enslaved by Eggman for the purpose of powering a gigantic death ray. That's it. No deathly serious tales of anthropomorphic hedgehogs and humans sharing disturbing emotional attachments. No amnesiac biological experiments serving under demonic alien masters. No overweight felines searching for pet frogs. "Colors" is all lighthearted and self-aware Saturday morning cartoon fare, and while it's rather kiddie in its approach, the delivery is more than passable. Sonic is more of a lovable idiot than a gnarly 80s snowboarder with serious 'tude, Tails sounds like a boy for once, and Dr. Eggman is, well, Dr. Eggman. Animations are smooth, and cutscenes are (mostly) well-scripted.

The graphics on display here are great. Even at 4:3 and 480i, colors are vibrant, textures are smooth, and the environments look great. However, I have encountered one area in Sweet Mountain where, upon using the drill power, the frame-rate took a significant hit, to the tune of around 10-20 frames per second. Some occasional slow-down is acceptable, but in this case, it altered the playability of the game. Likewise, the sound effects are good. Everything sounds about how a Sonic game should be expected to sound. The music here has been dialed back from the pseudo-speed-metal of previous entries, favoring a fast-paced pop-rock soundtrack. Preference is key here, as the soundtrack is decidedly fitting, but I actually somewhat miss the "cheese" factor of the music from previous games.

Gameplay is primarily where the game stumbles. I have a high tolerance for gameplay issues (after all, I actually enjoyed the admittedly terrible "Shadow the Hedgehog"), but when the gameplay is so polished in much of "Colors," the rougher portions stick out like a sore thumb. Sonic controls very tightly, as long as he stays on the ground (or under it, for that matter). Rail-grinding, a staple of 3D Sonic games since "Adventure 2," is simplified to the point of becoming superfluous. The fully 3D parts of the game are handled well for the most part, but they often lose their momentum by virtually playing themselves (almost half of the impressive-looking Starlight Carnival, Act 1 plays completely free of player input). I recognize that much of the "Adventure" games had similar sections, but they are not as numerous and as long-lasting as those in "Colors." What little gameplay is here is actually excellent, and causes me to wonder why these sections of true 3D gameplay are so few and far between. Instead, "Colors" ends up being a side-scroller with 3D sections allowing the player a break from the action. Perhaps Sega was, for once, being a bit too conservative in their design choices here. Fortunately, transitions between the two perspectives are smooth. Jumping, on the other hand, is a different story. The control is passable, but it is far from tight. I found simple 2D platforming action to be a chore, and some environmental challenges such as the candy swings in "Sweet Mountain" were downright frustrating. The frustrations are few and far between, though, and Sonic's controls are improved tenfold from previous games. Thankfully, the camera shoots the action from appropriate angles and rarely, if ever, gets stuck or blocks something important from view.

Environment design is fantastic, but level design is a different story. It's not bad, it's just not great. The introduction of multiple pathways utilizing the different Wisp abilities is certainly welcome, but nothing here is particularly memorable. In the "Adventure" series, Sonic escaped a killer whale that demolished the very bridge he ran along, ran straight down the side of a building while dodging obstacles, snowboarded down a steep city street, and boarded a rocket launching towards space. While everything else in "Color's" is much more polished, it seems to lack any true "Wow" moments (at least, until halfway through the game, where I am now). Design is just a little boring and a little generic. Likewise, level length is woefully unbalanced, with one mission taking a full six or seven minutes to complete on an initial run-through, and the next taking fewer than forty-five seconds. Much to the game's benefit, however, there are numerous routes and secrets through levels, and the speed-and-ring-count ranks are back (from best to worst: S, A, B, C, D, E). There are also forty-four stages, each with 5 red rings to locate, so there is plenty of game here to keep the player busy. Some aspects of exploration simply feel a bit forced, and trimming the fat could provide opportunity for adding a more cinematic quality to the game.

Maybe I'm being a bit harsh on "Colors," but after so much disappointment, I have to compare "Colors" to the blue hedgehog's troubled past. The results are promising but not altogether convincing. This is no "Super Mario Galaxy 2," nor is it a "Shadow the Hedgehog." But as a gaming icon, Sonic's future looks much brighter with "Colors," and, when it comes down to it, the game rarely stops being fun. I fear that previous disappointment, as well as the game's silly story and cartoon-like presentation, will land Sonic's appeal squarely in a much younger demographic. However, Sega obviously realizes that older fans such as myself have had their patience tested and their nerves tried for a decade now. Perhaps the focus toward tenand twelve-year-olds could salvage the beaten mascot's image for a new generation of gamers. Still, there is quite a bit of depth here worth the cash, even if blood, guts, and guns is your thing. Wholeheartedly recommended to families, and cautiously recommended to older gamers. Just don't let me convince you to purchase this platformer if you have not bought any of Nintendo's chubby, red-hatted plumber's Wii titles, especially "Super Mario Galaxy 2."

Ten-point scale: 7/10 Good

Pros: Sense of speed, excellent graphics, decent sound and voice acting, simplicity of control, multiple paths and secrets encourage exploration, replay value, "Sonic The Hedgehog 2" style 2-player mode.

Cons: Somewhat boring level design, unbalanced level length, mid-air control is slippery, too little genuine 3D action, plays itself entirely too often.

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Sonic Unleashed, 2008's 3D outing for the Sonic franchise, was a mixed bag. While the daylight

levels were well-made and fun to play through (sometimes), the Werehog levels were tedious and

ended up making me quit before I finished, something which I almost never do with a game. Adding

in the pointless medal-collecting in order to progress, a poorly-taken cue from the Mario

franchise, and keeping the awful voice acting which diehard Sonic fans (myself included) had

to grow accustomed to, Unleashed was a baby step forward, but two leaps backwards. But finally,

after 15 years of decent (Sonic Adventure, Sonic Heroes) to mediocre (Shadow the Hedgehog)

to god-awful (2006's Sonic the Hedgehog) 3D entries, Sonic Team has finally gotten their act together

and given us what they've always promised: a truly great game. Enter Sonic Colors for the Wii.

Gameplay: A+

Imagine the good old days of the Sega Genesis Sonic, spliced with finely-tuned 3D mechanics,

coupled with amazing power-ups that turn seemingly-predictable levels on their head. That's

just a hint of what Sonic Team has done with Colors. While other 3D Sonic games have failed

at finding the balance point between speed and accuracy in the controls, this outing finally

makes maneuvering Sonic a blast and not an irritating game of trial and error. As for

the powers you acquire as the game progresses, which seemed to be the most dreaded feature

of the game, they're nothing less than stellar. Each one works exactly like it should, and

as you get more of these abilities, you'll find yourself replaying levels, if not whole worlds,

to uncover secrets you may or may not have noticed the first time around.

Story: A+

Yes, Sonic games have stories. And even for the lesser entries, the one complaint I've never

had were with the plots (well, except for Sonic Heroes; I don't what was up with that one).

But despite the overall quality of the plots, the dialogue and little things in between the

major story points were always pretty dull. And THIS is where the writers of Happy Tree

Friends and the fantastic game MadWorld come in. Every little cutscene is laced with gut-busting

one-liners and fast exchanges between Sonic and Tails, and the plot itself has a lot of nice environmental

overtones. Robotni-... I mean, EGGMAN, is trying to capture cute little aliens and turn them into

fuel for his intergalactic amusement park, which he intends to use to take over planets. While it's

admittedly simplistic, I have to give the writers kudos for drawing comparisons to our current

climate and consumption issues. Of course, there always is the possibility that I'm reading too much

into it, so you may have to decide for yourself. But there's no denying that the writing in

this entry is snappy, fun and entertaining.

Graphics: A+

Every world springs to life on the stage with vivid colors, from the bright neons of the Starlight

Carnival to the soothing ripples of the Aquatic Park. If you think you've seen the best

graphics the Wii has to offer in a third party game, well, think again. Every little processor of

the system is pushed to it's very limit, and shows that the Wii still has a quite a bit of

life left in it, and also serves as a nice middle finger to the graphical snobbery offered by

the 360 and PS3.

Sound: A+

The first thing you'll notice as soon as the first cutscene begins is that Sonic no longer sounds

like a jock, and Tails no longer sounds like an infant Justin Bieber. Yes, these are the new

voice actors we've been hearing so much about, and quite frankly, I think they're the best

the franchise has ever had. No more wooden dialogue, no more awkward silences, no more

cringe-inducing exchanges, no more missed lip movements... everything about the voice acting

is flawless. And the music, the sweet, sweet music, is a perfect balance between retro chic and

current synthesizer technology, paired with fast beats and dramatic orchestral flair. So, yeah,

it's good.

Overall: A+

A joy to watch, a pleasure to hear, and a thrill to play, Sonic Colors reminds us why we've

kept giving this old blue hedgehog a chance over the years: because when given the right

opportunity, he can compete with the likes of Mario and Nathan Drake. There should be no

hesitation when you go into the store to purchase this game, because for the first time

in fifteen years, you can be confident that what you're buying is a great game. Thank

you, Sonic Team and Sega, for keeping true to your promise this time around.

Cheap Shanghai Pocket

Customer Ratings:

Shanghai Pocket is a wonderful game, and has a lot of charm with its graphics and music. The music is repetitive, but it isn't annoying, and the animals that you free by completing each stage are a nice touch; interesting that they match the Chinese Zodiac! My only complaints are 1) The size of the tiles: You WILL need a Gameboy magnifier with a light, my eyesight is fine, but would strain others with less than good eyesight or have tired eyes, and 2) The lack of a save game means that you have to play all 12 stages to watch the endgame feature! Switching the game off, or selecting "quit" and switching off will erase your progress, and it's tiring to play each stage without a break; thank goodness for Nintendo AC adapters! These two complaints prevented a five star rating, but it is still a wonderful game and I highly recommend it!

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Ilove the game Shanghai pocket. Mahjongg is my all time favorite game to play I have it downloaded on my personal computer and play it as often as I can. My only complaint is that you can not save your game so you can continue at another time(when the boss goes to lunch) and you can save the chinese horoscope symbols that you've already saved. You have to start all over again.Some different symbols would be nice to try instead of the two choices you have for each row. But the different layouts are great and being able to set different time limits on your game is good too. I really love it. The only problems I now have is carpal tunnel on my wrists and eye strain because I can't put the game down. Thanks alot . Some oriental music playing in the background would of suited this game much better than the one that plays in the background. It's got a cute little tune to it..

Cheap Monopoly - Xbox 360 (Worldwide)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $29.99
Sale Price: $29.49
Today's Bonus: 2% Off

First, let me just get this off my chest: I will never understand why people complain about something after they buy when they clearly know that one of the features is missing. All of the negative reviews complain that there is no online play and they hate the whole game for it. First of all, it clearly states that this is a single player only and doesn't include online play. Unfortunately some folks don't bother to read what they buy. That's like buying rotten tomatoes at the supermarket that are labeled "rotten" and then come home and start complaining that their tomatoes are rotten and how bad their supermarket is. Now as for MY review below...Yes, I did put "No Online Play" as a negative aspect, but I didn't penalize the game's rating because I knew what I was buying months before this title came out.

The Good:

*The classic game you love without the clean-up part afterwards.

*Several boards to unlock and choose from, including world board, ice board and even cheese board.

*Multiplayer games can be played with a single controller, if only one controller is available(pass controller around.)

The Bad:

*Online Play would've been nice.

*Richest Mode can be dubious with questionable mini-games.

*Mr Moneybags will just not shut up at times and you can't fast-forward what he says.

The Bottom Line:

A great alternative to your old cardboard game. Very colorful graphics that include animated Mr. Moneybags that hosts the games for you. My biggest gripe is the Richest Mode. For those that are not familiar with it, the game is played with 4 players(at least 1 human and 3 computers.) Each round four dice are rolled. The minigame that follows will determine who gets to choose one die first. For example, if a player chooses a 5, 5 of their tokens will land on random board spots. If property is unowned, it goes into their portfolio. If it is owned, they pay a rent of 1 property or more. There is no money involved in the Richest Mode. That is all good, but the concept that completely kills it for me is that if somebody lands on a community chest(regardless if its the last place or the first place,) the poorest player will usually get to steal the richest player's 3 properties! This means that you might as well flip a coin to figure out the winner as this becomes very very random and anyone can win at any time, mostly based on luck. Mini-games will also make you scratch your head. One particular one is a stocking-stuffer game, where everyone fills their stocking with items. Sometimes, one item is enough, but sometimes you need 5 to make it full, which makes no sense. However, because Richest Edition is simply an "extra" to the classic edition, I will not downgrade the rating because you do not have to play it. The classic edition plays perfect with no quirks. This title is a great buy for those who play monopoly often. If you don't play it often, it will simply collect dust.

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This release is quite the anomaly. First off, I didn't even know it was out a friend of mine who works at Electronic Arts told me that it had come out. If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have known. Now that's not a fault of the game mind you, but for such a classic board game, you'd think it would be a little more promoted. That issue aside..

I was quite looking forward to playing it. I'm a Monopoly fan, and my wife is not, so I never get to play anymore. So I was looking forward to getting in some Monopoly. I sat down, fired it up, and played a few single player games. The game does a very good job at replicating the board game onscreen. There have been some Monopoly games on the PC in the past, and this one is quite good. The graphics look quite spectacular on my 46" HDTV. But the game play is right. So much so that there's a whole gaggle of custom rules you can put into play. Things such as "Land on Go, get double pay", "All tax goes into pile which is won by landing on Free Parking", Number of houses/hotels, mortgage rate, etc. The game play is pretty darned customizable, so that's a plus. There is a wide range of board themes. There's the obvious standard one, a future theme, a World Board, a Jungle Board, even food themes like chocolate and cheese. Each of these themes have appropriately named properties too (things like "Polar Bear Mountain" and "Blizzard Plains" for an ice themed board). There is a very strong variety of play here without changing the basic game at all. And that is just in standard mode.

There is another mode called "Richest" Edition, where you play with some new rules. One of which is no money. Richest uses no money at all when you owe someone money, you have to give or take properties. When I first played it, I thought it was going to stink the formula is changed around a lot, but I have to say, I really ended up enjoying it. The lack of money gave the game a rather different, and very enjoyable feel to me. There are also mini games in between rounds in the "Richest" mode to play which are loosely based on certain aspects of Monopoly. The mini games are kind of hit or miss depending on which one you get (there's about a dozen different ones, including one bizarre one where you have to take X-Rays of the Pennybags character). But I do have to say I really took to the Richest Edition variant of game play. It's notably shorter than regular games of Monopoly, which is one thing to take into account.

So I was really quite enjoying this game, which brings me to the strongest negative to this title. THERE IS NO SORT OF MULTIPLAYER OVER XBOX LIVE! THIS IS A FAILURE OF EPIC PROPORTIONS! How a game like Monopoly could be created without any sort of online play in 2008 is beyond me. It's not like this a Gears of War game or a Halo 3 where you have to push massive amounts of bits up and down an Internet connection. It's Monopoly. I cannot fathom why there was no Xbox Live play here it just boggles my mind that I cannot do this. This is such a major drawback, I can see it preventing a lot of people from buying the game. Yeah, there's multiplayer locally. You can play up to four people here on the same console. But to be honest, if I have four people in my living room, I'm going to play the real board game version. I might have been inclined to give this game five stars in my review, but the lack of Xbox Live play takes it down to three. It makes me think this omission is why the game ha a list price of $39 instead of the $59 most Xbox 360 games have.

Still, my feelings on lack of Xbox LIVE play aside, this is a very good representation of Monopoly. If you are big time into Monopoly, and always wanted to play but had nobody to do it with, this can work for you. It is a very good game of Monopoly, and the new modes bring a fresh flavor to a game that most of us know pretty darned well.

I wrote this review on the Xbox 360 version. It is also out on the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, as well as the Wii. I do not know the multiplayer situation on those, but if they can play online, and the 360 version cannot, I'll be even more irritated at that.

Best Deals for Monopoly - Xbox 360 (Worldwide)

I bought this at Best Buy for $. Very enjoyable game. The narration can be annoying and the controls have some faults but I really like the game. I like the different boards you can unlock and the shortened Richest version. This game is eating up a lot of my free time!

Honest reviews on Monopoly - Xbox 360 (Worldwide)

A great game for those who love to play Monopoly but hate the hassle of setting the game up. Just plug the cd in your xbox 360 and be prepared for hours of fun. If you are after achievements this game will give you loads in no time. I won over 300 in about 30 mins. of play.

Have fun!

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Monopoly - Xbox 360 (Worldwide)

A really poorly designed game with major issues:

1. No way to opt out of the constant comments from the "moderator".

2. Must play with 4 players (Total of human and computer players.)

3. Computer will make idiotic deals with other computer players to establish monopolies early in the game.

4. Interface designed poorly. Defaults to "Manage properties" instead of "next turn", requiring extra work. You end up pressing wrong button consistently, which takes forever to load.

5. Increasing difficulty of computer players results in same idiotic gameplay and cheating, with the main difference being that they'll land on your properties less. (Cheating dice.)

Don't waste your money. You'll be disappointed.

Reviews of XBOX 360 Bulk Hardware Lot for XBOX 360 X-Clamp Replacement RROD

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $9.99
Sale Price: $6.99
Today's Bonus: 30% Off

These washers fit well for doing the X-Clamp mod on your Xbox 360. I'm a bit disappointed that they are the exact same dimensions as M5 washers that I paid a fraction of the price for, though.

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Best Family Game Night 4: The Game Show - Nintendo Wii Deals

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $39.95
Sale Price: $22.29
Today's Bonus: 44% Off

When the new Family Game Night Nintendo Wii game came out, I knew I'd want to try it. I have the other three games and love them, EA and Hasbro definitely make a good combination. That being said, "Family Game Night 4: The Game Show" is good, but its not my favorite in the bunch.

Family Game Night 4 contains the games: Scrabble Flash, Connect 4 Basketball, Bop It Boptagon, Sorry Sliders, and Yahtzee Bowling. Each game features its own game plus another version of it. Playing these games on the Wii definitely give the original board games a twist and make for great family fun. The controls are a little funky, they take a few turns getting used to but then its okay. Connect 4 is neat because you shoot chips like a basketball hoping to make a Connect 4! Yahtzee Bowling is just like it sounds but it a lot faster as you roll three times. Sorry Sliders has you sliding Sorry tokens to a center ring, with the second version including Sumo guys! Bop It has you pushing different buttons to make different noises.

Finally, Scrabble Flash is my favorite. I love word games so moving titles around to match up letters is right up my alley. You compete against another player to make words from a set of five letters.

The best part of the game is silly Mr. Potato Head. He wears funny clothes and is a great game show host. Oh and rather than playing each game individually you can also play a Game Show version where you compete for cards by playing the different games.

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I purchased this game thinking it would be fun for the FAMILY but was furious to find out it only supports TWO-PLAYERs!!!! I do not recommend this game in any way! This is not a FAMILY game night game! Hasbro you really blew it with this decision!

Best Deals for Family Game Night 4: The Game Show - Nintendo Wii

I highly recommend this version of Hasboro Family Game Night to anyone with small children who have a love of games. It is set up like a game show and is easy for wee ones to navigate. We played with a 6yr old and a 4 1/2 yr old and they got to complete most of the task with very little assistance. The Scrabble was challenging for the younger one but seems to be a great spelling exercise for Kindergarten and up.

Honest reviews on Family Game Night 4: The Game Show - Nintendo Wii

The games are okay, but it doesn't let more than one person play at a time. you have to let each person play out the entire game before the second person has a chance.

Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Family Game Night 4: The Game Show - Nintendo Wii

Awesome game, a lot of games in one. The kids love to play it, with friends or on a saturday evening real family time haha!!

Review of SSX - Xbox 360

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $15.25
Today's Bonus: 24% Off

This is a fun game as far as a pure snowboarding, single-player experience is concerned, but unfortunately there are a number of things that are lacking in this title that leave the game falling short of my expectations. If you have an affinity for the previous SSX releases you may be disapppointed as a lot of what made the previous releases great is absent here. Also, if you are looking for a solid multiplayer experience you may want to look elsewhere.

EA has taken a more serious approach to this game. Originally the game was going to be called SSX Deadly Decents, and after negative consumer feedback with regards to the new serious direction taken in the revamped IP they decided to remove Deadly Decents from the title and just call it SSX. However, it doesn't appear that they made any attempt to alter the original game they programmed based on this consumer feedback. It is a shame because I feel like EA completely ignored the feedback from their fan base and said we are giving you the game we made whether you like it or not. So the game ends up feeling less like an SSX game and more like a survival snowboarding game. That aside, if you are new to the franchise you may not have the nostalgia associated with previous iterations of the game and find the snowboarding gameplay fun in its own right. They have tried to add a little bit of a story to the game through some comic book pages in between mountains, but it is superficial at best.

The basic premise of the game is that you are traveling around the globe to recruit members to your SSX team. Each member is specialized to handle one of the unique challenges each of the 9 mountain ranges presents. Each mountain range starts with you competing in a few race and tricky events and finishes with you taking on a deadly descent. You can think of each mountain range having one peak that is a boss battle the deadly descent survival final stage. So for one mountain range the deadly descent may be darkness, another avalanches, etc., with specialized gear being required to handle each unique challenge presented. These mountain boss battles or survival runs include whiteouts (use special goggles for terrain mapping), darkness (headlamp), drop offs (requires a wingsuit to glide over crevices), ice (ice picks to improve turning ability), extreme cold (solar panel for heat), thin air (oxygen tank), rocks (armor), avalanches, and trees.

Some of the game highlights and drawbacks are outlined below:

PROS:

-The controls are tight making it easy to carve up the mountain and perform stunts.

-Athough pretty limited, the soundtrack is decent. I do wish there was a little more variety provided in the music included.

-The landscapes are large and beautiful with some pretty long runs down the mountain.

-There are a number of game modes (racing, trick events, survival events) and a larger number of locations/trails to decend than I expected.

-The ability to purchase a number of upgrades to each snowboarder is a plus.

-Several welcome nuances have been added to the gameplay on the various mountains that require specialized gear to survive descents like headlamps, wing suits, armor, ice picks, and solar panels. These subtle changes to gameplay help keep the game interesting.

-A GEOTAG system has been added that basically allows you and other players to hide markers on the various slopes. The player who dropped the GEOTAG collects money at a certain rate until the marker is discovered and other players that find the marker get money for locating the marker. It can be fun trying to find the perfect spot to hide a marker and trying to figure out how to reach those hard to reach GEOTAGS you see glimmering in the distance.

-I do think the survival aspects added to the game are a welcome addition, but I wish more emphasis was placed on the SSX brand and less on the deadly descent aspects.

CONS:

-The over the top personalities of the characters developed in earlier iterations of this game are non-existent so you really don't develop an attachment to any of the characters. Also, even though you can change the color of of your character's snowsuit, there doesn't appear to be any unique alternative character models like in previous SSX games. The base character models have changed for some of the characters making them not really feel like the same character you use to know.

-The lack of real live head to head competition really hurts the game. Beating the ghost of a friend just isn't the same as racing or tricking right next to them. Although the GEOTAG system is a fun little add-on, multiplayer feels very underdeveloped and tacked on.

-Although there are unique aspects to the mountains in terms of terrain (ice versus rock versus forrest), the differences are subtle. There was a real distinction in various locations in the previous SSX games that is lacking here.

In the past few days a problem has risen in my ability to connect to Ridernet ( the online aspect of the game). This is an issue other gamers are also having. While it isn't affecting every user, it is affecting both 360 and PS3 versions of the game. I have contacted EA about the problem, but they have yet to get back to me. Given this latest turn of events I cannot recommend that anyone buy this game until the issue is resolved. Also, given the lackluster multiplayer I would also wait until the price drops before picking this title up. I was enjoying the game for what it was worth up to the point where my technical issue developed but I admit that I am left partially disappointed by the neutering of the personality associated with SSX tricky.

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What a let down. A return to form? I think not... SSX 3 and SSX Tricky were two great snowboarding games for many reasons. The customization allowed you to give your character a little style. The music was fun and upbeat. The courses were optimized for gameplay and were lit up like an amusement park. There were all sorts of shortcuts to find and little surprises along the way that kept the game interesting. No two runs were the same. The game had a "flow" to it that felt great once you got into a cool trick string. Grab some friends, because there was co-op, and not just online play either... SSX has none of these things. NONE of them.

Gone is the co-op. If you want to "compete" against friends, they need their own copy of the game, game console, and internet connection. There's no racing each other, just the illusion of co-op, and definitely none of the shared couch kind which is what makes these competitive games so much fun. Customization? You can buy different boards, which are not all that different really. Forget about cutesy backpacks and other cool accessories. The suits are all the same patterns too, although you can buy color swap versions, and some that have a slight glow effect.... big deal.

The courses are patterned after various scans of real mountains around the world. This adds realism but takes away the fun. There's plenty of places where you can literally just fall to your dooming death, and sometimes are forced into it if you don't have prior knowledge of a run. There is a rewind option but it's useless as it only rewinds you (everyone else keeps going forward, making you hopelessly behind in a race) or else detracts from your score (which is harmful when you are tricking). Courses designed to be FUN (such as SSX Tricky or SSX 3) would have been welcome... they could have done a few of those and given both the ho-hum drab realism and the flashy joyful runs, but they didn't. The neon lights and extravagance of past games helped brighten up the monotony of snow, trees and rocks, which is all SSX has in abundance.

The game also never settles into that comfortable flow. The courses are too broken up and uneven to get that feeling, with jumps coming too close together or too far apart. Not to mention the giant chasms you can trick yourself right down into. There are a few secret little hideaways but nothing as we have seen in the past. The trick runs also seem to be way harder in comparision to races on the same mountain, making the difficulty curve spike and plummet insanely.

SSX is a decently built title... you can tell a lot of time went into it, and some thought was put in to figure out how to update this to modern consoles. However, the formula didn't really need updating, and that's the biggest mistake they made. Trading realism for fun, has made this a boring, monotonous disappointment. Which should not have been a surprise considering the past two installments SSX On Tour and SSX Blur neither which managed to get the franchise "feel" right. They were misteps, and this is yet another one. Definitely try before you buy.

Best Deals for SSX - Xbox 360

(NOTE: I'm actually giving this game 4.5 out of 5 stars, not just 4)

PLUS:

-RiderNet is a godsend, even if it has already been done before

-Great soundtrack as usual

-Spectacular tricks and combo based gameplay

-Control schemes are well implemented, even offering a "classic" control scheme

MINUS:

-The spirit of the characters seems to have been lost from previous installments

-Campaign mode isn't really engaging

-Some mountains are a little TOO treacherous resulting in what feels like repeated cheap deaths

If you generally get a kick out of targeting your buddies best scores in any leaderboard based games or you lose sleep when someone has knocked you off of your high score perch and taking them down becomes the order of the day, then you will absolutely adore SSX.

The RiderNet setup is the absolute draw here, make no bones about it. I cannot praise this new feature enough. I've never played "Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit" but it's my understanding that the Autolog setup in that game works just like the RiderNet system does in SSX, by providing you with real time updates on who's doing what in the SSX world. In short, RiderNet makes this game feel alive. I guarantee that SSX will help create plenty of intense rivalries for those who immerse themselves deep enough in the game, thanks to RiderNet's absolutely awesome interface. I'm aware that I'm gushing maybe a little too rabidly about it but believe me, the recently released demo barely skims the surface of what RiderNet entails. There are a lot of races and trick runs to get to the top of here and RiderNet does a phenomenal job of keeping you up to speed in regards to not only how you're holding up but also how your friends are faring on those very same courses. I found it very easy to plot what it was that I wanted to involve myself in and which course records to shoot for next. Ghosts are automatically uploaded and downloaded and while there's no real time multiplayer involved, you're still getting the best of the experience by racing directly against the ghosts of other players doing their best runs. I'm loving what I'm seeing here in terms of early community interaction and judging from the scores and times already posted, it looks like I've got my work cut out for me on my way to the top of the boards. I really want to see more involved leaderboard systems like this in other games and genres, it's absolutely great and the best thing about the game, hands down.

I love the soundtrack and while it's a bit different from what I was expecting, there are a lot of great songs here that I'm sure anyone will enjoy. I found myself using Shazam a couple of times when I missed the artist and track title info, so that should count for something regarding the quality of the song selection. You can listen to your own music as well and the best part about that is that the game messes with the audio of the tracks just like it does with the in-game music, providing a seamless listening experience similar to what the game already gives you.

Using the right analog stick to perform tricks takes some getting used to and I'm not going to lie when I say that it's a lot to take in. The trick lies in getting used to the rhythm of the game. The game practically uses several different control schemes depending on whether you're on the ice or in the air and when you're careening down a mountain side and you're in the thick of a crazed trick busting, combo racking run, don't be surprised if you can't mentally process what your hands are doing of their own accord. I'm not knocking this because ever since the first game, this has been par for the course. It's all part of what makes SSX what it is. Like I mentioned above, you can play with a "classic" control scheme but I like the revamped style enough to stick with it.

On the negative side, I really didn't care for the campaign or story mode, if you even want to call it that. It's an admittedly thin plot that uses varying styles to push the story forward. I loved how the characters were bigger than life in the previous games but here, they've basically been whittled down to selectable characters. Most of them are still here but I miss the outrageousness and trash talk from SSX 3 and SSX Tricky. They've lost their mojo but they still bust out some of the most insane snowboarding tricks you'll ever see, so it's not so painful of a loss. Another slight issue I had with the game was that on several of these mountains, I was dying simply way too much. This was never really an issue in the other games but here, it happens a little more frequently than I would've liked and it kind of stops the momentum of the game every time you go flying off of a mountain and have to start all over. I found the Deadly Descent runs great on some sides and uninteresting on others.

I think the wingsuit feature leaves a bit to be desired also but hey, you can't fault the developers for trying something new. Thankfully, you don't use it all that much. Same goes for the rewind feature, which is really only useful for placing `geotags' throughout the world. The geotags themselves are a great and really cool idea (think of them as easter eggs that you leave behind for anyone else to pick up and the longer it takes for anyone to find them, the more in-game currency you receive; it's another great form of trash talking that the game provides) but since the clock keeps running while you're rewinding, there's really no use for it if you're on a serious run.

Is this the game SSX fans have been waiting for, for so long? Well, I suspect a lot of fans are going to have gripes with a lot of what I've mentioned and more but you can color this fan impressed. It's not perfect and could use a little more tinkering but this will definitely be my go-to game for when I'm not in the mood to sink a whole day into Skyrim or something else equally as time consuming. Truth be told, the hours melted away on me yesterday when I was posting up as many trick runs as I could before I went to sleep. Regardless of what you may think of the campaign mode, RiderNet will keep you coming back for more and is in my opinion, worth the cost of admission to the mountains of SSX alone.

Honest reviews on SSX - Xbox 360

I'm not going to give this the full blown soup to nuts review, but lets start with some shopping advice

1. Rent don't own

2. Its colorful and a few of the runs are quite fun (e.g. wing suit), but much of it is played 'in the dark' with no clue regarding the 'line'. Do you ski in the dark often? No. Why. Because its deadly. Maybe when I complete them all, I can play the different runs with a wing suit or a flash light and my review will improve

3. Does anyone at EA Sports actually talk to gamers ABOUT WHAT THEY'VE LIKED IN THE PAST, WANT TO SEE

4. Seriously, they could just remake 'Tricky' for the 360 and I'd buy it, probably like it more

5. I like the concept, six peaks, deadly challenges, and I like the mix of tricks and races, but the game has to many easy ways to die that the rider is simply 'forced' into

6. What made tricky great was (1) the ability to knock opposing riders down, (2) the ability to race someone else in the same room, (3) the happy music when you kicked into tricky mode, and (4) the interesting and often unexpected short-cuts, tunnels, suprizes.

This game has a few of these items but its not all that special.

Rent it for a weekend

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The latest edition of SSX comes at a great time. The XBox 360 really hasn't had a good snowboarding title since it's inception.

The maps are fantastic, and are actually created based off of real runs. EA used NASA satellite images and digitally recreated them for this game. To the actual mountainscapes, EA added tons of unique jumps, drops, rails, and a myriad of other objects as you try to rack up the combo points or race to the bottom. The tricks are over the top ridiculous, which to me, is what makes this game so incredibly fun. Make no mistake, if you're looking for a realistic snowboarding experience, you're not going to find it here. Heck, if you screw up landing a jump, you can rewind the game in real time to perform the jump and/or landing the way you intended.

The multiplayer is unique from most games, in that you can buy into events that you can win by playing and finishing the event within a set amount of time. This means you're not going to compete with them in real time. You can also have soft competitions with your XBox Live friends whom also have SSX. If you put down 11,000,000 points on a run, your friend will have the opportunity to best that score. This can go on back and forth. For long term appeal, this will be a great incentive to keep playing for some gamers.

The story line is pretty thin and the character development so far has been rather weak. I didn't buy this game for a story line, so for me it takes nothing away from the experience, even in the main campaign. Speaking of which, you'll need to finish the World Tour before you can move on to the Global Events, which offer up 153 courses on release day.

Upgrades for your snowboarder are abundant and varied. You can continue to make your character even better and construct their load out to your unique style of play, be it speed or tricks, for example.

Another cool feature is Geo Tagging. You can drop Geo Tags for other players across the SSX world to try and obtain. The longer they go unclaimed, the better for you in terms of points earned.

In closing, SSX is an awesome arcade style snowboarding game. I can't really find anything to complain about after the time I've had with it. This is a game that's definitely worthy of your collection if what's been described above is appealing to you.