Reviews of Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams

Customer Ratings:

It was time that a solid portable fighting game made it's way in America. But Street Fighter Alpha don't have much competition, and the only wanabee competitor is X-Men M.A. (that game really sucks). All in all, Street' is a good looking fighter with great gameplay. It is very much like the original version,but the only complaint I have is that the sounds effects could have been so much better...oh yeah it don't have the link cable feature either...

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This is one of the best game I owned so afr. it has excellent graphics and the moves are not difficult to excute at all, especially Akuma's utlimate super combo. the only flaw it has it that the hiddent characters such as akuma, m.bison, and dan are chosen randomly, there is a sort of pattern, but there are no codes for choosing them.

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Forget all those horrible fighting game translations that hit the original GameBoy and GameBoy Color (most of them started with Mortal Kombat) and take a good long look and Capcom's 8-bit version of Street Fighter Alpha for the GBC. Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, Charlie, Rose, Guy, Sodom, and Birdie; all of which look surprisingly faithful to their more powerful console bretheren, albeit some lacking animation and detail. Controls are surprisingly solid and the special moves will take time to pull off but once you do they're easy. The sound is mostly terrible and you'll want to turn down your GBC's volume, and the endings for each character are ridicuously cheesy, but the meat and bones of Street Fighter Alpha is the fighting itself, and that is where this comes out a winner. All in all, Street Fighter Alpha for the GBC may not be the best fighter to come along, but in the case of the GBC it reigns supreme.

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The last great fighting game for Game Boy Color. Good graphics and the same great characters that made Street Fighter famous on the SNES are back in this fast-paced game! There is a practice mode where you can set your opponents skill rating. You'll need to practice your moves and special moves if you want to go to tournament mode! In tournament mode things are alot harder so you'll have to practice in practice mode. The graphics are great and the music is okay. Be sure to get this game!

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This is the best fighting game for game boy since I can remember. There are two complaints of mine. the first complaint is, the sound effects are awful, but the graphics are good, and the music is O.K. The other complaint is that there are only three game modes; Arcade mode, Training mode, and opsions. But I guess if you add the good and the bad things together, it comes out even. Bottom line. This game is fun and it tades only ten minuetes to beat on easy. Bottom line. This games teen rating, don't worry about it.

D_Skin 20 Pack (DVD/Game/CD) - PlayStation Reviews

Customer Ratings:

These are great because I have little kids who like to put their own DVDs in the player and of course get fingerprints or worse all over them. So this is a way for them to be independent and for me not to be paranoid about their hurting the disks. Having said that, there does seem to be one drawback. The skins work better on new or unblemished disks. If the disk is already a little scratched, the device seems less able to read the disk with a skin on. However, I have never had a problem with a new disk. So it may be that the skin does add a little interference which only serves to magnify any problem the disk has. I still give it 5 stars because it's such an awesome product.

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I bought these in hope that they would be the great thing that they are advertised to be. They weren't! First of all, when using them on an Xbox game, it GREATLY slows down the game, to the point that it is unplayable. When I tried to use these in my laptop, they were a no go! It wouldn't even read the disk and it sounded like my laptop was an airplane taking off due to my cd drive frantically trying to read the disk to no avail. On a desktop computer, it will read some data disks with the d-skin on it, but it's slow. You won't be watching an mpg or vcd movie with the d-skin on for instance. I don't know how well they work on a cd player with musical cd's, but anything else is definately out. Since I am an mp3 man, I have no need to play music cd's, so I haven't tried them. I wish these worked as promised, I REALLY do, it would be a dream. Perhaps someday this idea will be perfected and then I can give FIVE stars instead of ONE!

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I primarily use these for music CD's and they are great. I was hesitant about putting it in my CD player because it's a 6-disc in-dash changer and I was worried it would get stuck or something. It didn't and I now use them on all of my cd's, One 20-pack cost the same as it would cost to replace one scratched CD. Overall a great product.

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I decided go give these D_Skin protectors a try, even though there have been some pretty poor reviews. I've had no problem with them. I've put them on a bunch of my favorite DVDs and tested them on my Sony Vaio Laptop computer, and my Sony 5 disc DVD player, and an old Sony DVD player ( 5 or 6 years old) and it works fine on all of them. It does not work in my XBox. The XBox finds the disk unreadable with a skin on.

Seems a very nice way to protect my favorite and most expensive or hard-to-replace DVDs.

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okayb first off i just got this today so far its half good and half bad it plays my ps2 games pretty fine a little noise on some but not enough to effect the way it plays for use of ps2 games in the ps2 slim when ps2 slim is modded 5 stars i don't know if it plays in the slim when the slim ps2 is not modded, i tryed to play dvds in my modded ps2 slim with d-skin's on and it won't read the disk and i put it in a new dvd player it would not work so for use of protecting your dvds on a mac dvd player ps2 or laptop 1 star. for use of protecting ps2 games 5 stars... one of the reasons i rated this 5 stars i because its the thing that protects it while it plays

Buy Chrome Purple/White Xbox 360 Modded Controller (Rapid Fire) COD

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List Price: $139.99
Sale Price: $89.99
Today's Bonus: 36% Off

I have 4 controllers. The GOW3 limited edition, an old black controller that has a mod that I bought a long time ago, the plain black controller that came with my console, and this one.

This blows every other controller out of the water. The controller has endured lots of heavy gaming, and the mod has helped give me the edge on so many occasions. That extra split second of shooting faster does wonders. Everyone seems to play with mods now so unless you have one you can't really keep up. And I'm pretty sure this mod is better than a lot of other ones out there since I'm definitely shooting faster.

I am really happy with my purchase. The price was right as well. I really feel that it was a great value since the GOW3 controller I bought was only $15 cheaper and it didn't have a mod or the cool look like this. Highly recommended.

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The controller has a mind of its own most of the time it doesn't respond to the orders I'm telling it do.

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I love almost everything about this controller except for it's connection range. It's beautiful to look at, works exceeding well in game play, once you figure out the codes the mods are easy to change and very helpful, and even though I was afraid the glossy mirror cover would get sweaty from extended usage, it's actually no worse than the standard black matte covering (maybe even a little better).

However, the controller's range is only about 9 feet, once past that the connection drops frequently. I've tried both rechargeable and AA batteries, but still experience the same problem. Since the edge of my couch is about 10 feet from my Xbox, I have to lean forward hunched over to play with any reliability. If it weren't for this problem, I would easily give 5 stars as other than this one issue its the best controller I've ever used.

If you normally play close to your Xbox then you should definitely give this puppy a shot, but if you sit 9+ feet away be ready for some massive frustration as you continually lose your controller for 15 seconds while it reconnects.

Honest reviews on Chrome Purple/White Xbox 360 Modded Controller (Rapid Fire) COD

My son ordered this with his christmas money and hasn't stopped using it. It has become his favorite xbox controller.

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This controller is awesome. Although I did have some issues with it disconnecting. I spoke with one of the techs at geniusmods and they told me not to use my rechargeable battery pack. Apparently they do not provide enough voltage. Awesome customer service always.

Cheap D Skin Protective Game Skins 50 Pack

Customer Ratings:

Formerly I gave a glowing review of these d_skins, based upon their performance initially. The DVDs and CDs played well in a DVD player as well as a PC. Having many hard-to-acquire, OOP CDs, naturally I was in favor of a product that promised to protect my favorite music; however....

In time, there appeared rotation marks on the disks covered in d_skins, a pattern I had not seen previously. They differed from random scratches in that they uniformly appeared clockwise to the disks, following the rotation. My $40-plus investment in d_skins came to be questioned.

Having cleaned my disks prior to covering or having covered new disks, I hesitate to believe it is the result of debris between the disks themselves and the skins. Are the skins loose enough to cause friction while playing? Some are quite loose, while others fit well.

Having first noticed this on SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, I was willing to attribute it to a flaw in disk production, but when these marks appeared ON MY BACH SACRED CANTATA DISKS---It was all too much. Without further testing, I abandoned the d_skin experiment altogether, glad to have discovered it before other favorite disks were marked beyond repair.

Other reviews here disparaged the use of d_skins, all of which I ignored. After all, I wanted the idea to work. Better to enjoy an unprotected disk as long as possible, rather than destroy it in an attempt at preservation. I am dying daily, so why must my CDs be preserved until the last day?

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I really wanted this product to work. I have two young kids who seem to find my CDs, DVDs and X-Box disks no matter what I do with them. I bought 50 of these things when Victor Lucas on G4-TV said they work. Victor, you let me down. My X-Box doesn't read through them about 50% of the time, TWO different DVD players have an even worse record and my computer and car stereo won't read through them at all. It's been about two months and I think I've removed every single one I applied. So much for protecting Halo 2, if your X-Box can't read the game.

None of the other reviews here even hint at this problem, but I swear I'm putting them on right (I can feel each "tooth" snap into place around the disk). As far as I'm concerned, this is a great idea that just doesn't work reliably.

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I got a 5 pack of these to test out. I put one on my xbox game that would always stall and crash and it works great now! It's faster and hasn't crashed yet. That was when I went out and got these to protect all of my xbox games and dvds. I love these things. :) (Didn't stop a cd that skipped a lot from skipping, but helped it a little bit. I recommend these as a method to prevent scratches not fix them.)

I think the 50 pack is a great way to go to protect all of your discs at a cheaper price.

Honest reviews on D Skin Protective Game Skins 50 Pack

So... ive been wanting to try this product for quite some time... cause i know like everyone else im tired of my cds getting freakin scratched... "Thanks greedy record companies for not making better non scratchable cds so they have to be replaced"... but anyways i broke down and bought a few... and oh my what a waste of money... first off they dont fit right... debri gets in between the skin and the cd and scratches it... it makes funny noises in your cd player and if youre like me that tiny sound will drive u nutz... and not to mention i have a problem with moisture in my car cd player... and it gets in between the skin and the cd, mite as well pour water on them.... needless to say all these problems cause pauses and skips, non play, and even error messages... So if u want My honest opinion Dont Buy them!... just get u some blank cds, make copies of your cds, Put your originals up and listen to your copies... much simplier that way!

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I've been using these D Skins for over a year now and am super happy with their performance! I have read other user reviews and have not experienced the fine clockwise scratches perhaps friction between the skin and the disc while in play. I have noticed a slight variance in fit with different skins, sometimes they're snug enough to snap and lock on, but do have a little air between the disc and the skin, if that's the case, I switch skins and most often the next one fits perfect. Maybe there's a better fit for some discs than others? I purchased these skins at a game store and the clerk told me never to use these skins in a car stereo, they are too sensitive and don't have the clearance for the extra thickness they add to the CD. I've never had a play problem with these skins in my DVD player, no skipping or locking up, just normal uninterrupted play. The sales guy that sold these to me showed me an impressive demonstration of aggressive abuse these skins with withstand, and the damage they are cabable of preventing. He snapped one of the on a brand new CD and then purposefully ground the CD back and forth his tabletop and over objects, he picked up the CD and showed me not only that the skin STAYED ON, which amazed me, but also the skin was lightly scuffed compared to the unscaithed CD. I was sold right then and there. If it is true what the reviewer mentioned about clockwise friction he encountered using his skins, whether caused by finite debris or other, I'm fine with that because light scuffing can be buffed out, it's much better than the alternative of heavy very visable scratches that are on all of my unprotected CD's. They might not be perfect but I still think they're a great investment for my collection.

RECOMMENDED!

AVERMEDIA C281 Game Capture HD Record Xbox 360 and PS3 in Real Time Reviews

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List Price: $138.13
Sale Price: $117.27
Today's Bonus: 15% Off

Before I start this review I'd like to mention that you DO need an external or internal hard drive in order for you to be able to save your recorded content. Now on with the review. The ease of installation is amazing! Simply plug into your console, and there you have it. The component itself is very lightweight and extremely portable. Out of all the hd pvr's I've owned, this one stands out because of how user friendly it is. In a push of a button, your recording sick gameplay footage in full hd. This was meant and designed for video game recording. I cannot stress enough how easy it is to use, Its like you have a personal guide with you through the whole recording process with on screen instructions and notifications telling you how to make the best of your recordings. After your content is saved on the external or internal hard drive, all that's required then is a simple transfer from your hard drive to your pc or mac, and you'll have your vids streaming on youtube or facebook in no time. I can see this product being extremely useful for those looking to create a successful channel on youtube of commentary gameplay. That seems to be very popular in the youtube community. Also, I can see this product being very useful to the casual gamer who wants to show an awesome replay through social networks and what not. Considering the price, your getting a really good deal. Some of the previous hd pvr's I've owned cost me $200 and over. Overall this product is outstanding! It gives you great hd gameplay recordings with little to no hassle. I'd definitely recommend this product to those seeking to share their gaming records or amazing gamplay footage with either small social communities or even the world!

Please leave a positive vote if you found this review helpful. Thanks. Also, feel free to leave any comments regarding this review or the product itself. I'll be happy to respond to any questions or comments posted.

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I've had mine about a week now and can report how awesome this device is. Recording in HD without a pc is of great value! There is no lag in video quality whatsoever. I DID see a slight audio synch issue at times BUT a firmware upgrade seemed to take care of that (from the Avermedia website kudos to them for jumping on that quickly). I use mine for tv recordings as of now. Once recorded, the avi format is easily converted to any other format you may need. This device really is amazing and can't believe it's really so affordable. I'm using an external hd formatted in ntfs (recommended by vendor). Satisfied consumer!

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I've tried a number of capture devices over the years. The Happauge HD PVR while great when I could get it to work had a frequent tendency to crap out on me. Later on, I decided to get an AverTV USB HD DVR. It worked great for me until I bought a new Windows 7 PC a few months ago. About a week into being linked up with my new PC, I started getting Capture Failed dialogs whenever I'd try to record, and haven't been able to get it working since. AverMedia support even sent me a replacement, but we were still never able to get the issue resolved.

Ultimately, I ended up purchasing the Game Capture HD. After a couple years of dealing with USB devices, I was a bit skeptical about using a standalone device. I didn't want to have to worry about buying additional storage. Plus I thought it'd be inconvenient to have to swap a flash drive between the device and my PC every time I wanted to start editing. Once I got into the swing of things though, neither were a problem. I might even say I prefer it now. Keeps my PC's folders tidy, and I don't have to worry about having the device attached to my computer's hip at all times.

The good about this device:

1. The Remote: AWESOME idea. I can't tell you what a relief it was to be able to just press a button and instantly get right down to business (as opposed to having to fire up a computer...and then a capture program). There's also a handy screencap button and a nice settings/playback menu accessible through the remote.

2. Comes with a component cable that works for 360, PS3 and Wii. I didn't need it, but was impressed to see that they went the extra mile by including it. Many companies don't.

3. Has an auto on/off mechanism tied to whether or not it detects an input signal. So if you turn on your PS3, for example, the device will turn on along with it. If you turn off your PS3, the device will shut itself down 10 minutes later. Pretty cool feature, considering many other devices don't even have a manual on/off button, let alone something like this.

The bad about this device:

1. Video Quality: It noticeably degrades the video feed, both on your TV and in your recordings. I'm a longtime PS3 user and like I said earlier, I've been around the block a few times with capture devices: so I know what my console's picture is capable of, and I also know what a decent recording looks like. This device drops the ball on both. I'm guessing the pass-through components are just really cheap (the device as a whole feels cheap, actually). The picture quality it reduces you to is something like a poor medium between 480p and 720p. It takes away a great deal of crispness from your console's raw feed, and produces slightly fuzzy recordings (though you probably wouldn't notice the latter much, once you upload to YouTube). I've never seen anything like this in any other capture card I've used, so I was pretty disappointed. I ended up returning my unit solely because of this issue. It's a shame too, because this device really has potential. It may not be a deal-breaker for some, but for me, I've spent way too much money on my TV and on Blu-rays to have this thing hooked up to my TV, giving me some crappy "600p" quality on my PS3. I'm thinking about ordering a replacement in hopes that this is just a fluke. If so, I'll update my review.

2. Recording Options: This device gives you options of 12mbps, 10mbps and 8mbps. I would've liked to had seen a wider range. Using other devices, I've been able to skate by at 4mbps (which helps me preserve storage space). Even 1mbps doesn't look too bad on my YouTube channel. With that said, I think the choices provided are overkill. Even its lowest setting eats up twice as much space as I'd prefer. I have to wonder if they only allow these higher bitrates to help keep the aforementioned poor picture quality from getting exposed even further.

3. Lag: There seems to be occasional lag with the audio and/or video when using this device. Nothing to be overly annoyed about, but it's reminiscent of playing an online game (even when you're not).

4. Recording Format: I have no idea why AverMedia continually insists on using these godawful formats in their devices. I put up with it on the USB HD DVR (and had to convert each file just to begin my editing process). I figured since the file container is the fairly-common .avi this time around, maybe I'd get some relief; but I suppose the way it's encoded still makes their files incompatible with my editing programs (Sony Vegas, for one). To the company's credit though, I can import the audio of my recordings into Vegas; just not the video. I guess that's a step up from the files that their other devices produce, which simply make the program freeze and crash. Who knows: maybe a few years from now, I'll get something that works completely. Seriously though, would it really be that much trouble to at least give consumers the additional option to record in a flexible mp4, wmv or mpg format?

5. I had some trouble getting the device to recognize my 2GB flash drive. I don't know if it was the unit's fault or mine, but that's just a heads up to you guys working with smaller storage space. My 16GB drive worked just fine though.

Overall, I really want to like this device. I just can't get over the video quality issue though (new firmware and cables didn't help, btw). If the company can ever get that worked out, I'll come running back to this product. But in the meantime, I'm yet again looking for a new capture device.

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I've had the device for nearly two weeks, giving myself enough time to test two different consoles and the recorded footage from separate games. I'll include some tips I've discovered to make this device even more simple once it arrives for you. Yep, I'm sure you'll want this after reading some customer reviews.

First off, make sure you update the FIRMWARE! You will run into some hiccups if you're not running Ver. 1.7.2, the latest update for the device. It's simple to find the update by going to AVerMedia's webpage for the product and clicking the "AP & Driver" tab. Scroll down, download the file, put the file on an EMPTY (helps the device locate said file) USB flash drive, and done.

Lets actually get into the product and its components though. As you may be aware, this device is very lightweight. Even after adding an internal hard drive, the AVerMedia Game Capture HD is very portable. It does need to be plugged in, but it's not a demanding piece of tech because of the method it records your game footage. Rather than being dependent on a PC/Mac, plugging in a hard drive (internal or external) or USB flash drive is all that's required to store recorded footage. I personally went with an internal hard drive as after upgrading my PS3 to a 250GB hard drive a year ago, I had a spare 80GB 2.5 SATA internal hard drive laying around. I also have a handful of flash drives, so keeping one for transfer purposes isn't a hassle.

This may be a negative for some of you, but this doesn't record 1080p due to no HDMI ports. You'll be using component cables for the console and your HDTV. What's fantastic is that the Game Capture HD comes with a handy 3-in-1 console component cable. Yep, on one end you'll have a connection for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and the Nintendo Wii! However, as a tip, in my experience I had to leave the cable plugged into only one console at a time. When plugged into both my Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3, the Wii would only receive video input, not audio. With the PS3, nothing was displayed. This could be dependent on your HDTV though as, well, I don't have a wide range of HDTVs as my disposal to test this further.

Finally, I'll talk about the video files. You will want to download AVerMedia's "MP4 Builder" as the AVI files the Game Capture HD records can be either incompatible with video editing software, or simply a hassle to work with. If you have outdated video editing software, like me, I've found changing the extension to M4V will allow the MP4 file to import and not hinder the file's properties. Now ANOTHER TIP! If you do plan on recording Nintendo Wii footage, you must know that the Wii doesn't actually output 16:9 widescreen. It's anamorphic widescreen, meaning that the video is horizontally squeezed to fit a 4:3 aspect ratio. Maybe you haven't noticed this before because HDTVs tend to automatically fill in empty space. Some low-end HDTVs will require you to manually fill in the screen. What does this all mean? If you want that 480p widescreen, you'll have to edit it either through aspect ratio correction in a video converter or stretching it with video editing software.

I could talk further about the quality, which is rather great, but I would suggest viewing some footage on YouTube. I will say though that the picture does dull a bit when recording. I believe I've covered many points, but if you have further questions feel free to ask. I'll be honest, there do exist better capture devices for the purposes of recording video games, but as I'm being honest here, you would be paying at least another $80 to have a high maintenance device that works optimally if you have a high-end desktop PC. I dunno about you, but I've got a laptop. For $140, you can't find a better product to record your video game footage.

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The AverMedia Game Capture Device without a doubt My Favorite and Highly Recommended Game Capture Device for this Year. I once Owned the Roxio Game Capture and it while it was nice to be able to play in HD, It had Issues Recording, Sometimes it would lag in either the video or audio, but Not the AverMedia Game Capture. Neat thing is you Don't need a PC or Mac To Record, all you do is hook up a flash drive or extended hard drive, press the "record" button and Boom your recording in either 720P or 1080i!! On top of that you Get a spare of Universal Component Cables for all Systems and the Size of it is very small. It weights less and more compact than the HD PVR

CONS: You Wont be able to Stream with this device because you can't plug in the device via USB to USB if you so choose, Doesn't Bother me since i Don't Stream :)

Verdict: Heck yeah Buy it So far My Favorite Game Capture and its Ideal for any inspired YouTube Gaming Channel!

If you Are intrested in watching the AverMedia Game Capture Review then Here you GO!!

Review of HDE PS PS2 USB Dual Controller to PC Adapter Converter

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List Price: $15.99
Sale Price: $6.29
Today's Bonus: 61% Off

Instead of the transparent blue pictured, my connector was black. Mine came with no CD with drivers or whatever but it was no real biggie. I have Vista and it plugged right in and worked perfectly. I mainly use it for NES/SNES emulation so I didn't really mess with the rumble or analog sticks, but all the main buttons worked perfectly.

Also, on a whim I plugged it into my PS3 just to see if it would work AND SURE ENOUGH IT DID! Everything worked flawlessly, including rumble and analog! This is huge for cheap PS3 owners who still have PS2 controllers lying around. Instead of schilling out $55 for a second dualshock, buy one of these and you now have 2 "new" PS3 controllers. True you're still tethered to the system like a gaming primitive, but it's a hell of a lot cheaper!

I've only used regular PS2 controllers and it's worked fine. But from reading other reviews it seems there's compatibility issues with some guitar controllers, dance pads, light guns and some third-party controllers. So if you're trying to use it for those and those only, you might want to look elsewhere. It seems some of these controllers have worked for some people. Still, for the price I'd say it's worth the gamble for the simple fact that even if it doesn't work for your specialty controller you can still use the standard issue just fine.

Also note that PS3 compatibility might depend on what PS3 model you have. (I have the 40 gig) It also seems like there are different versions of this item. The item you get might be different then the one I did. So your mileage may vary. But for me it has to be the best $4 I've ever spent in regards to gaming.

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I bought this adapter to use my RedOctane Ignition 2.0 dance pad with Stepmania. Unfortunately I had not known about the compatibility problems before I bought it, or else I might have saved myself a lot of time by spending a bit more on a better quality adapter. Although the packaging and item description do not say, the pictured adapter is a Dilong 203. The adapter I received was the cobalt blue, semi-transparent one with a round depression on the top. Some people have said that this lights up when you plug a controller into it, but mine didn't. In fact, when I received it I could hear something rattling around inside of the adapter like a piece had broken off but I didn't bother asking for a refund because it doesn't affect the usage.

The adapter has two ports for PS2 controllers or dance pads. Be careful when you tear open and throw away the packaging because there is a minidisc with drivers on it stuck between the two folds of cardboard in the packaging. Some people have said that these drivers made the device work. They actually made mine unusable so I ended up uninstalling them. If you have Windows 7, the device is recognized and installed automatically. If you plan to use this for regular controllers, you should be okay from here. However, if you have a dance pad, prepare for a nightmare.

The main problem with this adapter is that it registers the buttons by axis rather than as individual buttons. Imagine the difference between D-pad directional buttons that are all part of the same base and the four separate buttons (x, o, triangle, square). This shouldn't be too much of a problem in other games where multiple directional buttons are never pressed together, but with a dance pad this makes hitting two directional buttons at the same time impossible. I spent hours digging through Stepmania forum posts before I finally got it to work.

First, you have to re-calibrate your dance pad through the Windows 7 Control Panel EVERY SINGLE TIME you want to play the game. In addition, you have to download and run a script that gives coordinates for the x, y, and z axes positions when you press two buttons at the same time, edit a second script to include this data, and then run the second script while Stepmania is running just to force the adapter to recognize the left and right/up and down arrows as separate buttons rather than buttons on an axis. Then you have to program your Stepmania controls on the dance pad. Also, the script that runs behind Stepmania causes your keyboard to spam the A and W keys nonstop so you literally have to close the script and make your dance pad unusable before you can use any other programs, including Windows. And if you happen to forget to change the settings on your taskbar to not hide tray icons, the script will cause an error when you try to right-click close it, which will result in the need for a complete system restart. It's an absolute nightmare, especially if you're not computer savvy enough to figure out how to do all of this. Fortunately a simplified version of the instructions are available in the Stepmania forums.

Overall, the adapter works, but it took me hours to figure out how to get it to function properly. It would be better to either buy a dance pad that has a USB port already built into it (such as the RedOctane Ignition 5.0 pad) or find a better adapter that works with Stepmania. For anyone else looking for an adapter for this reason, I recommend checking the forums before you make your purchase.

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Product does exactly what it says; I can play games using my PSX/PS2 Dualshock controllers, in addition to being able to play Stepmania with my DDR pad.

Just plug in the adapter, plug in your controller, and you're ready to go. No extra BS necessary.

Simple, fast, flawless. You can't beat this price.

5/5

Honest reviews on HDE PS PS2 USB Dual Controller to PC Adapter Converter

OK, so the packaging does in fact not say it works with Windows Vista. However, I tested it on both Premium x32 and Premium x64 and it works great! The driver is a 2006 driver, so any games created after that time period will not be compatible with the gamepad (at least directly from the game). I was able to find a key-mapping software to help me be able to use the controller and overcome this frustrating issue (vibration feedback is supported as well!!!) Also, I noticed my Logitech wireless PS2 controller does not work with this adapter; however, my wired Sony PS2 controllers work just fine with it. If you plan on buying this for games newer than 2006, start searching for a program that'll allow you to remap your keyboard and mouse to your gamepad.

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Arrived very very quickly. Indeed it is black instead of the pretty blue in the picture. The package says to use "START+SELECT for 3 secs" to use with dance pads. THIS DOES NOT WORK!!!! I googled for help, stepmania has a good page: the actual code is "START+SELECT+UP" for 3 secs. Once I got that right, it worked great.

Review of Darkest of Days - Xbox 360

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List Price: $49.99
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Darkest of Days for the PC and 360 is one of those games which you will enjoy. The game takes you to different time periods and you have to use that period's weapons but the game sparse it up with the occasional future weaponry. Your objective is to stop the alteration of time because some random little errors are popping up and that is of course is not good.

Your companion through all of this is a man named Dexter. Dexter is awesome and his dialog though the game will keep you definitely involved in what is going on and will give you the occasional laugh. Through the game you will have a side that you are on, ranging from the Yanks (North), Rebels (South) in the civil war to the Russians in both world wars and throw in a couple of time agents along the way to the conclusion of the game which ends the current events and set things up for a nice sequel which I hope they make.

The game uses a new engine named Marmoset which allows for literally hundreds of enemies that are not half bad in the intelligents department to be on screen at once. This make the huge battles extremely fun and I really hope to see this engine implemented in other games as the possibilities for awesome are quite high.

Likes: Dexter, large battles, the dialog, The Zeppelin level, Final level, Briefings

Dislikes: Slight lag, lack of variety in the achievements

Gameplay

Gameplay for the game is simple in its set up, you go back in time to various periods after you are rescued from you imminent death at the beginning of the game. You can choose which periods you wish to go to which gives so variety to the game. Once there you and Dexter, who will often be in a separate area but occasionally you work together, take care of what your objective is while trying to maintain historic accuracy.

You use the period's weapons as stated before in combat, though the general categories can be modified for increased accuracy, clip size, ext, for both the rifle and pistol which you will be equipped with when you go back in time. You do this by earning points by not screwing things up in time. This basically amounts to not killing people with a blue aura around them. This can be done by ether using the Chasers which will target these people and knock them out safely so you don't have to worry about it.

You will go through various time periods from Custard's last stand where you were about to die when rescued, to the Civil War, and both World War 1 & 2, along with the final location which I will keep a secret so the surprise in not spoiled for you. In these periods you can view your map to see where you need to go and the objectives will vary from, get to him, assault this position, participate in battle, find this guy, ext. The objectives do vary enough even though I didn't make is sound so.

Graphics

In the graphic department the game does pretty good. I am not big on graphics so rarely does a game disappoint, but this game does its environments well. From the Civil War to both World Wars the environments will not disappoint.

Characters have a variety to them, so you will not feel like you are gunning down the same guy for, what was it, the 714th time. Dexter who is your main companion and friend through the game has an interesting look to him. He always has a hat on and the style would make you think he is from maybe the west but he comes from New York City. Then you have Mother, the Doctor's mysterious research assistant who you only see on screen. She is done in a way that will keep the mystery alive as she never appears in full face on screen.

Graphically the game will not disappoint.

Presentation

The games presentation is of medium class. The game does give an interesting concept which is good but it doesn't wow you but at the same time it doesn't disappoint. The manual is the basics of the game and not much flair is put into it. Not a bad thing, but I like it when they make the nice fancy manuals with character descriptions and game facts.

Overall in the Presentation department the game is average. Online marketing is awesome but the game itself is pretty average in this category.

Value

Is the game worth buying? Yes, the game was already coming out at a discount price which was very nice way of saying "Hi we're the new guys, try our game.". Since then the game most likely game down in price and you can get further discounts so the game meets the asking price and will not disappoint Value wise.

Fun Level: 4/5

Closing statement

I have seen on other websites poor reviews of the game; well frankly they don't know what they hell they are talking about. Just because this isn't just another mass produced corporate game doesn't make it bad. I enjoyed the game thoroughly and I know you will to. That is why it gets my recommendation.

I would recommend though that if you have a PC that can play it that you get it for that or install it to your X-box 360 to improve performance.

Final Score 3.8/5 (rating system 1 to 5 how good it is. -1 to -5 how bad it is)

Parental Warning

The game contains blood, death and war along with some mature subject matters that they may not be ready for regarding morality. As always use discretion when choosing and allowing your children to play games.

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This game was amazing. Never before has a company made a game that was as good for WW1 or the civil war. This game is for people who like large scale fighting, not the little side mission crap. So if you wanted a game where you get to charge into battle with hundreds of other people then this is the game for you. Plus I had been looking for a good WW1 game for a while and this game has some amazing trench warefar and WW1 parts to it

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Seeing reviews for this game with a majority of 4/10 reviews, I went in with no expectations for this game, but ended up enjoying it greatly, good mindless fun. Flawed, but fun, 8/10 for me.

Honest reviews on Darkest of Days - Xbox 360

As many other customers have stated, this game has potential, but a few things are missing. I agree, visually, there are things lacking. From a game play stand point, yes, it has its goods and bad's. I don't want to spoil too much with this game, but there were so many things that could have been done with this game to make it a first rate five star game. Was it worth the seven dollar rental, yes. I don't know if I would advise running out and paying full price for it though. Overall, I enjoyed most of it, but I did not find myself wanting to play it again right away as I have some games in the past.

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I knew what I was getting when I purchased this so if you gave it one or two stars, you should have looked into it. Graphics aren't great and has a few bugs. But I knew it was going to be like that. The idea is where I gave it 4 stars. This game should be picked up and re-made by some big name software engineer company, and it would make big bucks. Who wouldn't want to go back in time with an assault rifle and take on soldiers with muskets? It's like a childhood dream come true

Discount James Bond 007: Blood Stone - Xbox 360

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List Price: $29.99
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So I picked up Blood Stone last night and decided to keep it despite the horrible early review of 5/10 by IGN.

Blood Stone is Splinter Cell Conviction meets The Bourne Conspiracy, meets Batman Arkham Asylum. It borrows Convictions Mark & Execute feature which is granted one mark at a time by hand-to-hand combat (which is pretty satisfying by the way), and also has a lot of stealth elements. The running and takedowns reminded me a lot of Bourne, also with high octane chases and so forth. It borrows from Batman by using his Smartphone to see where enemies are on the map, with minor detective work.

I have 3 gripes with the game though:

1. It incredibly short... I beat it last night with a time of 5 hours.

2. The cut-scenes and lip synching are definitely not polished.

3. The sound is really bad; I usually have my receiver at -24 for gaming, but I had to turn it up to -18 for decent sound.

I can see why IGN was so harsh, but on the other hand I can see why Game Informer gave it 7/10. Despite the listed problem, this actually was a very entertaining game, but at the moment it's more a rental than a $60 purchase.

There are however certain areas that have polish... the hand-to-hand combat is perfect in every which way, it's very easy to silently take someone down, and the transition from gun shooting to a takedown is just as seamless as SC or UC. I thought the guns handling was awesome, and the focus mode is really easy to switch to when several guys are shooting at you.

The car chases are actually pretty decent, way better than the crap they put on The Bourne Conspiracy. You have about 4 chases and each one is unique and gives a nice break in-between stealth and gun fights.

So if anyone is on the fence in here, I would say if you love games like Splinter Cell and The Bourne Conspiracy, then you will definitely love Blood Stone. However, I honestly don't believe it's worth $60... I would either rent it, or wait for black Friday or even Christmas. I guarantee the games price will be chopped in half by then.

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It's been a long time since I've played a quality Bond game. While Quantum of Solace was pretty good, the shift from first to third person was a necessary one. This game combines a fair amount of stealth with action-oriented gameplay along with vehicle sections. I had a blast playing it, trying to nab all the achievements before the game was over. The only problem I can think of is the game's length, it only took me 4-5 hours to finish on medium difficulty, but I'm sure that number would be much higher if I went back through on the 007 difficulty. Overall, a quality title that's worth any gamer's time to play.

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This bond game isn't quite as good as Goldeneye for Wii or the new Goldeneye Reloaded, but this is far superior over the From Russia with Love game with Sean Connery's voice. That game was for 10 year olds. BloodStone isn't super advanced, but very cinematic and fun to play. Great storyline compared to other games. The game is made to be just like a movie!

Honest reviews on James Bond 007: Blood Stone - Xbox 360

Blood Stone is effectively the latest Bond movie, and if the latest Hollywood gossip is any indication, it may well be the last. After stopping a suicide bomber at the G-20 summit, Bond is tasked with capturing a suspected rogue bioweapons expert attempting to sell his knowledge on the black market.

All the main names are present. Craig and Judi Dench play themselves, and even Ben

Cooke, who doubles for Craig in the bond movies was used for character modeling, so Bond moves like Bond and talks like Bond, and Craig is great at voice acting, which any screen actor will tell you, is much harder than it seems. The audio is clear and crisp, with none of the background washout or mumbling that makes half the dialogue in a typical action game so much gibberish normally.

Graphics are tolerable, if somewhat dated. Story items are richly detailed, such as the vehciles from chases, but backgrounds and terrain are mostly faded shapes on the horizon. This problem comes and goes, but the only real downside is that the interiors are sometimes ridiculous and cartoonish in their out of whack scale and placement of cover thats supposed to be "randomly" placed furniture.

Gameplay is very ordinary. There's some stealth aspect, which is bungled for the most part, as theres no real crouch, so you're running towards an enemy rather than sneaking up on them. Run and gun is tolerable, though the over the shoulder aspect makes aiming a chore and difficult to follow at times, and h2h, which is the most stylishly done, but manages to be the least used, as unless you mess up during a stealth sequence, is rarely used outside the stealth takedowns. "Evidence Collection" is the turn of phrase for open your smartphoe and follow the markers to the plot devices, meaning there is no NPC interrogation or actual intelligence involved. Dialogue is all scripted, so the feeling of really watching a movie is so pervasive that you'll look down from time to time and wonder why you're holding that funny V-shaped piece of plastic.

At a total time investment of just under 6 hours, Blood Stone is a movie/game that might as well have "RENT" stenciled on the case. Theres a multiplayer feature, but with a style and setup as bland as plain yogurt, I can't imagine that this will be more than a flash in the pan, after people try it twice then hand it in for the Goldeneye reboot. A tolerable game with lots of flash and the normally and utterly predictable Bond plot. Worth a watch, but a buy? Not hardly.

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I'll start off with this. If you loved Splinter Cell Conviction you will like/love this game.

I'm a third person shooter fan, when it comes to shooters. The game-play is similar to Splinter Cell Conviction. The controls to get into and out of cover are a little tricky to manage at first, but I was so stuck on conviction for so long I expected the same and it isn't. There is a focus fire system, similar to the mark and execute system, but the enemies have to be in front of you for it to work, unlike conviction. You can have a max of three and need to do a hand to hand take down to get one.

If your a die hard FPS fanboy,(which seems to be 99% of the xbox crowd) well you wont like it. Its the only reason I can see for the multiple negative reviews here. The driving sequences were amazingly fun, and the driving smooth, as expected from a game maker who makes racing games primarily. The graphics are a bit toned down for multiplayer, but I'm okay with that if it makes for smoother game-play, and it does. The graphics are NOT n64 quality as I've seen other reviewers compare it too, I have no idea where this comparison comes from.

My one major complaint is the complete lack of gadgets/grenades and no crouch. I can't understand how this vital feature of a partial stealth game could be missed. Standing up while going from cover to cover in the face of full gunfire made this game ridiculously difficult at times.

You use your smartphone to scan and it goes fuzzy when moving, similar to the sonar goggles of Conviction. But overll this is only my second game that I'm trying to complete the cheevo's on, the other being SCConviction. The multiplayer lobbies are still active and its possible to get the MP cheevos/trophy's as well.

Well worth the current price of $18.00, once you get over the lack of crouching in this game.

Buy Darksiders - Xbox 360

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I'll preface this by cribbing lightly from early professional reviews. Yes, the game borrows concepts from GoW. Yes, there are aspects reminiscent of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Toss in Devil May Cry and Portal while you're at it too.

Does the game suffer from this? Absolutely not.

I believe Darksiders will prove out to stand on its own merits:

Art/color/effects. The Darksiders world is painted vividly. Bloody, scarlet reds. Vivid, electric blues. Hellfire crackles and belches with palpable heat. Death effects are varying and plentiful. The Chaoseater rips through opponents with satisfying degrees of violence and gore. Joe Mad's character designs are top-notch, fresh, and lend strongly to the 'playing a comic book' feel. You'll like it or you won't but I love it. The angel and demon designs, the shattered, demonically-warped landscape, the weaponry, War's armor it's just awesome.

Voice acting. Mark Hamill is worth the price of admission. The other voice talents do an able job, but his role really stands out, and he does an impeccable job.

Combat. Button-mashers will find a lot to like. Newcomers will quickly feel at home with the combat setup. Experts won't feel like they're jogging around a dumbed-down rail-fighter. Combos are expressive and fun to achieve, and their resulting effects are satisfyingly brutal.

Story. I won't detail the twists and turns the story takes, but the fact that you're War, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, sent back to Earth to figure out who screwed you over, and why, and kill everything standing in the way of that it doesn't need to be any more cerebral. Revenge and justice are always a solid theme to an action slasher, and the story here doesn't fail.

The soul-currency system is a nice touch. There are many, many items in the destructive environment that will kick out souls that can be traded in as currency for new combat moves, weapon enhancements, health/rage buffs, etc. Some of these items raise an eyebrow (souls confined in a parking meter? ok.), but the gathering process is still fun.

Early boss fights are decent, but these battles really shine with selected increased difficulty.

The puzzles aren't terribly difficult. You're not going to employ any Half-Life 2-type problem-solving to figure them out, but they factor into the overall gameplay logically and seamlessly.

Some players might get hung up in the comparisons to other games in the genre. Others might see similarities or common themes as strengths building on what gamers like, discarding other elements. My advice enjoy Darksiders based on what you see, what you hear, and what you beat the holy (and unholy) crap out of in-game. Anticipate at least 17-20 solid hours of gameplay, with plenty to discover on subsequent playthroughs.

Start to finish, this game was a 9/10, and earned a spot on the shelf next to Halo 1-3, Fallout 3, CoD4, and Bioshock.

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Very seldom do I actually write a review, but after seeing the horrible and unjust review that X-Play on G4TV gave, I had to speak up. So I will take this opportunity to lay it out.

X-Play: "I want to see more gore for something rated Mature."

Reality Check: When I ripped the wings off angels and then decapitated demons; that is what I expected in a game rated M.

X-Play: "Weapon Options are Limited."

Reality Check: Sword + Gun + Scythe + Cross blade + Gauntlet + Add Ons + Turrets = Almost more than I can keep up with when I'm playing.

X-Play: "Finishing off enemies is repetitive."

Reality Check: While yes, it can be repetitive at times, but as you level up and become very powerful or use the "turrets" or the horse in the game; you find yourself doing the finish moves less often, especially on the weaker enemies.

X-Play: They knocked the swimming for some odd reason.

Reality Check: The swimming is fine and fluid and adds a lot of depth to the dungeons. No pun intended.

X-Play: "Puzzles were predictable and easy."

Reality Check: Not all are "easy" nor are they predictable at all. You will have to think, especially when it comes to finding some of the chests.

X-Play: "Lacks Originality or a Soul."

Reality Check: I do not know what this game is compared to aside from mechanics "borrowed" from some of the all time bests, but in my opinion it gave the game an old soul that everyone can enjoy. Take something that works and use it. Sometimes people just want a game that is fun, easy to learn, and challenging at the same time.

X-Play: "Hack and slash that is cliché."

Reality Check: NOT AT ALL! I do not think when I stun an enemy with my cross blade, shoot it in the face, then lunge forward with a stabbing blow, and then reel any other nearby enemies with a flame saw sword move, and then finish it off with a gauntlet ground pound, and then raise my horse on the fly and slash away from a higher position while galloping around. Hmmm...How is that cliché??? Let's not forget you can turn into a 25 flaming monster and there are also special "magic" powers that can be used as well.

I could go on and on. Bottom line is that this is a fun game that has given me plenty of surprises.

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Thank you Vigil. Finally, a game developer who 'gets it.' It's obvious that Darksiders was a labor of love, created by gamers, for gamers. I've played a lot of games over the years, and Darksiders masterfully crafts together the best elements of the genre while stripping out the garbage we could all do without. Why is Darksiders possibly the best pick-up-&-play action/adventure game ever?

+ Easy-to-learn, forgiving controls.

+ Variety of gameplay elements (swordplay, throwing objects, climbing, swinging, swimming, shooting, riding, treasure hunting, weapon upgrades, puzzle solving, etc.).

+ Beautiful artistic style, animation, and environments if you've enjoyed Joe Madureira's art in other mediums, playing Darksiders is an awesome interactive experience that brings his artistic vision to life in high definition.

+ Frequently saved checkpoints, plus save-anytime feature, and multiple save blocks that can be copied between memory cards and hard drives.

+ Epic fantasy storyline.

+ Effective defensive moves (block and dash/dodge).

+ Easily-controllable camera/perspective.

+ Engaging puzzles that don't take forever to figure out and complete.

+ Fast-travel network to quickly move between distant previously-visited areas.

+ No 'artificial challenge' that handicaps and punishes players.

+ No flow-breaking, action-obscuring quick-time events.

+ No unskippable cut-scenes.

+ Amazing audio that artfully conveys the epic scale of the characters and battles.

+ On-screen mini-map (and full map on the paused game's options screen) keeps you from getting lost and wondering where to go next.

+ Saved slots are indicated with the location and play-time you saved at, along with your difficulty level and health, making it easy to remember which file to load among multiple saves.

Whoever crafted the controls and usability/accessibility features of this game deserves the gaming industry's most prestigious award and recognition. For all the different gameplay elements, the controls always feel fluid and familiar. Most of us play a variety of games, so familiarizing ourselves with a new game's control scheme (or re-familiarizing ourselves with an old favorite later) can be rough. Darksiders takes this pain away by keeping the controls simple and always displaying the appropriate controller button on-screen next to each actionable icon. Many gamers buy or rent used games that don't come with instruction manuals, and thankfully Darksiders can be quickly and easily grasped without ever laying eyes on a manual. Awesome, powerful attack combos can be pulled off with merely a couple button-presses. The on-screen tips (which are saved in a log accessible via the paused game's options screen) walk you through every step of the way. Any action that consumes resources (like a magical attack that use up your wrath meter) requires two buttons to be pressed simultaneously, so you never accidentally slip and hit the wrong button and waste your resources.

If you've played other popular contemporary action/adventure games, you'll likely find familiar gameplay elements here. Darksiders pays homage to the most fun aspects in popular gaming while leaving OUT the frustrations that are too common in most other games. Most thankfully, Darksiders AVOIDS the maddening handicaps that too many other games rely on to inject what I call 'artificial challenge:'

Few and far-between save points (sometimes real life happens the phone rings, a visitor knocks at the door, dinner's ready, etc. and you don't have an hour to play until the next save point).

Only allowing one save file (preventing you from having multiple games in-progress, or reverting to an earlier save point).

Pathetic defense (no ability to block incoming attacks, limited ability to dodge incoming attacks, limited opportunity to take cover, etc.).

Leaving you helplessly stunned/paralyzed and vulnerable for a brief period after sustaining damage, allowing enemies to endlessly juggle you to death.

Convoluted control schemes and complex combo moves that are too long or tricky to reliably execute in the heat of battle.

Scarce resources (never any health or ammo around when you need it).

Obstructive camera perspectives that obscure your view of the action.

Requiring you to swim through areas while only giving you very limited breath.

Defeated enemies release floating orbs for you to collect, but you must be in very close proximity to receive them (I'm here to kick butt, not chase butterflies).

Performing an attack move (or being attacked) too close to a ledge causes you to fall off that ledge.

Falling off a ledge is an instant game-over, restarting you at a prior point.

+++ Darksiders does NOT punish the player with ANY of these buzz-kills. If you ever felt like throwing your game controller through your television out of frustration from cheap shots like this that other games shamelessly and repeatedly hit you with, then Darksiders will soothe those old wounds and renew your joy of gaming. Darksiders is by no means lacking in challenge, but it lets you focus on battling bad guys WITHOUT battling short-sighted, penalizing game mechanics. Darksiders doesn't keep finding cheap ways to end the fun and hinder your progress like many other games do. EVERY game developer should take serious notes on how smoothly and accessibly Darksiders flows for the player.

I have a hard time coming up with even minor things I would change about Darksiders:

I've become spoiled the last few years on the auto-regenerating health systems that many popular games have, so I wish Darksiders didn't require the player to find health-replenishing items (although it partially compensates for this by providing plenty of health pick-ups and a weapon modifier that gives you a little health boost every time you inflict damage on enemies).

I wish the enemies and bosses displayed a health meter so I could see how much damage my attacks are inflicting (to find the most effective attacks) and know how close (or far) I am to defeating an enemy.

The screen that lists your available attacks for each weapon does not indicate what level each attack has been upgraded to (the only way to know is to check what the next level available for purchase is at a shop).

The shop/purchase screen does not give you a last-minute confirming ('Are you sure you wish to buy this item?') back-out option when you buy something, so don't hit that 'buy' button accidentally.

The shop/purchase screen does not show you how many of a particular item you may already be carrying in your inventory.

While the 360-degree moveable camera perspective is great, I wish the speed/sensitivity of the camera movement was adjustable (sometimes I want to whip the camera around faster to get a view of something, but again, Darksiders partially compensates for this with the 'lock-on/focus' trigger that instantly resets the camera to the direction you're character is facing).

There's a combo meter that counts your consecutive hits during fights, but I haven't seen any reward system that ties to racking up long combos (so why count them?).

The only technical glitch I've noticed so far is some graphical screen-tearing.

Do yourself a favor and play Darksiders, and wrap yourself in a cozy blanket of fun, frustration-free action/adventure gaming. Do the gaming world a favor and buy this game to promote this kind of development so that future games will follow the fine example Darksiders sets. Vigil, please make sequels (and/or other games) that keep the same gamer-friendly spirit of Darksiders. Darksiders is not just a game it's a gift to gamers.

Honest reviews on Darksiders - Xbox 360

Why this game is Awesome.

I love this game. The graphics are great, the story is straightforward yet compelling, the combat is amazing, and the puzzles are challenging. Darksiders is a terrific game and a blast to play. All of the negative comments seem to be based on the fact that it is like "Prince of Persia, with elements of Zelda and God of War mixed in" or something to that effect. Well, I have never played any of those games, so to me it is just a great game. Imagine if someone told you a new movie was out that had the story and character motivation of The Lord of the Rings, the space battles of Star Trek II The Wrath of Kahn, and the hyperkinetic light saber fights of Revenge of the Sith. Now imagine you had never seen any of those. You would probably think it was an awesome film. That is Darksiders. Don't listen to the negatives. This is a great game, and more to the point, really fun and enjoyable to play, which is what a game should be.

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Xbox 360

Purchased on Sat Jan 16th

I almost didn't get this game due to some of the bad reviews, but I figured I would give it a shot. I personally LIKE when a game has familiar controls or a style because it is easier for me to slide into playing rather than learning the controls (Too Human took forever to get used to!). This game reminded me a lot of God of War, which being one of my favorite games, was not a bad thing at all. Over all, I really enjoyed the entire game play experience and even the storyline. Usually I just fast button through the cut scenes but this time I wanted to know what was going on. I liked that there was a load of things to find but that they weren't all totally necessary for the end game. Sure there are the achievements, but spending hours checking and rechecking every location for the one item out of 30 you missed is boring. Some of the puzzles got a bit confusing, but nothing was so hard that I gave up (The first boss fight was a personal nightmare for me though).

Overall, this has quickly become one of my favorite games that I can easily see having a lot of replay even if it is just to ride around and kill bad guys.

The Sims 3: World Adventures Expansion Pack - Mac Review

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I own every single Sims game, and had owned all of the Sim City series as well. With that said, let's move on to the review of EA's latest product, The Sims 3: World Adventures. I had high anticipation because I am used to the massive amounts of new things we got with the Sims 1 & Sims 2 expansions, which were offered at much lower costs. However, do not let this deter you. While you may not get a ton of new items, you do get adventure as promised. The pros:

1. You do get to travel, and there are goals when you do so. I didn't care for the way the Sims 2: Bon Voyage, didn't really give you a goal. It was go to a new place, relax, stay for a huge amount of time and leave. World Adventures gives you goals, while allowing you to visit various places if you would like. And in time you can buy a vacation home and spend more time there. You have to build up your "visa" to have stays longer than 3 days in each location, and you do this by completing adventures. I had a great time wandering around the maze like tombs, and avoiding torching myself.

2. There are indeed a few more items, and they have country themes. In the past few games we have really only had Asian oriented items; I love decorating the house with flaming chandeliers like the ones seen in the tombs.

3. I have not found all of the new social interactions, but so far there have been about three.

4. Basements! Yes you heard right, you can actually have basements to your house now; not only that but you can build "tombs" under your home.

5. A few new traits and music tastes.

6. Your sim, when they learn a new song, may come home singingwhich I find very cute.

Cons:

1. As with any EA game that just came out, there are glitches. The first time I started up, my sim was no where to be found. The plumbob was deformed and I couldn't preform any actions. I uninstalled it, the problem still remained. So I uninstalled the base game; that fixed that problem. Then I couldn't get skills or buy skill books. This was apparently a conflict between the new patch (that is required it seems.) and game mods and some custom content. I removed by mods and custom content; now the game runs like a charm.

2. The loading time is much longer than with The Sims 3 base game. I have plenty of memory, a new graphics card and plenty of RAM. I am above the required specs with everything, but only slightly. If you are working with the bare minimums or just a little above, it may run a little slower.

3. I have noticed (it may be my computer) that some of the graphics are not as clear, such as a blurry pixelation of my sims eye sockets.

4. Still no memories.

5. Some of the new features have been hard for me to find, such as the collection for photographs (which is a nice new bonus).

6. Toddlers & pregnant women cannot travel. I assume this is because it would be unsafe for them to be caught on fire, but it still stinks leaving them home.

7. Some people have been having a lot more problems, such as the game not loading, codes not working and games not saving. I have personally not had any of these problems.

I will update this as I continue to play; but so far the adventures have made getting the game worth it. I really enjoy having the goals and feeling like I'm achieving something for my sim.

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Like many others with The Sims Series... I have been a fan of The Sims since they first came out with "The Sims" and "The Sims 2" And I would expect that with such a money making franchise as The Sims, that EA would NOT do what they have been doing... But they did...

DO NOT BUY THIS GAME!!!! It will destroy anything you have done in The Sims 3 so far and is buggy beyond belief!

If you want to know how I truly feel... Then think about a time you got that feeling in the pit of your stomach, that made you feel sick because you had just been blatantly ripped off or betrayed... That's how I feel!

It is not a VACATION expansion... It is an ADVENTURES "add on" taking a fun non-linear game and making it into a console game where you actually have to go from point a to point b.

It is just downright inhuman what EA does with employees, and how it impacts the finished product.

They constantly lay off hard workers because they are afraid that if anyone works on a game for too long that they may try to leave and start their own company... So EA moves development teams in 6 week to 6 month shifts... Rotating them from project to project... This means that every time they "rotate" the new team has to somehow pick up where the old team left off, relearning and trying to figure out what was going on before the "rotation"... And this creates MAJOR ISSUES. EA also rushes things to release dates even against the development teams wishes to hold off release so they can make a more polished product... EA does not care! They are all about the almighty bottom dollar! So what you get is a half finished, problem causing game, that otherwise would have been wonderful.

Now, onto the MICRO-TRANSACTIONS!!! Not only do you pay for this overpriced, half finished game.... But you will also have to pay to "unlock" items and features that were otherwise already in the game, but hidden, because selling millions of The Sims 3 wasn't enough for EA, they now want to charge you $20 a pop of REAL WORLD MONEY to get 1000 "SIM POINTS" so you can have the matched sets and items and features that should have been in the game in the first place. You can see forum postings and reviews about the REAL COST of The Sims 3 here on amazon.com

This is the FIRST expansion... If you can even call it that, as I see it more as a step backwards. All The Sims games have had expansions that do, in fact, make the base game better and better... Like adding PETS, and a NIGHTLIFE, and actual SEASONS with rain and snow and so on and so forth... The base games also had a great deal of content to begin with, from tons of matched furniture to pools with slides and diving boards, hot tubs, and musical items that you could make your own Sim garage band with... Then enter the Sims 3 with NONE OF THAT STUFF!!!

Then enter The Sims 3 World Adventures, Still not adding anything other than a ONE TIME adventure for your chosen Sims... Yes ONE TIME! Still no vacation... Still no hot tubs... Still no diving boards... Still no pets... No seasons. I can say it was quite fun playing through the new expansion with one of my Sims... But here is one of the many problems... My old towns and Sims have been destroyed with the addition of this expansion... Where my huge town with tons of custom houses and Sims once stood are now blue property sized holes. If that wasn't bad enough... I create a new town and a new Sim household to go on ADVENTURES... I am having some fun exploring and collecting goodies, and enjoying the new themes and whatnot... Until I get bored and decide to try ADVENTURES with a different Sim... This part makes me very angry... Well more angry after losing my Sim town... I CANNOT DO ADVENTURES AGAIN! Yes that is right! Once you go through the tombs and discover everything with one Sim, any other Sims you try to do it with will not get the same bonuses and benefits as the first one! All the paths remain open and revealed, all the doors stay open, all the traps found and disabled, all the ONE TIME ITEMS do not return, including a required item called "Pengu's Axe"... On top of this is a disappearing inventory glitch where every now and then, items in your Sims "backpack" up and delete themselves!

Also, get used to seeing "Error Code 13" and "Error Code 16" when trying to save your games... When this happens, the save game is corrupted and everything you have done has just been destroyed, and you now have to go into the game save directory and HOPE that there is still a working backup copy you can restore with some less that user friendly editing.

I could go on and on about other glitches and bugs, and the fact they have Day One micro transactions on or before the release date of this expansion showing that they are intentionally leaving things out of the game just to make more cash off the people dumb enough to pony forth said cash.

So that means that only ONE SIM HOUSEHOLD and one Sim household ONLY can get the full experience of the adventures... Any others after that just walk through the already explored tombs with nothing to do and nothing that would be considered an actual "Adventure." So unless you want to constantly create whole new towns and start over again just to reset the Adventures... I say leave this game off your holiday gift list... At least until EA pulls their heads out of their donkeys and fixes the glaring issues with this game.

I am 27 years old, I build high end gaming computers, and I have only had to call tech support 7 times in my life... Once 10 years ago for Windows ME, and six times in the last six months! Each of those six times for separate EA games that either didn't work because of something in the game itself, or that relies on some sort of stable connection with ea servers, or was so flawed and buggy that it annoyed me to the point I actually broke down and called them.

As a video game fan, I would rather wait a longer time and PAY MORE for a better, fully polished and finished product, than to have some half done turd that needs a year worth of patches and editing to make even barely playable.

I cannot play The Sims 3 anymore because of this expansion and it's massive glitches and errors, and I am having serious thoughts about Buying ANYTHING from EA ever again!

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Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT buy this until they have the bugs worked out and it works. It might be a fun game if it would work properly but it doesn't.

I can not just save my game anymore, I have to "Save As" each time and then the game will still sometimes crash while saving. It also randomly crashes just during gameplay. I read on the official forum that this could be due to high FPS so I used my nifty Nvidia V-sync as suggested and nope, it still crashes away many, many times.

There are also reports of TONS of other bugs which I have been lucky enough to not have happen to me yet. Some people report their Sims completely vanishing or of an "evil twin" that shows up when they come back from visiting one of the 3 countries. They also have random spouses and children they never had before. The list goes on and on. Bad, stupid bugs here.

On the positive side, the destinations themselves are gorgeous. However, the adventuring you do there gets so repetitve and boring. I've only had this one day and am already thinking, "How many times do I have to explore tombs to look for stupid loot?"

Honest reviews on The Sims 3: World Adventures Expansion Pack - Mac

I loved the Sims 2 all the way thru. LOVED IT!!!! The only reason I moved to S3 was for promise of virtually no load screens(a real buzz kill back in the land & times of Sims 2) AND for the added enhancements that surely would come of the newest incarnation. I mean the programmers by this point have had lots of practice right? They know after so many S2 expansions what we'd likeNay,what we DEMAND from our Sims game, correct? But sadly that has not turned out to be the case. S3 on it's own I find is terribly boring. No pets, no businesses, no seasons, no college, no nightlife to speak of. Not much going on. Just work and school. Heckthere isn't even a drum set or piano to play. Just a dumb guitar. And when they do have a pianoyou'll probably have to "purchase" it off the ever dominant online "exchange" with your oh-so-fun "sim points". So EA actually just stripped the game down to the barest of essentials, re-packeged it and re-sold. I guess that's fine if you never played S2 and have no knowledge of how intricate and complex that game eventually became. S3 is like starting over from scratch. I know this is a strategic moneymakerstart from the bottom and charge the players to build it back up.

Which brings us then to S3EP1: Sims 3 World adventures (known in another life as Bon Voyage for Sims 2). Quite simply this game blows. Getting past the fact that for some reason EA would have us believe that a "world adventurer" only visits 3 desitnations. Sorry guysbut China, Paris, & Cairo do not make up the "WORLD". So more cities would have been in order before giving the game such a sweeping and worldy title. Next upthe price of the game. Initally retailed at $40 and like a sucker I payed that because as I said I LOVED Sims 2 and desperately hoped for Sims 3 to take it to that next great level. But $40 later my game (which is not terribly fascinating to begin with despite the wonders of jet-setting) is now laden with bugs. It worked perfectly fine, before the mandatory game update which was required prior to completing the install of the EP and its subsequent patch. Seriously EA? You release an update that you immediately have to patch???? Or release a patch that you immediately have to update?!? Either way now my game is almost unusable. The thing crashes to desktop sporadically. One of my families has now disappeared off the face of Sim 3 universe (THANKS ERROR 16!). The aging is botched so that my elderly sims are 90 one day but wake up the next looking younger than their youngest adult offspring. Trying to complete missions whilst on "vacation" is not only not relaxing but sometimes impossible as after completing hours of time on these scavenger hunts they call missionssuddenly the target you need to report back to in order to complete the action is nowhere to be foundEVER. So there went your very short 3 day vacation trying to build up your Visa level. Racing around to complete tasks that ultimately are not able to be finished. Ohand should you make progress, actually somehow get through the journey and then get whisked unceremoniously back to you homelandPerhaps your Sim shows up on the other end safe and sound but they arrive sans the spouse or the children that they ventured off with!!! What the heck? How are Sims being left behind on vacation? Or maybe, just maybe, everyone does actually show up on the other endbut then the game just immediately crashes back to desktop once more so you've lost days upon days of your Sims lives and Hours upon Hours of your ACTUAL life in terms of playing time. Sigh....

Let me mentionmy computer is new. Purchased almost exclusively for Sims 3. 750 Harddrive, 8G Ram. Quad Core. Decent graphics card. Up to date drivers. So it ain't me. This game is broken. I supsect EA knew too it. They MAKE games. That's what they do. They know how to test them so see whether they work or not before releasing it to the public. And It was strategically released in the 4th quarter to gain EA end of yr profits. I totally get it. Holding to fix it would have lost profits. But they released a shoddy product. They really should be ashamed and bending over backwards to fix it. But they aren't. Taking money like thieves in the night and leaving their gaming fans holding a very broken, very irritating expansion in the bag.

Seriously EA?!?! They actually outdone themselves this time.

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I just came online after angrily quitting the Sims 3: World Adventures. When I first bought the game it was a nice change to be able to go to different parts of the Sim world. It was a welcomed change. However, that was before I discovered all the glitches and bugs this expansion pack introduced to my Sims 3 game. I deeply regret buying it.

A few things that have gone wrong since I installed it:

If a Sim has been in an area too long (ie Egypt) that sim will out of nowhere have a family located in that area. My sim girl was in Egypt a lot because the mummies and tombs were fun to me. After a while I looked at the family tree and she's somehow already married to an old man and they have a kid together? What the?! I can't break up the marriage so she can't marry anyone ever. (See Picture I Uploaded)

My sim guy "went steady" with a girl from China. When he got home, the girl disappeared so now my guy can't marry anyone because it still shows that he's in a relationship with this girl. I can't reach her by phone or go to China because she vanished.

There is a car stuck outside my sim's homes and I can't do Move Objects On to remove it.

If my Sim asks a foreign sim (from China for example) to get married, the game glitches so that they marry but the Chinese sim doesn't move in. I can keep marrying them but they never move in, it just glitches and sends them flying around the house.

Lastly, the glitch that made me upset the most is that I was in Egypt exploring tombs when all of a sudden the game glitches and nothing, I mean NOTHING, is clickable anymore. I can't use my cell to get out of there, I can't make my sim walk anywhere because not even the floors are clickable. I just said forget it and quit the game.

These glitches have ruined the game for me. It was a big mistake trying out the game with my favorite family. Now they're all messed up and I cant do anything to fix it. This expansion pack was MAJOR FAIL. I advise you NOT to get it and only do so when *everything* is fixed. Save your money until then! The game itself is pretty fun if you're looking to trying new things and introduce new challenges for you and your sim but like I said, it's better to wait until its problems are fixed.

Update 7/14/10: Might I add that since writing this review I've had to restart a new game from scratch 3 times. I'm not sure if it was because I uninstalled World Adventures, or because the Sims 3 game is so full of glitches that crash the game itself but the game won't load up on my laptop anymore. I'm left with two "games" I regret spending money on.

Reviews of Call Of Duty: Roads To Victory - Sony PSP

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List Price: $39.99
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Today's Bonus: 8% Off

Call of Duty: Roads to Victory didn't get the love in reviews when it came out but I bought this game because of the past games in this series. Roads to Victory translates pretty well on the PSP and is a lot of fun to play. The game does provide a decent challange in two campaigns. American and British and it does get hard in some palces where you will do a couple times over.

The graphics are better then what we saw in Medal of Honor: Heroes and is so much clearer and easier to see where everything is. As for the gameplay, it pretty much keeps the formula from the console versions which is what makes the game work. The sound is okay not great but it is on the PSP after all and it does what it can to be as authentic as possible.

The replay value is great because you can unlock medals as we as other cool stuff depending on how well you did on each mission. The only thing I got to unlock was a wallpaper that I use on my PSP.

All in all, Call of Duty: Roads to Victory is a fun and engaging game that will bring you enjoyment for hours and will make the time fly like that.

I hope this is the first of many Call of Duty games for the PSP.

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This is one of the first games that I have played on PSP that actually looks like the "real" version on other systems. Very good graphics and sound. The only draw back is the aiming is to easy and it makes you feel like your are cheating. Overall, It is still a great game!

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First of all I better say i'm pretty new to PSP, and i'm not USED to playing first person shooters on console systems. So if you are used to that you may have better success with the game. Personally i'm a big fan of the series so when it came out for PSP I jumped for it. But frankly, I fought with the controls a lot more then I fought with the germans. If your used to FPS on PC I wouldn't advise getting this for PSP. It'll only be a headache.

Other then that graphics are pretty decent.

Sound effects, aren't as rich as the PC games, but I suppose that's to be expected.

Storyline wasn't particularly spectacular either and it's very linear and scripted.

I guess I was expecting better. But hey if you love the series and you enjoy FPS on PSP I'd go for it.

Honest reviews on Call Of Duty: Roads To Victory - Sony PSP

I'm a fan of the old style Call of Duty games, before they went into the future. (Besides 4 of course) And this is one of my favorites, not because it tells a great story, or because the graphics are amazing, but the amount of fun you have. People give it crap for the controls, and I slightly agree... They're not as bad as you might think. The multiplayer isn't anything to write home about but it's sufficient. It's few game modes (including team death match and capture the flag) offer a pretty fun experience, but you can't play online online. So even though you won't be playing with someone in Denmark, you can still have a decent amount of fun with some friends. All in all it's a great PSP game and I highly recommend it.

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My son enjoys this game and plays it when he's interested. Recently, he prefers games relating to the Medieval period.

Best FIFA 14 - Xbox 360 Deals

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I have been a big fan of the FIFA series dating back to FIFA 10. I buy the game every year and have played thousands of matches over the last several years. Every year the game is fundamentally the same with a few minor differences. Sometimes the changes are for the better and sometimes they're for the worse. This year is pretty typical in that regard. There are some great new features and some shockingly bad ones. Here's quick breakdown of some of the game modes and some of the changes:

Shot physics have been altered. Now the ball will dip and knuckle more than in previous FIFA games. This seems like it will improve the variety of goals you can score, yet many of the same flaws remain. The finesse shot (curling shot) is still very overpowered. Meanwhile, goalies are still way too good at making quick reflex saves on powerful shots at short range. What that all adds up to is that the finesse shot is still your go-to bread and butter shot in all 1-on-1 situations, so the variety that the developers aimed for wasn't totally achieved.

Player movement has been altered. More specifically, players have a greater sense of momentum. It is harder to start and stop instantly. Sharp cuts and 180 degree shifts in direction will be more gradual. Some reviewers have praised this as being more realistic than the last few FIFA games, where sometimes it felt like you were steering a race car instead of an athlete. I agree that this change is more realistic, but is it more FUN? I don't think so. The slower movement gives the whole experience a less responsive feeling, which can be very frustrating. Many times you will spot an opening for your player and try to weave into that space, but the slow change of direction will result in him being tackled before he can react. The overall result here is that defense feels overpowered whereas attacking play has been nerfed. One of my favorite things in the game was to pull of crisp skill moves and slaloming runs with speedy players, but now I'm finding the game a bit muddy and slow. It might be more realistic, but it is a lot less fun than FIFA 10-13.

AI has been upgraded. Computer players will have smarter movement on offense and defense. The good news here is that your computer teammates will be smarter about making runs so you pick them out with a pass. However, the CPU is still far too mechanical and tidy on higher difficulties. They will psychically sense your incoming tackle and change directions at the last moment to avoid you. The whole experience of playing against the computer can be very frustrating due to the lack of random variance and error. Even world class players make bad touches and mistakes in real life, but the CPU in FIFA plays like a machine. I much prefer to play against human players because there is more variety. It's also worth pointing out that many of the same AI flaws that have existed in the game for YEARS are still glaring. For example, defenders are absolutely horrible at making aerial challenges for the ball. So many times when a cross is whipped in, they will just stand flat-footed and let the attacker spike it right over them. In general, players lack awareness of the ball and aren't aggressive enough when it is near them. Many times the ball will squirt loose into space and your players will take steps away from it instead of trying to pounce like they would in real life. These minor AI flaws can really hinder the enjoyment of the game.

Ultimate Team is back and better than ever. If you don't know what Ultimate Team is, it's a game mode that allows you to collect and trade players in order to build your "ultimate team." However, even though the game mode bills itself as Ultimate Team, there is a chemistry system in place that effectively prevents you from linking players in your lineup unless they play in the same league or have the same nationality. This really limits your creativity and prevents you from building your actual ultimate team. For example, you can't link Ibrahimovic with Cristiano Ronaldo and get full chemistry because they don't share a common league or nationality. Putting that aside, there are a number of nice new features in Ultimate Team this year. There are more leagues in the game than last year, including the Colombian league. The interface and player search feature have greatly been improved. Single online matches have returned after shockingly being left out last season, but now they can't end in a draw like they could in FIFA 12. If you are drawing after 90 minutes, you have to play extra time and go to penalties. Annoying because single matches are supposed to be more casual and not so win-at-all-costs like the tournaments and seasons.

My two favorite new features in Ultimate Team are the new chemistry styles and the removal of formation cards from the game. In previous FUT games, you had to convert your players to the correct formation every time you wanted to experiment with a new formation. Now all players get full chemistry from all formations, so there is much more room to experiment without having to invest a lot of coins in formation cards. The new chemistry styles add a layer of customization to the game by allowing you to apply chemistry styles cards to your players that boost specific traits. For example, you could use a chemistry style to increase a defender's heading and defending. Or you could use a different chemistry style to increase an attacking midfielders passing and dribbling.

Also, it's worth pointing out that while Ultimate Team is technically free, the game is designed to push you towards the pack store, where EA makes a lot of money off people spending points on packs in hopes of finding valuable players. I strongly discourage you from spending real money on Ultimate Team, as the players you get in packs are rarely worth much and your odds of getting someone like Ronaldo or Messi are INCREDIBLY low. It is basically a lottery ticket and not a good value at all. You are always better off saving coins and buying player direct.

Career mode, skill games, and virtual clubs are back from last year. Clubs allow you to create a virtual pro for use in club games with your friends or with strangers, and to gradually build up his stats by fulfilling various achievements. For example, scoring 25 goals might improve his shooting stats. You can keep this player throughout your entire time using FIFA 14 and it is fun to gradually build him up. The only major drawback is that EA inexplicably ruined the drop-in match game mode by capping the former 11v11 player limit at 5v5 and removing the "ANY" option, which means that if you go into a drop-in match (a virtual pro match where you and strangers play a game using your virtual pro), over half of the players on the field will be controlled by the computer. It used to be that you could go full 11v11 or have one player designated as the "ANY" in smaller games to control all of the computer players. Drop-in games will be incredibly tedious and boring without the any feature, so I will not be playing them this year.

The EA Sports Football Club that they introduced with FIFA 12 has once again carried over to the new game. With this feature, you'll gradually accumulate currency within the game just by playing FIFA 14. You can then use these points to unlock nice bonuses such as free Ultimate Team coins, extra kits, new celebrations, and extra boots for your players. This is a nice feature that provides another incentive system within the game.

OVERALL IMPRESSION: FIFA 14 brings a lot of new bells and whistles compared to the last few releases in the series, but the gameplay has taken a step backward. Although it might be more realistic than ever, the game is also slower and more methodical than ever. This is especially apparent in Ultimate Team, where lightning-paced high scoring games of years past have morphed into a more sluggish and frustrating experience. There was one stretch of games last night where my opponents and I combined for one goal in six full halves of play. This is the first time in the last five years that I have felt bored with FIFA so early in the release, so I have to consider this version a step back overall despite the aforementioned improvements. Realism is nice, but not if it comes at the expense of fun. So far, this FIFA just isn't that fun to play.

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I've been playing FIFA religiously since 2006. Here are some of the major gameplay changes that I noticed from FIFA '13:

Smaller Field/ Slower Gameplay The game play has been slowed down quite a bit, and you find yourself operating in close-quarters a lot. The field feels a lot smaller which is more realistic. However, it seems like it is easier to sit back and play defensively which is not much fun for me.

Catching Passes/First Touch All players can catch passes and trap the ball more easily than in '13. I liked that it was harder in '13 because it took more skill on the behalf of the player. You couldn't run full speed with a Center Back and catch a pass in stride you would have to slow down and trap the ball before continuing your run. Now it seems that everyone catches passes without losing the ball as much.

Finesse Shot In '13, I found the "right-bounce", finesse shot to be almost useless. It was easier to just slide the ball along the ground past the keeper. In '14, this shot has made a comeback. This is a return to prior years, which I like. It takes more time to line this shot up, so you should be rewarded for being able to execute it.

Player Size/Strength In '14, you can really utilize a player's strength and size. In '13, it seems that speed and dribbling were all that mattered. Now you can muscle people away from the ball and use your height to catch passes from the air (hopefully Messi can no longer wrestle air balls away from Center Backs while jumping!). I like this, however, it seems that it is much easier to score now on headers and corners. There is nothing more frustrating than when you trap your opponent outside the box and he tries a desperation cross only to score a header. Goals off of corners are also really weak, and I even feel bad when I convert on them. I'll take a win any way I can get it, but it is so much more satisfying when you actually beat your opponent and score.

Overall These are my first impressions. With any new FIFA it takes time to adjust. I am biased towards the negative because I excelled at '13 right away. '14 does not really cater to my style of play. That being said, I will still play it every day until '15 comes out.

UPDATE: After playing this game for 2 months, I have become very frustrated with it. I may even switch to Madden or NHL until FIFA '15. The conversion rate on headers and corners is much too high. Over half of the goals online are scored on these plays. In FIFA '13 I could convert on 5-10% of corners. In '14 it is seriously around 40%. With Gareth Bale delivering on corners, my player gets his head on it 90% of the time. Every game on Xbox Live is Real Madrid vs. Real Madrid. Kick the ball upfield to Ronaldo or run down the sideline and cross it in. If you don't score on the cross, you'll convert on the corner. I do not enjoy this style of play at all, but it is so effective what else can I do? I could play my old style and lose every game. Finesse shots from outside the box are also much more effective. You can win your games without ever getting a direct shot from inside the box.

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Game mechanic is a step forward but...

You CANNOT play with your friends against other friends at all, in any of modes. It was never mentioned anywhere that Online Team Play will not be available and many players bought the game intending to play with friends (as they do not have time for seasons, ultimate team, career etc) like they used to in previous instances of Fifa.

Not only it was not mentioned by EA but all the reviews, who gave the game 9/10 or 10/10 score did not mention Online Team Play gone. I could not find any single review that would address this issue.

Furthermore, I have been on EA live help chat thingy 3 times trying to get advisors to tell me how to play with friends since I find not being able to do so completely ridiculous. Every advisor I spoke to seem to be surprised there is no way to play friends vs friends.

My facebook post on EA Fifa 14 wall has been removed as well.

Slightly odd isn't it.

Anyway, if you want to play Fifa 14 in group of friends you will not be able to do so. You have been warned.

Honest reviews on FIFA 14 - Xbox 360

Let me get straight to the point, Fifa 14 is by far the worst FIFA game I've played in the last 5 years! Unfortunately EA sports has not made any improvements to the game, but they have also ruined it by trying to make it more realistic(!). I'm not complaining because I can't win ,I just won my season one championship last week so I know how to play. The point is that FIFA 14 is not fun anymore...

What EA has failed to understand is that video games are meant to be fun. when you attempt to make a game realistic (in your own thoughts), you should consider the fact that it must not spoil the fun. As you can read in other reviews there are many many many issues that happen way too often in a game which makes you want to break your game. Just to mention a few:

super sluggish game-play and increased momentum of players

Easy cross and header goals that happen way too much in every game (Trust me, I also score most of my goals this way)

Dribbling with the best players in the world is almost impossible because of super late reactions and movements

Lofted through balls (which was so bad in the beginning that EA released a patch to fix it in the first few weeks)

Unrealistic first touch controls (sometimes players like Messi seem to have no idea how to stop an easy pass)

Ridiculously foolish team-mates (some things are totally out of your control...)

Forwards are in offside position 90% of the time (and don't seem to care at all!)

_ Throw-ins are just a joke!Players spend most of the time running after the ball themselves as if there's no one out there

Overall, after a game (specially at higher levels) you don't feel like you won the game because you're good. Instead you feel like you only won because you were lucky. That's what kills the fun in a sports game.

After all, it's EA and they sure know how to be the winner of "Worst Company of the Year" for 2 years in a row. If you haven't purchased the game yet, don't buy it. It's just a waste of time and money...

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I have been playing Fifa games since Fifa '08 and one thing they always are is FUN. The gameplay and the graphics have changed but the heart and soul remains. You go up against your friends, spank them 4-0, then pull out the victory dance and trash talking. Ultimate Team is a great addition which allows you to take this fun online by trying to build the best team with the coins you earn and going head to head with persons all around the world. Fifa 14 has a greater learning curb than previous editions. The ball physics has changed, player movement has changed, the speed of the game has changed. A lot of people play it and feel the difference and hate it but have they taken the time to try to get used to it? Some people just can't be bothered with trying to learn a new style of play and my opinion is, they probably aren't real football (soccer) fans; maybe they watch a match here and there but are not avid fans. Fifa 14 IS different, that's for sure. There are always little glitches that can be fixed which is why I gave it 4 stars and not 5. Does it suck? No! Is it fun? Yes! Do you wanna pull your hair out when crappy goals go in against you? Yes! Do you chuckle and do a fist pump when crappy goals go in for you? Yes! Is Fifa 14 worth the money? YES! Go buy it.