The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

If you're a fan of Kingdom Hearts you know their is great voice acting and voice actors to compliment it. The new "Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories" will be no different. As you watch the trailer you will notice the voice talents of Hailey Joel Osment (Sora) and Quinton Flynn (Axel). Now if you're scratching your head saying I know Quinton Flynn from somewhere, you're correct! Quinton Flynn is the voice actor for Raiden in the Metal Gear Solid series. Now go buy this game and plug in you're PS2 because your PS3 isn't backwards compatible. Continue Reading»

If the video isn't working head over to the escapist. Continue Reading»

Gamesradar has compiled a list of 100 things that video games have taught them here's a few examples:

3. If you’re 14, have hair covering your eyes and live in a small village, man up, because you’re going to have to save the world.

13. Most guards forget you unsuccessfully tried to strangle them after walking around for 20 seconds.

37. In medieval times, women regularly fought in wars, wearing armor that afforded them equal protection to suits of plate mail worn by men, despite only covering about 3 inches of skin.

56. The bodies of your murdered victims will fade and disappear if you wait for a few seconds.

Check out the fill list over at gamesradar Continue Reading»

An abridged script is essentially of spoof script of a movie. Rod Hilton the creator of the editing room has written one about Quantum of Solace and its spot on. Here's a sample:

DANIEL CRAIG speeds along the road with JESPER CHRISTENSEN in the trunk while being chased by SOMEONE OR ANOTHER. The cameraman has an EPILEPTIC SEIZURE, but is told to continue filming.

DANIEL CRAIG

As soon as I evade these random, nameless pursuers, I can have Judi Dench interrogate you!

JESPER CHRISTENSEN

Great, I have some questions for her, too. For example, why is she the only person willing to be in every single one of these dumbass movies?

Make sure you check it out here as well as his plethora of other movies on the link below.

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Xbox 360 Top Live Titles (based on UU’s)
1 Halo 3
2 Gears of War 2
3 CoD: World at War
4 Call of Duty 4
5 GTA IV
6 Fable II
7 Left 4 Dead
8 Madden NFL 09
9 Fallout 3
10 FIFA 09

Top Arcade Titles (Full Versions purchased)
1 Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
2 A Kingdom for Keflings
3 UNO
4 Castle Crashers
5 Worms
6 Portal: Still Alive
7 Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
8 Aegis Wing
9 Bomberman Live
10 Assault Heroes

The above arcade list is based on full versions purchased.

- Halo 3....That is all
- Glad to see Left 4 Dead make the list should make Valve see DLC as a serious prospect.
- Say it with me Epic....NETCODE
- People are still playing Aegis Wing?

via majornelson
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To Celebrate Kingdom Hearts: Chains of Memories dropping for the PS2 today Square Enix confirmed in a press release that 358/2 Days is coming to the DS in North America the full press release below:

Uncover the events that took place during the year Sora was asleep regaining his lost memories. KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days revolves around Roxas, the “other” hero from KINGDOM HEARTS II, and his days as a member of Organization XIII. Follow Roxas and the rest of Organization XIII across the various Disney Worlds, and discover the connection between him, Sora, and the mysterious 14th member, and the reasons behind his eventual departure from the organization. KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days also features a multiplayer mode for the first time, allowing players to control their favorite Organization XIII members!

My thoughts? Worse Game Name Ever. Continue Reading»

I only say this is interesting because I'm just curious does everyone in Japan have 8 DS's? I mean this one is essentially the same as the DS lite just with a camera or did I miss something? Anyway reports are saying that the DSi sold over 500,000 DSi units during its first months sales. Continue Reading»

Seems like the 360 being fought over on black Friday wasn't such an isolated case. According to Microsoft stated: 2008 is the year of the PS3 right?

Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system kicked off the holidays with record- breaking console sales on one of the biggest shopping weekends of the year in the U.S. Retailers reported Xbox 360 console sales over the Black Friday weekend were on pace to beat previous years, outselling the PlayStation 3 by a three-to-one ratio and estimating a 25 percent increase from Xbox 360 Black Friday sales figures from 2007.

Strong game sales rounded out a historic Black Friday for Xbox 360, with record-paced software sales continuing for key Microsoft titles, such as "Gears of War 2," "Fable II," and "Lips." Xbox 360 continues to have the highest game attach rate of any console at 8.1 games per console.

2008 is the year of the PS3 right?

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Thew New Riddick Game The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena is dropping this spring on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC. Its a remake of the original xbox hit Escape from Butcher Bay. It includes an overhaul on graphics, a new chapter, and multiplayer. Atari released 3 new images today along with a press release. Though it did look amazing on the xbox, I'm still not impressed with the images that have released so far, though the games spectacular gameplay might make up for what its lacking in graphics.

To see the press release and the rest of the new images shoot over to gamersyde Continue Reading»

Thinking of picking up Prince of Persia tomorrow but not sure if its for you. Gamersyde has the first ten minutes of the game up. I haven't watched for the obvious spoiler reason but if your on the fence it should give you a good idea if its worth picking up. We'll have a review up sometime the end of this week.

Gamersyde Continue Reading»

Minor Spoilers, nothing you shouldn't know if you've been following the game. Continue Reading»

Dead Rising was one of the early titles on Xbox 360 and is one of my favorites. But it seems like the Nintendo Wii is on a mission to destroy everything that made this game great by bringing it to it's console. As you watch this video (which I won't blame you if you don't) you will see that the zombies have cut their numbers by what looks like 2/3rds and the graphics look more like a game for Nintendo 64. I just don't know what else Nintendo will ruin on its mission to destroy every game on planet earth. Continue Reading»

Just a reminder to all the comic fans out there. Secret Invasion #8, the finale to Marvel's blockbuster crossover event, is hitting stands on Thursday. While this is the last of the main series, Marvel has stated the repercussions will go on to last years and it will completely change the landscape of the Marvel Universe.

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This post kind of goes hand in hand with Greg's Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix review, or SSF2THDR for those who want an acronym that's just as complicated as the actual name. Perhaps I'll talk more about my impressions of that game another time. But anyway, this post is about trash talk - more specifically fighting game trash talk.

For those of you unfamiliar with the fighting game genre, a great deal of trash talk often goes along with it. From Street Fighter at your local arcade to Smash Bros on your friend's couch, we've all been on the giving and receiving end of trash talk at least once in our lives. At times it may be vulgar, frightening, hilarious, or even downright corny. This clip, in which two players go head-to-head in Marvel vs. Capcom 2, highlights a little bit of all of the aforementioned. Thankfully, the clip is also subtitled for those less versed in trash talk, and for those of us who just need more ideas to add to our ever-expanding arsenal.

Is Mahvel Baybee.

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Good:
- New HD Graphics
- 17 Playable Characters (Akuma not shown above)
- DIP Switch Settings


Bad:
- Normal Difficulty Level Is Too Hard
- Not Enough Game Modes
- Unbalanced Characters
- No Gratification For Beating The Game

Ugly:
- Online Matchmaking
- Audio Sounds and Sprites Are Outdated

The Good: Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix does exactly what it says in the title. It takes the old Street Fighter II Turbo and puts it in HD with better graphics. This game looks great on you're HDTV; colorful characters and backgrounds are poured into the viewers eye so much that it will make Street Fighter fans tear with joy. All 17 characters look detailed and have a new art style that even adds a modernized look. EX: Kens' hair is no longer the 80's haircut but rather a more up to date hairstyle. Each character has all their classic special moves that you remember, all the way from Ryu's Hadouken to Guile's' Sonic Boom. You will painfully be reminded of these moves as the AI lays them on in heavy doses. Some of the special moves are a little cheap and will make you frustrated but thankfully DIP switches are available. These switches aid the 17 year old gameplay and relieve some of the frustration as well. The game allows the player to switch the percentage in which certain special moves connect during Classic Arcade mode, HD Remix, or Local multiplayer. An Example of a DIP switch quoted directly from the game to help you understand is. "Percentage chance that the first frame of Blanka's Horizontal ball is unblockable".

The Bad: Street Fighter II HD Remix is definitely a game for the hardcore Street Fighter fans and is not for everyone. I myself am a fan of the series and although I'm not in the "hardcore catagory" I found myself to be very good at the old games. That being said Street Fighter II HD Remix is probably one of the hardest fighting games I have ever played. I played on the normal difficulty setting in HD Remix single player mode, however this was a big mistake because it felt almost impossible. I was losing constantly, and at one point I couldn't beat Blanka for a solid hour. The amount of frustration I had while playing for a whole hour and losing during every minute of it is unexplainable, so I wont even try. Blanka is clearly the best character in the game and is way too powerful, but it quickly becomes apparent that there is no balance with any of the characters in this fighting game at all. Some characters have 5 or 6 special movies and some like Guile have only 3, other problems that lie within the core gameplay. The ability for characters to repeat special moves continuously until they strike, while certain characters special moves will take away more damage than others, some will have a huge attack range and are almost untouchable in battle. I mean the list goes on and on and it only shows the age in Street Fighter II Turbo's gameplay. Being I was playing on the HD remix mode, I figured maybe the Classic Arcade mode would be a little lighter on me considering I was so good at the older Street Fighter games, but my expectations were shattered as I realized the only difference between the two single player modes is the DIP settings. So basically there is one single player mode in Street Fighter II HD Remix for the sheer that fact you can configure the DIP settings yourself in the options menu. If you do manage to beat the single player modes you are treated with corny freeze frame shots of your character and is basically the same endings from Street Fighter II Turbo, the credits roll and that's it. There is no gratification for beating this game, no unlockable characters, no extra costumes to earn, just a really bad ending that will only last for 1 or 2 minutes. Yes i realize this game is a straight port with new HD graphics but some more changes would have been nice for my 15$.

And The Ugly: There is an online multiplayer in Street fighter II HD Remix but I barley got a chance to play it because no one was playing and the rooms I would try to join were always full. There is your standard ranked matches or player matches but I couldn't find a match in either for 20 minutes. My guess is not enough people have it yet or just no one wants this game. I did however find a match through quick play and of course the other player picked Blanka. This led to my demise shortly after as the online player repeated Blanka's spinning air and spinning ground attacks. Usually I would block these and do some moves of my own but I couldn't do anything of the sort because of the games lag. I would see him form into a ball and then I would be pummeled with a skip of a frame leaving me no time to react. I don't understand why its so difficult to make a good netcode in a fighting game. There is a tournament mode but when I searched for games none could be found. This mode however did look interesting as you can play in a online tournament and climb you're way to the top. However I'm sure none of these online modes will be fun because lag will always be a factor. Another Ugly feature in Street Fighter II Turbo Remix is the sound. It sounds like they recorded the sounds with the same program they used in 1987. You can hear they re-recorded some sounds but it still sounds really, really old and only confuses me to think why Capcom wouldn't improve it. I understand Capcom may have been going for the nostalgic approach but HD to me also means HD sound.

Final Thoughts: Street Fighter II HD Remix is a game for the hardcore Street Fighter fans who love to use Blanka and have a lot of patience. I myself like to use Ken and have no patience, therefore screwing me over big time with this one. This game can be fun if you're playing local Multiplayer with your friends at home because odds are you will be at the same skill level as one another, enabling fun battles and reminiscing about how fun Street Fighter II used to be. However this game is a remake and feels very old and I'm going to give it the review it deserves in today gaming standards, because lets face it there are better games to download over XBLA or PSN. If you were looking for a game to hold you over till Street Fighter 4 this is not that game nor would i recommend it to anyone. I screamed at my TV for hours while playing this game and you will too. It's just too hard and it makes you angry, so angry you will end up having an actual street fight with the nearest person thinking about how Blanka electrocuted you over and over and over again.....


D+

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Every month we'll post the games we'll be picking up, have thoughts on, and more. The dates shown are the ship dates, typically games show up one day after ship date.


12/2 - Prince of Persia (X360, PS3) - The newest spin on the Prince of Persia series from Ubisoft Montreal. Note PC version ships 12/9

Preorder Bonus: See Details Here


12/2 - Kingdom Hearts Remix: Chain of Memories (PS2) - Ever wonder what happened between Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2. Originally released as a GBA game its now releasing on the PS2.

Preorder Bonus: See Details Here


12/2 - Grand Theft Auto 4 (PC) - Niko Bellic arrives on the PC with improved draw distance, and graphics.

Preorder Bonus: N/A


12/2 - My Fitness Coach (Wii) - Just in case your still holding onto the dream that you can actually lose weight through the Wii here's another chance to keep that dream alive.

Preorder Bonus: Loss of Dignity


12/9 - Sonic Unleashed (PS3) - If you were thinking of buying this, dont.

Preorder Bonus: N/A


12/22 - Rock Band 2 Game Only (Wii, PS2) - Those who want to rock out in rock band 2 but dont feel like shelling out the cash for the full package the standalone game releases this month.

Preorder Bonus: N/A



12/30 - Rock Band 2 Bundle Edition (Wii) - The full package for Wii owners. (360 version pictured above)

Preorder Bonus: See Details Here


12/30 - Deal or No Deal (Wii) - I think Gamespot said it best when they reviewed the DS version of this game. A $30 game about winning fake money by picking random numbers is awful to begin with, but a completely broken version of said game is another story altogether. Couldnt have put it better myself.

Preorder Bonus: N/A

Other than Prince of Persia looks to be a slow month. To see all the releases shoot over to gamestop.com Continue Reading»

Good:
- Cutting Edge Design
- Minimalist Design
- Ultra Thin
- Light Up Keys
- The PerfectStroke System

Bad:
- Durability

Ugly:
- Gamers will want more
- The Price

Good: If there's one company that has yet to disappoint me its Logitech. From there sound systems, mice, keyboards, and more Logitech always sets the bar on making a quality product. The new Illuminated keyboard is no exception. The first thing you'll notice when you take the keyboard out of the box is its size. It measures only a mere 9.3 mm. It just looks like something out of the future, and looks great on any desk.



The keyboard also sports an elegant design. The keyboard itself has a great texture, while the outside is outlined with a clear plastic giving it that professional look. While the wrist-rest piece is irremovable it doesn't intrude with the typing experience like others have and actually feels comfortable. Installation is simple enough the keyboard comes equipped with a six foot USB cable capable of getting under most desks. Once plugged in the keyboard will demonstrate its main ability as all the keys instantly become illuminated. The white illumination looks awesome on the keyboard instead of the standard blue you tend to see on keyboards. In the top right of the keyboard there is a lightbulb key. This allows you to control how bright the keys are which is a blessing especially when trying to sleep or watching a movie. It also includes an array of multimedia hotkeys allowing you to eject your drive, open a program, execute a macro, control your music, and more. Installing the software included allows you to customize these keys to your liking. Once you get to typing you'll become aqquaninted with Logitechs new PerfectStroke™ key system. The idea is that the longer distance required for each keystroke the more it improves your typing experience. Now I type relatively fast already but I did notice my typing speed increase with more use.


Bad: There's not much bad to say about this keyboard. One thing that could be a concern is it's durability. Its slim size is a double edged sword. Although it adds to the professional look of the keyboard could something so small stand up to damage? Time will tell, though I have not experienced any issues personally.


And The Ugly: If your a gamer in the market for a keyboard this isn't the model for you. While it looks sleek and sports some of the features of other gaming keyboards. It doesn't have the LCD screen that displays statistics like the G15 or even anywhere near the number of programmable macro keys that other keyboards have. The other thing that will send some buyers running for the hills is its price point. It retails at a high 79.99. It seems like a steep price for a keyboard that doesn't include all the bells and whistles of something like the G15 gaming keyboard or Saitek Cyborg.

Final Thoughts: Logitech yet again impresses with another great peripheral. They have managed to pack everything into a keyboard that only measures 9.3 mm. Though the price point may seem high it includes everything a user could want while showing it off in a sleek, professional manner.

B+

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As a big fan of all of the games in the Half-Life universe, I'm really excited to see this trailer, which is a fan-made mod of the original Half-Life, remade using the new (well, now kinda old) Source engine. The end of the trailer only says '2009' as an impending release date, so this could be coming sooner rather than later. Based on what you see in the trailer, it looks like they've completed about half of the game now, so maybe we should all cross our fingers that they finish up the rest of it in a hurry.

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Get raped Australia

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