Category: XBox 360

GamerSushi Asks: Ignoring Reviews

Vanquish
It’s human nature that sometimes we become so stubborn about certain things that nothing can change our opinions. Video games seem to be one of the most divisive topics when it comes to people’s stances on them, second only to movies. Some people are so sure of their perception of a title that, even when the reviews come out one way or another, they turn a blind eye to them.

The most recent example I can think of is The Force Unleashed 2, which comes out today. The game is universally being panned for having repetitive gameplay, a meandering, pointless story and a short length. Should I have shifted my pre-order money onto something else? Possibly, but I’m so sure that I’ll enjoy TFU 2 that I marched resolutely into GameStop and picked that game up with pride. Sure, the clerk may have looked at me like I was crazy, his arched eyebrow saying “have you read the Internet this morning?” but I am willing to look past the reviews and try it for myself, consensus be damned.

That little rant brings us to you guys, and whether this little phenomenon has ever happened to you. Have you ever been so enraptured by a game that, for whatever reason, you choose to clamp down on the part of your brain that regulates common sense and proper spending and just buy that sucker?
Continue reading GamerSushi Asks: Ignoring Reviews

No HD Remakes in Microsoft’s Future?

KOTOR

For the last few years, I’ve been a major proponent of gaming in high definition, which is truly the best and shiniest of all definitions. I’m sure the rest of the definitions line up to pay tribute to it or something. You know, for being so high and awesome.

Because of that love of all things HD, I’m happy to see the new HD re-releases that Sony has been pulling out of its bag of tricks for the PS3. To me, last generation was perhaps the best generation of gaming we’ve had yet, so anything that helps bring those greats over to my HDTV will be welcomed by my brown burly arms. But what does Microsoft think of this new HD re-release trend?

Here’s what Microsoft Games Studio VP Phil Spencer has to say:

We obviously have a lot of new things going on, so the thought of re-doing a bunch of things is probably difficult to just weave into the overall portfolio. If you can provide real value to the customer, there could be possibilities for that, but I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about it.

I guess that means I should stop holding my breath for HD re-makes of Halo, KOTOR 1 and 2, Jade Empire and Panzer Dragoon Orta then, yes? Do you guys think he’s talking crazy talk? Any other Xbox games you’d like to see in HD?

Source – IGN

Poll: Fable III, Force Unleashed II and Rock Band 3

Funny how quickly the big releases sneak up on us, huh? Here I am enjoying Halo: Reach and Minecraft and suddenly several games are out that I want to sink some time into. Not sure how it happened really, but there you go.

If you’re unaware, today marks the release of three of fall’s most anticipated titles. Together, Fable III, Force Unleashed II and Rock Band 3 form a triumvirate of gaming, a three headed Cerberus to close out the month of October with a bang. Personally, I’m itching to play Force Unleashed II the most out of these, with Rock Band 3 as a close second because of that sweet keyboard.

I thought I’d let you guys vote on these three games yourselves. What say you?

Which of these three games do you want to play most?

View Results

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Noble Map Pack Trailer Shows the Stuff You Wish Would Happen in Halo: Reach

I don’t know about you guys, but every time I see a multiplayer trailer for any game I get a little sad, mostly because I know I can never do anything as awesome as what’s depicted. Hit a man-cannon and Spartan Laser a tank? It’s more likely that I’ll get assassinated. Armor lock an oncoming Banshee so it explodes? I’ll probably miss the button by one second and get splattered. All of these feats and more occur in the new trailer for the upcoming DLC for Halo: Reach, the Noble Map Pack.

Now that we’ve seen the maps in action, has anyone had their opinions revised? Apparently you can go outside the field on Anchor 9 and into space, so consider me sold. I’m desperately trying to get the last Achievement for Halo: Reach (Make it Rain) before the DLC comes out and ruins my 100% completion. Everyone here in the same boat, or am I alone in my shame? The Noble Map Pack hits November 30, 2010.

GamerSushi Asks: Exceeding Expectations?

Left 4 Dead 2

Now that we’re right in the middle of the fall of gaming, it’s probably good for us to take a moment to talk about expectations for the games we’re wanting to play. I know a few people who get so worked up over what they want out of something, there’s absolutely no way it could hit the target they’ve set. Every new movie or game becomes a unicorn hunt, and we all know how hard it is to bring one of those things down unless we’ve got some kind of homing missile.

However, it’s always nice when a game you pick up goes beyond what you hoped and expected for it. A recent example for me would have to be Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, which far out shined anything I could have anticipated for the title. In past years, other titles that did the same thing would include Beyond Good and Evil, Grand Theft Auto 3, Metal Gear Solid 3, Final Fantasy IX (and XII), and Left 4 Dead 2. These were all games where I didn’t know what to expect when I played them, and then happened to pleasantly surprise me or blow me away.

What games in recent years have done the same for you? What games have disappointed you? What games left in the fall are you still looking forward to, and what do you think of the ones you’ve gotten to play? Go!

GameCop Vs LameCop Vs PsychoCop

We’re back with our three favorite enforcers, ready to weigh in on a few hot topics which have cropped up in the past couple of weeks: EA Louse, Gran Tourismo and Fallout: New Vegas’ less than perfect launch.

As always, these sorts of eyebrow-raising news stories are perfect fodder for the Cops. Here’s how they break down: GameCop is a sensible gamer, looking out for your best interests. LameCop is your average forum troll, causing havoc for the lulz, while PsychoCop should be locked up for everyone’s safety. Keep reading to find out what they have to say on these issues:

Continue reading GameCop Vs LameCop Vs PsychoCop

Battlefield: Bad Company 2: Vietnam Trailer Loves the Smell of Napalm in The Morning

Out of all the multiplayer-centric franchises out there, I’ve got to say that the Battlefield games are still my favorite so anything new on this series is bound to get me “stimulated”, if you’ll pardon the inside joke. Bad Company 2 is still hands-down the best multiplayer experience I’ve had this year (Reach is a close second), so needless to say that the upcoming Vietnam expansion is right up my rubble-strewn alley. Check out the new trailer, which gives us the price and a vague release date:

Four multiplayer maps for fifteen dollars? I’ve payed more for less, so I’m happy as a clam. What about you guys? Anyone going to be picking this up? I know that Bad Company 2 isn’t super popular on the Xbox anymore, but it’s still kicking on PC, which is where I’ll be hanging my hat. Let us know!

Review: Enslaved: Odyssey To The West

In this age of constant over-exposure and gameplay trailers years in advance (even if it they look fantastic) it’s refreshing to be pleasantly surprised by a game that comes out of nowhere without much fanfare.

Until I started hearing rumblings about how great the screenshots and trailers looked, Enslaved: Odyssey To The West wasn’t even on my radar. However, I made sure to download the demo as soon as it dropped, and I was quickly hooked by the gorgeous visuals and engaging combat.

I liked it enough that I used some trade-in credit at GameStop to pick up the full game when it came out, and here I am a few weeks later with a verdict. The short version is that I’d love to see more underdog titles like Enslaved come up from behind to provide a bit of entertainment between the garden-variety triple-A sequel/franchise/FPS releases. Read on to find out more.
Continue reading Review: Enslaved: Odyssey To The West

THQ’s Danny Bilson to Publishers: Make New IPs

THQ New IP
It’s always refreshing to see someone high up in the games industry look at things the way we do. While there are going to be some people who won’t feel the same, we bemoaned the lack of original games in a recent podcast (and many times before) because we’re getting a little tired of spending our money on the same thing every year.

At the recent opening of their Montreal studio, THQ’s Executive VP of Core Games Danny Bilson talked with IndustryGamers about a variety of things, one of them being the importance of new intellectual properties, or IPs. While most publishers seem to be content to push out a new title in a franchise every year with little experimentation because it’s safer, Bilson argues that this could be more harmful in the long run. See his reasoning after the jump: Continue reading THQ’s Danny Bilson to Publishers: Make New IPs

GamerSushi Asks: Launch Day Frustrations

fallout-new-vegas bugs

It’s happened to all of us. We get home from work or school, tear the shrink wrapping off the box or boot up Steam, only to discover that the video game gods have different plans for us. Whether it’s a RAIDed video card melting inside of an improperly ventilated Alienware PC or Games for Windows Live just decided to take a day off (or even the dreaded Red Ring of Death), there are many malignant forces at work attempting to prevent you from playing your game.

The last sort of launch day shenanigans I can remember happened with Fallout 3, which needed to go through Games for Windows Live and just didn’t like the fact that I kept trying to sign into my Gamer Profile. I eventually got it to work, but at the cost of a day’s worth of Fallout. Recently, I’ve heard that New Vegas is pretty unstable, and has been giving users some grief when they try to load it through Steam.

I didn’t have any problems with New Vegas personally (except for my weapon clipping through my body in third-person view), but I was wondering if you guys had any launch-day horror stories to tell. Did your computer blue screen, or were you just unable to play your game? Any Xbox owners experience the RRoD, which always seems to come out of the woodwork on the launch of big games. I’ve never heard of a PlayStation crapping out on a new game, but I’d love to hear about it. Tell us your harrowing tale in the comments!

GamerSushi Asks: What Are You Playing?

Fallout New Vegas

It’s that time again, folks. The time where all of us check in and talk about the games we are playing. Or in my case, the games we wish we were playing. At the moment, I happen to be in the middle of a self-imposed ban of all things gaming until I finish a certain stupid novel I’m writing. But believe me, there are games I wish I could get my hands on.

For one, Fallout: New Vegas unfurls its Sin City makeover this week, and I’m kind of itching to see if Obsidian picks up the mantle from Bethesda in a meaningful way. While at first I was skeptical of the game, all of the material I’ve seen from it lately give me hope, so I’m anxious to get some playing time with it. In addition to that, I would like to play Dead Rising 2 and of course, Halo: Reach. Surprisingly, though, the game I’ve been dying to play most of all over the last few days? Final Fantasy VII. The music has been stuck in my head, and now I just want to relive the magic for some reason. Soon.

Anyway, go ahead and tease me with all of the great games you guys are playing that I’m not. Rub it in my face. Tell me how much fun it is. I won’t cry… much. What are you guys playing? Go!

Go Behind the Scenes of Halo: Reach’s Deliver Hope

The most recent of the Halo live action trailers, Deliver Hope for Halo:Reach was a pretty decent affair, featuring a lot of firsts for the commercials such as live action Spartans and Elites, among other things. Microsoft recently put up a behind the scenes video for Deliver Hope that delves into all the work that went into making this trailer a reality:

I always appreciate these kinds of sneak peeks, but seeing a man don Kat’s armor kind of ruined it for me. Also, note how they only show snippets of the Elite costume but never give us a look at the whole thing in motion. Overall, it’s still a pretty cool video showing the making of one of the most elaborate commercials of all time.

Microsoft Spending Half a Billion to Promote Kinect

kinect half a billionWe all knew that Microsoft had deep pockets, but I would have never pegged them as the kind to go hog wild with their limitless font of cash. Apparently I was wrong in that assumption, because the software giant has pledged half a billion dollars to promote Kinect, the controller-free peripheral launching November 4 for the Xbox 360.

According to the New York Post, Microsoft began planning the multifaceted launch of Kinect almost 18 months ago with the help of Stephen Spielberg. With such a large amount of money dedicated to getting Kinect on everyone’s minds, we can expect to see the little black sensor pop everywhere from soda cans and magazines to the TV shows Glee and Dancing with the Stars. All this is going towards getting Kinect in the minds of parents for the upcoming holiday season, where it will be squaring off against the Wii and Sony’s newly launched Move controller.

If you thought the ad campaigns for Halo 3 or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 got annoying leading up to launch, just wait until you can’t round a corner without seeing Kinect. To be fair, we’re not really the target audience for the sensor, but I’m sure there will be some “core” gamers out there picking it up.

I think this makes it more than clear that Microsoft is in love with the technology behind Kinect, and they’re really throwing the whole Xbox division behind it. Now, I don’t consider technically consider myself a Microsoft fanboy, but I’m kind of worried what the possible failure of Kinect will do to the console. While I think that Microsoft can take the hit overall, we may see the end of the Xbox if this doesn’t work. Half a billion is a lot of money, even if it is just a drop in the bucket for Microsoft.

This kind of news is just begging for your comments, so let us know what you think! Can half a billion guarantee a good showing for Kinect this holiday? Will a possible failure spell doom for future versions of the Xbox?

Source: New York Post

The GamerSushi Show, Ep 10: Percentify

PercentWhat’s that? Two podcasts in one month? Welcome to generosity. Or just bored dudes with too much time on their hands. Either way, you get more podcast goodness. In this edition of the GamerSushi podcast, we chat about iPhone gaming, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, Dead Rising 2, the 25th anniversary of the NES and play a hilarious game of percentages, hosted by the bearded one himself.

The exciting thing about this podcast and the last one for us is that we finally feel like we’re getting closer to figuring out the best format for what we do, and could maybe turn this into a weekly venture with some more practice and a few tweaks. I’m digging the “over/under” and “percentage” type games, and hope you find them just as enjoyable.

As always, please go rate this cast on iTunes and subscribe with the handy links to the right. Enjoy!

Continue reading The GamerSushi Show, Ep 10: Percentify

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GamerSushi Asks: Insane Gaming Stories?

Minecraft

Epic multiplayer matches. Horrid save fails. Ridiculous things that you pulled off, wishing someone had been there to witness what could have been a storied feat. We all have those ridiculous gaming stories, things that defy explanation, logic or just happen to be worth their weight in lulz.

I find that these most often take the best shape in either sandbox games or in multiplayer. Exhibit A: my Halo: Reach Killtrocity from a few weeks ago is something I’m quite proud of, in the nerdiest way possible (you’ll notice several GamerSushi editors being dominated). In terms of other stories, I’m finding that Minecraft seems to produce them from everybody that I talk to. It’s just one of those games where the unthinkable happens. For instance, my friend was playing and mined underground so long that he got lost from his spawn point. When he dug his way back to the surface and found that the sun was setting, he hurriedly pulled his compass and accidentally threw it into the ocean. He never found his way back home, died, and lost all of his stuff. It happens.

Hearing all of these hilarious things lately made me wonder what the deal was with you guys. So, what are some of your favorite gaming stories? Feel free to share!

Image by Janitor.Master

Fable 2 is Free [Updated]

In what seems to be a glitch by Microsoft you can go right now to xbox.com, and download Fable 2 for free. I know we only gave it a C, but as Jeff said to me, “free is free.”

I would suggest grabbing it quick before Microsoft fixes the bug. (I’m currently downloading it)

UPDATE: Per @XboxSupport, this is a legit download, but is only Episode 1 of the game.

Vanquish Video Shows How War Has Been Accelerated

The more I see of Vanquish, the more interested I get. While it does partly look like a very white Gears of War, it also throws in a few things to mix it up, like a heightened sense of speed in close combat or a morphing gun arm. While none of those conventions are new per se, mixing them all together may make for one tasty gameplay gumbo…or a mangled casserole of failure. Vanquish has a new trailer highlighting the A.R.S. Battle Suit (because what else would you use it for?), the same one you’ll be manning when the game drops on October 19th.

So there you have it folks, possibly the last of the Vanquish trailers we’ll see before next Tuesday. Call me crazy, but I think I might be sold on this game. The one thing that concerns me is how busy the game looks when everything is going all at once, but I guess I’ll find out how it shakes down soon enough.

Bungie Announces Noble Map Pack for November 30th

Halo_Reach_NobleDLC_Tempest_03
We’re exactly a month after Halo: Reach’s monumental release, and we keep finding things to post about it. It’s the gift that keeps on giving! For the small but vocal minority out there that have been lambasting Reach for its relatively slim selection of multiplayer maps, Bungie has heard your cries.

Coming at us next month for 800 Microsoft Points, or 10 real life dollars, the Noble Map Pack will deliver three new maps and 250 Achievement points. Considering that I still haven’t beaten the game on Legendary solo (it’s really hard!) I can only imagine what these new cheevos will bring. Halo 3 had some ridiculous Achievements added after the fact, so my inner Achievement whore shudders to think what I’ll be going through in a month and a half. Bungie has also released some screenshots of the battlefields contained within the Noble Map Pack, so hit the jump to see them in their glory!
Continue reading Bungie Announces Noble Map Pack for November 30th

Official Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare Trailer Rides Zombie Horses

A few weeks back, Rockstair unveiled the first glimpses of the Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare DLC, which puts John Marston in the precarious and frightening position of battling zombies in the old west. Well they’re back to the teasing again, this time with the official trailer, which also shows Marston riding an undead stallion. Sign me up.

I think the most interesting thing about all this is how much fun they’re having with it, story wise. When I first heard the news that we were going to see zombies in Red Dead Redemption, I just assumed it would be a thing where you were mindlessly fighting the mindless, but it seems like they’re going all out with it. The big question I have now, after seeing some of the major characters from the game: is this canon?

Still no official release date, but we can probably all take one wild guess. Who’s picking this up? Go!

Fable 3 Trailer is a Revolution

Ah Fable 3, the black sheep of the Microsoft exclusive lineup. Not as successful as Gears of War or Halo, you still manage to maintain a certain presence within the gaming community despite your continued over-promising. Broken dreams of a fully realized world aside, Fable still has enough clout to make a major debut this holiday season, and we’ve got a new trailer to celebrate the impending release. The launch video for Fable 3 chronicles the overthrow of the current, presumably evil, King by you, his brother. Worst family ever.

I kind of like the stylish presentation of the trailer, and I am anticipating being the King of Albion after busting my hump to save it in the past two games. Time for this faux-British fantasy world to start paying dividends (oh, and friends list baby making). Anyone here getting Fable 3, or is this one we’re passing on in this stuffed holiday season? Saving it for later? Anyone getting it on PC? The game hits the Xbox 360 on October 26.