Here are this week's downloads, demos and videos for the Wii and Nintendo DS:

• WiiWare: Blaster Master Overdrive ($10), Bloons ($5), Hubert The Teddy Bear: Winter Games ($5) and Tomena Sanner ($5)
• Virtual Console: Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom for NES ($5)
• DSiWare: Extreme Hangman ($2), Fieldrunners ($5), Link 'n' Launch ($5), Oscar in Movieland ($8) and Sudoku 4Pockets ($5)
• Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; due Tuesday, Feb. 9) "The Who Super Bowl S-mashup" and Megadeth Rust In Peace album "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due," "Hangar 18," "Take No Prisoners," "Five Magics," "Poison Was the Cure," "Lucretia," "Tornado of Souls," "Dawn Patrol" and "Rust in... Polaris" (no album pricing available for Wii) - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• DS Demos (via Wii's Nintendo "Marketing" Channel): Deca Sports DS plus repeats Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, Avatar, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Cooking Mama 3: Shop and Chop, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Bobsled Race and The Princess and the Frog
• Game Videos: Blaster Master Overdrive, Bloons, Chronos Twins, Endless Ocean: Blue World, Extreme Hangman, Fieldrunners, Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes, Oscar in Movieland, Sudoku 4Pockets, Tomena Sanner and Zhu Zhu Pets

As promised in the Busy Gamer Podcast, here is the complete list of games due for release this week for PC/Mac, portables and consoles (plus some recent releases that slipped out when we weren't looking):

• DS: Best Friends Tonight, The Daring Game for Girls, Extreme Hangman (DSiWare), Fieldrunners (DSiWare), Jigapix: Pets, Jigapix: Wonderful World, Legend of Kay, Link 'n' Launch (DSiWare), Oscar in Movieland (DSiWare), Pet Pals: New Leash on Life, Scene It? Twilight, Sudoku 4Pockets (DSiWare), World Cup of Pool and Zorro: Quest For Justice
• iPhone: 1000: Find 'Em All!, 2360: Battle for Cydonia, Ghosts 'n Zombies, GT Racing: Motor Academy, Military Madness, Parachute Ninja, Pocket Chef, Riddim Ribbon, Space Miner: Space Ore Bust, Star*Burst, Tehra Dark Warrior, Vanquish: The Oath of Brothers and Vector Tanks Classic
• Mac: More Lost Cases of Sherlock Holmes
• PC: BioShock 2, More Lost Cases of Sherlock Holmes and Square Logic
• PS3: BioShock 2, Dante's Inferno and Star Ocean: The Last Hope
• PS2: None
• PSP: None
• Wii: Blaster Master Overdrive (WiiWare), Bloons (WiiWare), City Builder, The Daring Game for Girls, Data East Arcade Classics, Hubert The Teddy Bear: Winter Games (WiiWare), Princess Tomato in the Salad Kingdom (Virtual Console), Rock Blast, Shiren The Wanderer, Super Monkey Ball: Step & Roll and Tomena Sanner (WiiWare)
• Xbox 360: BioShock 2, Dante's Inferno, Darwinia+ (Arcade) and World Of Outlaws: Sprint Cars

So, what will you be picking up - or is this week a pass? Any games we missed? Anything slip (as these inevitably do)? Please let us know...

This week we review Assassin's Creed II Battle of Forli, hear from Pikachu Fan with a 7-year-old's take on Goosebumps Horrorland for DS, examine retro games worthy of a reboot and report the Xbox Live shutdown for original Xbox consoles and games - all in under 15 minutes.

Our goal is to provide a short (typically 10-15 minutes) summary of news and helpful commentary every Sunday so that you'll have a great jumping off point for your busy gamer week. Here's what we pack into each episode:

• The week's game releases
• A quick look back at the previous week's releases, news and downloadable content highlights
• What we're playing/mini-reviews
• Giveaways
• Comment of the week

Delivered in a tight package you can easily play through during even the shortest commutes!

Please share your own thoughts and comments about the podcast here and on iTunes!

Download the podcast here or, if you can, please subscribe at iTunes - and please rate us there too!

Microsoft revealed they will be discontinuing Xbox Live for the original Xbox consoles and games on April 15, and this INCLUDES original Xbox games playing on Xbox 360 via backward compatibility such as Halo 2 and Star Wars: Republic Commando. If you only use Xbox Live on an original Xbox, Microsoft will soon cancel your auto-renewal if you have this active.

The official spin here is that there are some unnamed Xbox Live innovations that are being held back due to Microsoft's need to retain support for original Xbox (primarily for the active Halo 2 community). Once they pull the plug on original Xbox, they'll no longer be held back. No details yet on what those innovations might include, but it's likely we'll see an end to the 100-person Friends list cap since reportedly it was original Xbox support that was blocking this.

Whatever it is, enjoy your original Xbox games on Live while you can: You have 2 months to milk the online fun out of them and, if you haven't made the leap to Xbox 360, save up for a new console...

In honor of the launch of Star Trek Online, we have - no, not Star Trek Online. (Though we hear it's awesome!) Perhaps the next best thing, if you're a comic book fan: The complete Star Trek Movie Comic Book Collection on CD-ROM for Mac and PC.

We're keeping one for ourselves, but picked up an extra for one lucky winner. It contains:

• Star Trek: The Motion Picture (3 issues)
• Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
• Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
• Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
• Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
• Star Trek Generations
• Star Trek: First Contact
• Star Trek: The Next Generation Series Finale
• 15 bonus Star Trek comics from Marvel (the box says 18, but we checked and the first three are The Motion Picture; for some reason, only the first issue appears in the movies section)

That's 25 comics in all! (See some sample covers on the jump.)

So take a break from your Star Trek MMO - or win a free alternative while you wait for your checkbook to cool off after the holidays.

To enter:

Here are the latest DLC offerings on Xbox Live Marketplace:

• Arcade: Chime ($4) plus 0D Beat Drop BlazBlue Special Skin and BGM Pack 01 ($4), 0 Day Attack on Earth Night Missions Map Pack ($7) and Buku Sudoku puzzle packs ($2 each)
• Dragon Age: Origins Return to Ostagar expansion ($5) that opens up after you visit the village of Lothering
• Halo 3 Mythic II Map Pack ($10) with the final three maps from Halo 3: ODST (Citadel, Heretic and Midship) for Halo 3 players who skipped the quasi-sequel
• MX vs ATV Reflex Track Pack 2 ($5) with three tracks and No Fear gear
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast Revived Warriors Pack (free)
• NBA Live '10 All Star Weekend Pack (free) jerseys
• Guitar Hero 5 30 Seconds to Mars Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Attack," "From Yesterday" and "Kings and Queens"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Going Country Pack 03 ($10 or $2 each) with "Swing" by Trace Adkins, "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" by Kenny Chesney, "Suds in the Bucket" by Sara Evans,"Gone" by Montgomery Gentry, "On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson and "Me and My Gang" by Rascal Flatts - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• Lips The Cardigans Pack($5.50 or $2 each)with "Carnival," "Erase/Rewind" and "My Favourite Game" and track ($2) "Gypsy Woman (She's Homeless)" by Crystal Waters
• Games on Demand: DDR Universe 3 ($30)
• Demos: Aliens vs. Predator multiplayer and Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce plus all Xbox Live Arcade and Indie games
• Indie Games (usually $1-10 each): Absorb, Avatar Meet Up Live!, Avatar Quest, Drunk Zombies, Earth Shaker, Hang 'em High A Hangman Game, Hockey Fights, Invasion Defender, Iris 2.0: Visualizer Studio, Kollectiv360, Samurai vs Zombie, Snake4D, Yet Another Zombie Defense and Your Doodles Are Bugged!
• Game Videos: Chime, Metro 2033, Red Dead Redemption and Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing
• Themes: Dante's Inferno ($3)
• Pictures: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (free; enters you in sweepstakes)
• Avatar Items (usually priced $1-5 each): Madden NFL '10 and Red Faction: Guerrilla

The PlayStation Store has some PSP games on sale, notably Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords for $10, plus Madden NFL Arcade for PS3 is down to $10. Here's what's new this week:

• Fret Nice ($15)
• White Knight Chronicles International Edition Makeover Ticket ($5) lets you change your character appearance mid-game, for a price
• MX vs ATV Reflex Track Pack 2 ($5) with three tracks and No Fear gear
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast Revived Warriors Pack (free)
• NBA Live '10 All Star Weekend Pack (free) jerseys
• Guitar Hero 5 30 Seconds to Mars Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Attack," "From Yesterday" and "Kings and Queens"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Going Country Pack 03 ($10 or $2 each) with "Swing" by Trace Adkins, "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" by Kenny Chesney, "Suds in the Bucket" by Sara Evans,"Gone" by Montgomery Gentry, "On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson and "Me and My Gang" by Rascal Flatts - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• Demos: Aliens vs. Predator, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer, Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, Fret Nice and Tank Battles
• Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Dark Void, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, plus Pulse and Qore Episode 21 ($3 or $25/year) featuring for-pay looks at Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Resonance of Fate and Yakuza 3
• Themes: White Knight Chronicles International Edition Dynamic ($3) plus A Sexy Valentine ($2), Azmodeus Dark Angels Premium ($2), Bad Business ($2), Infected ($1.50) and Star Trek Dynamic ($3)
• Wallpaper: NBA Unrivaled (free)
• PSP: After Burner: Black Falcon ($16) and Armored Core: Silent Line ($15)
• PSP Game Videos: Pulse
• PSP Themes: A Sexy Valentine, Infected and Star Trek ($1.50 each)
• PlayStation Home Items (usually priced $0.50-7.50 each): Assassin's Creed II, BioShock 2, Villain's Lair with two mini-games and London Pub with darts

Too busy to devote 12+ hours a day to your gaming habit? Here's a review that's sensitive to your needs: Short and focused on just the things that a busy gamer like you really needs to know.


Reviewed On: Xbox 360. Also available for PlayStation 3. 

In a Nutshell: A set of six fast-paced missions that comprise the lost Sequence 12 of the Assassin's Creed II storyline. And by lost, I mean the developers didn't finish it in time to cram it into the original game (or that's their story, anyway). For context, the finale, in which you have fun storming the ultimate castle, is Sequence 14 and there's another DLC pack coming in February that fills in the also absent Sequence 13.

As the title implies, this missing memory takes place in Forli: the less developed, less fun area of the game. It compensates by bringing back everyone's favorite homicidal hottie, Catarina Sforza. While she's clearly burning for Ezio to show her his big sword, she also has kind of a bad track record with the menfolk. (Good night, Ezio. Sleep well. I'll most likely kill you in the morning...)

You'll spend a fun-filled hour (or two, if you fall a lot, which I do) running around doing favors for Catarina, by which I mean killing guards, then killing more guards and then just to break things up, running across a field and then, yes, you guessed it - killing some guards. There's also more flying.

Oh, there are no new achievements or trophies, so don't get excited.

Learning Curve: Game play is exactly the same as ACII - if you've played the game, you'll be fine. Unless you've been playing a lot of another game (say, Borderlands) in which case you might want to fast travel home and brush up in the training area.

That said, I got the "No Hitter" achievement for taking down a bunch of guards without getting hit within the first 10 minutes of booting the game. An achievement I couldn't get when I was actually playing the main game. And trying. Hard. Guess button mashing can have its benefits.

The Save Game: Same as before. You'll get periodic mid-mission saves, and a save after every completed mission. Quit to the main menu before shutting down to ensure your progress is saved.

Family Factor: Lots of killing but little blood, a few bad words and you will definitely see London and France courtesy of Catarina, albeit swathed in the finest cotton available in the 1400s. It's a very brief flash, so to speak.

Buy or Skip? It really depends on how much you enjoy the game. The missions are easy, but it doesn't really fill in any major storylines. It's just a way to extend the game for a few bucks. Did I mention there aren't any new achievements or trophies?

On a Personal Note: I was excited about the DLC when it was first announced as I was still steeped in the game. Having beat and walked away from AC II at the end of 2009, I was less rabid when it actually arrived. I'm glad I played it, and I certainly enjoyed the opportunity to revisit the world. Having two people in the house who will (eventually) play through made the (admittedly inexpensive) $4 cost easier to swallow.

More Busy Gamer Reviews:

• Borderlands [BGN Game of the Year 2009]
• Lego Rock Band
• Assassin's Creed II
• Zuma's Revenge
• Halo 3: ODST
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Fallout 3
• Scribblenauts
• The Beatles: Rock Band
• Wolfenstein RPG
• Infamous
• Guide to kids and adult games

The Busy Gamer household is something of a console museum, with videogame systems outnumbering the power sockets. It's not that we have trouble letting go (well, some of us, anyway). Rather, there are some games that are so compelling and just plain fun that we keep antiquated systems around JUST IN CASE we suddenly have an overwhelming urge to play them.

Plugging in an old-time favorite inevitably leads to some buyer's remorse, of course. From the poor graphics to lack of saves (do memory cards die? why yes!), revisiting a favorite title can be an exercise in masochism. Speaking of which, I forgot how much I really, really hated the N64 controller.

I say it's time for gamers to band together and (once again) use the power of the Internet to request - nay, demand! - that my personal favorite games once again live on, preferably for Xbox 360 but I'll take PS3, 'cause the Wii remote kills my hands and it's all about me, don't cha know.

But I digress. Here, without further ado, are my nominations for games to resurrect. Some are games that I obsessed over; others are games that I could play with my kid. All are titles I would buy again in a heartbeat.

1. Shadowman (played on N64). The game that stole me back from PC gaming, and one of the N64's notable ventures into darker material. You play Mike LeRoi, who has the ability to slip between reality and the Shadowlands, where people do voodoo oh so well. Your main storyline involves stopping a clique of serial killers from bringing about the apocalypse (I know, so clichéd). Unusually well-written and beautifully acted (I can still hear Mike's voice in my head), the game featured fantastic combat, challenging puzzles and visuals that hold up pretty well against today's standards. This was the first game I beat on N64 (yes, before Zelda) and one of the few that I finished multiple times. Plus, any game that is essentially a 20-hour lead up to a punch line gets my vote. Damn, I may have to go plug in the N64 now. Hm, what to disconnect?

2. Blast Corps (N64). A kid-friendly N64 gem with some unintentional hilarity. Bad, vaguely sexist encouragement aside, the game was a blast - in all senses. Your job is, in a nutshell: Destroy stuff within a time limit using various vehicles. That's it, that's the game. Go forth and trash things. There to keep your spirits high is a female guide whose sincerity is matched only by her chipper delivery. "You can DO this" and her congratulatory "You're just trying to IMPRESS me" are still quoted almost daily in our household.

3. Jet Set Radio Future (original Xbox). Cel shading! Japanese pop music! Illegal graffiti! Roller skates! Somewhere, someone put all of these elements together and made one of the simplest, greatest games of all time. There is no plot, really. Just a group of young, funky kids skating all over - and I do mean all over - downtown Tokyo tagging buildings, fighting the man, and occasionally getting into it with the cops. Which pretty much consists of rollerskating and spray painting the cops. Did I mention the music was AWESOME?

OK, not really selling it, but trust me, this is a game that is screaming for the high-def treatment. "We need some help in Aisle 10..."

4. Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (GameCube). Did you play this when it was out? Didn't think so. Go out, and find this game (it'll work in your Wii if you don't have a GameCube). Now. Seriously. This is, without a doubt, one of the best games ever released, which means of course it bombed. Eternal Darkness was a psychological horror game that went beyond the standard boo! parlor tricks to really, really screw with you, the player. I'll take this over the Silent Hill: frozen tundra game they are pushing any day.

5. Dark Summit (played on original Xbox). A snowboarding game that combined the usual jump/grind/trick gameplay with a spy storyline and a cute chick. This came out around the same time as two other snowboarding games and fell through the cracks. A shame, because games with strong female leads are rare - really fun games with female leads even rarer.

6. Almost every Zelda game ever made (various Nintendo consoles and portables). Because I love Zelda, but I hate the Wii Remote. Also, not that Windwaker game. I watched Gamewatcher play it, and from what I saw, it wasn't just the wind that blew in that one.

Agree? Disagree? Never heard of these games? Share your own nominees for games that need to be resurrected in comments!

Here are this week's downloads, demos and videos for the Wii and Nintendo DS:

• WiiWare: 5 in 1 Solitaire ($5), Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 5 ($10) and Tumblebugs 2 ($8)
• Virtual Console: Alex Kidd in Shinobi World for Sega Master System ($5)
• DSiWare: 5 in 1 Solitaire ($2), Downtown Texas Hold 'em ($5), Legends of Exidi ($8), Move your Brain: Rollway Puzzle ($5) and True Swing: Golf Express ($8)
• Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; due Tuesday, Feb. 2) "Swing" by Trace Adkins, "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" by Kenny Chesney, "Suds in the Bucket" by Sara Evans,"Gone" by Montgomery Gentry, "On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson and "Me and My Gang" by Rascal Flatts - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• DS Demos (via Wii's Nintendo "Marketing" Channel): Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth and, after a prolonged absence, the return of the Bobsled Race version of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games plus the usual suspects including Avatar, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Cooking Mama 3: Shop and Chop, Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Destiny 2 and The Princess and the Frog
• Game Videos: 5 in 1 Solitaire, Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Deca Sports DS, Downtown Texas Hold 'em, Foto Showdown, Legends of Exidi, Move your Brain: Rollway Puzzle, Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 5 and Tumblebugs 2

As promised in the Busy Gamer Podcast, here is the complete list of games due for release this week for PC/Mac, portables and consoles (plus some recent releases that slipped out when we weren't looking):

• DS: 5 in 1 Solitaire (DSiWare), Downtown Texas Hold 'em (DSiWare), Imagine: Reporter, Legends of Exidia (DSiWare), Move your Brain Rollway Puzzle (DSiWare), Playmobil: Knights, Puzzle Chronicles and True Swing: Golf Express (DSiWare)
• iPhone: Anrufen Online, Assassins's Creed 2: Discovery, Battle of Puppets, Cogs, Eveningstar, Guerilla Bob, Project 72, Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, Spore Creatures and Warheads
• Mac: Unsolved Mystery Club: Amelia Earhart and Wisegal
• PC: Iron Roses, Mystery 5 Pack, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Call of Pripyat, Star Trek Online, The Tudors, Unsolved Mystery Club: Amelia Earhart and Wisegal
• PS3: White Knight Chronicles International Edition
• PS2: None
• PSP: Puzzle Chronicles
• Wii: 5 in 1 Solitaire (WiiWare), Alex Kidd in Shinobi World (Virtual Console), Family Party 30 Great Games: Winter Fun, Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 5 (WiiWare) and Tumblebugs 2 (WiiWare)
• Xbox 360: Chime (Arcade)

So, what will you be picking up - or is this week a pass? Any games we missed? Anything slip (as these inevitably do)? Please let us know...

This week is our most ambitious podcast yet! We introduce our new Audiophile segment examining composer Jeremy Soule's soothing score for The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, take an audio tour of our Busy Gamer News game of the year Borderlands, look at BioShock 2 preorder offers, and give impressions of Serious Sam HD and Batman: Arkham Asylum - all in about 16 minutes.

Our goal is to provide a short (typically 10-15 minutes) summary of news and helpful commentary every Sunday so that you'll have a great jumping off point for your busy gamer week. Here's what we pack into each episode:

• The week's game releases
• A quick look back at the previous week's releases, news and downloadable content highlights
• What we're playing/mini-reviews
• Giveaways
• Comment of the week

Delivered in a tight package you can easily play through during even the shortest commutes!

Please share your own thoughts and comments about the podcast here and on iTunes!

Download the podcast here or, if you can, please subscribe at iTunes - and please rate us there too!

This week, we have something for fans of the Americanized version of The Office series.

In honor of its imminent return in February, we have the retail edition of the Mumbo Jumbo casual game for PC that has you playing pranks as Dwight and Michael and collecting items from the show while fulfilling your dream of becoming a top Dunder Mifflin paper salesperson.

It's your basic time management game, but (as you can see from the screenshot on the jump) with your favorite characters represented as bobbleheads, a prankmeter and decorations that change with the seasons. (See, it's Valentine's Day - which should remind you that someone in your life may be in need of a Valentine's gift pretty soon! Did we mention the copy you win is still sealed?)

The game originally retailed for $30, but is now significantly cheaper if you hunt around. But winning it (and sharing your favorite Office moment in the comments) is AWESOME.

And, we'd suggest, the Dunder Mifflin way. At least as Michael Scott runs things.

To enter:

Here's what's new on Xbox Live Marketplace:

• Arcade: KrissX ($10) and Pinball FX Excalibur Table ($2.50)
• Mass Effect 2 Cerberus Network ($15)
• Assassin’s Creed II Sequence 12: Battle of Forli ($4)
• Divinity II various sets ($2 each)
• Fight Night Round 4 Free Gear (free)
• BlazBlue character color palettes ($2 per small pack or $6 for larger ones) and Unlimited Characters Unlock ($5)
• Guitar Hero 5 Creedence Clearwater Revival Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Bad Moon Rising," "Travelin' Band" and "Proud Mary"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each) "Godzilla" and "Transmaniacon MC" by Blue Öyster Cult, "Master of the Universe" by Hawkwind, "Levitate" by I Mother Earth, "Killed by Death '08" by Motörhead, "Hair of the Dog '08" by Nazareth and "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band, though none of these are.
• Lips tracks ($2 each) "Ordinary Day" by Vanessa Carlton, "Little Lies" by Fleetwood Mac and "Tripping" by Robbie Williams
• Games on Demand: Dead Rising ($20) and Halo Wars ($30)
• Demos: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 plus all Xbox Live Arcade and Indie games
• Indie Games (usually $1-10 each): Adventures Of Sid, Aminal the Christmas Game, Avatar Alarm Clock, Cavemen vs. Aliens, Cell Life, A Dreamland Chronicles Game, Fire Up, Four Player Tangerine Fight, Glide, Hard 2 Morrow, Lethal Judgment, Rotor'scope, Soul and Spinnr
• Game Videos: Dante's Inferno, FIFA '10, Lost Planet 2, Madden NFL Arcade, Mass Effect 2 and Risen
• Themes: Super Street Fighter IV Premium ($3), plus American Red Cross Haiti and Sprite (free)
• Pictures: Madden NFL '10 ($1 each), The Big Game (free; enters you in sweepstakes) and American Red Cross Haiti and Sprite (free)
• Avatar Items (usually priced $1-5 each): Assassin's Creed II and MX vs. ATV Reflex

Here's what's new this week at the PlayStation Store:

• Assault Heroes ($10)
• Hustle Kings ($10)
• Thexder Neo ($10)
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves PlayStation Heroes Pack ($5)
• Assassin’s Creed II Sequence 12: Battle of Forli ($4)
• Pain Hilde Günnagröpe Character ($1)
• PS1 on PSP/PS3: Extreme Pinball ($6) and Hi-Octane:The Track Fights Back ($6)
• Guitar Hero 5 Creedence Clearwater Revival Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Bad Moon Rising," "Travelin' Band" and "Proud Mary"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each) "Godzilla" and "Transmaniacon MC" by Blue Öyster Cult, "Master of the Universe" by Hawkwind, "Levitate" by I Mother Earth, "Killed by Death '08" by Motörhead, "Hair of the Dog '08" by Nazareth and "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band, though none of these are.
• Demos: Thexder Neo, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves single player and Vancouver 2010
• Game Videos: Hustle Kings, MAG, Madden NFL Arcade, Smash Cars and White Night Chronicles
• Themes: Devil Girl Hook-Ups and Nurse Girl Mika Hook-Ups ($2 each)
• PSP: Deflector ($4), Dracula: Undead Awakening ($5), Pinball Dreams ($7) and Route 66 ($4), plus LittleBigPlanet PSP v2.02 update and Garden Costumes (free) and level packs ($3 each)
• PSP Game Videos: Dante’s Inferno and Kurulin Fusion
• PSP Themes: Devil Girl Hook-Ups and Nurse Girl Mika Hook-Ups ($2 each)

Too busy to devote 12+ hours a day to your gaming habit? Here's a review that's sensitive to your needs: Short and focused on just the things that a busy gamer like you really needs to know.


Reviewed On: Xbox 360. Also available for PC and PlayStation 3.

In a Nutshell: A cel-shaded "role-playing shooter" with a post-apocalyptic sci-fi slant. The opening credit sequence (accompanied by the excellent "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" by Cage the Elephant) introduces you to your four playable characters, each with a unique unlockable special skill. There's Mordecai (Hunter), whose pet bird Bloodwing rips apart foes; Lilith (Siren), who can temporarily walk through another dimension and damage enemies as she phase shifts; Roland (Soldier), who tosses out a turret gun that delivers cover, hurt and eventually healing and ammo; and Brick as himself (a tank of a man with Hulk-smash skills).

Once you pick your character, you're booted off the bus and onto the arid desert wastelands of Pandora (no, a different one!) near the aptly named Fyrestone. Here you'll meet the first of many dancin' robots to guide you through your first labyrinth, giving you ample opportunity to search anything shiny, dank and green for weapons, ammo and other goodies. Oh, and you start killing folks about 30 seconds into the game. (The FPS element is strong with this one.)

The main quest line (if you can call it that) is... um... wait, don't tell me... well, there was this vault. Or something. And, according to legend - oh, hell, forget it. This game is about killing things and collecting loot. There are occasional allusions to what happened to researchers and other settlers. Sometimes, I even pay attention. But then a really big guy with a bigger gun starts yelling at me, or the "local wildlife" decides to play, and my trigger-finger starts getting itchy.

Once you've opened up the world a bit and leveled up (2-3 hours for even novice players), the game becomes what you make of it. There are mission boards across the land, but missions only appear as you progress. Each offers a "Level" and "Difficulty" ranking, which makes choosing your own adventure much, much easier. (The difficulty drops as your character level rises since the mission level stays the same.)

It's a great single-player experience, but where this title really shines is co-op. More about that below.

Learning Curve: The game, hampered by confusing UI (particularly on split-screen co-op, where you have to horizontally scroll your dialog boxes), can take awhile to suck you in, and it's easy to get discouraged if you start going up against higher level enemies before you're ready. Fortunately for you, we've compiled our best getting started tips.

The training is well-done and elementary for anyone who has played both an FPS and RPG. My biggest issue has been retraining my brain to use a completely different set of buttons than most games I've played. Also, my finger occasionally grazes the front left bumper, triggering my special skill unintentionally. The wait time for the skill to "cool off" and return makes that a painful accident.

Your early training missions, all a short distance from Fyrestone, open up some critical elements: namely, a source for paid health and ammo. It's worth noting that you can find both all over the game for free, but don't count on getting exactly what you need when you need it - buy a few back-ups or plan to do a lot of walking back to your mission when you respawn.

But I digress. Once you have access to health and weapons, you can start to venture out on your own or take on work - it's up to you. It's worth taking missions for a couple reasons, however. The first, and most obvious, is leveling up. You won't get the option to spend any skill points until you hit Level 5, when you open up your special skill. Plus - listen up kids, this is important - your enemies have levels as well, and they are already out in the badlands. My poor little Level 3 character was slaughtered by the Level 11 NPC next door in about 2 hits. I returned the favor later, after leveling up to 15, when his bullets damaged my higher-level hide much less.

The learning curve for starting a co-op game without making a mistake is actually a little steep. Good luck with that. Be prepared to quit and restart a bit until you've worked out how to get in the right slot with the right character and ensure that everybody is ready at the same time.

The Save Game: The game offers a local respawn point whenever you pass a Nu-U station, though it doesn't technically save your game as far as we can tell. When you're done playing, you should quit to the main menu to ensure your actual mission progress is saved. When you quit and come back, any enemies you defeated will likely have returned (heck, newcomers appear in places you've cleared while you're playing if you're gone for more than a couple minutes!) though any checkmarks you've made toward completing missions are preserved.

If you load an existing game in co-op, you should always let the lowest level player host - otherwise, low level players will make no progress in their game. We just keep separate characters for our co-op game, and they always play together.

Family Factor: This is for the grown-ups and high teens only - very violent, very bloody. Plan on saving and quitting quickly when younger children wake from nap, or play late at night (as we do!).

Buy, Rent or Skip? Unequivocal buy. This is a fantastic game with lots of replay value, plus DLC to keep you going once you crack Level 50 and beat all of the missions. It's our Busy Gamer News game of the year for 2009 based on depth, staying power and just how much fun it is to run around and shoot stuff after a long, hard day slaving over the Interwebz.

On a Personal Note: I'm thrilled to finally have a co-op game that I can play with Gamewatcher. This has become our nightly ritual, and I truly look forward to it. Gamewatcher and I have never been big co-op players. It isn't for lack of desire - we're just not into the realistic war games, and haven't found a title that we truly enjoyed playing together in some time. Now, we can't wait to get Pikachu Fan tucked into bed ("Hey! It's 4 p.m.! Wow, you must be tired...") and head downstairs to kick some Pandoran ass.

It's also the first game in awhile that has convinced me to start over so I could try out the various character choices. Each character has a unique set of skills, from weapon mastery to how fast they can haul across the desert. I've played all but Lilith (who is Gamewatcher's co-op character, now and forever!) and settled firmly on Team Roland for one very good reason: His turret. As we say around the Busy Gamer News labs, it's like having another soldier on the field.

Mordecai comes in a close second. In fact, I prefer him in pretty much every way except for the all-too-critical special weapon. He has the best voice acting (outside of Lilith), moves like the wind and comes equipped with some superb sniper skills - a must in this game. But his bird just doesn't cut it for me. If Mordecai had a turret, he'd be perfect.

I found Brick to be the weakest of all the characters, despite his clear physical strength. He doesn't run, he lumbers. His weapon skills are difficult to master, and his Hulk-smash special was extremely difficult use. Being a major melee fan, I expected this man-tank to be my long-lost FPS love. Instead, I dumped him like a ton of Brick.

We've been playing a Roland/Lilith combo that has worked out surprising well, other than our vastly different gaming styles. Gamewatcher is a hang-back and snipe kinda guy, whereas me... well, let's just say patience is not my virtue. But I'm learning. Because the most critical thing you can do in this co-op game is heal your teammate, assuming you can get to him/her before they respawn. (You pay for the Nu-U each time, and it gets EXPENSIVE.) Duck and cover, recharge your shields, and holla for help, kids!

Best of all, this game has remarkable replay value. I know, as I have now played some missions three times (two solo characters and co-op with Gamewatcher) and I'm about to start solo again with Roland. While these missions have gotten easier with each replay (knowledge is power), even the new missions I'm encountering with Gamewatcher as we progress into our Level 30s continue to entice and enthrall me.

I haven't enjoyed a game this much in general since Fallout 3, which is still my fallback title when I don't feel like playing the game du jour. I can see Borderlands competing with Fallout 3 for that fallback position for a long time to come. And I haven't even bought any of the Borderlands DLC yet.

More Busy Gamer Reviews:

• Lego Rock Band
• Assassin's Creed II
• Zuma's Revenge
• Halo 3: ODST
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Fallout 3
• Scribblenauts
• The Beatles: Rock Band
• Wolfenstein RPG
• Infamous
• Guide to kids and adult games

Considering BioShock 2's release is only a few weeks out (Feb. 9), the pre-order bonuses seem relatively tame for such an A-list title:

• Amazon.com - PS3 versions only, a Big Daddy costume for the PlayStation Home (nothing for PC or Xbox 360)
• Gamestop - Two multiplayer playable characters, fisherman Zigo d'Acosta and actress Blanche de Glace (all platforms and versions) - pictured at right

Yeah, that's it. Best Buy hasn't weighed in (though they do provide a "great financing offer"), and I doubt we'll hear from GameCrazy considering how much financial difficulty they seem to be in (ours in Seattle closed down entirely). Regardless of which offer you take advantage of, you'll probably want the Special Edition (even if you can't justify the $100 pricetag) for its hardcover art book, Rapture posters and orchestral score by Garry Schyman on CD and vinyl LP...

Here are this week's downloads, demos and videos for the Wii and Nintendo DS:

• WiiWare: "Aha! I Found It!" Hidden Object Game ($5), Bittos+ ($8) and Uno ($10)
• Virtual Console: Ghoul Patrol for Super NES ($8)
• DSiWare: AiRace: Tunnel ($2), Escapee Go! ($2) and Number Battle ($5)
• Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; due Tuesday, Jan. 26) "Godzilla" and "Transmaniacon MC" by Blue Öyster Cult, "Master of the Universe" by Hawkwind, "Levitate" by I Mother Earth, "Killed by Death '08" by Motörhead. "Hair of the Dog '08" by Nazareth and "Bulls on Parade" by Rage Against the Machine - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band, though none of these are.
• DS Demos (via Wii's Nintendo "Marketing" Channel): Still no new demos; just the usual suspects including Avatar, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Cooking Mama 3: Shop and Chop, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Alpine Skiing, Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Destiny 2, The Princess and the Frog - and we haven't mentioned it in awhile, but you can still try Imagine Teacher: Class Trip
• Game Videos: "Aha! I Found It!" Hidden Object Game, AiRace: Tunnel, Bittos+, Bloons, Escapee Go!, Monster Rancher, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, Pizza Delivery Boy, Uno and a new DSiWare round-up

As promised in the Busy Gamer Podcast, here is the complete list of games due for release this week for PC/Mac, portables and consoles (plus some recent releases that slipped out when we weren't looking):

• DS: AiRace: Tunnel (DSiWare), Dragonmaster, Escapee Go! (DSiWare), Horrible Histories: Ruthless Romans, Imagine: Party Planner, Number Battle (DSiWare), Personal Fitness for Men, Personal Fitness for Women and Quad Kings
• Facebook: Bejeweled Blitz (major update)
• iPhone: Are You Alright?, Broken Sword: The Director's Cut, Comet Racer, Fleeced!: Shear Terror, Isaac Newton's Gravity, Necromancer Rising, The Raging Dead, Tall Bike Joust and X Games SnoCross
• Mac: None
• PC: Amazing Adventures: The Caribbean Secret, Blood Bowl, Dracula Files, Enlightenus, Escape Rosecliff Island, Fast Food Fever, Galaxy of Word Games, Horrible Histories: Ruthless Romans, Hotel Giant 2, The Lost Inca Prophecy and Mass Effect 2
• PS3: Hustle Kings and MAG
• PS2: None
• PSP: Shadow of Destiny and TNA: Cross The Line
• Wii: "Aha! I Found It!" Hidden Object Game (WiiWare), Bittos+ (WiiWare), Fast Food Panic, Ghoul Patrol (Virtual Console), Horrible Histories: Ruthless Romans, Marines Modern Urban Combat, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars and Uno (WiiWare)
• Xbox 360: Blood Bowl, KrissX (Arcade) and Mass Effect 2

So, what will you be picking up - or is this week a pass? Any games we missed? Anything slip (as these inevitably do)? Please let us know...

This week we give our full audio review of Lego Rock Band with music by The Automatic, examine the Rock Band Network launch (and what it means to you!), tell what finally convinced us to buy Magic The Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers and give first impressions of the Avatar game - all in about 13 minutes.

Our goal is to provide a short (typically 10-15 minutes) summary of news and helpful commentary every Sunday so that you'll have a great jumping off point for your busy gamer week. Here's what we pack into each episode:

• The week's game releases
• A quick look back at the previous week's releases, news and downloadable content highlights
• What we're playing/mini-reviews
• Giveaways
• Comment of the week

Delivered in a tight package you can easily play through during even the shortest commutes!

Please share your own thoughts and comments about the podcast here and on iTunes!

Download the podcast here or, if you can, please subscribe at iTunes - and please rate us there too!

It's casual games week. Pick between Luxor 2 for Mac/PC, Luxor 3 for PC or PopCap Hits Vol. 1 with AstroPop and Bejeweled 2 for PS2:



Apart from the PC/Mac vs. PC platform choices, Luxor 2 offers 88 levels while the PC only Luxor 3 has five new game modes and 150 levels. As an added bonus, one of the Luxor winners will randomly receive a Mumbo Jumbo hat and the PopCap winner will get our last "extra" fluffy Chuzzle.

To enter:

Here's what's new on Xbox Live Marketplace this week:

• Arcade: Death by Cube ($10) and Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment ($15)
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast Warriors of Justice (free) includes more characters
• Section 8 Seek and Destroy Map Pack ($7) with three maps
• Fight Night Round 4 Champions Pack II ($10 or $2 per fighter and $4 per mode) with Evander Holyfield, Bernard Hopkins and Sonny Liston plus Ring Rivalries and Old School Rules game modes
• Guitar Hero 5 Metal Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Still I Rise" by Shadows Fall, "Twilight of the Thunder God" by Amon Amarth and "Laser Cannon Deth Sentence" by Dethklok
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Live Anthology Pack 2 ($10 or $2 each) "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me) (Live)," "Breakdown (Live)," "Century City (Live)," "Jammin' Me (Live)," "Nightwatchman (Live)" and "The Waiting (Live)" plus tracks ($2 each) "1901" and "Lisztomania" by Phoenix and "Blue Jeans" by Silvertide - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• Lips tracks ($2 each) "Soul Meets Body" by Death Cab For Cutie, "Mustang Sally" by Wilson Pickett and "Ring My Bell" by Anita Ward
• Games on Demand: Brave: A Warrior's Tale and Skate
• Demos: All Xbox Live Arcade and Indie games
• Indie Games (usually $1-10 each): Arc Viking Edition, Asphalt Jungle, Bible Navigator X: HCSB, Blood On The Dance Floor, Canno-Blast, Decimation X, Football League Simulator, Graffiti Live!, House Of Cockroach, Hoyle Texas Hold 'em, Hypno Vol. 1, KGB Episode One, Merry Inc., Musicus2, Office DisOrders, Physics Lab, Plucky's 3D Adventure, Princess Baker Palace, Rubble Muddle, SOS, Synth Jam, Titamus Attack, Warhounds, Xmas Defender, You Can't Win! and 魔法合成屋さんのミケ ("Magic Mike's House Synthesis")
• Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Dark Void, FIFA '10, Resident Evil 5 and Section 8
• Themes: Tekken 6 Premium ($3) and McDonald's (free)
• Pictures: McDonald's (free; one enters you in sweepstakes)
• Avatar Items (usually priced $1-5 each): Universities

The PlayStation Store is promoting a big half price sale that includes Braid for $7.50, Critter Crunch for $3.50, Uno for $4 and Zen Pinball for $5 (among others; there are also some PSP games marked down). Here's what's new this week:

• Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment ($15)
• SingStar Viewer (free) lets you preview and buy downloadable tracks
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast Warriors of Justice (free) includes more characters
• WWE SmackDown vs RAW 2010 Stone Cold Steve Austin ($1)
• PS1 for PS3/PSP: Championship Bass ($6)
• Guitar Hero 5 New Blues Masters Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Who I Am" by Tyler Bryant, "Lonesome Road Blues" by Joe Bonamassa and "Broken Man" by Scott McKeon and the Metal Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Still I Rise" by Shadows Fall, "Twilight of the Thunder God" by Amon Amarth and "Laser Cannon Deth Sentence" by Dethklok
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Live Anthology Pack 2 ($10 or $2 each) "A Woman in Love (It's Not Me) (Live)," "Breakdown (Live)," "Century City (Live)," "Jammin' Me (Live)," "Nightwatchman (Live)" and "The Waiting (Live)" - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Dante's Inferno, Darksiders, Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, Fairytale Fights, Hasbro Family Game Night, Medal of Honor, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, Vancouver 2010 and the free Pulse magazine featuring Assassin's Creed II add-ons, Hustle Kings and MAG
• Themes: Banana Girl Hook-Ups ($2), Devil Vixen Hook-Ups ($2), Liquid Metal 2 ($1.50) and School Girl Hook-Ups ($2)
• PSP: DJ Max Fever ($20), Metal Gear Solid PSP Bundle ($30) with Portable Ops, Portable Ops Plus and a digital graphic novel, and Valhalla Knights 2: Battle Stance ($30)
• PSP Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Dante's Inferno and Pulse
• PSP Themes: Banana Girl Hook-Ups ($2), Devil Vixen Hook-Ups ($2), Dita Von Teese ($1.50 each), Liquid Metal 2 ($1.50) and School Girl Hook-Ups ($2)
• PlayStation Home Items (usually priced $0.50-7.50 each): Assassin's Creed II, NBA and NCAA jerseys, some PixelJunk Shooter, Star Ocean and White Knight Chronicles rewards and new homes Paris Clock Tower and Waterfall Terrace

Too busy to devote 12+ hours a day to your gaming habit? Here's a review that's sensitive to your needs: Short and focused on just the things that a busy gamer like you really needs to know.


Reviewed On: Xbox 360. Also available for PlayStation 3 and Wii. Different version available for Nintendo DS.

In a Nutshell: The Rock Band "pretend music" rhythm game experience, ported to a more family-friendly format filled with those familiar interlocking bricks. Unlike past Lego-branded console outings, this isn't a smash-'em-up puzzle adventure. You do still collect studs to spend on costumes, characters, and instruments - including a rad octopus mike, dinosaur drum set and lightning bolt guitar (to name a few). And the scenes that introduce challenges are pure Traveller's Tales silliness (bring down a building with the power of rock?), right down to their trademark Lego character reactions throughout.

At first glance, it looks more or less like Rock Band with lego bricks traveling down the note highway instead of the solid glowing rectangles. But there have been some tweaks and new features added, most notably Rock Challenges. As your progress through your band's career, you open up vehicles which lead to new, exotic venues such as a skyscraper, pirate ship and coral reef.

Each area is punctuated by a challenge that begins with a lengthy intro scene and then brings up a special play mode where all players are scored as a team rather than individually and the guitar and drum parts drop in and out (the vocalist doesn't get a break, unless the song has an instrumental stretch). Do well, and you'll escape a pursuing T-Rex or defeat a giant octopus intent on wreaking his vengeance on the band.

The game offers the widest range of difficulties to date, from Super Easy to Expert. But it lacks refinements seen in recent outings such as the long overdue 3-second countdown when returning from pause that Harmonix introduced in The Beatles: Rock Band. Our little drummer has a habit of hitting the Guide button on the drumset during his exuberant fills; it always takes him a few seconds to get us back in the game (since only the pausing player can unpause) and we always miss notes/vocal phrases when we launch back into the song without warning.

Learning Curve: If you're played Rock Band or Guitar Hero: World Tour, you'll feel mostly at home here. If you're new to the genre, you'll need at least a plastic guitar peripheral or two and maybe a microphone and drums to complete the set. Then run through the tutorials and stick with it until you get the hang of things. As with learning a real instrument, it may take some practice - but you'll eventually get it. (Here are some starter tips from the original Rock Band; these are generally applicable here too.)

The game does include several nods to the younger fans it hopes to ensnare. There's Super Easy mode where hitting any note counts, as long as it's more or less timed right, and you can't fail out. Alas, there's no separate No Fail Mode, so younger/novice players may hit a steep difficulty curve when they attempt Easy. This is lessened slightly for budding drummers (like our own) who can turn on the automatic bass pedal option that is hidden away in the Extras section (instead of Options).

The Save Game: The game saves after every set list and when you quit or buy something for your character. The save screen actually comes up a lot, though it's usually pretty quick. If you quit in the middle of a gig, you may lose fans (a small penalty) - but that's pretty much standard issue for these types of games. Expect to set aside 5-15 minutes for each play session, and you can always go longer.

Family Factor: The game is reasonably family friendly, though this depends a little on your taste in music and what you consider appropriate. The musical choices (and any Rock Band DLC that you are permitted to pull in) have been vetted by Harmonix, so you won't be shredding to "El Scorcho" or that Serj Tankian song (you know the one). Some of the included tracks are a bit obscure, though there are some crowd pleasers such as "Ghostbusters," "Accidentally in Love" (from Shrek 2), "Life is a Highway" (from Cars) and "Crocodile Rock." There's also some Foo Fighters, Iggy Pop, Spinal Tap and Jimi Hendrix, no doubt to try to pacify the grownups. Kudos for not going with all kids' songs, but the resulting mish mash is all over the map (full song list).

Buy, Rent or Skip? Since Lego Rock Band is expandable via qualifying DLC for the other Rock Band games, this is a buy if you love Rock Band and yearn for a version that's designed specifically to rock out with your kids on. If you just want to play the songs and challenges but don't expect to be jamming, family-style, into 2011, make it a rental. You can export the songs from Lego Rock Band to your other Rock Band games, but it'll cost you $10 (using a single-use code that it's included in new copies; don't expect to get the code from Gamefly or Blockbuster!). And it's not nearly as useful as a code to export the songs from Rock Band 2 to Lego Rock Band would be; why can't we have "Nine in the Afternoon," "Everlong," "Float On," "Hungry Like the Wolf" and "Livin' on a Prayer" (to name a few) in our family game?! Can somebody get on that, please?

On a Personal Note: This was our 6-year-old's big request for Christmas. He adores all things Lego, and a chance to join his parents on their musical outings (after years of mostly watching us play the first two Rock Band games) seemed nothing short of awesome to him. The game has exceeded his expectations (you can hear his mini-review in our Dec. 27 podcast; it's adorable!).

The unexpected highlight came several days into the game when we unlocked a challenge that began with our band crashing the tour vehicle into a hotel swimming pool. The manager called in a Securi-T-Rex dinosaur rent-a-cop to chase us away, and we were off - racing (and rocking) to safety while playing "Monster" by The Automatic. We'd never heard the song before, but it instantly resonated with our son. The chorus ("What's that coming over the hill?") has become a common catch phrase around our house, and we bought the track from iTunes and have a new favorite song on our iPod playlist.

Our son has begin to master the drums more successfully than he did with the original Rock Band games, in no small part to Super Easy Mode coupled with the Auto Kick Drum (we were prompted to use this latter feature on first play, possibly because our modded drum pedal was unplugged at the time). Again, we'd love if No Fail Mode were available as an option for Easy, just to ease the transition. He's really eager to make the move up the difficulty scale, and probably will in the next week or so - at least for songs that he's practiced. We'll probably still suggest Super Easy for new songs since some of them have quite fast drum parts and might scare him off if things get too difficult too fast.

This won't serve as a replacement for regular Rock Band for us grownups, particular since a large portion of our DLC library is off-limits - including the full 5-pack of Alice in Chains we picked up recently. Is it the band name, or do all of those songs have some naughty lyrics I've forgotten?

More Busy Gamer Reviews:

• Assassin's Creed II
• Zuma's Revenge
• Halo 3: ODST
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Fallout 3
• Scribblenauts
• The Beatles: Rock Band
• Wolfenstein RPG
• Infamous
• Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
• Guide to kids and adult games

I very nearly passed this game up. For one thing, card battle games are a hard sell for me. I did briefly enjoy the Harry Potter trading card game from Wizards of the Coast back in the day, and it was the simplified gameplay and familiar characters that roped me in.

At first glance and even on my second try of the demo, Magic The Gathering: Duels of the Planeswalkers for Xbox 360 (also coming to PC and PS3) reinforced why I had never picked up the Magic card game - the game's flow and rules seem hard to grasp and follow. At least with the console version, the starter decks are loaded and the rules enforced (you get a big error dialog every time you try to play a card when it's not your turn!).

Here's what I eventually learned that helped me come to appreciate and ultimately purchase and even enjoy this title:

• Each player gets an active turn, divided into a series of phases. This should be obvious, but for some reason I missed this on my first two playthroughs of the tutorial and even a run against the first campaign mode challenger. I think because there was a Main phase at both the beginning and the end of each turn, I thought one was for the starting player and the other for the challenger. Not true. There are some actions you can take during your opponent's turn, but these are limited to blocking attacks (when appropriate) and a few special cards and abilities that can be played at any time.
• Mana cost is the number plus any specific mana icons. For instance, a 2 followed by two trees means you need four mana to play it, and two of those must be green mana. (I guess eventually you can unlock or create decks that contain more than one color of mana and related cards - or, based on what I'm seeing online, maybe this only happens with the physical card game. It seems deck customization is severely limited. More on that in a minute.) The good news is that cards you can play glow yellow, and mana cards reset (or "untap") after each turn so you can tap more mana to activate more cards. Some powers awarded to creatures grow as you play more mana; I had a little 2/2 bear turn into a powerful 16/16 beast thanks to a card I played early on!
• You can't always block with an active creature. If it seems like you missed your chance to block, you probably just didn't have anyone qualified. This happens especially when matched against flying creatures or creatures that inspire fear. If your creatures can't reach them or guard against the fear they inspire (as hinted at in the rules), the game will skip your blocking round.
• Stop the timer. If you need a moment to figure out your options (or if you have any), just press X. Also, you can change your Hold Priority setting to On so that the gamel requires you to push Y to advance, ensuring you're ready for your next turn.
• Deck customization is limited, at least at first. The base cards cannot be removed but any cards you unlock (by winning matches with it) can be removed, reducing the chance you'll get one that isn't any use. For instance, any cards with extremely high mana cost probably won't serve you well initially. You unlock new decks as you defeat opponents in campaign mode, and new cards as you win battles with those decks.
• Challenge mode can teach you new tricks. This is sort of a puzzle mini-game where you figure out what moves can save your last turn from ending in a loss. As you solve these, you'll learn new tactics to carry over to your campaign.
• Learn from your opponent's strategy. I found that it's sometimes useful to sacrifice a low-level creature to block a massive attack, though if the enemy has trample this is less effective since splash damage that isn't absorbed still hits you. No trample? Definitely sacrifice that 1/1 creature to avoid taking 10 damage to your person!

Oh, and Planeswalkers are like magical dudes (you're one of them).Those are the things I wish I had known when I started. Anything to add? Anything that's still confusing? Let us know...

If you were at PAX 09, you could have landed an early shot at previewing the Rock Band Network, a community that creates and rates new songs with playable instrument tracks for the Rock Band series. Now anyone can access, create, and test songs for the games, as long as they:

• are 18
• live in the U.S. (for now)
• have an Xbox Live Gold account (approx. $50/year)
• have an XNA Creators Club account ($50/4 months or $100/year)

If you have an existing community account on RockBand.com, you can repurpose it for this - though it may be a difficult, tedious process at the moment that includes many site errors, followed by the need to add supplemental info such as address and acceptance of various policies. Just try logging in with your existing account and expect to change your password.

The creator account for Rock Band Network itself is free and will let you see the names of some of the songs in review and accepted for eventual release, including "Creepy Doll" and "The Future Soon" by Jonathan Coulton. To download, play, and rate songs you'll need to pay to join the active community.

According to reports, we'll also see tracks from Flight of the Conchords, Evanescence, Billy Idol, Creed, The Shins, Minstry, and All That Remains - though none of these are evident on the site at the moment.

The store itself is due to launch "in a few weeks" with songs priced at $1-3 each. So if you don't want to pay to beta test tracks, you'll soon be able to purchase the fruits of this network which promises to provide music from more indie sources than Harmonix can deliver on its own. Bands who want their songs on the Rock Band Network can either create them or hire a company that specializes in this sort of thing.

Oh, and for now this is Xbox 360 only, though Harmonix expects to add PS3 and Wii support if/when they solve the technical issues to make this possible...

Here are this week's downloads, demos and videos for the Wii and Nintendo DS:

• WiiWare: The Amazing Brain Train! ($6) and Muscle March ($5)
• Virtual Console: Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi for Sega Genesis ($8)
• DSiWare: Chronos Twins ($5), Dark Void Zero ($5), Me And My Dogs: Friends Forever ($8) and Starship Defense ($5)
• Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; due Tuesday, Jan. 19) "Breakdown (Live)," "Century City (Live)," "Jammin' Me (Live)," "Nightwatchman (Live)," "The Waiting (Live)" and "A Woman in Love (Live)" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, "1901" and "Lisztomania" by Phoenix and "Blue Jeans" by Silvertide - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• DS Demos (via Wii's Nintendo "Marketing" Channel): Still no new demos; just the usual suspects including Avatar, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Cooking Mama 3: Shop and Chop, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Alpine Skiing, Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Destiny 2 and The Princess and the Frog
• Game Videos: Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth, The Amazing Brain Train!, Dark Void Zero, Glory of Heracles, Me And My Dogs: Friends Forever, Muscle March, New Super Mario Bros. Wii and No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle

As promised in the Busy Gamer Podcast, here is the complete list of games due for release this week for PC/Mac, portables and consoles (plus some recent releases that slipped out when we weren't looking):

• DS: Bejeweled Twist, Chronos Twins (DSiWare), Dark Void Zero (DSiWare), Glory of Heracles, Jambo! Safari Animal Rescue, Me And My Dogs: Friends Forever (DSiWare), Shepherd's Crossing 2 and Starship Defense (DSiWare)
• iPhone: Arctopia, Battle Blasters, Chrome Wars Arena, Dawn of the Dead, Doodle Bomb, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, Heavy Mach 2, The Horrible Vikings, NBA Hotshot, ReBounce, Spartacus: Blood and Sand, Sword & Poker, TileStorm and Tumbledrop
• Mac: Avenue Flo, Diner Dash/Diner Dash 2 bundle, Diner Dash: Flo on the Go/Diner Dash: Hometown Hero bundle, Jeopardy Platinum Edition, Wedding Dash/Wedding Dash 2 bundle and Wheel of Fortune Platinum Edition
• PC: Avenue Flo, Cake Mania: Main Street, Dark Void, Diner Dash/Diner Dash 2 bundle, Diner Dash: Flo on the Go/Diner Dash: Hometown Hero bundle, Jeopardy Platinum Edition, Playmobil Double Pack #2, Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventure, Wedding Dash/Wedding Dash 2 bundle and Wheel of Fortune Platinum Edition
• PS3: Dark Void
• PS2: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
• PSP: Shepherd's Crossing and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
• Wii: The Amazing Brain Train! (WiiWare), Muscle March (WiiWare), Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection and Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi (Virtual Console)
• Xbox 360: Dark Void, Death by Cube (Arcade) and Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment (Arcade)

So, what will you be picking up - or is this week a pass? Any games we missed? Anything slip (as these inevitably do)? Please let us know...

This week GrrlGotGame reviews Assassin's Creed II, we look at Wii Netflix news, an Xbox 360 rumor, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks and Serious Sam HD - all in under 12 minutes.

Our goal is to provide a short (typically 10-15 minutes) summary of news and helpful commentary every Sunday so that you'll have a great jumping off point for your busy gamer week. Here's what we pack into each episode:

• The week's game releases
• A quick look back at the previous week's releases, news and downloadable content highlights
• What we're playing/mini-reviews
• Giveaways
• Comment of the week

Delivered in a tight package you can easily play through during even the shortest commutes!

Please share your own thoughts and comments about the podcast here and on iTunes!

Download the podcast here or, if you can, please subscribe at iTunes - and please rate us there too!

This week we have another choice for you to make. Do you play for:

• BioShock guide for PS3 and Xbox 360
• Crackdown guide for Xbox 360
• The original Pups guide for Nintendogs on DS
• The Premiere Edition of the Super Smash Bros. Brawl guide for Wii

BioShock and Crackdown both have sequels due this year, so there's no better time than now to get caught up. Then again, you might have put off mastering Super Smash Bros. Brawl or perhaps your family recently adopted some virtual pups and want to know how best to care for them.

The choice is yours but you can only play for one! To enter:

Here's what landed this week on Xbox Live Marketplace:

• Arcade: Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter ($15) plus 0 day Attack on Earth London Map Pack ($7)
• Forza Motorsport 3 AutoWeek Car Show Pack ($5, or get just the 2009 Lotus 2-Eleven for free) with 10 cars including the 2010 Aston Martin One-77, 2010 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport, 2010 Ford Shelby GT500, 2010 Porsche Boxster S and 2010 Saleen S5S Raptor
• Guitar Hero 5 Vampire Weekend Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Cousins," "Holiday" and "The Kids Don't Stand A Chance"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Alice In Chains Pack 2 ($8.50) with "Grind," "Heaven Beside You,"" "Last of My Kind," "We Die Young" and "Your Decision" - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band but none of these are.
• Lips tracks ($2 each) "Lean On Me" by Club Nouveau, "Baby When The Light" by David Guetta and "Homecoming" by Kanye West
• Games on Demand: Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 ($20)
• Demos: All Xbox Live Arcade and Indie games
• Indie Games (usually $1-10 each): Abaddon, Audio Diagnostics, Bacterio, Blaze Of Glory, Dreams of Witchtown, Fight Monkey of Magic, Gamefarm Math Quiz, Makiva, Overscan Sniper HD, Pan-Global Racing Syndicate, Pixel Boarder, Pwn Age: 31337 AD, SlideColors, Space Pirates from Tomorrow, Time K, ToyBorgs and You Will Die
• Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Dante's Inferno, Darwinia+, Final Fantasy XIII, Just Cause 2, Metro 2033, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Splinter Cell: Conviction plus Darksiders strategy guides ($1 each)
• Themes: 1 vs. 100 (free), Army of Two: The 40th Day ($3), Avatar Premium ($3), Darksiders ($2 each) and From Paris With Love (free)
• Pictures: 1 vs. 100 (free), Major League Gaming ($1 each) and From Paris With Love (free)
• Avatar Items (usually priced $1-5 each): Darksiders

A light week at the PlayStation Store:

• Zen Pinball Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Table ($2.50)
• Magic Orbz Bundle Pack ($14) with all four episodes and the new Winter Pack ($3)
• Guitar Hero 5 Vampire Weekend Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Cousins," "Holiday" and "The Kids Don't Stand A Chance"
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Alice In Chains Pack 2 ($8.50) with "Grind," "Heaven Beside You,"" "Last of My Kind," "We Die Young" and "Your Decision" - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band but none of these are.
• Demos: Uno
• Game Videos: SOCOM: US Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3, Star Ocean: The Last Hope, White Knight Chronicles and the 2009 Gran Turismo Awards
• PSP: Dynogems ($3) and Luxor: The Wrath of Set ($10), plus Gran Turismo PSP Car Pack (free)
• PSP Demos: Lunar: Silver Star Harmony
• PSP Themes: Savage Moon: The Hera Campaign (free)

Too busy to devote 12+ hours a day to your gaming habit? Here's a review that's sensitive to your needs: Short and focused on just the things that a busy gamer like you really needs to know.


Reviewed On: Xbox 360. Also available for PlayStation 3 and PC. Alternate versions with different gameplay available for DS and PSP, and coming soon to iPhone.

In a Nutshell: Basic sandbox game with a main quest line, side mission opportunities and the chance to wreak general havoc if you are so inclined. You play an assassin in training running around Italy in the 1400s (the game bounces around years). Your primary weapons are blade-based (knives, swords, throwing knives, etc.) or big heavy hammers. You will not be sniping or going rogue with a sub-machine gun in this one. You also won't be seeing well in some areas, as light sources are kept strictly period (windows and torches on the wall). You will defy gravity on a regular basis, climbing and leaping across rooftops and reaching the tallest buildings in multiple-bounds.

In many ways, Assassin's Creed II reminded me of the Grand Theft Auto series. From the convenient map to the "find the hidden object" task (in this case, feathers) and the ability to just generally go rogue, there is very little difference. Even the storyline progression greatly resembles many of the GTA games. I mean that as a compliment.

The story itself is compelling once you get past the first hour or so of training/setup, and the visuals - particularly Venice - are stunning. It's just too bad that The Truth™ you work so hard to seek is... asinine. While the game does strive to keep certain elements "period," there are plenty of unrealistic/anachronistic touches to be seen. For example, I seriously doubt diving 40 stories into a bale of hay would end well. It is awfully fun to do, but kids, don't try this at home.

Note: Characters speak a mixture of Italian and English. To see full-conversations in English, turn on sub-titles. You'll see the Italian followed by a translation. If you've always dreamed of cussing in another language, this is the game for you!

Learning Curve: Gamers with sandbox experience will get more out of the game faster, but anyone can pick the game up and make good progress quickly. Combat can be achieved through button mashing, with those who have the patience and time to train picking up more stylish ways to finish missions. You are allowed to have one active item in your primary hand at all times, selected by going to a special screen.

One notable issue I encountered time and again: my mapped target changing when I didn't change it. This led to unintentional assassinations of innocent people, which in turn lead to the game resetting my life. I also encountered one move that I simply can't master, and at this point, will not even try. That prevented me from doing a few side missions (and missing out on an achievement), but it did not stop me from beating the game.

Oh, and pick pocketing is totally easy now, unlike the first time. Get rich or die tryin'!

The Save Game: The game auto-saves early and often, which is the good news. If your character so much as sneezes, it saves. My only complaint is that you are constantly saving over the same game. In other words, if your game becomes corrupted, you don't have a backup to load.

This didn't cause a problem for me, but it is a risk. As I have mentioned previously, Halo 3 did the same thing - and my game save did get wiped out. I abandoned that game rather than redo the 11 hours of lost game play. This is simply not acceptable. I have a hard drive and a memory card, please let me use them.

Family Factor: Not for the little ones. This game is all about stabbing folks and running them through with long blades. (I also found tossing them off the roof to be effective.) Your hands will literally have blood on them during the finale, and your outfit will look like it was used to wipe the floor of an abattoir. (Oddly, you stay relatively clean for most of the game.) Lots of cussing, most of it in Italian. (Again, turn on subtitles to see what they are saying in English.)

Buy, Rent or Skip? Buy. The sheer volume of missions and time required to really enjoy the game (and finish it) over a busy gamer's schedule would easily eat up $60 in rental or monthly subscription fees. If you can find it used, pick it up there - while it is a great game, it may not have a ton of replay value. (I'm done with it, myself.)

On a Personal Note: I started Assassin's Creed (the original) and barely made it to the second Holy Land before giving up and moving on to the next candidate. Early visuals from the sequel made it extremely attractive to me (I love Italy), but my previous experience left me hesitant. Everything that I hated about the first game has been fixed here, and the story is, at least in my opinion, much more compelling. I had a blast playing the game, and honestly thought I would be diving back in to Venice (so to speak) upon beating it. Alas, Borderlands caught my fancy, and Assassin's Creed II is heading to the bone yard.

For the record, stick with the game DURING the final credits (no running off for bathroom/snack breaks) to really, truly finish the game and get the final main story achievement. This will also open the main game lands back up for you, sans the finale location - so if you want to go back and collect every feather and treasure, you can.

More Busy Gamer Reviews:

• Zuma's Revenge
• Halo 3: ODST
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Fallout 3
• Scribblenauts
• The Beatles: Rock Band
• Wolfenstein RPG
• Infamous
• Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
• Rock Band
• Guide to kids and adult games

Eagle-eyed observers have noted that Xbox 360 Elite consoles and 120GB hard drive add-ons have suddenly gone scarce, listed as not available at Gamestop or Best Buy online and being cleared out at Gamestop stores with a $50 gift card promotion. (Some holiday bundles with the Elite are still listed.) The speculation is that retailers are clearing their inventory to be replaced with a new version sporting a 250GB hard drive, previously available only with the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition console bundle (and in a few other countries as the "Super Elite")...

After months of hints and rumors, Netflix confirmed that its instant queue steaming movies are coming to Wii sometime this spring. Since the Wii has no true high definition output, you'll be limited to standard def programming - but otherwise it should be comparable to the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the service. You will need to request a special "game" disc to play when you want to use the streaming service; no word yet whether this might eventually be integrated into the Wii menu, which so far contains only Nintendo channels...

Here are this week's downloads, demos and videos for the Wii and Nintendo DS:

• WiiWare: Chronos Twins DX ($10), Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney ($10) and ShadowPlay ($8)
• Virtual Console: Shanghai II: Dragon's Eye for Sega Genesis ($8)
• DSiWare: Jazzy Billiards ($5), Touch Solitaire ($2) and Word Searcher ($5)
• Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; due Tuesday, Jan. 12) "Grind," "Heaven Beside You," "We Die Young," "Last of My Kind" and "Your Decision" by Alice in Chains - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band, though apparently none of these qualify.
• DS Demos (via Wii's Nintendo "Marketing" Channel): The usual including Avatar, Bakugan Battle Brawlers, Cooking Mama 3: Shop and Chop, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Alpine Skiing, Naruto Shippuden: Ninja Destiny 2 and The Princess and the Frog
• Game Videos: Chronos Twins DX, Fast Food Panic, Foto Showdown, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (Note: Video caused Wii to freeze for me and at least one other person; if this happens, hold down Power button to reset your Wii!), Puzzler World, ShadowPlay, The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces and Super Monkey Ball: Step & Roll

As promised in the Busy Gamer Podcast, here is the complete list of games due for release this week for PC/Mac, portables and consoles (plus some recent releases that slipped out when we weren't looking):

• DS: Commander: Europe at War, Daniel X, Jazzy Billiards (DSiWare), Sands of Destruction, Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis, Touch Solitaire (DSiWare), Windy X Windam and Word Searcher (DSiWare)
• iPhone: Assassin's Creed II: Discovery, Bird Strike, The Deep, Gunman, Kim Rhode's Outdoor Shooting, Mondrian, Rhythm Racer, Super Ramen Brothers, Zamby and Zwirn
• Mac: Marvel Action Pack, Marvel SuperHero Squad Arcade, Monopoly: Build A Lot Edition and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed - Ultimate Sith Edition
• PC: Brainiversity, Bumps, CSI 4: Hard Evidence, Insecticide, Little Shop: Road Trip, Lost Secrets: Ancient Mysteries, Mahjongg Memoirs, Marvel SuperHero Squad Arcade, Monster Madness, Mortimer Beckett and the Time Paradox, National Geographic: Treasures of the Serengeti, Roogoo, Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis, The Sims 2: Fun with Pets Collection, Slingo Mystery: Who's Gold?, Torchlight, Trapped: The Abduction and Two Worlds
• PS3: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Vancouver 2010 and Zen Pinball Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 table
• PSP: Army of Two: The 40th Day
• Wii: Chronos Twins DX (WiiWare), Crazy Chicken Tales, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (WiiWare), Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis, ShadowPlay (WiiWare), Shanghai II: Dragon's Eye (Virtual Console), Sleepover Party, The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces and Walk It Out
• Xbox 360: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Serious Sam HD (Arcade) and Vancouver 2010

So, what will you be picking up - or is this week a pass? Any games we missed? Anything slip (as these inevitably do)? Please let us know...

This week is our longest one yet (is 14 minutes too long?) featuring CES news, the shutdown of EA online gaming servers, GrrlGotGame's sinister secret, 6-year-old Pikachu Fan's review of Lego Star Wars for DS, Pixel Force: Left 4 Dead, Borderlands co-op, Trials HD and The Saboteur impressions- all in about 14 minutes.

Our goal is to provide a short (typically 10-15 minutes) summary of news and helpful commentary every Sunday so that you'll have a great jumping off point for your busy gamer week. Here's what we pack into each episode:

• The week's game releases
• A quick look back at the previous week's releases, news and downloadable content highlights
• What we're playing/mini-reviews
• Giveaways
• Comment of the week

Delivered in a tight package you can easily play through during even the shortest commutes!

Please share your own thoughts and comments about the podcast here and on iTunes!

Download the podcast here or, if you can, please subscribe at iTunes - and please rate us there too!

We've grappled with the best way to give away the fluffy PopCap Chuzzles we're now swimming in. First we thought Instant Win! Then maybe a Twitter giveaway! Then we thought we might do a combination (tweet and post!)

Forget all of that. This is too good for an Instant Win (you can retweet us if you like - we'll certainly appreciate it - but it's not required).

We just know that a lot of people want to get their hands on a Chuzzle - especially now that the PopCap merchandise store has shut down. Your best odds of securing them are: a) get a job at PopCap, b) get thrown one at a public event with a PopCap employee (we've attended many of these and always failed to catch one!) or c) win one here.

Or maybe win two. Someone might even get three. We haven't quite decided yet how to break them up. These Chuzzles are a little like Tribbles. We've lost count of how many we have, thanks to the Child's Play Charity Auction and our own prior purchases at the PopCap store.

All we know is that we have more than enough to last us through the inevitable apocalypse. There will be at LEAST a dozen winners this time next week. Probably more. Unless that apocalypse thing happens first. If that happens, we expect only the Chuzzles will survive. And they'll become rabid and attack any vault dwellers who emerge.

OK, clearly we haven't been playing enough Fallout 3 lately. Or perhaps too much Borderlands. Definitely waaaay too much Chuzzle on the iPhone. And not enough sleep.

We can't guarantee which color you'll get if you win. But if you have a preference, say so. We'll honor your requests in the order the winners are drawn until we run out of each color.

Here's how to enter:

Here's what landed on Xbox Live Marketplace this week:

• Arcade: Matt Hazard: Blood Bath & Beyond ($15)
• Madden NFL 10 Ultimate Team (free) card collecting game - Note: You may have to pay for cards
• Dragon Ball: Raging Blast Androids Pack (free)
• MX vs ATV Reflex Track Pack 1 ($5) with three tracks and gear
• Guitar Hero 5 New Blues Masters Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Who I Am" by Tyler Bryant, "Lonesome Road Blues" by Joe Bonamassa and "Broken Man" by Scott McKeon
• Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Blink-182 Track Pack 2 ($5.50) with "Adam's Song," "First Date" and "I Miss You," Paul McCartney Pack 1 ($5.50) "Band on the Run (live)," "Jet (live)" and "Sing the Changes (live)" and tracks ($2 each) "Love My Way" and "Sister Europe" by Psychedelic Furs and "Rock 'n' Roll High School" by Ramones - Note: "Family friendly" tracks also work with Lego Rock Band.
• Lips The Miracles Song Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "I Second That Emotion," "Love Machine (Part 1)" and "The Tracks Of My Tears"
• Games on Demand: Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts
• Demos: Dark Void plus all Xbox Live Arcade and Indie games
• Indie Games (usually $1-10 each): Avatar Run, Brixx, Creed Arena, Dungeon Adventure, GemChase, Hazardous Gas Unit, Jake's Discount Video Game, Murder On Snake Road, RC Racing 360, Switchboard, Temple Topper and Tobe's Vertical Adventure
• Game Videos: Army of Two: The 40th Day, Darksiders and Madden NFL Arcade
• Themes: Trials HD Premium ($3)
• Pictures: Way of the Samurai 3 ($1), plus Forza Motorsport 3, Get to Know Xbox Live Registration and Ultimate Tailgate (free; each of these enters you in sweepstakes)