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January 2009 Archives

January 1, 2009

Steals and Deals - All Steam games on sale through today

All Steam games are on sale with a 10-75% discount until January 2. A few highlights:

  • Fallout 3 - $40
  • Far Cry 2 - $37.50
  • Left for Dead - $37.50
  • Peggle - $5
  • Portal - $5
  • Silent Hill: Homecoming - $25
  • Spore - $37.50
  • Ultimate Doom - $1
Seriously, bust that New Year's hangover with some classic Doom for a buck...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 1, 2009 2:08 AM | | Comments (0)

GrrlGotGame - Regrets, I've had a few...

GrrlGotGameI’ve never understood the appeal of New Year's resolutions. First off, they’re predictable. We all want to lose that last 10 pounds/quit smoking/leave Scientology at the beginning of the year. But by the middle of the year – say, January 4 – we’re all off the diet/smoking like a chimney/getting our thetans cleansed.

Me? I made a resolution 10 years ago never to make another resolution. I’ve yet to break it.

So in lieu of resolutions this year, I propose we announce our regrets. In my case, I’ve compiled a simple list of things that game developers do that kill players... sometimes literally. Developers, there is a goldmine of original resolutions you might consider here: Find your sin and promise not to do it again. Actually, just don’t do it. I don’t really care if you promise or not.

  1. I regret that many game developers still refuse to let me save anywhere.
    Seriously, it’s not game balancing – it’s just lazy game design. (I’m looking at you, Silent Hill.) There are plenty of ways to screw with me without making me leave the Xbox on all night because my kid got out of bed, and doesn’t need to see Pyramid Head... well, you know, do that voodoo that he does. Hell, I don’t think I needed to see that. And I’m not 5 years old.

  2. I regret timed missions.
    Another mortal enemy of the busy gamer. Not only do you have the basic nuisance of beating the clock, but you have to have enough real-life time to practice and get good enough to actually beat the timed mission. Plus, I bet there’s not a parent out there who hasn’t had a child awaken from a nap during a timed mission. Sure, you can pause – but once you get the momentum going, it’s kind of hard to go take care of junior’s needs and then come back six hours later to save the squad. Speaking of which...

Continue reading "GrrlGotGame - Regrets, I've had a few..." »

Posted by GrrlGotGame on January 1, 2009 6:52 PM | | Comments (2)

January 2, 2009

Free Stuff Friday - Need for Speed ProStreet

Need for Speed ProStreetFree Stuff Friday is back, and this week I have a shiny new, shrinkwrapped game! Need for Speed ProStreet (PC) is a departure for the popular EA racing franchise that follows a legitimate pro street racer's career. There are four race types: Drag, Drift, Grip and Speed Challenge.

This game is most notable for adding the ability to design and build cars and for its realistic damage model - which is rare for racing titles in general since car manufacturers don't like to see their vehicles all smashed up and barely functional (plus, it's more work to implement!).

This game will still run you $10 at retail, if you can even find it. Of course, free is better, right?

Here's how to enter:

Continue reading "Free Stuff Friday - Need for Speed ProStreet" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 2, 2009 9:22 AM | | Comments (28)

Be Careful Out There - Puzzle Quest for iPhone

Puzzle Quest (review) is now on the iPhone now, but apart from the price ($10 for about a third of the game) and the hard-to-read text, there's reportedly a vicious bug that may eat your saved character. If it happens, you can't even start over since it thinks your character still exists, but currently there's no workaround to load it and it's not clear if it will ever be recoverable. Skip this game for now on the iPhone, or better yet get one of the only slightly buggy DS or PSP versions or one of the downloadable Xbox 360, PS3 or PC versions...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 2, 2009 5:18 PM | | Comments (0)

January 3, 2009

Xbox Live Marketplace - Sleepy New Year, the Zune bug and a few late presents

This is one of the slowest weeks for Xbox 360 downloads in recent memory, but better than the PS3 no show (they apparently took the week off). Then again, Microsofties were apparently in the office anyway to fix the Zune leap year bug. It's been patched, so the good news is that if you're still using that Zune 30 in 2012, your New Year's Eve party will have music!

At least there were a few late presents (freebies) on Xbox Live Marketplace for 360 owners, including a Lara Croft wetsuit pack:

  • Arcade: Merv Griffin's Crosswords ($10)
  • Demo: Lord of the Rings: Conquest multiplayer
  • Tomb Raider: Underworld Wetsuit and Classic costume packs (both free)
  • DDR Universe 3 two present songs (free) and another for purchase ($1.25)
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each) "Space Truckin'" by Deep Purple, "Funk #49" by James Gang, "Hymn 43" by Jethro Tull and "Take Back the City'" by Snow Patrol
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour tracks ($2 each) "Degenerated" by Backyard Babies, "Johnny" by Di-Rect and "Por La Boca Vive El Pez" by Fito & Fitipaldis
  • Lips tracks ($2 each) "Let's Groove" by Earth, Wind and Fire, "Be Good Johnny" by Men At Work and "Where Did Our Love Go" by The Supremes
  • Community Games: Aceball ($2.50), Air Legends ($2.50), Amazing Wizard ($2.50), The Collector ($2.50), Constrictor ($5), Dr. Popper ($2.50), FallDown ($5), Happyface ($2.50), Hexothermic ($2.50), Indirian Solitaire ($5), Johnny Platform's Biscuit Romp ($2.50), Joint Strike Future ($2.50), Landmark ($2.50), Machiavelli's Ascent ($2.50), Max the Frog ($5), Nuke Your Neighbor ($5), Planet Panic! ($5), Puzzle DeFusion ($5), Quarx ($5), reTension ($2.50), Shoot the Rocks ($2.50), Solicheck ($2.50) and Ultratron ($5)
  • Video:The Guild Season 2 Episode 5 (free, plus all prior episodes) and Horror Meets Comedy's Sparky & Mikaela (free, plus the other five if you missed them)

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 3, 2009 7:55 PM | | Comments (0)

January 5, 2009

Wii Stuff - Sandy Beach, Kirby's Dream Land 3 and Kung Fu Panda DS demo

Here's what the New Year delivered to Wii gamers:

  • WiiWare: Sandy Beach ($5)
  • Virtual Console: Kirby's Dream Land 3 for Super NES ($8)
  • DS Demos: Repeats including Mystery P.I. and the return of Kung Fu Panda: Legendary Warriors
  • Game Videos: Big Bang Mini, Blue Dragon Plus, The Clone Wars, FIFA Soccer '09, Personal Trainer: Math, Sandy Beach and Wario Land: Shake It!

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 5, 2009 11:00 AM | | Comments (0)

Gamewatcher - iPhone 3G is ultimate device for busy gamers – but beware!

GamewatcherI've been a gamer, gadget freak and electronics early adopter my whole life. As a kid I had the original Pong home machine and later the Atari 2600 and Commodore 64 (M.U.L.E. for the win!), and as an adult I was one of the first on my block with an Iomega Zip Drive (anyone remember when 100MB was a lot of storage?) and various other time- and sanity-saving devices over the years.

iPhone 3GI've also invested in many gizmos that I tried and abandoned for one reason or another. The Information Superhighway, as they called it back in the day, is littered with the molded plastic scraps of digital roadkill.

Perfect example: I've resisted the urge to carry a PDA or Smartphone for years, despite working on the marketing of those sorts of devices for a spell in the '90s. My biggest complaint is that they tend to take too much time to configure and manipulate versus the time you save using them. The pattern, for me, is that I'd spend a week or so loading my entire life up into a gadget and then never touch it again because I'd have to constantly plug the thing into a computer to sync or find it's just faster to fall back on traditional methods (e.g., paper). It's sort of like the economics of clean fuel: Once it becomes cheaper and easier to use than oil, we'll quit the dinosaur juice and never look back.

That's how it is with the iPhone 3G for me. The thing is so well designed and easy to pick up and use, I finally have a portable device that's faster than backsliding to old habits. And it does so much more than I expected.

Continue reading "Gamewatcher - iPhone 3G is ultimate device for busy gamers – but beware!" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 5, 2009 11:53 AM | | Comments (2)

January 4, 2009

Join Busy Gamers on Facebook

Are you on Facebook? Then this link's for you.

Join Busy Gamers on Facebook

If you're not on Facebook, there's not time like the present to connect with friends, colleagues, former classmates and like-minded gamers...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 4, 2009 11:23 PM | | Comments (0)

January 6, 2009

Misery Loves Company - Electronic Gaming Monthly dead, 1UP gutted and sold

It was a dark day for gaming journalism. Ziff Davis' Electronic Gaming Monthly is shutting down after the next issue (just shy of its 20th anniversary in May) and 1UP was sold to Hearst's UGO Entertainment, which seems to have designs on the brand only since most of the 1UP talent pool was fired shortly after the announcement...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 6, 2009 11:12 PM | | Comments (0)

January 7, 2009

The Buzz - Would you kindly milk this franchise?

A 2K Games exec is quoted saying that he believes the BioShock series could support up to five sequels, comparing it to Star Wars but warning that it should avoid the erratic story problems of The Matrix series. This, of course, omits the logic that: a) three of the Star Wars movies sucked (even if they did somehow make money) and b) you need a successful sequel before you can afford to get cocky and start getting all George Lucas-y on us. I'm not counting the System Shock games here since they weren't the videogame equivalent of blockbusters - more like critically hailed indy films (not to be confused with Lucas' Indy films!). That said, if BioShock 2 somehow manages to be as good as The Empire Strikes Back, it'll probably be all downhill from there...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 7, 2009 2:24 PM | | Comments (0)

January 8, 2009

Pre-order Goodies - Godfather II

EA is up to its usual tricks, offering an incentive to get your pre-order dollars for Godfather II, due out Feb. 25. Plunking down early will give you access to Tommy Cipolla, a gang member with both medic and arson skills who starts with a level 2 shotgun (better than that level 1 stuff you'd normally be stuck with). At least they aren't holding any Corleone family members hostage...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 8, 2009 8:26 AM | | Comments (0)

PlayStation Store - Cuboid, Mahjong and Pantera covers (weak week)

This week, Sony's PlayStation Store is mostly playing catch up with Xbox 360 though there are also some nifty puzzle games (nothing against puzzle games, but is this really what you bought a PS3 for?):

  • Cuboid ($10)
  • Mahjong Tales: Ancient Wisdom ($10)
  • Qore Episide 8 ($3 or $25 for a year) featuring for-pay video of Killzone 2 (if you want the demo next month, you'll have to pay for that too)
  • Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Pack 6 (free)
  • EndWar Faction Elite Pack ($3.75)
  • WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 Roster Update ($5)
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour tracks European Track Pack 02 ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Degenerated" by Backyard Babies, "Johnny" by Di-Rect and "Por La Boca Vive El Pez" by Fito & Fitipaldis
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each) "Space Truckin'" by Deep Purple, "Funk #49" by James Gang, "Hymn 43" by Jethro Tull and "Take Back the City'" by Snow Patrol
  • Rock Revolution Pantera Pack Track Pack ($5.50 or $1.50 each) with covers of “5 Minutes Alone,” “Cemetery Gates,” “I’m Broken,” “Mouth for War” and “This Love”
Yeah, that's it. Better luck next week...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 8, 2009 8:54 PM | | Comments (0)

Xbox Live Marketplace - Skate 2 demo, Interpol, Roy Orbison and country music

OK, so it's not the strongest week for Microsoft either, but at least they have the Skate 2 demo. And I take a small pleasure in the fact that the first hidden object game on Xbox Live Arcade isn't from Big Fish Games (I suggested they get on the service back in 2006 and was soundly ignored):

  • Arcade: Interpol ($10)
  • Endwar Faction Elite Pack ($3.75)
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Roy Orbison Pack 01 ($10 or $2 each) with "Claudette," "In Dreams," "Mean Woman Blues," "Oh, Pretty Woman," "Ooby Dooby" and "You Got It"
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour Country Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Hillbilly Deluxe" by Brooks & Dunn, "Ticks" by Brad Paisley and "Me and My Gang" by Rascal Flatts, plus the European Track Pack 02 ($5.50), which compiles the individual tracks you hopefully ignored last week
  • Shaun White Snowboarding Glamour Pack ($5) with boards, jackets, pants and other for-pay gear
  • Demo: Skate 2
  • Community Games: A.I.R. Play ($5), Altar of Gems ($5) and Sudoku X ($2.50)
  • Game Videos: Darksiders: Wrath of War, Fable II, Gears of War 2, Lord of the Rings: Conquest and Stoked, plus another new episode of The Guild
  • Themes: EndWar ($1.88)
  • Pictures: EndWar ($2) and Skate 2 (free; enters you in sweepstakes)

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 8, 2009 9:16 PM | | Comments (0)

January 9, 2009

Free Stuff Friday - Pick and Win: Mirror's Edge or SOCOM: Confrontation poster

Mirror's Edge posterSOCOM: Confrontation poster
For this week's Free Stuff Friday, you get your pick of posters. We have two Mirror's Edge posters (about 11x17) - small but easy to find a space for. Then there's one larger SOCOM: Confrontation poster (roughly 20x16). Both of these were circulated at PAX '08 and would make a great addition to your game room, dorm room or bedroom.

It's worth noting that we're still trying to give away the Mystery Case Files DS game from two weeks ago. If you entered, be sure to check your spam folder (and white list this domain if you haven't already!). Cautionary tale: Right now, the winner and two runner-ups are in a face off to see who can respond first (each already has been given several days individually to answer). Sunday night I'll move on to the 3rd runner up and, after that, I may just keep the game and try again with a future giveaway.

Here's how to enter:

Continue reading "Free Stuff Friday - Pick and Win: Mirror's Edge or SOCOM: Confrontation poster" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 9, 2009 12:00 AM | | Comments (72)

January 12, 2009

Wii Stuff - Jungle Speed, Planet Pachinko, Castlevania III and DS Math demo

Here's what you'll find new on the Wii Shop and Nintendo (Marketing) Channel this week:

  • WiiWare: Jungle Speed ($10) card game and Planet Pachinko ($5)
  • Virtual Console: Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse for NES ($5)
  • DS Demos: Personal Trainer: Math plus repeats including Bolt and Spore Creatures
  • Game Videos: The Chase: Felix Meets Felicity, Fishing Master World Tour, Jungle Speed, Korg DS-10, My DoItAll, Planet Pachinko, Rock Band AC/DC Live and Track Pack Vol. 2, Toki Tori and Wario Land: Shake It!

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 12, 2009 8:19 PM | | Comments (0)

January 13, 2009

Patch These Games - Fallout 3, Fable II and SOCOM: Confrontation

First, if you managed to snag the Midnight Club: Los Angeles South Central add-on pack for Xbox 360, it can apparently mess up your saves and achievements - so you should probably delete it and wait for the official release. OK, now for the recent game updates that have been intentionally released for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360:

  • Fallout 3. This patch corrects lots of specific glitches, quest problems and exploits on all platforms, plus corrects some PS3-only issues including crashes related to Friends notifications.
  • Fable II. This one fixes various quest glitches (e.g., Monk's Quest, Hero of Skill), game glitches (Guild Cave chest should now cough up all earned bonus and collector's edition items you've redeemed) and in-game improvements such as ensuring the Bowerstone furniture shop will always sell you something. While you're at it, you can now purchase the Knothole Island expansion for $10 or get the free version which lets you play co-op with a friend who has bought it, but you can't complete quests or earn achievements.
  • SOCOM: Confrontation v1.3 reduces network issues and bugs plus makes player requested improvements such as a lower encumbrance penalty, better accuracy while moving and a six minute Medley round default. Alas, this one comes with a price: Player stats have been reset.

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 13, 2009 4:00 PM | | Comments (0)

January 14, 2009

GrrlGotGame - A Busy Gamer guide to kids and adult games, or 'When Will I Be Old Enough To Play Fallout 3, Mommy?'

GrrlGotGame“When will I be old enough to play Fallout 3?”

That’s the question recently posed to me by my sweet little 5-year-old son. Oh, to be fair, he’s almost 6 – hence the pressing question. He figures with such a major milestone looming, he’s bound to be able to play something new soon.

Now, consider for a moment the very idea that a kid is asking about Fallout. It doesn’t surprise me that he knows the name. He’s heard extensive conversations about it between Gamewatcher and me in the car, albeit with at least meager attempts to mask some of the game's more unsavory elements (murder, theft, slavery, drug addiction, cannibalism). Plus Gamewatcher took him on a “quest” to get Mommy the super-deluxe game guide for Christmas, lest she continue bitching about a particular mission that was driving her crazy. Seeing the words in 2 billion point type on the book, currently parked in the living room, has also sparked his curiosity.

And yet the idea that he’s asking me about it kind of freaked me out. As Gamewatcher likes to point out, my approach to the game is... rather homicidal. “My wife is a total psycho!” has come up more than once in conversations with game store employees. Not to mention my rather blunt discussion about Clover, the nice lady Mommy, er, bought who won’t shut up. Or, as Gamewatcher put it the other night, “I’m surprised that relationship has lasted this long. You tend to have an itchy trigger finger.”

I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before my son’s kindergarten teacher calls to ask why his mommy has been debating whether or not blowing up a city would be a good move.

My answer regarding Fallout 3 is the same as Grand Theft Auto, Halo, and who knows how many more games he’ll ask about in coming years: "When you’re 30." Or, more realistically: "When you’re 16 or so, we can talk." In the meantime, the boy has his parents’ hunger for gaming, which is being satisfied with heavily monitored and time-limited gaming opportunities. Yes, there are decent games out there for kids. But that’s another column.

Today, it’s all about the adults and how we can score some daytime gaming while there’s a small kid around. In many cases, he’s even been able to get involved.

Continue reading "GrrlGotGame - A Busy Gamer guide to kids and adult games, or 'When Will I Be Old Enough To Play Fallout 3, Mommy?'" »

Posted by GrrlGotGame on January 14, 2009 2:23 PM | | Comments (2)

January 15, 2009

PlayStation Store - GTI Club+, Ultimate Ghost ‘N Goblins, Skate 2 demo and Travis Barker

Sony is still playing catch-up from their holiday backlog with this week's PlayStation Store update:

  • GTI Club+ ($10)
  • Magic Ball ($10)
  • PSP Game: Ultimate Ghost ‘N Goblins ($20)
  • Brain Challenge Expansion Pack ($5) adds 8 mini-games, 2 multiplayer games, and Creativity, Kid Test and Senior Test modes
  • Disgaea 3 characters ($2 each)
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour Travis Barker Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Lycanthrope" by +44, "What’s My Age Again" by Blink 182 and "Low (Travis Barker Remix)" by Flo Rida (Feat. T-Pain) and Country Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Hillbilly Deluxe" by Brooks & Dunn, "Ticks" by Brad Paisley and "Me and My Gang" by Rascal Flatts
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Lenny Kravitz Pack 01 ($7 or $2 each) with "Are You Gonna Go My Way," "Freedom Train," "Let Love Rule" and "Mr. Cab Driver"; individual tracks ($1 each) "Entangled" by Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives and "Megasus" by Megasus, and Roy Orbison Pack 01 ($10 or $2 each) with "Claudette," "In Dreams," "Mean Woman Blues," "Oh, Pretty Woman," "Ooby Dooby" and "You Got It"
  • Shaun White Snowboarding Freebie Pack (free) and Mile High Pack ($10), each available in different editions depending on whether you bought the game at Target or not (be sure to get the right one!)
  • Demos: GTI Club+, Skate 2 and BUZZ! Master Quiz (PSP)
  • Game Videos: BUZZ! Quiz TV, Cuboid, FIFA 09, Mafia II, Magic Ball, Mahjong Tales and the promotional "magazine" Pulse
  • Themes: Disgaea 3 ($1 or free with Makai Kingdom add-on purchase) and Savage Moon ($1)
  • Wallpaper: EndWar, Savage Moon and Pineapple Express
  • Movie Trailers: The House Bunny, Pineapple Express, The Wackness and Why I Love Monty Python

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 15, 2009 7:41 PM | | Comments (0)

January 16, 2009

Xbox Live Marketplace - Knothole Island, Castle Crashers pack and Foosball

Another light week on Xbox Live Marketplace:

  • Fable II Knothole Island ($10; free version available for limited co-op only)
  • Arcade: Castle Crashers King Pack
  • Lips tracks ($2 each) "Erase-Rewind" by The Cardigans, "People Are People" by Depeche Mode, "Superstar" by Jamelia, "Suddenly I See" by KT Tunstall, "When I Grow Up" by The Pussycat Dolls and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" by Righteous Brothers
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour Travis Barker Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Lycanthrope" by +44, "What’s My Age Again" by Blink 182 and "Low (Travis Barker Remix)" by Flo Rida (Feat. T-Pain)
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Lenny Kravitz Pack 01 ($7 or $2 each) with "Are You Gonna Go My Way," "Freedom Train," "Let Love Rule" and "Mr. Cab Driver" plus individual tracks ($1 each) "Entangled" by Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives and "Megasus" by Megasus
  • Rock Revolution Pantera Pack Track Pack ($5.50 or $1.50 each) with covers of “5 Minutes Alone,” “Cemetery Gates,” “I’m Broken,” “Mouth for War” and “This Love”
  • Shaun White Snowboarding Freebie Pack (free) and Mile High Pack ($10), each available in different editions depending on whether you bought the game at Target or not (be sure to get the right one!)
  • Community Games: Bat-L-Blocks ($2.50), Chromatism ($2.50), Exhaust ($5), Foosball For Two ($2.50), Groov ($2.50), Landmark ($2.50) and Poker Squares ($2.50),
  • Game Videos: Bolt and Resident Evil 5
  • Themes: Braid Premium ($3.13) and NHL 09 ($1.88 each)
  • Pictures: Street Fighter IV ($1.25)
There's also a sale on FIFA 09 league packs, which are now $5.25 each or $15 for all six, if you're into that...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 16, 2009 8:44 AM | | Comments (1)

Free Stuff Friday - SimCity Societies

SimCity Societies This week's Free Stuff Friday is SimCity Societies for PC. If you missed this one, it veered from the series by moving you from the role of city planner to more of a social engineering facilitator.

Your choices include:

  • Authoritarian (secret police and propaganda ministries a la 1984)
  • Capitalist (skyscrapers and condos)
  • Contemplative (cathedrals, Buddhas and pagodas)
  • Cyberpunk (flying cars and holographic stadiums)
  • Fun City (carnivals, zoos and casinos),
  • Haunted (Easter egg mode with graveyards, asylums and dungeons)
  • Industrial (slums and factories)
  • Romantic (opera houses, fountains and cobblestone streets)
  • Small Town (diners, drive-ins and farms)
  • Normal (a mix of all)

Sound like fun? Here's how to enter:

Continue reading "Free Stuff Friday - SimCity Societies" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 16, 2009 9:11 AM | | Comments (35)

January 19, 2009

Wii Stuff - Family Glide Hockey, High Voltage Hot Rod Show, MUSHA and Big Bang Mini demo

Here's the new stuff from the Wii Shop and Nintendo (Marketing) Channel:

  • WiiWare: Family Glide Hockey ($5) and High Voltage Hot Rod Show ($10)
  • Virtual Console: MUSHA for Sega Genesis ($8)
  • DS Demos: Big Bang Mini and several repeats including MySims Kingdom, Personal Trainer: Math and TouchMaster 2
  • Game Videos: Coraline, Family Glide Hockey, High Voltage Hot Rod Show, House of the Dead: Overkill, Korg DS-10, NASCAR Kart Racing, Planet Pachinko, SimAnimals and Wario Land: Shake It!

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 19, 2009 1:15 PM | | Comments (0)

January 20, 2009

More Wii Stuff - Rock Band 2 downloadable songs

The Wii is finally getting some add-on parity with the other next gen consoles in the form of Rock Band 2 downloadable songs. And, before you gripe about the system's innate storage limitations, we've heard that you can run them directly off an SD card - which is capped at 2GB right now but will eventually be patched to support larger cards.

Here's a full listing of what's been released to date, priced at $2 per track (no discount track packs, at least not yet):

Continue reading "More Wii Stuff - Rock Band 2 downloadable songs" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 20, 2009 8:08 PM | | Comments (0)

January 21, 2009

Audiophile - Free Tomb Raider and World of Goo music

If you're a fan of game music, you can download the more-or-less complete Tomb Raider series scores (including the latest, Tomb Raider: Underworld) and the newly released World of Goo soundtrack as well. The Tomb Raider Chronicles site has been consistently unreliable source of these files since they launched due to the overwhelming demand, but now there are mirrors for all of the soundtracks - more than 1GB of music in all, so be prepared to make several trips if you want the complete set. You'll have a much easier time getting the World of Goo tracks since mirror links are provided on this page with composer Kyle Gabler's liner notes...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 21, 2009 2:38 PM | | Comments (0)

January 22, 2009

Patch These Games - Gears of War 2 and Left 4 Dead

A couple more A-list titles have been patched. Here's what's new:

  • Gears of War 2 title update adds seven achievements for downloadable Flashback and Combustible map packs totaling 175 points, closes numerous exploits including the Lancer unlimited ammo bug, improves overall game balancing (flamethrower is now a better weapon) and punishes online quitters more aggressively.
  • Left 4 Dead (PC update, with similar Xbox 360 patch due in the next week or so) also closes exploits, corrects bugs, improves balance and adds infected players' status to your display and changes their chat names to red.

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 22, 2009 12:59 AM | | Comments (0)

PlayStation Store - F.E.A.R. 2 and WipEout HD demos and Skate 2 pack

Another light week at the PlayStation Store:

  • Skate 2 Time is Money Pack ($5)
  • BUZZ! Quiz TV American Culture Pack ($6)
  • Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm Storm Pack 7 (free)
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour Aussie Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Tomorrow" by Silverchair, "Outtathaway!" by The Vines and "Dimension" by Wolfmother
  • Rock Band /Rock Band 2 Steve Miller Band Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "The Joker," "Space Cowboy" and "Take the Money and Run" and individual tracks ($2 each) "Feed the Tree" by Belly, "Wind Me Up" by Ghost Hounds, "I Stand Alone" by Godsmack, "Typical" by Mute Math and "War Zone" by Rob Zombie
  • Demos: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin and WipEout HD
  • Game Videos: Eat Lead, The Lord of the Rings Conquest, Mirror's Edge, Resistance: Retribution and Ski-Doo Snowmobile Challenge
  • PSP Themes ($1 to $1.50)
  • Movie Trailers: Horton Hears a Who, Max Payne and The X-Files: I Want To Believe

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 22, 2009 11:09 PM | | Comments (0)

Xbox Live Marketplace - The Maw, F.E.A.R. 2 demo and lotsa songs and community games

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

  • Arcade: The Maw ($10), plus Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? Brainiac Pack ($1.88) and Meteos Wars Planet Pack ($4.38)
  • Xbox Original: BlowOut ($15)
  • Skate 2 Time is Money Pack ($5)
  • Lips tracks "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs" by Fall Out Boy ($2), "Look What You've Done" by Jet ($2) and "Hate That I Love You" by Rihanna ($2.25)
  • Guitar Hero: World Tour Aussie Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "Tomorrow" by Silverchair, "Outtathaway!" by The Vines and "Dimension" by Wolfmother
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Steve Miller Band Track Pack ($5.50 or $2 each) with "The Joker," "Space Cowboy" and "Take the Money and Run" and individual tracks ($2 each) "Feed the Tree" by Belly, "Wind Me Up" by Ghost Hounds, "I Stand Alone" by Godsmack, "Typical" by Mute Math and "War Zone" by Rob Zombie
  • PES 2009 Data Update (free)
  • Demo: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin
  • Community Games: Colosseum ($10), Fishbowl ($2.50), Ocean Scenes ($2.50), Onslaught ($2.50), The Perfect Match ($5), RC-AirSim ($2.50), Sol Invasion ($2.50), Sudoku X ($2.50), Toxic ($2.50) and Valhyre ($10)
  • Game Video: The Maw
  • Themes: Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? ($0.63), Lord of the Rings: Conquest ($1.88) and Tomb Raider: Underworld Premium ($3.13)
  • Pictures: FIFA 09 ($1.25)

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 22, 2009 11:28 PM | | Comments (0)

January 23, 2009

Free Stuff Friday - Full Spectrum Warrior

Full Spectrum WarriorThis week's giveaway is Full Spectrum Warrior for the PS2. In case you missed it, this title reconceived the strategy war shooter by NOT giving you direct control over your squads but rather leaving the AI soldiers some latitude in executing your commands. In some ways, this is considered a much more realistic military simulation and was, in fact, originally developed as as a training tool for U.S. Army officers (you can use the code HA2P1PY9TUR5TLE to unlock the original Army version).

Whether or not this is your type of game (hey, here's your chance to try it for free!), you should know that we recently stocked up on some cool goodies for Free Stuff Friday. Here's a sneak peak at future giveaways:

  • Constantine for PS2
  • Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 for Xbox 360
  • EA Replay (14 games!) for PSP
  • Entertainment Consumers Association "Not a Killer" T-shirt (XL)
  • Frantix for PSP
  • The Hustle: Detroit Streets (billiards) for PSP
  • Perfect Dark Zero giant lenticular launch poster
Plus some surprises, including a DS game you won't want to miss! You never know what the next week will bring, so set a reminder now to check back on Fridays!

Here's how to enter this week's giveaway:

Continue reading "Free Stuff Friday - Full Spectrum Warrior" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 23, 2009 12:01 AM | | Comments (31)

January 26, 2009

Wii Stuff - Rock 'n' Ball, Wonder Boy, Rock Band 2 tracks and DS demo repeats

Here's what you'll find new on your Wii this week:

  • WiiWare: Niki: Rock 'n' Ball ($5)
  • Virtual Console: Wonder Boy in Monster Land for Sega Master System ($5)
  • Rock Band 2 tracks ($2 each; available Tuesday, Jan 27) "Attack" by 30 Seconds to Mars, "Just What I Needed" by The Cars, "Gimme Three Steps" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Live Forever" by Oasis, "Tell Me Baby" by Red Hot Chili Peppers and "Siva" by Smashing Pumpkins
  • DS Demos: All repeats including Big Bang Mini, Personal Trainer: Math and Soul Bubbles
  • Game Videos: Maboshi's Arcade, My World, My Way, Niki: Rock 'n' Ball, Retro Game Challenge, SimAnimals and Spray

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 26, 2009 3:19 PM | | Comments (0)

Song Watch - Guitar Hero: Metallica

The full track listing for Guitar Hero: Metallica has been leaked - by the band itself! According to Lars and co, the game, due in late March for PS3 and Xbox 360, includes the following Metallica songs plus, if you've purchased the downloadable Death Magnetic album for Guitar Hero III or World Tour, you can play those tracks here too (Wii and PS2 players will have to wait an extra six weeks, but their version will have "Broken Beat & Scarred," "Cyanide" and "My Apocalypse" due to the lack of downloadable content on those platforms):

Continue reading "Song Watch - Guitar Hero: Metallica" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 26, 2009 11:41 PM | | Comments (0)

January 27, 2009

Patch These Games - Resistance 2 and GTA IV for PC

Resistance 2 players will be thrilled to know that, according to Sony, levels and experience lost when a competitive or cooperative character was reset to Level 1 will be corrected and credited with the new v1.4 patch just released. (To be clear, Sony says "for several of those cases" suggesting some people will not see their levels restored - but what do you have to lose? Boot up the game and see what happens!) Also, some trophies earned and not credited reputedly will pop up after the patch is installed. There are many other improvements designed to aid game balance and make tasks such as creating clans easier.

A new Grand Theft Auto IV for PC title update most notably adds graphical sliders so you can fine-tune visuals to balance against your computer's CPU, RAM and graphics card limits. There are also some bug fixes including the DOS window flash on load issue, direct input devices are now disabled by default (and require a command line entry to run), and Xbox 360 wireless controllers now work as intended...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 27, 2009 8:31 PM | | Comments (0)

January 28, 2009

GrrlGotGame - Go Ahead, Make My Game

GrrlGotGameLet’s face it - game developers have been a bit lazy of late. It seems like every shelf is filled with franchise rip-offs and Roman numerals. While I really can’t diss too many of the sequels out there, the licensed properties have been... well, awful. Where’s the joy? Where’s the fun? And most of all, where’s the imagination?

It is possible to follow an established storyline and still have fun. Yet so many license games lately feel just rote. I will give points to Lost: Via Domas for at least trying to explore some additional story. But seriously, you have some of the greatest characters in modern literature (yes, I called a TV show "literature"), and I don’t get to muck around the island in their shoes? Please.

For me, the bigger issue is the properties chosen. Let’s see, every good to great superhero movie adaptation that has come out in recent years has had a game tied to it, and how many were “must plays?”

Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Exactly. There are franchises out there - some dead, some alive and some undead - that are ripe for the picking. Some of these have been explored before... poorly. Others never saw the light of day, if they were considered at all.

Today, I’m calling out the games I want to play, and the way I want to play them. I’m even going to give you an Achievement/Trophy suggestion at no extra charge. So all you devs out there, I want you to listen to the following statement very carefully:

Would you kindly exploit these franchises?

Continue reading "GrrlGotGame - Go Ahead, Make My Game" »

Posted by GrrlGotGame on January 28, 2009 8:27 PM | | Comments (3)

January 29, 2009

PlayStation Store - Bejeweled 2, Savage Moon, Oasis and free Mirror's Edge map

Here's what you'll find in this week's PlayStation Store update:

  • Bejeweled 2 ($10)
  • Savage Moon ($10)
  • Mirror's Edge map exclusive to PS3 (free)
  • Lord of the Rings: Conquest Content Pack (free)
  • LittleBigPlanet Groundhog's Day Costume (free), God of War Mini Pack ($3), Kratos Costume ($2), Ape Escape Costume ($2) and Toro Costume ($2)
  • Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice characters Hanako and Taro ($2 each)
  • Skate 2 Filmer Pack ($7.50) with advanced camera controls and online storage for five minutes of sharable footage
  • Brain Challenge PS3 and PSP Bundle ($13 until Feb. 26)
  • Guitar Hero World Tour Oasis album “Dig Out Your Soul” ($19 or $2 each) with "Bag It Up," "The Turning," "Waiting for the Rapture," "The Shock of the Lightning," "I'm Outta Time," "(Get Off Your) High Horse Lady," "Falling Down," "To Be Where There's Life," "Ain't Got Nothin'," "The Nature of Reality" and "Soldier On"
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Grateful Dead Pack 02 ($10 or $2 each) with "Cold Rain and Snow," "Doin' That Rag," "Don’t Ease Me In," "Fire on the Mountain," "Hell in a Bucket" and "Uncle John's Band"
  • Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol Encore 2 tracks ($1.50 each) "Breakaway," "If You Don’t Know Me By Now," "Irreplaceable," "Killing Me Softly With His Song," "Sister Christian" and "Twist & Shout"
  • Demo: Bejeweled 2
  • Game Videos: Final Fantasy XIII, Wanted: Weapons of Fate and a new edition of Pulse "magazine"
  • Themes: Bejeweled 2 and Command and Conquer: Red Alert 3
  • Wallpaper: Lord of the Rings: Conquest and LocoRoco 2 (PSP)
  • Movie Trailers: Angels & Demons, Hulk Vs. Thor, Hulk Vs. Wolverine and The International

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 29, 2009 8:21 PM | | Comments (0)

Xbox Live Marketplace - Resident Evil 5 demo, Fallout 3 expansion and 'free' Springsteen tracks

Lots of great downloads for Xbox 360 owners this week, as long as you're a Gold subscriber. If not, some of these freebies (like the Resident Evil 5 demo!) may become available to you eventually but it appears the free Springsteen pack for Guitar Hero World Tour is free only until Feb. 5 so grab it while you can, if you can.:

  • Lord of the Rings: Conquest Hero Arena Bonus Content Pack (free)
  • Fallout 3 Operation: Anchorage expansion ($10)
  • Arcade: FunTown Mahjong ($10)
  • Skate 2 Filmer Pack ($7.50) with advanced camera controls and online storage for five minutes of sharable footage
  • Guitar Hero World Tour free Bruce Springsteen Track Pack (limited time offer for Gold members only) with "Born to Run" and "My Lucky Day" and Oasis album “Dig Out Your Soul” ($19 or $2 each) with "Bag It Up," "The Turning," "Waiting for the Rapture," "The Shock of the Lightning," "I'm Outta Time," "(Get Off Your) High Horse Lady," "Falling Down," "To Be Where There's Life," "Ain't Got Nothin'," "The Nature of Reality" and "Soldier On"
  • Rock Band/Rock Band 2 Grateful Dead Pack 02 ($10 or $2 each) with "Cold Rain and Snow," "Doin' That Rag," "Don’t Ease Me In," "Fire on the Mountain," "Hell in a Bucket" and "Uncle John's Band"
  • Demo: Resident Evil 5
  • Community Games: Biology Battle ($10), BounceCrazy ($2.50), Crystal Crush ($5), Don't Fear The Sweeper ($2.50), Fields: Soldier of Time ($5), Nuke Your Neighbor ($5), Revenge of the Ball ($2.50), Rumble Massage ($2.50) and Simply Hangman ($2.50)
  • Game Videos: F.E.A.R. 2, Halo Wars, Lord of the Rings: Conquest (all free) and Gears of War 2 video strategy guides ($0.63 each)
  • Themes: Street Fight IV Premium ($3.13), NHL 09
  • Pictures Fallout 3 Operation: Anchorage (free; enters you in sweepstakes), Street Fight IV ($1.25)

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 29, 2009 8:43 PM | | Comments (1)

January 30, 2009

iPhone App Watch - Jetset, WordSearch and Textropolis

There are hundreds of new apps on the iPhone each week. As time permits (every week or so), I'll review a few that I've tried to either help you find the good ones or ward you off the ones that sucked me in that weren't worth the time or money. Here are some of my recent finds:

Jetset Jetset. I love achievements as much as the next person, and the thought of unlocking souvenirs from hundreds of airports sounded like a pursuit worthy of repetitive replay. The premise is that you are airport security trying to shake down would-be travellers against an ever-changing list of prohibited items. It's both political satire and a fun game, right?

This game isn't bad, but you should know that to unlock the airport achievements you must actually travel IN THE REAL WORLD to the actual airports and then play the game well while you're there. It's not enough to be in the city, you must be AT THE AIRPORT. Great if you're an actual jetsetter, but a bit of a ripoff for the rest of us.

Be sure to practice before making that big trip - and ask your travel agent if you can book as many stops as possible to maximize your $5 investment. The semi-cool part is that you can share any souvenirs you collect with your Facebook friends and then they can buy a $1 iPhone app to display your "gift" in a virtual snowglobe. Like that's gonna happen.
 
WordSearch WordSearch. When playing Crosswords DS last year, I found I really loved the word searches - even more than the crosswords! Particularly the mega-big ones that you have to scroll to view in their entirety. I burned through almost all of them and thought perhaps the iPhone could replenish my supply. I stumbed across a trial version of Super Word Find that has some nice, huge puzzles that were fun to play, but it was plagued with typos. I simply cannot stomach mispellings in a word search game - it's just wrong to be scouring a sea of letters for words that have letters transposed or are just plain wrong! So I bought WordSearch, which has a seemingly endless supply of puzzles divided by theme (dinosaurs, movies, pizza toppings, presidents, you name it) but they all fit on one screen. Still, they're pretty good and, for $2, will tide me over until a better one comes along.
 
Textropolis Textropolis. This game had a lot of positive reviews and looked to be deeper than it really is. The premise is that you have to find the hidden words (four or more characters) within the names of cities. After you find 10% of the words for a given city, you earn a star and unlock the next one. You can skip to the next city, or go back to a previous locale and earn more stars - up to 5 for getting ALL of the possible words. There are 30 cities in all, so there's a decent amount of gameplay for $2. But all of the cities look the same and unlocking stars only adds the same skyscrapers and people milling about. The good news is that you don't have to actually travel to the city IN THE REAL WORLD to play it. And each word you find is defined. There's also the option to send a little generic e-mail "postcard" that markets the game to your friends from each town you play. And, yeah, they all look the same too.

OK, so it's a little lame unless you really love text twist games.

I'm playing some other, much better games now that I'll review in coming weeks. And, in the meantime, feel free to recommend any apps you love or regret buying...

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 30, 2009 12:23 AM | | Comments (0)

Free Stuff Friday - EA Replay

EA ReplayThis week's Free Stuff Friday giveaway is EA Replay for the PSP, a collection of 14 classic PC and console games that have been ported for portable play. The games are:

  • Ultima VII: The Black Gate (1994)
  • Wing Commander (1990)
  • Wing Commander: Secret Missions (1990)
  • Syndicate (1995)
  • Virtual Pinball (1993)
  • Desert Strike (1992)
  • Jungle Strike (1993)
  • Road Rash (1991)
  • Road Rash II (1992)
  • Road Rash III (1993)
  • Mutant League Football (1993)
  • Budokan (1990)
  • B.O.B. (1993)
  • Haunting Starring Polterguy (1993)
Fill in some holes in your gaming heritage or relive the glory days. Here's how to enter this week's giveaway:

Continue reading "Free Stuff Friday - EA Replay" »

Posted by Gamewatcher on January 30, 2009 9:33 AM | | Comments (44)



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About January 2009

This page contains all entries posted to Busy Gamer News in January 2009. They are listed from oldest to newest.

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