I’m back! Well…MAYBE. It’s been about six months since I’ve edited anything on here, and almost a year since I’ve written anything of merit. So what happened?! Well, in all honesty I don’t know…a lot. I’m actually surprised that I’m still able to access this section, and am able to write. So here’s a recap of what’s been going on with me the past year (dear god this is going to be horrible)

I got a testing position with the game Primal Carnage; visited New York and liked it so much I decided to move there; moved to New York with virtually nothing in my name; continued to work with the rest of the QA team on PC as much as I could; went to get my series 63 and 7 licenses; worked in a restaurant for under minimum wage at nights to support myself in NYC; got my licenses;  became involved with an industry completely unrelated to this one; found someone who’s way out of my league who actually cares about me (yeah I couldn’t believe it either) flew back home because of family; started a Youtube gaming channel; now leaving again to another exotic location to take care of one of the family businesses, and finally spending my time traveling all over the globe doing god knows what. Phew, was that a run-on sentence? You bet your ass it was, but that’s how my life’s been. One giant, never ending, methodically insane, transparent run-on sentence that never seems to let me breath in the slightest. I think that’s a good thing, given that if life becomes too slow…well then it just seems wasted. So in short, I think I got a life.

Now, that being said, some of you may think this is me finally turning in my hat, or just admitting to being out of the industry so long, I have no real clue what’s going on. Well…no…none of those things. At least not yet anyways. The reality is, is that I really needed to take a break from this whole thing. Like, seriously just step back and look at the gaming community from a distance. See when you’re in this industry for so many years, and you’re still not seeing an ounce of profitability coming from it, then you really need to step back and just take your time with whatever it is you’re doing. I mean, this is a hobby. I don’t write these words and get a check in the mail or anything for doing so. I just…write what’s on my mind. Given that, sometimes you need to take a break, because nothing’s on your mind. You’re just seeing the same old crap from every company and community week after week. With things coming so slowly it’s worse than watching paint dry. This causes what I call a “Drama Effect” Where the people who do this stuff are so bored, they literally create bullshit just to entertain themselves. Even if that entertainment hurts those around them or themselves. We’re gamers, we live to be entertained. Which is fine in film, video games, books, music….blah blah blah. But the reality is that this is an industry. Reality dictates that the operations behind such works, are much more boring and methodical than the actual product. So story short, shit is freaking mundane as hell.

However, given enough time, exciting things do happen…usually. Like say for instance, the rolling out of new consoles (which I will get into a little bit) Or the introduction of new and exciting games that sound fun. Sometimes I like to have fun….And if I’m not having fun, and I’m not getting paid, then why fuck am I doing it? You just become a press slut to this industry, and you’re valued less than a press whore because you’re not even getting paid to do it. Now some will argue that this is all towards an eventual goal of some sorts. Usually this is the hope of earning cash in this field. However, the likely-hood of that happening is extremely remote, and you might as well hold a cup out on the street…you’ll be more likely to make money that way. Does that sound cynical; yes. But I’m not being cynical in the slightest. I just happen to be a realist, as upsetting as that may be.

OK, so lets just get into some of the thoughts I have about things, before I lull your asses to sleep with my mundane diatribe. Lets start with the consoles, because that’s something exciting and new. So now we know it’s the Wii U, PS4, and Xbox One (which is confusing as hell given this is the third installment)

I wanna start with Xbox, but I’m not gonna bullshit, I really don’t know anything about it. I didn’t watch the conference, even though I got an invite to attend it or something. Apparently there were no games shown, or at least a lack of them. Instead, from what I heard, they focused on informing the audience of the new hardware, and what can be accomplished with it. This seems to upset people, and seemed to during the Sony conference as well. For me…it’s like, “What do you expect people?!” they save things for E3 and the million other conferences this year. I mean, things aren’t the way they used to be. Where it took a while for the main consumer to get news about things. These days we have technology that streams what’s happening in the moment, right as it’s happening. This means they have to dole out things at much slower pace, because we all have access to it as soon as the announcers lips open. I’m actually glad they decided to have separate conferences for the hardware. That means they can spend most of E3 talking about shit we care about, mainly the games. This time it can be like, is the hardware in the hands of developers; yes. Does it work; yes. What will the price be; yes. Now lets talk about video games, and get on with it. Though I don’t like how they basically said the next innovation in gaming, is television.

Lets move on to PS4 shall we? Now this conference I did watch, and because of that I’m going to get a hate comment here or there calling me a fanboy or something. No, I’m not, could care less if I had missed that one too. I just happened to have some free moments at the time. While they did show some games, they mainly focused on the hardware and tech demo’s too. Which, again I liked, because it means they won’t ramble on for an hour about the console at E3 either. I walked away from that conference looking forward to the new machine, and what kind of games may be on it in the near future. Honestly though, from what I saw, all I can really remember was the new Killzone game which looked interesting, and some crap about “moving” your own adventure. I did like the social media aspect, and how they’re really putting a lot of eggs into it. I think they learned from the last round that community is important, and it should be taken seriously. Again, not an expert, but we’re gamers, and when shit is not blowing up in our face, we’re compelled to blow shit up on someone’s Facebook. However I really didn’t like how they said, “We want nothing to get in the way of your game” then for like the rest of the conference went on to say, “Here’s all this tacky stuff that’s gonna get between you and your game.”

OK, so here’s my thoughts on the Wii U. It’s out, it’s fun, and good games are probably on the way. So go out and buy it if you want it. It’s unique and doesn’t make me wanna kill myself like the Wii did, so I think that’s something good. There’s also this really cool horror game I was watching Melyssa play, that seemed really fun. So I’d say look for that, whatever the title is. Think it had zombies in it. So naturally I’m gonna buy one eventually. Maybe when my life slows down, and I actually have time to do that stuff.

Anyways I’m going to abruptly end this editorial, because I got a lot on my mind to rant about, but I think I should space it out. Does this article make sense; no. Does it work; yes. Am I just doing it to clamor attention to me and the site again after being gone for over a year? Hell I don’t know. I honestly think I just wanted to rattle on about things I felt towards this whole industry, and add some substance on what I’ve found interesting this past year. So if I’ve left you thoroughly unsatisfied, I’m sorry. I’ll get back to writing more soon, mainly in the department of editorials, but right now I just had some free time on my hands, and felt like writing this. Cheap I know, but like I said, I’m not getting paid. I’m writing about things I like in general, or stuff I think about. So here’s my two cents on whatever the heck this was about. I hoped you enjoyed this sarcastic adventure with me, and look forward to writing part two.

It’s finally here, after months of wait and speculation, Microsoft has announced it next Xbox system and it’s name is… (What for Drum Roll) Xbox One. Yes Xbox One, the One signifying what Microsoft is aggressively going after in making this an all in one system for the living room. The show started off with a video saying how the brought games to life and how they brought games to us, so right off the back I thought Microsoft was going the Sony route by saying how important gaming was to the system. But then the video keeps going, and begins to discuss the relationship between you in the TV this platform will bring. And THAT is really what this conference was all about.

Microsoft didn’t waste any time and showed off what everyone came to see, the system. Yes the actual physical system was on display for the world to see, something Sony failed to do with the Playstation 4. I personally like the design, it’s sleek and shinny, simple yet elegant, and the redesigned controller looks better, if not really similar, than the previous. Then Microsoft dived in and showed off what they were bringing to the table. Of course the Kinect is still here and looks to be more powerful and responsive, as using a simple voice command, “Xbox on,” the system pops on. The home screen looks a lot like Windows 8, I don’t think anyone is really surprised with, and was sporting a new feature called “Trending.” With this you can see what you friends are liking and what people around Xbox Live are liking. With a simple command, “Xbox watch TV,” you arte now watching TV on your Xbox and with the new “Instant switching” mode you can switch on the fly between TV, gaming, music, and other apps on the Xbox and “Snap” mode allows users to use multiple aps at once like a fully supported Skype in HD and with video chat. Another cool feature was using Minority Report like motions to surf channels and browse around the Xbox. Now while this all looked cool, I can’t help but wonder how effective it will work once the consumer gets in in their living room.

Not done with pushing TV, Microsoft shows off watching ESPN and getting instant updates to you fantasy league on screen. Using voice control allows the user to surf through the TV guide, change channels, and let’s you know what TV shows are trending. You can be sitting on the couch and say, “What’s on HBO?” or “Watch the Price is Right.” And this all looks cool, but I worry about the recognition of the voice control. If I don’t say the name of the show the same way my family does, will it work for all of us? What if I have an accent, will that factor in?

We got a little info on the specs of the system. It will have: 8 Core CPU, 8 GB system memory, 500 GB HDD, Blu-ray drive, 802.11n wireless with Wi-Fi direct, HDMI in/out, and USB 3.0. The Kinect comes with all Xboxs and is required for use. With its redesigned controller, Kinect, and smart glass technology, Microsoft is boasting that there will be no lag between input and system. That still remains to be seen but if true, all the power to Microsoft. The new Xbox Live will be run by over 300 thousand servers and everything stored in the cloud to access you data anywhere.  New Achievements will by more dynamic and show off more of what you have done and there will be a sharing option with the ability to record and upload videos (though not much was spoken on that).

At this point we are about 35 minutes in and nothing has been mentioned about actual gaming on the system. EA came out and announced a partnership with Mircosoft. They announced 4 games coming to the Xbox One; Fifa 14, Madden 25, NBA Live, and UFC. All games are not exclusive but EA states that the Xbox version will have exclusive content. Also announced exclusive to Xbox One is EA Sorts Ignite. It’s a game engine that is supposed to make the sport games more realistic, which is what they try to do with every iteration of any EA sports game. So far it’s only confirmed for Xbox One but it sounds like this is how they will make their sports game from now on across platforms. EA ended their segment with “… how all EA Sports games will look and play on Xbox One.” (Sigh) This miffed me, the first footage of any game for the new system and it isn’t game play footage, but the usual trailer footage EA makes for their Sports game. This isn’t how the game will look or feel once it hits the system and that’s what I really wanted to see. It’s a personal gripe yes but still.

More talk about how Microsoft is making gaming more immersive, personal and connected. All right, this is what I was waiting for, some talk about the games… Sadly no. They announced Forza Morta Sport 5, a racing game that will be available at launch, great, except again we are treated to another CGI trailer. Now this trailer is a little harder to tell if it’s actual game footage, made with in game graphics, or a CGI trailer but I believe it is the latter. If the game actually looks this good I will be astonished and happy that they could pull that off. Next was the announcement by Remedy Studios, developers of Alan Wake, with Quantum Break that is a brand new IP. I live action trailer with some not so great acting leads into gameplay footage of a boat crashing and some stills in a gun battle. Nothing really shown about the game at all which looks like a theme here.

Back to television, Microsoft announced they are working on several studios and their first show is going to be a live action Halo show, produced by Steven Spielberg. This sounds like a cool idea considering how popular their Halo franchise is and how long they’ve been trying to make a live action movie. Not much is known about the project yet. They also announced a partnership with the NFL, really going after the sports fans with this one. Microsoft is definitely going after a completely different market and they are firing on all cylinders.  Lastly, what’s Xbox without Call of Duty. The new title, Call of Duty: Ghost was announced and we were given a pick and the development of the title and the improvements of the graphics compared to MW3. New to Call of Duty is a dog as your part of your squad and “new” features like vaulting and leaning to shot around corners. This might by new to the franchise but not FPS. And we are given the first trailer for the game which actually shows off some of the game. And it looks good, CoD fans can be excited again. And with that the event ends.

So how did Microsoft do? Well I have to start by saying that I was personally underwhelmed. I didn’t see much of anything about actual games and I am a gamer first and foremost. While some people are stating that this wasn’t targeted at us gamers, I ask who is not a gamer watching this at 10 in the morning pacific time? That being said, I can put that side of my aside and say I am very interested in what Xbox One is trying to accomplish. The interactive entertainment HUB is pretty awesome and responsive from what they have shown. They clearly want to grab a larger audience than just the core gamer. Even though they have to go against products already out there that do the same thing, they are bringing some interesting ideas to the table. I just don’t know how far they can go if they alienate the hardcore gamer audience. While they could probably bring in more customers than they would lose, I don’t expect the starting price point to be cheap so why would non gamers want to shell out the money when they already have smart TVs? Microsoft did announce 15 exclusive titles coming to the Xbox One in the first year with 8 of those being new IPs. That is an impressive number for a launch and I expect them to really go after the core gamers at E3 in a few weeks.  All in all I was disappointed and I thought Sony did a better job revealing the PS4, but again, I’m a gamer and that’s who Sony was speaking to. E3 is going to be big this year so expect a lot more details to come rolling in soon.

Some announcements made after the show; some companies were able to announce games coming to Xbox One such as Assassin’s Creed 4 and Watch Dogs. The Xbox does not have to be always connected, however it seems that they are pushing for being as connected as you possibly can. In an interview from Kotaku with Phil Harrison, he stated that you have to connect to the Internet at least once a day. Another interesting piece of information, again from Kotaku, is that the Xbox One will not block used games. However you will need to pay a fee to play a used or borrowed game that, at least in the case of a new game, would be the same price as purchasing the game itself. Microsoft says they are still working on a way to trade and sell game codes online so I will wait for a little more information on that before condemning them for basically saying if your friend wants to barrow your game he might as well buy a copy himself.

Well there you have it folks, A lot of info to take in one day but we finally know what Microsoft is planning. Who do you think had the better reveal, Xbox or Playstation? Which are you most looking forward to? Either way, this years E3 is going to be huge.

“The mind of the subject will desperately struggle to create memories where none exist…” – Rosalind Lutece, Barriers to Trans-Dimensional Travel, 1889

Bring us the girl and wipe away the debt. As you soar into the floating city of Columbia for the first time you see exactly where Irrational Games’ ambitions lie; Amongst the clouds with this incredible city. The game manages to achieve all of it’s ambitions and more, with a story the likes of which we haven’t seen since the original Bioshock, varied and new first person gameplay and a stunning, truly realised world for the player to explore. This game does what it’s predecessor did in 2007; it changes and challenges the gameplay and story of this console generation and reinvents them to become a truly incredible experience.

The game world is in almost direct contrast to that of Irrational Games’ original Bioshock, we see a rich and colourful city in the prime of it’s existence  whilst also involving the player in Columbia’s breathtaking descent. Columbia has it’s own set of rules, it is a fully realised world with a vibrant cast of characters that really make the world feel real. People walk around, reacting both to the player and surrounding events, with clever and involving conversations that reflect the world around them. The game is set in alternate reality 1912 and shows off the views and values of an America steeped in religious rule, patriotism and severe xenophobia. The content in game is quite harsh in contrast to the vibrant city and challenges the player to look at society today with reference to the game. Every area of the game feels different and diverse, from the squalid Shantytown to the opulence of the streets above and then into the skies of Columbia aboard the many airships and floating platforms, never ceasing to pull the extraordinary narrative along with each detailed environment.

The streets of Columbia

As the player enters Columbia they are introduced to the basic gameplay elements of Vigors (akin to the original Bioshock’s Plasmids) and the variety of weapons through a carnival, set up as part of the celebrations for Comstock, the game’s antagonist. In your first hour you will experience combat with some basic guns, vigors and the transport method doubling as a melee weapon; the skyhook. The skyhook allows for some incredible firefights and a new mobility unseen in gaming. Just hop aboard a skyline and you can drop behind enemies, into cover or zip around the area quickly all the while returning fire from attackers. The game’s AI is also quite clever, with enemies and “Hard Hitters” (different, more tough enemies such as the handyman and motorized patriots) able to use the skylines and move around like the player. Then the game takes it up a notch, in story, gameplay and emotion with the introduction of Elizabeth.

Elizabeth. This one character serves as the core of the story and gameplay. From the moment you meet her she barely leaves your side, constantly adding to the game. In combat she will help you by finding health, salts and ammo and also cash outside of combat. She also has the ability to open ‘tears’ in the environment, pulling items from other worlds and reality into being in the locale. She also adds real emotion to the gameplay. You begin to rely on her and think about combat situations with her abilities in mind. In the few short absences she has from the player you genuinely miss the character. Her powers and dialogue always make the player feel more invested in the story, her presence never once takes anything away from the experience. Her AI is also incredibly well done, she will explore and interact with the environment, once again bringing areas of the game to life and you will want to sit in one spot and see all the animations and dialogue the developers have crammed into each of the game’s areas.

Elizabeth

I have talked about the story a lot so far, the narrative really pulls the whole experience together. The story crafted by Irrational Games masterfully weaves the setting, values and original story together into a story that will keep the player invested in the game’s fifteen plus hours of gameplay. Without revealing too much, the story centres around the protagonist, Booker Dewitt, tasked with travelling to Columbia to rescue Elizabeth to pay off his gambling debt. The city is ruled by “The Prophet” Comstock, who has kept Elizabeth locked away for years. Bring in the Vox Populi, a resistance movement of the lower classes and racial outcasts, fighting against Comstock’s extremely one sided rule.  The story has the occasional lull in sections, but they always followed by something amazing soon after, only increasing the effect of the succeeding event. Once you dive into the narrative the tale morphs and evolves at a cracking pace up to the jaw dropping finale, where players will be left thinking long after the credits roll.

Overall the game is an amazing experience. Irrational Games have done an amazing job of bringing the world of Columbia to life. The story, gameplay and above all the work that went into Elizabeth help this game to exceed all expectations and in turn reinvent the FPS genre amongst it’s many more stale counterparts. The game is incredible in scope and story, well worthy of any gamers time, earning it’s well deserved place amongst some of the finest games of the generation.

In my mind, this game deserves no other score than, Go and Buy it NOW!

Darkstalkers Resurrection is a downloadable title featuring two standout fighting games from the 90s. This dual HD bundle features Night Warriors: Darkstalkers’ Revenge and Darkstalkers 3. These are the two marquee titles that define the series.

The combat is a mix between Street Fighter and the VS. series (X-Men vs Street Fighter; Marvel vs Capcom; etc.). It’s a very fast pace brawler and has a legion of devoted followers ever since it was originally introduced.

The characters are definitely a highlight. Characters such as Morrigan, who is a succubus, Demitri, who is a vampire, Hsien-Ko, who is an undead girl who is partially her also dead sister, Victor, who is Frankenstein’s monster and my personal favorite B.B.Hood who is red riding hood…if she was an assassin bent on taking out the Darkstalkers using guns and knives. All these characters evoke a certain charm that is not found in other games.

Darkstalkers Resurrection has many features including tons of in-game goals to accomplish, a new online mode, tutorials for each character and a slew of options to tweak the visuals and gameplay. There are also tons of unlockables to obtain via the Vault system which encourages you to play the game more and complete tasks in order to unlock exclusive artwork and character endings.

The online mode is very solid featuring GGPO netcode which means nothing but smooth connections for the majority of every match.

Needless to say, I would highly recommend checking this downloadable title out if you’re into old fighters, new fighters, old school horror icons or just want a change of pace from the norm. Plus, at $15 (PSN)/ 1200 MSP (XBL) it’s practically a steal for these arcade perfect ports of two great fighting games.

Call of Duty Black Ops 2

As in a press release, well, released to the press on October 15th, shows that the “Elite” feature that was a paid service in the last game in the series, will be completely free.

“We’ve learned a lot in our first year of Call of Duty Elite, and we’re very proud that we over delivered on our commitment of playable content to our premium members,” said Activision Publishing CEO, Eric Hirshberg.  “What we have realised is that several of the Call of Duty Elite services which are currently only available to our premium members for Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 3 are things that would further unite, engage and delight our player community.  So we are going to make them free for Call of Duty: Black Ops II. For Call of Duty: Black Ops II, DLC Map Packs will be a separate offering from Call of Duty Elite.  The Season Pass will be a great way to acquire all four Map Packs at a discount, but if our fans would rather take it one Map Pack at a time, then we’ll offer each pack á la carte for anyone who wants it.  What we aren’t doing is requiring a paid membership to access the great player services for Call of Duty: Black Ops II and we’re thrilled to offer all of Elite’s Call of Duty: Black Ops II features to players for free.”

So, they are finally getting around with what they should have done in the first place? HURRAY!!

Source: Gamespress.com

I don’t really know where to start with Happy Wars because I love this game.

Happy Wars is a game available for free to anyone with an Xbox Live Gold membership, but for those not so fortunate it’s available for download on Xbox Live.

The game centers around the idea there are two kingdoms who fight every day for very stupid reasons, which is good enough for me. The game doesn’t take itself too seriously and is pretty funny (inappropriate jokes inserted). Because there’s no real story to get involved in and it just allows the player to enjoy himself. You see your character from a third person view as he faces off against enemies from the other kingdom and that is the layout of the entire game. 

There are 3 classes to choose from, warrior, mage, and cleric. All of them have the ability to use a combat weapon, which is good for bashing enemies to death once you’ve cornered them, but they all have their own special skills. The warriors have special fighting moves. Mages have the ability to use magic to fight and can even enchant their teammate’s or their own melee weapon which increases their damage. Clerics can build multiple objects. The cannon and ballista are used to shoot at enemies and you can use build either a ladder or battering ram to infiltrate into the enemy’s castle. Not only can clerics do that, but they can also heal and resurrect other players. Sadly they only have melee to defend themselves, but they are vital to a team in huge brawls when your allies are dying left and right.

As basic as the game is you have the option to play in story mode or in multiplayer. In multiplayer you can either face of against AI or with real people, but be warned when playing against others, the server is experiencing some difficulties so if it takes time to get into a match. If you want some of that story mode you’ll need to spend some time in multiplayer anyways. You can’t get to the next level until you reach a certain level by gaining “Happy Stars.” Ultimately story mode focuses on different objectives depending on what stage you’re in. In multiplayer the white and black team face off against each other until one team’s big tower (in their castle) is completely destroyed or one team has the most towers remaining.

I like Happy Wars because I often have to think about what to do so my team can advance, so I often switch classes depending on what is needed at the time. As simple as the game seems it requires a decent amount of effort, and I get a happy feeling whenever my team wins or I beat a stage in hard. As you level up you earn more weapons your character becomes better and weapons can even be combined. Your character is also customizable, but it’s a minor enjoyment in comparison to the gameplay. The scenery is so pretty and colorful you can’t help but become submerged in it and despite it’s simplicity it’s a game worthy of sharing with your Xbox Live friends.

All in all, I give Happy Wars a 5/5.

With the release of Assassins Creed III fast approaching this October 30th, Ubisoft has released a neat interactive trailer through YouTube to hold off fans until the main day. Think of it as one those choose your path books… but better. No worries, I won’t spoil the trailer with small description below. More of my thought after the trailer below.

The  trailer starts off  in Bunker Hill, with a very famous speech being presented, that’s if you actually paid attention in history class. Like any other Assassins Creed, Connor Kenway (Main Character), is presented with an assassination. Along the way there is a few guards that he has to fight through to get to his target.

Well instead of talking about it, why not give it a shot?

I played though it and attempted all the scenarios. There doesn’t seem to be a wrong way of doing. It just shows the many abilities and possibilities for the game and how to attack or assassinate a target. Don’t forget the game comes out this October 3oth and will be widely available on Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii U.

Source: Ubisoft

In the season where most people are looking for the best deals on gaming, look no further than Microsoft! (Yawn!) We reported about the Holiday Bundles last week and there seems to be a push to get more Xbox 360′s into homes. They have taken their subscription based service to the extreme with the newest Xbox 360 systems they launched in August 2010. Microsoft is  now offer a 250 GB system for $99 and a 250 GB system with Kinect for $149 along with the 4GB model with Kinect for $99. The kicker for all these deals is provided you sign a two year commitment with XBox Live at the price of $15 a month. (Why not offer a cheaper plan because you basically lock in a contract you idiots!!) It’s going to be interesting if this is a sign that Microsoft will try to release a newer update to the system by this time next year as this is on the heels of a announcement about the 2012 Holiday price cuts.

Source: The Verge

Microsoft Corp. has decided to offer special bundles with new games and Kinect motion sensors as well as new pricing on their consoles in some areas. This is a smart move on their behalf, it keeps thing interesting with Nintendo’s Wii U release right around the corner.

Starting this week many retailers including  GameStop, Best Buy, Toys ‘R Us, Amazon, Target, and Walmart, will carry Xbox 360 holiday console bundles.

The bundle will include the following:

• Xbox 360 4GB + Kinect with Kinect Disneyland Adventures, Kinect Adventures and one month of Xbox Live Gold for $299.99.
• Xbox 360 250 GB with Skyrim and Forza 4 Essentials Edition and one month of Xbox Live Gold for $299.99.
• Xbox 360 250GB + Kinect with Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports, Kinect Adventures and one month of Xbox LIVE Gold for $399.99.

Also for a limited time, Microsoft will offer $50 discounts on original consoles and bundles like Xbox 360 4GB + Kinect, Xbox 360 250GB and Xbox 360 250GB + Kinect.

The limited time $50-off price promotion will also be offered on the Xbox 360 Limited Edition “Halo 4” console bundle. This limited edition Xbox is available for pre-order on November 6, 2012.

This sounds like a miniature console war again at this point. Let’s see if Playstation comes up with any small discounts, bundles or promotion before the years end.

Sources:  GameStop, Best Buy, Toys ‘R Us, Amazon, Target, and Walmart

Welcome to the latest addition to the LEGO game family, LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. For fans of the LEGO series, you can expect all the fun and entertainment of the previous games. If that is not enough to peak your interests, there are new features which go where no LEGO game has gone before.

The core format of LEGO games makes up a large part of LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. Once again, there are story levels, which assign you specific characters to play as. After completing the level in story mode free play mode will be unlocked, which allows you to switch freely between any characters you have acquired. Other returning mainstays are gold bricks, red bricks, mini kits, and citizens in peril.

Heh meh blah ro mmm rah, concentrate on the subtitles and miss the cut scenes. The standard we have come to expect from LEGO games. Well not this time around. Yes that’ s right, the LEGO people finally speak with real words! On top of that, Telltale Games used some high profile voice actors, including both Steven Blum and Nolan North.

If that is not a big step forward in itself, how about the vastly expanded game environment? Traditionally, LEGO games have a main “hub” area of varying size. In this hub you can access both story and free play levels, along with additional sections to explore. This time, the Batcave becomes the central hub. In the Batcave, you can select any of the vehicles you have unlocked and jump right in the driver’s seat. The vehicle automatically begins its exit, and once outside, a brand new experience begins. Now the whole of Gotham City is at your disposal. Indeed, an open world Gotham City is now your personal playground. Everything is there, from Ace Chemicals to Wayne Manor, Arkham Asylum to Gotham City Zoo.

So what exactly is there to do in Gotham? Plenty! The map can be accessed at anytime and begins covered in a black cloud. As the story levels are completed, sections of the clouds lift revealing what lies underneath. There are also remote Bat Computer Terminals placed throughout the city. Activating these terminals will reveal more sections of the map. Once activated, you will gain access to either land, sea, or air vehicles based on the terminal location, such as street level, rooftop, or at a dock.

Depending on play style, game completion can be rather easy or somewhat challenging. If you prefer the easy route, any clear section of the map may be scanned, revealing items of interest for a few seconds. These include villains, vehicles, gold bricks, red bricks, citizens in peril, and gold gates.

Hovering the Batman Logo cursor over a villain’s head gives the option to “show villain”. This will trigger a brief cinematic, transitioning from a far view and zoom to a close up of the particular villain. Using the details of the video, you will search for and find the villain and battle it out until they have been defeated. When victory is achieved, you will be given the opportunity to purchase the character. The gold gates are also scattered around Gotham, with each one having a minimum number of gold bricks collected before you can build them. After having the required number of gold bricks and erecting the gate, a hero will emerge which can then can be purchased.

The remaining items to gather in Gotham are  studs (in game currency), red bricks, gold bricks, and citizens in peril. Having a difficult time finding any? Just scan the map and set a marker to guide you to it. Red bricks give you access to game modifiers, such as stud multipliers, invincibility, brick detectors, and more. There is also a puzzle aspect to obtaining all these Gotham Goodies. Many are located on rooftops, and even with a flying character, it will not be as simple as landing and picking it up. Most will require you to start from the ground and will make use of some or all of Batman’s and Robin’s special suits to reach the summit and unlock the gold brick’s container.

The core game controls and mechanics are on par with the LEGO series. Lego Batman 2 does have a couple of downsides. Upon obtaining a gold brick, auto save activates. While the game is saving, your character will be stuck in place until the save is completed, which average about 15 seconds per brick found. Other than that, I only came across some minor game freezing issues. This only happened much further in the game when I had many of the red bricks activated and had been continuously playing for 6 hours or more. The game graphics are sharp with well designed environments that display in resolutions up to 1080p. To add to the fun, you can grab a friend and enjoy the dynamic split screen co-op mode.

As part of the title states, DC Super Heroes, there is a generous amount of unlockable characters. All the classic heroes and villains from the DC universe are to be found. The same can be said for the vehicles as well. The Batmobile, Batwing, Batboat, Batcycle, and separate vehicles for each of the villains.Grab one to navigate your way around Gotham or just cruise around and enjoy the scenery.

All in all, this is the most impressive LEGO game to date. Even after completing the story, you will have countless hours of enjoyment exploring Gotham. Having finished the game to 100%, I can say I will continue to play because of the abundance of fun. I rate this game a 4.6 out of 5. Enjoy!