This week on Ask X3F, we discuss important issues like analog stick ... um ... stickiness, Canadian pricing, dead batteries and that all important topic: how do you convince your significant other that he or she needs an Xbox 360? Yes, we take a look at all this an more in the latest installment. Find them after the break. If you've got questions of your own, don't forget to send 'em our way.
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There's a new NHL 09 demo available for download off the Xbox Live Marketplace and it can best be described as "hockey'licious". (They should have totally used that as the demo description.) The demo is said to include the "Be a Pro" mode, but online multiplayer play seems to be lacking. We think EA says it best, "if you love sports video games, you have to try this demo" and if you don't love sports games, turn up your nose and go back to your regularly scheduled gaming habits.
Ensemble posted a new Halo Wars update where they talk about the design decisions and gameplay elements behind one of Halo Wars' most powerful units, the Spartans. It's pretty good wall of text read, full of interesting Halo Wars decision making stories and explanations of how they came to decide upon the Spartan unit's special move: vehicle jacking. What's our favorite Spartan factoid? The fact that the more your Spartan levels up, the "larger your swagger on the battlefiel." Because Spartan swagger is l33t as hell.
Activision has announced that several bands will re-record their classic recordings for Guitar Hero World Tour. First up is MC5's lead guitarist Wayne Kramer who will re-record and "modernize" the track "Kick Out the Jams" with the help of Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains and Gilby Clarke who spent three years with Guns N' Roses (the recording will retain the vocals originally recorded by lead Rob Tyner). The Sex Pistols will contribute another track, "Pretty Vacant," which was re-recorded at the same time as "Anarchy in the UK," which was featured in Guitar Hero III. Finally, Motörhead will re-record the title track from its album Overkill.
It's time for another round of fanswag, folks. This week we've got three copies of Smash Court Tennis 3 up for grabs. Featuring the new Pro Tour mode, Smash Court Tennis 3 allows gamers to create their own custom characters and build their stats as they climb the ranks. Of course, if you don't feel like creating your own character, you can always choose a seasoned pro like Maria Sharapova. You can also take the game online with up to four players. For your shot at a copy, follow these directions:
Leave a comment on this post about your favorite tennis shot. Feel free to make one up if you like.
You may leave one comment per calendar day, Eastern Time. Posters of multiple comments in a single calendar day will be disqualified. We'll accept entries until 12:00PM Noon, Eastern Time, September 5th, 2008. You must be at least 18 years old to enter. This giveaway is open only to residents of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec).
On Friday, we'll pick three winners via a random drawing.
Three winners will receive a copy of Smash Court Tennis 3, worth $60
Speaking to Shacknews, Bethesda's Pete Hines and Istvan Pely shed some light on the downloadable content plans for Fallout 3 (among other things). When asked about DLC, Hines noted that Bethesda was shooting for content that was "several hours." Hines elaborated, "Not just like a one-off thing, but something like where you can download it and play it for X number of hours," adding that it would be akin to Oblivion content like Knights of the Nine, "where it's like whole new quest lines, new stuff, that kind of thing." Reading between the lines, we're getting the message that Hines means not horse armor. While release plans remain in the dark, Hines does note that Bethesda is already "looking into" future DLC.
Hit the source link for the full interview, which contains talk about Fallout 3's design as well as how Bethesda feels about comparisons to Oblivion.
Now here's and interesting idea. Ubisoft has announced that those who pre-order the upcoming Prince of Persia will receive a special Limited Edition version of the game at no extra cost. Yup, you read that right. There will be no $10 or $20 premium for the Prince of Persia Limited Edition. It will run for the standard price of $59.99. The catch is that pre-ordering Prince of Persia is the only way to snag the Limited Edition. So, what do your no extra dollars get you? How about this:
Collectible Limited Edition packaging
An exclusive look at the making of Prince of Persia
A Prima digital mini-strategy guide full of developer's secrets
A digital art book
The original soundtrack scored by master composer Inon Zur
And let's not forget, you also get a game that looks pretty damned good (as the video above will attest). That's a lot of stuff in exchange for putting your name on a list.
It was once rare for Xbox Live Arcade to receive two games in a single week. Heck, it was once rare for XBLA to receive one game in a single week. And here we are, getting three in one week. All told we have Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball, Shred Nebula, and Gin Rummy. So, we've got a party sports game, a space shooter and a card game. The only question now is whether or not anyone will want to open their wallents after the veritable treasure trove of games that dropped in August. Both PvN Dodgeball and Shred Nebula will set you back 800 Microsoft Points. Gin Rummy is a mere 400. All three are now available on Marketplace for your perusal.
We have juicy rumor news coming straight out of PAX regarding a new set of 30 achievements worth a total of 750 Gamerscore for a little game called Halo 3. Yes sir, it's time for brand new Halo 3 achievement rumor news!
According to a post over on Ascendant Justice Forums, there will be a new set of 30 Halo 3 achievements that will be releasing in the near future and they even include screenshot proof (ninja-taken during PAX) to prove it. Content that may have something to do with that Halo 3 Mythic rumor we heard about the other day. The achievements, which look to be based on the Heroic, Legendary and (speculated) Mythic map packs, look rather legit seeing that the descriptions, achievement names AND off-screen photographic proof are supplied. But, as is customary with Bungie, we're in the dark regarding how they'll be implemented, whether or not the content has anything to do with the Mythic stuff or even the E3 stuff. That is if this is legit news. Enough speculation, take a looksy a the (rumored to be new) Halo 3 achievement names after the break. Picture "evidence" after the jump.
We recently got a chance to play some dodgeball with Blazing Lizard. Specifically, we're talking about the company's new Xbox Live Arcade game, Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball. Even more specifically, we got a chance to try out the game's various multiplayer modes. Those following the game may recall that originally the game was to contain only a no-rules, non-traditional version of dodgeball, but Blazing Lizard decided to delay the title in order to add some more traditional modes. We got to try out both of these new modes as well as the original free form mode known as Combat Dodgeball. Read on for our hands-on impressions of each mode.
This week on Xbox Live Arcade we get not one, not two, but three new games. Lined up in a row -- like so many ducks -- we have:
Shred Nebula (800 / $10)
Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball (800 / $10)
Gin Rummy (400 / $5)
Shred Nebula is a space shooter that utilizes strafing mechanics instead of the twin-stick format we've become used to in games like Geometry Wars. It also boasts online dogfights for 8 players. Pirates vs Ninjas Dodgeball is ... um ... dodgeball. It now sports three different gameplay modes -- in addition to the single-player story mode -- and can be played by up to 8 players. Finally, there's Gin Rummy, which is ... Gin Rummy. It supports 4 players online and contains six different versions of Rummy.
Update: After a little digging, we've been informed that the piñata hunt is for the UK version of Xbox.com only. Of course, there's nothing stopping North American gamers from visiting the UK site...
In celebration of the release of Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise, Rare has informed us that the brand new community website will be launching today at midnight PST. The community website will allow gamers to share photos of their gardens and upload any Piñata Vision cards they have created. Also, Viva PiñataAceyBongos (think of him as the European version of Major Nelson) is launching a piñata hunt on Xbox.com. Starting Friday, piñata eggs will be hidden on Xbox.com. Mousing over them will cause a piñata to pop out. Clicking on the piñata will open a PDF of a Piñata Vision card that can then be imported into their gardens. Then you're just stuck with the (somewhat awkward) choice of either printing it out or holding your Vision camera up to the screen.
We'd opt for the first choice, especially if you're at work. After all, people might suspect something if you drag your entire entertainment center into your cubicle.
Today, team Capcom just announced some interesting Resident Evil 5 information regarding the game's control scheme. More specifically, they're looking to overhaul the current RE5 control formula by replacing the classic stop and shoot mechanic with a more Gears inspired cover system. What's the reason? RE5 producer Jun Takeuchi feels that the cover system controls will slow down the tension that could potentially bring a new horror element into the mix. Expect to see a completely new RE5 unveiling during the Tokyo Game Show in October.
As promised, Disney and Black Rock Studios have just sent us press release love to inform us that a PUREdemo will be releasing to the Xbox Live Marketplace this Thursday, September 3rd. Along with a quick tutorial mode, the demo will include one racing location, the Italian Mount Garda track, but we don't believe there to be any online support. Then again, that's PURE'ly speculation (you see what we did there, eh?) Presser after the break.
Given that PAX is organized by the creators of Penny Arcade (it's right there in the title, really), it's pretty much the perfect venue to release the first screenshots of Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness: Episode Two. For the sake of brevity, let's just call it Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 2, mkay? This first batch of screenshots hints at some of the story in Episode 2, namely the sanitarium that's featured briefly in the introduction of Episode 1. Also featured are shots of the game's combat. Sadly, it looks like the game's protagonist (i.e. "You") will not be ditching his or her trusty rake, as we spotted a special attack entitled "A License to Till." Check out all the new screens in the gallery below.
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