The holiday season has already passed – maybe a little too fast. Being that the holiday season has just elapsed, games aren’t really being released in the masses as they were beforehand. Even so, there’s a few good games that have decided to break the cycle and release past the holidays. I will go ahead and flesh out a few of these games for you:


PC/PS3 – DC Universe Online





You’re set in the comic book world of DC to fend for yourself and your superhero mentor in this MMORPG. This game will allow you to forge a new hero and have you build him/her until greatness. You’ll be able to control what powers you have, how you look and what superhero you choose to follow. Whether you want to be Superman’s helper or a minion of The Joker, you choose your path.


Nintendo DS – Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded





Originally created for mobile phones, Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded has been ported over to the Nintendo DS. The events in this game take place after Kingdom Hearts II, but don’t let that scare you away if you haven’t played the first two games. Kingdom Hearts is a classic action game where you’ll solve puzzles along-side with all your favorite Disney characters. This is certainly a great pick to entertain you and bring back memories.


PS3 – Angry Birds





If you haven’t bought into the hype and tried out Angry Birds on your smartphone or iPad, you’re missing out. Having sold over 6.5 million iOS downloads, this game is already a huge hit. Well now the game has made its way onto the Playstation through the Playstation Network. You can simply download it and enjoy all the puzzle fun you can. At a meager $4 along with a few new game and multiplayer modes, you’ll find some new fun in this even if you’ve conquered it on your mobile device.


Yes, the pickings have been rather slim the past few weeks. But that is not to say that these games aren’t of high quality. I would certainly give any of these games a try if you are aching for something new.

It’s that time of year again — holiday gaming time! Usually seen as the “hot” season for gaming, you’ll find no shortage of great games on the shelves as you Christmas shop. As you stay bundled up in these subfreezing temperatures we’ve been experiencing lately, you need something to keep you busy, right?

Whether you’re out shopping for yourself to keep you busy or you’re planning on getting somebody a surefire winning gift, you should find something to like on this list. I’ll go through a few of the biggest games out for each system this year for you to choose which stocking-stuffer best fits.

Console

Call of Duty: Black Ops (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii) - This is the latest in line for Call of Duty. Like the previous few titles, this game’s selling and has a huge following. If you’re looking for a quality shooter, this game keeps the good trend going.

Rock Band 3 (Xbox 360, PS3, Wii) – Just like the previous games, this game is sure to be an instant hit for you music lovers out there. See my previous post for more details.

Gran Turismo 5 (PS3) – The flagship racing game for the Playstation consoles. This game has been in development for well over 5 years. Any gearhead will marvel at the customizability and realism of this game. You may want to set aside extra cash for all the speeding tickets you’ll be tempted to acquire.

Halo Reach (Xbox 360) – Another big-time shooter. This is one of the Xbox’s top franchises. It’s set as a prequel to the first Halo game and provides the polish and exciting multiplayer gaming as its predecessors.

Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii) – One of the Wii’s best games to date. I mean, it’s Mario! Let’s not forget about IGN’s perfect score given to the game! This is a must-own game if you own a Wii.

PC

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm – Blizzard’s finally brought their latest expansion pack! They’ve completely revamped many of the places you grew to love back when the game first released. You can also count on a ton of new content and even a couple new races to play!

Civilization V – The classic turn-based strategy game has been recently released. You won’t be disappointed in this game if you enjoy building your civilizations and nurturing it through the ages! Just with running an actual country, things aren’t as easy as it seems.

Handhelds

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (PSP) – MGS has come to the portables. This game is extremely well-done and provides gameplay that rivals its console counterparts. If you like sneaking around and committing espionage, this is for you.

Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Sky (DS) – A throw back to the fans of Japanese RPGs, this game is the first of the franchise to be handheld. Also considered the toughest of them all, you won’t be disappointed in this game.

I know, there’s plenty more games out there to choose from. If I went through each and every one, you’d get bored and browse elsewhere due to the mind-numbingness. By no means is this a comprehensive list of must-have games, but this is certainly somewhere to start. So gear up and go brave the throngs of shoppers battling for their beloved deals and get your gaming on!

Hooray, the Kinect has finally arrived (just in time for the holidays)! What’s the Kinect you ask? Just one of the most highly anticipated peripherals in gaming for the past year. I’m not sure if you’ve heard very much about it, so I’ll attempt to fill you in.

The Kinect is a product of Microsoft. It’s made for the Xbox 360 to be utilized by giving seasoned gamers and normal folks alike a vastly different gaming experience. Wait… not only a gaming experience, but an entire entertainment experience. This is basically their shot at the “motion movement”. With the Wii’s incredible success of motion gaming, why not? The Kinect is basically a device with a few cameras and microphones with the intent of capturing your every move and using your body as a controller..

From a gaming perspective, this is a bit different from what we’re used to seeing on the Nintendo Wii and Playstation Move. Instead of using a controller and swinging it around, your body is the controller. So basically your body gestures will control everything.

From an entertainment perspective, you’re able to swipe around screens and select based off your hand positions. If that’s too much work for you, you can simply say “Xbox” and it’ll listen for your next command. Things like “fast forward” through your Netflix or ESPN 3 viewing would get that much cooler to show off! You also won’t have to actually sit up and get the remote! Feel free to turn yourselves into blobs. Since this bad boy’s full of cameras, it’s only logical to have video chat, right? You got it, all through the Xbox 360, you’ll be able to chat face to face with your friends and family.

There is so much promise for this peripheral. Imagine the ability to do a virtual fitness class or bettering your baseball pitching mechanics based off this tool. Currently, there’s already a game that’ll teach you dance moves so you can burn up the dance floor. What else would you expect from the makers of Rock Band?

With the good, there’s always the bad. In order for this all to work, you need to be about 6-8 feet away from the camera with no obstruction. This bad boy also requires a special input on the Xbox, so if you have an older model without this plug in port, you may have to trade yours in for a newer model. Also, I’m not sure if the accuracy of the Kinect will have you busting out Minority Report moves, but it could sure be close. Sometimes it may be a bit easier to just use the (very accurate) voice recognition to help you with your navigation.

So there you have it. This thing is out there and selling like hotcakes. Just be aware of the requirements and prepare yourself for it! If developers put their best foot forward, you could very well see a game-changer flourish right before your eyes.

Rock Band 3 is finally set to release within just a couple days.  It’s been over 2 years since the latest game has hit the shelves, and we’re in need of some new features.  Even though there’s been a consistent stream of content available for download (at a cost, of course), content can start getting old once you master the tools! As a fan of the first two games, I’m personally pretty excited about this release.   As you’ll soon see, there’s a lot to look forward to!

The biggest change with this release is certainly the introduction of new hardware.  In addition to having the regular guitar, drums and microphone, you can now jam out with a “keytar”.  It’s basically a guitar with a couple octaves worth of a keyboard on it.  This should give you a good reason to put those years of piano lessons to use finally!

There’s also new hardware for the next biggest update and my personal favorite, pro mode.  Pro mode will have players hit actual notes on their instruments as if they’re playing the songs for real.  To help accommodate this new feature, there will be a couple new guitars introduced to Rockband 3.  In addition to the regular guitar that we’ve been so accustomed to, you’ll be able to buy their Pro guitar.  This guitar includes well over 100 different buttons that will mimic the frets of an actual guitar to have you playing through the motions of a real rock star.  That’s not enough for you?  Well if you’re patient enough, you’ll be able to buy an actual guitar that is set up for Rockband 3 that’ll allow you to play real notes, real chords, real strumming just to learn how to play the guitar on your favorite songs.  That completely blows the top off traditional methods of learning to play a guitar!  I intend on utilizing this feature, and when I do, I’ll be sure to fill you in on every detail!  The Pro Guitar is going to be available at launch and the “real” guitar is going to be available some time next year.

That pretty much sums up all the new features of Rockband 3 other than the 80+ songs wrapped up ready for you to master.  This game has been a staple for passing time and having guests jam out with you for the past few years. With these overhauls, it makes the game that much more enjoyable and addictive.  You can have your friends and family over playing some songs on easy or you can be plugging away hours in front of the TV attempting to learn Bohemian Rhapsody on the guitar by yourself.  What more can you ask from a music game (other than roadies and groupies)?

http://www.rockband.com

This is my second installment regarding the announcements of E3 2010. I hope my last post on the hardware side of things intrigued you enough to make you eager to hear what I have to say about the software. Whether you’re a PS3, 360 or Nintendo fan, there’s plenty to look forward to over the next year in regards of video games!

In my last E3 post, I spelled out the hardware that brought the hype train on E3. Well look out, here comes the software!
PS3——————————————————

• Killzone 3 — Ok, this wasn’t much of a surprise being that a lot of details were leaked a few weeks ago. But, seeing this thing in action live in all of its FPS glory is pretty great. You’ve got the same top-notch graphics with a little bit more color added (white in addition to the vast amounts of grays and browns). Amongst the changes are the new jet packs you can strap on and 3D being baked into the game if you have an enabled television to take advantage.
• Twisted Metal — Sony’s big announcement is certainly a doosey (for me at least). Although a new release to the flagship franchise was hinted when a code was cracked on the latest Twisted Metal title on the PSP, not many people were expecting this just yet, but I’m betting many are glad. For those of you that haven’t heard or tried any of the TM games, it’s basically a driving shooter game. Many, many of my youth’s hours were spent on these games because they’re just so darn fun (especially when you’re playing with friends). You can expect this game to have some new air vehicles along with online gameplay.

XBOX360——————————————–

• Halo Reach — Also not a surprise, this is the final installment (and yet it’s a prequel) to the widely acclaimed FPS series found only on the Xbox. You can expect the solid, fun and polished gameplay as you normally do with all the Halo titles. This game, however seems to have graphics that are heads-and-shoulders above its predecessors. You can expect this game to break records when it goes on sale. Maybe you should consider joining the throngs of gamers too!
• Child of Eden — This was basically an unknown coming into E3. It could very will still be pretty unknown. What it is, is a game that utilizes the Kinect in a way that more gamers (other than just the casual players) may enjoy. While much of the game and even the name is still a mystery, the live demonstration of this game was quite unique. As you wave your arms using the Jedi force at your TV, you’re blasting away squares like it’s nobody’s business. There’s some other gestures that makes you look like a spaz, but you’ll just have to play it to figure it out!

Nintendo——————————————–

• Kid Icarus: Uprising — Set up on the new Nintendo 3DS, Kid Icarus is resurrected back onto the scene. You’ll be having some fast-paced action on both the ground and air in this new game as you battle through this mythological setting. You’ll also enjoy it in all of its 3D glory! It’s been 19 years since the last Kid Icarus game has graced us, and with the predecessors’ quality and good times, this game should not disappoint.
• 007: Golden Eye (remake) — Finally! They’ve decided to remake GoldenEye. If you haven’t heard of GoldenEye, it was one of the greatest games to grace the Nintendo 64, if not any console ever. This game completely shaped the way first person shooter games were created and steered (especially for console games) with its multiplayer deathmatch. I know I’ve spent yet again many hours of my childhood on this game blasting away buddies. This remake will bring enhanced graphics and a more updated storyline. Even though this won’t be a carbon-copy of the previous classic, this game should hopefully take notes and be entertaining.

So there you have it. Yes, I’ve left out some games, but there are so many to choose from. I’ve tried to stick to the consoles’ exclusive games. If you’re yearning to find out what other games are over the horizon, you may just have to wait until my weekly post shows when they have arrived!

So the United State’s World Cup dreams were sliced and diced by the Ghana counter-attack. As you sit there and mope about, think instead of the joyous times that wait ahead of you with these games:

Singularity
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/29/2010	FPS	X	X				X
		Singularity is a sci-fi type of first person shooter. Although it may not be a blockbuster title, it seems to be pretty interesting. In addition to the same old run and gunning, you’re also able to manipulate time on objects. This allows for some creative ways to progress through puzzles. Imagine some debris blocking your way and you age it forward so that it degrades out of your way or reversing the time and rebuilding it. Pretty cool eh?
Sin and Punishment: Star Successor
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/27/2010	Rail Shooter			X
		Once you turn this game on, you’ll get thrown back into that old-school style shooter game. You’ll be flying around at the game’s given pace and you simply shoot all the tons of bad guys coming your way. The many bosses are touted as very challenging and fun. You can utilize your motion controlling to aim and blast away. With some pretty nice reviews (85+ on Metacritic), this game is bound to be a hit on your Wii!
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/29/2010	Adventure	X	X	X	X	X	X
		***GAME OF THE WEEK*** If you’re a fan of the LEGO games (or have a child to please) this game will satisfy your craving. With an emphasis on something other than violence, this game will make you laugh and provide plenty of light-hearted fun. This game takes you through the events of the first four books: Sorcerer’s Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire. This is probably one of the best Harry Potter games out there since it’s not a movie-to-video game release that usually lacks the polish of a good game. Certainly a crowd pleaser, this game should be in any Potter fan’s library.

A pretty good variety of games are released this week, eh? I wouldn’t count any of these games out, mainly because they’re all pretty solid titles. Sure, you’re probably still recovering from the E3 fever that’s been going around or still fiddling with your new Iphone, but at least make some time to put some hours into your poor lonely consoles! Keep an eye out for my next post regarding the games announced at E3 to look forward to in the future!

So here, I’ll be telling you about the hardware recently announced and shown at this year’s E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo). This expo is basically the mother of all video game get-togethers out there. Here, all the big guns and high hopes are drawn. All the various technologies are shown off along with the video games accompanying them. You can also expect a few surprise announcements to cap off some of the presentations there.

Shown off in bright and often awe-inspiring booths, the products are shown off and often able to be tested out by people to help generate the hype. Also, I suppose the booth girls are there to help out with that cause. I mean, look at the typical demographic of a gamer and you’ll understand why the E3 booth girls have generated their own following. Silly, I know… but it’s all about the moolah.

Below, I’ll talk about some of the hardware that was recently unveiled:

PS3——————————————————

• Playstation Move — This was already known to be coming out, but this time we’re given plenty of time to see this beauty in action! It was demoed with games like Sorcery and Tiger Woods. Move touts its ability to get you moving (similar to the Wii’s nunchucks) with true and precise 1-to-1 movement thanks to the mixture of camera and remote (not so like the Wii’s nunchucks). They also make sure to spell out that the use of buttons and high definition graphics along with the precision can lend itself to every form of gamer — the casual gamers, the children and even the hardcore gamers. Sounds pretty good to me! You’ll be able to get it September 19 in the United States for $49 (main controller) + $29 (navigation controller) or a package of the Playstation Eye + main controller + sports game for $99.
• 3D — Sony also announces about its commitment towards 3D gaming. There’ll be over 20 games available in 3D by March 2011. In order to take advantage of this feature, you’ll need a 3D-capable TV along with some 3D glasses. The most notable 3D game coming out is probably Killzone 3, so keep an eye out for it!

XBOX360——————————————–

• Kinect — Previously known as “Project Natal”, Kinect makes its first official debut onstage. The Kinect differentiates itself from the other motion gaming by simply only using a camera. There’s no controllers, just a camera that detects your movement and your sound. You can wave your hand around to choose what you want to do or you can simply say something such as “Xbox… Netflix” and watch your movies. You can choose to race cars, play sports, getting fit or learning to dance with the Kinect. Just make sure to close your blinds, because your neighbors will think you’re nuts! At least, until you invite them over. You can try out this experience for $150 this November 4th!
• Xbox360 Slim — Somewhat surprisingly, a new entirely revamped XBOX360 has been released. With a 250 gigabyte hard drive, built-in wifi, about 15% smaller, much quieter, prettier and less power-hungry, this new console should be at stores now nearby for $300. These new consoles come with the specific Kinect port built in so you’ll be ready for some hands-free gaming. Pretty good deal, no?

Nintendo——————————————–

• 3DS — Nintendo finally has a good showing at E3 and surprises everyone with their new handheld, the Nintendo 3DS. You’ll be able to play games in a familiar fashion with the touch screen and a 3D screen on the top. In addition to 3D visuals, you’re able to take 3D pictures and even watch 3D movies! So what is the cost of the 3D glasses needed to take advantage of this functionality? There are no glasses! It’s completely viewable without the use of glasses! Nintendo has continually pioneered the gaming experience, so I wouldn’t write this off as simply a gimmick! Nintendo has not announced the price or a release date for this new device, but stay tuned for more news regarding this possibly revolutionizing tool (imagine “3D glassesless” television screens).

So much of this doesn’t really come much of a surprise to most gamers, but if you don’t keep up with much of this kind of stuff, you’re now well-informed. Just imagine how an awesome you’ll be giving some of these goodies out for Christmas or how you’re the best geek party host ever!

Now that most of the hardware has been covered, look out for my next post that will be covering the software (video games!) recently announced and fleshed out for everyone to drool over. Until then…

Another week has passed and the summer is still a blazin’. As I sit here and wipe the sweat from my brow, turn on my misting fan and pour a bottle of mountain dew all over my face, you’ll appreciate the fact that it’s actually hot enough to keep you inside. At least, you’ll appreciate it if you’re gaming and not a daywalker. To satisfy that insatiable appetite, I’ll just get right to the good stuff:

Dragon Ball: Origins 2
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/22/2010	Action				X
		Yet another release from the Dragon Ball franchise graces us, this time, on the DS just like its predecessor. This game picks up right where the original Origins left off. You’re playing as Goku and taking on the Red Ribbon Army as the original lore was told. This game sticks to the same formula that the popular and addictive first game put in place. You’re able to play with the choice of either the stylus or d-pad depending on your tastes. If you’re unfamiliar with the gameplay, you’d probably be reminded of some old-school SNES Zelda. While you may not be seeing anything extremely new or exciting from this game, it’s sticking to a winning formula that was set up by the first Origins game.
Wipeout: The Game
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/22/2010	Game Show			X	X
		No, this isn’t a remake of the old-school racing game from the first Playstation console. Instead, this is the game based on the hit television series! If you’re unfamiliar with this game show, it’s basically a giant obstacle course. You could probably relate Wipeout to a Japanese game show. To me, those are some of the best kinds of game shows! So sit back and get a couple friends and family to have some fun with this game.
Transformers: War for Cybertron
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/22/2010	Action/Adventure	X	X	X	X		X
		***GAME OF THE WEEK*** Based on a rather thin lineup for this week (almost as bad as my high school football team), this game is the best of the lot. You can run around in this third-person shooter’s campaign as either faction — the decepticons or the autobots. With the ability to play with 2 others, you can incorporate some cooperative play in here. There are, of course, various multiplayer modes you can play online if you have the ability to do so. So, all in all this is a solid game that is appealing to the masses and will give you plenty of hours of gaming under your belt!

Well there you have it. There’s not much of a good selection out there this week, but I suppose it could be worse. If none of these titles make you happy, I suppose there’s always going outside, right?

So, this is a big week right? The US tied it up with England and will lay the smack down on Slovenia this week in the World Cup, the Lakers and Celtics are battling it out and (of course) E3 is upon us and there’s plenty of news to be told. There’s probably even a few surprises to keep you folks interested in the industry. I’ve got plenty of catching up to do! Even with all the gaming event news bombarding us, you’ve still got some games to look forward to. Here’s this week’s releases:

100 Classic Book Collection
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/14/2010	Misc				X
		This is probably the most surprising of the week for me. This game’s been released for over a year around the world, but finally making its way over to the US. This game is basically what the title says: a collection of 100 classic books. If you haven’t got a Kindle yet and want to read some of the most famous novels out there, I highly suggest checking this thing out. I honestly can’t think of a better gift for the bookworms out there (or maybe bookworm-to-be’s).
Project Runway
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/18/2010	Simulation			X			X
		So the Wii is bringing competitive modeling into the mix. Taking advantage of the balance board, you can walk as fierce as any gal on that show. Even though this game is available on the PC, I’m not sure it’s worth the effort without a balance board. I mean, a model that can’t walk really isn’t a model… right? In case you feel the inner diva bursting out of you, this game’s just what the doctor ordered.
Toy Story 3
Date	Genre	PS3	360	Wii	DS	PSP	PC
6/15/2010	Action	X	X	X	X	X	X
		***GAME OF THE WEEK*** Toy Story 3 is hitting theaters this week and with it comes its video game to just about every video game game avenue out there. There’s much hype surrounding this movie as the best of the trilogy, if not Pixar’s masterpiece in general. With such hype, the game should be alright eh? Well, so far the general consensus is that this game may not live up to the movie, but it’s certainly entertaining. The story will not follow the movie very closely, but maybe the occasional tie-in. Coop mode will keep you and a buddy having a good ol’ time exploring this tool box.

Alright… so it’s not an extremely loaded lineup. I guess it could be somewhat expected being that there’s so much going on this week. There are certainly a couple games here to whet your appetite for a little while, at least. Keep on watching for more articles as I attempt to make up ground from my recent hiatus and fill you in on the goodies that this year’s E3 brings us.