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Deal of the Week continuously delivers more fun to Xbox LIVE Gold Members for less points, so take advantage of these supreme deals each week in December.

Week of December 7:

“Fallout® 3 Operation Anchorage” Game add-on (Bethesda) | Japan: 560 Microsoft Points, rated M for Mature by the ESRB

Week of December 14:

“Lips: Coldplay Track Pack” (Microsoft Game Studios) | Worldwide except Japan and India: 240 Microsoft Points, rated E for Everyone by the ESRB.

“Pinball FX” (ZEN Studios) | Japan: 400 Microsoft Points, rated E for Everyone by the ESRB.

Week of December 21:

“Shadow Complex™” (Epic/Chair Entertainment) | Worldwide: From the producers of Gears of War comes “Shadow Complex,” a modern and masterful side-scrolling shooter. Winner of nine ‘Best of E3’ awards, “Shadow Complex” combines the quality and depth of a retail title with the accessibility you love, available exclusively on Xbox LIVE Arcade. December 21 through December 27, get “Shadow Complex” for 800 Microsoft Points, a 33% savings. “Shadow Complex” is rated T for Teen by the ESRB.

Week of December 28:

“The Maw” (Twisted Pixel) | Worldwide: 400 Microsoft Points, rated E for Everyone by the ESRB.

Introduction

Dragon Age has been called the ’spiritual successor’ to Baldur’s Gate 2, the old Forgotten Realms PC RPG from the 90’s. BG2 was one of the games that launched BioWare to success. Can Dragon Age live up to this fantastic claim or will it fail at establishing a new franchise?

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Introduction

Pandora awaits you in this genre-defining RPS, or roleplaying shooter. It’s not often that games can mix and match a variety of genres like spices from an Iron Chef’s signature line, but Gearbox and 2K games have made quite a tasty concoction with Borderlands. Released on North American consoles on October 20th, 2009, Pandora’s denizens bring the pain to your door in the form of acid-spewing creatures, gun-toting psychos, and, to use Mikey’s words, “laserd***” guardians. The Vault is calling, so as Zombieland’s ass-kicking Tallahassee would say, “time to nut up or shut up!”

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Introduction

Prepare to drop! Halo 3:ODST is a title that has a lot of people guessing. Is it worth my $60? What is new? What is the same? While Halo is not a title to need an introduction the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers bring a whole different aspect to the game. No longer are we the super human spartan Sierra 117. We are Hell Jumpers and Halo 3:ODST is our story!

Gameplay

Bungie has once again delivered a rock solid game to its consumers. So far they have hit a gold mine with the award winning game franchise Halo and ODST is no different. But that seems to be the problem. ODST really did not do much different. Some would ask the question ‘Is this really a bad thing?’ and the answer from many would be no. The story missions are very well done with awesome music, cut scenes and casting. They manage to deliver a great feel but sadly there is nothing new here mechanic wise. Instead of shields you have stamina and the health bar makes a return as well. You are unable to do several things that the Spartans can do which was expected but what was hoped for was something to take its place. Perhaps a little bit of focus on stealth instead of just making it more of the same.

Halo 3 ODST really does not introduce any new gameplay but you can still enhance it with the use of any of the Halo 3 skulls that you might have found.

Presentation

Bungie always does an outstanding job with the way they present their story. The use of sound and cinematography to convey an emotion has always been a strong point for them and once again they deliver with ODST. With composition done by Martin O’Donnell the mood is set as soon as you exit your drop pod.

The voice acting is well done with hidden comedy all over the place. The inclusion of stars such as Nathan Fillion who were willing to include their likeness in this game lends more character depth than would be expected. Well, except for the fact that the character you play, the rookie, is unfortunately the silent type.

Extras

Multiplayer! It is what Halo has been about since it changed the genre back 2001. Not to disappoint but Firefight does not introduce anything in the way of conventional multiplayer. Though it does come packaged with a disk that includes Halo 3’s multiplayer along with all of the map packs released to date plus 3 new maps that are only available on this disk. What is new in ODST is a co-operative multiplayer mode called fire fight. This is how it works.

You and up to 3 of your friends, I say friends because there is no match making for fire fight mode, start in one of two spawn rooms with the silenced SMG and new pistol. There is spare ammunition for those guns here along with health packs to help you preserve your precious lives; your team has 7 to share at the start of the game. You fight off waves of enemies from the campaign that get progressively tougher via the skulls from Halo 3. Progress is tracked via Waves, Rounds and Sets. There are 6 waves in a round and at the end of each round there is a weapon drop. The weapon drop replenishes all the ammo and weapon spawns on the ground. At the end of each round, the skulls that are active change out to make it progressively harder on you and your friends as well as to provide you with bonus lives. An additonal way to earn bonus lives is in the bonus round which occurs at the end of each Set. In the bonus round all skulls are active, respawning is disabled and the team tries to get a certain score to earn the bonus lives.

Rants and Raves

Rant

The length of the campaign leaves much to be desired. As a pair of moderately skilled first person shooter gamers we were able to finish the co-op campaign on legendary difficulty in roughly six hours. With only eight missions this falls short of what we have come to expect from Bungie.

The lack of a match making system for fire fight makes it hard to get a game if you do not have any friends that have ODST. That said it is a bit of a mixed point because having some random player in the game could really mess over your attempt by either killing you and your team or just quitting, because quitting ends the fire fight for all players.

If any one of the four players in fire fight mode leaves the game for any reason the game ends for everyone. If they get disconnected, have a power flicker or just plain quit the match is terminated. I’m not sure if this is for balance purposes or what but it is extremely frustrating.

Raves

The storytelling, use of music and all around cinematography for the campaign is fantastic. This aspect of the game lives up to the standards that Bungie has set for itself.

Fire fight is a very addictive game mode. It is so much fun that we have found ourselves attempting to perform our day jobs with very little sleep since 9/22.

Conclusion

Halo 3 ODST is a solid game in the end. Excellent presentation combined with tried and true gameplay can cause players to waste away hours of their life with their friends slaying the Covenant masses. If you are a fan of the franchise then this game is for you. Unfortunately it is unlikely to win over any new fans. That did not seem to be Bungie’s goal, however, as they stated ‘Halo 3 ODST is our gift to the fans.’

Score: 7.5

*Readers, this is the first time we are trying out a method where two reviewers play the game and review it together. Please let us know what you think about it here.

So have you been paying attention to the news lately? Did you know that Bethesda was giving away a free theme to everyone that purchased all of their DLC for the hit game Fallout 3? Well incase you had not purchased the DLC and want a chance to win a free copy of the theme just sign up on our forums and be an active member! Later this week one lucky forum member will win a code to download the hot new Fallout 3 Premium Theme!

If your a member of the forums stay tuned to this thread here, if not sign up for them here.

A new series of Bad Company 2 videos are being released by DICE. First episode is now up on you tube. You can watch it here.

Although the Final Fantasy XIII Premiere was last week, Gametrailers has just uploaded footage of the announcements made at the event. Almost all of the information shown in the videos was covered by the livebloggers at the event but they serve as official confirmation.

One of the major announcements Kitase confirms in the video is that Final Fantasy XIII should hopefully be released overseas 3 months after the Japanese release. They don’t mention specifically which region they mean but we should expect to see it released outside of Japan in March 2010. This upgrades the liveblogger’s impression that it was coming out 6-8 months from now to a more specific timeframe. If you want to view the videos of the event, follow the links below.

Source

It will release this December in Japan on the PS3 only but in March it will come to the rest of the world on 360 and PS3.

So Gearbox’s very own Mikey Neumann made a promise to play borderlands with anyone that preorder Borderlands today. Well that promise has been extended to anyone who has preordered Borderlands by 10PM Central time tonight.

You might be thinking to yourself now, ‘Jolly how can we play with Mikey?’ You are in luck friends the way to get to play with Mikey is simple. Just take a picture of your receipt and send it to him and your gamer tag via twitter @mikeyface. Its that simple. You can use any hosting site, such as imageshack to upload the image, and tinyurl to shrink the url and do it.

For the official discussion of this event and all of its hilarity check out the official Gearbox thread here and our thread here.

Xbox LIVE Premium Theme Released for “Fallout 3” Fans

Today Bethesda and Microsoft revealed that a premium theme for “Fallout 3” will be released on Xbox LIVE on Oct. 1 free of charge for all players who have purchased all five “Fallout 3” Game Add-ons as of Sept. 22. Gamers who have purchased all five Game Add-ons (English only), including “Operation: Anchorage,” “The Pitt,” “Broken Steel,” “Point Lookout” and “Mothership Zeta”, will receive a token from Microsoft to download the theme for free starting Oct. 1. “This is something we’ve been asked about a lot and we’re happy to finally be able to bring it to fans as a small token of our appreciation,” said Todd Howard, game director and executive producer for Fallout 3. The theme is also available for purchase at 240 Microsoft points.

Check out the screen shot.

Rant or Rave about this here.

Prepare for an all-out assault with Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2®

Microsoft and Activision unveil an exclusive global console based on Infinity Ward’s “Modern Warfare 2” with 250GB Hard Drive, more storage space than ever before.

SANTA MONICA, Calif., and REDMOND, Wash. — Sept. 15, 2009 — Microsoft Corp. and Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) today brandished the latest weapon to help gamers take to the battlefields for the global launch of the year with the announcement of the Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition Console. Infinity Ward’s “Modern Warfare 2,” the blockbuster sequel to the best-selling first-person action game in history, “Call of Duty® 4: Modern Warfare®,” was the inspiration for the console’s high-speed, low-drag, battle-ready design, which is available for pre-order today at U.S. retailers and in other regions later this week.

Beginning with “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s” worldwide release on Nov. 10, fans can arm themselves with Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition Console, which features an exclusive design inspired by the epic thriller, more storage space than ever before in a 250GB Hard Drive, two Xbox 360 Wireless Controllers, as well as an Xbox 360 Headset and a Standard Edition copy of “Modern Warfare 2” for an estimated retail price of $399.99 (USD).

“It’s the highest compliment to the team and our fans to have a special themed Xbox 360 console,” said Vince Zampella, CEO of Infinity Ward. “The precision and detail that’s been put into the console captures the intensity and feel of ‘Modern Warfare 2.’ We can’t wait for our community and fans around the world to see for themselves on Nov. 10.”

The Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition Console was revealed at an exclusive preview event in Los Angeles where guests were the first to experience “Modern Warfare 2” multiplayer gameplay on Xbox LIVE.

“It is thrilling to bring the exclusive ‘Modern Warfare 2’-inspired Xbox 360 console to Call of Duty fans. Being able to work so closely with the talented team at Infinity Ward on the design has enabled us to develop a console that will set bragging rights around the world,” said Albert Penello, senior director of global marketing for Xbox 360. “These fans deserve the biggest Xbox 360 console ever, and we’re delivering with more storage space than ever before and freedom to enjoy their favorite games and downloadable Game Add-ons, including the first two ‘Modern Warfare 2’ maps that will be available first on Xbox LIVE.”*

Xbox 360 Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition Console, will be sold in Europe, the Middle East (UAE, Saudi Arabia), UK, US, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, Australia and New Zealand.

On Nov. 10, Activision Publishing, Inc. will release Infinity Ward’s “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.” The title continues the gripping and heart-racing action as players face off against a new threat dedicated to bringing the world to the brink of collapse. “Modern Warfare 2” is rated “M” (Mature – Blood, Drug Reference, Intense Violence and Language) by the ESRB. For more information, visit www.modernwafare2.com or http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/c/callofdutymodernwarfare2/.

Let us know what you think about this here.

About Xbox 360

Xbox 360 is a premier video game and entertainment system. It is home to the best and broadest games as well as the largest on-demand library of standard- and high-definition movies and TV shows connected to the television — with music coming this fall. The digital center of the living room, Xbox 360 blends unbeatable content with the largest online social network connected to the television in the 20 million members on Xbox LIVE to create a limitless entertainment experience that can be shared at home or across the globe. With the addition of currently code-named “Project Natal,” Xbox 360 will forever transform social gaming and entertainment with a whole new way to play — no controller required. More information about “Project Natal” and Xbox 360 can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/projectnatal and http://www.xbox.com.

About Xbox LIVE

Xbox LIVE is the largest gaming and entertainment network and delivers more entertainment than any device connected to the television, including movies, TV and games, with music coming this fall. This fall, Xbox LIVE will be the only entertainment service to provide instant-on 1080p streaming HD video from Zune video in supported countries. With an active community of more than 20 million people across 26 countries, Xbox LIVE lets you play the best games, enjoy the largest on-demand library and, coming soon, listen to millions of songs — all while connecting to friends anytime. An Xbox LIVE Gold Membership provides you with exclusive benefits and premium access to entertainment from the top studios and services, all in one place. More information about Xbox LIVE can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/live.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products.

Activision Publishing maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com.