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Editor to be Available in December; Downloadable Content coming for January, February, and March

Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax Media company, today announced plans to make both its editor and downloadable content available for its award-winning game, Fallout® 3 in the coming weeks. The official editor for Fallout 3, called the G.E.C.K. (Garden of Eden Creation Kit), will be available for free download in December and will allow Games for Windows® users to create and add their own content to the game. In addition, the first official downloadable content, Operation: Anchorage, will be available exclusively for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Games for Windows® in January, and more downloadable content coming in February and March.

“We’ve always seen the original world of Fallout 3 as a foundation for even more content. Some created by us, and a lot more created by users,” said Todd Howard, game director for Fallout 3. “It’s fun to create your own character, but it can be equally fun to create your own adventures. We can’t wait to see what the community does with the G.E.C.K.”

The release of the G.E.C.K. provides the community with tools that will allow players to expand the game any way they wish. Users can create, modify, and edit any data for use with Fallout 3, from building landscapes, towns, and locations to writing dialogue, creating characters, weapons, creatures, and more.
Three downloadable content packs will be coming to Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live starting in January that will add new quests, items, and content to Fallout 3.

• Operation: Anchorage. Enter a military simulation and fight in one of the greatest battles of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders. An action-packed battle scheduled for release in January.
• The Pitt. Journey to the industrial raider town called The Pitt, located in the remains of Pittsburgh. Choose your side. Scheduled for release in February.
• Broken Steel. Join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel and rid the Capital Wasteland of the Enclave remnants once and for all. Continues the adventure past the main quest. Scheduled for release in March.

Released on October 28 in North America and in Europe October 30, Fallout 3 has been hailed as one of the most anticipated games of 2008, and received a 10 out of 10 review score from Official Xbox Magazine, a result then repeated around the world with perfect scores by some of the industry’s most influential and respected critics including: Gamespy, GamePro, UGO, the Associated Press, MSN, The Washington Post, Guardian, FHM, G4-TV, The Toronto Star, and Eurogamer. MSNBC’s review offered the observation that it viewed “Fallout as a no-brainer for game of the year.” The Daily Star in the UK echoed that conclusion, saying “You can hold all bets on game of the year – I think we have a winner.”

Fallout 3 features one of the most realized game worlds ever created. Set more than 200 years following a nuclear war, you can create any kind of character you want and explore the open wastes of Washington, D.C. however you choose. Every minute is a fight for survival as you encounter Super Mutants, Ghouls, Raiders, and other dangers of the Wasteland.

Original source available here.

Sony is being a petty little bitch.  You read that right. 

As you know NXE launched yesterday.  Just one day earlier, all movies distributed by Columbia Pictures (which is owned by Sony) were removed form the Netflix ‘Watch it Now’ queue - but only for Xbox 360 users (note - these movies may still be streamed to any PC - note the column on the right: LINK). 

Netflix claims it’s a licensing issue for streaming to ‘partner devices’, but it seems quite conspicuous that only titles tied to Sony are affected - and affected only for streaming to the Xbox 360. 

Perhaps it’s becuase Sony has been promising PS3 users ‘Home’ since early 2007, while MS’ NXE for Xbox 360 was announced only this year & is now here. 

Bitter much, Sony?  Pathetic. 

Game on!

As you know, the NXE now allows us to install Xbox 360 titles to our hard drive.  This is done to make the 360 quieter (no constantly spinning drive) and to improve load times (things load faster from a HDD than from a DVD). 

Well, Bungie came out with info just yesterday, advising 360 users to not install Halo 3 to the HDD.  Unlike with other titles, installing Halo 3 on you 360 can actually decrease performance & increase load times. 

The reasons for this are somewhat complicated, but here’s an excerpt from bungie.net:

 ”When Halo 3 runs, if a HDD is present, we copy maps from the DVD to the utility partition (on the HDD). Think of it as an on demand install of Halo 3 to some scratch space on the HDD. Halo 3 doesn’t actually know where it’s running from, so it always assumes it’s running from a DVD. This is an unfortunate consequence of new features (namely, install to HDD) being added to the Xbox 360 after Halo 3 shipped. And as a result, it means that even if Halo 3 is already installed to the HDD, it will still copy maps to the utility partition.”

For the complete explanation, you can look HERE. 

We’re forced to wonder now if any other games might suffer from this same issue.  Hopefully MS will do a bit of research on this issue and let us all know. 

Game on!

Frag Monger’s Avatar 

The New Xbox Experience has arrived!  For the most part, the reviews have been positive.  There are, however, a few annoying issues that many users don’t seem to like:

-You start off at the ‘Spotlight’ area, rather than in ‘My Xbox’ and there is no option to change this.  Many users are annoyed with this.  While I don’t mind too much, I must agree that an option to change your startup location would be a good idea.

-Old themes and even custom background pictures are ‘cut off’ by a gray ‘background’ that covers half the screen.  I don’t like this.  Why have a gray background cover half (or more) of your desktop wallpaper?  I’ve already seen a few of the ‘Premium’ theme packs - and they have backgrounds that completely fill the screen.  Is MS punishing those of us who chose not to purchase any themes by cutting off our custom background photos? 

You also see only one blade background from previously purchased themes on the new NXE.  This could really annoy a lot of people who paid good money for those themes (which are now ‘gimped’ by the NXE).

-Avatars.  This one I don’t really get.  Many users are coplaining about having to use an avatar (avatar creation is mandatory upon starting the NXE).  I really don’t see the big deal.  Take a minute to create one and then you’ll almost never have to see it again (currently it only shows on the dash at the ‘My Xbox’ area).  You can even still use your old gamerpics on your gamercard (you do not have to make your 3D avatar your new gamercard pic). 

I still need to mess around with the features more and try out the Netflix streaming, etc. etc.  So look for a full NXE review ASAP right here on 360 Rant Rave.

Game on!

Electronic Arts Inc. announced today that the critically acclaimed Dead Space(tm) will be releasing premium upgrade packs* to provide the game hero, Isaac Clarke, an everyday systems engineer, with the ultimate Necromorph-dismembering equipment in his fight for survival aboard the space-traveling USG Ishimura. Players can experience the glory of strategic dismemberment November 13 on Xbox LIVE(r) Marketplace worldwide and the
PLAYSTATION(r)Store** in Europe. These premium upgrade packs will be available on the PLAYSTATION Store worldwide November 20.

Winner of over 23 critic awards and boasting a score of 89 on Metacritic.com, Dead Space delivers the ultimate in psychological thrills and gruesome action. It is a bold and often-bloody sci-fi survival horror game set 500 years in the future. The innovative combat in the game calls for intense gore and character dismemberment that can be experienced even further with these premium upgrade packs.

The complete list of upgrade packs include:

* Astronaut Pack: Download the Astronaut Suit and Weapon Skin Pack,
featuring an amazing Astronaut Suit and new skins for the Plasma Cutter, Pulse Rifle, and Ripper! * $3.00 / 240 MS points

* Big Gun Pack: Download the Steam Punk Force Gun, the ultimate in
Necromorph-killing destruction. * $1.00 / 80 MS points

* Heavy Damage Pack: Download the Heavy Damage Weapon pack featuring a cool new look and massive firepower for the Plasma Cutter, Contact Beam, Pulse Rifle, and Ripper. * $3.00 / 240 MS points

* Hot Rod Pack: Download the Hot Rod Weapon Skin Pack, featuring awesome flame graphics for the Flamethrower and Pulse Rifle. * $1.00 / 80 MS points

* Military Pack: Download the Military Weapon Pack for a new look and
enhanced power for all 7 Dead Space weapons. * $4.00 / 320 MS points

* Pedestrian Pack: Download the Pedestrian Weapon Skin Pack, featuring a
fresh new look for the Contact Beam, Plasma Cutter, and Ripper. * $1.50 / 120 MS points

* Scorpion Pack: Download the Scorpion Pack featuring an upgraded Level 5
Suit and powered up Plasma Cutter, Line Gun, and Force Gun, all decorated in an awesome red Scorpion Skin. * $4.00 / 320 MS points

* Scorpion Weapon Pack: Download the Scorpion Weapon Pack featuring a faster death-dealing Plasma Cutter, Line Gun, and Force Gun in awesome red skins. * $2.25 / 180 MS points

* Speed Kills Pack: Download the Speed Kills Weapon Pack! Includes
faster-firing Force Gun, Line Gun, and Plasma Cutter. * $2.25 / 180 MS points

* Tank Pack: Download the Tank Pack featuring an upgraded Level 5 Suit and powered up Flamethrower, Force Gun, and Line Gun, all covered in Unitology script. * $4.00 / 320 MS points

Xbox 360(r)-Exclusive Packs:

* Elite Weapon Skin Pack: Download the exclusive Elite Weapon Skin Pack now, available only for the Xbox 360(r) video game and entertainment system! Includes weapon skins in Xbox 360 colors for the Line Gun, Plasma Cutter, and Pulse Rifle. * 120 MS points

* Elite Pack: Download the exclusive Elite Suit and Weapon Skin Pack now,
available only for the Xbox 360! Includes an upgraded Level 5 suit, and weapon skins for the Line Gun, Plasma Cutter, and Pulse Rifle in Xbox 360 colors. * 240 MS points

So gear up  and get what you need to wipe out the Necros.

Game on!

Introduction:

The name’s Bond, James Bond. Treyarch and Activision try to breathe new life into an old genre with the latest installment in the Bond franchise.  The game begins with the end of Casino Royale and moves forward a bit before going all the way back to the beginning of Casino Royale. Then it plays through the more action packed parts of that movie with a final level back in the Quantum of Solace story line.  It’s a very interesting way to remove as many spoilers as possible.

Gameplay:
Girls, gadgets and guns; that is what James Bond is famous for and boy are there a lot of them in this game.  The gameplay is smooth and fun if not challenging.  It’s an interesting hybrid between a first-person shooter and third-person action game with a cover system tossed in.  I, for one, typically do not like cover systems. I do not need a system to help me hide behind a rock. I do that well enough on my own.  That said, this cover system is really well done.

The AI seemed a bit confused. I had heard that this game was easy from several people so I started playing it on 007 mode, which is the hardest mode available.  I cleared the first level no problem but upon making it into the second level I was stuck - not because the AI was using advanced tactics on me but because their idea of difficulty was lowering your life and/or upping their damage.  So, frustrated, I moved it down to normal and played through the game with little to no problem.  On the two levels I had played at the higher difficulty I noticed no difference in AI tactics; just the difference in damage and life.  This was disappointing.

There were several times that I actually got lost in the single player, but that is largely due to the fact that I was not paying enough attention to one thing or another.  The game has several objects that explode and cause some effect on the enemies/environment near them.  Some things explode into flame and others into gases that just choke or stun them.  This can lead to some interesting situations and resolutions to those situations.

Extras:
Multiplayer: that’s what we all remember from Goldeneye64 and its what we all expect from any respectable shooter on the market today.  Quantum of Solace does not quite live up to the standards of the other top shooters out at this time.  The one thing that was favorable to the online experience was that, instead of unlocking new weapons and attachments from leveling up, you gain credits after each game and you purchase specific weapons, attachments and gadgets with them.  Each item has a specific price, and after one or two games you will begin to notice their effect.

That brings me to another point about the game - the gadgets.  Sadly, they are nothing new. It’s basically Call of Duty 4’s perks rehashed so that they fit better with the mechanics in place.  However, they do allow for flexible design of your kits.

Conclusion:
The game is enjoyable but when a company releases a game that has such steep competition, even from one of their own games, they should make more of an effort.  This is the problem with Quantum of Solace; they have another game coming out later this month that would be in direct competition with this title.  So I feel that this game was made inferior compared to what it could have been had the developer not been creating competition for their own game.  All in all it is a solid rental with four or five hours of story mode and a below average multiplayer experience.

Score: 6

cdv Software Entertainment USA today released the third trailer in the three-part “Introduction to Ancaria” video series. In this new video from Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, the
upcoming action-RPG for Windows PC and next generation consoles, watch as several of the game’s playable characters do battle with a fearsome undead army whose sole goal is the destruction of the world.

You can view the new trailer HERE.

If you missed parts 1 & 2, you can view them HERE.

Game on!

Today, Microsoft Game Studios and Ensemble Studios announced that the much-anticipated strategy game “Halo Wars” will be landing at retailers worldwide this February in both a standard and Limited Collector’s Edition format. Taking the “Halo” battle beyond the first person, “Halo Wars” puts players in command of the battlefield and combines the intensity of “Halo” with a riveting new story that precedes the events of “Halo: Combat Evolved.”

Developed by Ensemble Studios, the creators of the critically-acclaimed “Age of Empires” series, “Halo Wars” was designed specifically for Xbox 360 and brings a genre that has typically thrived on the PC seamlessly to consoles. From specialized controls to redesigned resource management and unit command, “Halo Wars” will give players the fluid strategy experience they’ve been waiting for on a console.

In addition to the standard retail version, “Halo Wars” will be offered in a Limited Collector’s Edition through participating retailers and will feature:

• Three New “Halo 3” Multiplayer Maps – Be one of the first to experience the Mythic Map Pack from Bungie which includes three new maps, “Assembly,” “Orbital” and “Sandbox”
• Halo Wars: Genesis – a beautiful graphic novel by Phil Noto, Graeme Devine and Eric Nylund chronicling the first military campaign against the Covenant. The novel centers around the Sprit of Fire on a mission to discover why the Covenant are so interested in the world of Harvest
• Unique In-game Vehicle – “Honor Guard” Wraith
• Six Leader Cards – Leaders possess elite skills which can turn the tides of battle
• Spirit of Fire Patch – Start the journey as an official Spirit of Fire crew member

As an added bonus, fans eager for their chance to battle the Covenant will be able to pre-order “Halo Wars” and receive a pre-order card to download a special in-game Warthog vehicle with flame decals from select participating retailers.

The standard edition of “Halo Wars” will have an estimated retail price of $59.99 and the Limited Collector’s Edition will retail for an estimated price of $79.99. “Halo Wars” is rated “T” for Teen.

More information on “Halo Wars” can be found online at www.Xbox.com/HaloWars or www.HaloWars.com.

Game on!

cdv Software Entertainment USA today released the second trailer in the three-part “Introduction to Ancaria” video series. In this new video from Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, the
upcoming action-RPG for Windows PC and next generation consoles, watch as several of the game’s playable characters do battle with a fearsome undead army whose sole goal is the destruction of the world. 

You can view the first two trailers in the series and 6 new screenshots below.

Videos:

Introduction to Ancaria - Video 1 (MOV file - R-Click & Save Target As)

Introduction to Ancaria - Video 2 (MOV file - R-Click & Save Target As)

Screenshots:

Screenshot 1

Screenshot 2

Screenshot 3

Screenshot 4

Screenshot 5

Screenshot 6

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is currently slated for a Feb. 19, 2009 release on Xbox 360.

Game on!