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Impression of Halo 3’s Legendary Map Pack
Posted April 14th, 2008 at 11:34pm
Halo 3 fans have eagerly awaited Microsoft's release of the "Legendary" map pack for download on April 15 (i.e. today), but the $10 pricetag might be a bit off-putting for those who don't want to buy three new maps sight-unseen. Fear not: 1up has been playing the Legendary maps for a while now and have given some pretty thorough impressions (replete with video) and will fill in a lot of the blanks for those of you who are wondering what's behind the curtain. Here's a taste of what they had to say about a new map called "Avalanche":Helping to cut down on the long treks are two-way teleporters and lots of vehicles, including Ghosts, Warthogs, Wraiths, Scorpions, and a toned-down-and-balanced-for-multiplayer, rocket-launcher-less Hornet. ("We knew the [original] Hornet was a death machine," says Bakken. "It wasn't tweaked very well for multiplayer.") The developers also removed the interior hallways that used to connect the two bases, forcing most of the conflicts outdoors. The result? The most exciting, most action-packed large-sized Halo map yet. As a side note, the previous map pack (entitled "Heroic") was also priced at $10 (or 800 Ms points) when it was first released, but as of the 15th will be available for free download.halo 3, legendary, map pack, microsoft, xbox
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Microsoft explains why the Xbox doesn’t have mod support. Kinda.
Posted April 14th, 2008 at 10:58pm
This piece from Eurogamer about mod support on the Xbox caught my eye, and with games like Unreal Tournament and Half Life 2 - two games with a healthy mod-making community - playing such a prominent role in the Xbox's history (and popularity), it does give one pause to ask why it is that the Xbox doesn't support certain kinds of user-based add-ons. Microsoft XNA general manager Chris Satchell cited several concerns with user-created mods becoming commonly supported for the Xbox, some of which included security concerns:Really what works in this industry is the people who have access to that native metal of the console, that go through these processes, are financially invested in this industry; they wouldn't do anything bad. Developers want to do good things because they want this industry to work. There's a lot of people out there that just want to prove they can screw things up. I think there's very mature, sensible hackers who just want to prove how good they are, and they don't cause harm, and there's malicious hackers, and any platform that let's you do that, and doesn't have the right security measures in place - whether it's Sony, whether it's Nintendo, whether it's Apple, whether it's anyone - you're inviting trouble, because sooner or later someone will want to prove they can do it. This begs the question of whether or not Satchell is suggesting that PS3 users are exposed to security threats that the Xbox 360 is not (as therechris satchell, mods, ps3, user community, xbox
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Xbox vs Vacuum… Mom: 1, Kid: 0
Posted April 14th, 2008 at 10:17pm
Kids: If you live with your mom and you're told to do a chore, just put a cork in your pie hole and do it. "Why?" you ask? Because, as Gizmodo reports, your mom may end up pwning you in a huge way. The story is about a 13 year old kid from Virginia who was told to put down the Xbox 360 controller and do a little house work. Instead of doing as he was asked, he intentionally broke the vacuum cleaner and went back to Bioshock or whatever he was frying his brain on. Then came the stinging lesson in hierarchical authority within American households: Mom put his Xbox and games on Ebay (and, as a footnote, also busted him for surfing porn). Here's part of the story:My 13 year old managed to break the vacuum....thinking it would release him from that duty. He also has a list of other chores that were TYPED up for him to do Friday afternoon....one thing on the list was done...mind you these are simple things...empty the trash, clean your room, etc. Then I go thru the cookies on his computer and find out he has been checking out porn sites. Now there is a password so he can't even get on and his my-space page has a picture of snoopy on it now. Apparently I'm the meanest mom in the world, were his words. I'm a single mom. I can't let them walk over me or I might never get up.GTA IV: Downloadable content makes Xbox the winner
Posted April 14th, 2008 at 9:46pm
Most folks who are following emerging news about Grand Theft Auto IV will know that there are Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 versions on deck, and a lot of people also know that the Xbox version boasts something that the PS3 doesn't: Downloadable content. Joystiq decided to rub some salt in Playstation 3 owners' wounds by running a little poll to see which of the two would be the one gamers want to grab. Not surprisingly, the Xbox 360 version came out on top (capturing 58% of votes where the PS3 grabbed a more modest 42%). It's an interesting poll, and Joystiq reports these findings:The top reasons cited for playing Grand Theft Auto IV on the Xbox 360 were achievements (24), the downloadable content (24) and more friends on Xbox Live (20). As for those who picked the PlayStation 3, the reason commenters most often gave was hardware concern for the Xbox 360 (17), either the Red Ring of Death or the loud cooling fan, especially after 100 hours of gameplay. Surprising to us was the number of people who said they didn't care about downloadable content (10). Personally, if I own one console or the other (few people own both) then I'd have to learn to live with the fact that certain titles that the other guy can get aren't available to me... or aren't available with all the same features. Obviously, if I own a PS3 I'm going to vote for the PS3 version (cause I'm gonna buygrand theft auto iv, gta iv, playstation, xbox
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Bourne Conspiracy game gets demo but no Damon
Posted April 14th, 2008 at 9:22pm
Vivendi's upcoming Bourne Conspiracy game for Xbox will have a demo, Vivendi confirms, and it'll appear next month around the time of the game's release. No word on a Playstation version yet, but CVG reports that it's on the way for Xbox and will be grabbable off the Xbox LIVE Marketplace store. Press have been singing this song's praises, especially in the graphics department, but it's worth mentioning for fans of the Bourne movies: Matt Damon's likeness wasn't licensed for the creation of the game... so if you're hoping to see Mr. Good Will Hunting beat someone down with a rolled-up magazine (that was awesome btw) you'll be disappointed.bourne conspiracy, demo, vivendi, xbox
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Microsoft does something nice for once
Posted March 27th, 2008 at 12:17am
I love a happy ending. Quick recap: Nathaniel took his XBox 360 to the shop because of Red Ring of Death issues (like so many other people do) and got it fixed. No big, at first, but this Xbox was special: The Halo team had signed it all over with personalized messages and autographs, so obviously it was of great sentimental value. Imagine the shock when Nathaniel got it back in working condition but scrubbed from top to bottom with all the signatures gone from sight. Not a happy boy. Destructoid tells the tale of "all's well that ends well" by talking about who stepped up to the plate to make amends:Bungie stepped in and showered Nathaniel with a ton of Halo swag. Most people figured this would be the end of the story but it looks like Microsoft actually stepped in and made it up to Nathaniel. Microsoft sent Nathaniel a box full of awesome things. He got an Xbox 360 signed by the original RT signers, new artwork by Luke McKay, signatures from the Xbox 360 team and signatures from Bungie. The faceplate was also signed by a few others including Bill Gates himself. The package also contained: * Devil May Cry 4 * Lost Odyssey * Rainbow Six Vegas 2 * Gears of War * Kingdom Under Fire: Circle of Doom * 2 ‘What’s Your Gamerscore?’ Bumperstickers * Xbox 360 CD Wallet * Signed picture of Bill Gates That signed pic of Bill Gates is gonna makeSonic Unleashed Teaser Trailer
Posted March 24th, 2008 at 9:34am
This weekend some sites brokes some leaked screenshots from this trailer. That's just fine, but I'm going to take my time if it's only screenshots. I mean, with rendering tech what it is these days, those could have been from some fan-made thing. But no, the movie from official sources kind of proves it. FINALLY! A Sonic game that captures the feeling of speed. Jeez, about time, people. Hm, coming "soon." Where's the rolleyes icon... I admit, however, the Wii guy in me wonders what's so great here that requires the power of the XBox 360 and the PS3. I mean, how about a little Wii lovin'?Halo 3 map pack locked and loaded for April 15
Posted March 20th, 2008 at 10:24pm
Bungie is about to drop a second map pack, entitled "Legendary" on Halo 3 fans this April 15, which will be downloadable for anyone who has the game. It'll ring in at a cost of 800 Microsoft points (which is worth $10), but Microsoft also intends to simultaneously make the previous downloadable map pack (called "Heroic") available for free on the same day. I don't like paying for downloadable content for a game I've already bought, but I find it a bit telling that Luke Smith of Bungie doesn't seem to either (on the company's site he says "Remember, we just make the maps, we don't get to price them"). The pack includes three new multiplayer maps, one of which is a reworking of the original Halo's Sidewinder map (which was quite popular). The other two maps, Ghost Town and Moonlight, are being kept under wraps at the moment... but they promise to be real purty.Xbox Dpad = Epic Fail
Posted March 20th, 2008 at 7:53pm
A lot of you have Xbox 360's and a lot of you love them... but there's no arguing that this great game machine happens to have a few flaws. Destructoid focuses on one in particular: The Dpad... and let me tell you, they don't like it. In between a whole lot of venom being spit up at the Xbox controller, those who designed it, and those who like it, some pretty strong points get made about how something that should have been the very epitome of simple and effective design was turned into an unfortunate example of fail and suck.Instead of the button contacting the membrane directly, you've given us this barbell-type thing, essentially a middleman between our thumb and the circuitboard? Again, dear reader, I'm not going to bore you with the details. When you chuck your 360 controller across the room in frustration while trying to play something that uses the Dpad, you can peek inside its shattered remains and see for yourself. Admittedly, the assessment is pretty histrionic and makes a bigger deal out of it than it needs to be... but when Destructoid claims that the Xbox Dpad is designed in a silly way and is more susceptible to breaking or otherwise failing... they're right.Xbox made into an extremely ugly laptop
Posted February 5th, 2008 at 11:17am
File this under "pure awesome"; do-it-yourselfer Ben Heck has actually turned an Xbox 360 Elite into a laptop... case and screen and everything. Pictures and video at Engadget show off a somewhat homely but entirely workable laptop concept, and even shows you how: "Luckily for us lay-people, he's included a graphic breakdown of just about every step on the road to a portable Xbox 360, replete will all the case cracking, innards opening, wire splaying photos you could possibly want or need." It's no MacBook Air, but... if you wanted to play games then you weren't thinking about getting one of those anyhow.