Desparadooooooooo

Just when I thought I had made up my mind and was proudly touting I would be buying a Playstation 3 sometime after xmas, Microsoft have to make me turn my head and notice their crazy new Australian price drop on all Xbox 360 models. Now it goes something like this

Xbox Arcade - $299

Xbox 20GB Pro Console - $349

Xbox 60GB Pro Console - $399

Xbox Elite Console - $549

While the Elite is still incredibly overpriced for its only redeeming features (being the 120GB hard drive and black colour) the other systems are looking very appealing. Even though I'm still committed to my plans to buy a Playstation 3 sometime between boxing day and start of my 2009 classes, I can't help but 'want' to jump into the Xbox gaming pool and see what I'm missing now that the systems are coming down in price this fast. I guess I should get all the details lined out about why I have been pro PS3 this whole time

Playstation 3

pros

-80GB HDD, easily upgradeable to anying from 120-500GB

-Built in Wifi

-Free online play via PSNetwork

-Already have Rock Band equipment for PS2 (meaning no new hardware required)

-System does not use a prehestoric disc tray

cons

-AU$699!

-Stripped backwards compatibility for PS2 games

-Trophies don't apply to all games

-Where the hell is Home!?!?

now heres the factors for the Xbox 360

pros

-Cheaper than a Wii

-Achievements/Gamerscore

-New Xbox Experience will help save my discs

-Avatars

-Xbox Live Arcade

cons

-Consoles stability reputations

-Disc tray is still a threat to my games pre install

-Paying for Xbox Gold

-No built in Wifi (and no way in hell I'm paying extra for a Wifi adapter)

Now the situation for me about built in Wifi is a big one, since I don't use a wired connection for anything in my house, and the internet connection is pretty far from where the console would be living. Meaning I can pretty much pass on Xbox Live Gold/Demos/DLC/Live Arcade. Of course now that games can be installed onto the harddrive I'll have a use for the 20GB/60GB storage. All this means is that I will still buy third party software on PS3 just to make use of online play n such, but theres still the matter of Microsofts exclusives.

With no other way to say this I'll just put it out there. Is it worth buying an Xbox 360 Pro Conosle (I'd be gunning for a 60GB deal) for single player experiences in games like Halo/Gears of War and single player exclusives like Fable 2/Ninja Gaiden 2? 

I really need to sleep on this, its hurting my head. The only cure for a sore head would be to go play some more Rock Band so I'm out for tonight

Cheers!

Stoiboi and his new Toi

xmas decided to pop in a tad early this year for me, and Santy Clause left me a little something (heavily emphisise the 'little'). After a year of complaining about the disc drive in my Inspiron 6400 being mostly for decoration and avoiding the 'ctrl' and 'backspace' keys to keep them attached I can finally say screw you to Dell and upgrade (or is it a downgrade?) to an Acer Aspire One netbook!

As a student who is on trains for hours every week with nothing to do a netbook is perfect for me. Although in a somewhat opposite direction I opted for the XP version over the super streamlined Linux model, simply out of fear of change like a politician born in the baby boomer generation. The strange part about coming off a laptop that was once touted to be comparible to standard desktops to a netbook is very little has been lost over the transition. After a day of making the machine my own I've noticed that any attempts to really 'push' the Aspire One will show its weak point. The Aspire One simply isn't built to handle multiple beefy applications that you would run without a second thought on a half decent laptop/desktop.

That said, keeping the interface clean and tackle things one at a time the Aspire One it holds up surprisingly well. It can even pull off a mean gaming machine for WoW or anything below it in terms of demand on the CPU (abit with some sliders turned down). I've just come off playing through Sam & Max - Abe Lincoln Must Die and the experience was identical to what I had on my Inspiron, both chugged at the car chase with giant Lincoln but otherwise had no problems. I wouldn't feel bad now picking up the ol' Fallout games just to see what all the fuss is about Bethesda pooing some guns over Oblivion and calling it Fallout 3.

One strange thing is bugging me about my new Aspire One though, there is no external volume control. No sliders on the side of the machine, just the volume control options from inside the lappy itself. This is making it a little more annoying to adjust the volume when someone is nagging me to turn the sound up/down, but like the disc drive before it I'm sure I wont miss it after a few months. For now I should get to work and finish my final essay for tafe (and maybe some game reviews)

Cheers

EDIT: Actually it looks like the proper writing will be temporarily postponned for now. It seems the 60 day trail for MS Office 2007 (why only a trial when Linux gets full Open Office I have no idea) doesn't want to cough up an activation key. So to you Microsoft I say NO. I will not jump through your loopholes just to temporarily use a program that should have been ready as soon as I open up this machine. You probably wont see revenue from me when I go obtain a full version in the next week just out of sheer annoyannce from tonight, thank the dark lords for the internetz insistance on piracy of software. Now where did I see that link to a cracked download of Office 2000...

Tis the season...to put up with xmas carols in the workplace!!!

One good thing about having a real job while whoring yourself out as a writer is recieving a regular sampling of cash money for materialistic desires. With only a few months of holiday work to look forward to at the overly twaty David Jones I gots a lot of shit to stock up on. Of course this means dealing with Christmas carols being played in the food court while running around delivering foodstuffs to the stalls. After one day I'm about ready to stab someone in the eye, so hopefully I can drown this stuff out for the rest of the season.

While I was originally planning to wait until after I picked up a PS3 for this, I'm really considering jumping into the Rock Band wagon with a PS2 bundle. Sure the game itself is stripped down the hell and back again, but since the hardware is identical over the 2 systems I wouldn't feel so guilty warming up on the PS2 now for when I have a spare $700 to blow out my rear hole (damn these Aus prices!!!) Fingers crossed Big W/EB (if it comes down to price matching) don't disappoint next week in finding my $217 band bundle + game.

As for other newish releases it is bleak until previously said PS3 comes into my life, which wont be until after the holidays most likely. Guess this makes things easier though since after Disaster and Fire Emblem DS there are no must buys. Ideas are always welcome from the masses, especially since I need to get off my hiney and actually WRITE some new reviews. Now since I don't have anything useful to say tonight I shall take my leave.

Cheers

Did you hear the one about the guy with a blog that never updated it?

Don't get your hopes up yet you three people who read my blog that don't like me, I'm not dead yet. And to the other 2 that are indifferent to me as a person sorry but since updating to Google Chrome (and abandoning this as my homepage) I tend to forget I even have this ranting ground fantastic blog. As it has been a month of not mentioning updates I guess I should get around to informing what is new in my small small world of games journalisms.

Eco Gamer - been a bit bad and ignoring the reviews as of late, but the '1 review a week' shedule keeps a nice regular backlog. Since Madden 09 All-Play went up though the well has dried up and I need to find some not too old stuff to write about. Now that I have an income from David Jones I can at least not fret about picking up new releases, although not having a PS3/360 really limits my choice of big software releases to choose from.

Also look forward to Eco Gamers buyers guide. While not a list of 2008 highest metacritic scores like every other gaming site/magazine out there, it is a list of useful tips for being great game gifter to others. 

The Box - I know I know, I said screw them and the people who jumped at my idea for a games section. That changes when the editor emails you and asks if the only one who gives a damn wants to continue the section in 2009. While it doesn't mean free review games as of yet, it means another feature and possible the previously mentioned 'list of 2008 top metacritic games' for extra filler.

Maybe I'll get around to a proper post instead of these pointless updates sometime in the next week. And then maybe I'll actually start caring about this place more than I care about the production of a movie based of the life of Britney Spears.

Repent or thou shall be forsaken!

Yes people, it has finally happened. Some flare has gone off inside the head of the mother creature and she took me out with her to purchase Wii Fit. Not just any Wii Fit, but a FULLY PRICED copy of Wii Fit! Sure the only catalogue that had it on sale was Myer (which doesnt stock games in our one) but she doesn't care since this looks to be a nice impluse buy.

I will admit however that once I got the balance board set up and registered both of our Miis through background shoutings of 'Hurry up, I want to play!' that we both had this strange feeling when we played. I think this emotion is called...fun? Well whatever it was, it made both of us put in a full 30 minute session each of yoga, muscle excersies and hula hooping. Now I give myself about a month before I banish Wii Fit back into its case and never speak of the balance board again (unless I pick up Skate It or some other equally gimmicky piece of software) and as for dearest mother, I give her a week at most. 2 if she finally learns how to turn on the Wii and start up the game herself.

On a more positive note I was able to pick up a little something for myself during the trip to JB Hifi as you can see in the picture below. Now that I'm wrecked for the night I guess I'll start playing this before bed and hopefully finish it in a day or two. 

Developing the Game Down under follow up

A couple days late, but better late then never to show off the rare occasions in which I nab software in its intial launch period. Review should be written up in a day or two after I spend some more time with the game, but since Eco Gamer reviews only go up at a rate of one per week it may be a while. Outside of the game itself I did have a couple of little annoyances that I just need to get out of me now instead of surpressing them like my inner carnal desires.

In a sort of followup to my 'Developing the game Down Under' piece published in The Box I feel the urge to talk more about the Australian made game. Back when folks from Krome were in Melbourne showing off Hellboy and Star Wars at the ACMI center I discussed with them if they felt their game was identifiable as Australian (or even just Krome itself) made. Sure enough they were confident with the hype they had been generating for the Wii game thanks to their exclusive content and multiplayer modes, even making it sound like the 360/PS3 devs were trying to play catchup. Now quality of the games aside, after nabbing my copy of TFU I couldn't help but notice how easy it was to miss the Krome logo on the back of the box while Lucasarts was plastered right on the front.

While the name Krome doesn't generate as much hype (or even casual acknowledgement) as something like Lucasarts, I can't shake the feeling that this is just a dick move in advertising the brand over the artists who put time and effort into this game. Sure in retrospect the Wii game was always going to be sitting in the shadows of its tech heavy bigger brothers, but the point is why do the developers get pushed to the back of the box while someone else takes their credit away. The people at Krome were doing more than porting a PS2 engine to the Wii, they were making an entirely new game seperate to the 360/PS3 showoffs with their own talents. Ranting here wont get Krome front page of Hyper magazine and an appology from Georgey boy himself; thats what hitmen and big bags of money are for. The point is unless you are 'in the know' about the scene, Australians will once again let another locally developed title slip away from their graps while the government continues to ignore the countries potential in the industry. 

Me 0: big bad world 1

Not in the mood for witty comments today, in the middle of one of those 'teen angtsy' moments the youth of today claim makes them extremely suidical and depressed. Frankly, all its done for me is keep my away from the junk food I normally eat when I'm sad so it seems to have bettered me.

Since its been a friggin long time since my last post I figured its best to let people know I'm not dead and give an update on stuffs, so here goes:

Economical Gamer - still plenty of reviews to come, and now that Anthony is doing a few it wont be the typical 99% my reviews list thats there. I'll still try to get through at least one a week for now and I'm just about done with Madden 09 All-Play + Sonic Rush Adventure reviews. In an attempt to better connect with the masses I've decided to take requests for reviews. Right now the list stands like this with my decisded reviews and requests

Wii

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Red Steel

De Blob

PS2

Yakuza 2

Devil May Cry collection (1-3 were released in a bundle in the US so I'll just pretend we also got that)

DS

Sonic Chronicels The Dark Brotherhood

Always open to more requests since it saves me time + effort in trying to decide for myself during the slow periods, and with an extremely sad holiday line up for the PS2 and Wii its gonna get frusterating deciding what to review. Also before I forget there will be a holiday buyers guide written up in the next month or so for the site by yours truly covering what are expected to be the big sellers, and some friendly tips/recommendations for game buyers and givers. Look forward to it!

The Box - this is pretty much going to shits for lack of a better word. There will be no term 4 issue of the magazine and I havent really heard anything back from them in continuing the games stuff. With everyone else who originally jumped on the idea giving up/dropping out/being extremely unreliable its safe to say this was just a one off. Guess that means more time to Eco Gamer and other places.

And thats pretty much all to report on what is a surprisingly sunny day.

Cheers