The Full Circle: 360 News Report 09.01.07
Posted by Mike Minotti on 09.01.2007
Halo 3 goes gold, Mass Effect gets a release date, plus the latest Exploding Barrel podcast. It's all inside The Full Circle.
I miss BioShock. Sure, I could play through it again at any moment, but I wish there were some more levels or something. Not saying the game was short or anything, but I just enjoyed it that much.
The Call of Duty 4 beta eases my pain a bit. I hope you guys got into that beta, for your own sake. If not, have fun waiting for the official release. Suckers.
We have a new Exploding Barrel Podcast, the gaming podcast I do with my brother, Ajguy. This week we discuss Metroid Prime 3, and look back at the whole series to crown "The Best Metroid Ever". Ajguy also joins the Call of Duty 4 party, and I continue my quest to beat every Final Fantasy.
If you'd like to check it out, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'm sorry I called you all suckers, let's be friends now:
You can right-click the above picture to save the mp3. Check out the podcast's site here. Please leave some feedback if you give it a listen.
News
Gears of War map-pack soon to be free.
This is the Hidden Fronts map-pack that originally sold for 800 points. Starting this Monday, it will be free. The pack contains four maps. I'm glad I didn't buy this before, now.
TimeShift demo on Xbox Live.
Here's another FPS demo for all you shooter fans. The main hook here is a time changing mechanic that lets you pause, rewind, and fast forward through time. Sounds kind of like Blinx the Cat and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. I guess it was only a matter of time before an FPS went for this gimmick.
November 20th = Mass Effect
Yep, the much anticipated game from BioWare will be hitting US shores on November 20th. With GTAIV delayed, I imagine this will be the 360's big November release. That is if everyone is willing to take their attention away from Halo 3 for a second. Speaking of …
Halo 3 is gold.
Expected, since the game is coming out soon, but exciting news for Halo fans non-the-less. Considering the franchises popularity, I don't think the word "gold" has ever been more appropriately used.
XBL Arcade Demo Reviews
Streets of Rage 2 - 400 points
I do like this game. It's a great Genesis classic, and one of the better beat-em-ups from that time. It holds up pretty well, thanks to the grapple moves that make this game somewhat unique. Still, it does show some signs of aging, and the game is definitely more fun with two people. Also, maybe it was just the demo, but the game was awfully easy. I didn't die once throughout the whole three part level, and I don't think it's because I'm just that good.
Rating: Try it.
Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix - 800 points
I never played this game before, so this was a first for me. First of, those character sprites are definitely not in HD, so it loses points for that. Moving on, this is a pretty solid puzzle game, and a pretty traditional one at that. You line up similar color blocks that fall from the top, and then blow them up with similarly colored bombs, which cause more blocks to fall in your opponent's area. Simple and fun, but not exactly original.
Rating: Try it.
Weekly Releases
Two games where you shoot things. Well, that could describe a lot of weeks.
Medal of Honor: Airborne – 9/4
Here we are; another Medal of Honor game. They're smart to get this one out before Call of Duty 4 hits shelves.
Stranglehold – 9/5
I said this was coming out last week, but it saw a small delay. What they possibly could have fixed in one week, I do not know.
Weekly Poll
Last week's results:
How many Live Arcade games have you downloaded in the last month?
I'm not sure when it was announced, but the Penny Arcade game is coming to Xbox Live Arcade. This is convenient for me, since I rarely game on my PC anymore. Besides, any game featuring the heroes from Penny Arcade has to be good, right?
Right?
Well, I certainly hope so. The videos we've seen seem to capture the look of the strip, especially in the cutscenes. The 3D stuff is a bit more sketchy, but it's passable, especially for an episodic game. What worries me is the gameplay, which looks half adventure game (awesome) and half RPG (weird choice).
Actually, there was a PC game that pulled off that mixture pretty well. It was called Anachronox, and it had some of the best adventure gaming I had played in the long time. The RPG part wasn't as memorable. I'm afraid that the same thing may happen to the Penny Arcade game, especially if they decide to focus on the RPG aspect.
But I'll remain optimistic. Let's just hope Gabe and Tycho are half as good at gamecrafting as they are drawing and writing.
The Other Guys
Nintendophiles' Theo Fraser has screenshots of the 3D remake for Final Fantasy IV. I just beat the GBA version of that game last week. I liked it just fine in 2D, thank you.
Flashback looks at KOTOR 2: The Sith Lords, a game that didn't really live up to it's big brother.
Game Over
Have a good week everyone. See you next time right here, on The Full Circle.
