The Full Circle: 360 News Report 11.07.08

Posted by Joe Roche on 11.07.2008

In the spirit of the week it's another episode of The Full Circle. Can we have a column that talks about Gears of War, Banjo Kazooie, the New Xbox Experience, Fallout 3, Smackdown vs Raw 2009 and much, much more? Yes We Can!

As we wrap up arguably the most historic week of my lifetime there really is only one thing on the mind of Xbox 360 owners around this great land of ours and it has nothing to do with the President Elect. While November 4th, 2008 will go down as a monumental occurrence I can only assume that those reading this column are much more excited about November 7th, 2008 and the release of Gears of War 2. By the time this column is posted most of my regular readers will probably be hours into the story mode, and enjoying the Horde experience. So the question must be asked – can we produce a column on the same day that Gears of War 2 is released and I think there is only one answer to that my friends…yes we can.

Before we get to the column though:

- I realize that this is an exercise in self gratification but I know I tortured many of you with tales of the Massachusetts Bar Exam and how tedious and painful studying for the exam was. Because you all put up with my flakey writing schedule during that period of the summer I thought I owed it to you all to tell you that your patience has been rewarded. On Saturday I received official word from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that I passed the bar exam and I will be sworn in as a member of the Massachusetts Bar. John Thompson 0, Joe Roche 1.

- In gaming news I split my time this week between finishing Saints Row 2, and heading out into post nuclear apocalypse Washington D.C in Fallout 3. I'll save my SR2 thoughts for the official review which should be up early next week and give my first impression on Fallout 3. I'm really impressed with how well Bethesda establishes the feeling of being in a real post apocalyptic world. At points I'm wishing there were more enemies to fight, while at other times I appreciate the thought of being alone in this massive world in the middle of heaps of rubble. I'm not very deep into the game so stay tuned for my thoughts as I get further into everything.

And now without further ado the words that you've waited all week to see in print – it's Friday so let's go around The Full Circle.

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Consider Yourself Historical



I understand that this isn't video game news but as one of the biggest stories on a global scale of my lifetime I thought I owed it to someone to make mention of the Presidential Election. Whether or not you voted for Barack Obama, or even if you didn't vote at all on Tuesday you must at least acknowledge the importance on a history making scale of what we have all born witness to this week. Allow me to put my own spin on things – two years ago one of the two main storylines heading into Super Bowl XLI was that regardless of outcome we were going to see the first African American head coach win a Super Bowl. Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith were the first and second African American head coaches to lead teams to the Super Bowl, and this was a major story. Also two years in Massachusetts we elected our first black Governor in Deval Patrick. That's Massachusetts, we have gay marriage and now decriminalized marijuana and even we didn't elect an African American to the Governor's post until two years ago. Hell New York has NEVER elected an African American Governor and they only have one now because of a certain guy who couldn't keep his hands out of the proverbial cookie jar (replace cookie jar with hooker).

What does all of this mean? Simply that the election of Barack Obama is a huge moment in our nation's history, one that should be celebrated and recognized for how important it is to this country finally trying to clear a major hurdle in our development and move forward. This doesn't end racism in America, and it doesn't make up for everything that has happened but it's a step in the right direction and it shows the power of the American people to change and grow. I try to stay at unpartisan as possible but as someone who spent a good deal of money and time in college studying the political history of this country I was proud on Tuesday night of what we as a people were able to accomplish.

Rare Says Sit Closer

For those of you playing your 360 on a standard definition TV you might have noticed the text in Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts to be a bit on the small side. As a matter of fact even those of us who played the game on an HD set had trouble reading all of the words in the game. This seems like a problem that developer Rare would want to know about a fix, I mean how much fun can you have with a video game when part of the game is almost invisible to you? But the team responsible for the text mishap doesn't seem very inclined to spend the time/effort to fix the glitch as according to Rare community manager George Keolin "this is an issue that doesn't look like it will get changed." Apparently "the text issue you see in the demo is the same as that which you will find in the retail version of the game." I guess if you're interested in reading all of the text in the next installment of the Banjo Kazooie franchise you might want to invest in one of those sixty inch projector wall screens.



Trimmed Down NXE

When it was first announced the "New Xbox Experience" as it has become to be known had a lot of promise. There was a streamlined interface, avatars, Primetime the online social gaming application and streaming Netflix. However as the final release date draws near things have started to unravel a bit around the NXE, most notably the Primetime social gaming feature has gone from a highly anticipated launch feature to the scrap heap. Apparently there will be no avatars' playing 1 vs 100 until spring 2009 which will be good timing because by then nobody will even remember what 1 vs 100 was. Speaking to CVG Microsoft's Jerry Johnson stated that many of the features they had hoped to include in the official NXE launch had to be cut in order to have the product ready for November 19th. Of course Johnson assures everyone that updated the NXE is not that difficult and provides a much easier interface or developers to add content then the old system. This new and improved update system will allow developers to add content as they complete it, instead of waiting for the Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter mega update. On the one hand it's disappointing that the NXE will not have all the features that were touted when the service was announced (a very Sony move from Microsoft) but I'd rather have everything working and functional before it's in my living room anyways so I appreciate the care that Microsoft has put into this update.



The UK Loves Nuclear DC

In what may someday go down as evil foreshadowing of things to come Fallout 3, the video game that is set in a post apocalyptic Washington D.C. topped the sales charts across all platforms in the UK. According to GI.biz the Xbox 360 copy of the game made up 55% of the copies sold compared to 28% and 17% for the PS3 and PC respectively. Further establishing the fact that the UK loves to see Washington DC in ruins the game has already outsold Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout: Tactics, and Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel combined and it's only been on the shelves for a week. It is clear that people in the UK love nothing more then blowing off Super Mutant heads with teddy bears and walking through the ruins of Washington D.C. mainly on their Xbox 360.



Cliff Talking Games

When he has nothing to promote Cliff Bleszinski will happily talk to almost anyone about almost anything. Many people dislike Cliff because of how often he seems to pop up on these internets, and many take umbrage with what he says when he does state his opinion. Personally I couldn't enjoy the guy more. I respect anyone willing to create a game and then basically come out and proclaim "this is the best game you're ever going to play." I mean what's the point in even being in the industry and creating something if you think it isn't very good? But when Cliff actually has something to promote – well hold on to your hats folks because he's talking about everything under the sun now, including what games (not named Gears of War 2) that he's most excited about playing.

Fable II looks cool. And Resident Evil 5 is next year, right? I'm dying for that, I loved RE4.Street Fighter IV looks sick, and Dead Space also looks solid. I'm a fan of horror games — I loved Event Horizon and all of those movies, so they're making Dead Space for guys like me. That's my genre, and it looks great. I think Mirror's Edge will be great, too, but they're showing me too much parkour, I want to see the gunplay. I hope it's not all just running and jumping. As long as there's something chasing me...even Mario had Goombas, you know?

Can anyone really argue with that list? I think his criticism of Mirror's Edge is going to be the same problem that a lot of people have with it (as I said in this past week's Fact of Fiction) so at least me and Bleszinski are on the same page with that one.



Raw vs Smackdown 2009 Final Roster

Contributing to the strange release date train this week is the annual installment of Smackdown vs Raw featuring ECW 2009. While I assume that by now everyone who reads 411mania already knows what the official roster for this game is going to be I thought it was my duty as a writing on this site to put it in this column. Before getting to the list though I must say that it's pretty good, and when you consider the DLC possibilities I don't think there is anyone under contract with the WWE that you won't see at some point in this game (so do not fear Kenny Dykstra fans).

• Ashley[30]
• Batista[31]
• Beth Phoenix[32]
• Candice[33]
• Charlie Haas[28][b]
• Chris Jericho[34]
• Chuck Palumbo[35]
• CM Punk[36]
• Cody Rhodes[37]
• Hardcore Holly[38]
• JBL[39]
• Jillian[28][a]
• John Cena[40]
• JTG[41]
• Kane[42]
• Kofi Kingston[43]
• Lance Cade[44]
• Layla[45][28][a]
• Melina[46]
• Mickie James[47]
• Mr. McMahon[45][28][a]
• Paul London[48]
• Randy Orton[49]
• Rey Mysterio[50]
• Santino Marella[51]
• Shad[41]
• Shawn Michaels[52]
• Snitsky[45][28][a]
• Ted DiBiase[28][b]
• William Regal[53]
SmackDown
• Big Daddy V[54][28]
• Big Show[55]
• Brian Kendrick[48]
• Carlito[56]
• Curt Hawkins[28][a]
• Edge[57]
• Festus[58]
• The Great Khali[59]
• Jeff Hardy[60]
• Jesse[58]
• Jimmy Wang Yang[61]
• Maria[62]
• Michelle McCool[63]
• Mr. Kennedy[64]
• MVP[65]
• Ric Flair[28][a]
• Shelton Benjamin[66]
• Super Crazy[28][b]
• Trevor Murdoch[67][28]
• Triple H[68]
• Umaga[69]
• The Undertaker[70]
• Victoria[71]
• Zack Ryder[28][a]
ECW
• The Boogeyman[45][28][a]
• Chavo Guerrero[72]
• Elijah Burke[73]
• Evan Bourne[28][b]
• Finlay[74]
• John Morrison[75]
• Kelly Kelly[76][28]
• Mark Henry[77]
• Matt Hardy[60]
• The Miz[75]
• Tazz[45][28][a]
• Tommy Dreamer[78]
WCW
• Masked Man[28][a]
• Tony[28][a]
Non-playable characters
• Hornswoggle[c]
• Jerry Lawler
• Jim Ross
• Joey Styles
• Jonathan Coachman
• Justin Roberts
• Lilian Garcia
• Michael Cole
• Mickie Henson
• Mike Chioda
• Mr. McMahon (suit)
• Nick Patrick
• Shane McMahon
• Stephanie McMahon
• Tazz (suit)
• Tony Chimel
• Vickie Guerrero

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Reader Rants

Gillian: I admit to dropping the ball last week by not making a more Halloween centric column. I had all the opportunity to make a Simpson's Treehouse of Horror like impact on October 31st but missed the boat entirely. Hopefully a gaff like this will never happen again.

Matthew Sforcina: I don't disagree with you on your thoughts about EA and their advertising around Madden 09. I understand that they're fighting it out for the mainstream audience to pick up a copy of their game not just as you point out the football game fans. However, when you're hemorrhaging money to the point where you have to fire 6% of your total workforce isn't that a strong enough sign that perhaps you're going about things the wrong way?

Drew Robbins: It is pretty sad when EA finally starts to put out games that are fresh, new and innovative and then posts their biggest loses to date. I am depressed.

Derek Robbins: First of all stop pretending you're two people we all know the truth. Secondly, I've decided that Rod isn't an actual human being, he's a computer sent from the future – he is 411mania's HAL.

TWilliams: I agree that faster load times are not a make or break selling point for me. I do think that it'll be interesting to try it out because a quieter Xbox would be nice but I'm not losing sleep over 9 seconds instead of 15 seconds between cut scenes.

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The Hot Button:

Today's topic: The Gears Movie

Obviously the biggest story of the week for us 360 owners is the release of Gears of War 2 so I had to find a topic to discuss that centered on the game. During this past week I participated in Fact of Fiction and one of the questions concerned whether or not a "real" actor would be found to portray Marcus Fenix in the big screen adaptation of Gears of War. Cliff Bleszinski has already said he wants a real actor involved with the movie and while I understand his desire (this is his baby after all) you have to remember that video game films don't always (see: ever) come out that well. Sure Dwayne Johnson is a real actor and starred in DOOM but that was during the phase of his career where he was still calling himself The Rock. Regardless I thought this would it would be fun to do some casting for the Gears movie, if you want to add your suggestions in the comment section please do.

The man who has been slated to direct the Gears movie is Len Wiseman and last week he did an interview with MTV and revealed that the game will have elements of a prequel. Although he does not say that the entire film is a prequel after having read Aspho Fields I am leaning towards thinking that we'll get a new story that is perhaps centered on E Day. I think because this is a going to be a Hollywood movie there will be something centered around Dom and Maria because you simply don't make movies these days that just involve big dudes running around shooting aliens without any love story. So without further ado this is my suggestions/predictions for who winds up cast in the Gears of War movie.

Marcus Fenix: Vinnie Jones. I need an actor who is big and can be imposing without using much dialogue. I think that someone like Vinnie Jones would be perfect for the role of Marcus, unfortunately I also think it's too big of a role for him. I tend to lean towards someone like Steve Austin for this part, but it's my movie we're casting so I'm going with Vinnie.

Dom Santiago: Matt Damon. In any Gears of War movie the actor playing Dom will have more weight on their shoulders then whoever plays Marcus. There will probably be a love story centered on Dom finding Maria so we need someone who can do action, dialogue, and emotion – isn't Jason Bourne at least close to that guy? If you can only get one big name actor attached to this movie it has to be in the role of Dom, and I like Damon playing that part.

Augustus Cole: Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. For those who don't know this is the real name of Mr. Echo from Lost. My only problem with Agbaje, who is a fantastic actor is that I've never seen him act excited. The two roles that I know him best from are as Echo, and Adebisi from Oz, neither of those roles makes me think he'd be the perfect wise cracking happy-go-lucky guy. However, he's cast as Heavy Duty in the new G.I: Joe movie so I will hold out hope.

Damon Baird: Dane Cook. Someone put this suggestion in the comments of Fact or Fiction and it made me cringe. The more I thought about it though the more it fit. I mean what does Baird need to do? He needs to talk a lot, he needs to be a wiseass and he needs to get people to hate him. Is there anyone on the planet that fits that role better then Dane Cook?

Victor Hoffman: Bruce Willis. I think this part might be to small for Bruce but he's worked pretty well with Wiseman in the past, and I think he'd be a good choice for the character. After reading Aspho Fields I can say that Hoffman is a bit tortured with both his actions towards Marcus, and his age catching up to him. If anyone can pull off that character it's Bruce Willis.

Maria Santiago: Kate Beckinsale. Obviously the only benefit to having Len Wiseman direct your movie is so you can put Kate Beckinsale in it right? I thought about Kate for the role of Anya Stroud but if we're going to center the film on Dom and Maria then I think she'll get more screen time as Maria. Frankly I don't think it's the best fit, and she is too big of a star for some bit part as the woman in trouble but she's so damn hot that I don't really care, it's my movie – she's in.


- This looks like a Maria to me!

So there you have it, my cast for the main roles in a Gears of War movie. Please leave your suggestions in the comment section.

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Punching Out

Book Review Jones: Aspho Fields by Joe Roche

The 10th Hour by Derek Robbins

Achievement Unlocked by Rod Oracheski

Coming Attractions by Joe Roche

The Checkpoint by John Curry

Fact of Fiction by Tommy Coloma w/ Joe Roche and Chris Evans

The PC Centric Extravaganza by Chris Evans

Fable II Feature Part 3 by Ty Huston

411 Games Podcast by Ramon Aranda

B3yond the Report by Derek Robbins

Nintendophiles by Theo Fraser