Looking forward to the in-sight!
Antalize this: Former Thumbstick Warrior’s and personal gamer-friends QuickBuckShot and TormentX have risen from the podcast ashes and have re-launched with an all-new Xbox-centric show by titled Xbox Vision. In tow with the original podcasters is another of my gamer-friends, a Robin-like sidekick figure by the name of xR1CKST3Rx (Rickster) has joined the team as well.
Enjoying my arcade classics on the go!
Unidentified Flying Object – Shot down 10 UFOs in ranked mode
Gamerscore = 30 Unlocked on 2/11/2012
Fortunately not all is lost. When I recently acquired my Windows Phone 7, I also gained access to its games, several of which are married to the stats with the Xbox Game Room itself! One of the WP7 Game Room games is Asteroids Deluxe, which is probably my favourite and most-played game from this service. When I purchased it I earned 3 WP7 Xbox LIVE achievements just based on my pre-history with the game. Now while playing with touch controls and on such a small screen can be a challenge all by itself, it actually stays fairly true to the original and translates well to the medium. I enjoyed this initial experience so much I had to try for more.
You know I’m a Psycho!
Perhaps it is due to my lifestyle as of late but I am really starting to appreciate the bite-sized games experience. Lately my gaming has consisted of a race here and there in Forza, or perhaps a few rounds of Halo: Reach multiplayer. Two of the games I was looking forward to the most this past Fall, Assassin’s Creed and Skyrim, have fallen of the radar for me due to the commitment they pose. While this is distressing, at the same time it is liberating not being confined to an experience for long periods of time.
As you may already know I am a huge fan of Alan Wake. Alan Wake may be one of my favourite game experiences of this generation, so when American Nightmare was announced I was ecstatic that the story would continue. As American Nightmare is coming in the form of an Xbox Live Arcade title it fits nicely into this unfocused gaming situation I find myself in as of late. I like the idea of taking the Alan Wake combat and playing a round of Fight Till Dawn as a way to pass by the time. Perhaps boning up on the combat will prepare me for my completion of my Alan Wake Nightmare run I am currently in.
One small step for Mechs…
One of the first Xbox LIVE titles made available for the service at its launch was MechAssault. Set in the BattleTech universe made popular by its pen-and-paper board games and series of novels, MechAssault brought the action to the consoles with a full campaign as well as taking control of several of the mechs from the series with simplified console controls.
While all this was very exciting, the meat of MechAssault resided in its online multiplayer. I spent many an hour fighting in Mech vs Mech battles, tromping through and destroying cities, and leading my team to victory. I can honestly say I was a pretty decent player, but as other multiplayer games started to steel MA’s thunder, plus its sequel MechAssault 2 hitting with a thud, MechAssault slowly drifted into obscurity. With LIVE no longer available for the original Xbox, MechAssault is now not much more than a memory, but a strong memory it is and it looks like people are waking up to this memory.
The lords of Point-&-Click Adventures have returned!
If you are a follower of gaming news and media one of the hottest stories out there right now is the runaway success that has been game studio Double Fine’s Kickstarter campaign to raise money to develop an old-school point and click adventure. While I could go on at length and regurgitate the story, how tens of thousands have responded to this effort and pledging their money as a show of support for the work that Tim Shafer, and his game studio Double Fine, I am not going to do that. Instead I am going to tell you why I have become a backer of this endevour and why I am excited for the fruits of their labour.
Achieving on the go!
Split it! – Blue bird unlocked
Gamerscore = 5 Unlocked on 05/02/2012
If you are even a casual follower of gaming and its media, heck even if you are a follower of popular culture, you are probably aware of the sensation that is Angry Birds. Even with the hundreds of millions of Angry Birds sold it was not until I got my Windows Phone 7 that I was able to literally get my hands on the phenomenon that is Angry Birds. My impression is that it is bot too bad. A decent puzzler with cute characters and acute challenges. I will get some quality time out of this title over time of this I am sure.
‘Ghost’s Recon!
Iron man (Quick mission) – You have finished a mission without being hit
Gamerscore = 30 Unlocked on 08/02/2012
With the recent release of the brand-new Ghost Recon Future Soldier trailer I once again started to get that Ghost Recon itch. As I own every Xbox and Xbox 360 version of Ghost Recon (minus the inferior Xbox GRAW port) I went to my favourite in the series, and its most recent release, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2.
It has been nearly five years since his game was released, but other than some quirky and dated control schemes, GRAW 2 holds its own ground, even amongst of FPS military shooters that are available today. GRAW 2 is a much more methodical experiences, plus it reaches back into the series’ roots by allowing you to order your squad, or support vehicles, around the battlefield in real-time in order to assist you in the mission. GRAW 2 is also a looker, offering the gamer a realistic war-time experience.
This week I took the opportunity to start a new campaign. While I still have a lot of rust on me for this series, I am enjoying my experience. I also took some time to collect some stray ‘cheevos I left on the table. In doing one 5 minute mission in order to secure the above Iron Man achievement I managed to collect 3 in total!
