So I'm having a blast with my game collection, no complaints, not one! Test Drive is awesome fun because it plays like a GTA but with cars, so think old school Driver (the good ones) meet Elder Scrolls exploration. You drive to your hearts content, and to someone like me that is just what you need, especially when games like NFS just don't hit the fix like they use to.
I'm currently trying to finish Gears on insane, which is something I was hoping to save for me and my friend to do together like we did in Halo, but he's stuck on online PC gaming and even worst everyone else thinks the game is too hard on such levels. Easy points none the less, and whats better is after playing a lil bit on there alone I go online and feel pretty confident I can keep up with all the leet kids who litter the servers :P

Besides still having Splinter Cell, Dead Rising, and NFS to play to entirety, I just got a freebie game from my uncle and as shameful as it may be I think I'm gonna play it for all the wrong reasons. MADDEN!! :? Seriously, I need me some sports action before I end up goring some poor fella walking down the street and celebrating over his damaged body. 2k8 football is right around the corner and after seeing some pics in Gameinformer I'm feeling the shakes come on in a bad way. Playoff b-ball is cool, but without the joy of mixing against someone in the actual game I'm just not that interested in playing numerous games against the cpu. A baseball game would be real nice right now cause the weather was real nasty the other day and nothing beats playing games on such days... and with all major sports checked off the list I have a few 2k games to enjoy and them some EA ones which I rather take a dump on. Madden07 was something I was hoping would be the turning point in my hatred towards such a lame game, but instead I was ganked! The game sucked ass AND I actually spent money on the crap... I returned it ofcourse but not after tryin to really give it a chance on and offline. Sadly nothing really changed and what was considered special was just plain silly to charge a full game price for. 

I didn't like the game and vowed to never play it again, but then again I've been doing that since Madden hit came out with its 2000 year addition. Ever since the game just sucked and for any hardcore fans of the game I'm sorry... yaw are trippin!! Beyond 2k being far superior in presentation and gameplay, the bottom line is one game is ment for the lames who like to press buttons and watch and the other is made for pros who know what its like to actually hold a football and do real moves. Very exciting arguments have came from such statements, and all surprise aside 2k games have plenty of exploits and advantages that can be used to gain victory, so nothing is flawless.
I really want to put TDU in and just race away my monday, but I got a feeling that after a day like this and the week to come I need to lay the smackdown on a few suckas in some Madden. Its not my proudest moment nor is it a reasonable one, but I want the joy of passing a 50 yard bomb and winning the game or even better grinding it out in the ground for over 200 yards. Nothing beats those kind of kicks, and even though the gamer points I'm about to gain in a matter of moments don't count for much like those dudes who play kiddie games and rep massive achievement point... I don't care at this point :oops: I just need some football action until 2k8 hits this summer    

So I just got a another new game. After mixing thru Hitman I feel immense shame for doing so when I have one racing game already in my collection that I haven't played entirely thru... so I go off and get Test Drive Unlimited. It was one hell of a bargain that was basically free and NFS is gonna be there. Like any of the games in that series they fit well for something to pop in and play for a lil bit here and there. Another lil dark secret that I must admit is in NFS the achievements are nothing special at all... you basically play thru from start to finish and you gain points... nothing special. In all respects that should never be a reason behind enjoying a game, but it does take a bit of the joy away when you notice there is no fun hidden content or special things to unlock.

Some of my fellow gamers took their fair share of time making fun of me for gaining achievements and being hooked on them, but they all understand and its cool to chit chat about them among eachother. Sadly, some of them and MANY others simply play games on the 360 for points, not the games. Which in my eyes totally defeats the purpose of having the points system. Something that is suppose to serve as an indicator of skill, rank, perfection, respect!
To any gamer who doesn't thrive on cheat codes and exploits, this is what we live for, recognition! That may sound lame to others, but nothing beats having the high score in a game displayed high and mighty among the rest. What does all this rant mean...? 7007!!

I don't think anyone cares, but I just broke another thousand on my gamer score and for a kid like me who plays nothing but games I own or either really like, that means a lot compared to all the losers who gain points just to have them. I mean, how cool do you look when yer score is over 10k, even 20... you look pretty cool, right? Well, read between the lines and you'll  quickly realize that over 8,000 points are from games that require no skill or don't even belong in such a gamers selection. Not saying you have to stay within yer realm to show how awesome you are at every shooter available, but it does say a lot about what kind of gamer you really are.   

Finally I've reached some imaginary accomplishment in being level 12, a rad racer, here on Gamespot. Does that really count for anything... not at all and the nick name is pretty lame.
All in all I'm feeling good that I spent the passing day outside and at the park when I could have been macking CS where I was HOT! Anytime yer average record on a cycle of 10 maps is around 20-5... yea, you can see why it would be hard to peel away from greatness like that. Speaking of CS, I've been playing a lot more lately and I can't tell if thats due in part to my recent real life woes or my lack of fun games to play. Maybe I secretly fear that with all these bs MMO's out everywhere someone might get crazy and start charging money for CS rather than make it free with Half-Life2. I've seen it before, free stuff that eventually submits to the ways of the dollar. Its not even really a bad thing in my eyes, even tho I never enjoy being a victim of the scenario. If I was providing played and proven awesome games and one day decided that if people really continue to like my stuff... why not charge a few extra bucks for the next great addition!
All reasonable.
Then again you could argue this in a few goofey ways such as why not have the first game itself be a good and done from the get go. Or how about the real gritty fact that many games may not even be worth checking out for free much less purchasing new content for it. Just a thought...

With a few decent reviews under my belt now here at the site  I started thinking like a mad fool and wondering... what could I do to spice my reviews up??? Others have actual equipment where they can record footage, audio, **** equals attention. So what do I think of... PICTURES!
It may not completely rock your world now, but imagine how you felt the first time you read a text book with pictures. Man o MAN! I bet that was the best semi-half ass learning experience you ever had and you don't even know it!! At least for me I can angree with yaw and in those respects I find my way. I can't hook up video goods on the site cause they only allow 100mb downloads and my little camera can barely squeeze out a 5min vid maxing over 100. Not blaming dated gear, because I know there is plenty of material and content for compressing **** like that. Which is very cool for anyone like myself looking to push media without havin all the toys to do it myself. Videos are a dead last concenr for me right now when thinking of how I want to expose my gaming ways to the world. Its no major worry, but I like having a pressence online , like the vibe you set when yer at work or at a friends. I noticed I get the same lil joy when I enter my favorite gaming server, or chat room. Its a place where I'm familiar but not in control, a stranger who is known by some. Its such a nerd thing... but I can't help but smile and admit to it :oops: 
So one day I'll master my video tech and start posting even more interesting things like the LAN parties I go to and gaming sessions me and friends have. Which as silly as it may sound, if you got a real good game that you enjoy playing imagine just how damn it really is when people who are not even playing thinks its awesome!

In the mean time I'm gonna continue to take a stab at the world of photos. Maybe post some pics of videogame characters I've drawn or even better games I've played at the arcade... now that would be kinda cool to get some shots of me mixing in the new Virtual Cop. As for my reviews, I was hoping to add some lil pics here and there to help emphasize certain points. Its nothing crazy like 800x600 pics, but a screen capture of something to fit within the text space seems like it would go a long way. At least for me when checking out reviews and opinions pictures help... as if that makes me look and better...
Just something I've been messing around with, especially when I see so many others hooking the goods up. I miss having a video camera though...

So not only do you get to fly, on a dragon that is, but you can land at will and battle with foot soldiers, set anything aflame, and wrastle other dragons... well damn!! Sign me up!
Then again, its on the PS3 which unfortunately is way outta my current price range and due to its lack of game selection... may stay that way. If anything, I feel a lil better about being iffy on Sony's PS3 when my guy Jaffery or whatever from God of War even agrees on Sony making a bad call when considering gamers.

Who the hell wants a cheap Blu-Ray player?! :?

If I'm going to spend money on a machine, especially one over a few hundred dollars, even in this day and age, why would I expect anything less than a super gaming machine. I want videogames, not anything fancy. But I can imagine someone said the same thing when they wanted to play music CDs in game machines, then DVDs, and what next being able to burn CDs within yer game machine...? Oh I heard about that too...

Lair looks amazing. When I think of that killer game that could possibly sell someone on a whole new machine, say for example Gears, Link in time, God of War, Mario! I can easily see someone going to the shop and seeing a sports game, something like motorstorm, and Lair and BAM! You might as well buy the whole damn machine!!
Its happen to me on numerous ocassions and as much as I'd like to blame it all on impulse buying its really a steal :P

Sadly, being the intesne sports fan that I be, my lack of sports games right now is simply abismal. No joke, I love any sport that requires sweat and hussle and for someone like me to not even own rockstars table tennis anymore just further reminds me of how bad I'm slippin.
I can't say there is a particular reason why I'm sitting around wondering why I don't have any decent atheletic games to play, but I could put some money on the concept that ever since I started tweaking on these 360 achievements my game selection has taken some strange turns. Watching all this NBA b-ball I hear all the lil doubles doubles and awesome stats talk and I get excited thinking I'm gonna put my own game on when I suddenly recall I have no NBA action to enjoy. Plenty of killing games no doubt, but my lack of adventure and sports seems to be a leading reason more and more.

Can't say this is all that bad since I got some pretty decent games and most of them have semi-worthy reasons for replay. Still not enough to ease my current pain. Hopefully by the time summer comes I can really enjoy myself with a bit of 2k8 football. Its no NFL game, but that won't stop any creative kid like me from formulating the ultimate super grind house team. In the mean time I'm just gonna have to find some peace within my PC gaming which is limited to Counter-Strike and Might and Magic. Not glamorous, but still enough to impress the little people ;)

Being all together with family and surrounded by delicious food is never a bad thing in my world. Having some good games to enjoy on the side is a pretty nice plus too.
Its been a lil while since I've played some 2k7 basketball, but I'm pretty sure that I still got the skills to keep my uncle nice and quiet. if all else fails we got the Wii sports, and my smack down ability in that is never gonna waiver.

Time to get some food in me and see what kind of damage I can cause. Best wishes to any and all on this lovely Easter Day.

Some how I just spent over 5 minuntes computing just how many points I'd have on my 360 if I actually played ALL my games to their achievement entirety. That would be about 10k on the dot give or take a few points... including the few games that I don't plan on playing ever again, achievements or not.
Why is this even a subject of interest, I don't really know. Its not an obsession like some I've come across, but I'm slowly and sadly seeing how it could be. The worst part of it all is I'm actually catching myself in conversation with other 360 peoples and I can't help but blab something about points or what achievements you got and such. Its kind of lame... but they continue to chat with me so I like to think others understand the glee...

I'm playin Hitman on the 360 right now thanks to my friend who likes to share games, and its a worth while game indeed. Not enough to get my purchase, but hopefully my praise will make up for it.
While mixin I thought about how I would explain certain things about the game if I wrote a review and it hit me... I never intended to write anything about other games besides ones on the 360. Not only cause thats my newest fond collection of goodies, but when writing about them in reviews it can make for decent small talk to mention the achievements. Not saying it makes or breaks a game, but with this new twist on the pontential of game design on the 360, "beating" a game or "completing" it is really gonna show thru if done well.
Something that has all been apart of my recent rants, please, bare with me.
I'm just pointing a little attention to the possibly great game mechanic some designers could utilize if they really wanted to make a magnifcently super cool game. I'm short on examples, which doesn't help my silly begger request, but take Dead Rising which was done by wonderfull story tellers and game designers, Capcom.
There you have a game where everything almost gels seamless into one grand experience and before you know it you've played the poop out of it 30 some odd times. Solid gameplay, decent controls, active story, plenty of side quest goodies and of course... ACHIEVEMENTS! None of which were something that drove the player away from the story or took you out of that grand ol' experience I was yappin about. In all respects I think the peeps at Capcom did this intentionally, and for good reason too. Who would have thought that escorting 8 females  to safety thru a mall of flesh eating zombies would be so hard... lets not make that some cheesy pat on the back you get if you sit down and really try... thats FRANK DA PIMP respect you EARN!

Simply awesome.

All nonsense aside, my rant about 360 achievements is no more for the evening. I've been fully inducted into the hall of shame knowing and admitting to my shameless ways. So with that in mind I'm gonna fire up Hitman and see if I can get this silent asassin award before I call it shut eye. Why do I feed the demon... the answer may never be...   

More and more people tend to ask me... what makes Nintendo worth my time or money? Not only am I in complete shock that someone would say such a stupid thing to a person like myself who has spent thousands of dollars on such a company... but if you never knew what someone with such high rank has done for a thing that is now refered to as an industry, you should not spend your money on videogames. Not that you can't, but with great amounts of money comes great responsiblity. So after paying yer bills, setting aside some pennies for a rainy day, even helping a few important people here and there... go ahead, buy a new game, hell why not get a whole new machine to entertain yourself. People who earn their money and do right by life deserve every minute spent in front of their new gizmo. Its like some golden rule that if written would say author, Nintendo.

These people I tell ya...

I'm no game guru, nor do I know every fun fact about crap from the 80's and 90's. But I do know that the world of videogames are riddled with people who want to create the next big thing and people who want to make money. Just like my part of the world which is filled with honorable gamers who have respect for one another and the other bunch who is all about being annoying and the best over the rest. It may seem like a real generalized approach to such a silly topic, but the truth of the matter is nobody takes part in certain things for the good glory of what it simply is anymore. And thats about the jist of my rant...   

So it took some time and I'm still fairly new at such things, even tho I yap about anything I know at great lengths, but I did a lil review for a game finally. Crackdown doesn't require much input to convey to another that the game is simply a rental at best, but its always nice to see it written out :P
Best part about the whole review thing is if I structure it in that same manner as my first I can easily churn out a slew of reviews for most of the 360 games available. Haven't got to enjoy ALL of them, but it sure would be nice to have some clout to show for in all the games I've went thru.

Funny thing is I haven't really beat that many games in the last few years. Maybe thats due to MMO's or my lack of time cause of work and what not... but as always time quietly sneaks by just to remind me I don't do things like I use to. For instance, buy a new game... open the new game... play... beat... demolish... milk the spit out of new game... game is no longer new... move on. It was a vicious cycle cause people could actually call out when I had something new just by how I would disappear off the radar for a few days here and there. Very nerdy no doubt, yet a boy had to keep himself busy.
Now a days I simply play thru the game for what it is. Story, special game mechanic, cool display of graphics, whatever. I just play now to enjoy my session and see what the game has to offer rather than squeeze the game dry as soon as possible. No lie tho... I'm not too shy to admit my fiending for more Xbox Live points or gamerscore as others would know it. That stuff is novel at best, but nothing beats the feeling of smashing the boss from level 7 and seeing at the bottom of the screen lights up with an achievement award... fannnnnnn-tastic!!

I love this site for having audio and video material. Wonderful setup and best of all I'm hardly paying for it... thats a plus and then some in my book!
In the mean time, I still got Crackdown which has more than made me an achievement whore in the last few days. Something about fully exploring a city and gaining cred for such things is never a bad thing, especially when the game itself is pretty slam bamming.

As for anything new, NBA Homecourt is cool... but... in all honesty it feels more like a mind numbing reason to keep on doing the same thing and gain very little for it. MLB 2k7 is down right gorgeous! I got my ass handed to me when playing against my friend, but those few games and that smooth HD tv made everything more than worth something to get in my next splurging. Speaking of which, I need some more xbox live arcade titles like.... ooooohhh I don't kno... maybe Castlevania?