Well my 360 library seems to be increasing, albeit at a bit of a slow pace. With the economy in the state it is and expecting a downturn for the worst, I find myself even more judicial in my decision to purchase new games. I think this trend might actually become the way of thinking for a lot of gamers that are getting hit by the huge increase in the cost of living that's going on. I think gamers will get to a point where if a game isn't an AAA game, they won't even consider it. Ultimately, this puts even more pressure on the game developers to actually create games that are actually good and/or marketable. Because lets face it, not every popular game that sells tons of copies will be good.
At the end of the day though, this is what hurts smaller development houses, and results in what we've seen recently where these smaller developers are bought up by bigger publishers to help finance these games. In the end though, I think we'll lose out somewhat as there may have been some great indie game waiting to break through the mainstream, but unfortunately will probably never see the light of day due to the harsh economical environment of this current time.
Anyway...I digress. Well I've managed to increase my 360 collection by a few noteworthy titles. Namely these are Grand Theft Auto IV and Halo 3. Both superb games, but I have to say...GTAIV has monopolized my time tremendously. Fantastic game...not quite perfect, but definitely the cream of the crop right now I'd say. I haven't had a game suck me in like that in awhile. It's got a number of well-known GTA features missing (flamethrower, Ammu-Nation), but with the world it creates, the intruiging characters and much improved combat gameplay it's definitely my fave so far (Although GTA3 will always hold a special place in my heart).
I'm still a Halo n00b though. I played the first one on PC for a start, and only ever played Halo 2 in multiplayer with a friend of mine who is a huge Halo fan. So I figured I'd bite the bullet and just get Halo 3. What self-respecting 360 owner wouldn't have the system's flagship game right? So far, so good. I've only completed about 2 and a half chapters, but so far it's pretty fun. Definitely a far cry from the more tactical shooter approach I got used to with Rainbow Six Vegas 2, but awesome in it's own regard. There's nothing quite like seeing a Brute with a jetback dropping down on you, only for you to jump up to meet him and smack him in the face in midair killing him. :)
I actually got into the Xbox Live Arcade as well. Two games so far, Assault Heroes and Uno. Assault Heroes got me in just because I played the trial and wanted the achievements it had told me I'd already unlocked, so I bought the full version and have played it maybe once since. :P Uno on the other hand, is addictive and surprisingly fun! I've already gotten most of the achievements simply because I can't go on my Xbox without playing it either before I get into a gaming session or after.
What I originally wanted to purchase was actually, Penny Arcade Adventures: On The Rainslick Precipice of Darkness, but for some unfathomable reason, it's been deemed as unavailable in my region. Now I live in The Bahamas...we're about an hour or less flight from Miami. We have an agreement with the US that keeps their dollar and our dollar on par for even exchange. We serve the US as a premier caribbean holiday location throughout the year, tirelessly. So why...please...tell me why, we have to get region blocked? Hmmm? We use the same power voltage, the same video formats and still...we're looked at as some insignificant third-world country. Oh and if they ever do decided to lump us into a region, it'll most likely be Latin America...which really makes no sense since we don't speak Spanish!
Anyway, I've ranted enough...so yeah, region locking sucks, GTA rocks, can't wait for Fable 2/Fallout 3/Too Human. :)
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