97 BIOSHOCK (2K Games, July 2007)
OK, the story is pretty crazy but it's very original too plus the game is constantly throwing new weapons, mini games, and leaving you clues so it drives you to continue playing till you learn every dirty little secret. Bioshock maybe one of those type of game you never heard of before (one of my friends didn't even know about it and he has a 360 too) but doesn't stop it from being one of the best looking and most action packed titles for the system so far. The game is a breath of fresh air for the tired FPS scene and I'm also hoping this wasn't based on a real story or we are in a lot of trouble!
For 1 player only
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 10
sound: 9
gameplay: 10
Look for BIOSHOCK on eBay , or Half.com
02 BOMBERMAN Act Zero (Konami/Hudson Soft, 2006)
The new 3D view of the popular bombing action hurts more then it helps. Before the camera would be placed high enough so you can see the entire map and all the players. Now can control the camera so you can zoom in on the bomberman but why would anyone want to if it just makes things harder to see? You can still play in the original overhead perspective mode but you don't get to use the life bar so it like the game is punishing the player who likes it the classic way. There is some background music but it sucks too especially for a 360 title. Hudson has some nerve releasing this unpolished piece of $h*^ at the full price of 60 bucks when the original Turbografx-16 and Super Nintendo games totally own this! The game has a few good ideas but they were all poorly executed. The single player is pointless, multi-player is online only, the 3D view is awkward at best, and the game just isn't fun to play period.
For 1 to 8 players
Rated (T) for Teen
graphics: 3
sound: 2
gameplay: 1
Look for BOMERMAN Act Zero on eBay , or Half.com
83
BURNOUT REVENGE (EA Games/Criterion Games, March 7, 2006)This great edition of this super fast arcade racing series is not only the same crazy and fast game that won rave reviews on the Playstation2 and original Xbox but it also gets a slight face lift here. In the game you still compete in various crazy racing challenges and get rewarded for driving like a total nut case (like driving on the wrong side of the road, near misses, and drifts) with nitro boosts just like in the last Burnout's. The big difference now is a lot of cars on the road have less weight to them compared to Burnout 3 and they can now be used as better projectile weapons especially against your special rival vehicles. Other improvements to the game includes a play back and record feature so you can show your best crashes over Xbox Live and the graphics look even better so you can see further into the background even at the game's insane speeds. Burnout Revenge 360 also took out that annoying start up meter before a Crash Race (a fun mode where you try to cause one big multi-car pile up) so you can get right to the action instead. Burnout Revenge isn't the huge leap over the PS2 and Xbox editions that came out 6 months before this one but it's still one of the best and most intense racing games you can ever play so if you never tried the others this is a great palce to start.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 to 6 players
Rated (E10+) for Everyone
graphics: 9
sound: 8
gameplay: 8
Look for BURNOUT REVENGE on eBay , or Half.com
84 DEAD RISING (Capcom, 2006)
Capcom really loves this zombie thing, eh? Of course if you got a good thing going then why not do more and fighting the undead on the Xbox 360 works here too. In Dead Rising you play a free lance newsman on a mission to get the big story on a small city in America that's on lock down after a huge disaster. With only a camera you are dropped into the local mall to investigate just what happened but your mission to get the story quickly turns into a quest to stay alive has thousands of rampaging zombies are ready to kill anything that has a pulse. So do you try to rescue as many survivors as you can to earn the trust of the locals or do just try to get as many pictures as possible and wait out the 72 hours to escape? The game not only has cool graphics since the screen can have hundreds of zombies at once but the game is really fun since you can use almost as a weapon like swords, guns, soccer balls, cars, and lots more. Remember that you still have to take pictures for points so it isn't all about decapitating anything that moves. Unfortunately, there are a lot of other innocent people in the Mall too and they are not too bright and aiming the guns doesn't control as well as Resident Evil 4 so the game isn't perfect. Despite that Dead Rising is a great action game with an interesting story.
For 1 player only
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 9
sound: 8
gameplay: 8
Look for DEAD RISING on eBay , or Half.com
71 DEAD or ALIVE 4 (Tecmo/Team Ninja, December 30, 2005)
The popular Dead or Alive returns and this version has a lot new features to help mask that it's still just the same old one on one fighting we been playing for years. DOA4 not only has a lot of the older characters make their return like Kasumi, Zack and more but there is a great list of new comers like Kokoro (karate), La Mariposa (Mexican wrestling), Ellot (pray mantis kung fu) and you can even play as a special female Spartan character from the Halo series. The new interactive backgrounds are even more detailed and bigger then ever before and the game comes with a nice list of unlockables (like more revealing costumes) too. Unfortunately, I started to get bored in the single player game and the end boss is so cheap and unfair it really makes everything feel unbalanced. Even though the game looks amazing especailly with the hot girls but it really doesn't look that improved over the past editions. Dead or Alive 4 is still a lot of fun especially for two players looking to get out some aggression.
For 1 or 2 players
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 9
sound: 7
gameplay: 7
Look for DEAD or ALIVE on eBay , or Half.com
94 GEARS of WAR (Epic Games, November, 2006)
Although Gears of War appears to be a lot like hundreds of other dire survival/shooting games in a war tored environment we all seen before, the game does several awesome things to separate it from the pack. First things first: this is a third person shooter where you control the gritty anti-hero Marcus Phoenix (or the second player plays his friend Dom) and if you want live in this intense action game you have to take cover and shoot at the right time or you're dead meat. Using this stop and pop technique really helps the game feel unique and you get a great list of weapons to try here too. Another thing cool about the game is the stunning/nearly lifelike graphics and realistic sound effects that are easily some of the best I ever seen in a video game. It's a shame the multi-player can only be played with up to 8 players but the fighting is always chaotic and very brutal. Remember this game is rated M for a reason because of the tons of blood and decapitations here. The action cover based game play can get repetitive and sometimes I can't always tell if I'm shooting a teammate or a enemy since everything looks so gray but those are just minor complaints to the incredible Gears of War.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 to 8 players
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 10
sound: 9
gameplay: 9
Look for GEARS of WAR on eBay , or Half.com
NEW!
81 GUITAR HERO III: Legends of Rock (Activision, 2007)
OK, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is a great sequel to the originals thanks to all the challenging new songs and different boss battles but ever since Rock Band came out in the same year (2007) it kind of feels like you're missing something here. Still if you could gives a rat's a$% about singing or doing the drums then its time to pick up that axe and tell Satan that he's not going to out rock you tonite! GH3 wins four angry cops out of five.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 or 2 players
Rated (T) for Teen
graphics: 6
sound: 9
gameplay: 8
Look for GUITAR HERO III on eBay , or Half.com
NEW!
99 GRAND THEFT AUTO (Rockstar Games, April 29, 2008)
Not only do you have a huge unlinear single game with tons of side missions and mini games to try out but you even get a new multi-player pack in here too with a great selection of death matches and team games where you can even be cops trying to take down crooks. The bottom line is Grand Theft Auto IV is absolutely loaded with so much damn content that you feel like a thief since you only paid 60 or so bucks to get such a huge title!
For 1 to 16 players
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 8
sound: 10
gameplay: 10
Look for GTA4 on eBay , or Half.com
92 HALO 3 (Mircosoft/Bungie, September 23, 2007)
OK, all the game's hype was a bit too much (there is a Halo 3 Mountain Dew drink out there for one) and the end result may leave some hard-core players upset with the lack of changes. Halo 3 doesn't redefine the First Person Shooter and the story mode is a bit too short like in Halo 2 but it doesn't stop me from playing it constantly and risk getting fired. There is even a new score system in the story mode here. Overall the game is easily another 5 star product and is packed with enough new goodies like the bubble shield, bigass weapons like flame throwers, secrets, and modes making it addictive as hell.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 to 16 players
Rated (M) for Mature
graphics: 8
sound: 8
gameplay: 9
Look for HALO 3 on eBay , or Half.com
74 KAMEO: Elements of Power (Rare, November 2005)
It took forever for this game here to come out but after years of waiting and two consoles later here is Kameo: Elements of Power. In this 3D action/adventure fantasy game you control a rather hot looking native girl that can transform into several different creatures like a plant that's good at punching to a giant ape that can throw ice. So was it worth the long wait though? Although the game gets off to slow start early on and switching between 10 different characters all the time can get annoying, the adventure quickly gets more compelling with lots cool looking environments with puzzles and other secrets to find. The game is not only packed with some stunning visuals and amazing music but the controls are very user friendly as well. It may look weird but Kameo is a very good adventure title.
For 1 or 2 players
Rated (T) for Teen
graphics: 8
sound: 9
gameplay: 8
Look for KAMEO on eBay , or Half.com
44
RIDGE RACER 6 (Namco, November 2005)Ridge Racer 6 was the first ever Xbox 360 game I ever played and it is one of the reasons why I had my doubts about the system. Is it really that bad; yes, yes it is. The game started off pretty good with a playable Pac Man loading screen and then the actual real game opens with a decent CG intro. All that is nice but all the game play involves is just trying to come in first place using your drifting and nitrous boosts and that's pretty much it. There are a lot stages and branching paths but a lot areas look the same and the graphics aren't even that impressive for a 360 title. There is no model damage for the cars, ramming into walls looks very unrealistic (especially with all the invisible walls), and even the basic two player mode sucks since it is just you and your opponent and the computer controlled cars are no where to be found. The music isn't too bad but that announcer guy is highly annoying with a lot of lame one liners. If all that wasn't enough the game even has a lot of loading screens so it maybe a good idea to have something else to do on the side or even better just play something else entirely. Sadly, as driving games go I been down this road too many times before.
For 1 or 2 players
Rated (E) for Everyone
graphics: 5
sound: 4
gameplay: 5
Look for RIDGE RACER 6 on eBay , or Half.com
66 WWE SMACKDOWN vs. RAW 2007 (THQ/Yukes, 2006)
The popular Playstation2 series arrives to an Xbox console for the first time and it looks amazing. Just like 2006 edition you get a lot of modes like Career, Manager, Create-a-wrestler, and many mode options but now you get to see the cool new graphics so you can see the sweet on the fighters and overall better detail. All that is great but the wrestlers can be very slow to get up after getting knocked down and have a stamina bar to maintain too so the action does feel as intense as past Smackdown titles. Also the story mode has some weird twists where men can get turned into women through magic and then be hit on by the 500 pound Viscera. Wrestling fans will be pleased with this game thanks to all the content but I wish it was faster and easier to control.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 to 4 players
Rated (T) for Teen
graphics: 8
sound: 7
gameplay: 9
Look for WWE SMACKDOWN vs. RAW 2007 on eBay, or Half.com
60 WWE SMACKDOWN vs. RAW 2008 (THQ/Yukes, 2007)
This series just keeps on going no matter how minimal the improvements. The big deal here is the wrestlers have eight different fighting style like Dirty, Submission, Brawler, High Flyer, and more. It was a cool idea but it all feels unbalanced when the best one is Powerhouse. If you are a Powerhouse wrestlers can over power opponents and even be invincible for a short amount of time. Another new edition is some ECW content like hardcore matches where you can do crazy crap like light bat's that at covered in barbwire on fire. Other then that though it still feels like the same old game with slow character movements, the announcers sound terrible (is that really JBL's voice?), the game has the occasional freeze, and even the roster is horribly out dated (guys like Cryme Time, Sandman, Sabu are still here despite being fired months ago). Wrestling fans may still like it but be warned there isn't a lot new here.
*Xbox Live compatible
For 1 to 4 players
Rated (T) for Teen
graphics: 7
sound: 7
gameplay: 7
Look for WWE SMACKDOWN vs. RAW 2008 on eBay, or Half.com
With all the