Digital Console Gaming – Are We There Yet?
I'm tired of having to swap out discs in my consoles. It's tedious, and finding storage for the physical packaging is a growing challenge.
Matt Brett I'm tired of having to swap out discs in my consoles. It's tedious, and finding storage for the physical packaging is a growing challenge.
It was great to get out and get my hands and see some of this year's most anticipated games months before their release.
When the hotly anticipated Resident Evil 5 demo hit the Xbox Live Marketplace early last week, I added it to my queue first thing in the morning so I could play as soon as my work day was done. Being a long time fan of the series, and having played through Resident Evil 4 at […]
When it comes to watching television shows, a lot has changed over the years. For the most part, we’ve had a way of recording shows and watching them later. For a long time, a VCR was our best bet. Now we have PVRs, on demand channels, digital distribution services, and more manual avenues like downloading […]
When it comes to entertainment in Canada, we’re so behind the times. We’re on par with the US when it comes to movie releases and TV scheduling, but any means to obtain said entertainment aside from the traditional hard copies is severely lacking. Typically, a service that is released in the US will make it […]
Today was a big day for Xbox 360 owners around the world. Microsoft rolled out the Fall update, along with Xbox Originals, and announced a launch date of December 11 for the Video Marketplace in Europe and Canada. The second major Dashboard update for this year packs quite a punch with a few major features, along with a massive list of smaller fixes and additions. So, how is that disappointing?
This generation has seen a couple new, yet very important additions that all of the consoles have. An operating system that underlays your activities and an online store for downloading and purchasing additional content. Looking back, it's hard to imagine how we managed without either for so long. They seem so integral now. The second part of my PlayStation 3 vs Xbox 360 comparison looks at both components.
If you're on my Xbox Live friends list or have been following my Flickr activity, you know I've been logging some decent hours in Need for Speed Carbon. I actually had no intentions of picking this game up until post Emergence Day. But when I saw them stocking the shelves at EB with it, I just had to have it. For the first couple evenings, I was having an absolute blast! I've been uploading lots of screenshots using the in-game Photo Mode and even started a NFS Carbon Flickr Group specifically for them. By the time I reached about 50% completion in the single player career, the awesomeness was starting to wear thin and tediousness was creeping in. WTF happened?
This is a tough one, it really is. On one side, I feel immediately disgusted by the very idea. But on the other, I can almost understand the reasoning behind the gouging. At least, with this latest release of "premium content". The first round was just plain despicable. Yes, I've got my EA hate on again. Actually, I'm not sure if it ever left. If you're an Xbox 360 owner you're probably aware of the latest round of downloadable content released by EA for the new Tiger Woods game. For those that aren't and those that are upset by this, let's discuss...
Providing a "resource" that is really nothing more than a sales pitch/press release is nothing new for Microsoft. And it seems they've done it again with the launch of XBOX LIVE PIPELINE - sorry, didn't mean to yell at you. That's apparently the name of the site. Anyway, I almost shat myself when a friend pointed this out to me earlier today as it could have hindered a project I'm working on. I let out a sigh of relief, followed by a laugh, followed by 5 minutes of screaming at my monitor once I made a few clicks through the various efforts. So what is Xbox Live Pipeline and why am I bitching? Why, it's "Your one-stop guide to Xbox Live Marketplace". Actually, it's not even close. Here's why...
I was busy working away today while X'06 was getting underway in Barcelona so I didn't tune in to any of the live video feeds and I haven't had my feed reader open all day. Just as I was wrapping up before dinner a press release dropped in my inbox titled "Xbox 360 Ushers in Exclusive New Worlds of Entertainment for Most-Anticipated Franchises Ever at X06". Press releases are always over-hyped, so I opened it up with a snarky grin on my face as I rolled my eyes. That grin was slapped off my face repeatedly as I was hit with headline after headline of absolutely massive news!
In a move that will no doubt piss off Xbox 360 gamers world-wide, Official Xbox Magazine has a playable demo of F.E.A.R. bundled with it's October issue. Since magazines for whatever reason, publish their issues a couple months in advance - you can get your hands on it now! The only downer (aside from the fact that you can't just download it from the Marketplace) is the price of the magazine - which cost me nearly $15 CDN. But, it's F.E.A.R. and I just couldn't let it pass me by. After all, the PC version of F.E.A.R. is still my highest rated game to date.