Xbox 360 Fanboy

X3F Live: Come play Halo 3 with us tonight

Posted Oct 12th 2007 3:30PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: Halo 3, Fan stuff

We've mentioned the idea of setting up a gaming night numerous times on our Fancast and even promised that we'd do something soon. But, sadly, we've haven't lived up to our word and nothing has been organized. So, tonight on a mission to right our wrongs. It's with great pleasure that we here at X3F announce one of our first organized gaming nights that we're calling X3F Live and we're kicking off the festivities with some Halo 3 custom game fun.

If you're available this evening, log onto Xbox Live at 6:30PM eastern (3:30PM pacific) and look for Richard (SenseiRAM), Dustin (SuperDunners) and David (Knuckles Dawson) on Halo 3 and join in on the fragging fun. We're not sure how long everyone will be able to stay online, but we should be able to get in an hour or two of game time and we can 100% guarantee that there will plenty of fun, fanboys and madness ... with free refills to boot! Remember, 6:30PM eastern tonight on Xbox Live for X3F Live Halo 3 fun with your favorite bloggers Richard, Dustin, David and your fellow fanboys too. We can't be certain when the next organized X3F Live event will go down, so take advantage of tonight's possible fluke and play Halo 3 with us. See you online!

How to become a better Halo 3 player

Posted Oct 12th 2007 3:15PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News, Halo 3

Using their internal Microsoft distribution list the crew over at Channel 10 wrangled up some of the Halo 3 dev team's best Halo 3 advice and posted a few tips and tricks on how to be a better gamer. The dev's advice spans the strategy spectrum of "duh, that's obvious" to "hmm, never thought about that" so beginners and l33t gamers alike should learn something from their insider knowledge. Really, we can nearly guarantee that you'll be able to pick up a thing or two to add to your Halo 3 pwnage arsenal. Oh, and we totally agree with Jay that "when driving the warthog in combat situation, NEVER STOP." Truer words have never been spoken.

[Via HBO]

Xbox Live subscriptions for the cheap [update]

Posted Oct 12th 2007 2:30PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: Xbox Live, Deals and Bargains

Update: Double doh! It looks like Target.com is sold out of the cards and Dell Canada either jacked the price back up or it was a limited time offer. Sorry guys ...

If you're like me and find yourself in the precarious position of having your Xbox Live Gold subscription expiring this month, then you need to open up your wallet and pony up a few bucks for another year of gaming bliss. But, if you're also like me and want the best deal on your new subscription purchase, then heed our advice and click the links below. Thanks to a few of your fellow tipster fanboys, we've got some deals that'll save you Xbox Live subscription cash.

Online, over at Target.com, they're offering a 12+1 Halo 3 themed Xbox Live Gold subscription card for $10 off the normal purchase price. This $39 13 months of Xbox Live Gold is only available online, so add it to your virtual shopping cart if you deem the offer money savings worthy. And fear not fellow Canadian fanboys, we haven't forgotten about you, because you have an equally delightful deal too. Our computer friends over at Dell Canada are offering a 12 month Xbox Live Gold subscription card for $39, which works out to be $20 cheaper than retail. Now that's Xbox Live subscription savings the fanboy way.

[Thanks, gobopop & Joshua]

Read - Target 12+1 Month Xbox Live
Read - Dell Canada 12 Month Xbox Live

Is it the Orange Box? Non, c'est La Boîte Orange!

Posted Oct 12th 2007 1:45PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News

Our United States readers may not know this (we didn't), but in Canada companies are required to apply both English and French labeling to all products. Apparently this is a cause of great frustration among some folks. Being disconnected from the whole thing, we find it amusing. For example, if you live up north and plan on snagging a copy of The Orange Box, you're going to have to look very closely. As you can see, the French title for the game takes prominence on the packaging. Why Electronic Arts decided to go this route we don't know, but we have a sneaking suspicion. See, La Boîte Orange (LA BWOT OHRAWNJ) is just more fun to say. Try it: La Boîte Oraaaaaaaange. Feels good, doesn't it?

[Thanks, xenocidic. Image credit: MattBrett]

[Update: Looks like the labeling law covers all of Canada, not just Quebec. Corrections made.]

Here comes the Halo 3 soundtrack

Posted Oct 12th 2007 1:00PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Halo 3

Surprising precisely no one, Amazon has revealed that the Halo 3 soundtrack is on the way. According to Amazon, the soundtrack will be released on November 20th for the bargain price of $12.99 (if you buy from Amazon). The soundtrack will be a 2 CD set, featuring new takes on the themes present in the game. According to the product description, Marty O'Donnell has employed a full orchestra and chorus for the soundtrack, which goes "above and beyond" previous soundtrack efforts. What, no Hoobastank?

[Via TeamXbox. Thanks, DjDATZ]

Video: Assassin's Creed gameplay ... wow

Posted Oct 12th 2007 12:15PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News, Assassin's Creed, Videos

We guess the video above could be considered a spoiler due to it being eight minutes of gameplay footage, but holy wow is it good times and we just had to share it with you. Embedded above and viewable much larger after the break is Assassin's Creed Montferrat Walkthrough gameplay footage and well ... what more can we say other than "wow"? Seriously, if you're willing to give it a look then prepare to fall in love with this game. We're under Assassin's Creed's spell and are liking it.

Microsoft and BioWare talk Mass Effect's future

Posted Oct 12th 2007 11:30AM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News, Mass Effect

Late yesterday news broke that EA shelled out the big bucks for both Pandemic Studios and BioWare, leaving everyone wondering what Mass Effect's future will hold. Microsoft was first to make a statement confirming that Mass Effect was on schedule for its November release, but that the IP is wholly owned by BioWare and not Microsoft. Further expanding the discussion Microsoft hinted at the fact that the EA acquisition of BioWare now makes exclusivity of the Mass Effect franchise on the 360 less than concrete saying that they haven't "yet announced specifics regarding sequels to Mass Effect", but will "be talking to EA and BioWare in the weeks to come." Interesting stuff indeed.

Soon after, Gamespot posted a Q&A session they had with BioWare's co-founders post EA acquisition where they specifically asked about the future of the Mass Effect franchise, where it was headed and who'd be publishing future titles now that their company is under EA's helm. BioWare's response was less than comforting. "We can't predict the future. We'll see what happens. The key thing is we're making a trilogy of Mass Effect games, and we've got a great story arc." Ouch. Hopefully everything gets smoothed over and Microsoft can strike a deal with EA and BioWare to make sure Mass Effect sequels end up on the 360 and beyond. Because for some reason we have a feeling this Mass Effect thing is going to be big ... really big.

Read - Microsoft's response to BioWare acquisition
Read - Gamespot Q&A

WRUP: delicious citrus edition

Posted Oct 12th 2007 10:45AM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: What are you playing?

It's time for another edition of What Are You Playing, little darlings. This week, we have yet another fairly obvious choice for may fanboys out there. We're sure a lot of you will still be playing Halo 3 (we'll be spending some quality time with it to be sure), but there's this other game that will likely be stealing your attention as well. Of course, we're talking about The Orange Box. Like a box of chocolates you actually want to eat, The Orange Box simply offers some of the best gaming goodness this side of a rigged slot machine. We've been informed by management that we're all required to play Portal now, so we don't really have much choice. All of you, on the other hand, you do have a choice. So, what's it going to be? What will you be playing this weekend?

Leaderboards:
Xbox 360 Fanboy Leaderboard
Xbox 360 Fanboy Leaderboard Mk. II

X3F Gamertags:
Richard Mitchell -- SenseiRAM
Dustin Burg -- SuperDunners
David Dreger -- Knuckles Dawson

What were you playing? (WRUP archive)

Fanswag Weekly reminder: Project Gotham Racing 4

Posted Oct 12th 2007 10:00AM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: Contests and Giveaways

Just a quick reminder, folks. This is your last chance to enter our latest Fanswag Weekly giveaway. This week we're giving away a shiny new copy of Project Gotham Racing 4 to one lucky winner. If you haven't entered yet, you have exactly two hours to do so. Head over to the official giveaway post, follow the instructions, and hope for the best. Good luck.

Surprise! Virtua Fighter 5 demo on XBLM

Posted Oct 12th 2007 9:30AM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News, Xbox Live Marketplace

The game just went gold yesterday and now, thanks to the developer powers that be and the XBLM, you can play it today. Available as a 674Mb download to all Xbox Live regions is a super new Virtua Fighter 5 demo that we hear is smoother than butta and more fun than a barrel of tacos. We're not sure what we mean by that, but darned if we're not excited and surprised to be getting to play Virtua Fighter 5 today. Thanks SEGA, you made our day and as a thank you we'll buy lunch next time. Are tacos fine?

Sessler says quit hating on Halo 3 already

Posted Oct 12th 2007 8:30AM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: Halo 3, Fan stuff

G4's outspoken and somewhat controversial Adam Sessler is standing on his Sessler Soapbox again, this time defending Halo 3 against all the haters. And yes we were just as surprised as you, but it's fact ... there are Halo 3 haters out there. What a crazy world we live in.

Anyhoo, per the video embedded above, Sessler talks about the greatness that is Halo 3, why it is so damn fun and why the haters of the world should pretty much much quit their hating ways and lay off Halo 3 because of its popularity. And to be fair, he even says that it isn't the best game out there or even game of the year caliber (which we whole-heartily dispute), but it's a great gaming experience no matter how you cut it. So, if you know someone or are one who hates on Halo 3 for no particular reason other than your sad, jealous rage then take Adam Sessler's advice and shove your ... well, we'll let you watch the video for yourself. More gravy please!

[Via 1P Start]

A famous Master Chief suit up for auction

Posted Oct 11th 2007 6:45PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: Halo 3, Fan stuff

We've been sent a tip telling us that there's another Master Chief suit up for bids on eBay and it's a semi-famous Spartan suit at that. Currently sitting at a cool $999 is a green custom made Master Chief suit that was worn at one of Halo 3 launch events, met both J Allard and Peter Moore and made it onto numerous television shows including Jimmy Kimmel and G4. One could make an argument that the suit is more famous than the guy who wore it. Heck, that's no argument, it's fact. But before you bid on this spendy Halloween costume you should know that the suit does NOT come with a flock attractive females on each arm. Though, we wish it did.

[Thanks, BANTHA SKULL]

Rock Band: no separate instruments until 2008

Posted Oct 11th 2007 6:00PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News

Speaking to Bits Byets Pixels & Sprites, a Harmonix rep confirmed that Rock Band instruments will not be sold separately from the game until 2008. In other words, if you were planning on buying a copy of the game and a set of drums separately, you're out of luck. If you want Rock Band this year, you'll be paying $170 for the whole kit and kaboodle. The rep gave two reasons for this. First, creating multiple bundles would increase costs and lead to fewer bundles being available at launch. Second, retailers aren't exactly keen to have 3 different (and large) versions of Rock Band clogging their shelf space.

The rep also speaks about a few other issues, the most pressing of which is probably DLC pricing, a hot topic among Guitar Hero II fans. The rep is quick to point out that Rock Band tracks require more development than Guitar Hero tracks, as there are more instruments to be dealt with. In other words, we're expecting they won't be cheap, though the rep explains that there are many ways to pick and choose DLC. For instance, whole albums will be available as well as single songs, and there may be special offers for those that purchase multiple tracks. DLC is expected to arrive every week after the game ships through the end of the year, starting with The Who's Who's Next. Finally, the game is expected to have nearly 50 songs on the retail disc, not including bonus unlockables.

EA to buy Pandemic Studios and BioWare

Posted Oct 11th 2007 5:30PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Mass Effect

Electronic Arts has announced today that it will acquire VG Holding Corp. from Elevation Partners. VG Holding owns both Pandemic Studios and BioWare, which means the deal nabs both developers for EA. Electronic Arts will be paying up to $650 million in cash to the stockholders of VG Holding, with up to $155 million being paid in equity to specific employees. Pandemic is currently hard at work on the excessively violent sandbox title, Mercenaries 2, which is being published by EA. The deal raises questions about BioWare, as the company is currently developing the galaxy hopping RPG Mass Effect for Microsoft Game Studios. As the game is set to be a trilogy, we have to wonder what this deal means for the next two installments.

We'd love to make some sort of Madden RPG joke here (Madden Effect, perhaps?), but we just don't have the energy. Hit the "read" link for the full press release.

[Via Joystiq]

Sierra's ambitious Winter XBLA plans

Posted Oct 11th 2007 5:15PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News, Xbox Live Arcade

If you're planning your next XBLA purchases for the next few months then be sure to not count out Sierra's upcoming library of games, because they actually look promising.

The crew over at IGN got some hands on time with all six, count 'em six, of developer Sierra's new games that are set to release on the Xbox Live Arcade this Winter. So, enough of the fluff let's get to the goods. Sierra's bountiful and very diverse Winter XBLA lineup includes a 3D space shooter called Aces of the Galaxy, a mystical hack, hack, slash slasher called Arkadian Warriors, the TV based Battlestar Galactica, a puzzling bunny game called Boogie Bunnies, a casual gamer's RTS Commanders: Attack of the Genos, and finally Switchball. See, we told you it was a diverse group of games. You can check out IGN's hands-on take of each Arcade title as well as screenshots and video from each game after the jump. And with such an interesting lineup of adventure, sci-fi, shooter and action based games we can't help but be most excited to play Boogie Bunnies. Dancing bunnies ... what more can we say?

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