Time to update this list of games… thought I already had done this earlier and I seem to have forgotten it. Ok, well I didn’t get all my games for the “by July” set complete, but I did manage to knock off at least two from that set. Perhaps I should take all of the games on the right and move them to the other side and then take those still needing work and move them to the right.

 The MNU wants You! More an more activity has been seen in District 9 and it seems to be spreading out side of the district as well. This means its up to all of us to keep an eye on the Non-Humans and report any suspicious activities we notice.

Ok, if you haven’t seen the movie District 9 or visited the web site ARG that is supporting an promoting the movie, your more an likely wondering what the hell this is all about. Lots of buzz has been growing for this recently released film and its on my list of movies to see soon.

In addition to the movie is the ARG (Alternate Reality Game) site and interactive web site that allows people to slip into more of what this movie is all about and act as if your part of the events taking place.

I’ve heard pretty cool things from the movie and I can say the little bits I’ve seen of the site are pretty cool. Its not just a place to watch trailers and clips from the movie.

If your interested in the movie, then take a look at the site as well, but you need to make a decision on if your Human or Non-Human before you progress to far now.

Wow, its been a bit since I’ve posted here on the old gaming blog. I’ve been keeping busy with RejectedGamer.Com and writing reviews and editorials for them as well as some Podcasting episodes. I’m having a blast with all of that I’d say and getting to play a variety of games as well. So lets see, I’ve beat Assassins Creed finally and loved the game.

I’ve also broke the 10K milestone for my Gamerscore now, don’t feel anything different really from that, but its good to know that I’ve beaten a few games to get to this level. Its not so much the beating them for me, I actually enjoyed most if not all of the story lines that I’ve experienced in these games, I’ve even started looking at Call of Duty 4 on Veteran now and getting ready for Modern Warfare 2 at the same time.

Well it looks like I need to get back into some more of Bioshock now and get that game cleared off my list of games. That game really gets my heart thumping with things jumping out at me from just about everywhere. In addition to Bioshock, I need to finish up Mass Effect. I enjoy that one a lot and I’ve even started using more of the abilities and not just my standard weapons.

Game over now… and another one is off my list of games with Halo 2 being finished now at last. Interesting with the switch back an forth between Master Chief and the Arbiter.

Buts its nice to have completed at last and fills in the gaps between the games so to speak. I’ll be ready for Halo 3: ODST now.

I guess I should move back to Halo: Combat Evolved next and beat it once and for all too. I’ve read the book so I know the story and that is mainly why I never completed it in the first place.

Actually most of the games on the list now have all been started at some point. I just need to set the time aside and knock them out. One game at a time, one game at a time now.

Monday June 1st, 2009 will see the kick off for E3 2009 with Microsoft’s Press Conference and they claim to bring lots and lots of treats for everyone this year.

Its no secret that they’ll be showing off Halo 3: ODST and promoting this title. But what else could they have in store for us? Well if they do as well as last year, then I think they’ll entertain all of us for sure.

I’ve already set my Uverse to record all of SPIKE TVs coverage from E3 and my evenings will be more an likely filled with scanning through hours and hours of coverage. With Microsoft up first and then on Tuesday we’ll hear from Nintendo and Sony, followed by a number of things from various Game Developers attending E3.

I predict that Microsoft will bring the best presentation once again. I think Nintendo will come out and show us their numbers front an center as they did last year. I can only hope Sony can pull something together and bring a little more Wow this year, I mean could they get in worse really?

Last year Sony showed Home again and its out, but nothing to jump up an down about. The best thing they had last year was the reveal of MAG and I hope they’ll have a lot more to show us in that respect. I don’t own any Sony systems, but this is more an likely the only title that has my interest and makes me think, hmmm what about a PS3. The PSP Go has been leaked now and this is more than likely the first gaming system from Sony I’d look at getting. Then again I would have to already have purchased the new Zune HD first.

What ever happens this year, I think gaming is stronger than ever and I’m sure each camp will have something to look forward to. I just can’t help but feel the appeal that Microsoft brings is so much stronger. But my family is multi-console now and even seen the new addition of the Nintendo DSi to the household.

Next week will be a blast of video game news and I’m a sponge just waiting to absorb all they can throw at me now.

So at the beginning of the year I made my list of games I wanted to at least finish the story/campaign portion of the game. Once again this is main story and not a full 1000 gamerscore per game I’m looking for. At first I thought I would try and knock out a certain batch by July and then another batch. Well it seems I’ve been drawn to the last set of games. I’ve scratched the games I’ve completed so far to date. Last night I officially marked off Halo 3.

Darkspire Films has created some clever Machinama films with Halo 3 and I came across this little musical number by them. I decided afterwards to go back and watch the previous episodes. The earlier shows were shorter and provided some laughs. After episode,13, more of a recurring story started with some of the characters and each episode.

All I can do is wait now really. Yes my Xbox 360 Elite finally got the RRoD and if all goes well it should be back home around Tuesday or Wednesday from the repair center.

Been a really bummer to not hop in a quick game or two from time to time or play some campaign stuff. I started doing some MotoGP races and was in a little groove. Now its been a couple weeks and I’ll have to get back into the swing of things.

I must say that shipping to an from has been the biggest part of the wait. From the time I got the e-mail that they had it and started to work on it, just a mere 2 hours I was informed it was done and ready to ship back. The weekend strikes and it looks like its waiting to be picked up.

In the meantime I’ve been catching up on shows and even went back to some RPG action on the PC with an old title, playing Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. I’ve been staying updated on various Podcasts for gaming and wishing I could be in some of the action.

On a good note, at least this hit with some what of a lull in gaming for me and not a major release like Beatles Rockband, Halo 3 ODST, or Modern Warfare 2. I hope when it does return that this will be the last and only time that it RRoD’s on me.

Well March has just about come and gone for me and sadly I’m not able to play games on the 360. I’ve been hit with the RRoD now. Hopefully some time next month the 360 will be back and running better than ever.

So lets look at the following games that are left in my March Madness Demos. We have three games in the W section with Wanted, Watchmen, and Wheelman. If you haven’t had a chance to download these yet, I recommend you stop and queue them all up right now.

Wanted comes for a movie of the same name pretty much and I think right off the bat the pace an tone has been set to match the film. This is a game that I quickly felt like I was in the role of the main character and much like the movie had to learn quick and get in the role of an Assassin.

If you’ve seen the movie, then your aware of the story line, the language and violence that takes place. This is clearly not a game for younger players. The dialog is adult as is the subject matter. If you wanted to experience a little of the movie, then this is the game for you and you’ll be bending bullets very soon towards your many targets. This is a game I’d really like to see more of for sure.

Another from the movies brings us the Watchmen and this one comes from the Arcade section of Xbox Live. I went and saw this movie a couple weeks back and really enjoyed it. Now I actually played the demo before seeing the movie and only a small portion of the demo was remotely like the movie. Some of the characters were set in a Prison scene. Other than that it didn’t seem to spoil the movie at all.

The Watchmen is an arcade title, but a really well made arcade title. Its a button masher style of game, but I really liked it a lot. I only wonder if this game was meant to be retail and for some reason they felt it would do better as an arcade download. I could see myself purchasing this game for sure, even though is priced well above the normal 800 MS points I’m use to paying for games.

Wheelman is a face paced driving/fighting game and for me it reminds me a lot of the old coin operated games. Its a different style of button masher meets racer game where you find yourself fighting while driving.

The graphics were pretty good, but the play reminded me of some of those old arcade games where you were chasing someone. The only twist is most of the people are chasing you really in Wheelman. I liked this in general, but its not the type of game I would buy for myself pretty much. I still think its worth a look for free.

Well that wraps up the demos for March pretty much… Ok I did grab another arcade title called World Revolution and I’m very interested in giving this game a try. I just have to wait until I can get a working Xbox 360 again. In short this game reminds me of a modern day version of War Games and the part where the WOPR plays Global Thermonuclear War.

Last night my girls wanted to play some Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga and fired up the Xbox 360. I hear them yell for me from the Entertainment room, "Something is wrong with the Xbox 360!"

Not the words you want to hear. So I head out and take a look, no lights red... that's a relief. But the screen is black and the system is locked up hard.

We try it again and pretty much get the same results. So I decide to switch the game out to Surfs Up and sure enough the same results. They give up and decide to move on to something else.

I let it sit a bit and finish watching a program and think about what might be going on here. Later I fire the box up and start playing some Call of Duty 4 multiplayer. I'm able to play some and then it freezes in the middle of a game. Does this at least twice for me. All in all, none of these produce an error message or a RRoD or three red ring of death as people call it.

Not sure if what I'm experiencing is the signs of what is about to come or not, but I know that I'm covered with MS as well for about a year or so still. I'll have to see what happens, but I have a feeling we are looking at the early signs of an Epic failure to come.

One thing for sure is there is no shortage of the try before you buys around here on the Xbox Live Marketplace. I've downloaded a number demos this month, some I felt would be a pass for me and after playing them I was right in my first thoughts. So lets go with three Up & Out and my first impressions demo reviews.

First up is Afro Samurai and I like a lot in what I saw from this demo, not sure if I'll run out and buy this just the same. Its an Action game and what I call a button masher of sorts. My only hang up is with some of the camera issues and how games like this I find myself facing the wrong way and having a hard time controlling the character. Just the same I really loved the demo and will need to think hard on this one. Visuals are great and I think I'd enjoy the story. Game does have some language, so heed the ratings and decide for yourself.

Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena comes up next of the list of demos I tried out. I didn't do well on my first outing and need to give it another try I think. I never played the other game and I don't think I used all the tools I was suppose to use. Its a shooter and I started with Riddick's blades and lost every time I went up against the AI with guns. Perhaps a little tutorial would be better in the demo or perhaps they expected I should have known what I was doing. More and likely a pass for me just the same, but I'm sure fans of the first game will love it.

Ninja Blade just plain frustrated me and thanks for the look here, but its a flat out No. I already said I'm not a fan of button masher games and this is clearly that. Visual aspects look awesome pretty much, but a flash of the Green A button pops up and if you don't act right away, its game over. I must have restarted 60 times at least during my sample of this demo. Perhaps I'm just a lot older an not as quick here, but this is a clear pass for me and I'm not the attended gamer they are looking for.

Well I think I've finished with at least Afro getting on base and later reaching 2nd. Riddick was tagged out heading for first and then Ninja plain struck out for me. Will just say Afro was tagged latter stealing for 3rd.

My next post I'll discuss the demos for Wanted, Watchmen, and Wheelman and give my thoughts on what I liked of didn't like in these demos.

My favorite drink is Dr Pepper and its been really cool to see their campaign with MLG this year and how it features a gamer on every bottle, clearly holding an Xbox 360 Controller.

I've seen these campaigns in the past and you open the bottle and get some crazy code under the cap or look on the inside of the label, then you enter that code at a web site. I've done some and in most cases they all come back, "you loose... please try again and drink more."

So I was tempted to just pass on this whole campaign, but it clearly states ever bottle wins. I'll win something if I try is what they claim. Now I've had a few Dr Pepper's over the past months and its true, I'm winning something here, every time.

No its not cash or prizes, at least not yet, but every code you enter gets a point and you can claim those points with GameBattles.Com, to be used with their services. GameBattles.Com is working with Major League Gaming and what you can do with your points involves you and your Xbox 360 controller now.

On GameBattles.Com you can form a team of players and take part in what is called Ladder Matches. Then you compete against other teams over a period of time and work at climbing up the ladder. At the end of the season, the team with the most wins is the Ladder Champion so to speak.

This is similar to playing sports for a season and ladders normally run about four times a year. Where the points come into play is it takes points to run things. Just like signing up for a season of Soccer, you pay your entry fee and then you play. Now some Ladders are free, but others cost. In addition to the Ladders is tournaments and those cost as well, but you have a chance at winning prizes.

So thanks to the partnership with Dr Pepper, GameBattles.Com and MLG, you can now have a drink and earn your points to play online for more prizes. Or if you like you can simply buy points from GameBattles.Com and play that way. I for one am enjoying drinking my favorite soda and feel I'm getting a bit extra for my money this way now.

Talk about a cool welcome and introduction for all visitors to the Community. With the launch of their new site, 360Junkies.Com is holding a contest for visitors to win an Xbox 360 Arcade.

Sounds like a perfect way to move into the Gaming Community and get to know everyone if you ask me. Visit the site and while you at it, don't forget your chances at winning.

You can follow them on Twitter and do a re-tweet for a chance, post a blog similar to the one your reading here, or get other community sites to post about the contest as well.

Best of luck to everyone and you can't win if you don't play now. Thanks 360Junkies and welcome to the neighborhood now.

On Any Sunday, a 1971 documentary movie about Motorcycle racing on and off the tracks explains why people who are passionate about motorcycles and racing do it.

Ripping around the track and leaning the bike over and getting your knee down on the tarmac is why they do it. The thrill and rush and being one with the bike is hard to explain to someone that has never rode a motorcycle before.

So why am I talking about all of this on a gamers blog? MotoGP 07 was the one game I had looked at and wanted to really play. The only kicker is I'm not very good at this game. That being said, I've decided the only way to get better is to actually play it and do the races. So these past two Sundays, I've made sure to complete a Career Race and plan to complete a whole season.

I might very well be the worse racer in the end of the season, but I'm going to do this and see what I can do to get better. I can only go up from here, right? The important thing is to try and have fun doing it at the same time. This is a game on my list of games to master and I really want to get better at this game.

So Sundays are my MotoGP racing days now on the Xbox 360 and I might even start playing more Forza Motosport 2 as well. Why not make Sundays my day to just race? I'm not sure if I'll go as far as to get a NASCAR game, but I'll throw in Mad Tracks or GripShift perhaps. I still could even street race in Grand Theft Auto IV in the evenings.

But my focus will be on MotoGP and through out the year. Being a motorcycle rider myself and a fan of Motorcycle Racing, its a mission I'm looking forward to and plan to master. Now I need to get ready and prepare for my Race at Istanbul Park, Turkey, wish me Luck now.

March 5, 2009

New York, NY – March 5, 2008 – Apple Corps, Ltd., Harmonix and MTV Games, a part of Viacom’s MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), today announced the 9/9/09 worldwide release of The Beatles: Rock Band. The music-based video game, an unprecedented, experiential progression through and celebration of the music and artistry of The Beatles, will be available simultaneously worldwide in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other territories for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system and Wii™ home videogame console from Nintendo.

The Beatles: Rock Band will allow fans to pick up the guitar, bass, mic or drums and experience The Beatles extraordinary catalogue of music through gameplay that takes players on a journey through the legacy and evolution of the band’s legendary career.  In addition, The Beatles: Rock Band will offer a limited number of new hardware offerings modeled after instruments used by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr throughout their career.

The Beatles: Rock Band will be offered as standalone software and hardware as well as a limited edition bundle. The game will be compatible with all Rock Band instrument controllers and other current music-based video game peripherals.

Available on 9/9/09:

• The Beatles: Rock Band Software - Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $59.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Standalone Guitars - Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $99.99 MSRP
• The Beatles: Rock Band Limited Edition Premium Bundle: Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3, Wii: $249.99 MSRP

Please note: Pricing outside of the US to be announced at a later date.

The Beatles: Rock Band marks the first time that Apple Corps, along with EMI Music, Harrisongs Ltd, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing, has agreed to present The Beatles music in an interactive video game format. Published by MTV Games and developed by Harmonix, the world’s premier music video game company and creators of the best-selling Rock Band®, the game was creatively conceived with input and full blessing from Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, along with Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison. Electronic Arts will serve as distribution partner for the game. In addition, Giles Martin, co-producer of The Beatles innovative LOVE album project, is providing his expertise and serving as Music Producer for this groundbreaking Beatles project.

Exclusive content created by Apple Corps, MTV Games and Harmonix will be made available to fans over the next few months who participate in a pre-order campaign through major retailers. More details on The Beatles: Rock Band game and pre-order will be revealed in the coming months.

Please visit http://www.thebeatlesrockband.com.

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Well its the last day in February and Game Over Month is coming to a close now. The challenge was setup by the Married Gamers and all you needed to do was grab some of those games that you've started and hadn't finished. Games you walked away from or forgot about.

I decided I'd jump in and try and finish some of my games during this Month, I've done some other things like this and done well, perhaps I could put the same effort into my gaming. I picked 8 games to attempt at knocking out. I think it was a fairly big list and would be a real challenge to get them all. Here are the targets I selected and I've crossed out the ones I managed to beat.

• Bioshock
• GRAW 2
• Gears of War
• Gears of War 2
• Fable II
• Frontlines: Fuel of War
• Rainbow Six Vegas
• Halo 3

So I managed to take out 5 of my 8 targets during the month. My time to game can be a challenge in itself at times and with that being said, I'm fairly proud of myself for getting the 5 marked off. Not to mention that I also had Thirteen Days of Gears of War 2 going on as well an that involved a lot of online play time.

I think the online play could be the big hurdle for me and the reason a lot of games don't get finished. Its one of the things I love the most, being able to go online and actually play some games with friends, family, and co-workers for example. Its another reason I enjoying being an Xbox Live Ambassador, to meet people and play games, as well as help others out when I can.

So this month I had to play a little less online and focus on the stories in the games. I have to admit, I have a pretty decent collection of games and with so many games of late coming out, I think that could be another reason I didn't finish some of these. Its like a buffet of games and I found myself sampling more an more and perhaps had to many to choose from.

The old saying, "Finish what's on your plate" comes to mind here and thankfully Game Over Month came to my rescue and I can feel that I've gotten more of my monies worth out of some of my games now. I still have a lot of games to tackle and will see what I can do to do that for the rest of the year and I'm going to look forward to more Game Over Months in the future.

Mark your calendars now and join the rest of COGs online for thirteen days of playing Gears of War 2 and your chance at winning some cool prices. In order to get an entry for each day, you have to play in the following types of games for that day. Signup at Xbox.Com and we'll see you online. Details listed below as provided by Xbox.Com.

Sweepstakes Entry
Between February 1 - 13, 2009, registered players will automatically receive one entry (limit one per person per Daily Prize Period) when they log into Xbox LIVE and play the specified multiplayer match type in Gears of War 2.

Prize Periods
The Entry Period consists of thirteen separate Daily Prize Periods, as shown in the table below. In addition, if you earn a valid entry into all thirteen of the Daily Prize Periods (one valid entry per day during the Entry Period), you will automatically receive one entry into the Grand Prize Drawing.  Otherwise, each of your entries will only be eligible for the Daily Prize Period Drawing that corresponds to the Daily Prize Period during which it was received.

Prize Information
After the close of the Entry Period, we will randomly select the following winners from among all eligible entries received.

Sixty-Five Daily Prizes Packages (five winners Per Daily Prize Period):

• Gears of War 2 video game soundtrack
• Gears of War Aspho Fields novel
• A 12" x 18" Gears of War 2 promotional poster autographed by members of the Epic development team
• An in-game Golden Hammerburst and Lancer weapon

Thirteen Grand Prize Packages:

• A Samsung 40-inch 1080p flat panel LCD HDTV
• A Locust Bust
• A red Xbox 360 Wireless Controller
• A Marcus Fenix bronze statue
• Gears of War 2 video game soundtrack
• Gears of War Aspho Fields novel
• A 12" x 18" Gears of War 2 promotional poster autographed by members of the Epic development team
• An in-game Golden Hammerburst and Lancer weapon

The Play & Win and Download & Win promotions from Xbox.com are an easy way to jump in and interact with the Xbox LIVE community. It's easy to enter and you could win some great prizes. Look for more exciting Play & Win promotions in the future!

Funny how after all the hard work on a game is done and its release to the public has come, something always could be changed it seems to make it just that much more.

Not to long after people power through a game, the reviews will start to pop up every where. I'm not talking about all of the mainstream reviewers here, but the average gamer, giving his two cents here and there in the forums or blogs.

That's right your just reading a blog here and like everyone else, we all have points and opinions on the subject of our interests at the time. So where am I going with all of this then? A game comes out and in a lot of cases it will get high marks. So a 4 out of 5 or 9 out of 10, what ever the markings for the review, it gets the thumbs up at the end of the day.

Does it mean the game is perfect? Not all and I'd say you could pick at pretty much anything and find a flaw or something to change. Doesn't mean the game is bad, just means a feature here or there is flawed or missing. This game has Solo only or multi player, this game has this or that and on an on we could go.

Now some games have little bugs, screen glitches and flaws and at times they'll be fixed. I ran into one with Gears of War 2 during the campaign an half my screen would go white and the game would end in a death and send me back. Now the challenge was not beating the level as much as beating it and the flaw in the scene. I made it and hopefully that will be the last of that.

So when I look at a game like CoD4 and think to myself, this game rocks and is awesome in almost every aspect, I still think to myself, its missing Co-op and I'd like the ability to take cover an peek around things like other games.

Halo 3 is a real joy but I feel a bit let down with the type an way it ended. I wanted a huge battle with the Elites and Brutes I guess and didn't feel I got that in the game. I'd also like a cover system or at least the ability to go prone perhaps an not just stand or kneel down.

Looking at Fable II and the wonderful world to explore and the genre of this game is great. Still I could do with out all of the town people falling in love with me and following me about. If I go into one of my homes, let me shut the door and at least lock it. For now I never want to go home and remain out on quests it seems.

I could pick up just about every game in my collection and find a small part to tweak or add. Then again you can always wait for the next addition to come out. They are bound to fix that little thing that bugs you right?

Well I haven't noticed that with any of the Halo games at least, but the new Call of Duty, from another company mind you, at least it has added a Co-op mode. Maybe Infinity Ward will think about that with their next addition of Modern Warfare they plan to release. I can also hold out hope that Halo 3: ODST will have something more to offer in it an not just a new set of characters wrapped around an existing game engine.

Still good games and I'd say we over look those little things that lack and it gives us something to wish and hope for in the end. I for one at least get over it and accept all of the hard work that was put into the game when all is said and done, after all its just a game.

For new members here on Xbox Live, just getting around and meeting people can be a challenge sometimes. So a program was created to help people out and give them a friendly person to start things off. Xbox Live Ambassadors are volunteers from all over the world and from all types of backgrounds in gaming.

We love playing games and being on Xbox Live and want to help others have a great experience here on Xbox Live. We are available to try an help answer your questions and if we don't know the answer we'll try and find out what we can and get back to you. I volunteered to become an Ambassador and was selected towards the end of 2008 to help out with the Program.

Xbox Live Ambassadors are gamers just like everyone else and the main requirements are to have a Live Gold Account, at least 10 free spaces on our Friends List and a willingness to help out fellow gamers on Live. You can find Ambassadors in your area or learn more about the program by visiting Xbox.Com. Take a look at this video clip that helps explain more about the Ambassador program.

As an Xbox Live Ambassador for Texas, please feel free to message me on Xbox Live if you have questions or need help on Xbox Live. I'll do what I can to help you out and I look forward to meeting you and playing some games on Live.

Alright it was back in the summer of 2008 that I had wrote about finishing up some games. Now the list of games is still in the works and I wanted to update and add a couple games to the list. So we are looking at trying to finish up the story line campaigns for the following games. The following is what I have slated from here until July 2009 as my goal.

• HALO: Combat Evolved
• HALO 2
• Fable
• Bioshock
• Assassins Creed
• GRAW 2
• Half-Life 2
• Half-Life 2 episode 1
• Half-Life 2 episode 2
• Portal
• GTA iv

In addition to the list above, I have a few more games for 2009 to finish up. These are some games that I've started from rentals or purchased after my first post. I want to try and get a hold of these and wrap them up as well. All of these I'm looking at beating the story campaign. I'm not saying a full 1000 points in all of them.

• Gears of War
• Gears of War 2
• Fable II
• Fallout 3
• Mass Effect
• Frontlines: Fuel of War
• Rainbow Six Vegas
• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
• Call of Duty: World at War
• Halo 3
• Halo Wars
• Halo 3: ODST

Well it looks like I have a pretty busy card ahead of myself for Games to work on for the Year. Only problem is some games in my bottom half of the list are close to finishing and will make working on my top half by the Summer a challenge.