Posts Tagged ‘xbox

23
Nov

Fable 2 Xbox360 Review

By gameophiliac 0 Comments
Categories: Games, Reviews and Xbox360
Tags: , , ,

For the first time, I already have my own Xbox360, after 3 years of it’s release, and yes it is a Falcon. The first game I got to play out on my first 360? Fable 2. After playing Megaman 9 and for some reason, I can’t get myself to play Okami, I really missed playing some real hardcore games. Ah, now, I’m done with my rambling. Is Fable 2 really a better RPG than most? The original game was already aspiring to be more than any RPG has ever achieved, how will the new one fare up? They promised us that we can buy shops, a nice sweet dog, a great quest and much better gameplay. Does it live up to its name?

I’ll start off with this, the game loads a lot. So much that it gets irritating at times. I wonder if putting this on a PS3 would work much better? If there was a way to get this on my hard drive I’d do it now, why can’t the NXE (New Xbox Experience) come much sooner? Well, since that’s out of the way, lets continue.

The visual quality reminds of the original Fable, everything is like it came from a storybook. The art style is the same, but in every angle it looks quite detailed than before. The game is smooth enough, but there are some instances that animation is compromised just to keep the game to hog itself down. Like some characters are smooth in movement, but power ups slow down to a crawl, but since they are not what we look at most of the time it doesn’t bother you in gameplay. But it does bother me that I thought that the game was slowing down. Nonetheless, the game looked amazing. The locations are bigger before loading another map, the world seems more alive than the original game.

The voice acting was a good as before, I had no problems about it. It’s enough to pull you in and enjoy the game. I doubt that anyone would have any quarrels with this one. The music is good, but I do miss the Danny Elfman (Batman 1989, Tales from the Crypt, Edward Scissorhands, Nightmare Before Christmas) intro from the first game, and they removed an intro all together.

The game grows on you, literally. The game starts off slow, since you don’t have much action to get into, and you are a small orphan child. Here you get to understand a lot of the controls, well, the basic ones at least. At the same time you get to feel how the world is, although it doesn’t much tell you what the timeline is especially if you’ve played the previous Fable. The controls are simple to understand, all your abilities are just a click away, which is action, spell and range attacks. Each time you hit an opponent, you can get experience points, if you absorb them, which you must not forget to do.

Experience points are divided the same way your skills are. So if you use range attacks more, the more experience you get using range attacks. Although you do get a generic experience which you can add up to your total. Experience is gained like money, you can spend it on skills if you can afford it. A skill will cost at lot, but if you need like a toughness skill, you can buy it by adding your action experience and your generic experience. It makes more sense in leveling up skills than your character levels up. This is one RPG that your character never levels up, only your skills. It’s your option to level up your life or level up other stuff. Focusing on one skill can make you strong in one aspect, but it hinders you to try others, but if you spread too much, you hinder your chance to make your skills powerful.

Another thing I liked about this is getting jobs, although they are still boring than actually playing, its the end result that makes it worth while. Getting jobs can get you money, obviously, and you can get more weapons, armor and such. Other than that, you can get establishments, buildings, shops, houses and more. The more establishments you own, the more money you get each virtual day. You can even change the prices of the items on sale, rent out a house, own it for your spouse, decor it to your hearts content. There will be a point that you won’t even need to take a job anymore since you gain so much money just by owning everything.

The dog is a nice addition. At first it doesn’t really feel like he’s any important, but as soon as he gets to know how to find hidden items, he turns invaluable. You won’t want to loose your pet since you need him to find treasures. After a while, you realize that the more you take care of your pet, the more people will like you. The dog slowly grows on you and it’s nice, but once you loose your pet, you worry. Be careful with your pet, since it can get hurt during a fight.

Another wonderful thing about this game is that it helps you get to your objective. This is not like most games that you have to find your own way like Oblivion, although that does point you where to go, this one makes a line to how to get there from where you are now. The map is almost useless though, but the line helps more than any. Choose a quest, and the line will just show up it makes questing so much easier and more accessible to anyone. Maybe some hardcore gamers will want to disable it since it makes it so easy but then again, I welcome it because it just makes my gaming more fun than frustrating.

The online feature is like a SEMI-MMORPG, since you can talk through your microphone with anyone close to you. Other players are not actually close to you since they are all playing their own game, they all show up as orbs with their gamertag icon. But each and everyone can join you and you can join them. It’s an idea that I really like since, talking to everyone can get you more friends with the same goals, helping each other out to finish the game.

There are so many things about this game that are good. I just feel bad there are also negatives about this game. I wish there were more missions which involve other heroes. Most of the time they leave you alone to do your quests. As I said before, the loading time is ridiculous, the map is almost useless. The ending could have been better, since it doesn’t even have a boss fight. Focusing on the main quests can finish the game really quick and it can get disappointing. Although you can still do all the quests you have missed, and you can get a few new ones after the ending, it won’t feel the same trying to do them. It makes more sense to do the game all over again, since I felt like I wanted to try other endings for achievement points.

At the end, even though I had a few problems, the good still outweigh the bad. It’s a game I actually enjoyed, but ended way too early. It had more ideas than most RPG games even Oblivion didn’t tackle buying properties the same way this has. I Highly Recommend trying out this game. Some of you may even buy it, and for a while, it is worth it.

This game is now available at Gamehopper, you can TRY or BUY the game. Php599 for a monthly fee to receive 1 game at a time (play the game as long as you like and exchange it at any time for no additional fees), nationwide deliveries (Philippines only).

23
Nov

Installed NXE without a problem. Whoohoo!

By gameophiliac 939 Comments
Categories: Xbox360
Tags: , , ,

I also installed the New Xbox Experience. I was actually worried because downloading system firmwares are dangerous if it’s cut off in the middle of some kind of power failure. Living in Paranaque, Philippines doesn’t make you feel any safe from that. But then again, I can’t miss out on this since the new menu system has been hyped to the full extent, and a lot of my friends has loaded up the NXE as soon as it got up on November 19th.

The system update took 30+ minutes for me. I didn’t actually time it, but it’s around that time. There were 2 download updates. It went smoothly and there were no problems. Except that I almost thought my system broke because it hangged up right after my initial installation of the NXE. Good thing it didn’t.

The new menu is wonderful, I can’t believe that the system can totally make itself fresh and new. The first thing that pops out is the introduction of the new Avatar for your profile. The system reminds me of Mii, and it’s fun to play around. There are so much things to play around with your avatars looks. I just wish that there were more customizable options like changing the position of the freckles or changing the color of your plain clothes. But obviously, Xbox Live will charge for any new clothes in the future, since they charge for pretty much anything, like really small images that are used on their profile and themes too.

The menu system is not really revolutionary, since it does remind me a bit of Playstation’s Xross Media Bar, but NXE’s more refined and more visually stunning. The look itself is not the only change, there are other improvements too, like games can now be installed to the hard drive. Some games work wonderfully nice, since the system is more quiet without the disk drive spinning. Some games even load faster now once you install them. You still need the disk for it to boot up the game. The only problem now, is that 20Gb won’t cut it anymore.

There are also issues of banning. Everyone who has modded their Xbox360 units, even with stealth mode will have problems if they are online. Too bad that they will be missing out a lot of the good stuff that Live has to offer.

Anyway, I really enjoy the new menu, and for what’s its worth, It gives the 360 owners something fresh and feels like a new console all together.

01
Feb

Xbox360 Hardware Review

By gameophiliac 0 Comments
Categories: Reviews and Xbox360
Tags: , , ,

It has been a long time, the Xbox360 was released three years ago and it was only recently that I got a chance to really get my hands on the system. What was the first game I got to try? Halo 3. I was able to try the most anticipated game of the 360 since it was released. Everyone waited for Halo 3, but while people were waiting, everyone was able to try what the 360 was capable of. Now it’s my time to tell what this baby can push through.

First thing I noticed, is packaging. I was surprised that the package itself already included the optical audio output and even has connections for an HDTV out of the box. The problem though is that different versions of the pack may have different connections included in the box. I have opened several boxes while I was working on a magazine company; I was a bit confused why there were different connections available depending on the box you get. It doesn’t even indicate what connection you’ll be getting from outside the box.  In any case, the option is a good way to promote High Definition gaming, which I never saw on the PS3 package.

Another thing I liked with the package was the inclusion of the Xbox Live headphones and microphone.  Again this package promotes another 360 advantage, the online service. It’s easy to be tempted to play online at any time. With that included, if you’re a first time player, it’s going to tempting to use the 1 month free service of Live. I really recommend trying it out because it’s a real easy experience. Just don’t go buying your Live points after one month. Try it first before actually getting into the service.

The controller feels very good, if you have used the Xbox Controller S, then this one can make you feel at home.  The only difference about this controller is that there are 2 extra buttons on the top which seems like a very similar layout of the PS2/PS3 controller. The black and white buttons are gone. The start and back buttons are placed in the center, although I still liked the setup of the Controller S since it was easier to reach. The center button acts as a power switch and a Xbox dashboard main menu button. There are 4 lights at the center which also indicated which player number you are.  This controller is powered by 2 AA batteries. It’s simple and easy. Get a rechargeable battery and it will last very long before you’ll need to recharge them again.

Another interesting part of the package is the remote control. It does feel like an all in one package that proves to be a multimedia entertainment center.  Although I never actually used it when I had a chance to play around with the 360, I didn’t even try. But it was good to know that I had the option to use it when I wanted to.

The console itself is quite large, but it won’t intimidate you as much as the original Xbox.  The big circle in front is the power button, which also has 4 lights around it. The lights acts for 4 purposes, one is an error warning or a player indicator. If anyone heard about the Red Ring of Death or the 3RL, then you might have known about what the power button shows if the system won’t start properly. The console has 2 proprietary memory card ports and an infrared sensor.  After seeing the PS3 and the Wii, the Xbox360 really feels like a combination between the old and the new.

Okay, now we start with how it works out. First time powering up the system only uses the main power from the console. You can’t start using the controller since you need to sync them first. Sensing the game controller for the first time was a breeze. Press the small circle in front of the game console and press the center button of the controller and wait until they synchronize. You’ll know when they sync when the lights on the controller and console looks the same. Then you are good to go.

When the system starts, there is a usual setup of time, but other than that, you go to the dashboard. The dashboard is comprised with several sections, which I can’t describe everything. The basic thing you’ll see is the option to play the inserted game, you’ll also see your profile since all players must have their optional name before they start playing. You can access games that are loaded to your hard drive called the Live Arcade, because you can download these games from Xbox Live. Accessing Live is also a breeze because you can easily access trailers, demos, games and dashboard themes. It feels that there are so many things to do, but it’s very well organized. Just be careful with getting Live with your credit card. It’s so easy to spend stuff online than with Wii or PlayStation 3.

It’s important to remember to start a profile before starting a game, it can be a bit of a hassle when you’re in a middle of the game and someone comes in to play, then he or she has to make a new profile in a middle of some action. Why is making a profile so important? Well, it will keep track of your score, in any game you play. Offline or online there is something called Achievement points. This is something Wii and PlayStation didn’t include. You have points gained each time to do something interesting in the game, so the more you play, the more points you gain. If you are online, points will really matter because you can compare your points to other players. A friend or anyone you’ll meet online will be listed and it will show how many points they gained for each game that they have played.

The audio is astounding, but that still depends on the game. But with hardware alone, the system delivers very well. So many options will be shown to you depending on what connection you made.  The graphics is amazing, especially when you see Gears of War, I’m amazed with what the hardware can do. The graphics of that game can only be compared to Unreal Tournament 3 on the PS3.

So, what so wrong about this great console? The package is amazing, it has everything a gamer wants. Although it won’t be like Wii where you can exercise at the same time with a standard controller, it still has a lot to offer because of its community that it builds. The hardware is top of the line; it doesn’t seem that it needs a bigger capacity than a DVD unless you’re playing Blue Dragon. What’s wrong is what’s inside the console. The early versions of the Xbox360 really breaks down so easily that you might need to consider if this is a good investment in the long run. A lot of people I know have worn out their Xbox in only a few months.  It breaks down in less than a year with the general problem of 3RL. The 3RL is also known as the “Three Red Lights” or “Red Ring of Death”. The 3RL is a hardware problem but it really doesn’t show what kind of problem, but it is generally a heating problem with the system. There are so many possibilities of what may have happened, some are repairable, some are not. Remember that in our country of the Philippines, the 3 year warranty of Microsoft doesn’t really stand here. You can get a 1 year warranty at best, but some will only give a month or less, some won’t even give any because of the regular breakdowns.

All is not lost though. The new console the Microsoft is releasing is pretty cool and has a lesser chance of breaking down, but from the consumers’ point of view, it looks all the same. Just look at the manufacturing date, the Xbox360 boxes have an opening so that you can see the new ones. To be safe, look for September 2007 and beyond. But that doesn’t mean that you’re out of the loop yet.

So, the summary of my review is that the game system and package is amazing. It’s hard to compare because the online features are so complete than the PSN has to offer, and the friends you gain is sometimes enough to convince you to play the 360 over and over again.  It’s cheaper than the PlayStation 3, but not by much anymore.   The collection of games is very good and they do have interesting exclusives too. After September 2007, it’s worth to look at this console now. Just be careful with what you buy though. If you are considering getting one, get the one with the hard drive. It’s a bit pointless to get a core system without a hard drive because you will need to get one later for demos and updates.