The demo for Project Sylpheed was release on the Marketplace yesterday. Before I saw the news that the demo was available I had not heard of the game. It is a space fighter with a slightly anime look to it. Generally I’m not a big fan of flying games because I find them hard to control, but I thought I’d give it a try anyway because it was something new. I was pleasantly surprised with how the controls work. The demo has a full tutorial and then a single mission. I would say that going through the tutorial first is pretty much a requirement. The controls for maneuvering were pretty normal, but after that the controls are fairly unique. However, I found them to work well. They have added a couple of unique options that make playing a little easier. When targeting an enemy you can match their speed by pulling both triggers, which are your accelerate and brake, at the same time. So, once you get the enemy in firing range you can easily hold that distance. Also, by clicking on the right thumb stick the camera will lock into the enemy and follow them instead of staying aimed in front of you. This helped me get them aimed in my cross hairs a lot easier. Once the tutorial was complete I found that I could fly the ship pretty well.

Before starting up the mission they are options for customizing the weapons on your ship. There are quite a few options that you can choose from and it looks like their are quite a few more that will be in the full game that are not in the demo. I went with all the homing rockets and missiles I could find since my aim is bad.

The mission itself is an escort mission where you need to kill the enemies before they kill you or the ships you are trying to protect. Nothing to new here, but I found that it was pretty strait forward to kill an enemy and the go after the next one. In addition to controlling yourself you also have a few wingmen that you give squad orders to. Since this was an escort mission I figured that I was suppose to kill the enemies a fast a possible so I set them to attack mode and forgot about them. I could have also set them to defend me or fly with me in formation.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with the ease of playing the game. Without the tutorial it would have been a nightmare, but with the tutorial it was pretty fun. The game will be released with a $40 price tag in a few weeks. It is nice to see not every game coming out has the $60 price tag. Hopefully it sells well and other companies release games at lower prices.

Prince of Persia Classic was released on Xbox Live Arcade today. I tried the demo earlier and it was how I remember from playing on the PC version as a kid. If you played Prince of Persia when it was released originally then all of the original goodness is here with some enhanced graphical elements and animations. Personally, I was never a big fan of Prince of Persia. I always found the controls to touchy. I’d hit the jump button with my timing off my half a second and end up dead. Having to retrace a big section of the level was never fun for me. If you’ve never tried the original Price of Persia I’d recommend giving the trail a run through. Even though it is not one of my favorite games a lot of people loved it and now is your chance to find out why. It is a classic and I’m sure a lot of people will be glad to have it. If you have fond memories of playing Prince of Persia let me know what you think of the Xbox Live Arcade version.

I came across this news article today about a kid who stabbed a burglar with a sword when they tried to steal his PS3. This got me thinking about my Xbox 360. It is one of my most valuable possession. Sure, I have stuff that cost more, but none that I use as often. I think I probably even use my Xbox 360 more than my car. If someone were to try and steal it I would probably try to stop them, assuming I did not think they had a gun. So, my questions for everyone is do you have a possession that you value higher than your gaming console, and if so, what is it?

This morning I was a little frustrated because I did not have anything to play on my Xbox 360 (I’m waiting on C&C3 to come from GameFly), and I had some spare time. Then, I got an email this morning letting me know that Vector TD was released. Vector TD is the most recent Tower Defense game from David Scott who also created Flash Element TD and Flash Circle TD. Vector TD has a lot of the great elements that make David Scott’s other Tower Defense games so great. You get interest for cash you have not spent at the end of each level. Also, if any of the enemies to make it off the screen you loose a life and then they loop back to the start. I love both of these game play elements.

There are 4 different tower colors (blue rays, red rockets, green lasers, and purple powers). Each of these tower colors has 2 or 3 different types of towers. Basically, a Level 2 tower does more damage than a Level 1 tower, and a Level 3 does even more. After buying a tower you can also upgrade it up to 10 times. There are 6 different types of enemies and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. This combination of weapons and enemies makes for some great strategies. There are 4 normal maps and 4 hard maps. If you have played any of David Scott’s previous games you had better just start on the hard maps. I started on the normal maps and I beat them all the first try with a score in at least the 40,000s and over 15 lives left.

One of the new game elements that Vector TD has is that the waves of enemies don’t come until you are ready and hit a button to send them. This makes the game a little easier because you don’t have to try and rush to et your stuff upgraded before the next level comes. Another thing that makes the Normal levels a little easy is that there you know you only have 40 waves of enemies to make it through. So, if you can make it past level 30 you might as well start spending a little money. The final new element I really like is that you can specify which enemies you want your towers to target first, individually. Each tower can be set to target the closest enemy, the strangest enemy, or the weakest enemy. This really helps later in the game as you can have your strong towers know enemies down a lot and them have the weaker towers finish them off. If you are a fan of Tower Defense games I’d highly recommend Vector TD. It has a lot of the great elements that the previous Tower Defense games that David Scott has put out had, but with a great new towers and enemies.

Between games of Shadowrun I took a little bit to check out the Overlord demo and I’m glad I did because it was lot of fun. The graphics were decent. Not outstanding or anything, but pretty good. Basically, the point of this action adventure game is that you are an Evil Overlord that was nearly killed and your tower nearly destroyed. You now have to use your minions to restore evil to the world and rebuild your tower. Your minions look a lot like Gremlins, but they are still fun to control. You can either send them strait ahead of you with the Right Trigger or control exactly where they move with the right thumb stick. I had a lot of fun having my minions do random stupid stuff like smash pumpkins and kill sheep. The minion interact with the environment in fun ways as you send them through the world. For example, while smashing pumpkins a couple of my minions put pumpkins on their heads and for the rest of the time playing they kept them there. It was really funny.

The controls were a little odd, but since I’m been playing mostly first person shooters for a while that could be part of it. Part of the issue was that it is not easy to look around. Hopefully they’ll get the controls/camera so it is a bit easier to look around, but over all I was surprised with how much fun it is to be had. After trying the demo I think I’ll probably rent the game. If you have not downloaded the demo yet I’d recommend checking it out.

I’ve had Shadowrun for a week now and I’m still trying to decide if it is worth $60 or not. Everyone I know that has tried it likes it, but will they still like it 3 weeks from now or will they be on to something new? That I don’t know. Personally, I like the game play, but there are a few things that make me question the $60 price tag.

First, the game is multiplayer only. There is no campaign mode and no co-op modes. There are 6 training tutorials that you play alone to learn how the game works, and you can setup a game with all bots to play by yourself. I played through the tutorials and a match against all bots and I would highly recommend everyone do so before playing online because the game’s pace takes some getting use to. Ultimately Shadowrun is designed to be played online with other players. With so many other games out that have single player campaigns, co-op modes, and multiplayer for the same $60 price it seems odd that they would charge this much for a game that is multiplayer only. In addition to being multiplayer only there are only three game modes and 9 maps. The person setting up the room essentially only gets to choose the game type and map. There is no control for game length or the number of rounds. This seems like a huge oversight. If you’re going to have a multiplayer only game at least have a ton of game modes and maps (see GRAW2 for an example) with lots of customization options.

The graphics in Shadowrun are ok. They are not the best I’ve seen in a multiplayer game, but they are not terrible. It is the little things that make you notice the graphics. For example, there are a lot of ladders in the maps, but the no climbing animations. You just seem to float up the ladder. Since it is in first person view you don’t notice it until you see someone else climb a ladder.

Despite these short comings I’m having a lot of fun playing Shadowrun. The gameplay is fantastic. Even through there are only 9 maps they are huge. The game is designed to require a lot of team work to win. That is one of the things I like about Rainbow Six: Vegas so it is nice to see another tactical game. However, Shadowrun little else in common with Rainbow Six: Vegas. In Shadowrun it is better to run away from a fight than it is to die. Also, the game play itself is much, much faster paced. Where Shadowrun really sets itself apart is in the player customization. There are four different races to play with. Each with its own strength and weaknesses. In addition to the weapons there are also tech and magic items. These items allow you to do things like resurrect fallen teammates and strap a glider to your back. At the beginning of each round you get a chance to buy new weapons, magic, and tech. Your magic and tech stay with you for the entire match, but if you die you have to buy weapons again. This counter strike style of purchasing makes for some very interesting tactics and team work. If your whole team has gliders then there is no one to resurrect you when you die. This makes team communication a key to winning. This is also why it is better to run away than it is to die. If you die you have to waste money buying weapons again. So, having a couple teammate who can revive you and let you pick up your weapon back up, even if you don’t win the round, is key to this game.

Another thing I really like about Shadowrun is the weapon accuracy. The guns lose accuracy when you move or jump. Also, the faster you shoot the less accurate the guns are. This makes it key to be patient and take shots slowly so that the targeting reticle shrinks back down to being the most accurate. When you’re in close to an enemy you can just let the bullets fly, but at medium or far distances it really helps me take time between shots. This helps me get more head shots because I can aim as I wait that second between shots so my gun is the most accurate it can be.

So far I’ve played a little with every race, but I seem to do best with a human and the following setup: Strangle, Gust, Smoke, SMG, Shotgun. In later rounds I add the Tree and Resurrect (but I don’t map them) just so I have them as a backup. I find with this setup that I can play as good 2 person team. I can keep the enemies at a good distance with gust and strangle allowing myself and another team mate to work them off together. I find this works well against trolls and humans especially because they can’t move out of the strangle before we can kill them. What is everyone else’s prefer race and setup?

I’m not 100% sold on buying this game because I’m poor and $60 for a multiplayer only game still seems a bit high to me. I think I’m going to stick with the rental for a few weeks. If everyone on my friends list is still playing it, and I still am having a lot of fun with it then I’ll buy it.

So I downloaded and tried the Tenchu Z demo yesterday and I’ve got a question. What is all the fuss about? I saw a lot of people excited about this game (and its demo), but after trying it I don’t see why. The graphics are nothing special. It is suppose to be a stealth game, but it is really a puzzler where you just need to memorize the enemies movement patterns so you can get behind them and kill them. If you tried this demo and liked it can you leave me a comment and let me know what I’m missing? I’m hoping that I’m just missing the one thing that makes this a great game because so far it seems really lame.

Earlier this week rumors were circulating around the internet that Microsoft would be making a big announcement this week. The announcement turned out to be the release of Pac-Man Championship Edition. The rumors should have been that an previously unannounced game was going to be released because this does not warrant the “big announcement” category. I checked out the trail version of Pac-Man CE this morning and I’m pretty disappointed. First, for a $10 game the trail version only lets you check out one of the modes and it is only for 5 minutes. I’ve never been that good at Pac-Man, but I did find that I did pretty well in my 5 minutes. I did die once trying to eat a ghost before the power pellet wore off, but other than that it was pretty easy. I’m sure it would have been harder to do the 10 minute version. The game comes with 6 different game modes all of which are timed. Unlike the original Pac-Man in the Championship Edition you’re not so much trying to stay alive as you are trying to get as high of a score as possible within the time limit. Also, the whole level does not start off filled with pellets. Instead a small section has pellets. Once you eat all of those a piece of fruit appears on the other side of the map and eating it adds more pellets back to the map. Each time the fruit adds more pellets than what you ate before. Despite not being that good at Pac-Man I had fun playing the single level of the trial because the controls worked well. Unlike the original Pac-Man on the Xbox Live Arcade the controls in the Championship Edition were actually designed for the controller.

The only game play related thing I found annoying was when you eat a power pellet the screen had this wavy effect for a few seconds. I don’t see a need for that. The achievements seem like they would be pretty easy to pick up for the most part. They are mostly the usual get a certain score or complete a specific level ones.

The reason I’m disappointed with Pac-Man Championship Edition is because of the $10 price tag. The entire game’s 6 modes can be played through in just 45 minutes. Sure, you’re going to play them multiple times trying to get a better score each time, but I still think this game either needs more modes or the price lowered to$5. For those of you who are huge Pac-Man fans Championship Edition is probably going to be great for you. For the rest of us Championship Edition does not have enough replay value to be worth the cost of admission.

Now that the Halo 3 Beta has been out for a couple weeks I wanted to get everyone’s thoughts on if buying Crackdown was worth it. Personally, I’m happy with my decision to rent Crackdown. I don’t really have a desire to play it now that I beat it (although I may check out the new content), and I have a friend who doesn’t have internet access that loaned me his Crackdown to check out the Halo 3 beta. Even if he had not I don’t think I would be that concerned because I can play the full version of Halo 3 in a few months and there are plenty of great game to keep me occupied until then. Crackdown was a fun game, but in my opinion not worth $60. Even with the included 3 weeks of the Halo 3 beta. There is no replay value once you beat the story so why buy it when you can rent it. So, what are your thoughts on it? Was Crackdown worth the money? Did you buy it just for the Halo 3 beta? If so, was that worth it? Leave a comment and let me know.

I want to start by thanking Nintendo for making Mario popular. If it were not for Super Mario Brothers back on the NES action/adventure platformers may have never evolved to the level they are today. However, since they did we have games like SHReK the THiRD. Normally I would not be interested in kids games like SHRek the THiRD, but since my son is already very interested in video games (I have to hide the 360 controller or he tries to play with it) I’ve been keeping an eye out for games that he might be able to play once my wife and I decide he is old enough to play. After trying the SHReK the THiRD demo I’ll have to keep this game in mind once he is old enough. The controls are really simple; move with the left joy stick and then jump with A and attack with B and X. The graphics look decent enough. Not the best I’ve ever seen, but pretty good for a game based on a movie. Once his little hands fit around the control I think my son would enjoy SHReK the THiRD. The entire games, at least as far as I can tell from the demo, involves walking through levels and punching the enemies until you knock them out. There’s no blood and there are some really funny attacks. I’m not sure how my wife will feel about our son playing a game where all you do is hit people, but it could be worse. It could be a Barney game.