Magic 97.7 100.3

Diablo III, and Guild Wars 2 Beta

2012-02-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since we have talked about Diablo III, and there is a lot going on right now with it. One reason is because it is going to be released in the near future.

How soon? I'm not sure. I'm guessing either March or April. Unless they move it back more, which I'm really hoping Blizzard doesn't.

IGN has a release date on the side of their site on March 31st. Is it true? It's too early to tell. If you remember a while ago Best Buy had a poster up saying February 1st was the release date. And did it come out? No, it did not. So should I believe IGN? I'm not entirely sure. But what we can do is hope some news about the release date will turn up somewhere (even if it's leaked). Blizzard is usually pretty tight about things like this. So who knows.

All I know.. Is that I can't wait for this game to come out. It's going to steal my soul. Farming for items is going to be huge. Even crafting. If you played the Diablo III beta, make sure to watch some videos. Or you'll be missing out on some things. In Diablo II, it was all about the loot. And in Diablo III, it's the same way. Except this time around when you find gear, you can actually sell your gear on an auction house for in-game currency, OR you can sell it for real money. That's right, you can make money by selling gear on the auction house. I don't think it's enough to really make a living off of the game.. But still. Making a little extra cash on the side for a taco or two from playing a game? I'll take it. What can be better then spending the evening playing a game, have an awesome weapon drop off of a boss, and then sell it for some cash moneys? Can't get much better then that, am I right? How can the girlfriend get mad at you playing a game making money? There's your ticket to gaming all night.

Another thing that I want to touch on real quick is Guild Wars 2 Beta.

You can now sign up.

https://beta.guildwars2.com/

There is the site, and they will have you download the specs of your computer. Make sure to fill everyone out, and you could get an invite.

Do it before it's too late!

Final Fantasy XIII-2

2012-02-14T13:37:00.001-07:00

Let's talk Final Fantasy XIII-2.

Now pretty much all my life growing up, there has always been Final Fantasy. It is one reason why I became such a hardcore gamer. The story and game play... It's just amazing.

I thought FFXIII was a solid game. Yes, it was linear, but it was very story driven, and I enjoyed it. After many complaints about the game design though, they switch things around. Now FF XIII-2 is suppose to be much more open, and actually have towns and shops.

I got to play about an hour of it last night, ( The girlfriend bought it for me ) and so far, I'm enjoying it. If you have played FFXIII and have a save file on your ps3, then you get a few special things. I'm not quite sure what they are as of yet, but when I do find out, I will let you know.

The story continues off of FFXIII, but I am a little confused about something. Why Lightning disappeared in the first place. She wasn't the one that held up Cocoon, that was Fang and Vanille. They turned to crystal.

SPOILER ALERT! If you have not played the game up to the first boss, skip ahead. Unless you want to hear about the story line, ( Little bits and pieces, at least).

The game starts off as you playing Lightning, and she is in a place called Valhalla. And she is protecting some Goddess. You are fighting this guy named Caius trying to destroy "everything". And Lightning is there to save the day. What I don't get is how Lightning just disappeared, or as the game said "died". It makes no sense. And the end of XIII, she was reunited with snow and Serah. So I'm not sure, but hopefully that will be discussed later in the game. But the game is 3 years after XIII, so perhaps something happened in between there. That's the only thing that I can think of. But details on XIII-2 is still vague, as I have only played a little bit of it so far.

This character Noel comes from the future, (Not much is known about him as of right now) and he is summon to Valhalla, where Lightning is in the heat of battle. She tells him to find Serah, her sister, and tell her she is alive. And to bring Serah to Lightning. Noel then goes through a time gate, and then is brought to the present time of Serah. There is a lot of details in between, but you can tell Noel is from the future because he says that the Legend is true. The legend about how Cocoon was held up from pulse by crystal. And then all of a sudden it disappears. That's where I am at in the game, and I can't wait to play it more.

Now there are a lot of questions that I have, and I'm sure you have as well, (unless you beat the game) but when I find out more about it, I will write another post.

Some things that I am bummed about, would be you only play those 2 characters pretty much all game. I like having a party, and switching people in and out. So that is a bummer for me. But other then that, I think that the game should be great. We'll give you more details later as well.

The story will be amazing. I can't wait to get through it.

That's all for today folks

-j-

Sony PlayStation Vita (3G/Wi-Fi) Review

2012-02-13T12:42:00.000-07:00

Well, the system is finally making its debut here in the States, and bringing with it, new software features, an expanded library of games, and access to its full suite of online features.

Let's just say one thing and get it out of the way. This thing is a beast. The downside to it would be the steep price. That's one thing that draws people away from it. But the look of it.. Wow. That's all I can say. Silver Metallic.. YES PLEASE. The massive 5 inch OLED display, which gives AMAZING visuals. Even as it's lowest brightness setting, the screen is crisp and vibrant.

The buttons on it are a little jammed, but that's nothing to worry about. They are very effective with the position of your hands. The touch screen and rear touch panel is accurate. One flaw would be the high-gloss finish of the front panel, which makes it hard to use when the sun is shining.

Now you can buy the Vita for $249 if you want the Wi-Fi only model. Or $299 for the 3G. The 3G service is provided by AT&T, and gives constant connectivity to the PSN, turn-based multiplayer, mobile browser, and social aspects. I would honestly snag the Wifi version, only because I don't want to pay more, and I am always around wifi. So why not, right?

Average use time on the battery is around 3-5 hours. Not bad. Turn down all the settings, and you're looking at around 5 hours. Which is pretty darn good. If you want the 3G version, you better remember that you will be paying monthly for the 3G. $14.99 for 250MB, or $29.99 for 3GB's of data. To be, it doesn't seem like a very good deal.

The camera on this thing isn't very good either. You're better off just using your phone. You always have your phone with you anyways, so use that. Here is why I say that.

The colors just seem off. amiryte?

Bottom line is, if you want PS3 quality graphics in the palm of your hand, where ever you go, then snag a PSVita. It'll be worth it. Trust me on that one. Will the price drop within the next few months? Most likely, and that's when I will try to pick one up.

That's all for today folks.

-j-

The Best Role-Playing Games of 2012

2012-01-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Today we are going to be talking about the best role-playing games that will be coming out in 2012.

First up would be Diablo III.

More Diablo III Videos

Now if you were like me a few years ago, you were addicted to Diablo II. And you played it for hours with friends. One reason it was so addicting, would be the chance of finding gear when it drops. And the difficulty of "Hell" mode. It gets quite hard. But as I just mentioned, what is really fun about is the drops. Hell mode has the best gear in the game, and the chances of it dropping are low. But that's the fun about it. If you get something to drop, boy are you ecstatic. It's free to play online as well. So you can have all your friends play together, and it's a blast. Although the bummer thing is, Diablo III doesn't have a release date yet. We are still waiting on it.

The next game on the list is Final Fantasy XIII-2 which comes out next week.

More Final Fantasy XIII%2D2 Videos

Another game that will be a ton of fun. It's only a single player game, but the story makes up for it. Another game that is a lot of fun. You can actually play the demo now if you want to wait a few hours for the download. I played it, and can't wait to get my hands on it. Release date is January 31st. And the story continues on from XIII, but instead of playing Lightning trying to free Serah, her little sister, you now play Serah, and I believe you try to save Lightning in a way. I'm not entirely sure, but I will let you know once I pick up the game. It's going to be a blast, and I cannot wait to play it.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Another game for all you RPG fans out there.

More Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Videos

Now this game I haven't really had a chance to look at, and I have the demo downloading on my PS3 right now, so I can't tell you too much about it, but if you are a RPG fan, this game should be high on your list. The game will have incredible depth, and non-linearity that doesn't beg you to go in a certain direction, and that sort of leans be toward Skyrim. But we'll see how the game plays out.

Well, there are a few of the Best Role-Playing Games coming this year.

We'll touch on more later.

-j-

Modern Warfare 3 - A Look At Gameplay Footage

2012-01-25T13:10:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Hopefully the day for you all has been going well! It's a Wednesday, and today we are going to be looking at some game play footage from yours truly, and we will take a look at a few things that I do, and perhaps will improve your game play as well.

Alrighty. Here is a full game of me playing Modern Warfare 3. Now the first thing that you want to do is know where your enemies will be by the time you get to a certain place on the map in the beginning of the game. As you see here, I rush the right side because I know people will always go to the tunnel area with the pipes. It's almost a 50/50 chance at least one person will be there. It's a hot zone. Luckily, I pick up a Triple Kill, and that gets me on my way toward my killstreaks. I run 5-7-9. One you hit 5, Try to get a double kill, and you're almost always going to get up to your 9 killstreak.

Back to the video, after the triple kill, I run around the side to see if I missed any, and bam, there are 2 more. Which leads me up to my 5 kill streak. I fail predator missile though, sadly. 5/6 enemies were right in that area. Was almost set up perfect just for me. Alright. Now after that, the enemies will be spawning toward where they first spawned on the map, so I start to rush up toward their spawn. Here is a tip. As you see, I pick up one of their guns. When you have the chance, even if your gun is almost full on ammo, always pick up a weapon from your fallen foe. Unless of course, you use Overkill. Then just pick one up when you are low on ammo on one of your guns.

Now I rush up towards their spawn, and catch another 2 kills. When you kill someone, they are almost guaranteed to try to come back to kill you, so be expecting them. And here, two of them come, and I use the barrier in front of me for cover as I pick them off. I now proceed further into the map, checking corners, and try to come up behind everyone in the center building. I notice gun fire on the map, and go rushing in. More kills on the chopping block. I pick up 4 more kills inside the building, and back track. Try to keep on the outside of the map when you can. It's much safer.

Continuing on, I'm back where I started. And keep looking at that hotspot, also staying on the outside of the map. Get another Pred Missile, and pick up a kill off of it, after finding a safe spot to use it. I rush towards the middle building, a another kill. Now here is when a predator missile from the enemy starts to come, and I see there are several teammates around me. This is where you want to try to get away from your teammates, and try to find a safe spot, which I managed to.

Now here I get overwhelmed. Two people on opposite sides. Argh.What can you do though, eh? As I mentioned before, when someone dies, you always try to get revenge. And here, you see me running right back to where I died. Bingo. One person is still there. And another 2 inside. From here, snag another weapon, and look before you rush in there. Care Package incoming. What do? Kill people who are around it. I didn't stick around to get it because I'm not sure if its a decoy or not. Not going to take the chance though. Run past, and get into another fire fight. I die after the kill. I shouldn't have turned around, and I thought maybe I could get around the corner, but I end up dying. That's alright. Lets keep moving. Once again, I run back to where I died at. Snag another kill, and move on. Back to our spawn. Keep running around the map. It's your safest bet. Once again, that hot spot at the pipes, and that ends the game.

Perks I run. Slight of Hand. If you are running and gunning, this is almost a must. Assassin. Why? I'm behind enemy lines. I don't want a UAV to give away my position. And then Stalker. As you notice, I strafe a lot. And in fire fights, it could mean life and death. The speed you get from strafing back and forth with a SMG is amazing. I highly recommend using it.

Any questions? Leave a comment.

-j-

Playstation Vita - Call of Duty and Mortal Kombat

2012-01-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! It's a Tuesday, and boy is the day going by fast.

Alright. Let's talk PlayStation Vita. One thing that I want to talk about, that is on my wish list for the Vita, is that it will be able to sync with your ps3, and you can play games just from the vita over PSN with your friends. As in use it sort of like the WiiU. As a controller, and as a screen. That would be a major selling point for me. I would definitely pick one up if you are able to do that.

Now Call of Duty. It would be a huge bonus if you can play with all your friends on PSN. Not just other people playing on the Vita, but people on PSN who are playing on their PS3. YES PLEASE!

It'll take a while to get used to the controls, but it would almost be like using a PS3 controller. The analog sticks might be a little tricky. But workable. I just really hope the graphics are as good as they say they are.

Mortal Kombat. Same thing for this. I want to be able to play with people who are on the PSN with their Vita and PS3. Why separate them? It would only hurt Sony more if they did that. A huge selling point would be what I mentioned before. So Sony, make that happen.

The Vita looks amazing. It's something that I would want for sure. It looks gorgeous. And the graphics hopefully will be just as good.

Alright, that's just some thoughts off the top of my head. I gotta get outta here.

Til next time!

-j-

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2.. And more

2012-01-09T13:49:00.000-07:00

Yes, that's right. It was just announced today that Activision has purchased blackops2.com, suggesting that a sequel to Call of Duty: Black Ops could be in the works. A recent job listing suggests that a Call of Duty game is in active development, though we don't know if it will be Black Ops 2 or something different entirely.

Now honestly, I am excited about this. Not only because I thought Black Ops was a very fun game, but because I'm really hoping this time that Call of Duty will run with a different engine, making the game feel newer. Better graphics, and better over all game. Let's hope they do it, and not just re-skin the game over. A new engine is what would bring those who have left Call of Duty, back to it, and also attract newer players as well. It's a win win for sure. Activision, we are all counting on you!

Now another thing that I would like to touch on would be Diablo III. There has been a rumor going around that it has a release date of February 1st. Now when I first read an article about it, I thought that was the for sure release date, until I read more about it, and I guess that it was just a rumor. Now my train of thought was that the release date was February 1st, and now that people found out about it, they want to change it to another date. Make sense? That's just my train of thought though. Who knows what the real date is. But all I know is that I am very excited about the game to be coming out. I have played the beat for hours and hours, and let me tell you what, it was a blast for sure. My favorite class so far has to be the Barbarian. Why you ask? Frenzy. Crits left and right.. I mean, he is a beast of a character, no doubt about that.

Blizzard still has some tweaking to do in the game, so I'm guessing that he might get nerfed a little bit.. Because the Barbarian seemed like a very strong character while playing. But we will have to wait and see what happens I guess.

The Leak

First I want to mention that Blizzard debunked the release date that Best Buy printed out. They already have ads out, and other things as well. A countdown even. Here is the picture that was taken at a Best Buy.

Best Buy is pretty confident about this release date. As I've mentioned before, I think that this is the correct release date, and now that it was leaked out, they changed to. But who knows.

I honestly can't wait for the game. It's going to be a blast for sure. I look forward seeing you all in Diablo III.

That's all for today. Have a great day everyone, and play some games!

-j-

Modern Warfare 3

2012-01-06T13:36:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! It's a Friday, and we are going to be chatting about Modern Warfare 3 for just a bit. Now, up first I want to run through what setup I've been running. I've tried out the UMP in MW3, and it just doesn't seem to be as good as it was in MW2. So I've been rolling the Scar. And I really think it's a solid gun.

Another gun that I love to use when I pick one up, would be the AK-47. It's a beast. Silencer or not, it tears people up for sure.

Anyways, I've really been enjoying the game. The maps are pretty decent. But if you get locked down on certain maps, well, you could be stuck there. There were a couple games that I played where we got rolled and locked down in a corner. It wasn't very fun.

I also picked up a sniper rifle through my play time. And it feels a lot different then it did in MW2 or Black Ops. A lot different. It feels smoother, and not as bulky. It just feels more comfortable. Just make sure to not miss that shot, or you could be dead.

Alrighty, another thing I want to touch on, would be the perks. I think that they are set up very well. There are a couple in every slot that are very good, and it's a hard choice. And that's how it should be. Unlike in Black Ops where the first perk slot, everyone would use Ghost, because the other perks weren't as good as Ghost.

And now, you have to decide between Overkill, and Quick Draw. That right there for me, is a pretty hard choice.

The Killstreaks I would like to touch on as well. The Predator Missile was always one of my favorites. And it's back. I've been running 5-7-9. The Attack Helicopter is a great Killstream in MW3. Much better then in MW2. For sure. So it's a great Killstreak to pick up.

Alright, that's all the time that I have today, but I will touch on more MW3 at a later date.

Have a great weekend everyone, and be safe!

-j-

House of the Dead 3 and 4.. And more

2012-01-05T13:55:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! I know it's been a while, but let's get down to business, shall we?

Up first, I want to talk about House of the Dead 3 and 4. Remember back in the day when you used to hit up arcades and play House of the Dead? Oh yeah. Me too. Now they are coming to the PSN, and you will be able to play them whenever you want, without having to put in a lot of quarters. It's a win win right there. I haven't purchased a move yet.. But this is a really tempting offer. No doubt about that. This is what would make me want to get a move. Just this game alone.

Another thing that I would like to touch on, is Modern Warfare 3. I was able to pick it up, and boy is it fun. I agree that it's pretty much a reskin of MW2 and Black Ops, but it's still very fun. With new guns and new perks. It's a blast, just like Black Ops was. I'm not very high level right now, so I don't have many things unlocked quite yet. I am currently in the 30's though, and not doing too bad. I haven't played Black Ops in a while, so I was a little rusty, but currently holding steady at about a 2.5 KDR. Which really isn't too bad, especially for the break I took from playing FPS's.

Now, the gun I've mostly been using is the Scar. With a Silencer, and Impact. Just because with the Silencer, it makes the range lower, so if I shoot through a wall at a long distance, well, I want to be able to do a decent amount of damage. And without Impact, I would do very little at a long range.

I take Slight of Hand, since I like being in the middle of combat. Stalker, so I can strafe well, and then I use Quickdraw. It's nice when you are once again, in the middle of combat. Now when I say middle of combat, I don't specifically mean right in the middle things. I mean I'm always where the action is taking place. I don't run in like a kamikaze. You want to keep your distance. And pick people off when you can. You will be having teammates who will just rush in, maybe get a kill or two, and then just end up dying. That is why when you can, you want the enemy to come to you. Don't just run into a area. Walk, or crouch, and move forward slowly. Always check corners, you never know who is going to be camping in a corner just waiting for kills. Those are just some quick tips I can give you off the top of my head. I'll be talking more about MW3 at a later date, but so make sure to subscribe, and we'll get things rollin'. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Til next time,

-j-

PlayStation Vita

2011-12-01T13:28:00.001-07:00

GameStop has revealed the North American pricing of Sony's Vita memory cards. Four different sizes have been priced, ranging from 4GB to 32GB.

The 4GB card will be available for $24.99, followed by the 8GB card at $39.99 and the 16GB card at $69.99. A 32GB card will also be available for $119.99, nearly half of the system's $250 price.

GameStop also lists a PlayStation Vita USB Cable for $14.99 and a travel pouch, in-ear headset, charging cradle and AC adapter at $19.99 each. Other accessories include a portable charger for $49.99, a car adapter for $17.99 and a card case for $9.99. A Starter Kit will also be available for $29.99, bundling together the pouch, car adapter, headphones and card case, as well as a protective film and cleaning cloth.

These prices haven't been officially announced by Sony, and it isn't yet known if any of them will be made available as pre-order bonuses like they were in Europe. The Vita will be released in the U.S. and Europe on February 22, 2012.

Now I find some things interesting about this. One of the things that I would like to point out would be the pricing of the memory cards. HOLY MAN! a 32 GB card will be 120 bucks. That's quite expensive. For that price, you could get 2 brand new PS3 games. Seems a little much to me, but what can ya do. There was just a patch that came out for the PS3 that was made for when the Vita comes out. Makes your console compatible with the Vita. Personally, I really want one. The graphics supposedly are about as good as a PS3. Which to me.. Wow. That's all I gotta say. You know, there was a big deal about the 3DS. Because of the 3D aspect of things. But now with the Vita coming out.. Talk about some competition. Going to be some good competition for Nintendo.

That's all for today. Make sure to dress warm.

-j-

Diablo III. Console Version.

2011-11-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

It's true. Blizzard is working on a console version of Diablo III. I was reading a story about it, what they don't want to do is directly port the game from PC to PS3, Xbox 360. They want to build it from the ground up. Which I think it a great idea. For those people who don't have nice computers that can run Diablo III with 60 fps.

Now before I really jump the gun, they haven't announced yet that they are officially going to be making it for console, they are looking for a development team for console. So I guess we will see if it happens or not. Time will tell on this one.

Honestly, I really hope that they do make it for console. And I hope that it's all connected on the same server. Maybe it could give the PC gamer or the console gamer the advantage in PVP and such, but it would make a bigger community, and friends could play with friends a lot more often. It would be smart of them to do that. I can see why they would separate the two.. But.. It would benefit the average gamer a lot more if they combined the two, at least for PVE.

I've had a chance to play the Diablo III Beta, and it's a lot of fun. Sadly, it's only the beginning of the first act. And after you play it for a few, you can run through that part of the game pretty quickly. But if you are like me, the first time you run through the game, you like to go through and explore every little thing possible. That's what I always do. But after you run it a few times, you just breeze through the beta quickly.

The point is, the game is going to be amazing. And Blizzard would benefit greatly if they made Diablo III for console and for PC, and let them be able to play together.

That's my thoughts.

What do you guys think? Leave a comment, and let me know!

Enjoy, and happy Monday.

-j-

Crazy Glitches in Skyrim

2011-11-16T12:12:00.000-07:00

Now as you all know, Skyrim has been out for a few now, and people are starting to find glitches and etc. I'll dig some up for you guys, because they can be quite funny.

http://games.ign.com/articles/121/1212511p1.html

Check that out, and you will be laughing, as I know I was.

A short one today guys. Sorry!

-j-

Modern Warfare 3. It's coming.

2011-11-03T11:59:00.001-06:00

Alrighty guys, lets get down to business, shall we? First off, Modern Warfare 3. Yes, that's right. It's coming. And coming quickly. I remember back when it was first announced, it seemed like the day would never come. And now it's just about here. And hopefully, this game will not disappoint. There has been a lot of discussion about which will be better. Battlefield 3 or Modern Warfare 3. I've heard a lot of good things about Battlefield 3. So MW3 has some stiff competition.

Lets take a look at some of the things that won't disappoint about Modern Warfare 3.

First off, Spec Ops is back, and now with survival mode. Now I thought Spec Ops in MW2 was a lot of fun, and a couple of months ago my brother and I actually ran through a lot of them again. And it was still fun. With MW3, it should have awesome written all over it again. But now Spec Ops has survival mode, which faces you against wave after wave of enemies to fight off. How awesome is that?! I bet that will be a highlight of this game, other then the multiplayer of course. You'll have to split your time between the two.. Which could be pretty tough!

Another thing, is Kill Confirmed. It's a new multiplayer mode which most likely I will spend a lot of time in. It's a lot like Team Deathmatch, but you get large bonus points by picking up dog tags of the enemies you just killed. Which in the long run will mean that people who are camping and sniping won't get you anywhere in this game mode. Another sweet thing is that your teammates can pick up YOUR OWN dog tags if you die, so it denies them points for getting them. I mean, really, how awesome is that?

Call of Duty Elite. It will be available to everyone. The beta has been used in Black Ops and a lot of people have been able to give it a try, and they love it. And with MW3, it'll be released for everyone. Score!

And more one thing before I get outta here, if you play the single player in this game, the story will finally come to an end, one that has been going since Call of Duty 4.

So that's some of the things that you should be looking forward to for when MW3 comes out, which by the way, is the 8th of November.

-j-

Are You A Pokemon Player?

2011-10-19T13:01:00.000-06:00

Well, are ya? I know quite a few friends that still play. And one of my good friends actually considers himself a "Gym Leader". He works at GameStop here in Butte. So if you are an avid Pokemon player, stop by GameStop here in butte and say "I am here to to face the gym leader" and hold up your arm!

It would be legendary. No doubt about that one. His name is Cory though, and right now he is undefeated.

The purpose of this post is because a new Pokemon website has just been registered. Pokemongray.com

So Pokemon Gray seems to be the next game in the lineup for Pokemon. And since they always release two separate versions of Pokemon, and then is followed with a third version, it's logical to say this is the 3rd in the series with Pokemon Black and White being the most recent Pokemon games.

Are you excited?

You should be.

That's all for today.

-j-

Dark Souls. Testing Your True Gaming Skills

2011-10-13T12:41:00.000-06:00

Well I have talked about Dark Souls and Demon's Souls quite a bit in this here blog. And there is good reason for it. The game is amazing. And very very difficult. If you want a real challenge at a game, this is one to pick up.

Let me find a video for you guys real quick and you can see what the game is like.

 Here is a video 

Here is a video that I found that kind of shows how the game play is. It's the beginning of the game, so in no way does it show the real action of the game, but this is just mostly to show the game itself.

I am about 3 hours or so into the game, and I've died so many times. Slowly but surely I'm getting my skills back from when I played Demon's Souls, so it's not too bad now. But it's still quite difficult. When you get ganked up on, your pretty much dead no matter what. So you need to play very carefully.

This isn't the type of game that you can just run into monsters and hack n slash. no no no, not at all. Try that, and its GG. You're toast.

Dark Souls is a real challenge to any gamer. I wish more games like this would come out.

Do yourself a favor though. Buy this game. You will not regret it.

-j-

Dark Souls, or Skyrim?

2011-09-27T13:34:00.000-06:00

Now, the choice is a difficult one for many people out there. And there has been a lot of debate going on about which RPG will be better. As a personal preference, I would 100% have to lean towards Dark Souls. The game will be amazing. But so will Skyrim. Both will be great RPG's.

There are a few things that I would like to touch on real quickly about.

Online Capabilities.

Now, Skyrim will not be having any online capabilities. Even after fans complaining and wanting it to have some type of online aspect, there will be none whatsoever.

Dark Souls will be having online interactions, and in a very cool way. If you have ever played Demons Soul's, you know what I am talking about. If not, feel free to look it up. It's quite intriguing.

DLC.

Skyrim will be having DLC. Which is a good thing, and a bad thing. Good because you get more additions to the game. Bad because the game comes incomplete. And you have to spend even more money on the game. And that content should have already been included in the game in the first place.

Dark Souls has no current plans to release DLC. Which means Dark Souls will ship with everything in the game. EVERYTHING. No DLC. That's what I like to see.

Combat.

Hands down, do you want a difficult game that will make you feel accomplished to beating it? Dark Souls is the game for you. The difficulty is what makes it fun..

But in the end, get both! Because they will be amazing games.

-j-

Upcoming CPU games I'd like to mention.

2011-09-15T12:41:00.000-06:00

First one of the top of my head, would have to be Star Wars: The Old Republic. The new MMO that is going to be coming out most likely sometime this holiday season. And it's getting a lot of hype. If you haven't yet, you should definitely look up some info about the game.

Another game that I would like to mention real quickly here is Diablo III. Diablo III is one of the most anticipated games that will be coming out for quite some time. If you have played the Diablo series, you know why this game is going to be legendary. If you have played any game by Blizzard, then you know this game will steal your soul away and lock it away for years. And years to come. Diablo II came out I believe over 10 years ago, and it's still very popular. I can only imagine how long this game will appeal to a gamers eye.

Out of the two I listed above, I am most excited about Diablo III. The thing is, in the next couple of months, there are going to be so many awesome games that are going to be coming out.. Your wallet will be slowly withering away into nothing. I'll list some games that are going to be BA, and when they are going to be released.

09/27 – The Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection (PS3)
09/20 – Gears of War 3 (360)
10/04 – Rage (360, PS3, PC)
10/04 – Dark Souls (PS3, 360)
10/11 – Dead Rising 2: Off the Record (360, PS3)
10/25 – Battlefield 3 (360, PS3, PC)
11/01 – Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (PS3)
11/08 – Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (360, PS3, PC, Wii)
11/11 – The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (360, PS3, PC)
11/20 – Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
TBA November – Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 (360, PS3)
TBA 2011 – Star Wars: The Old Republic (PC)
TBA January – Final Fantasy XIII-2 (360, PS3)
02/14 – Twisted Metal (PS3)
03/06 – Mass Effect 3 (360, PS3, PC)

And that's not even all the games that will be coming out. There are others that I haven't listed. Can you see why you are going to end up going broke this holiday season? So many games.. I'm ready to win the lottery so I can sit and play these all day long. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

That's all for today folks!

-j-

League of Legends

2011-08-30T13:28:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone! Hopefully so far your week has been going well. Mine so far... good! I would like to touch on League of Legends. We talked about it not too long ago, but I am really encouraging you guys to give it a try. The game is free to play. Which is a huge bonus.

About monthly or so, they release new characters. And this week, the Character is Talon. He is a melee dps (Damage) character. And he can own! Trust me on that one. I'll post a video of him.

Here is a spotlight on the character. Give it a watch.

 kjholih

Now that is just one character that you can choose from. And there are several other characters that you can choose from.

You won't regret giving it a shot!

Modern Warfare 3 is coming.. And also.. Glasses?

2011-08-24T12:59:00.001-06:00

Are you thinking about going to LA for the Call of Duty XP? if you are.. I hope you like rap music. Because well.. Keep reading.

Rap star Kanye West will perform during Activision's first ever Call of Duty fan convention next month, the publisher announced.

West will close out the show at 8 pm on Saturday, September 3rd. "We promised our attendees and fans around the world a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the first Call of Duty XP, so we're thrilled to have Kanye on board," said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing.

Call of Duty XP takes place in Los Angeles for two days starting September 2. Tickets cost $150 each with 100% of sales donated to the Call of Duty Endowment, Activision's non-profit program to help war veterans.

It sounds like fun. A little spendy, but would be very fun. Another thing I would have to bring up is..

How much do you think these cost? Any ideas? Take a guess, and keep reading.

As with every Call of Duty release, you're likely going to find yourself spending countless hours glued to your television in the heat of battle, and Modern Warfare 3 will be no different. Gunnar Optiks wants to ease your impending eyestrain with their new officially licensed Gaming Eyewear.

Gunnar's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 eyewear utilizes the company's i-AMP technology, and features custom spring hinges, a magnesium alloy frame and wide coverage lenses. As per usual, Gunnar's eyewear aims to reduce eye fatigue and glare through precise lens geometry, tinting, and lightweight structural design.

For those with less than stellar vision, lenses can be suited to your required prescription.

The Gunnar Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 eyewear will set you back $99 and will be available in the next coming months with pre-orders will starting at the end of August through BestBuy.com. If you just can't wait, you can sign up to be notified when they go on sale by signing up at Gunnar's website.

And there it is. 99 dollars for glasses, plus tax (if that applies to you)

Are you ready to drop 100 bucks on a pair of sunglasses? Maybe. But would you take them outdoors? I would think twice about that one.

-j-

Final Fantasy XIII-2.. Excited? Or Not?

2011-08-22T11:30:00.000-06:00

Personally, I am excited. FF13 was a hit or miss with a lot of people, mainly because it was so linear. And there weren't real "towns" that you visit and shop at. But I'm thinking that they saw all the negative feed back they got from FF13, and made a full 180 degree turn in the other direction.

There are new screen shots that show off the revamped battle system, and we can also see that citizens of Cocoon are returning to Grand Pulse. Towns and cities are being built on Yaschas Massif. Which was an area with monsters before. You can visit those towns, and interact with NPC's (Let's hope there are actual weapon and armor shops). Now this excites me. Real towns? Please be true!

The graphics look amazing as always. We all know Square Enix (SE) wants to make things perfect before releasing a game. They say that this will be out in Japan in December, and will reach us early next year. Judging from SE's history, you can almost guarantee that there will be some sort of delay. Lets hope not though.

Here is a video that you can watch to bring you up to date with some things that are going down. I can't wait to get my hands on this.

More Final Fantasy XIII%2D2 Videos

Check ittt.

That's all for today.

-j-

Defense of the Ancients (Dota) - League of Legends

2011-08-15T12:01:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone! And happy Monday.

It's been a while, so lets get down to business.

Back in the day when Warcraft III was quite popular, someone created a mode called Defense of the Ancients. Or as it's mostly known as, Dota. And let me tell you what, it's a blast. So much fun.

The game I'm currently playing, and am addicted to, is called League of Legends. It's a free Dota that anyone can play. And it's a BLAST!

I'll break down the game play for you guys really quickly, and try to keep it as short as possible.

Starting off, you choose yourself a hero. And many of them are quite unique. Some are assassins, or tanks. Maybe even a support class. The choice is yours. Now when you start off on the map, there are two "bases" on the corner of the maps. One is your, the other is your enemies. The objective of the game is to destroy the other persons before they destroy yours. There are 3 different paths that you can take. So your team mates talk about who goes where.

Now from your base, creeps spawn that go all 3 ways as well. Which help you push toward your enemy. Also on the paths, are towers. Which help with defense. One those are destroyed, you move closer and closer to their base. At first, you want to kill creeps as much as you can. Because they give you xp which helps you level up, and also gold, so you can buy items to make yourself stronger. Now when you are pushing toward the other persons base, your opponents champions will be pushing as well. This is when things get interesting. You have to try and take pop shots at them as much as you can, and keep them from advancing. When you see your window of opportunity, try to take down their champions. But don't get too greedy! Running after them into enemy territory can get you killed, so make sure to be careful. You can play either 5v5 or 3v3. And I have always played 5v5.

That's kinda the game in a nut shell. But there is a lot more to the game then just that. Interested? Download League of Legends for free, and add me. My name for the game is Kabantik.

Another reason why I'm talking about this is because for Season Two in League of Legends.. In the tournament aspect of the game... There is a $5 million dollar prize pool. That's right. 5 million. You can find out more on that here. http://pc.ign.com/articles/118/1187868p1.html

And with that, I bid you farewell, and hope to see you in game!

Borderlands 2 Announced

2011-08-03T12:25:00.000-06:00

Who else besides me is excited about this game? Can I see a raise of hands? All of you? Rock on. I agree. The original Borderlands was awesome. It was a lot of fun. I still never got a pearlescent weapon to drop off the crab guy. But still, it was a blast. Looks like the game is set to launch during Take-Twi's fiscal year 2013 beginning on April 1, 2012. Borderlands 2 includes all-new characters, skills, environments, enemies, weapons, and equipment.

Also players will be returning to Pandora, the setting of the first game. What I hope for is new areas of Pandora. Hoping that you won't go to the same areas as the first game.

I whole new story as well. Not the same stuff. It should be fun and exciting. Maybe they will have a melee class that uses swords and such. Without a doubt, I would be that class. Slice and Dice for sure.

That's all for today.

-j-

Diablo III... Getting Real Money for Virtual Items

2011-08-02T12:07:00.000-06:00

Well if some of you guys are pumped for Diablo III like I am.. I'm sure that you have seen that you can make real US dollars outta of Auction House in Diablo III. Which I think is insanely.. AWESOME! Now we won't know until the game comes out and all that stuff if you can actually make a decent profit off of items in D3, so perhaps you wouldn't have to work as much maybe? If the profit is actually worth the time spent farming for items. Time will tell on that one, so we'll have to wait and see. What I really want to know about D3 is the specs. How nice of a computer will you need to play D3? I have no idea yet, and hopefully they have it where people with slower CPU's can play the game. Otherwise, you better start saving up for a new computer.

There still isn't a beta yet for Diablo III, which is a total bummer. I really really want to try this game out. But alas, there isn't even a date set for the beta. You know how Blizzard is.. They want everything to be perfect in the game before they release anything. I will do everything I can to get into that beta. I can't wait to play the game.

I'm guessing that the game will be released.. Sometime in 2012. I highly doubt it'll be this year. You never know, but I'm pretty sure it won't be this year. So you have some time to save up for that new computer that you want.

There is some info that I will share with you guys about the game, little tidbits that I think are cool. Lets take a peek at somethings

The online Auction House to be implemented through Battle.net for Diablo III will allow you to put in game items up for sale for real money. You set the price, other players bid or buy out, you make the profit.

That means when you're in a dungeon, slay a boss and get a super rare item, it's exciting not only because it'll help you kill stuff more effectively, but also because you could potentially profit from it in real life. The Battle.net Auction Houses will be separated based on region. While there won't be one single Auction House for the global player base, all players within a region will have access to the same one. Eventually Blizzard may allow players to check auction houses in other regions using different currencies, but at launch that won't be the case.

Auction Houses will be split into in-game currency versions and real money versions. If you don't want to deal with using real funds to buy items (or virtual), you don't have to. Most of everything you find in Diablo III, from skill-enhancing runestones to rare items to in-game gold can be put up for auction. The system is Blizzard's way of taking ownership over the black markets that tend to pop up around item-based games.

It's also Blizzard's way of making more money. There'll be a "nominal" flat fee charged by Blizzard for every item you post on the Auction House, as well as a transaction fee when the item is sold. It's important to note that this is a fixed fee, so it does not scale depending on the rarity of what you're selling or the associated price. For those who might cry foul at this, Diablo III executive producer Rob Pardo points out, "We could have chosen to do a model of 'we're just going to sell rare items on our website for X amount of money'. We just didn't feel like that was the right decision for us." The reason Blizzard says the listing fee exists is to guard against players spamming the Auction House with junk. It's likely at launch you will get a handful of free listings per week to try it out.

Is Blizzard expecting the Auction House to serve as the primary source of revenue for Diablo III? "We're still sticking to our box model for Diablo," says Pardo. "When you look at the Auction House, it's a really big unknown. I think it has potential. I think it's really conducive to the design of Diablo." In case you're not aware, enemies in Diablo III drop random items. Unlike something like World of Warcraft where loot tables for bosses are well known, nothing in the world of Diablo will spill out items with any sort of reliability, and very few items you acquire in Diablo will be soulbound (permanently tied to your in-game character).

If you buy an item online, you're free to do whatever you want with it. You can use it, trade it to a friend in-game, or wait for a 24-hour cooldown and put it right back up for sale with the hope of selling it for more than the original purchase price. The money you make on the Diablo III auction house can be filtered to a Blizzard account, where it can be used to buy other Blizzard products, or filtered through a as of yet unnamed third-party service into an external account, in which case it's your money to use however you see fit. There will be a percentage fee for exporting the money beyond the bounds of Blizzard's system, though, so you'll take a hit on your total revenue.

If you do decide to keep the money in Blizzard's system, you can't export it afterwards. "If we have a balance that you can at any point turn into cash," said Pardo, "we get treated like a bank. That suddenly brings in a whole lot more regulations and things we do and oversight we have to have. It just made so much more sense for us to partner with someone that does all that." The decision about whether to filter profits to the third-party account or the Blizzard one therefore becomes all the more important.

Blizzard maintains it has no interest in posting items for sale within the Auction House. The idea is for the whole system to be player-run, with Blizzard's oversight meant to serve as a guarantee that you will receive the items that you buy and receive the money earned for a successful sale. As of now Blizzard has no plans to separate players online between those using the in-game currency Auction House and those actively utilizing real-money transactions.

As part of Blizzard's plan to provide a secure trading environment, Diablo III will require a constant online connection whether you're playing alone, with friends or competing in player-versus-player matches. Your characters will all be stored on Blizzard's servers to ensure there isn't any hacking going on, ideally maintaining a safe, secure environment.

Now I'm going to chat about something that I think is a good and bad thing about D3. It's good because.. Well you will see. But it's bad because it means you could lose out on items that you could have gotten.
In many loot games, ninja looting, or greedily snatching up powerful items so others can't collect them, is frequently an issue. The issue of ninja looting is bypassed entirely in Diablo III. When playing with another, the loot you see onscreen is unique to you. That includes money and gear. You still fight the same monsters, interact with the same NPCs and travel through the same spaces, but the drops are visible and accessible only to you. So even if someone really, really wanted to snatch up gear before you get a chance while playing co-op, they couldn't.

Sellers on the Auction House will be anonymous anyway, so even if you know a particular player is a jerk, you won't be able to identify what he or she is selling. You will see the name of the player with the highest bid, but that's it, along with the item and potential buyout price. You can then set your account to bid up to auto-bid up to a certain limit on an item, meaning you don't have to hang around for an auction's duration.

What you won't be able to do, at least at launch, is preview the item's look on your character model. You also won't initially be able to access the Auction House through external websites or mobile devices, though this could change as well. Characters from your account, which will be capped at 10 on Battle.net, could potentially be sold at a later date, but it won't be possible whenever Diablo III is first pushed live.

So honestly I am very hyped for this game, and it should be a blast. Lots of little changes from Diablo 2, and some down the same path. The game will be phenomenal. Can't wait to get my hands on it.

That's all for today.

-j-

Final Fantasy XIII-2 Comfirmed Release Window

2011-07-20T11:24:00.000-06:00

Alright guys. That's right. Final Fantasy XIII-2 has been confirmed to come out January 2012. Let's just hope by then the game doesn't get pushed back more. Which I can see happening in a blink of an eye. No doubt about that one. You know Square Enix. Always delaying games. But on the bright side of things, it's coming out in the beginning of 2012. w00t!! I can't wait. Now I know a lot of people will say how crummy XIII was. But really, it wasn't that bad if you think about it.

Yes it was linear.. But wasn't X as well? Think about that one for a bit. I do hope that it's not AS linear as is predecessor. I do want some freedom to run around and do what I want. And to be able to go back to some places that I was before. You know like old school Final Fantasy's such as 2. Boy do I miss that game. Well, it's 4 here in the states, but for SNES, it was FF2. And that has to be one of my favorite of all time, no doubt about that one. I do want the ability to go back to where I was. Instead of XIII where you are stuck on Pulse. Only to grind, complete the missions from the stones, and level up weapons. And you can only do so much of that before you get bored.

The game is pretty much going to be the same. In certain ways. The battle system is going to be the same. You'll be able to break your opponent so that you can deal massive damage against him. I'm curious if the loot system will be the same or not. As in upgrading your weapons. I didn't mind the whole weapon upgrade thing in XIII, but it was annoying farming those big guys for that gem that you needed to get your ultimate weapons. But that's just me.

I have high hopes for XIII-2, as well as Final Fantasy versus XIII. Which I hope will be a huge reboot on the franchise, and help it get back on it's feet. Cross your fingers.

-j-

Don't Forget About the MK / Marvel Vs Capcom 3 / Street Fighter Tournament in Butte at the Butte Plaza Mall

2011-07-15T12:44:00.000-06:00

Yes indeed. Just as the title says. It starts at 10am on Saturday, and you can register TODAY at the Mall up until about 9pm. So if you want to participate in any of the events, make sure to get down to the mall and sign up now. I look forward to seeing everyone there.

More details about this can be found on a earlier blog post. So make sure to check it out. And I'll see you all there!

One of the hardest games of 2011... Dark souls.

2011-07-11T13:27:00.000-06:00

Alright guys. Lets talk about one of the hardest games that will be coming out all year. And no, I'm not exaggerating here. Dark Souls. The second in the series of games. The first game was called Demon Souls. If you haven't played it, do yourself a favor and buy the game. It's for PS3 only though.

Dark Souls will be for both PS3, and 360. And just let me say this one more time. It's going to be one of the hardest games coming out all year. Think about how hard old games used to be. Think of those games. Dark Souls will be just like that. You die in a couple hits. You don't have your shield raised up, and you get hit, you could die. Easy as that. And when you are dead, you are at half hp, because you're in spirit form. So pretty much you die in one hit. The only way to get your body back, is to kill a boss.

Now the way you level up in the game, is when you kill things, you collect their souls. Now this is the currency for the whole game. Whether you want to buy items, weapons, new spells. It's all through Souls. And when you want to level up.. That's right.. It costs souls.

Now here is the catch on things. Which really sucks. Let's say you die. All the souls that you have are now on the ground right where you died. You lose them all. The only way to get them back is to walk to where you died and pick them up. Now here is the tricky part. Remember that when you die, you are at half health because you are in spirit form. Now if you die again on your way back to your body, and you didn't pick up your souls.. THOSE ARE LOST FOREVER! You can no longer get those souls back. Do you see why this game can be so tough? If you didn't spend your souls, or are saving up to level.. Yeah. You lost those. Can you see why this game is.. Unforgiving at times?

I've lost hundreds of thousands of Souls before. And it is.. Well.. How can I put this.. Very frustrating. Very very frustrating.

Can you see why this game can be tough? Now from what I have heard rumor wise, Dark Souls will be.. Much tougher then Demon Souls. Which honestly I can't wait for. The difficulty of the game is what really draws me in. I love a good challenge in a game.

If you want to get some practice before Dark Souls come out. Once again, get Demons Souls. I'm sure it can't be more then 30 bucks right now.

See Kris or Cory there and say Jonnie sent you to come pick it up. Say you read about it on the blog here and maybe you can snag a discount, I dunno. It's worth a shot.

-j-

New DLC for Mortal Kombat.. And a Tournament in Butte

2011-07-06T12:58:00.000-06:00

First things first, lets have a little chat about the Montana Melee Championships 2011, here in Butte Montana. If you are a fan of fighting games in general, you will want to keep reading. Here we go.

Montana Melee Presents: Montana Melee Championships 2011.

Games Include:

Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition
Marvel vs Capcom 3
The New Mortal Kombat 2v2 Tag Team (Partner Req.)
The New Mortal Kombat 1v1 Singles

Saturday, July 16th, 2011 --- Play begins at 10am.
Butte Plaza Mall, 3100 Harrison Ave, Butte MT.
Registration via email June 9th - July 12th *Preferred!*
Late Registration Friday, July 15th, 4pm-9pm *On Site*
Registration Fee of $10, Plus $5 Per Event you would like to participate in.
All event frees will go towards top 4 prize money.
For more info, and registration, visit Montana Melee on Facebook, or email Montana melee@gmail.com

Now is that not exciting or what?! I'm pumped to be playing in this bad boy. And beware.. You could get.. SMOKED!

Well, as you all know, there are 4 Mortal Kombat characters that are coming out for DLC this summer for Mortal Kombat, and the 2nd of 4 was just released yesterday, and he goes by the name of Kenshi.

And he is a BEAST. Let me tell you what. If you haven't seen any video's for him yet, you should do yourself a favor, and go look at some.

I'll give you one to check out right now, how bout that?

More Mortal Kombat Videos

Watch it, and that's just a little bit that he can do. Will he be overpowered at first? Yeah, most likely. Is he a versatile character? Indeed he is.

But can you be good enough with him to win the tournament? Who no!

See you guys there on Saturday.

Leave a comment to let me know what you think!

-j-

Sony redesigning the PSN?... And more

2011-07-05T11:39:00.001-06:00

If a report from Reg Hardware is to be believed, Sony is currently working on a visual redesign of its PlayStation Network service. The makeover will apparently place PSN more in line with Steam and Xbox Live as opposed to its current text-heavy style.

Interesting... Right? Now honestly, I don't use the store a whole lot. Why? Well, there isn't anything that I would really buy.. I used to buy a lot of Rockband DLC, but I just used the link through the game, as it was much easier that way. Maybe that's one reason they want to switch it up? Make it easier for people to download through their store, instead of using the link through the game they are playing. Interesting...

It would seem that these changes would affect the PlayStation Store rather than the main XMB. A source tells the website that Sony is trying to de-clutter the service in favor of "an aesthetic layout with logically marked sections and rolodex lists". New features include a live search that shows more results with each character entered along with database-like listings for both games and movies, showing details like developers or cast on the right side of the screen. The blue background will also be eschewed, to be replaced by a black one, with brighter colors highlighting content. A 'deal of the week' section will also accompany the relaunch, the report claims.

You know, I still haven't used the whole welcome back program thing yet that we got since the network was down for.. EVER. I need to do that before it expires. What are some things that you would like changed with the store and such? One thing that I really want, is VOICE CHAT! I want to be able to have several friends in one chat and be able to just talk to them. Not having to rely on the game we are playing to support voice chat. Other wise, it's just very annoying to even play the game having to type out everything. Keyboards help, yes, but they are just a nuisance to used compared to just.. Talking.

What other things come to your mind about the PSN Store?

Let me know in the comments below.

Another thing that I would like to touch on real quick, is that they are saying the PS4, and next XBOX could be coming out in 2012.. Is this true? Personally, I don't want it to. Yes, it would be cool if they did come out with another power house of a system (both Sony and Microsoft) but why? They are still selling 360's and PS3's, and I would like to get at least another 2-3 years outta my console, and not have to drop 400 bucks on a new one. Because right now, I don't have that kinda cash! Advancing the gaming technology would be great. But with the reasons I stated... NO!

Digitimes, a Taiwanese manufacturer has claimed that the PS4 is on track for a release in 2012, and that it will feature "body movement-based control like Kinect". The source indicated that manufacturing duties will fall to Foxconn and Pegatron Technology, the company that made the PS3, with a minimum of 20 million units planned to ship in 2012. The report comes after weeks of speculation that the next Xbox will also be released next year, after being unveiled at E3 2012.

I'm not too worried about it coming out next year, partly because it flies right in the face of Sony's much-publicised ten-year strategy for the PlayStation 3, and partly because Sony has been so very vocal about how un-bothered they are by Kinect and Wii U. A 2012 PS3 successor would be more than a little premature.

But still, Sony, if you are pondering about releasing the console next year... Hold off!

That's all for today kids.

-j-

If you haven't tried out WoW, and always wanted to, now is the time to do so

2011-06-30T13:48:00.000-06:00

That's right. The game that steals peoples lives away and ruins relationships and marriages. And does many other countless things that we will not touch on, is sorta, in a way, free to play. That is, until you reach level 20.

From what I have heard, WoW can be played completely free up until level 20. And that's good news for people who might have wanted to try out the game but never got to. Or you just don't want to fork out the 15 bucks a month to play the game. You know, I played the game for years. Off and on. I haven't touched it since Cata came out though. I was able to down Lich King, but then from there, I quit playing.

Now that everyone has a chance to play, and have all the available features up til level 20, you have a shot at trying out the game that... Well pretty much dominates all other MMO's. Give it a shot. You never know.. The addicting could spread onto you, and before you know it, you'll be past level 20 on your way to having a character that is epic'd out. The choice is yours.

Keepin' it short today.

-j-

Why there needs to be a Final Fantasy 7 remake

2011-06-28T13:09:00.003-06:00

Now honestly, if you have never played Final Fantasy 7, you are missing out. I know the game is about 15 years old or so, but the game is one of the best RPG's ever. Not even kidding. Yes the graphics aren't very good either. But the story makes up for it all, and it draws you in. Trust me on that one. FF7 is on the PSN. Not sure how much it is exactly, but you can buy it, and you totally should. Not question about that.

Now after you have played the game, you can see why so many people want a remake of the game. Me being one of those people.

About 1 year ago, I played through FF7 again. And got pretty much everything in the game possible. Maxed all my chars, got all their secret weapons. And it was so much fun doing. When you first play the game, the story can be a little bit confusing. Which is why if you played it a couple times through, you will really start to understand the story a lot more, and catch onto things you didn't the last time you played through. And with a remake, I personally think they should add more scenes to the game and explain things a little bit more. Just so it's more.. Clear. Ya know? I just love the whole story line in the game. And they need to make more games like this one. More RPG's. That's what I really want to play, and that's one of the main reasons I got a PS3. Because of Final Fantasy. I did enjoy XIII, but I wish it was more turn based, ya know? Like the good ol' days. This will be a long shot in the dark, but have any of you out there ever played FF2? I think it would be 4 here in the states. I had to for SNES. FFII. It has to be one of my all time favorite FF's. Not the remake on DS or whatever. But the real classic FFII. Amazing. Do yourself a favor and play it. You won't regret it. If you haven't played really any of the Final Fantasy's... You are missing out.

Now I'm going to post what IGN has said about a remake of FF7. Lets take a peek.

1. It's Already All But Made

Remember when Advent Children came out in 2006? Remember how it felt and looked weird? Remember how the characters didn't look quite right, or didn't sound quite the way you had imagined them to sound in your head? I know I thought everything seemed a little strange, or at least not how I imagined it, which is a very normal thing to experience the first time something is brought to life through picture and sound.

Five years, Dirge or Cerberus, Kingdom Hearts titles, Crisis Core, and Dissidia's later, how does it look and sound now? With the exception of a Yuffie and Aerith, all of the voice actors have been maintained through all of these titles. 3D models have been kept the same as well throughout all of these games. Not only have we seen Midgar and other locations in Advent Children, but we've seen many of them in other titles now, in all their 3D glory. Music has also stayed constant, getting the rock cover or fully orchestrated treatment depending on the film or game.

What I'm trying to say is the 3D remake of FF7 is all but already made. Characters, voices, locations, and music have established in our minds what the game would look and sound like. There's no need to go to the drawing board for this one! Simply take the existing models to the bank and give the people want they want!

2. Square Enix Redemption

And this I mean in two different ways: 1) Fiscally, they are not doing too well, as was reported by IGN a short time ago, and 2) Let's face it - Square Enix has dropped the ball in all sorts of ways over the last few years, especially when it comes to Final Fantasy.

Now, let it be known that I actually enjoyed Final Fantasy XII. However, was it all that it should have been? Absolutely not. I remember them talking about FF13 for years, and how it just kept getting delayed and delayed. I remember how it was going to save the FF name and make us all believe in Square Enix again. I bought my PS3, anxiously awaiting the day I'd get to play FF13... And then it came out... and then the backlash began.
Make us believe again in you, Square Enix. Let us save you from the financial turmoil you are in. Help us, to help you. Give us what we want! Show us the Final Fantasy VII remake! Give us a remastered version of the game that changed RPGs, caused people to buy over 4 million DVDs, caused millions to download a 15 year old game on the PSN, and is at least heard of by almost every gamer on this planet. Help us to remember why we loved you once.

3. New and Old Together

Now, I'm not saying that FF7 should just be completely rebuilt. Here is a golden opportunity to give us the best that the newer and older Final Fantasy games have to offer. Why not create a FF7 game with the world, characters, and story we love, but with a modified FF13 battle system? Keep the intense active battle system we saw in FF13, but add Materia, full party control (instead of just controlling the leader), and please, please drop the chain building/breaking. We don't need Paradigm Shifts or Saboteurs - just an even more intensive customizing Materia system and the full party control we once knew.
Limit Breaks in a FF13-esque battle system? Yes please. Leveling up instead of Crystarium garbage? Definitely. Summons and magic requiring MP instead of TP? Oh yeah. Running around Midgar and the 3D world in a non-linear manner (a la Crisis Core and Pulse)? Boo-yah. Tifa in all her 3D battle glory while The Black Mages blast some serious FF7 music?... need I say more?

Could Dissidia even be used as a possible model of combat? Why not make a true RPG with some Dissidia action?

4. Story Continuity and Explanation

For those that have seen/played FF7, Crisis Core, Last Order, Advent Children, and Dirge of Cerberus, you know that there are a few continuity problems with the story. I'm pretty sure I've seen Nibelheim portrayed in 3 or 4 different ways, each with a slightly different twist. Now is the opportunity to set the record straight. Show us what happened. Please, my brain would like a definitive answer.

In addition to story, some elements could be better explained. Throughout these titles, for instance, the explanation of things like Zack, Jenova and her cells, SOLDIERs and their creation, and Sephiroth's wings have evolved over time. Many of these things were only partially explained in the original FF7, and have been built upon later. How about adding Genesis, Angeal, and those guys from Dirge of Cerberus into the mix? A new FF7 could take the time to explain some of these more confusing elements by adding new dialog/scenes to the game. I'd love to see a clear-cut description of some of these things in one game.

5. Final Fantasy VII-2/Agito/Versus/Duodecim

Now here's a FF#-2 I'd like to play. I'm sure FFX-2 was fine, and who knows what XII-2 will be like, but I'm positive I'd love to see a VII-2. Heaven knows Square Enix likes making these "spin-off/sequel" titles, so why not make one we'd actually like to see? How about what happens after the story between FF7 and Advent Children? Between Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus? Remember that "500 years later" movie? Midgar gets that way somehow, and I'm pretty sure 500 years is a sufficient window to make a game's story about.

What about when Jenova fell from the sky? The Cetra and "the man" who walked among them making them sick (Sephiroth)? What about what Rufus says in Advent Children about "bring your Jenovas and your Sephiroths" as a future tie in? Just saying...

6. It's a New Generation

It's now almost been 15 years since the release of Final Fantasy VII, and there are many that have never played it. Sure, it's out there on the PSN, but the game hasn't aged that well (though I still love it). The 3D models on the 2D landscapes was pretty awesome for the time, and the 3D battles with blocky modeling was cutting edge back then, but now people demand more. We've seen how good FF13 looks, and how cool Dissidia and Crisis Core are (even for a handeld), now there's a whole new generation of gamers who could get exposed to FF7. It's got the name power, now give it the face that we'd expect to see from games nowadays, and gamers both experienced and new to Final Fantasy will want to try it.

.
The latest Final Fantasy VII installment (Crisis Core) is 4 years old, so strike now while the iron is hot! If you wait too long, people will begin to lose interest and forget about the FF7 name. We've seen countless remakes of FFIV, and even multiple platform remakes of FF1, 2, 3, 5, and 6... but no VII. Square Enix's most successful title is sitting there, rotting, and the people are demanding.

Square Enix, we've got your stimulus package in our wallets, and it's waiting for a new Final Fantasy VII.

Now tell me, what do you think about a remake of FF7? Will it ruin what was a true classic? Or will it build onto it and make the game even better?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on things.

New Patch On 360, Live For Black Ops. Bye Bye Unstoppable Famas

2011-06-24T11:59:00.001-06:00

Alrighty guys, if you haven't heard by now, yes it is true. The Famas is getting... NERFED. I first heard about it from Panisko, but now that I have looked into it, it's true. Now what did they do to it? Lets take a look.

Changes include tweaks on the ADS raise time, hip fire accuracy reduction, more gun kick (so less accurate) and slightly slower re-center speed. But the good thing is, if you are a famas user, the rate of fire, damage, range, and magazine size will all stay the same.

Other then that, here are the other patch notes for 1.10 for the 360

Security Updates.
New playlists – Flags and Bombs
C4 can no longer be warped to player carrying bomb in S&D and Sabotage.
Removed erroneous “Reset to Default” message when trying to load a DLC map you do not have.
In-game icons (care package icons, etc) no longer appear in the Create A Class menu.
Support for Annihilation map pack, available June 28th on Xbox LIVE!
Fix for a rare crash related to weapons.
Game no longer crashes when Xbox LIVE servers are down.

But that's just about all the patch does. Nothing too huge, besides the changes with the Famas. And I know people will be complaining left and right about the gun because now it sucks. No it doesn't suck, you were just used to it being cheap. Now you have to use some of that thing called "skill" to kill people. :P Don't get me wrong, I've use the Famas plenty. But it's time to spread your wings and find other guns.. Because.. Ya know.. There are other guns in the game besides the Famas. And the Famas is still a good gun. You just need to get used to it again.

If you aren't feeling the Famas anymore, honestly, you should give the AK47 a shot (pun intended), if you enjoy using assault rifles. If not, I enjoy using the Spectre and MP5K. Don't forget if you need class set up and other tips, make sure to check out our earlier posts on our blog about Black Ops.

-j-

Dungeon Siege III

2011-06-22T11:02:00.000-06:00

There has been a lot of talk lately about Dungeon Siege III. First off, one of my good buddies really wants me to buy the game. I'm sure that he has already bought the game right at midnight at Walmart. And before I took that leap of faith with him, I wanted to read some reviews on the game and see what the talk is all about. So here we go, lets take a look at the game.

Now first off, a dungeon crawler without good loot, like Dungeon Siege III, seems to be missing something... essential. Dungeon Siege III's bits of loot come with all kinds of statistical bonuses, and a multitude of special effects like elemental damage or chance to stun. But it's rare to ever get a strong sense that swapping one item for another has a significant effect.. Also, and this totally bums be out big time, many items have near identical visual designs. And no piece is moddable. And it seems like.. After not too long, getting loot begins to feel like you're collecting garbage.

There are four characters you can choose from, and each of the four character classes gets nine core abilities. Three defensive, and the other sex offensive and split across two fighting stances. All the abilities can be evolved by gaining exp and leveling up, for instance giving Anjali's AoE firestorm a healing effect, or Reinhart's glyph magic a chance to slow enemy movement. Though the total number of abilities per class feels small, and you're not forced to make significant either/or choices about which to acquire, you won't receive enough points to fully customize all of them, meaning by the game's end, another player's Lucas Montbarron build won't be the same as yours. The addition of ability mastery, where more powerful versions of abilities can be unleashed if you use them enough times, adds more variety to the system. Each ability serves a well-defined purpose, so there's minimal filler. Movement around the battlefield is just as important as proper ability use. Stance shifting to access different abilities is quickly done with a single button press, and the waves of enemies that swarm into battlefields force you to make frequent use of your dodge ability to get out of tight spots and slip away from magical projectiles. There aren't any potions in Dungeon Siege III, so your survival isn't based on stocking up at shops and spamming them when necessary. It feels more like an action game, then a traditional dungeon crawler. For example, Anjali can spawn a field of fire and summon a demon dog to help her ranged form, then switch to melee and perform a spinning heel kick over the flames before jumping into the sky and slamming down to devastate enemies. If any remain alive, she can dodge back and poke them a few times with her spear, or swap back to fire form and shoot more fire. Using abilities like this helps to keep up interest in the combat, where the loot system fails.

Due to the lack of potions, Dungeon Siege III also doesn't make it feel like you're wasting resources by using abilities. Every standard attack you land builds focus, the resource abilities consume. By constantly attacking you can quickly gather enough focus to often use your most powerful stuff. The fun doesn't last the whole game, however. Even though Dungeon Siege III regularly tosses new enemy types at you throughout a variety of environments, leveling up after you've unlocked a class' entire ability set doesn't feel nearly as rewarding. All you'll be able to do is tweak abilities and talents, adding higher percentages to critical hit damage or reducing the focus cost of special skills, which isn't exactly thrilling.

Games of this type typically don't offer much in the way of story, so it's certainly welcome to see how much attention it gets in Dungeon Siege III. Characters interact in conversation with a Mass Effect-style interface and decisions made throughout the course of the game can actually affect events later on. Those used to bland bubbles of quest text will appreciate this, though it's tough to really care what happens because the personalities, even the main villain, have little depth. These characters exist solely to play flat, plot-necessary roles, not to entertain with their dynamic personalities. Dungeon Siege III does a better job than many other loot games to establish motivations for quests and make it feel as though your actions affect the story, but it's not a story worth remembering.

It's also worth forgetting this game has a multiplayer component because of the restrictions in Dungeon Siege III's online suite. The game plays out entirely in two-character co-operative mode with the partner class of your choosing controlled by a capable artificial intelligence that will make use of a variety of skills and revive you when necessary. You have full control over the skill development of the AI characters and can equip them with gear, but as soon as you go to play online, none of this matters. By hopping into the game of another through the game's online browser you can't import your main character. Instead, you're forced to select from whichever character classes aren't already active in the game (two of the same class are not allowed), and won't have any control over skill development while you're disconnected. While this might work if you want to play with close friends, it makes Dungeon Siege III's online mode near useless if you're looking for a random partner to pair up with and make progress.

The rules of online play also aren't appropriately customizable either, since if you open up your single-player game for another to join, that random person can speed over to a vendor and sell off all your inventory items before bailing out. Such behavior isn't the fault of Obsidian (the company who made the game), but failing to put in safeguards against this kind of thing is. Though four-player online play is possible, it's also a chaotic mess. The camera incessantly jitters as it struggles to follow the action, the spell effects, as bright and colorful as they are, make it overly difficult to discern what's actually happening onscreen, and the arenas of combat feel far too small to accommodate more than two.

Two can play the game offline with a drop-in co-op system, which can be good for a little while, but the inability to transfer your character, items and progress out of another's game for your own individual use is still frustrating. Dungeon Siege III also features no unlockable new game+ mode and swiftly funnels you through what amounts to one long corridor until you reach the end. It's not the type of loot game meant to be played over and over, does little to encourage exploration, and while it can be decent fun as you toy with the combat system, there's no long-term incentive to continue hacking away.

All in all, the core combat system is well-designed, offering a small, but useful set of abilities for each character class. But other then that, the loot isn't impressive, and the store is mediocre at best. There isn't really that feeling of "epicness" that you can get from other games. And with no new game+, once you're done with the game, there isn't much else that you can do. It's a bummer.

Don't let all this keep you from buying the game though. The game will still be fun to play, and even funner if you have a buddy to play it with.

-j-

Games To Come. . .

2011-06-21T11:40:00.001-06:00

First off, I want to talk about Battlefield 3. There is sooo much talk going around about this game, and how it will compete up against MW3. Honestly, it's hard to say. We don't have our hands on either of the games right now. So the ball is up in the air. The CoD franchise is huge, and the most popular one. And Battlefield in my book comes close, if not second place. Which one will reign supreme? We'll have to wait and find out. But my guess is that MW3 will still be on top. Being that it'll be on the same engine as MW2 and Black Ops, plus, all the teenagers will stick to what they like to play. Battlefield 3 will be a lot more realistic. And more people in their 20's and up will buy the game.

That's what I am guessing will happen. Another thing about Battlefield 3, is that on PC, it'll run at 60 fps. Very smooth. And on console, it'll run at half that. 30 fps. Don't get me wrong, the game will still look gorgeous and beautiful, but won't be a super super smooth, and there is bound to be some fps drops somewhere, making the game lag a bit. Since the CoD franchise is sticking to the same engine, it will run at 60 fps, like the others. 30 and 60 fps sounds like a huge difference, but it's not. Any lower then 30 though, you start to feel the lag.

Now lets talk about Guild Wars 2. Are you a fan of MMO's? Play WoW on a daily basis? Well, here is a MMO that is going to change things, and in a big way. First off, there will be no grinding! That's right. No more grinding for those levels. Sounds kinda weird, right? ArenaNet has removed the bell-curve traditionally applied to leveling, so that gaining levels from 40 to 50, for example, isn't any more laborious than leveling from 1 to 10. The upshot is that you won't be forced to remain in an environment long after you've worn out its content just to accumulate enough experience to move forward.

No dedicated roles! In GW2, every class can heal, but they can also do so much more. They can control the battlefield to lock down enemies ('tanking' without the vulgarity of being a meat shield), throw up barriers to protect others or duck and roll and use cover to protect themselves. It's called 'active combat' (or in other genres, just 'combat'), and it means that a group can effectively take on a dungeon or boss without hiding behind someone dressed like a human battering ram. It means that you can play the class you want without worrying about your potential usefulness to a group. It also encourages a great deal more environmental awareness than WoW's 'don't stand in the fire' approach to raiding - although, admittedly, Blizzard has evolved such mechanics significantly in recent months.

No quests! Which will be a strange concept to get used to. There will be no "Kill 15 Goblins" in a remote section of the map that without a mount, would take you ten minutes just to run there, then another ten to run back. You will have to.. Well. Explore. Here a quote from IGN. "In the persistent worlds of tomorrow, crazy stuff is out there happening every second - villages being razed, armies being amassed, pub brawls being started - and you're just going to have to go out there and see it for yourself." GW2 calls this crazy stuff dynamic events. Dynamic events will unfold tangibly in front of you, and your intervention could change the outcome and create a domino effect with other events across the landscape. Very interesting, right?

So pretty much there is a huge change coming to the MMO scene in gaming. Will it stick? Who knows. We'll have to wait and find out.

Alright folks, that's all for today. Enjoy the weather too! It's beautiful outside here in Butte and SW MT.

-j-

New Map Pack For Black Ops To Be Released June 28th, And More

2011-06-16T11:47:00.003-06:00

The third Call of Duty: Black Ops map pack, dubbed Annihilation, releases on June 28, Activision said today.

Launching first on Xbox Live, Annihilation includes four new multiplayer maps and a zombie map. "With Annihilation, Black Ops fans will get four exciting and unique multiplayer settings with Hangar 18, Drive-In, Silo and Hazard," said Treyarch Studio Head, Mark Lamia.

"Players will also enjoy an all-new Zombies experience, Shangri-La, an exotic and mysterious map filled with deadly traps, dark secrets and innovative gameplay that will challenge even the most daring Zombie hunters."

Pricing details were not revealed, though Annihilation will likely cost $14.99, the same price as the previous two map packs.

Now honestly I find this kinda strange a the way. Last map pack, there seemed to be a lot more.. Spark I guess. More talk about it. With the leak and everything that happened. And now, there doesn't seem to be any hype about things. That's the vibe that I am getting at least. They only gave us a 12 day heads up. That just doesn't seem like them. I thought for sure they would say something at E3. Or maybe to them, it wasn't big enough to announce then. I'm not sure. But a bigger heads up would have been better. At least I think so.

Besides all that, if you are a fan of Mortal Kombat, you will be happy to know that Skarlet will be the first DLC character. You can download her starting June 21st.

Here is the trailer for the new character. If you have played up the ladder in single player, you will notice that she is chained up in the background, along with Kitana. The trailer goes on to tease three additional characters. Kenshi, Rain, and a fighter to be named later. Either character will be released individually this summer. A compatibility pack will accompany each release so that players who do not purchase the DLC will still be able to see online opponents using the DLC. These packs will be free and come with two skins (the first pack contains Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3-inspired Cyrax and Sektor). If you straight up buy the character DLC, you get the free skins as well.

I myself am pretty pumped for the new characters. Because well, MK is a lot of fun. And with a new fighter, that means more combo's and such that you get to learn and use. And with a new character, it's always fun. She reminds me of Mileena, but with her weapons always out, and not materializing in her hand. They are just there. Looks like a fun character to play. I can't wait.

Another game I would like to touch on very briefly is Dark Souls. The game will be released on October 4th. It's the second one in the serious. If you have a ps3 and haven't played Demon Souls yet, do so. Just keep in mind, the game is tough. Don't let it get to you though. Play that so that you can get used to the difficulty, and then when Dark Souls comes, you can (hopefully) plow though it at a decent rate. I heard this one will be even harder then Demon Souls. I'm pumped for it.

That's all for today folks.

-j-

Off topic things to chat about.. Let's Roll!

2011-06-13T11:59:00.000-06:00

Alrighty guys, lets go ahead and chat about some things that are up and coming, sort of.

Microsoft has developed a new chip, which could reduce the manufacturing costs of the Xbox 360. The new chip combines the CPU, GPU, Memory, and I/O logic onto a single chip. It's pretty schnazzy. Supposedly it will reduce manufacturing costs, which could possibly mean a price drop in the Xbox 360 Slim. And with Microsoft pushing the Kinect hard at this years E3, it could be the perfect way to encourage uptake of the device. Another sly move on Microsoft's part.

Another thing, Duke Nukem Forever is out. And.. Well.. It didn't get very good reviews. IGN gave it at 5.5. That's Mediocre. As a kid, I never really played the Duke Nukem's. But with the FPS (First Person Shooter) genre growing and expanding since it's time, it tried to copy too much of other games, and not sticking to the true Duke Nukem. The 360 version has frame rate problems at times, which is a bummer. And long load times. And the music is well.. It's not the best, lets just say that. Not very catchy. So if you have high hopes for this game, knock it down a couple notches. Don't want you to be disappointed.

If you haven't seen anything on Rage, you should do so. It's another FPS, but let me tell you what, this game is gorgeous. But sadly, the game has been delayed for an extra month. It'll hit stores on October 4th now, instead of September 13th.

Lets chit chat about Sony now at E3. Now IGN claims that they "won" E3. And you know, I have to agree. Microsoft last reported Xbox 360 sales earlier this month at 55 million, while Sony last reported sales for PlayStation 3 this past March at 50 million. Since their respective November release dates were a year apart, Xbox 360 has been on the market for 66 months, PlayStation 3 for 54 months. Thus, Sony is averaging nearly 926,000 PS3s sold worldwide each month compared to Xbox 360's monthly average of 833,000. This isn't a point Sony has ever nailed home, and it's a missed opportunity for the company to show that its sales situation isn't as dire as it's often perceived to be. So I gotta say it. Boo ya.

But that missed opportunity aside, there were two primary, overwhelming strengths to Sony's conference: exclusive games and the major reveal of its successor to the PSP, the PlayStation Vita. Sure, there were other reveals -- including an affordable (albeit small) 3D television and a cheap pair of 3D glasses -- but the PlayStation brand's strength rests in its exclusive content, and between that content and a successful reveal of everything Vita has in store, it's hard not to give Sony credit for delivering this year's winning press conference performance on those facts alone.

From Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception and Resistance 3 to Starhawk and Sly Cooper 4, Sony stressed experiences that can only be had on its platform. It's true that there were few actual surprises (at least in terms of PlayStation 3 software), but all of these exclusives are what's truly exciting for those that own a PS3. There were nearly a dozen PlayStation 3 exclusives in total shown at the conference (including the awesome LittleBigPlanet 2 Move-enabled DLC and a couple of much-anticipated HD collections), a staggering amount of games. Other upcoming and much-anticipated exclusives, such as Twisted Metal and The Last Guardian, weren't even mentioned in passing. Now that's a deep roster of exclusives.

Then, there was the reveal of Vita. Sure, the name is pretty bad, but then again, I suspect it will grow on us as we start throwing the terms "Vita" and "PSV" around. To me, it seems that Sony has preemptively learned from the mistakes Nintendo made when the Nintendo 3DS launched in that there was no compelling games for people to play. While uncertain terms like "launch window" are being used to describe the slew of titles we saw at this year's E3 on Vita, the fact is that Sony isn't trying to sell Vita on the mere fact that it's the successor to the PSP. In addition to all of its non-gaming functionality, Trophy-earning possibilities and more, there will be compelling titles ready around the time Vita comes out late this year, and there's cause to be really excited for many of them, including Super Stardust Delta, Uncharted: Golden Abyss and LittleBigPlanet. Again, all exclusives.

Sony also nailed the price point of the Vita. And I mean nailed. $250 for a wi-fi enabled unit or a mere $50 more for a 3G-enabled PSV makes this handheld extremely competitive. At $250, it's the same price as a Nintendo 3DS.

And with that, that is all for today. Chat with you guys later!

-j-

Best of E3

2011-06-09T13:19:00.001-06:00

The Electronic Entertainment Expo is a spectacular showcase of all things video game, where developers, publishers and gamers from all over the world gather to see what the future of gaming has to offer.

Here are our E3 2011 award nominations so far.

Best Overall Game

E3 2011

2011-06-08T13:35:00.000-06:00

Alright guys, lets go ahead and talk about some of the stuff that is coming with E3. Some of the biggest, being the Wii U, PS Vita, and Halo 4.

Now lets go ahead and take a look at the Wii U. There is a lot of confusing with this bad boy. And some are saying that possibly, PS3 + PS Vita - Wii U. Since they can pretty much do the same thing. Confused a little bit? Lets go into more detail.

The Wii U is an entirely new console that is backwards compatible with the Wii. A Wii U game can only be played on a Wii U system, NOT a Wii. The Wii U console will do all the rendering for the controllers and beam the video feed out to each individual controller. That takes an awful lot of bandwidth, way more than bluetooth can handle (note that the Wii U controller is reported to have two different wireless transmitters, bluetooth for the standard controller functions and a much higher bandwidth transmitter for the video and audio). For this to work with the PS3 and Vita it would have to work over the much lower bandwidth Wi-Fi connection and rendered separately by every single connected device, the PS3 console and each connected Vita. Sorry, but I can only imagine the amount of lag this would introduce. Sure, the Vita could possibly do the whole "playing a PS3 game on a handheld," but that is only a very, VERY small part of what the Wii U controller was described to be able to do. That is kinda the dilemma here. Will the PS3 + Vita have lag? Or can it hold up it's own against the Wii U? PS3 + Vita is pretty much the same thing as the Wii U. But which can do it better?

The price of a PS3 and PS Vita combined would presumably be more expensive than a Wii U and its controller, but if you are already one of the 50 million PS3 owners worldwide then $249 for the Wi-Fi PS Vita could be more appealing than shelling out for the Wii U – with the added bonus of gaining a genuine portable entertainment device that you can throw in your bag and play with away from home.

Sony certainly has experience with a setup similar to Nintendo's Wii U with its Remote Play service for PS3, which allows PSP owners to browse and stream content from their PlayStation 3 console. And though largely unheralded, Lair – one of the very earliest titles for the PS3 – allowed the player to stream the game to their PSP screen with no lag. The downside was the sacrifice of control – the PSP only has one thumbstick when the game needed two to perform adequately. But such issues won't arise with the PS Vita, given it practically has every control interface type known to man – from twin sticks to touch screens.

Of course, there are plenty of other factors to consider. No specifications for the Wii U console itself have been revealed, and the final console could well be uber powerful, play Blu-rays, vacuum your carpet – who knows? But the point is: do you want to make space for a new (admittedly tiny) box under your TV, or do you want to make room in your bag for a new handheld?

So like I've been saying, there is a lot of debate going on with this. And we'll have more details on that later.

We'll chat more later

-j-

Mortal Kombat

2011-06-03T12:12:00.000-06:00

Well kids, we are still waiting on Panisko to write up a little somethin somethin' about the map pack for CoD: Black Ops. And there has been a lot of talk about Modern Warfare 3 and now the " CoD: Elite" Where you pay a fee to have certain benefits.. And we'll be touching ground on that a little bit later.

But right now, I wanna talk about Mortal Kombat. I've recently been playing it quite a bit, and let me tell you what, it's a nice change of pace from playing first person shooters and such. And it's a blast! Like some of the previous MK's, you unlock items by using the Krypt. And use Kombat Koins as currency. Another thing I like about the new MK is that it went back to its roots. Blood and Gore. Not like MK vs DC. A Mortal Kombat game is suppose to be rated M. Not T. There are suppose to be fatalities that make you say OH ****. And the one that comes to mind for me would be Noob Siabots. If you haven't seen that one yet, well, you are in for a surprise, let me tell you what. I know I was when I first saw it.

Another thing I've enjoyed about MK is the Story mode. It's pretty much a movie that you fight in. No joke. And the story is actually pretty darn good. I haven't completed it yet, but I'd say I'm about 85% done. I won't go into detail about the Story, so you'll have to play it to find out what happens. Lets just say you go kinda go back in time through MK1, 2, and 3 and try to change what happened. Pretty sweet.

Another thing that I can't wait to get my hands on is the Tower Challenge. There are a total of 300 challenges. That's right. 300. And that should keep you busy for quite some time. I was to go through them all. It'll take me a while.

Also, you can play online vs people around the world. I played 3 games online yesterday before one of my buddies got on, and I happened to win all 3. Lucky? Maybe so. Sonya is my main character. I remember she was also my main when I played MK: Deception. Sonya has some good moves that are quick, and can cover ground pretty quickly. It's quite handy. Other characters that I play are Smoke, Sub Zero, Kabal, and Scorpion. I can play others, but not as well. And I still need quite a bit of practice. Which hopefully I will get in today.

Well, that's all I have time for today. MK is a very enjoyable game.

I'm on PS3 if you want to play.

PSN: Deadsider07

-j-

Long Time No Talk!

2011-06-01T14:51:00.000-06:00

Well, sorry about the long dry spell there! We had some technical difficulties with our email, and finally got things sorted through. PHEW!

We have lots to talk about. But that will have to wait until tomorrow.

So we'll talk then!

-j-

PSN Password Reset Exploited. . .

2011-05-18T12:26:00.000-06:00

Well... Sony's latest security measure may have been circumvented. Early reports suggest that Sony's request for PlayStation Network users to reset their passwords could have inadvertently exposed the network to a new set of attacks.

The exploit allows hackers to change user passwords via the PSN password reset page, using just two pieces of information – a PSN account email address and a date of birth – both of which could have been obtained in the original breach.

The exploit was initially reported by Nyleveia, but the story has since been confirmed by Eurogamer, who claim to have seen video evidence corroborating Nyleveia's claims.

As a consequence, the PSN sign-in is currently down on a number of Sony's sites.

Well, this is just wonderful. We finally get the network back up and running, and then another thing has to go wrong. I would recommend that if you have any passwords that are the same as your PSN account, change them. You don't want to risk the possibility of them getting into more then one of your things. That would be bad news. I just don't understand why people would want to keep trying to screw Sony over, and every gamer that plays on the PSN. Just stop! All we want to do is play games online with your friends. So take your hacking to somewhere else!

Anyways, I'll keep you posted on whats going on. Check back later for more.

-j-

PSN Customer Appreciation Program Details.

2011-05-17T11:48:00.001-06:00

As you all know, with the PSN coming back online, we will be receiving gifts for our patience, support, and continued loyalty during the outage that we had to endure. The package will be made available to ALL existing registered PSN and Qriocity users, and will be made available shortly after we have fully restored the service. More specific details about these offers and eligibility requirements will be posted as the services go live. So my guess is within a week after the Store comes back online. Which is around the end of the month. Now here is the good part.

All PlayStation Network customers can select two PS3 games from the following list. The games will be available for 30 days shortly after PlayStation Store is restored and can be kept forever.

Dead Nation
inFAMOUS
LittleBigPlanet
Super Stardust HD
Wipeout HD + Fury

For PSP owners, you will be eligible to download two PSP games from the following list. The games will be available for 30 days shortly after PlayStation Store is restored and can be kept forever.

LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
ModNation Racers
Pursuit Force
Killzone Liberation

A selection of “On Us” rental movie titles will be available to PlayStation Network customers over one weekend, where Video Service is available. Those titles will be announced soon.
30 days free PlayStation Plus membership for non PlayStation Plus subscribers.
Existing PlayStation Plus subscribers will receive an additional 60 days of free subscription.
Existing Music Unlimited Premium Trial subscription members will receive an additional 30 days of free premium subscription.
Additional 30 days + time lost for existing members of Music Unlimited Premium/Basic subscription free of charge for existing Premium/Basic members.
To welcome users Home, PlayStation Home will be offering 100 free virtual items. Additional free content will be released soon, including the next addition to the Home Mansion personal space, and Ooblag’s Alien Casino, an exclusive game.

Now here are a few things that I would like to touch on. And in previous blogs I think I have mentioned this a couple of times. With the free games that we are receiving, we will not be needing to subscribe continuously in order to play those games. At least not to my knowledge so far. It says that they can be kept forever. So I'm guessing we can play them whenever. Now when you get the free 30 days of Plus, and you download a free game, that's when you will be in trouble when you run outta those 30 days. Because you then will no longer be able to play that specific game that you got, unless you subscribe to PlayStation Plus. Nice marketing decision for Sony. Could bag them quite a bit of new PS Plus users. Because with this trial, if you couldn't decide whether to buy it or not, this could be the stepping stone that you needed. That last little push.

A big bonus I see for those of you who already have PS Plus, is the 60 days of free subscription. 60 days. That's two months. The network was out for not even half that. You guys got the best deal yet. And if you own a PSP, you get double the games. 4 games total. Sony has done a great job giving back to it's customers. And we should all appreciate it. This is a great deal. If you have all the games in the above list already, well, I apologize. Would be nice if they could give you guys some in store credit, but looking into everyone's PS3 to see who has what would be very time consuming. Still, a great deal for everyone non-the-less.

Now one thing that I wish we could get back is that weekend of double XP we lost due to the network being down. I remember that whole weekend I was wishing that the network would be up in time for some gaming, but it never was. Sad yes, but I wish they would "reimburse" us one of them bad boys. Or maybe when we get the new pack packs, they can give us a x3 XP to make up for things. Now that, would be awesome. I know a lot of my friends would enjoy that.

We'll be having details on the new maps and such here in the next couple of days. Mr. Panisko should be writing one here soon. And when the map packs do come out for the PS3, I will be adding more to that. So far, I've heard good things about the maps. But a lot of them can be pretty camp heavy. And some are sniper friendly as well. Which is a good thing. It's about time they have more maps that you can snipe on.

Well, that's all I really have for today guys. Enjoy the network being back up and running, and have a little more patience for the store to be back up. Those rewards are right around the corner!

Contact:
PSN: Deadsider07
Diablo II: Xellioth

-j-

PSN Is Back Up And Running

2011-05-16T11:06:00.003-06:00

Yes indeed, you heard me. The PSN is back up and running.. Which means I won't get any more crap from Panisko! Which has lasted.. Well.. Nearly 4 weeks.

According to a press release, the first services users can expect to return are:

Sign-in for PlayStation Network and Qriocity services, including the resetting of passwords
Restoration of online game-play across PS3 and PSP
Playback rental video content, if within rental period, of PlayStation Network Video Delivery Service on PS3, PSP and MediaGo
Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity, for current subscribers, on PS3 and PC
Access to 3rd party services such as Netflix, Hulu, Vudu and MLB.tv
'Friends' category on PS3, including Friends List, Chat Functionality, Trophy Comparison, etc
PlayStation Home

Now as soon as you sign in, you will automatically be prompted to change your password. And please, make sure to change it to something else. And not the same password that you had before. Don't take that chance. For extra security, your password can only be changed on your PS3 or PS3 your account was activated on. If you try to use a system where your account isn't activated, an email will be sent to your registered email account. So hopefully you know which email your account is tied to. And not one you used to use years ago.

Even though the network is back up and running, the store isn't. So if you have add ons that you would like to get, or the latest Rockband DLC, you're just going to have to wait.. About another 2-3 weeks. Sorry guys. I know that's a bummer, but at least multiplayer is up and running. That's what I've been waiting for. Just remember we do get some bonuses here soon now that the network is up and running. I'm assuming once the store kicks on, we will be able to receive our "payments" that we get for the network being down. Now PlayStation Plus will be nice to have, but when you download those free games that you get from it, the ability to play those will be gone once the 1 month trial ends. Might just be enough to get you to subscribe, who knows. I'm pretty sure that I won't be subscribing to it. It has many benefits, yes, but I wouldn't use them to their full potential. But many of you out there could. I would definitely purchase it if I bought several games from the PSN, but I don't.

I was able to play Black Ops for a bit last night. Played for about 1.5 hours, and there was something I noticed.. The people I played with were either very good at the game, or they were just horrible. There really wasn't an in-between kinda guy. It was fun though. While the network was down, I played a couple rounds of bots not too long ago. Just have to make sure I stay fresh. Honestly though, when I started playing, it felt weird. It's been too long since I've really REALLY played the game. The controls just feel weird, and the sticks on the controller, to me, felt really loose. I wasn't used to it. I play on a high sensitivity (9) so, I had to kinda readjust. I didn't change it, but it took a bit for me to get the hang of it.

Now with the network being back up and running, what is the first game that you are going to play online? And what are you looking forward to? Leave a comment below and tell me what you think.

And with that token, let's take a look at something else again really quickly. Modern Warfare 3. Yes, we did talk about. And it's almost certain the game is coming out November 8th. There is a poster now with the dates confirming it. w00t! Which means you better get to 15th prestige quickly on Black Ops before it's too late. Now there are also a couple little trailers out on IGN. They aren't much though, which is disappointing. I thought maybe there would be a little bit of game play. Another thing I am kinda bummed about in MW3 is that they are keeping the same engine. I'm hoping for the NEXT CoD, after MW3, they make a new engine to run the game. I guess we'll have to wait and find out about that one.

One more thing before I take a break, with the network being down.. I've been going back and playing old games that I thought I wouldn't really play again. And one of those would be Diablo II. I remember first playing this game back in the day when I was in 6th-7th grade. That's like 9-10 years ago or so. And it was a BLAST back then, and right now I'm having a lot of fun playing too. And to make things a challenge this time around, I'm playing Hardcore. And if you've played Diablo II, you know what I'm talking about. Hardcore means that if your character dies at all in game, then that char is dead. You are unable to play him ever again. Which means.. DONT DIE! It's tough, yes, but a lot of fun as well. Just make sure that you are careful. I'll teach you a little trick. If you are on the verge of dying.. Save and Exit. As quickly as you can. That has saved me many times, and it will save you as well. Stuck in a corner or anything? Just save and exit. And be quick about it.

Don't forget you are always welcome to send me a message and game it up.Don't be shy, my friends and I always have a blast when playing. And if you are new, we'll help ya out, not a problem. And if you are a seasoned veteran, well, lets kick some butt!

PSN: Deadsider07
Diablo II: Xellioth

That's all for today folks, leave a comment below and tell me what you think about everything. Til next time.

-j-

Leaked Info: Modern Warfare 3

2011-05-13T12:23:00.004-06:00

First details of Activision's next blockbuster. The next Call of Duty game will be called Modern Warfare 3 and jointly developed by Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software. The release date will be November 8, 2011.

The single-player story will start directly after the events of Modern Warfare 2. The villain Vladimir Makarov and heroes "Soap" MacTavish and John Price return in 15 stages set across the world, including New York City, Dubai and Paris.

The Spec Ops co-operative mode from Modern Warfare 2 will return, as well as survival maps that sound similar to Gears of War's horde mode or Call of Duty: World at War's zombie mode. The competitive multiplayer mode will feature around 20 maps.

I'm glad to see that Spec Ops will be back. And now there will also be survival maps? That will add another thing to keep everyone addicted to the serious. Besides from the multiplayer and Spec Ops, I'm very intrigued with what the survival maps will consist of exactly. If they do it right, it could be the one of the biggest selling points of the game, no doubt about that. Kinda like an arena type thing. I don't know about you guys, but this gets me pretty excited.

Spec Ops are fun too. As I mentioned earlier in a post, I went back and did some of the old Spec Ops missions. Still very fun, and tough on Veteran. Hoping that maybe we can get more missions.

Now for the Multiplayer online. There are a couple things that I want to hit on, whether it be they take something out, or put something in.

For one, I hope they get rid of Last Stand. When you get shot and are suppose to be at 0 hp, you should be dead. Not at 1 hp on the "brink" of death, pulling out your pistol, and being invincible on the way to the ground. Total bs. Also, you shouldn't be able to knife while you are down. And another thing, what bugs me the most, is it seems like when you are falling, you can get a few extra shots off sometimes with your main weapon. That is very, VERY annoying.

Another thing I hope they implement, is when you shoot a weapon, you shouldn't come up on the radar. The only way you should show up I think, is if they have a UAV online. Why would I show in the first place when shooting a weapon? I don't think you should, but that's my personal thought. Silencers will still have their effect so people don't know where you are getting shot from. Helps keep quiet, ya know?

I want the whole money system outta the game. I want challenges to award you things, such as emblems and backgrounds, and weapon attachments! Just like in Modern Warfare 2. Black ops didn't have anything like that, and it was fun to have stuff unlock-able like that. Gives you more things to get done. And it doesn't let you have access to all the attachments possible right off the bat. I think that was kinda a bad thing to do. As soon as you can make a class, you could have any equipment and attachments you wanted, if you have the money.

Now there are pros and cons about something else that I would like to bring up. Stacking kill streaks, or not stacking kill streaks. Also, would you want the nuke back? There is a lot of debate over whether people would want it back or not. What do you think? Personally, I think it would be fun to have it back. Except that it could possibly lead to camping. Which would be a bad thing for sure. What kind of kill streaks would you want in the game? Would you want to get rid of the Spy Plane altogether because you think it's cheap? Or maybe just have kill streaks that are controlled by AI, and not yourself? Give me your thoughts on that one.

One more thing that I would to add here really quick. I WANT DEDICATED SERVERS. That is a must must. A lot of other FPS's have dedicated servers. And with the most popular and lucrative franchise of them all, I'm sure they can afford it. That would settle the problem with everything that we like to call lag. And maybe even the solution for the hit detection. Please for the love of god!

Well kids, that'll be all for today. Til next time.

Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

-j-

Just In: Sony said...

2011-05-10T13:13:00.001-06:00

The PSN won't be up and running for a few more days.

/sigh

More days to wait to play online

That's all for today

-j-

Sony Dates PSN Return

2011-05-09T13:01:00.000-06:00

Well, ladies and gentlemen.. Sony has said that all PSN services should be up and running May 31st. And this can be misinterpreted very easily. Now, first, lets set things straight. The store is the last thing that will be available too all of us. So by May 31st, the store will be working. And even before that, multiplayer functionality will be ready to go before that. According to the PlayStation Blog, that is the first thing that they are working on to be ready to go. So that's always a bonus. On Friday I believe, Sony said they were in the final stages of testing that system. So my hopes are that multiplayer will be available this week. Now that's not a promise or anything, but I think they are wrapping things up with multiplayer very soon. And we will be able to play once again with our friends in different states and yadda yadda here soon.

On the other hand of things, if you have friends in the town/city that you live in, you can still play with them, if they come over and you LAN the game. Which has it's bonuses and such. I went to my brothers house a couple days a week to play. We've been playing Borderlands for a bit, and well we both are maxed out now. And have been farming the "super secret boss", trying to get pearlescent weapons to drop. Have we had any at all? NO WE HAVE NOT. And it's very frustrating. I've killed this dude, not even kidding, at least 40 times. No joke on that one. And I have yet to see one drop. Now there is the bug where you can get him to stay in once place and such, and we did that in the beginning. But now that we are both maxed, we can take him out legit. Funny story though, because I play a Siren and he plays the sniper class (Can't think of the name right now). And I have an "escape route" I guess, with my ability. Him on the other hand... Well. He dies because he can't run very quickly. And I can run pretty darn fast. If I kill a crab, well, I get a 50% run increase. I think he does too, but he died quite a bit. But in the end, we killed the guy, and it's actually a lot easier then I thought it would be. Now here are tips on killing his little minions if you don't know already.

Green Crabs = Fire Damage
Purple Crabs = Corrosive Damage
Worms = Shock Damage

So use weapons with a high elemental chance and they will go down in no time. I can crit the green crabs for 99,999 with the sniper I have. So they go down pretty quickly.

Once my brother and I got bored with that, for some odd reason, we popped in Modern Warfare 2. And started doing Spec Ops. Which was pretty fun actually. He got a new ps3 so he didn't have anything done on there. No stars. ( On his old ps3 he plat'd the game ) so we got as many missions done on Veteran as we could. Didn't do too bad either! And was fun.

Even though the PSN is still down, there are other games and other things that you can do. We even went shooting. And that was a lot of fun. First time shooting a gun in about 7 years or even more.

But lets just hope the multiplayer aspect of the PSN will be up and running soon. I don't need the store right off the bat. Just mostly the multiplayer. plzkthx.

Now when the network and such comes up.. What's the first thing you are going to do? Do you trust Sony with all of your personal information? Are you going to take off your credit card info and start buying PSN cards to buy things off the store? What game are you going to be playing first? With the updates that are happening you are required to change your password as soon as you sign on. Which is a good thing.

I believe that is all for today.

Til next time!

-j-

PSN Restoration in it's "Final Stages"

2011-05-06T13:10:00.000-06:00

Yes indeed, you heard it. In the coming days, the service will be up and running.

Well I guess I will say it for all of us.

IT'S ABOUT TIME!

Now I know that Sony has been rebuilding the network from the ground up, and in two weeks.. Wow.. Talk about a lot of work to be done, but us gamers have a craving. And it needs to be tamed! You know, we can only hold off on single player games for so long!

But we can't just put all the blame on Sony ya know.. Because this could have happened to anyone. My guess is that Sony was targeted because of everything else that has been going on with them.. The whole thing with Anon and the earthquake.. They have been going through a lot. And someone just happened to see the window of opportunity, and took it. And they blamed it on Anon. Which anyone could tell most likely wasn't them. Why would they steal all of that information, and then leave behind a folder labeled Anonymous, with inside, "We are Legion"? They wouldn't leave evidence like that. Obviously, someone is setting them up. And trying to point the finger at someone else. Whoever did this though, will get whats coming for them. Just wait and see.

With the network being down right now, there is another thing that is on my mind right now. With the new map pack that just came out for CoD: Black Ops, double XP is this weekend. And right now, we cannot take part in that. BUMMER. Huge downer. For one, I have friends that wanna prestige. And this is the best opportunity for that. For instance, my friend Cory has been in the high 40's for.. What two weeks now? Unable to play. And now is the perfect time to get those last few levels outta the way. But alas, it's not possible. And for myself, I believe I'm in the mid 30's. I just need to hit 50, and I'm done leveling. I'll be 15-50. No need to get pro perks anymore, or anything. I'll be done. I cannot wait for that.

That's all for today though folks. Sony, please get the PSN up this weekend. And if it's not up in time for the double XP, then lets just hope we will get our own double xp the next weekend. And if we don't, well, that just adds to the frustration of everyone on the PSN.

-j-

It's Tuesday.. But where is the PSN?

2011-05-03T13:14:00.001-06:00

Well. If you tried to log in to the PSN today, you know that the network STILL is not up and running. Why is it you ask? I'm not quite sure. But it seems like they are taking their sweet time getting it back up and running. They said Tuesday that it would be up, but it's still not. I know it's still pretty early in the day, so as of right now, I'll cut them some slack. But it better be online by the time I get home so I can play!

Now there has been some people worried about the rewards we are receiving from this outage. About getting PlayStation Plus. Mainly because if you get games for free and such, they will go away once your 30 days is up of PlayStation Plus.Which means if you want to continue playing them, you'll either have to buy the game or pay for PS Plus. So this outage could actually make Sony money, instead of losing it. It's quite the clever tactic. Those who couldn't decide if PlayStation Plus was actually worth it will be able to test it out. And see if they want to purchase it or not. I know that I will be passing it up. Because I really don't use the PS Store all that much. Other people do, but not I. I'm not too concerned when we'll be getting the Store back online. What I am worried about.... IS ONLINE CAPABILITIES! I want to be able to play with my friends! And just to make matters even worse, Mr. Panisko has to rub it in that he gets the new Map Packs today for Cod: Black Ops. And he already is home playing it. Curse him! But on the bright side of things, he will be right up some strats and other things about the map packs to give us an advantage. For that, I will keep my enemy close! I want to have the upper hand when the new maps come out for the PSN. You know I was thinking about the store and everything now. It's nice that CoD has the store inside of the game. Even though Sony said that the store will be available by the end of this Month, you never know. And if it wasn't up and running by the beginning of June, well, the maps would be out.. But we wouldn't be able to get them. That would be a total bummer. So thank you 3arc, for giving us a store inside the game.

But most importantly....

I really hope it'll be up later on tonight. They said Tuesday. So lets hope.

That's all for today.

-j-

PSN Back Online Tomorrow (hopefully)

2011-05-02T12:08:00.000-06:00

Well, I was right. Looking back at my earlier post and my scenarios about what features will be available when the PSN comes back to life. We will be able to play with our friends and such, but be unable to access the Store for a little while. At the latest, the end of May. Which is okay for me, I rarely use the PSN store anyways. I used to use it a lot when I was into Rockband and would download every new song that I liked. But that was before I moved outta my parents house.

Now honestly I'm pretty excited. PSN back up tomorrow. And we get some incentives as well since the Network has been down. Everyone will receive a free 30-day PlayStation Plus membership. Nice! Except I'm worried about one thing.. Well. Yes we will get PS Plus for 30 days after the network comes online.. But we won't fully be able to use PlayStation Plus until the store comes back online. Because that's where you get the joys of having PS-Plus. Discounts on games, early start on betas, yadda yadda. I'm hoping that we can choose when we want to activate the membership so the days don't get wasted. No store = No points in having PS-Plus. At least in my book. Now everyone that already has PS-Plus will receive 30 days of addition service at no cost. Not too shabby Sony. I don't know about you guys, but I am pretty excited to give this a try. Might make me want to actually get PlayStation Plus.. But we will have to wait and find out about that one. Additionally, Music Unlimited subscribers will receive 30 days of free service as well. Sony is also working with the FBI to sniff out the smelly teenager who hacked the Network. Just look for the trail of Hot Pockets and Mountain Dew.. I'm sure they will find him in no time.... once again Sony did reaffirm that it does not believe credit card info was taken, but just in case, keep an eye on it. You never know.

Now when we get the Network goes live, users will have to download a new system firmware update and will make you change your login password. Only thing i'm worried about.. Well.. I got my ps3 back when it first came out. And haven't had to put in my password in.. YEARS. So hopefully they won't ask for your old password to change it to a new one. I have an idea of what it is.. But we'll see. That's the only thing that I am worried about. Sony will also do a "phased rollout" by region for PSN services. Tomorrow's (HOPEFULLY) initial rollout includes:

- Restoration of Online game-play across the PlayStation 3 and PSP systems. This includes titles requiring online verification and downloaded games

- Access to Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3/PSP for existing subscribers. Sony will have a phased rollout by region for PlayStation Network next week. The services that will be available include:

- Access to account management and password reset

- Access to download un-expired Movie Rentals on PS3, PSP and MediaGo

- PlayStation Home

- Friends List

- Chat Functionality

And as I mentioned before, the major service that won't be available right off the bat is the PSN Store.

And if the Network isn't up and running tomorrow.. I will be a sad boy. But that's quite alright. I have farming to do on Borderlands! I gotta get a jump up on my brother ya see. I can now solo the "Super Secret Boss" and I wanna find a pearlescent weapon and show it off! Now tomorrow is also the day that the 360 gets the new map pack for Black Ops. And we'll have all the details on that here in the next couple of days. Mr. Panisko will be giving you all the details. So make sure to check back daily here. Us PS users will have to wait an extra month, so if you want the jump on everyone else, we'll give you that little boost you need. Well. Panisko will.

Now back to the PSN being up and running here soon, I am pumped. I can't wait. Do you know how hard it is to get people together to LAN a game? It's almost impossible! I never realized how much we take for granted being able to hop on and join a friends game. With the network being down, I either had to go over to someone's house, or they had to come to my house. It's a pain, trust me on that one. I was only able to do that if the woman had to work in the evening. As many of you guys out there know, they don't like to be alone at home, especially if you are just going over to someone's house to play games. But, that's all fixed when the PSN is up. Cross your fingers it's up and running tomorrow.

That's all for today.

-j-

Sony: PSN Back Online Next Week

2011-04-28T12:01:00.001-06:00

Well, if you haven't heard yet, PSN is suppose to be back up and running, or even just "Some services up and running" By May 3rd. That is this coming Tuesday. It's great news! And it finally sets up a time table about when the network is going to be back up and running. I'm guessing that everything won't be working right off the bat. Hopefully the features I was are working

On Tuesday, the network will be "Up". And that could mean a few things...

1.) You can see your friends, access the store, but can't play multiplayer yet.
2.) You can see your friends, have no access to the store, and can play multiplayer.

And there are more possibilities as well.... but...

I'm hoping for scenario #2. Cross your fingers on that one.

Although which services will be coming back online is unclear, Sony has stated they are working on new security measures for the future, as well as seeking out those who are responsible for the security breach. Which is a great thing to know. I want to know who made us gamers go cold turkey!

Now about all of our questions about whats going on with our personal info and such, some of them did get answered. Lets take a look, shall we?

We asked: How safe our personal info?

Sony: "All of the data was protected and access was restricted both physically and through the perimeter and security of the network. The entire credit card table was encrypted and we have no evidence that credit card data was taken. The personal data table, which is a separate date set, was not encrypted, but was, of course, behind a very sophisticated security system that was breached in a malicious attack"

We asked: Did they get our credit card?

Sony: "While all credit card information stored in our systems is encrypted and there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken, we cannot rule out the possibility. If you have provided your credit card data through PSN or Qriocity, our of an abundance of caution we are advising you that your credit card number (excluding security code) and expiration date may have been obtained. Keep in mind, however, that your credit card security code has not been obtained because we never requested it from anyone who has joined the PSN or Qriocity, and is therefore not stored anywhere in our system."

We asked : Changing our passwords?

Sony: "We are working on a new system software update that will require all users to change their password once PSN is restored. We will provide more details about the new update shortly."

We asked: The future??

Sony: "Moving forward, we are initiating several measures that will significantly enhance all aspects of PSN's security and your personal data, including moving our network infrastructure and data center to a new, more secure location, which is already underway. We will provide additional information on these measures shortly."

And with everything going on, and Sony trying to things fixed for all of us... People are now going to sue Sony for the PSN security breach. Class action lawsuit.

I mean, really guys, come on. Sony is doing what it can to get the PSN back up and running, and to add to the stress of all this, you guys are going to sue? Can I ask.. Wtf? All you want is some easy money. It alleges Sony "Failed to take reasonable care to protect, encrypt, and secure the private sensitive data."

The lawsuit seeks monetary compensation for the data loss and "loss of use of the PSN, credit monitoring, and other relief according to proof.".

I think I'll pass. Honestly, Sony, just keep on working on getting the PSN up. That's all I care about.

Well kids, i'm outta time for today. Til next time.

-j-

All your base are belong to... Hackers.. PSN down for 7 days

2011-04-27T12:56:00.003-06:00

10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2..1... KNOCK OUT!

As you know, the PlayStation network continues on it's 7th day of being down. One full week. And they are finally releasing details on what's going down. And it turns out ALL of our personal information is taken.

- Name
- Address (city, state, zip)
- Country
- Email Address
- Birthdate
- PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID

That's what they know for sure is taken, from all 77 million PSN users. And don't forget that there is the possibility they have our credit card numbers as well. Although Sony says there is no evidence showing that they did, it's still in the back of all our minds.

Sony also sent out a mass email to everyone. Take a look at it, and read through it. I'll highlight some of the main things you should read

For your security, we encourage you to be especially aware of email, telephone and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information. Sony will not contact you in any way, including by email, asking for your credit card number, social security number, or other personally identifiable information. If you are asked for this information, you can be confident Sony is not the entity asking. When the Playstation Network and Qriocity services are fully restroed, we strongly recommend that you log on and change your password. Additionally, if you use the Playstation Network or Qriocity user name or password for other unrelated services or accounts, we strongly recommend that you change them as well.

That is very important. Do not give out any information like that.

Make sure to check everything you can. Review your account statements and your credit cards and debit cards. Change email passwords if needed and such. Protect against possible identity theft! I know that there are 77 million people on the PSN, and you think none of this could happen to you, think again. It's a chance that I wouldn't want to take.

I know how frustrating all of this could be. Because I feel your pain. Trust me on this one. Paul comes in bragging every day at work. " Oh yeah I played all day yesterday, went 48-3 on a map." Then all day turns into 45 minutes, but still. He gets to play and make fun of all us PSN users.

Sony is doing what it can. Don't doubt that. I'm sure that they have been working around the clock on this, and hopefully services will be restored as soon as possible. And if you guys have any questions, they gave us a phone number we can call if you have any questions. I'll put it up for you all.

1-800-345-7669

Now there is another topic that has shed some light. A "refund" tidbit. Since the PSN went offline, players who have paid for subscriptions such as PlayStation Plus, and DC Universe Online have wondered if they'd get money back as they can't use the services. Here is what they said " While we are still assessing the impact of this incident, we recognize that this may have had financial impact on our loyal customers. We are currently reviewing options and will update you when the service is restored"

Which kinda means we aren't going to find out anything about whether we will be compensated or anything. Personally, I don't have PlayStation plus or anything, so I'm not worried about getting anything in return, but for those of you who have it, well, hopefully you'll get a little somethin somethin'. But the thing is, you only pay 50 bucks a year. A YEAR. So if the PSN is going to be down for 2 weeks, that is only 1/26th of a year. So really, should you get a month free or something? No, I don't think so. Because 2 weeks is only a fraction of the year that you are paying for. At least I think so. But if they are feeling really really generous, I personally would want a free PSN game or PSOne Classic. But that's just me.

All in all, I hope the network is up soon. I need to hit 15-50. That's prestige 15, level 50, btw. As I am roughly around level 25 or so. And I know my friends have been dying to play. Cross your fingers. And don't worry, I'll have my toes crossed as well just in case.

-j-

5 days and counting for the PSN being down...

2011-04-25T11:54:00.003-06:00

Well, as many of you guys know out there, The PSN has been down for.. What.. 5 days now? Since Wednesday night. And let me tell you what, it is a little frustrating. I know that it is free and all, and a lot of fanboys out there for the xbox have been laying down all they have against everyone who plays on the PSN, but the xbox has had it's outages before, and it's down time. Back in 2008, it was down for 2 weeks! But lets just hope the PSN isn't down for that long.

Now Sony hasn't really said too much about the outages so far. The main reason, yadda yadda. The only information that we have received is "The PlayStation Network outage is due to an external intrusion". And did not clarify beyond that. A timetable for when PSN will be up and running again was also not provided. Which is a major bummer. Hopefully you have a single player game on hand, or perhaps you could go outside and.. Play? At least the weather outside was nice this weekend. Now the weather could be getting bad. No playing outside for me.

We have another update that was posted not too long ago. And pretty much what is happening is they are saying the outage will be continuing (Once again without any timetable saying when it'll be back online) and that Sony will be REBUILDING it's system to further strengthen our network infrastructure. How long do you think that is going to take? Rebuilding from scratch? Hopefully they have a skeleton of the thing and don't have to start from nothing. If this will help the Network, then that's a good thing. But if it's going to take 2-3 weeks to complete, then at least give us a temporary option to be able to play online. If that is possible. It would help curb the addiction, if you know what I mean.

Now this is going to damage Sony in multiple ways. For one, why buy a new game? I mean, if the main aspect of it is Multiplayer. There is no incentive to buy it. Single player? Pfft. If it's anything like CoD: Black ops, why buy it just for the Single Player? I haven't even played single player. Now, game like the New Mortal Kombat, I would buy even for the Single Player. It's a lot of fun. The story mode is pretty interesting. My friend Cory bought it, and we battled it up a bit. Only thing for Multiplayer would be to play against your friends. Which can wait. Another option that you guys have is to LAN a game. Which is.. Well, more difficult. Reason being, you all need to be in the same place at the same time. And that can be a challenge all on it's own. And also in Black Ops, you can only kill so many bots before it gets.. Lame.

With the PSN being down, should we be compensated in any way? Maybe we should get some cash moneys in our wallets. Or perhaps a free game for everyone. Whether it be a PS One classic. Or maybe a free PSN Game? I think we should get something. Maybe a 1 game for every week that it is down. Just cross your fingers it won't be down for 2 weeks. I can hold off for a couple more days, but when it hits a week and a half, that's when shit starts to hit the fan for me. I can't get friends to come over every day just to LAN. That gets a little tedious for everyone.

And what about developers who just put out new games? They are losing money for each hour the PSN is down. I know i'm not buying a new game until the network is at least up, or if they give us a rough estimate on when it'll be back online. If you recently bought Portal 2 and SOCOM 4, I feel sorry for you. It can be fun for a while playing solo, but after a while, you're going to want that Multiplayer action. And you will have none. Zip. Nada. Zilch. I understand that the outage is not Sony's fault. My guess is it is some douche bag who thinks they are getting back at Sony for something, when really they are just hurting the millions of people on the PSN. But the big reason is unknown, besides for certain people, why the network is really down. Maybe if Sony communicated a little bit better, then gamers wouldn't be so upset, and be understanding. But they are keeping this pretty tight. I only hope the "Re-building" of the PSN doesn't take weeks.

Recently, I started to play Borderlands. The game has been out for quite some time, but I got the game with all the expansions for only 20 bucks at Gamestop. I think the deal goes until the end of April. Better hurry before it's too late. And the game is pretty fun. If you have ever played Diablo II, the loot is just like that. Random (Except the one thing I strongly dislike about it, is that the bosses always drop the same loot gun wise. Total bummer there). With rares, epics, and legendary. No set items though, which I thought was a shame. I remember farming Mephisto over and over on hell difficulty getting the rarest of rares off him. Hours upon hours, let me tell you what. Anyways, back to borderlands, over the weekend I mostly LAN'ed the game. Obviously, since the PSN is down. And it has been fun. Between leveling up for the first time, learning the story, and doing the Arena's, it has all been a blast. Now if you're like me, you like to grind and farm. Leveling up like a mad man, and then turn around and own up the main quests. Paul told me he finished his first play through around level 29. I''m currently 35, and still need another part of the key for the Vault. I blame that on the Zombies. And maybe a few other things as well. I think tonight I will finish the main story, and try out some arena's and stuff. But the game is fun. Even single player, mainly because it is my first time through the game. I farmed Old Haven's chests for a couple hours last night. Have some good loot to share with my buddies. Mostly Revolvers, Snipers, and Rocket Launchers. I play a siren. WTB Submachine gun, PST! For only 20 bucks though, the game is a steal, especially since it includes all 4 expansions. I just wish the PSN! And speaking of the PSN...

Do you think we should be compensated with the outages? Leave a message below, and tell me what you think.

-j-

A Polish Strategy on Domination

2011-04-22T12:41:00.000-06:00

Greetings!
Jonnie and i have been talking about strategy and gameplay since Black Ops came out in Nov. and we still do daily... call it lack of a life, or just a love of this damn game. But we are both died in the wool Black ops players.

We played Modern Warfare 2 together, with several other friends, and to be honest, really had a Solid group of players. What is really funny to me is on MW2 our game of choice was Search and Destroy, Period. And now that we have moved onto B.Ops, neither of us play it much, if at all.. After several prestiges each, playing every game type, we have both found our calling, Jonnie on Cap the flag, and I’ve found my way to Domination.

As i was grinding my way through prestiges, i found myself playing a ton of Ground War, and as i payed more attention to the maps i was voting for i found that i never, NEVER voted Team Deathmatch, if it was a decision between 2 TDM's id vote random, if that came up TDM i found myself quiting, loooking for Domination. So my slow witted mind realized that domination, for the most part, is my game.

Jonnie's last entry about Offense, Defense, & Middle D really holds a lot of water in Domination as well. The offense side is really, Really self explanatory, pedal to the floor attacking any red flag, period. That is the aspect I’ll really examine here, This outlook is very effective while playing alone, and even scarier when you have backup and people coordinating attacks.. ill talk the roaming role, and D later. But the Best Offense, is an Aggressive offense..

If your in the offensive mindset, Sub Machineguns are the weapon of choice.. i wont get into the ins and outs of them, its your call, and besides i can never make up my own mind, i go thru them all. This week its been duel weildin Scorpions... for some reason...don't ask. Shotguns are a close second to Subs, but much harder to play, especially on more 'open' maps. When im rockin the Spaz, i Always run pistols or B.Knives as my secondary, so i can replace my secondary quickly with a picked up weapon. Assault rifles certainly are not out of the question for the Offensive build either, and again personal preference is the way to go with assault rifles.

Perk load-out.. the only Pre-req's i see for this build are Marathon (pro is huge), in the offensive mindset no other 3rd, we can talk ninja later. For seconds Steady Aim, for your Subs, and Shotty's, and slight of hand for a few subs, ( i perfer sleight of hand for the MPL rather than Steady aim) and Slight for all the Assaults you might use in the O mindset. The 2nd and 3rd perks are easy in 100mph mode..

The 1st perks is where things get cloudy. Lightweight seems like a no-brainer, and is. I use a Sub, and a Shotty build with lightweight. You absolutely run circles around people with Lightweight on, and if you run a HIGH controller sensitivity, your all NEO-like.. dodgin bullets.

Ghost is also really nice in this build, when your runnin flat out.. your not going to stop and worry about pesky spyplanes..And if you have the PRO of it.. even better, sentry guns, choppers,.. any of it, doesnt stop you from capping.

Scavenger is great as well, especially if you like Subs with rapid fire, the hose needs water :) Scavenger Pro with the Offensive mindset is fantastic, the pro allows you to resupply secondary grenades too, which is FAB.. If your dying with grenades of any kind left on your body, shame on you.. spam those things..

Hardline is a perk I love.. but not for this build.. the last thing you want on Full Rush mode is to be waiting for care packages and SAM turrets.. let the middle movers, or the campers.. rrr.. the Defensive players.. call those in.

Last but not least is flack jacket.. in Domination, flack jacket should be absolute money, I say it like that because, well I don’t use it at all.. nada. The only time thus far ive even bought it is when we all had a bet to see who could unlock every PRO perk in a prestige first.. If you are a player that is worried about your KD maybe flackjacket is for you in Domination.. I could care less about my KD.. I want WINS.. I never touch Flack Jacket..

With all that said, I have 8 offensive builds.. 3 Submachine gun builds, one with ghost, one with scavenger, one with lightweight, steady aim on all, with marathon. 2 Shotty builds. Silenced Spas-12s, 1 ghost, 1 Lightweight, Steady, marathon, and my new ‘favorite’ which changes all the time.. Dual Skorpions, scavenger, steady, Marathon. AND they all use Jammers, Jammers are Fab.. You can normally cover 2 separate flags with a well placed jammer..and they just mess with the other team.. highly suggest them in Domination for any build. Period. My other 2 builds are Mid-Aggressive builds, which we can talk about later..

Right off the bat in any game your going to want to get a guage of what kind of team your playing, and playing with for that matter. If it takes several seconds for the other team to cap their closest flag, you know they are a rushing team.. instead of the whole team stopping for the flag several have taken off for B, or to catch your team unaware by getting into good ambush spots. If im playing a real aggresive team is when ill go to the shotguns.. or dual Skorpions, all the fights are going to be Real close quarters, gun fights are going to be brief, and bloody, you want to do as much damage as fast as u can.Almost 100% of the time ill be putting my jammer around B, closer to their side of the map..

If they cap their first flag real fast you can kind of guess they are not going to be going Full out. Your probably looking at snipers, heavy machine guns, and assault rifles, possibly a "rush' scraggler. There are some amazing rush snipers still around, but most people using sniper rifles are going to be those people you can kill with a tomahawk DAYS before they can get you with a PSG1, and they will always try to get to high ground, or to sniper perches.. always call them out so your team knows..

Campers, what can you say about campers.. people who play Domination like they are playing TDM, campers want to make me cut myself.. maybe its because i have no patience what-so-ever, im so damn ADHD I cannot sit still.. period. Campers will kill you, maybe several times.. but you will have the advantage, you know where he has set up his camp stove, and claymore.. grenade him.. flashbang/stun/teabag him.. Call him out so your team drops a ton of firepower on him.. whatever it takes. Those are the players who think that its really cool to get their dogs/gunship out in Domination but lose 200-65, and finish with no caps, and 0 defends..

And on that.. i truly believe in playing like a team even when im not with a group of friends.. In my offensive mindset i only run 2 different Killstreak setups.. if im by myself i run 3,4,5. spyplane, counter spy, and Napalm. (napalm for those fools who try to take my flags back), and if im with a good group, i run 3,4,8. spy, counter, SR-71. if you have a couple of people running SR-71=SICK.. once the first Blackbird is in the air.. its Really easy to overlap them.. and just start playin Taps at that point..

Wow.. sorry really long winded, so remember cap those flags, pronto.. know where the campers are watching you from when u dive on that flag, and leave the M60, or Stoner at home when playing Rush. Im on the Xbox for BlackOps, Ichabad13, so look me up we'll go get some 12year olds to swear at us.

-panisko-

Lets talk strategy, part 2

2011-04-21T13:07:00.003-06:00

Alrighty guys, today lets take a look at some other game modes, and some strategies that you can use.

Today, we'll talk about Capture the Flag, which happens to be my all time favorite by the way.

Now there are a couple builds and strats that you can use to get the most bang for your.. Time I guess?

First one that I would like to talk about is offense. Going to snag the flag. Now there are a few things that you need to keep in mind when going for their flag. For one, there are going to be Claymores right on the Flag. There always is. And there are a couple ways that you can get around that. Very easily, actually. For one, use a Jammer. And just like that, they are all sparking and you can walk right through it. It is what I use every time. Especially since no one ever realizes that it's there and when you snag the flag, they think that they never heard "You're equipment is gone," and that their claymore should have went off.. Until they walk by and see that their claymore is still there, with pretty little sparks coming out of it. Still some don't think anything of it, and don't expect a Jammer. Gotta love it.

The next method that you can use is simply throwing a Flash or Concussion Grenade. That'll disable the Claymores for a short time. But it'll also draw the attention of anyone around the area, whether they are defending or just spawned. Be careful using this method. Run in, and snag the flag. But watch your sides as well.

And lastly, you can take the time to look at the Claymores and shoot them. This is the worst thing that you can do. Because for one, it makes a lot of noise. And for two, the person who put down the Claymore will hear "You're equipment is gone". And they'll come running for you.

Now when you have the flag, keep in mind if you do not have Ghost on, and they throw up a Spy Plane, you will get a "Kill" on their map. And it will constantly be up. Not like everyone else who shows up as bleeps every time the Spy Plane refreshes the Radar. So it's a good idea to use Ghost if you are going to be a flag runner. But Lightweight is a great help too, especially if you have a Sub Machine Gun. You will be running like a mad man and no one can catch up to you. Ballistic Knives are always good to use too, since you run the fastest with those bad boys. But to play it safe, I would recommend Ghost. Especially if you are in a random lobby with no friends. Unless you have a beast team with good defense, then you can run lightweight or something else since they won't be getting your flag very often.

Now when there are many defenders on the enemy team, that's when you need to take things a little bit slower. Don't just go rushing in there. You will get slaughtered. That's when you try to sneak to a spot where you can look around and pick people off. This is when you want a silencer on your weapon. Lots of defenders = Silencer. Got it? K, good. Now, this is always when grenades and secondary grenades come in handy. Use them. It helps you see where the enemies are. And a good Grenade can take out a defender or two, and will help you out. You will eventually learn the camping spots on a lot of the maps, and it'll be cake taking out kids, and stealing their goods.

Now there are a few things for offense.

Lets take a look at defense.

The first thing I would suggest is have a Motion Sensor. Cheap? In a way, yes, but useful as well. It'll watch your back, even a area with two entrances, and you can watch another side. It's a great help. Plop that down in a nice place, where it's out of sight so it won't get destroyed, and defend at another area.
If you are defending at the flag, its a good idea to have the flag close to where you are. So you can see the flag. A lot of the maps have the flag in the open, with cover all around it. Great for you. Be stealthy. Lay down in a area, and keep quiet, and mostly out of sight.And keep your eyes open. A silencer isn't needed, but it will be helpful when multiple people come for the flag. I recommend using Warlord with Dual Mags and a Silencer. That's what I use. Reason being, you get more ammo, a quicker reload every other reload, and you have a silencer. Can't get any better then that. Now when you kill a few people, make sure to switch up where you are hiding. They will look for you in that same spot, so move around, and they will not be expecting it at all. Trust me, it works like a charm. Defense is pretty simple. So not much to it. Keep your eyes peeled, use a motion sensor, and keep in cover. Use Ghost. And Marathon in case they take the flag. You can run them down.

Next is what I like to call "Middle D"

It's where you sit toward the middle of the map and patrol that area. This is what I have been doing quite a bit recently. All that I used to do was offense. I have friends that I play with that are just defense and just offense. And I sit in the middle to protect the flag, and to protect the flag carrier. That is your job. When your teammates grab the flag, back them up. When they get your flag, hunt down that person and get your flag back. Now when you are playing mid-D, you have an advantage. Mainly because people are not expecting someone to play defense there. They expect them at the flag. Which means they will be caught off guard. And that's when you jump and own them. Now people are going to call you a camper and such. It's going to happen. And you will just have to deal with that. And any hate mail that you get. (Always fun to get) But who cares. You are helping you're team. You aren't exactly camping when you are going to be moving around protecting the middle of the map. You are just playing a good defense. I've been called out about it. Because i've been playing Mid-D quite a bit this past week. You aren't camping in one spot waiting for someone to come around the corner. You are simply patrolling the area. That's all. They are just upset because you keep killing them. Simple as that.

Now you need to make sure that you have a class with a Stela on it. Because there is a wait time on spawning. If the other team happens to get a chopper gun, they will get your flag and cap it multiple times. It's going to happen. You will spawn, and most likely just die again if that thing doesn't get shot down. When they call in air support, it's a priority to get that down ASAP. Trust me on this one.

Now also another good thing to run is Counter Spy Plane. That will help all of your team mates. And when you have one, keep it just in case they happen to get a Black Bird. A Black Bird is bad news for you.

Well, that's all that I have for today. Go out and own it up! Oh and btw, the PSN is down right now. I don't know exactly why, but it's down. And possibly for 2 days. Hopefully the weather will be nice outside! Unless you want to play solo zombies or combat training. Maybe the Campaign. I dunno. I haven't even finished the Campaign. Maybe one day I will. Well, we will chat later for more tips on strategy to help you in game! Make sure to subscribe and join in on the conversation!

-x-

Lets talk Strategy

2011-04-19T12:26:00.001-06:00

Alrighty guys, lets talk about Strategies.

First off, Team Death Match.

Now Team Death Match (TDM) can be pretty tricky at times. For one, the spawn system is pretty messed up, and you can have enemies start spawning right behind you. The reason that happens mostly is because your team mates are ahead of you where the enemies would normally spawn, so the spawn points swap. It can be helpful, or very hurtful. If it happens in Nuke Town, you're pretty much toast. What I would recommend for Team Death Match is have a silencer. Reason being, the enemies will be spawning as soon as you kill them. Which means you will rarely get a break from action. There will always be an enemy around you at certain times, most likely. No silencer = showing up on radar = shot from all sides. Put on a silencer, and that takes car of that. If you don't use a silencer, make sure to watch yourself. Especially if you are moving ahead of the pack, or are tagging behind. Because you will get spawns near you and they will come for their revenge.

There are a few things you can do in TDM. One is rush. Rushing has it's bonuses, and well as some disadvantages. Rushers can sometimes get the most kills in the round, and also the most deaths. If you rush right into where 3 or 4 people are spawning, well, you're most likely dead.

For one, use a silencer. It's a must. Two, I recommend using Ghost with your rushing class no matter what. Start off with it, and don't take it off. Reason being, if they happen to those up a spy plane, you won't be seen. No matter what. If you have lightweight and they throw one up, you'd have to switch classes when you die. Keep on Ghost, and you're as stealthy as ever. Also, I would run spy plane as your first kill steak. That way you can see where most of your enemies are. But PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! DO NOT JUST STARE AT YOUR RADAR! The reason people always say how over powered Ghost is, is because when they use a Spy Plane, all they look at is their RADAR! Use your eyes, and look at what is in front of you. Only quickly glance at your radar when you have a Spy Plane up. Other wise, someone with Ghost will run right in front of you, and you're toast!

Now if you are the more defensive type of player, for Team Death Match, you will most likely be using an Assault Rifle, or a LMG. A sniper possibly as well, but lets talk about the first two.

Now you can either camp in one area, or play more of a "Area Defender". Whether that be a building, or maybe you'll be patrolling back and forth in a certain area.

I recommend using a motion sensor. Yes I know some will consider it cheap, but in the long run, it'll help you out. You won't wanna turn your back for a second to look the other way and just be shot, now would you? I didn't think so. :) It isn't a must, but it does come in handy. Next, once you start to kill a few people, move to another area and defend that. Reason being, they will come for you and start to throw everything they have at you. And you don't want to get hit with a concussion grenade and die from getting shot in the back. Grab your equipment, and head to another spot. Guard that area, rinse and repeat. A silencer will help, but you'll run outta ammo pretty quickly. Use scavenger, or maybe use warlord and use dual mags. It'll help you stay afloat longer. Or just pick up an enemy weapon. The choice is all yours my friend.

TDM can be random as hell. Tactics such as these don't always work. There is always something that can go wrong. A random thrown grenade, or maybe even a tomahawk. There always seems to be something. Watch your corners and your windows. Check whats behind you, and watch for when the spawns switch around. Another thing you should learn is where people are going to be spawning, once the spawns switch. It takes a little while, but whenever you spawn, take note of where it is. When the new maps came out, I had no idea where people would be spawning, and I would get shot from the side right as someone spawned there.

Stay on the outskirts of the map when you can! Avoid groups of enemies. Many will be running around the map like crazy. Keep your distance and pop shot them to take them down. Unless you are rushing, then that silenced weapon will do the trick and you can bounce to and fro throughout the map. Just keep on the move. Kill someone from an area, and move to another place looking over where you just killed them. 50/50 chance they will come there again to try and find you.

We'll take a look at some other game modes later. Here are just some tips that you can use that will help you out. Just remember a few key points. Watch your back. Watch those windows. And keep on the move. Don't want to be stuck in the same position when they spawn back and then have them throw everything they have at you. Because that could mean some bad news right there. Keep a good distance from your friends, but not too far away. You don't want them to start spawning right on top of you. And own it up. Shoot to kill.

-x-

The Big Bad 15th Prestige..

2011-04-18T13:24:00.004-06:00

Well this weekend I hit the big 1-5. 15th Prestige. And let me tell you what, you gain an instant intimidation factor. If you don't get on certain peoples teams, they end up leaving the lobby. It happens all the time. Anyone usually that is 14-15 prestige, people leave the lobby because of you! It's all intimidation. But what some people don't really realize, is that a high prestige doesn't always mean that person is very good. It could mean that they just have a lot of play time on their account, or maybe they share their account with the family, and it gets played a lot. It could be many things.

I happened to hit 15th I believe just under 12 days played time. I'll have to get back to you on that one, but I believe it's right about that. So I double checked it, and I hit 15th prestige at 11 days and about 8 hours.

Now there is a trick that you can do to possibly 30,000 points at level one, but you most likely have to be a decent player, but I would recommend doing it no matter what. And no, you cannot get banned for it, or anything like that. This is what you do.

When you max out experience point wise, go into a High Roller Wager Match.Make sure that you have atleast 10 points as well. DO NOT PRESTIGE RIGHT OFF THE BAT! Because if the lobby breaks up, you're screwed. When the game is about to start, and the ticker starts going, that's when you prestige. You will have 0 points, but you will still get into the game. See what I'm saying here? If you get 1st place, you get 30,000 points, which at level one, is a great help. Even if you don't get first, second or third works just fine. Because that's points in the back of your pocket, when you had 0 to start off with. And you won't have to worry about getting money any time soon. And if you're a high prestige, that just means Gold camouflage on your guns that much sooner. I hit level 22 or so last night and already have gold camouflage on one gun, and have 25k to spare, which is half way to another one right there.

Now usually when I prestige, I always run MP5K for quite a while, usually... Well almost to the 30's. I use it all the time, with Steady Aim. As it is a beast to hip fire with. But this time around I threw on Rapid Fire, and used Slight of Hand. I have those classes in my previous write ups here on the Blog. But anyways, I decided to switch it up.

Both have their advantages and disadvantages. I'm not sure which one I like better, but they are both very good.

MP5K Rapid Fire w/ Slight of Hand
Advantages - Quick Reload, Faster Fire Rate, Aim Down Sights Faster (Only if not Running)
Disadvantages - Wider Hip Fire, Smaller Magazine, Reload Often, Run out of ammo quickly

MP5K Extended Mags w/ Steady Aim
Advantages - Larger Magazine, Tighter Hip Fire, Easier to multi-kill groups, Reload Less, Aim Down sights quicker after sprinting, Quicker Melee Recovery
Disadvantages - Slower Reload, Dead If Caught Reloading (Most Likely)

Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but both are great builds to run with. I recommend both.

Now also this Prestige I bought the Famas. Which I never do. I think I only have around 600 kills or so with the gun, mostly from picking it up off dead bodies, because I never use it. This prestige, I decided to buy it, and play more of a mid-defense/mid-offense. (Note: I play Capture the Flag)

Before when I used it, it was always a hit or miss. The recoil would be out of control, it sprays bullets like none other, and such. But this time when I bought it, I was destroying. Getting insane kill streaks, and laying waste. It is always weird how you can use a gun once, and do horrible with it, and then use a gun again, and just own people. Same thing with the Galil for me.

I think I will give the Famas a go for now. Maybe up until the AK-47, which is my baby. But we'll see. The Famas is treating me well, so I will treat the Famas well.

This is the class set up I am rolling right now. Mind you, I am level 22 or so.

Famas with Dual Mags (More ammo, quicker reload)
M72-Law
Frag Grenade
Concussion Grenade
Jammer
Ghost
Slight of Hand
Marathon

Remember to have 2 classes as well, one with Ghost, and one with another 1st slot perk. If they are not throwing up any spy planes, no sense in wasting that slot with Ghost. USE SOMETHING ELSE! If you are running around a lot, use light weight. If you are defending a certain area, use Hardline/Flak Jacket! If you are running outta ammo a lot, use Dual mags/Scavenger! Easy as that.=]

Tomorrow we'll talk about some strategies that you can use while playing objective based games.

Remember you can send me a friend invite! Just remember to tell me you are from the CoD Blog.

Playstation only!

Deadsider07

Call of Duty: Black Ops - I run, you run, we run.

2011-04-15T12:55:00.002-06:00

Well, yesterday I said we would chat about what I am currently running on Black Ops. So let's take a peek shall we.

I hit level 44 yesterday. 14th Presitge. So I have access to all guns. But I only use a select few. And I don't plan on prestiging again til we get double xp. Mainly because I can get to 50 in one day of play time with double xp. Cap the Flag ftw!

First class that I have right now

Spectre w/ Rapid Fire
Strela
Frag
Concussion
Jammer
Scavenger [Needed w/Rapid Fire]
Slight of Hand [Needed w/Rapid Fire]
Marathon

I use this class mostly on smallerish maps. Great for rushing to get the flag.

My gun of choice right now is the AK-47. It's a great gun, and has high damage. Always a plus. And I have 4 different builds with it. All for different Scenarios. I will list them all down separated by /'s

AK-47 Silenced   /    Dual Mags      /         Dual Mags       /    Dual Mags+Silenced
Strela                   /      Strela            /         Strela                /            Strela
Frag                    /          Frag           /          Frag                 /             Frag
Concussion         /       Concussion     /        Concussion         /         Concusson
Jammer            /            Jammer           /     Jammer              /         Jammer
Ghost             /              Ghost            /      Lightweight          /           Ghost
Slight of Hand   /       Slight of Hand     /     Slight of Hand         /       Warlord
Marathon       /          Marathon           /         Marathon          /     Marathon

To the best of my knowledge, those are the classes that I have. The first three are for running the flag, and the last one is for defending. The first build is for total stealth, which is needed when there are A LOT of defenders for their flag [Talking about Capture the Flag]. The second is for when they are throwing up spy planes left and right, and the third is what I usually ALWAYS start off with in the beginning of a match. With Lightweight and Marathon, I can run around quickly and surprise people right off the bat. If they start to throw up spy planes left and right, I'll take out my other class with Ghost on it to counter that. The reason I have warlord with two attachments, is so that I have more ammo at my expense, and a silencer so when multiple people come, they don't know where I am shooting from. Always remember when you are defending something and you kill someone, MOVE TO ANOTHER SPOT. Because they WILL come back and try to find you to kill you.

Now some other classes that I use are 1 sniper class, mostly just for Array, and then 2 shotgun builds as well. The 2 are exactly the same, except one has Ghost, and one has Scavenger. Always have a back up build for Ghost in case they are spamming Spy Planes. You don't want to get owned just because you don't have a class with Ghost on it.

The sniping class I run is:

L96A1 w/ Extended Mags
Dual Pythons
Frag
Motion Sensor
Concussion
Ghost
Scout
Marathon

Now some of you might say "Why use Extended Mags instead of the Variable Zoom?!"
My answer would be because I use the Tactical Layout on my controller. Which means that my "O" for me is to knife, and pressing down on R3 is to crouch. I use it 1.) To drop shot, and 2.) Because it's easier to crouch and such. So for me to use Variable Zoom, I would have to hit "O". Which would be a total pain in my ass. See where I'm getting at? So for me, Extended Mags is much more useful, and easier to use.

I recommend to pick a spot, hold it down, and move on, keeping away from most of the pack. You don't wanna go running in places to get Slaughtered. Pick people off from the distance. Then move somewhere else so they don't come to where you are just to kill you.

Now lets take a look at what I have for my shotgun builds. The only difference is the first perk, mind you.

Spas w/ silencer [Because it doesn't reduce range + No showing up on radar. Win win!]
Dual Pythons
Frag
Jammer
Concussion
Ghost   /   Scavenger
Steady Aim
Marathon

Ghost for when they spam spy planes, of course.

Now some of you might say that Slight of Hand would be smarter to use. But when you have Marathon Pro and you're running around like crazy, Steady Aim Pro allows you to bring up that shotty quickly, and take out your foes quicker. Plus the tighter spread of the Shotgun blast, means more one shot kills. I wouldn't use anything other then Steady Aim with my shot gun builds. And plus you recover quicker from knifing as well. Couldn't ask for more! The two maps I use my shotgun build on is Firing Range, and also Summit. Run around the buildings, and tear it up!

That's all for today folks, Talk to you guys on Monday! We'll talk about strategy, and much much more.

Chow!

Class set ups for Call of Duty: Black Ops, Part 2

2011-04-14T11:33:00.003-06:00

Hello and Greetings!

It's a Thursday, almost through the work week, thankfully. The weekend of endless gaming is right around the corner for most of us, whether you do the good ol' 9-5 or hit up classes everyday for school.

Today, I thought we would continue our discussion for class set ups. I will be posting videos here soon on Black Ops with Commentary as well, giving you guys what I usually run, and some tips on game play as well, that with help you become a better player, and increase your KDR at the same time.

Depending on how you like to play, here is what I recommend if you are rushing starting off at Level 4. Two classes I recommend.

Weapons of choice:
MP5K, Extended Mags     /    MP5K, Rapid Fire
M72 Law [If you are not running Ghost on your build]
Any other pistol works, your preference [If you are running Ghost]
Frag Grenade
Concussion
Jammer/Claymore

Perks:
Lightweight/Ghost [And perhaps Flak Jacket if needed]
Steady Aim              /        Slight of Hand
Marathon

Those are the two classes that I recommend. I always choose the Jammer over the Claymore, because it blocks the enemy radar within its range, voice shout outs, and most important, ALL enemy equipment, whether it be motion sensor, or claymores. All will be deactivated. Also if you notice, I have Extended Mags with Steady Aim, and Rapid Fire with Slight of Hand. Reason being, you won't be reloading fast with Steady Aim, so Extended mags is almost a must if you don't wanna be outta bullets in 2 seconds. With Rapid Fire, you need Slight of hand, since you'll be spewing bullets like none other, and a slow reload isn't going to help when your out of ammo.

If you like to sit back and own, this is the class I recommend, at Level 4.

M16 w/ Silencer
M72 Law [If you are not running Ghost on your build]
Any other pistol works, your preference [If you are running Ghost]
Frag
Concussion
Claymore [If you have the cash, most likely won't though]

Perks:
Ghost/Hardline [Flak Jacket if needed]
Slight of Hand/Warlord [If you want a Red Dot, or Dual/Extended Mags]
Hacker/Ninja [No Marathon since you won't be running all over the place]

Depends on the game mode you play, you won't need a silencer at all, and can replace that with what you want.

That is what I recommend at Level 4. As you level up, I would probably take the Enfield, then move on to the Famas if you prefer Assault Rifles.

With Sub Machine Guns, strangely enough, I only use the MP5K until the Spectre. But the AK74u is a great weapon to use as well once you unlock it. I would use the same class set up above with the MP5K, as I would with ALMOST any other Sub Machine Gun. The MPL and Spectre is a different story. Because they are bullet hoses. And with Rapid Fire, it's almost a must to have Scavenger, as the MPL has max fire rate, and the Spectre is just one under it. A 30 round clip is gone is a blink of the eye.

Mostly what is going to change when you unlock new weapons, is just replace the weapon in your classes. Keep the same attachments and such. I know people who use the Famas exclusively. Because it has the RoF of a Sub Machine Gun, and the punch of an assault rifle. It's a good gun, yes, but not for everyone. Make sure to experiment with different weapons and use what fits you best. But attachments and perks go together like I listed above. Ext Mags if you don't have Slight of Hand, and Rapid Fire [And other attachments] with Slight of Hand. Less bullets in the Magazine means more reloading. Better to have the quick reload then to die because you don't have enough bullets to down someone, and can't reload quick enough.

Tomorrow I will tell you what Classes I am using right now, and some different set ups that you can use that are not the generic Assault Rifle/Sub Machine Gun build, and we'll brush up on sniping as well.

I also have a funny video you can watch. Its a lucky Tomahawk kill that I got while playing Capture the Flag. I had a friend over and literally said " Random Tomahawk throw at the Flag Carrier " And ended up nailing him.

It was a great moment for me. Haha. I also got hate mail after the game for it. That's the highlight of it all.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfsmJR7Rj70

Also notice in the video how I am using what I talked about. And I'm level 33, mind you.

MP5K, Extended Mags
Jammer
And you can see I am using Steady Aim by the smaller hip fire cross hairs.

Talk to you tomorrow!

Call of Duty: Black ops, Fastest ways to Prestige Part 2

2011-04-11T13:09:00.000-06:00

Well, last week we talked about a few ways to be able to prestige faster in Black Ops. And today, we will continue with that discussion. And yes, there are more ways that you can prestige quicker then what we talked about

Well, for starters, lets take a look at perks.

As you know, when you have weapon attachments, you get experience for killing a certain number of people with that attachment. Which means if you use warlord, then you get two attachments. Which means double the experience then if you only used one attachment. See where I am going here?

What I recommend everyone do is get used to iron sights. Yes, I know red dots and such can help a lot for some of you, but if you get used to iron sights, get rid of the red dots, then it frees up an attachment slot for you that could be used for something much much better. Such as Dual Mags, or maybe a Silencer.

What I recommend if you are running Warlord, is Dual Mags on an Assault rifle. It helps with not having Slight of Hand. Gives you a quicker reload every other one. Like your 1st, 3rd, 5th, and so on. Then I would recommend a silencer. Main reason being, you won't show up on the radar. So when you completely own someone, the person next to him won't come right to where you are, and you can blast him away as well. Easy as that. If you don't want to go Silencer, then maybe you could put a red dot on if you really want to. But a silencer will do you more good then a red dot, especially if you get used to the iron sights. Trust me, it helps alot.

I honestly don't really recommend using Warlord with a SMG. Mainly because you can't use rapid fire with Extended mags or anything, because you are going to be ripping through bullets with a SMG. I always recommend using Ext. Mags with Steady Aim, or Rapid Fire with Slight of Hand.
But if you are going to run Warlord, I would most likely recommend something with Extended Mags. Only because your rate of fire will be high, and your reload will be slower, so you will want more bullets at your expense. So maybe use the grip or a silencer. It's your choice.

Next up for getting faster xp, use lower killsteaks. Honestly, unless you are extremely good, or camp your ass off, you won't always get that 9 Killsteak to get the chopper gunner.

What I recommend, is go 3-4-5.
Lets break down the 3-4-5 Killsteaks into what you think fits best for you.

3 - Spy Plane - 100xp
3 - RC-XD - 100xp + 100 xp per kill
4 - Counter Spy Plane - 100xp
4 - Sam Turret - I believe its 150 xp for calling it in, and 100 for using it? I'll have to double check that one. Plus xp for shooting spy planes and such down. Spy Plane is +150xp.Counter spy plane is more
5 - Care Package - 150 xp for using it, + xp for whatever is in it.
5 - Napalm Strike - 150 xp + 100 xp per kill

See what i'm getting at here?

Now I usually run 3-4-5 as well, or somewhere around there. You don't need the high killsteaks just to show you're good. You can get as many kills without the Chopper Gunner and other killsteaks as well. Run around, kill, use these, and you'll be prestiging in no time.

There are some more tips for you guys. Check back later for more Call of Duty: Black Ops!

Fastest ways to prestige part 1

2011-04-08T11:54:00.006-06:00

Well kids, lets take a look at some of the fastest ways that you can prestige in Black Ops. Now these are just some tips that you can use, but you don't have to use them all, or any if you really don't want to. It's totally up to you. Just suggestions.

Alright, first off, the game mode that I pretty much only play is Capture the Flag. I know a lot of you guys might be like wtf? But really, Cap the Flag is one of the best game modes to play. First off, because it gives you Marathon Pro. Which is a blessing to have. Secondly, you get points just like in Team Deathmatch. +100 per kill. And there are extras thrown in as well. Such as +Offense if you are carrying the flag and kill someone. So when you have the flag and kill someone, it gives you as much xp as killing two people, not including buzzkill, headshot, or any other bonuses as well. + for defense if you kill someone near your flag, and that gives you just as much xp as if you carry the flag. Bonuses as well for killing the person carrying the flag AND points for returning the flag. And also don't forget that you get as many points as killing a person just for picking up the enemy flag, even if you die 1 second after. You still get the SAME points as killing someone. Now is that not a slamming deal or what? Oh yeah, and capping the flag is +250 xp. That's 2 1/2 kills worth of xp. Whether you defend or you are on offense, you will get much more xp playing Ctf then TDM. Also, the rounds last 10 mins. Same as TDM. But do you ever really use all 10 mins in TDM? Rarely. Unless everyone is camping. Which means that you won't get much of a match bonus for that. Ctf has 2, 10 min rounds. And if it goes into overtime, well, thats another 10 mins. They could go quick, but most of the time, it gets down toward the end, which means higher match bonuses for everyone. See what I'm getting at here? If I played Cap the Flag only at day 1, I would have been 15th prestige already most likely. But I didn't find out Cap the Flag was so good until about 2nd prestige or so. And right now I have a little over 10 days played, and almost 14th Prestige. See what I'm getting at here?

Now that's tip #1 I'm giving you guys about prestiging quickly. Capture the Flag is your best friend. For Marathon Pro, and also for getting loads of experience points.

Tip #2. Shoot down enemy aircraft!

Whether it's just a spy plane, or a chopper gunner, or attack heli. Always have a class with a strela on it. A spy plane gives you +150xp. That's a kill and a half right there. A chopper gunner? It's +400 xp. That's 4 KILLS worth of xp. And everytime you shoot one down, guess what, it adds to your challenges for destorying it. Bam, that's more xp in the back of your pocket. If you wanna knock two birds out with one stone, I recommend using a SAM turret. Because you get xp for using the Killsteak, and it shoots spy planes and counter-spy planes as soon as they are up. You'll need to help out with attack heli's and such, but really, its a great killstreak to use to knock out some quick xp. Plus, it makes you a team player! Always a bonus when someone calls in a chopper gunner and it's down before they can even kill a single player. Makes you wanna say "In your face!" For someone who most likely camped til they got their chopper.

That's all for today though. We'll have more tips to come on how to prestige quicker in Black Ops! As a hint, one perk that you can use gives you double the xp for certain challenges. We'll talk about that on a later date. See you guys on Monday! Make sure to subscribe to stay up to date with tips and more! Also we'll be having game play that you can watch as well.

We can also play together if you want. Add me, I'm on PS3 though, sorry all you xbox'ers out there.

PSN: Deadsider07

Make sure to put in the message that you are from Magic97.7's blog so I know where you are coming from!

Class set ups for Call of Duty: Black Ops Part 1

2011-04-07T11:22:00.006-06:00

Alrighty guys, today I figure we can take a chat about some class set ups that are pretty good for me, and hopefully will help you guys out in the future when you guys play.

Lets start off at the beginning. At level 1. Personally, I choose the MP5K Class right off the bat. I like to rush, and the MP5K is an amazing gun. I use it even past level 20 sometimes. My brother likes to use the M16 class. It's a great gun, but if you are going to rush, not the best idea with its burst fire. But if you like to stick back, I would recommend using that class then. I can honestly say I've only used that class in the beginning when I first started playing. The rest was with the MP5K. I used to hate that gun, but after prestiging a few times, it really starts to grow on you.

Anyways, after a few levels and saving up some COD points, the first thing I buy is Marathon. I gotta have Marathon or I go crazy. I cannot stand not being able to run a greater distance. It helps out so much, with being able to run around. The next thing I buy is extended mags. Personally the hip fire on the MP5K is amazing, especially with steady aim, and you can pretty much snipe with that beast from the hip. And with Ext. Mags, you won't have to reload as often. Which helps out a lot since I usually don't run slight of hand, at least for a while. And not with this build in the beginning. The reason being, since I like to rush, getting steady aim pro is a priority. If you didn't know already, Slight of Hand Pro ONLY makes you ADS faster when you are not sprinting. Steady Aim Pro allows you to ADS faster after sprinting, and helps you recover from knife lunges AND also helps your hip fire. Which is why I like to choose Steady Aim over Slight of hand, although Slight of Hand is very useful in some classes. Your first perk kinda just depends. Have 2 set ups. Always have one with Ghost just in case the other team is throwing up a Spy Plane every 30 seconds or so. No point in getting slaughtered over and over by people who just watch the mini map instead of using their eyes. Then that will back fire on them since they will focus on the mini map and you can own them. If they aren't, no point in wasting that slot with Ghost, since it won't be helping you any at all. Maybe go Lightweight to run around more quickly, make you harder to hit, or Hardline to get those kill steaks a little bit earlier. The class I usually use for quite a few levels ( As in 20+ ) every prestige would be:

MP5K Ext. Mags
Secondary usually doesn't matter a whole much, so whatever you wanna run
Jammer (Great for Objective games, as well as not showing up on radar within the area. Only equipment I use)
Frag (Because stickies make noise when using them)
Concussion (Great for slowing people down, stunning them)

Ghost/Lightweight/Hardline (Make two classes for reasons I stated above)
Steady Aim
Marathon

We'll talk more tomorrow. Gimme some feed back and let me know what you think

Til tomorrow!

The first of the blog

2011-04-05T13:23:00.000-06:00

Well guys, its the first time that I get to write a little somethin' somethin' on this blog, if you know what I mean. We'll be having alot of stuff to chat about, whether it deals with the latest games, the most popular games, maybe some celebrity gossip and news here and there, but a lot about games mostly.

I personally am an avid gamer myself. I play.. Well i'm not entirely sure how many hours a week, but quite a few. The game of choice for me right now would be Call of Duty: Black ops. Now that's not all we'll talk about on here, BUT, I will most likely make references to it and such. Lol. Because that's how I roll.

But that's all for today. I look forward to chatting with you guys again!