Chromehounds
February 7, 2009 by Xbox Reviews
Filed under Video Games
Hunt like a pack, or die like a dog, in the Xbox 360′s first mech warfare game. / Rated T: Teen Incredibly realistic next-gen effects Hundreds of items to earn
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars Great, if overlooked Xbox 360 Mech sim
To be completely honest, I Purchased this game because I loved the Mech Warrior games. Seeing as this was the closest thing to those games on the 360, I decided to give it a shot.
I personally enjoyed this game quite a bit, though it has a pretty steep difficulty curve. If you have played any of the Mech Warrior games this should not be too different for you. The gameplay is basically the same, though slower than the Mech Warrior series. You basically play a mercenary mech (or HOUND in chromehounds) pilot for three different nations in the game’s storyline (which takes place in an alternate reality 2006). The story itself is pretty sparse, though what there is is pretty interesting.
Graphics-wise this game is about on-par with most Xbox 360 games. The mech models are pretty well done but the rest of the game looks pretty boring and average.
The online component of Chromehounds is (from what i have heard, as i have not yet tried it) apparently very good. Basically you join a nation (through different campaigns) and fight for it against players of other nations, gaining money to upgrade your mech, etc. From what I understand (again I have not played the online component of the game yet) the only drawback is that there are not many people playing this game anymore online (which is to be expected for a game that came out in 2006).
Overall I would say that this game would be worth it for anyone who liked the classic Mech Warrior series, or anyone who wants to blow things up with a giant mech!
My Ratings: (out of 10, with 10 being the highest)
Gameplay: 8.0 (controls could be tighter and can be slow, but overall fun)
Graphics: 7.5 (Average except for mech models, which are nicely detailed)
Audio: 6.5 (completely average and repetitive, save a song or two)
replayablilty: 9.0 (multiplayer is why this rating is as high as it is)
Story: 7.5 (not really that much, but what there is is interesting)
Final Score: 7.3 (Fun if you like these types of games, though you might be put off by the slow pace of this game)
4 Stars Online is awesome but the campaign is more like a chore
The campaign is really just one big training level, it has its own little story line for each type of Hound. But you really don’t even need to use the specified Hound type to beat their corresponding levels. I ended up just using one hound to beat every level once I got enough parts.
The campaign is basically the essence of repetitiveness. Even the story line seemed repetitive. Like my title says, once you learn how to play, it really is just a chore required to get some parts for your Hound.
However online play is awesome, you first chose a country from the campaign to fight for. Then you just join or create a squad of people to play with since this is a team oriented game. Each country has parts you can buy that are specific to that county’s main strategy. For example Morskoj’s prefer heavy armor and powerful weapons, so most of the parts they sell will be giant armor plates and uber cannons.
To get the money to buy parts you must fight battles against either computer opponents or other people. Although you will rank up faster if you are fighting other people. The battles can range from 2 to 12 people.
The online play alone makes it worth it to buy this game. If you don’t have Xbox live I suggest you don’t get this game, the campaign is painfull.
3 Stars Chromehounds overall performance
This game is fun but I hate how the server is down all the time.
3 Stars Thoroughly trained in English but all I can say is “Eh…”
I have been piloting 100-ton “Mechs” in fictitious environments for over a decade. I began playing Battletech on a ~50 Mhz Pentium in a “lush” 16-color setting.
Since then I have customized and outfitted hundreds of mechs within every title of the “Mechwarrior” mech-combat series. I know the intricasies of mechanized combat.
And yet still all I can say about Chromehounds is “Eh.” The mechs are OK, the graphics are OK, the gameplay is OK, the options are OK… It’s all just… …”Eh!”
Chromehounds leaves the player to pretty much “figure it out.” The instruction manual skims over a little bit of everything. It’s up to you to realize that the mech you build in single player is different from the mech you build online. It’s also up to you to learn that each country involved in the fictitious “Neroimus War” have their own parts, and to own all the parts, you must at some point participate in the online war from each country’s angle. It’s also up to you to learn just what the various parts can (or mostly can’t) do. It’s up to you to learn things like how to tell which of the three enemy Headquarters you must destroy (hint: it’s the one with the enemy’s flag painted on the side walls.) It’s up to you to figure out how to design a mech, and how to deal with all of the frustrating menus and the inability to move various parts without first deleting them and then reinstalling them elsewhere.
Simply put, I’ve logged over 20 hours into this game and still don’t feel like I understand it. The online Neroimus War seems like it has amazing potential, but if it really does, I can’t figure out how to exploit it! I see other online members donating money in increments of ten million dollars, yet I have no idea what the purpose of doing so is except to earn an Xbox 360 achievement. We elected a president, but I don’t know what this fictitious character’s purpose is.
The quality of Chromehounds relies solely on the people you play with or against over the Xbox Live service. I joined a squad (a requirement to engage in the war) and was hopeful as one member online explained to me the roles of the other [human] members. A few days later when we were all online together, I quickly realized that I was surrounded by high school kids who had no concept of organized, strategic combat as one member raved about how “cool” we all looked with matching camouflage. I shot him.
Will you like Chromehounds? Well, are you a do-it-yourself, mercenary-minded mech combat guru looking for the “next big thing?” Probably not. Are you looking for a new twist in team combat and only enjoy playing online? Probably – for a little bit at least. You’ll learn quickly that the game gets repetitive even online, and that you make the same amount of money whether you’re going 6-on-6 against other human competitors, or 1-on-1 against a computer-controlled AI opponent. The effect on the tide of the war is the same in those conditions as well.
Lastly, those looking for some quick Xbox 360 achievements – keep looking. 20 Hours in the game has earned me around 100 points. Many of the remaining achievements are based on very long-term goals such as deploying on 300 missions, traveling 100,000 miles, or unique accomplishments such as destroying a number of headquarters without engaging the enemy, capturing a number of radio towers, etc. They come merely with massive repetition, and a boatload of boredom to boot.
Extra note: The online issues that plagued Chromehounds from start have apparently been resolved. I purchased the game in April of 2008 and with the exception of a few day-long breaks in play for server upgrades, have had no issues with the online portions of Chromehounds. No crashes, no freezing, and knock-on-wood, no “Rings of Death”
4 Stars Very Fun
If you are a mech fan you will love this game, the controls are pretty easy but there is a steep learning curve for some of the missions.
Need for Speed Carbon
January 19, 2009 by Xbox Reviews
Filed under Video Games
What starts in the city is settled in the canyons as Need for Speed Carbon immerses you into the world’s most dangerous and adrenaline-filled form of street racing. You and your crew must race in an all-out war for the city, risking everything to take over your rivals’ neighborhoods one block at a time. As the police turn up the heat, the battle ultimately shifts to Carbon Canyon, where territories and reputations can be lost on every perilous curve. Need for Speed Carbon delivers the next generation of customization giving you the power to design and tweak your crew’s cars in every way using the ground-breaking new Autosculpt technology. Represent your car class, your crew, and your turf in Need for Speed Carbon, the next revolution in racing games.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars My Review
I liked the product.
Thank You
4 Stars Need for Speed: Carbon
I love playing this game, and I have had a copy previously, however it got scratched and I couldn’t race anymore. I bought a new copy and it arrived a few days ago. It took me a total of about 10 hours to beat the campaign. Unfortunately this is generally how it works. If you find the right car and you trick it out corretly, the game becomes incredibly easy. Also, if you have it for the Xbox 360 you can download all of the cars and the performance parts. This makes it even easier because you don’t have to pay to buy them in the game, nor do you need to wait to unlock them. This made the game a breeze. It helps for online play, but it takes some of the fun out of the game.
I still had an awesome time, and I haven’t played all of the races yet, so I still have some time to play. It also has great replay value if you start a new campaign.
However, the thing I hated most about the game is that when you beat Darius (the last boss), you can’t use his car in the campaign. It’s a bonus car to be used only in quick races. This made me cry inside.
4 Stars NFS: Carbon~A fun game!
I bought this game for my hubby, but I enjoy it as well. It has lots of great cars, including my favorie classic muscle car, the Chevelle SS. There’s plenty of achievements to earn that will keep you busy & interested. I’ve heard about people having problems with this game malfunctioning, but so far ours has worked fine.
5 Stars Need for speed carbon review
I bought this game, because I previously had it on the XBOX console, so I proceeded to buy this for the 360 console, and it looks way better, really love it.
5 Stars Love It…
i love the open-endedness of choosing a car, customizing it the way you like it and just driving around a realistic city, down city streets, across highways…this is one of those games you can just pick up and drive without worrying about the storyline. the graphics are EXCELLENT, the driving is realistic…the music fits in with the mood of the city…you can customize your car IN SO MANY WAYSSS…everything about this game is just Perfect….especially for those of us who are Casual car gamers…and dont want to be bothered with gruesome and overly challenging point A to B races. racers come up to you and challenge you in the street and you can just race them for money to buy newer cars.
i personally Love that the game only takes 8 hours to beat and its not insanely difficult and Long. its always odd to me to hear people complain about a game being easy..but when its hard, they complain about that too…or when its too long, they get mad about it. stop complaining and just enjoy the game for what it is: a casual and cool driving experience.
i personally didnt like Most Wanted at all…but i also recommend NFS:UG2 for the original xbox. Carbon is a definate recomendation…and the Best game in the series. Thank You EA Sports.
iLL .
PlayStation 3 80GB
January 8, 2009 by Xbox Reviews
Filed under Video Games
User Ratings and Reviews
4 Stars 3 week Review
Not sure if I can add something which others have not stated already. I got my item in the time frame they mentioned. It was in good condition although I was a bit underwhelmed by the packaging(i.e. the retail , not speaking about amazon box) The console is heavier than it looks and is fairly wide at its highest curve.
I could not fix it in my pretty thin slot cabinet. Works perfectly well as of now, have been using it mostly for watching Blu-Ray movies, though did buy Heavenly Sword and Uncharted Drakes Fortune games(exclusive to PS3). I also own a 360 which gets most of my gaming time(gamerscore is the reason I go to it,almost exclusively). You also get Home with it(requires an Internet connection to download and use), though I am not a big fan tbh.
Since it uses bluetooth to connect to its controller and pretty much anything else(includes keyboard and mouse)your normal universal remotes wont work with it which is its biggest con I guess. Also, the on screen menu for watching movies is really bad(tiny icons & text describing them is not with the icon itself).
5 Stars Love this machine!
Can’t express how much I love this machine.
For the past few months I’ve been eying all three systems, the Wii, Xbox 360 and yes the PS3. Finally, these past holiday season I just had to pull the trigger. Never looked back since. Now don’t get me wrong each of the systems have their pros and cons, but my reasoning for choosing the PS3 was simply all the functionality it had to offer.
Whether I felt like being a rock-star on guitar hero world tour or crashing on the couch to watch a blu-ray movie with the family this system has it all and then some. Every movie and game I’ve played on this system has just blown me away. A definite must own all-in-one. You won’t be disappointed.
5 Stars Wow
Well i got on of these and they are just superb – a must for all serious gamers and if you have a psp then you have hit the jackpot aswell.
A truly spectactular piece of kit – a must!!
2 Stars It just cannot compete.
I’ve always been a Sony fan, but the ps3 just cannot compete with the competition today. There are only two problems with the system, however, these two problems pretty much make up the entire reason a console is bought.
The first problem with this system is the pricing. At 400 dollars, this console dwarfs others in terms of price. I could easily buy two x-box 360s for the same price. The games must also be factored in; 60 dollars for new releases will add to the pile spent. You’ll also be tempted to buy a larger hard-drive. Game demos easily reach 3 gigs in memory. Eventually, the avid gamer is going to have to buy a larger drive. You also have to remember the price of controllers (assuming you’ll be wanting more than one).
The second real problem with the system has to be the game selection. With the Wii you get the motion sensing games and the standard Mario/Zelda stories. Xbox has it’s Halo, Left4dead, and other really good titles. There are few games exclusive to the ps3 (MGS4 being the only good one coming to mind). Even Grand Theft Auto and Final Fantasy, which have long been Sony’s backbone, have gone the way of the 360 and Nintendo. The announcement that Final Fantasy XIII would be ported to the 360 was perhaps the nail on the coffin for the ps3.
In all, what you’re really buying is an expensive xbox 360 that may work a little better but has fewer games to choose from. As much as it pains me, I simply cannot bring myself to like this system.
1 Star More than $1,100 and I still can’t play
I have been playing video games for more than 20 years. My first gaming console was the Nintendo Entertainment System. Since then, I have owned SNES; N64; Game Cube; XBOX; XBOX 360; PS1; PS2; and now, a PS3. IAfter extensive gameplay on this generation’s gaming consoles, I have to say that I am extremely disappointed with the leap off the cliff with the quality assurance of the consoles and games.
I purchased the whole HDTV/HDMI/PS3 package. The PS3 60 GB was working fine until I played Fallout 3. After hours of frustrating glitches; game freezes; unresponsive controllers; heavy audio static; system resets and crashes, my first PS3 wouldn’t read Fallout 3. The problem became so bad the system will no longer read any disc. Since it’s out of warranty, I am kind of screwed. I went ahead and purchased a newer model of the PS3 80 GB. I have also tried six copies of the game, all with the same painstaking results.
All Sony Technical Assistance could offer me was a replacement. I’m sorry, but that won’t be enough. Why is it that I have to send in a brand new PS3, not even a week old, in to be replaced? The same thing happened with Microsoft and my XBOX 360. I had thought when I was purchasing a PS3, I was escaping the system freezes and substandard customer service. Well, I was dead wrong. I never had these issues with previous generation consoles.
Now I’ll be out of a PS3 for another two weeks. What happens if Fallout 3 doesn’t play, then? Neither Sony or Bethesda will claim responsibility for releasing bugged software/hardware.