http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php A current listing of cheap video games, video game sales and video game deals: CAG en Sun, 19 May 2013 09:00:53 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=24040 Thu, 03 May 2012 23:37:09 GMT About two weeks ago I blogged that I planned on building a new PC in anticipation for the release... About two weeks ago I blogged that I planned on building a new PC in anticipation for the release of Diablo 3. Shortly after that post, I set the plan into action and began ordering the parts. The final component arrived yesterday and I got right to work. After a couple hours of plugging, screwing and managing my cable, I successfully made love to built a pretty powerful gaming PC. Read on to learn more...

The Components

Case: Corsair Carbide 300r
Power Supply: Corsair TX 650M
Motherboard: Asrock z77 Extreme 4
Processor: Intel i5 3570k
CPU Cooler = Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 7850
Memory: Corsair Vengeance
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128gb SSD
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium

The Build

I ordered the case, power supply, and additional 140mm fans first. That package arrived late last week, so I installed all of those components without too much hassle. Looking back, however, I would have waited to install the two 140mm fans on the top of the case. They made installing the cpu cooler and plugging in the processor's power much more difficult than need be. After installing the PSU, I routed the cables through an opening in the back of the case.

As previously mentioned, yesterday everything else arrived. I started with the motherboard. It was a very easy install. The case has built-in raised standoffs, so it made the board very easy to line up. There was only one stand-off that I needed to screw in near the PCI slots.

After installing the motherboard it was time to give the computer some brains. Installing the processor is, in my opinion, one of the most tense moments in building your own PC. Especially if this is not the sort of thing you do on a regular basis. The directions provided with the motherboard were pretty good though, so it made the process easy to understand. Still, understanding the process does relatively little when you have to apply some force to clamp the processor down to the board.

Next came installing the CPU cooler. This was my first time actually installing an aftermarket cooler, so I was blown away by the sheer size of the Hyper 212 heat sink. Applying the thermal past was a little annoying. I squeezed the syringe tube a little too hard, which plopped too much paste on my processor. It was not that difficult to remove excess / move around with a business card - just took me some time because I wanted to be careful. Mounting the heat sink was a little tight, but I was able to get it done.

From here on out it was relatively easy: plug in RAM and GPU, and plug in the appropriate cables where they belong. I did shift the ram over because the fit against the CPU cooler's fan was a little too tight for my liking. Cable management with this case is pretty great it provides holes in all the right places. Also, the rubber grommets do not come standard with the case, I purchased them off of the Corsair website for approx $25... a pretty big waste looking back on it. I removed the bottom HDD tray to store some excess cables there.

I only have a few gripes with the case / building process:

• Front audio cables don't reach motherboard input (you can see the cable resting on the bottom of the case, the input is located on the bottom left corner of the mobo. already placed and order for an extension cable)
• Case provides a decent amount of space in the back for cable management; however, it was still difficult to close the back panel. No ugly bulges though, so that is good!
• The top drive slot on the case is pretty much useless if you plan on mounting dual 140mm fans on the top of the case as it blocks devices from sliding all the way in.

Installing Operating System / Performance

The Asrock bios are amazingly easy to understand. Gone is the intimidating white text on blue background. Instead, menus are colorful and contain graphics and clear descriptions. There is even a section dedicated to overclocking. What blew my mind was mouse support. It just felt weird to click around the bios and see a mouse cursor. It was great!

With the solid state drive, it was very quick installing the operating system and installing all those security updates. The operating system restarts in 15-20 seconds so it was like download, install, restart, and repeat... boom, boom, boom, done.

I have not done a whole lot of benchmarking; however, the Windows Experience Index assesses the system as follows:

• Processor: 7.6
• Memory (RAM): 7.7
• Graphics: 7.9
• Gaming graphics: 7.9

Also, I installed Crysis and was able to set everything to Very High (max setting) at my monitor's native resolution, 1920x1080. I also turned on anti-aliasing 2x and v-sync. The game ran flawlessly. It's pretty amazing how awesome the game looks despite being released nearly 5 years ago.

Conclusion

Overall, I'm very happy with the computer I built. This was my first true build from scratch and I feel as though I've done a pretty good job. I'd love to hear any questions or comments you may have. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=24040 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=23965 Sun, 22 Apr 2012 17:10:13 GMT Thanks to the open beta for Diablo 3 this weekend, I've come to the realization that my Macbook Pro (late-2008, unibody design) is not capable of running the game without having to cripple the visuals. So, I've decided to build a new PC in anticipation of the game's release next month. I want the PC to be able to play the game at it's top settings, but also pack enough power to play more graphically intensive games such as Battlefield 3. I'd also like to keep the build as close to $1000 as possible Here is what I have so far...

Case: Corsair Carbide 300r - $90
Power Supply: Corsair TX 650M - $110
Motherboard:
Processor:
GPU:
Memory:
Hard Drive: Crucial M4 128gb SSD - $160
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium - $100

As you can see, there is a big hole in my build. I am waiting to see what Ivy Bridge brings when it is released in a week or two, and I still need to research graphics cards, but I hear the Radeon 7850 offers the best performance for the price. I'd love to hear any comments or recommendations. Thanks! ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=23965 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13951 Wed, 14 Apr 2010 21:36:20 GMT So I've been plodding along in Demon's Souls for the past couple of hours. I was having a great time, making sure to move slowly and deliberately, learn enemy tendencies, and alter my tactics to exploit enemy weaknesses.

For those of you who have played the game, I managed to make it through the first section of the Boletarian Palace, successfully killing the first demon without dying. I then continued my journey, moving on to the second section of the world. I died a couple times before finally making it to the second demon, where I was able to chip away 1/3 of its life before dying in the process. At that point, I rage quit my PS3, quietly muttered a few of my favorite expletives, and proceeded to check eBay prices to determine how much I could get for the game if I decide to sell it.

Demon's Souls is not a bad game. That is what frustrates me so much because it is actually very good. It has some of the best, most unique combat mechanics I've ever seen in a game. The swordplay in Demon's Soul just feels right. But this may be the first game I've ever played where great gameplay may not be enough to keep me playing.

Now if you've heard of Demon's Souls, then you already know it is incredibly difficult. Having played it now for a couple of hours, I'm having a hard time agreeing that difficult is the right word for describing this game. If you play Demon's Souls as I have (described above), you will generally do pretty well for yourself. Demon's Soul is not a cheap game. When you die in the game, and you will, it is usually because you failed to adapt to the changing environment. That is why dying is seemingly required to progress through this game. Death forces players to not only learn the environment but master it.

When you die in Demon's Souls, your character is stripped of all souls (experience gained) and is respawned at the beginning of the level. If you can make it back to your corpse, you will retrieve all of your souls, but here's the catch: when you are respawned, every enemy previously dispatched is also brought back to life. If you fail to reach your corpse, all experience gained is lost forever.

For me, the difficulty is not making it back to my corpse, but rather being forced to rekill nearly every enemy that I had already killed up to that point. In my opinion, it is a grind. As much fun as I have playing through a section of the game, being forced to replay it from the very beginning after dying at the very end is just too much for me to take. In my eyes, this is not difficult, it is demoralizing.

Unfortunately, knowing that this is essentially what Demon's Souls is all about, I don't know if I can put myself through that torture again.

Has anyone else said screw it to Demon's Souls or any other game for that matter because of the game being too difficult? ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13951 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13243 Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:48:54 GMT This is a my disgruntled consumer rant on a bad shopping experience with the online store,... This is a my disgruntled consumer rant on a bad shopping experience with the online store, ToysRUs.com...

Now I, like everyone else, have had bad shopping experiences. However I like to think that have fairly thick skin and usually keep these unpleasant shopping experiences to myself. It takes a lot for a company to frustrate me to the point where I have to write about it, but ToysRUs has managed to do just that.

On February 9th, Bioshock 2 was released in North America. As a huge fan of the original, I decided that I wanted to pick up the very expensive Special Edition for my Xbox 360. I had a $60 ToysRUs Gift Card that would help eat up a significant portion of the cost, so I decided to purchase the game at my local brick and mortar store . Upon my arrival, I found out that the store did not carry the Special Edition, but their online store did (and that I would also be able to use my Gift Card online). Needless to say I went home and made the purchase online.

I received the game the following Friday, February 19th (10 days after making the initial purchase!). Very eager to finally throw the game in my Xbox, I opened the package and was kicked in the gut when I found out that they sent me the Bioshock 2 Special Edition for the Playstation 3. Immediately I got on the phone with a customer service representative, told them of my situation and was sent a prepaid return label via email. The following day I shipped the item back. Now I understand that these mistakes happen, so I was disappointed sure - but not upset.

The following Tuesday, February 23rd, I received a call from Toys R Us customer service. They said that the Bioshock 2 Special Edition for the Xbox 360 was still in stock and asked if I would still like to make the purchase. I was confused, assuming that the correct item would be shipped to me upon the receipt of the incorrect PS3 version that I had shipped back to them. I re-explained my situation and was told that I would be credited for the initial purchase, but would have to repurchase the game for them to send it to me. TRU.com customer service was also nice enough to nock 10% off of the games price as an thank you for putting up with the inconvenience - too bad shipping still ran the total to over $100. I really wanted the game though and could not find it anywhere else, so I just agreed to it.

A week later they sent me the correct Bioshock 2 Special Edition.

Today I take a look at my online credit card statements and still see that I am out the $150 and $60 TRU Gift Card that I used to make the purchase. I gave customer service another call to straiten things out but dang...

TRU is not a bad company. So far this year, they have had some of the best video game related deals offered by any store. I am sure that I will continue to shop at my local brick and mortar store, but unfortunately I will be staying as far away as possible from their online store. Now that I have provided you all with this really poor shopping experience, you can make a better decision as to where you spend you money.

Thanks for reading. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13243 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13049 Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:04:01 GMT This is my second pickup entry and includes the pickups that I made for the month of February.... This is my second pickup entry and includes the pickups that I made for the month of February. Enjoy!

As a preface, I didn't think this month would be bad on my wallet. With only one or two big releases, which I found to be only mildly interesting, I thought I was in the clear. At worst, I'd end up picking up Bioshock 2 or Heavy Rain and maybe a game or two via Steam if they worked their promotional magic. Other than that what else could possibly happen?

Well I was wrong, really wrong, and from the looks of it, I'm going to be in trouble for a while. Read on and find out why.

I kicked the month off, purchasing Titan Quest Gold for $5. Steam featured the solid hack and slash action RPG during a midweek deal, and being a fan of this type of game, it was a relatively easy purchase to make.

The following day, 1SaleADay featured the Halo 3 Legendary Edition for $30. Now I had purchased the Halo 3 Collector's Edition when it was released 3 years ago and still own it, but I always wanted to get my hands on the Legendary Edition. With nearly every store showing the item as out of stock, I figured that this may be my final opportunity to grab the package new without looking to ebay. While it may be the most common special edition for a video game ever created, I am glad to finally have one to call my own.

So as I mentioned before, Bioshock 2 was one of my most anticipated titles being released this month. In preparation for the sequel, I decided to go back and play through the original Bioshock to help solidify my decision of whether or not to revisit the underwater dystopia. Playing through the game reminded me how much fun its unique gameplay truly is and how groundbreakingly awesome its story remains. Combine this feeling with my recent tendency to purchase collector's / limited / special editions for games and you have a cheap ass gamer that is willing to go against everything that it means to be a cheap ass. I realized that I want to begin collecting. Not games so to speak, but special editions and memorabilia for games that I truly enjoy.

I grabbed two really great looking Bioshock lithographs off of the Take2 store for $20 a pop. I also grabbed the Little Sister Figurine that is proportionately sized to match up perfectly with the Big Daddy Figurine featured in the Bioshock Limited Edition. My only issue is that I had never purchased the Bioshock Limited Edition, so I had no Big Daddy figurine to protect my newfound ADAM collector. Thus began my search to find one...

I made a couple offers to fellow CAGs, but didn't have much luck. I then decided to expand my search to include GameTZ and was able to purchase the Bioshock Limited Edition complete with 2 unbroken Big Daddies (one of which is still in its plastic casing). Granted it was not a cheap purchase, but I figured it was worth it as this is one Limited Edition that will hold its value over time.

Having purchased the Bioshock Limited Edition, I felt as though I had no other choice but to also pick up the Bioshock 2 Collector's Edition. I used the $60 gift card that I received from ToysRUS last month for picking up Darksiders and Bayonetta and put it towards the game. I also grabbed the Bioshock 2 Collector's Guide to complement the Collector's Edition. The guide came with two awesome looking lithographs as well.

Moving on, I further fed my desire to collect special editions by picking up the Assassin's Creed II Master Assassin Edition with some extra GameStop credit I had lying around. The Master Assassin Edition includes the game, an additional making of content disc, a nice albeit small art book, and a pretty awesome statue of Ezio.

A couple final grabs that I made this month include the Mass Effect Redemption comic book (vol. 2) and the BestBuy exclusive steelbook of Halo Legends.

And lastly my biggest surprise pickup of the month is Star Ocean: The Last Hope for the Xbox 360. I found this copy at a local Kmart for $10 and couldn't pass it up.

That wraps up my pickups for this month. I hope you found this entry enjoyable and I'll see you again next month! ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=13049 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12814 Mon, 15 Feb 2010 23:03:42 GMT 12022 Hey guys, if you read my January Pickups entry, you will remember reading about how I...

Hey guys, if you read my January Pickups entry, you will remember reading about how I purchased two tickets to a Video Games Live concert in Pittsburgh, PA. Well, the concert took place this past Friday, and I wanted to take a moment to explain just how awesome an experience it was.

Before jumping into the actual show, Video Games Live is still a relatively small, not widely known production, so I'd like to first explain what it is and who is involved. Video Games Live was created in 2005 by video game composers, Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall. Their goal was to prove to the world how artistic and culturally significant video games have become. In doing this, they wanted to create a show that was not just fun for the hardcore gamers but for everyone. They created an event that not only features a live symphony playing video game music, but also contains visual and interactive elements just like in a video game.

Tommy Tallarico (left) describes the show as, “having the power and emotion of a live symphony orchestra combined with the energy and excitement of a rock concert mixed with visual elements of video games.”

When asked why gamers would want to go to this type of show, Jack Wall (right) replies, “I think gamers will really enjoy seeing an orchestra perform music that they are really familiar with. To me, there is nothing more exciting than watching musicians bring music to life and move the air in a certain way that you can't get from a recording or any other way than by watching it as it is performed live. I think that the familiarity of this music and the way that it is presented in the game brought to life in a live setting is really something special.”

Moving on to the show itself, I feel it is worth describing the pre-show festival. As is common with every Video Games Live show, there is a pre-show event, where ticket holders can come early to more or less hang out with one another. At the Pittsburgh show, there were couple of video game booths set up in the lobby area, namely Guitar Hero and an arcade cabinet featuring Frogger. I believe there was also a cosplay signup, but I was not interested enough to seek it out. All in all, it is cool that the show provides this sort of bonus entertainment, but I felt it to be a little lacking.

I'll now describe the actual show and setlist. As a preface, Video Games Live had performed in Pittsburgh only seven months ago and were back due to popular demand. Instead of performing the same type show, Tommy dubbed this one, “Video Games Live: BONUS ROUND” because a lot of segments that were played, normally aren't featured in the standard show.

The setlist was as follows:

• Arcade Medley
• Interactive Frogger Segment
• Assassin's Creed 2 Segment
• Sonic Medley
• Final Fantasy 8, followed by Final Fantasy Segment
• Shadow of the Colossus Segment
• Bioshock Segment
• Mass Effect Segment
• Special performance by Laura “Flute Link” Intravia
• Interactive Guitar Hero Van Halen Segment
• Zelda Medley
• Starcraft 2
• Halo ODST, followed by Halo Segment
• Mario Medley
• Final Fantasy 7 (One Winged Angel)
• Mega Man Medley
• Chrono Trigger/Chrono Cross Medley

All performances were great, but my top three go to Shadow of the Colossus, Bioshock and Mass Effect; with my favorite performance of the night going to Mass Effect. The high, brilliant sounds of the violins accompanied by the very heavy, profound yawp of the tubas created vibrations in the air that sent shivers down my spine. At that moment, I never wanted to serve next to Commander Sheppard and the rest of the SSV Normandy crew more.

I had mixed feelings towards the interactive Van Halen, "Jump" segment. Tommy invited the individual who scored the highest on the Guitar Hero booth during the pre-show festival to come up on stage and play along with the song. On one hand, while the song is featured in a video game, it is not actually video game music. On the other hand, the individual who played the song on expert completely tore it up and rocked the crowd. During the solo, he performed the hammer-ons and pull-offs with one hand while extending his free hand out the the crowd, delivering the sign of the horns. I have never seen that level of guitar hero expertise first hand, so for me, that segment was pretty special.

The atmosphere throughout the show was great. Those in attendance expected to have fun and Video Games Live encouraged that enthusiasm. Fans would howl after Tommy or Jack would reveal the next segment and cheer during the performance when hearing iconic themes. While I remained relatively reserved during the actual segments, nothing took the huge smile off of my face.

Following the performance's conclusion, Jack Wall and Tommy Tallarico offered time to meet and greet with fans wishing to do so. I tried to buy a program for them to autograph, but unfortunately, they sold out before I could. Luckily, I had my ticket stub, which they were both graciously willing to sign. Having the opportunity to shake both of their hands, quickly introduce myself, and tell them both how much I appreciate what they are doing was a wonderful experience. Both gentlemen are very nice and incredibly down to earth. I've also included my ticked stub below for you guys to check out.

As a side note, on this particular night, Anthony Daniels happened to be in attendance. For those of you unfamiliar with the name, Anthony Daniels is from a long time ago in a galaxy far far away. Daniels starred, along side Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and others, as C-3PO in the original Star Wars trilogy. While walking out of the show, Daniels was only a few feet away from me. I would have liked to shake his hand if it weren't for the masses of Nerddom already pestering him. It was still an unexpected, pleasant surprise to say the least. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12814 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12641 Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:44:38 GMT Torchlight, for me, was the most surprising video game release from 2009. Prior to its launch, the... Torchlight, for me, was the most surprising video game release from 2009. Prior to its launch, the game was nowhere to be found on my radar, and it wasn't until I began hearing the name brought up on various gaming podcasts that I decided maybe I should learn more about it.

Review: Torchlight

Torchlight is a third-person action RPG for the PC. A number of the Runic Games developers responsible for putting this title together are, in fact, Blizzard North old-timers behind the monumental gaming series that is Diablo. Upon my first steps in the game world, this became glaringly apparent; from keyboard hotkeys to the character menues to the very music featured in the game, I felt as though the only thing missing was Deckard Cain and his willingness to identify all my colorful loot. This game may be called Torchlight, but it is the biological child of the Diablo series.

Before I get ahead of myself, there are three classes that the player can choose from: the Destroyer, an expert in melee combat and temporary buffs, the Vanquisher, an expert in ranged combat and trap laying, and lastly the alchemist, an expert in spell casting and summoning. Each character has its own unique skills and abilities for hacking and slashing through foes, which, through leveling up, can be upgraded, allowing for a more elegant and efficient means of hacking and slashing through foes.

After making the desired selection, the player is immediately thrust into the town of Torchlight and introduced to the underlying story featured throughout the game. Torchlight is a mining town positioned atop a rich source of ember, a mineral with obvious magical properties of which are not fully understood. Before even getting a chance to explore your surroundings, you are confronted by a fellow NPC adventurer and asked to help recover her master, who had entered the mine hoping to learn more about the mysterious mineral and has yet to return. And so begins this wonderful dungeon crawling clickfest.

As is common with most action RPGs of this type, the story is not a major draw. However, leveling up, improving attributes, earning new skills, and finding all sorts of loot does a lot to keep players interested and coming back for more.

After completing the main quest, your hero has the option to dive into a new dungeon at another end of the town, which, from my understanding, offers a never-ending amount of randomly generated floors to satiate one's own appetite for leveling up and searching for loot.

Though the game is limited to a single player experience, the developers have done a lot to make it as accessible and enjoyable as possible. For example, you will not be entirely alone on your adventure. You have the opportunity to select between either a cat or dog to accompany your hero throughout the game. Your pet will then fight along your hero's side and even hold additional items when your hero becomes encumbered. Perhaps the greatest benefit that the pet brings to the table is the ability to sell unwanted equipment while allowing the player to continue grinding away. Simply load your pet's pack with the unwanted goods and give the order to sell them back at town. This simple addition does a lot to keep the player focused on what makes this game so fun and addictive.

One other aspect I thoroughly appreciate is the ability to store items in a community stash, where any character you create can access items from previous play throughs. For example, during my first play through as a Vanquisher, I found a number of unique items that my hero could not use. By storing these items in the community stash, I am able to access them and potentially use them if I decide to play through the game with one of the other hero classes.

My only complaint with the game is, outside of the main story arc, there is very little to no variety in the side quests. There are two individuals in Torchlight who will give you additional quests, however the objectives never change. You are always asked to kill this specific elite enemy or recover this rare artifact. Before long, the side missions become repetitive and uninteresting.

For those who enjoy this type of game, Torchlight provides an unrivaled amount of entertainment value. And while it's story may be weak, quests repetitive, and multiplayer no where to be found, you will find, after couple colorful item drops, that it really does not matter. At $20, there really is no reason why PC gamers should not own this.

Only a Kyd could guess what on “Earth” my next review may be. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12641 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12554 Sun, 31 Jan 2010 21:14:11 GMT As mentioned in my previous entry, I will be releasing monthly receipts, more or less, for the... As mentioned in my previous entry, I will be releasing monthly receipts, more or less, for the video game pickups that I make in that given month. This will be the first of such entries. Enjoy!

At the end of 2009 and into 2010, Steam, the popular digital distribution, DRM, and multiplayer platform for the PC, ran an amazing end-of-year promotion where everything in the store was marked down from 10 to 75 percent. On top of that, every day Steam would choose select games to be marked down even further. While I jumped on a couple daily deals prior to 2010, I saved the majority of my purchases for the final day. I picked up a number of great games including: Rome: Total War Gold Edition, Deus Ex: Game of the Year Edition, Lucas Arts Adventure Bundle, Lucas Arts Star Wars: Jedi Knight Bundle, The Witcher: Enhanced Edition, and Beyond Good & Evil.

Moving on, I picked up Darksiders and Bayonetta from Toys R Us at the beginning of the month. TRU was offering a free $40 gift card for purchasing both titles, so it was hard for me to resist. Surprisingly, I ended up returning both games for an even better incentive offered for purchasing the same games at the same store. Only two weeks later, TRU ran a promotion for Rewards members, where for purchasing two select titles, the customer would receive a free $60 gift card. Not bad.

A nice freebie that I scored this month came after finally redeeming some Nintendo Club points that I had saved up. I decided to go for the Zelda Poster Collection as it seemed way better than anything else offered. I am currently storing the posters in the protective cardboard tube they came shipped in. I'm sure I'll eventually frame the very nice history of Link print, but, for now, I'd rather hold off on spending the stupid amount of money that it will cost to have a custom frame made to fit its odd size.

My next purchase will probably end up being one of my most prized pickups of the year. As a fan of good video game music, I have been trying to get myself to a Video Games Live show for the past three years. Unfortunately, it has been difficult for me to do so for one reason or another. Last week, I visited the Video Games Live website to check their updated tour dates and to my surprise found that they'll be in Pittsburgh, PA the second week of February! I instantly grabbed two tickets. One for myself and another for a friend.

For those of you unfamiliar with Video Games Live, it is a concert event featuring music from the most popular video games of all time. Top orchestras and choirs perform along with exclusive video footage and music arrangements, synchronized lighting, solo performers, electronic percussionists, live action and unique interactive segments. Tickets were $45 a pop for the seating section that I chose. I'm looking forward to sharing my experience with you guys next month.

What was, I thought, to be my final gaming related purchase for January came as a surprise only a few days ago. Having played the original Mass Effect on the Xbox 360 and, for the most part, enjoyed the experience it offered, I was planning on picking up the sequel. However, because of the annoying world exploring, repetitive side missions, and all too frequent loading sequences that plagued the original, I was in no rush to run out and claim my copy on day one. This all changed after viewing the official launch trailer. The trailer was so effectively pieced together that I was spontaneously inspired to order the Collector's Edition from Amazon. In addition, I grabbed the two novels set in the Mass Effect universe, Revelation and Ascension.

I have played through the game already and loved every minute of it. What is even better, I've already sold the Inferno Armor that came from pre-ordering off Amazon for $19 and am currently looking to sell the Collector's Edition armor and gun for the $40 it is currently fetching on ebay. The game, which was totally worth the investment, has nearly paid for itself!

Now I thought ME2 was going to be the final purchase of the month, however, just like the end-of-year sale, Steam shows us that you should never count them out. This weekend I grabbed the Freedom Force: Freedom Pack and X-Com: Complete Pack for $2 a pop.

Well that is it for this month. Again, I hope you have enjoyed this and I'll see you again next month. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12554 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12530 Fri, 29 Jan 2010 23:19:49 GMT Hello fellow CAGs, I'm a long time CAG(er) *wink* *wink* who been around since the very early days of the site. While having never been an outgoing member in the community, I've always enjoyed visiting the forums, finding great deals, and reading about ridiculous video game related and non video game related stories alike. From glitter and magazine racks to viking hats and hand lotion, I've seen it all.

With that said, I will be writing this blog to keep a record of the video games that I play and to track the video game related purchases that I make over the course of the year. I plan on publishing brief video game reviews, monthly receipts of video game related purchases, and a slew of other pieces that may or may not be video game related. Some of my goals for doing this are to: improve my writing skills, learn to more accurately budget my video game spend over the course of a year, and lastly allow those interested readers to learn more about myself through my writing. I encourage comments as I will do my best to reply in a timely fashion. Thanks and enjoy...

Review: X-Men Origins: Wolverine – The Uncaged Edition

I began this new year with X-men Origins: Wolverine - The Uncaged Edition on the Xbox 360. I had been interested in picking this title up since the demo was released a while back, however the cheap-ass in me told me to hold out for a price drop. I remained firm on my decision until last month when Family Video offered pre-played copies for $10. At that price, the purchase became a no brainer.

Having not seen the movie, I am assuming the game follows it's storyline fairly closely. In short, Wolverine is part of a military special ops team composed of mutants with superhuman powers. After a mission in Africa goes awry, Wolverine deserts the team, disgusted with the their disregard for innocent human lives. A few years later, Wolverine is tracked down by his brother and former team member, Sabertooth, and beat to a pulp as his girlfriend is taken from him. The remainder of the game follows Wolverine on his pursuit for revenge.

Obviously, there isn't much of a story here, but the gameplay is fast paced and really quite fun. Raven Software did a great job capturing the brutality that Wolverine is known for. His attacks are fast and unforgiving and a leap mechanic allows him to quickly pounce from one enemy to the next. Animations are wonderfully violent, some so jaw droppingly gruesome I'd catch myself staring blankly at the screen in either fear or awe, of which I am still not sure.

My only complaints with the game, outside of the tired story, are that some areas feel stretched out and repetitive and also the boss fights are mind numbingly boring and not well designed. With that said, X-Men Origins: Wolverine is one of the biggest surprises to come out of 2009 namely because it is the first video game based on a movie that is not only good, but said to be better than the very movie it is based upon.

“Stay a while and listen” for my next review, where I will write about my most unexpected and surprisingly good game released in 2009. ]]> Swift900 http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/blog.php?b=12530