DesertEagleXIX’s Take:
It was 1993 when I first fell under Raiden II’s influence. I had been wandering through the dim recesses of my local arcade, searching for a shmup worthy of my tokens, when Raiden’s unique Plasma Beam grabbed my attention. I stood before the game’s attract mode transfixed by the glowing serpentine weapon. I marveled as the beam encircled its foes, stripping its prey of energy, like some kind of cosmic python.

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Toys R Us has announced its nationwide roll-out of its new video game trade-in program. CAGs prim4444 & cheeky tell us that Toys R Us has partnered with Gamers Factory on this new endeavor.

UPDATES: You can find trade-in values here. They also are accepting trade-ins via mail.

CAG Mitch079 provides this picture of used games for sale at his local Toys R us in Atlanta, which contradicts what TRU told Joystiq; that they will not be selling used games to the public, but instead will sell them to a third party.

Here are the important details on the trade-in program:

• Games must be in their original cases with artwork
• Games can be scratched, but not cracked and customers may only trade-in 3 of the same title
• Maximum $1000 trade-in per day
• Games should be brought to the Toys“R”Us Guest Services desk
• Customers receive an activated gift card equal valid at Toys“R”Us, Babies“R”Us or online at Toysrus.com
• Games from classic systems are accepted, values range from $0.20 to $0.75

Earlier this year, when Toys R Us first started testing their trade-in program, Shipwreck took a look at the landscape of the trade-in/used video game business.

Darkest of Days brings forth an interesting concept through a mix of time travel, futuristic weaponry, and famous historical battles. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to tear through Civil War infantry with an assault rifle, here's your chance. Or maybe you’d like to prematurely torch the Ancient Roman sentries of Pompei with a fireball launching flamethrower? Well, you can do that too. But does the game capitalize on these novel ideas or is your time best spent elsewhere?

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Celebrate 5 Years of Direct2Drive with 5 Weeks of downloadable games for $5. Each week features a new genre of games to choose from. Buy one game and get a chance to win all 50.

Week 1: Ubisoft and great strategy titles
Week 2: Action
Week 3: RPG /MMO
Week 4: Indie
Week 5: War

$5 Downloadable PC Games at Direct Drive

Cheapy and Wombat share their Howard Stern show experience and talk Batman: Arkham Asylum, PS3 vs. Xbox 360 value, game shopping and industry news, new releases, your CAGbag questions and so much more!


Download - 107 minutes, 43MB


Review us on iTunes!

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If you've ordered a video game from Amazon in the last month or so they were running a promotion where you can receive 50% off video game magazine subscriptions. Now, Amazon is running a $5 off magazine subscriptions promotion for the month of September (this comes off the FINAL price and not the original price). I was able to renew my subs to OXM (w disc); Nintendo Power; and Official Playstation Magazine for a total of $16.45 for all three subscription renewals.

Nintendo Power
Official Xbox Magazine w/Disc
PlayStation: The Official Magazine
PC Gamer

The opening cinematic to The Beatles: Rock Band is so cool that even if you lived under a rock for the past 46 years only to emerge and immediately pick up this game, you'd still understand completely and without question how cool - and influential - The Beatles were. There's no doubt about that, but did the game itself send chills up my spine and garner all my lovin' or was my plastic miniature guitar left gently weeping?

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Toys R Us has a bunch of deals this week, most of which involve music games. TRU is throwing in a $20 gift card with the Rock Band: Beatles Bundle and a $30 card with the Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle. They've also slashed the price of the Guitar Hero: World Tour Band Kit (360) to $70 and are including a free Guitar Hero II wired guitar. In addition, Wolfenstein, Red Faction Guerrilla, UFC Undisputed, and Section 8 all come with $15 gift cards.

Best Buy has buy 1, get 1 50% off on PS3 games.

Read on for all of this week's Sunday ad deals.

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Following it's World Tour side-trip, Guitar Hero goes back to the standard numbering scheme and is ready to melt your face off... or at least greatly speed us all along on our inevitable highway to carpal tunnel syndrome. Guitar Hero 5 is everything you would expect and little more, but it's the most refined and polished Guitar Hero to date.

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What do you get when you mix mountain climbing, heavy Buddhist overtones, disgruntled ghosts stuck in limbo, and Wii gesture controls that not only include motions for Meditating, but also Deep Meditating? You get a chillingly good horror adventure that quickly scales up the rare echelon of quality adult-themed Wii games. Who knew?

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GoGamer offers up another Madness sale featuring a ton of deals including some as low as $0.01!

GoGamer.com Labor Day Weekend Madness

To say G.I. Joe is the most-beloved franchise of my childhood is a bit of an understatement. Above Transformers and beyond Masters of the Universe, if I had allowance money, it was going towards filling out my troops or providing them with a sweet new ride. Heck, I even sent away for my very own create-a-figure and I have the certificate to prove I am an official member of the Joe team - "Hard Fist" at your service (boy, that sounded a lot cooler when I was nine). So when the news came that there would be a live-action movie, it was apparent there would be an accompanying videogame not far behind. I was pleasantly surprised the film turned out to be decent, but can the same be said for the first G.I. Joe game in seventeen years?

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Until 9/12/09, get three Xbox 360 Platinum Hits for the price of two. Limit one per customer.

Buy Two Xbox 360 Platinum Hits, Get a Third Free

Amazon sweetens up the Xbox 360 price drops.

Xbox 360 Arcade w/Free Banjo Kazooie or Lost Odyssey $199.99
Xbox 360 Elite Halo 3 / Fable 2 Bundle $299.99
Xbox 360 Elite w/Free 12+1 Month Xbox Live Subscription $299.99
Xbox Pro 60GB w/Free Halo 3, Fable 2, or Halo Wars $249.99

Today, 8/28, 6 video games will be featured in Amazon's Gold Box along with the Deal of the Day.

Deal of the Day:
The Sims 3 $29.98

Gold Box Deals:
Deals go live & prices revealed at time (PDT) listed below

6 AM - Take the Challenge with this Wii Video Game.
9 AM - Fore!
11 AM - Who needs preseason? Get on the gridiron now.
2 PM - Grab your Wii Nunchuck and Get Active with this game.
5 PM - Take to the Ski Hills with this action packed Wii Game.
8 PM - Go Long!... virtually, with this video game.

Amazon Gold Box Deals

If you read one of my previous blog entries, you already know that I won a charity auction to be in the studio for a broadcast of the Howard Stern show. Though the terms of the auction state there is no guarantee that Howard will speak to us on air, it seems to be the case that he usually does. I was told we can sit in on the Wrap Up Show too.

The date has been set, Monday 8/31 and I've been told to be there by 9am.
If you aren't already a Sirius XM subscriber, you can get free trials for online or iPhone listening.

It's been awhile since we last saw him, but B.J. Blazkowicz returns in Wolfenstein to single-handedly mow through an entire army of Nazi's and stamp out their latest occult-based endeavor. Mixing large quantities of supernatural creatures with high-powered weaponry and a good amount of gore has always produced a winning formula in the past, but is it enough to still blow us away in 2009?

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The game's been getting great reviews, so I figured I'd remind everyone that Toys R Us is offering a $30 gift card for Rewards R Us members if you purchase Batman: Arkham Asylum between 10 AM and 2 PM in-store today. If you aren't a Rewards R Us member, you can sign up for free here.

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A Sudoku game with a plot? Yes, it seems any puzzle game can be turned into an adventure these days as Sudoku Ball Detective sets forth to solve a murder by putting numbers in grids... that are on balls. Is it a case worth cracking or is this a mash-up that's dead on arrival?

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Order Halo 3: ODST and get $15 off a future video game purchase at Amazon. Use coupon code HALOODST to receive full credit. You'll also receive $5 in Amazon MP3 credit as well as an unlock code to play as Sgt. Johnson in Firefight mode.

Pre-order Halo 3: ODST, Get $15 Video Games Credit, $5 MP3 Credit at Amazon