Posts by Richard Mitchell at Xbox 360 Fanboy

Richard Mitchell
Tulsa, Oklahoma - http://www.xbox360fanboy.com

Richard received a BFA from the University of Oklahoma. Foregoing the endless rejection that is the life of an actor, Richard opted instead to follow his true passion, games. Lucky for him, the internet has turned writing about games into a financially viable occupation. Otherwise he would be condemned to a life in hell, also known as community theatre.

Only in Little Big Planet: 360 unloads on PS3

Posted Oct 10th 2008 5:15PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: Fan stuff

With the beta for the PS3 create-a-platformer Little Big Planet underway, it looks like many PS3 owners are dedicating their time to building levels designed to denigrate our console of choice, the Xbox 360. A quick search on YouTube reveals videos like the one above, which centers (perhaps justifiably) on the Red Ring of Death. There may be more of these anti-360 levels out there. We don't know and, quite frankly, don't care. What we do care about is a pro-360 level sent to us by a reader. We like it for its panache, creativity and, particularly, its toilet humor. Find it after the break.

Continue reading Only in Little Big Planet: 360 unloads on PS3

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WRUP: We have Dead Space edition

Posted Oct 10th 2008 4:00PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: X3F Features

Reading the headline, it's fair to assume that we're trying to make the general gaming public jealous. To a certain extent, that's true. As an entity, X3F does have Dead Space already. On a person by person basis, only one of our three writers can make the same claim. That writer is Dustin Burg. We suggest you direct your (well justified) anger toward him. Take some comfort in this though: we've got a lot of Dead Space related fun planned for next week.

Once you chew back your envy, try to regain your composure and tell us what you're playing this weekend.

Leaderboards:
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X3F Gamertags:
Richard Mitchell -- SenseiRAM
Dustin Burg -- SuperDunners
Xav de Matos -- Snypz

What were you playing? (WRUP archive)

Joystiq tries out the NXE, the news is good

Posted Oct 10th 2008 1:00PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News

Joystiq -- otherwise known as the lucky bastards currently at the Tokyo Game Show -- have gotten a chance to try out the New Xbox Experience. There are some quibbles, namely that you still can't set your default online status and some elements -- like Netflix -- are oddly placed. Even with the quibbles though, the pros seems to outweigh the cons. The NXE is fast, Avatars are easy to create, and the new party system allows players to jump from game to game with ease. Best of all, according to Joystiq, is the new guide, which recreates the original Blades system. The guide allows all the same functions as the current dashboard, even allowing you to launch another game from within one already being played (and allowing you to take your party with you).

It all sounds pretty sweet to us. Oh, and it's fast. Head over to Joystiq for their full impressions.

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First Halo 3: Recon details emerge

Posted Oct 10th 2008 11:20AM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Halo 3

Joystiq got a chance to sit down with Bungie's Brian Jarrard to discuss some of the details behind the upcoming Halo 3 experience, Recon. Many questions have been lobbed at the title since it was first officially revealed, and here, without further ado, are some of the answers (politely cribbed directly from Joystiq):

"It will be a standalone disc sold in stores in boxes next Fall. It's also going to include some multiplayer maps."
"It is a first-person shooter still ... It's not a squad-based shooter."
"As an ODST, compared to playing as in invulnerable Spartan, you are going to have to sort of pick and choose your encounters a little bit differently."
"It is going to very much feel like Halo. Full feature parity."

A few other details. Recon (as most have theorized) takes place directly after the Prophet of Regret jumped into slipspace during Halo 2, causing the destruction of New Mombasa. Players take the role of a single ODST -- not a full squad. Also, it would appear that -- as implied by the trailer above -- the Superintendent (the little green circle dude) will serve as Recon's "Cortana." When asked about this, Jarrard replied, "I think your observations seem pretty spot on. It certainly seems like there's a guiding hand of some sort there."

Gallery: Halo 3: Recon

Continue reading First Halo 3: Recon details emerge

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X3F TV -- XBLA in Brief: Beat'n Groovy, MLB Stickball, Shadow Assault / Tenchu

Posted Oct 9th 2008 6:35PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: Xbox Live Arcade, X3F TV

This week, after announcing the arrival of MLB Stickball, Microsoft surprised us with two additional titles, Beat'n Groovy and Shadow Assault / Tenchu. Of the three games, let us tell you that Beat'n Groovy is definitely the standout title this week. Let us tell you also that it's the standout title for all the wrong reasons. That should really be the takeaway from this week's XBLA In Brief, even if the other two are decent (particularly Shadow Assault) games. Hear our take on all three in the video above.

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Vampire hunters find new Castlevania at TGS

Posted Oct 9th 2008 4:15PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News

According to Japanese website ITmedia (translation here), at TGS Konami is showing off a 10 second trailer for a brand new Castlevania title slated to hit current gen consoles (namely Xbox 360 and PS3). Gleaning what we can from the translation, the game deals with a betrayed family, a father, and a curse. Oh, and it apparently stars an effeminate man with a big, burning red sword. That, and he looks an awful lot like Alucard, Dracula's son and a recurring character in the series. Sounds like a cursed family to us.

And that's all we know. No gameplay details, no release date. Let's just hope it's good ... or evil, as the case may be.

[Via Joystiq]

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Video: Halo Wars demo (with the Flood!)

Posted Oct 9th 2008 2:45PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Halo Wars

A video demonstration of Halo Wars from TGS has hit GameTrailers, and we think it's fairly safe to say that the game is looking pretty good. Then again, we thought as much when we got a chance to play it at E3, so what would you expect? Nevertheless, the video showcases some things that we didn't see at E3, namely a commander unit, the Vulture "Uber Unit," and a new command ability called the Cryo Bomb which freezes enemy units, giving you extra time to destroy them.

Without a doubt though, the most intriguing part of the video happens right at the end of the demonstration, when we get our first glimpse at the Flood. We only get a general idea of how the Flood base is structured and also a brief look at the Infection Forms as well as what look like (former) human Combat Forms.

Now, if we can just get this time machine working, we can play it right now.

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Fable II co-op patch is complete, available on launch

Posted Oct 9th 2008 1:30PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Fable 2

It looks like Fable II will be receiving its much publicized online co-op enabling patch on day one after all. In the wake of Lionhead's Peter Molyneux saying he hoped for a day one solution, community guru Sam has announced that the co-op patch is complete, saying, "It looks like we've done it...for all of you who are connected to Xbox Live, when starting up your copy of Fable II (on 21st October in USA, 24th October in Europe and 18th December in Japan)." Definitely good news for those looking to team up and fight the good fight for the fate of Albion. Even better news for those planning to do more important things, like buy up the Cow and Corset with their gambling winnings and share a free pint with a friend.

[Thanks, BA]

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Video: What Lara Croft can do in TR Underworld

Posted Oct 8th 2008 6:30PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Tomb Raider: Underworld

Honestly, when the developers at Crystal Dynamics talk about what Lara Croft can do in Tomb Raider: Underworld, they speak so passionately that one gets the impression they've spent one too many late nights staring at Lara's well proportioned figure on a computer screen. And that's exactly the right attitude. The video above notes that Cyrstal Dynamics began development of Lara's abilities by asking what she -- a highly trained woman with nerves of steel -- should be able to do. The list reads like a checklist of things that probably irked you while playing previous installments in the series.

Why can't Lara target more than one enemy? Why can't she just kick that tiger in the face? Why can't she shoot while hanging from a ledge? In Tomb Raider: Underworld, she can, and she does all these things using new motion captured animations. If the developers are to be believed, these animations number somewhere around 2000. Watch the video above and see how many you can spot.

Epic calls EA buyout rumor "rubbish"

Posted Oct 8th 2008 6:00PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News

In a one word response to an unsubstantiated rumor that Electronic Arts is planning to buy Epic Games, Epic's VP Mark Rein told Big Download that the rumor is "rubbish." The rumor began swirling (down the drain, so it would seem) last week, when GameGuru.in reported that word from the "rumor mill" was that EA was planning the buyout in order to acquire the Unreal Engine. Specifically, it would be a chance for the company to get its hands on next Unreal Engine and the Gears of War franchise. According to Rein, it just ain't so.

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COD: World at War achievements revealed

Posted Oct 8th 2008 4:15PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Call of Duty: World at War

360Sync has revealed the entire list of achievements for Call of Duty: World at War, the next installment in the long standing war series. The achievements are pretty standard, offering points for completing various levels and tasks within those levels during the campaign. Some are reserved for solo play only, while others can be achieved in co-op as well. Our favorite is probably 'No Safe Place' which awards 15 gamerscore for burning an enemy out of a tree with a flamethrower.

Also worth noting is that there aren't any achievements for online versus multiplayer. It appears that restricting achievements to the main campaign has become the mantra for Call of Duty games, as Call of Duty 4 had no online achievements either. Head over to 360Sync to check out the full list.

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Latest Halo novel, The Cole Protocol dated Nov. 25

Posted Oct 8th 2008 2:45PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Halo 3

Frankly, if you don't know what the Cole Protocol is -- a (fictional) military law established by the United Nations Space Command which states that any ship in danger of Covenant capture cannot reveal the location of Earth at any cost, even if that cost is the erasure of all shipboard data along with a ship's self-destruction -- we're not sure why you're still reading this, unless of course you just love Halo and don't bother with the details (shame on you!). Suffice it to say that if you know what the Cole Protocol is, if you do love Halo and, above all, if you love reading, this news is for you: the latest in the Halo series of novels -- titled The Cole Protocol -- will be hitting retail shelves on November 25. The audio version will be made available at the same time, for those of you who would prefer a format you can enjoy while actually playing Halo.

Written by Tobias S. Buckell, the book follows "an unexplored conflict of the Human-Covenant War" involving the Spartan Gray team. We would venture to guess that the novel covers the events that led to the creation of the Cole Protocol. We are excited.

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Joystiq plays Prince of Persia, puts worries to rest

Posted Oct 8th 2008 1:15PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Prince of Persia

At recent ... ahem ... Sony press event, Joystiq got to lay their lucky, grubby little mitts on Prince of Persia, the latest chapter in the beloved series that is due this December. Taking many departures from the established formula -- among them cel shading, one-on-one combat, an AI partner, and open world gameplay -- there are many reasons to be wary of the title. Fortunately, according to Joystiq, it looks like our fears were unfounded. The game is reportedly looking great and, more importantly, fun. Hit the source link to check out Joystiq's full hands-on impressions (including another video).

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Ask X3F: Cheevoholic edition

Posted Oct 7th 2008 6:30PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: X3F Features

For Ask X3F this week, we tackle the tough issues. We won't allow this feature to be dragged into the mud where there is nothing substantive to offer. No sir. This week we talk about the Vision camera, the Red Ring of Death warranty, and downloadable games. Finally, we discuss Microsoft's most devious creation, the digital crack known as Achievements. Honestly, we don't know what they put in 'em, we just know we can't stop unlocking 'em. Get your weekly dose after the break.

Got a question for Ask X3F? Maybe you have a story or some information you'd like to share? Send it all to ask [att] xbox360fanboy [dawt] com.

Continue reading Ask X3F: Cheevoholic edition

Latest political smear: He's a Halo player

Posted Oct 7th 2008 4:15PM by Richard Mitchell
Filed under: News, Halo 3, Fan stuff

Video games and politics aren't strangers to one another. Since the days of the crusades against Mortal Kombat -- pretty tame nowadays -- and extending into the storied and humorous career of one Jack Thompson, video games have lingered in the halls of politics (let's not get into all the unsuccessful and costly legislation attempts). We think this is, however, the first time that claiming a political opponent plays Halo has been used as a smear tactic. And yet, there it is. In a politcal fact sheet produced for Arizona's Maricopa County District 1 Supervisor race, the fact that 26-year-old Ed Hermes is an avid Halo player is used in an effort to defame him.

"Skilled player of the popular video game Halo," the flyer reads, opposite a more politically relevant statment about Fulton Brock -- Hermes' 56-year-old opponent. It continues with a quote from Hermes made in a university newspaper: "I am addicted to Halo, and play almost every night."

We find ourselves wondering if a young Fulton Brock was once accused by an elder statesmen of "Watching the boob tube," or "Reading the Devil's picture books."

[Via Joystiq]

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Next Page >

Name	Date
Baha: Edge of Control	Sep 22
Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway	Sep 23
Cabela's Dangerous Hunts '09	Sep 23
Warriors Orochi 2	Sep 23
Shellshock 2	Sep 23
Lego Batman	Sep 23
Silent Hill: Homecoming	Sep 30
Guilty Gear 2: Overature	Oct 7
Fracture	Oct 7
NBA 2K9	Oct 7
NBA Live 09	Oct 7
Blitz: The Leage II	Oct 13
FIFA Soccer 09	Oct 14
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Canceled Ensemble title was Halo MMO	Halo 3
Don't cry, Xbox Live is down on Monday, Sep 29	News
Molyneux: Next project is 'very different' and 'ridiculously ambitious'	Fable II

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