Well, here it is, TIME’s top ten video games of 2007 list. Now you don’t have to go out and buy the magazine.

1. Halo 3
2. The Orange Box
3. Rock Band
4. Super Mario Galaxy
5. BioShock
6. Call of Duty 4
7. Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
8. Mass Effect
9. Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
10. God of War 2

Notice a trend of what system most of the games are on? What do you think of the list? Leave a comment and let us know. I think it should be (1) The Orange Box, (2) Super Mario Galaxy, (3) Halo 3. And I would’ve never even thought to put Ace Combat on that list. Anyway, read the full story at time.com here.
Boom!

The upcoming Halo 3 Heroic map pack coming out on December 11th has just gotten some pictures. The pic you see above is of the new map ‘Foundry’. The pack will run you 800 Microsoft points, or roughly $10 US. For some higher resolution pics go here.

Boom!

Update! This Deal is Dead.


Okay, this deal is totally nuts. Halo 3 Legendary, which normally sells for $129.99 is only $59.99 at Amazon.com right now. If you haven’t picked up Halo 3 yet or just really want that Spartan Helmet this deal is too good to pass up.

Boom!

It hasn’t been out for to long but it’s already moving up the XBLA rankings. Call of Duty 4 (my pick for game of the year) has overtaking Gears of War for the number 2 spot. Its still behind the behemoth that is Halo 3 of course, but maybe it will start giving it a run for its money. I wonder what the gap is?

Cod4 is an awesome game and we will be posting a review soon.

The fellas at Infinity Ward aren’t just sitting back though they are releasing a patch in the near future. It will mainly address the matchmaking and host problems. Games will not stop when the host leaves anymore and the server will supposedly run better in larger games now. Here’s a full list of changes. Thanks joystiq.

Additions / Features:

• Added Kill cam to Airstrike bombs and Claymores.
• Addition of Host Migration so if Host Leaves auto-chooses next best host.
• Tweaked the following Oldschool Mode settings based on feedback:
  - Added Unlimited Sprint
  - Increased Magazine Size
  - Added Ragdoll Cam
• Addition of New “N0M4D” Control Scheme.

Optimizations / Tweaks:

• Identify party by background color (in Lobby).
• Optimized server selection for first match for better connections.
• Improved network performance for 18 player games.
• Optimized ‘Chase Cam’ when Spectating.
• Fixed Playlist error when attempting to join from other games.
• Handle Corrupt Create A Class data instead of kicking player.

On Dec 11th getting pwnd by 13 year old high pitched little punks will look better then ever. The “Heroic Map Pack” for Halo 3 will be available for 800 MS points ($10 to the layman). Of course if your the patience and/or cheap type you can wait until Spring 08 and get it for free. The 3 new maps are:

“Standoff”- A valley with “entrenched bases and fields of boulders” that will be littered with armored corpse.

“Rats Nest”- Described as an “an indoor vehicle paradise” whatever that means we’ll have to wait and see.

“Foundry”- This one is for all you forge lovers out there. Its sandbox style will make the tunnel,bridge, and road moving forge crowd happy.

Well, GameTrailers.com has you covered. They recently launched a special area on their site dedicated to the new Assassin’s Creed game. It’s their Assassin’s Creed Launch Center.

Not only do they have a ton of video on the game, they also have a video review of the game as well. Most of the videos are available in HD which makes everything better.Game Trailers has already done this “launch center” thing with other games you may have heard of like Halo 3. So, if you’re interested in this game and love to watch game videos this is the place to be.

Boom!

You knew it was gonna happen and now it has. Gamepro.com has put the 2 potential game of the year candidates up against each other in 9 different categories. The results might surprise you (although i think they are right on with this).

Whats your pick? Mine is COD4 I’ve been screaming this game for months and now that its out I WAS RIGHT! This game is awesome.

Check out the article here Gamepro.com .

Awww geek love. Looks like there might finally be a better way to propose then on the big screen at the baseball game. The gamer with the gamertag Moviesign recently created a custom level in the forge map maker. Furtivepenguin was then led to a spot in the level where Moviesign dropped to one knee, not to tea-bag a fallen enemy, but to propose to Furtive penguin. He spelled out Marry Me? in weapons. She said yes by the way.

I love a happy ending.

At Burger King restraunts you can pick up coupons that give you a $10 Circuit City gift card when you purchase any Xbox 360 game or accessory for $39.99 or more. The coupon is Halo 3 branded, but dosn’t require any Halo 3 specific purchase.

Update: I just realized I didn’t say when this coupon expires. It’s good til the 30th of this month (November).

Boom!

Let’s get this out of the way first off. Should you buy this game? The answer is yes… if you want a great, fully featured multiplayer experience. However, if you’re looking to “Finish the Fight” with Master Chief and friends I’m gonna have to give this a pass, and here’s why.

The Single Player Campaign

OK, I am one of the many that played the first and second Halo games and got completely wrapped up in the epic sci-fi story presented through a wonderfully addictive action game. As many people who played through Halo 2 know, the ending was kind of a let down. I was very much looking forward to the next chapter in the Halo canon. Boy was I sad when that story was told in an experience lasting less than six hours long. Really Bungie, six hours? I don’t know how many of you out there still play single player games, but I do, and I’ve sat through movies longer than that, and they didn’t run me $60. The real problem isn’t even the length of the game, it’s the story. Without giving too much away, let’s just say, the end of this story goes the way of the Matrix series. All throughout the experience your game is temporarily interrupted when Cortana or the Gravemind talk to you for a few seconds, this gets very annoying, seeing as how it adds nothing to the overall story and pauses gameplay. Look, I really wanted to like this game, and I do, it’s just not the amazing single player experience it should have been. The co-op is a great addition, however, it can greatly reduce the time taken to finish the game and why I don’t know but only one person can be Master Chief while the rest of the players are stuck being the Arbiter and two nameless Elites, which really ticks me off, not only because your a stupid alien, but you start out with crappy alien weapons instead of the human ones Master Chief gets. The first two games let both co-op players be the Chief, who cares if it doesn’t make sense i’d rather be Master Chief. Because Master Cheif is the reason this game is so cool. Much of the levels are basically the same as halo 2 with the same feel and look, albeit the look is sharper. The amount of backtracking is exhausting and really drags the game down. It took under 6 hours to finish and would have only been 4 without the backtracking. Where this game really shines is in the multiplayer area where for some reason everybody can be Master Chief if they want.

The Multiplayer Game & Matchmaking

Here is why you should buy this game. The multiplayer aspect of this game, starting with Matchmaking, is superb. The shear number of options is staggering. You can change everything including the newly added gravity options. There is a lot of new options for customizing your emblem, colors, and now even the armor on your player model. These and other multiplayer goodies must be unlocked in various ways throughout the game. Getting into a game couldn’t be easier. You select what type of game you want and you can even filter how you want it to search, quickest or best match type options. You get into games fairly quick and they’ve added a “veto this map” option while you wait for it to find players and load the map. Once you start the match you’ll notice how good this game looks and runs in multiplayer. While some of the levels have very basic architecture very reminiscent of halo 1 & 2, most of the maps look lush and pretty. The gameplay is extremely fast, much faster paced than Halo 2, kind of similar Unreal Tournament. Most of the weapons have been upgraded and a few new ones have been added, including the new fan favorite the Brute’s Gravity Hammer, which works kind of like the sword but has a large area of damage that can take out a few people in close proximity with one swing. The big new addition is the equipment. This includes useful new items like the bubble shield which temporarily protects you and whoever jumps into it. Parties are still available and work well. Once you’ve finished a match you have a plethora of stats to look through. If you’re registered on Bungie.net, which is completely free and quick to do, you will have access to even more stats about any of the matches you’ve played. You even have access to screenshots you can take from a match in Halo 3. That said, one of the big new features are the Saved Films. After you play a match or level of the campaign you can watch a full 3D video of it. In it you control a camera and fly around watching the battle from any angle, fast forward and rewind to see exactly how you were killed or take a screenshot of some freakin awesome, impossible shot you made to win the game. You can also send the videos to a friend if you want to rub in just how great you are. The last part of the Halo 3 multiplayer experience is a map editor called Forge. It’s really more of a map re-arranger than editor, as you can only place items in level and move them arround. The difference with this one and so many others on the PC is that this can all be done while you and your friends are playing the level. It’s fun, but feels more like a novelty that’ll probably be rarely used by most players. That said, this game has legs, it won’t soon be sitting on a shelf somewhere collecting dust. Much like it’s predicessor Halo 2, this game is probably going to keep gamer’s attention longer than the consoles lifetime. As far as multiplayer gaming is concerned, it doesn’t get much better.

Boom!