Latest Xbox 360 holiday bundles detailed

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 11:06:43 PM. © Destructoid

Latest Xbox 360 holiday bundles detailed screenshot

Microsoft has announced two Xbox 360 holiday 2011 bundles: the first ($399.99) includes a 250 GB hard drive, a Kinect, Kinect Adventures, Carnival Games, and three months of Xbox Live Gold; the second bundle ($299.99) comes with a 250 GB hard drive, Halo: Reach, Fable III, and again, three months of Live.

It's funny to see the two opposing audiences they're going for based on what's being included. These bundles should be available within the next week or so.

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Scientists Create Deus Ex-Style Biofuel Battery

post from The Escapist : Latest News on 18 October 2011 10:41:00 PM. © The Escapist : Latest News

Biofuel cell research has shown that candy really could power prosthetics.

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Pretend to be Travolta in Grease this holiday

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 10:07:05 PM. © Destructoid

Pretend to be Travolta in Grease this holiday screenshot

With everything going on during this year's E3, you may have missed some big news. Grease for the Kinect and PlayStation Move is out this week in the US, and will be out November 4th in Europe. This isn't just another singing, dancing game since it will have all the music and moves from the movie. I know you're excited about this news, but please don't hurt yourself, or others, in your frantic race to pick this one up.

I have some doubts about how good this title is (it's no Once Upon a Monster) but it must have sold fairly well on the Wii for it to get a port to the Kinect and PlayStation Move. I enjoyed the movie, but I'm not sure how much I would enjoy singing and dancing about cars, love and beauty school dropouts.

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New 'Paranormal' Pinball FX2 table free for one
week

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 10:07:05 PM. © Destructoid

New 'Paranormal' Pinball FX2 table free for one week screenshot

Zen Pinball is celebrating a year of success for Pinball FX2 with a little gift for everyone. The brand new "Paranormal" table will be made available for free for one week, October 26th until November 2nd. It looks to be a pretty good table too, judging by the video, with a cool upper play field. All you have to do to get the game is have the free Pinball FX2 client installed on your Xbox 360 and then download the table during the promotional period.

Over the last year, Pinball FX2 has pretty much become my go-to game for when I want a quick break to just vegetate on the couch for a bit. I'm glad to hear that the title is doing well for Zen, as the quality of the content produced for it is of a rather high level and I want them to keep making more.

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Check out Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One's opening
trailer

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 10:07:05 PM. © Destructoid

Check out Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One's opening trailer screenshot

Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One hits stores today, and to celebrate this new opening cinematic has been released.

If you haven't heard, this game takes Ratchet and Clank and sticks them in a 4-player co-op adventure, with Qwark and Dr. Nefarious being the other two characters. There's tons of weapons, lots of puzzles and bosses, and even 3D support.

With a new game comes a new story. This one takes place after the events of Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time. The duo has a job escorting newly elected Galactic President Qwark to a ceremony that will award him with an Intergalactic Tool of Justice Award. But things never go smoothly when they take place at the beginning of the game, do they? You'll see what I mean in the trailer above.

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Uncharted 3 will be getting a season pass for $25

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 09:05:19 PM. © Destructoid

Uncharted 3 will be getting a season pass for $25 screenshot

The official PlayStation Blog has confirmed that Uncharted 3 has, as of now, seven map packs planned for it. With so much DLC it's only natural that it comes with the opportunity to get a Season Pass, right? Following suit with the likes of Mortal Kombat, L.A. Noire and Gears of War 3, Uncharted 3 will be getting a Season Pass called the Fortune Hunters' Club.

The Fortune Hunters' Club entitles you to four of the seven packs and three skin packs. If you pre-order now for $24.99 you can also get the Fortune Hunters' Club theme for free. Once you're part of the club and the packs start rolling out, you'll get a XMB notification that will take you directly to the PlayStation Store where it'll be waiting for you. So at 45% savings, is anyone going to be picking up this Season Pass? At least we can safely say it's a better deal than Gears of War 3's Season Pass.

Uncharted 3 DLC season pass available for $25 [Shacknews]

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February 22nd is the launch date for the Vita for
everyone else

post from Gaming Nexus on 18 October 2011 08:23:00 PM. © Gaming Nexus

by: John Yan
NEWS - Japan's going to get the PlayStation Vita before the year end, but the rest of the world is going to have the wait two more months. Jack Tretton has made a post on the Sony Blog saying that February 22, 2012 will be the release date of the handheld for the US, Latin America, Europe, and Canada.

I think the Vita has lost a little luster with the price drop on the Nintendo 3DS, but when I played with it at E3, I thought it was a solid machine. I loved the cross platform gaming capability with the PS3 and the screen was pretty awesome.

I'm still on the fence of picking one up. There should be plenty of titles to play with, but I haven't seen anything that really grabbed me yet. Maybe by the time the Vita hits the stores here in the US, there will be some compelling titles for me to pick up. Anyway, just a few months into next and everyone will have a chance to pick one up

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-for-everyone-else/Item24453.aspx

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PlayStation Vita US launch date announced:
February 22

post from Destructoid on 18 October 2011 08:05:50 PM. © Destructoid

PlayStation Vita US launch date announced: February 22 screenshot

[Update: Canada, Latin America, and Europe are also getting their Vita on Feb. 22. The image you see above is the final North America box.]

Today, at San Francisco's Web 2.0 Summit, President and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, Jack Tretton, announced the official release date of the PlayStation Vita for North America: February 22, 2012. Yes. YES.

This delicious portable will be available at your favorite game store for $249.99 for the Wi-Fi model and $299.99 for the 3G model.

That's too long to wait, though less than we thought at first. I want it. I WANT IT NOW.

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New trailer for Deus Ex DLC The Missing Link

New trailer for Deus Ex DLC The Missing Link screenshot

Dug Deus Ex: Human Revolution and want more? The Missing Link downloadable content is now available in North America for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. It's available for 1200 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360, and $14.99 on the PlayStation Network and PC. What do you get for that kind of cash? Try up to six hours of new gameplay, ten new achievements/trophies and 250 Xbox Gamerscore points.

The game's producer, David Anfossi, says that this DLC provides an enhanced game with deeper insight into the conspiracy, visual improvements, new characters and enemies, and a twist on gameplay elements.

Here's a new trailer to celebrate the launch.

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Checking out the Modern Warfare 3 Turtle Beach
headsets

Checking out the Modern Warfare 3 Turtle Beach headsets screenshot

Love it or hate it, the release of Modern Warfare 3 is sure to be one of the biggest launches in gaming history. We've already seen the fanfare, ranging from amazingly stupid promotions, to the most badass events (friggin' zip lines and paintball!)

The most recent stop on this hype train brings us to one of its more practical destinations, Turtle Beach headsets. I recently had the a chance to check the latest line of Turtle Beach's hardware. In a nutshell, FPS nuts have a real cause for celebration, but get ready to break the bank for real quality.

These Modern Warfare 3 branded headsets are the first licensed headsets that Turtle Beach has every put out. With the aim to do more than simply cash-in on the Call of Duty brand with a pretty paint job, Turtle Beach has really gone deep with the design by including the audio designers at Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer.

Some of you might remember the Turtle Beach PX5 that were released earlier this year. One of the first fully programmable headsets, the team at Visceral Games were given advanced version of the headset's sound editor to fine tune the presets for optimal performance with Dead Space 2.

Turtle Beach has done the same with the new line of headsets for Modern Warfare 3. Out of the box, each of the Modern Warfare 3 headsets are sharply tuned and optimized for the best possible performance with Modern Warfare 3, courtesy of Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer. From the high-end Delta to the budget line Foxtrot, these headsets are quite literally designed with Modern Warfare 3, for Modern Warfare 3. If you find yourself wanting more control over these presets though, the Earforce Delta allows for full audio customization.

The partnership with Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer has benefits beyond the technical design too. At the cosmetic level, Turtle Beach has worked with the two studios to create unique packaging for the higher-end Delta and Bravo models. Both headsets come packaged in a military-style hard case with foam cushion lining, aiming to sell the look and feel that you are buying a piece of equipment rather than a consumer electronic. All of the MW3 headsets also come packaged with additional content such as download codes for an abridged version of Brady Games' Modern Warfare 3 strategy guide, desktop wallpapers and trial memberships for yet to be announced services and promotions (Fingers crossed for a Call of Duty: Elite trial.) So even with the lower end Foxtrots, you get quite of bit of extra content.

Additionally, the MW3 branded headsets have voice prompts to alert you of what chat mode you are in, when the headset is powering on or off, when the batteries are running low, etc. All of these prompts are voiced by Col. Hank Keirsy, the military adviser for the Modern Warfare series. I got a brief amount of time to see how this feature works, and while it's nothing to write home about, it adds a small touch of personality. Factor in that you can download and switch out voice prompts from characters in the Modern Warfare universe and it has potential to be pretty cool, for the sake of added customization if nothing else.

There are a total of four MW3 branded headsets: Delta, Bravo, Charlie, and Foxtrot. Delta leads the pack as the best in class. Retailing at a whopping $299.95, it features wireless Dolby 7.1 surround sound and is fully programmable so you can further optimize presets to your liking. Its functionally universal and comes packaged with a Bluetooth adapter that plugs into the Xbox 360 controller, eliminating all cords.

The Earforce Delta was the first headset I got to try out, demoed with Modern Warfare 2. To really put these headsets through their paces, I tried them out on the single-player mission "The Gulag" where the audio is an absolute assault on auditory senses, loud and rich with the sound of gunfire, explosions, helicopter blades and jet engines.

Here, the Earforce Delta stood up extremely well with pitch perfect clarity from all of the audio channels. Sounds were all distinct and beautifully delivered, never once jumbled or muddled together. The physical design is no slouch either. The ear cup cushioning felt soft and light, and I even started to forget they were there from time to time. I can easily envision continued comfort after hours of play on the Delta.

Next were the Earforce Bravo stereo headsets retailing at the more attractive $179.95. Bravos are wireless and universally functional like the Deltas. You can choose from a number of presets, but Bravos are not fully programmable. While the sound remained solid throughout, the drop off in quality is very noticeable. When there isn't too much going in with respect to the audio presentation, the Bravos work admirably well. However sounds are noticeably muddied and can even drown out one another when there's a lot of gunfire, explosions, music, dialogue and other sounds going on at the same time. The clarity just doesn't seem to hold up when put under pressure.

On the lower end we have the Earforce Charlie and the Earforce Foxtrot. Designed specifically with PC gamers in mind, the $129.95 Charlie is an eight speaker, multi-driver headset with four speakers in each ear cup. The Earforce Charlie offer 5.1 surround sound and complete control of each of the 5.1 audio channels with the headset's amplifier.

Rounding out the series are the Earforce Foxtrot. The lowest end of the MW3 headsets, the Foxtrots are simple stereo wireless headsets. Retailing at $99.95, they're poised to offer solid stereo sound at a budget price. Neither the Foxtrot or Charlie was part of my demo.

Finally, Turtle Beach will also be releasing their XP500 series alongside the Modern Warfare 3 branded headsets. Feature identical to the Earforce Delta, the XP500 is a fully programmable 7.1 Dolby surround sound headset that offers universal functionality and completely wireless Bluetooth functionality for the Xbox 360. A key difference between these and the Delta is that the presets for the XP500 were not fine tuned and optimized by the sound designers at Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer. Only the MW3 branded headsets enjoy that privilege. It will retail for $269.95, and will be available for all of you to get your hands on October 24, day and date with the Modern Warfare 3 branded Turtle Beaches.

The quality on offer with the Earforce Delta is to be lauded, but at just about $300 (MSRP $299.95) most will find the barrier of entry too high. The Bravos may not warrant the same high praise that the Deltas do, but for the price they definitely seem like a better offer for those wanting something more financially feasible. But even at the Foxtrot level, stereo headsets have always proven reliable enough for sounding out enemy footsteps in multiplayer and all of these headsets will give you an edge against the competition.