There is nothing like an epic role-playing game (RPG) to get the blood stirring, your adventurous side stoked, your crafty warrior side activated. It’s easy to get lost in the glorious worlds of games like Fable II, Oblivion, and so many others. Well, before you lose your way exploring the recesses of some dungeon, make sure to enter our Epic RPGs Sweepstakes. Just download the free Gamerpic, follow the rules, and you have a chance to win a complete Gamer Lounge including a 42-inch HDTV, Lovesac bean bag chairs, and more!
On Tuesday, December 1 from 8-10 PM ET, Chester Bennington of the band Dead by Sunrise will play Halo 3: ODST with Xbox LIVE Gold Members. Get the details here, then log on and meet the vocalist from both DBS and Linkin Park!
Here’s a sweet deal of the week running from November 30 through December 6. Xbox LIVE Gold Members can get the classic Arcade game Sonic The Hedgehog 2 for only 240 MS Points. Check it out!
It’s a long holiday weekend in the United States as we give thanks for all our blessings, you know, like we finally got an Xbox for our little brother so he’ll stop bugging us. Well to celebrate, we have a ton of great community events running from Thursday through Sunday. Thanksgiving Night features a Co-Op Night with Left 4 Dead 2; recover on Friday, November 27 with an Arcade Afternoon of tower defense games, followed by the Frag Dolls playing Modern Warfare 2 from 9-11 PM ET; on Saturday the 28th start by playing skateboarder Stevie Williams in our Game with Fame from 8-10 PM ET then play Left 4 Dead 2 all-night in our Xbox All-Nighter; and finally on Sunday, check out our Community Playdate with HawtyMcBloggy.com and Halo 3 from 8-11 PM ET. Whew! After all that, we’ll need another holiday to recuperate!
Madden NFL Arcade debuts on Xbox LIVE Arcade this Wednesday, November 25th, and it’s really a breath of simplified air for the simulation-heavy franchise.
With Madden NFL Arcade there are no first downs, no referees, no field goals, no punting, and no clock. You’ve got four downs to score and four plays (run, short pass, medium pass, long pass) with which to get it done. It’s fast, it’s frantic, it’s five-on-five and its action is purposefully exaggerated, especially with the use of Gamechangers (e.g. Molasses, which slows down the action to half-speed).
Each match is quick as well. They’re over in five or ten minutes, making it a great game for quick breaks, or in my case when I was playing the title for “research” prior to the interview, many, many quick breaks taken in rapid succession.
I had the chance to sit down with Matt Read, the Lead Designer for Madden NFL Arcade, and ask him a couple of questions. First, I had to ask about the Gamechangers, which really help give the title its quirky identity.
“A Gamechanger is pretty much a power-up, so any time during the course of the game, on every play, both teams have a random chance of earning a Gamechanger. Then, they can use that Gamechanger any time on that drive. So, examples of some Gamechangers…there’s one called Frostbite. If you use it you’ll freeze a player on the other team. There’s one called Entourage, which is pretty awesome. It brings in the whole offensive line so can run the ball with so many extra guys blocking downfield for you.”
I’m always curious as well just what developers are most proud of during the development process.
“We brought in a lot of people that weren’t really comfortable with Madden just to make sure what we were doing was easy to get into. Seeing people that loved the sport, but who weren’t necessarily good at Madden get into it and play it really quick, that was awesome.”
Finally, with the game releasing the day before Thanksgiving, I had to ask if the timing was on purpose.
“Absolutely! And the reason this going to be a great Thanksgiving day download to get is because it’s the perfect half-time game, meaning the experiences are short…so let’s say you’re watching the big Thanksgiving day game and half-time comes. You get on Xbox LIVE, you get a couple of games in and you still make it back in time for the beginning of the third quarter.”
Thanks Matt for taking the time to talk with us!
Now, while I may have lost my matches to Matt, I learned a thing or two at the hands of the game’s Lead Designer. Watch out!
He’s a Gamestop employee and lead singer in Hampton, Georgia who is fond of Jessica Alba and oxymorons. Give a warm Xbox LIVE hello to ... Unsilent Ninja!! *clap clap clap*
trixie360: What’s the story behind your Gamertag?
Unsilent Ninja: Well, in most FPS games, I have a habit of sneaking up on people, killing them, and then hiding again. All while carrying on conversations and probably laughing at their misfortune. Plus, oxymorons are awesome.
trixie360: Where do you live?
Unsilent Ninja: Hampton, Georgia. 30 miles south of Atlanta.
trixie360: What do you do when you’re not playing games?
Unsilent Ninja: I've worked at Gamestop for over 2 years, as well as a review writer for www.gamefreaks365.com for the past 6 months. I'm in school for Network Engineering at Griffin Technical College.
trixie360: What’s the worst or weirdest job you’ve ever had?
Unsilent Ninja: Haven't really had one. I guess volunteering at Noah's Ark; the animal rehab center not far from here. I got to feed a deer out of a baby bottle. Can honestly say I never thought I'd do that in my life.
trixie360: Bambi! How long have you been on Xbox LIVE?
Unsilent Ninja: The little yellow number thing says 3 but this is my second account. So around 4 and a half.
trixie360: Do you have an archenemy on Xbox LIVE?
Unsilent Ninja: Archenemy? No not really, but I would say I am most competitive with my brother Ryan (borgwiser) and my friend Tyler (xSo Shiggsx).
trixie360: What’s your Xbox setup like?
Unsilent Ninja: Now people get to laugh at me! Its a close to 30-inch, 13-year-old RCA (that doesn't even have composite jacks), with some pretty cool Logitech speakers I got from Wal-Mart for 75 bucks. Extravagant, eh?
trixie360: Hey, you’re a student. What’s the best feature of Xbox LIVE?
Unsilent Ninja: That's seriously hard to choose. I'm gonna have to go with Netflix and Last.fm. I spend a LOT of time on Netflix.
trixie360: What is your favorite multiplayer Xbox game?
Unsilent Ninja: As much as I hate feeling like a cliché, MW2.
trixie360: What is your favorite single player Xbox game?
Unsilent Ninja: BioShock by far.
trixie360: What is your favorite Xbox LIVE Arcade game?
Unsilent Ninja: Crack...er...Peggle.
trixie360: What do you think is the best game of all time?
Unsilent Ninja: Seeing as how I dropped 800+ hours on it, I'm gonna have to go with Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind.
trixie360: What do you think is the best film of all time?
Unsilent Ninja: Boondock Saints.
trixie360: What do you think is the best album of all time?
Unsilent Ninja: Horizons by Parkway Drive.
trixie360: Rock Band or Guitar Hero?
Unsilent Ninja: Guitar Hero.
trixie360: What’s the funniest thing you’ve ever heard on Xbox LIVE?
Unsilent Ninja: "Playstation 3 is awesome."
trixie360: LOL. That’s not very nice. What is your greatest Xbox LIVE moment?
Unsilent Ninja: Subscribing to it. But if it has to be IN-game, I guess it would be randomly shooting my sniper rifle on COD MW2 to just get the last bullet out to reload, and scoring a kill. Wasn't a headshot though :(
trixie360: What’s your favorite TV show?
Unsilent Ninja: Dexter.
trixie360: Who is your inner rock star?
Unsilent Ninja: Gonna have to be Winston Mcall from Parkway Drive, as he is the biggest influence on my vocal style for my band.
trixie360: If they made a movie about your life, who should play you?
Unsilent Ninja: Michael C. Hall. Because he would make me awesome.
trixie360: I want to put Chapstick on his mouth. It annoys me. What’s your karaoke song?
Unsilent Ninja: “Two Weeks” by All That Remains.
trixie360: Favorite cartoon character?
Unsilent Ninja: Randy Marsh on South Park.
trixie360: What superpower would you like to have?
Unsilent Ninja: The ability to absorb powers, not unlike Peter Petrelli on Heroes.
trixie360: If you could trade places with anyone for one day, who would it be?
Unsilent Ninja: A big-name record label owner so I could sign my band.
trixie360: What celebrity would be the worst roommate?
Unsilent Ninja: Gerard Butler. Because he would try to kill me in the most dramatic ways possible, every day.
trixie360: That would get annoying. How many people are on your Friends List?
Unsilent Ninja: Last I checked was 93.
trixie360: Who's your favorite superhero?
Unsilent Ninja: Batman.
trixie360: Hot celeb you’d like to be stranded on a desert island with?
Unsilent Ninja: Jessica Alba. I mean who wouldn't?
trixie360: *raises hand* If you could be any video game character, who would it be?
Unsilent Ninja: Guile from Street Fighter. Come on, who WOULDN'T want hair like that?
trixie360: *raises hand again* What’s the worst food you’ve ever eaten?
Unsilent Ninja: Caviar. *shudder*
trixie360: What’s the first video game you ever played?
Unsilent Ninja: I think Mario on my brother's NES.
trixie360: What’s the last book you read?
Unsilent Ninja: Enders Game by Orson Scott Card (again).
trixie360: If you could go on tour with any band, which would it be?
Unsilent Ninja: My own. Rebirth Of Affliction. Oh and I would want to play with Parkway Drive and Whitechapel plz.
trixie360: What do you predict will be the "next big thing" in gaming?
Unsilent Ninja: That has been announced, Natal. That hasn't been announced, one of those simulator rooms from Star Trek so that we can actually be IN the game.
trixie360: What do you think is the best thing about Xbox 360?
Unsilent Ninja: Xbox LIVE of course. And the community and features that go along with it.
trixie360: What is the Xbox 360 Achievement that was hardest to get?
Unsilent Ninja: Beat Tenchu Z. Don't get me wrong, the game was easy. Just REALLY boring.
trixie360: What would you like to be doing in ten years?
Unsilent Ninja: If not playing music with my band, then having a decent career in the IT industry.
Got some smooth moves? Down with the funky chicken? Are you 18 years old and a resident of the 50 United States? The lucky winner of this contest will get their signature groove on 1 v 100 on Xbox LIVE so everyone can join in!
How does it work? Create a video of yourself busting a move to the official contest song, and submit it at www.avatardancecontest.com. Five finalists will be chosen and the rest of us get to vote for our favorite.
Hurry, the deadline to submit your video is Friday, November 27!
Have you had your daily allowance of legalese? If not, check out the Official Rules!
In the spirit of the holidays, and the fact that many folks in the U.S. have this Thursday and Friday off, we thought we’d provide a few extra Deals of the Week for your gaming pleasure. So through November 29, you can pick up the Fable II: See the Future add-on for only 400 points, the game Peggle for only 400 points, and Death Tank for 800 points. Start gaming!
There are tons of things to do this weekend on Xbox LIVE. Remember, tonight November 20, the first live show of 1 vs 100 launches at 10PM ET. And keep playing the game even when it’s not live to increase your score as scores accumulate this season. Want a chance to win a trip to a U.S. city of your choice? Check out the Harvest Hits sweeps which has tons of great prizes running now through November 30. And make sure to join our Community Playdate on Sunday November 22, as we play Modern Warfare 2 with the team from AnalogHype.
Yesterday, Diner Dash released on Xbox LIVE Arcade, and it is FUN! For those used to playing on the PC, using the thumbstick to ‘drive’ Flo amongst the tables is a little more difficult than mouseclicking, but the fun of having the whole family watch on the big screen and yell “Mom the customers are getting pissed off, quick clear a table!” is a fair tradeoff.
Check it out! As with every XBLA game, there is a free demo.
And when you’re away from your beloved Xbox 360 *sob* you can play Diner Dash for free online at MSN Games. OR you can download it to your PC. ORRRR play one of the zillion and eight sequels and variations including:
Diner Dash: Flo Through Time
Diaper Dash (it actually has cool gadgets!)
Diner Dash: Hometown Hero
Fitness Dash
Parking Dash
Fashion Dash
Doggie Dash
and
Wedding Dash!
The popular game show 1 vs 100 on Xbox LIVE starts its second season today, November 19, at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT with an Extended Play session, and the first two-hour live show takes place Friday, November 20, at 10 PM ET/7 PM PT. More than half a million unique contestants competed each week during the show’s first season, so you know the competition to be The One that beats The Mob is going to be intense.
![ilm1vs10002[1]](http://blogs.msdn.com/blogfiles/xboxvoices/WindowsLiveWriter/Season2of1vs100StartsNovember19_7963/ilm1vs10002%5B1%5D_thumb.jpg "ilm1vs10002[1]")
Each weeknight, the Extended Play session will allow you to hone your trivia skills on brand new themed trivia including Finish the Lyrics, The 80s, and Vampires (how well do you know Twilight?). Then, every Friday and Tuesday, comedic host Chris Cashman returns to host the 1 vs 100 live sessions where you can compete to be The One battling The Crowd for real prizes. Last year, almost two million Microsoft Points were awarded during the season so it pays to know things like the capital of Mauritania.
![ilm1vs10001[1]](http://blogs.msdn.com/blogfiles/xboxvoices/WindowsLiveWriter/Season2of1vs100StartsNovember19_7963/ilm1vs10001%5B1%5D_thumb.jpg "ilm1vs10001[1]")
This year, the higher your accumulated score across each round, during the week, and during the entire season, means you have a greater chance to be picked to be The One or in The Mob. So start playing tonight on Xbox LIVE and get that score going. I’ll give you a warm-up question. What IS the capital of Mauritania? Answer is in the comments.
Activision’s DJ Hero puts a brand-new spin on the music genre thanks to its turntable peripheral and a dedication to music genres (e.g. hip-hop and techno) that don’t usually get a lot of love from the instrument-based games.
Xbox.com’s own Tom Wiggin (Gamertag: W1gg1n) spent a little quality time with the game, and here’s what he had to say.
“DJ Hero? I love it! Why? I’ll give you three reasons.
- The Turntable controller: The concept of turntable will be foreign to most. Cross-fading, scratching and blending is quite a leap from belting out Ozzy in Guitar Hero games, but when you find the rhythm, seamlessly blending tracks and hitting scratches, the satisfaction is pure. The learning curve may be steep, but it’s well worth it. Just remember, keep your Euphoria up and rewinds spinnin’.
- The Music: There are more than 100 songs making up 93 original mixes for you to scratch away to. Industry giants like Jay-Z, Eminem and MC Hammer are masterfully produced by well known talents including DJ Shadow, Grandmaster Flash and DJ AM (RIP). The Daft Punk mixes have been my favorite experience with a music game to date. It even encouraged me to add a Daft Punk station to Last.FM.
- The Party: There’s a rumor going around that some wannabe DJ was advertising his services using just tracks from the game. I don’t doubt it. The multiple songs set lists and party inspired music are perfect for large gatherings. No matter how badly you blow a song there’s no failing in DJ Hero either, so even newcomers can grab a turntable without fear of frustration. Better yet, DJ Hero sports little in the way of music cut-outs when you mess up, so the mix still sounds good.
DJ Hero is the ultimate music party game.”
He’s the head honcho at Cerulean Games in Denver, a PAX-goer, a tweeter, and, oh yes, a gamer. Meet BahamutZaero.
trixie360: What’s the story behind your gamertag?
BahamutZaero: Long ago, deep in the bowels of Gamehell itself, lived Orgthadon - the living embodiment of low framerates and long load times. It was this beast of beasts who came to me and said, "You shall be my rival in all that is Game!". Upon changing my shorts, we then gamed for 1001 days and nights - where I came out the victor, with a score of 74500 versus his 73200 in the world's longest game of Joust. He then bestowed upon me the Gamertag of BahamutZaero - or "He who Games Too Damn Much".
That, or I said, "Hey, I love Final Fantasy 7 and Quake III... let's make a name that mixes the two together!". Bahamut-Zero + Xaero = BahamutZaero. Nuff said.
trixie360: Interesting factoid: People usually say "Nuff said” when they are making a statement that does not require a lengthy explanation. Just sayin’. ANYWAY. Where do you live?
BahamutZaero: Atop the peak of the mighty mountain, where oxygen is so thin and scarce it could be sold as a commodity, also known as Denver, Colorado.
trixie360: What do you do for a living?
BahamutZaero: I spend my days (and sometimes nights) running my video game company Cerulean Games, where I design and develop video games for various platforms and consoles. Best. Job. EVER. And I call my own shots... and the shots of everyone I pay to do work for me. I'm like a god!! Wuhahhah..haha... hah... er, wait... power going to head... brb, need a downer...
Back. With beer.
trixie360: Uh-oh. What’s the worst or weirdest job you’ve ever had?
BahamutZaero: I worked at this computer repair shop back in 2003. Overall it was actually a pretty cool job... they were a small operation, so I was the only tech next to the owner, who spent most of his time in the electronics room as he did electronics fixing via soldering and I did most of the software / systems repair. This means I got to spend most of my time hanging out on my own on the repair floor (which was actually pretty big) drinking coffee, watching TV and texting on my cell phone. As long as I got my work done (which I did), the owners didn't really care what I did. So, what made this job interesting were some of the computer problems and the customers. For example, there was this very well known brand of laptops who kept coming in with the exact same problem. It turned out to be an issue with the design of the system itself (the internal components that soldered the power connector to the motherboard would break very easily). Well, after we had a pile of no less than 18 of these, we started telling customers they would just have to call customer support for the laptop, as we were unable to fix the issue because the boards all got shorted out when it broke (which is true - we tried damn hard to fix them). The scary part about this? That company still makes laptops - and I hear many people complain about the exact same problem! Quality never changes, apparently. Another other weird event... there was this guy whose machine we upgraded the OS on, and he complained about everything that was missing (referring to everything we backed up for him on 5 CDs, with his signed approval to do so, and given to him when he picked up his machine), including the fact that "his little bee was missing". We never did figure out what this meant. I'm guessing "little bee" is secret agent code.
trixie360: How long have you been on Xbox LIVE?
BahamutZaero: I created my Xbox LIVE account shortly after the Xbox360 was released. I had the opportunity to try out the system at one of the game developer industry conferences, and right away knew there was something special about it - so when signups were allowed, I created my account! Now, I may not have had my BahamutZaero account the entire time - but I have had accounts since nearly the day Xbox LIVE account subscriptions were allowed. (I've also held somewhere around 130 test accounts on the internal developer version of Xbox LIVE from when I worked on games for the console, but that's another story.... )
trixie360: Do you have an arch enemy on Xbox LIVE?
BahamutZaero: Thrallmind. He and I are actually decent friends in real life, but I know once we go head to head in some online games, it's going to be intense. Though I suspect if I defeat him, I will have to answer to Yuki no Kokoro in the form of epic battle, as only she is allowed to defeat him.
trixie360: What’s your Xbox set-up like?
BahamutZaero: My setup is actually pretty cool, except for the lack of a really good sound system. 46" 1080p Sony flat-screen television, wireless controllers all around, including a wireless headset (I really, really, really hate wires). I'd like to get a good sound system, but if I'm going to do that, I want to do it the right way with a high-end 5.1 or 7.1 Dolby Digital setup, preferably with Bose speakers - and optical cabling all the way.
trixie360: What’s the best feature of Xbox LIVE?
BahamutZaero: From a developers standpoint - Xbox LIVE allows us to open games up like never before. We can easily bring players together so they can battle with or against each other using a rather easy to use set of SDKs and APIs. Developers can build their games to entice players to play with fun to earn Achievements, and we can get a game into millions of homes through an easy to use and well accepted distribution method. Xbox LIVE is the model that everyone else is now copying because Microsoft simply "got it right" - and it is still the model that nobody has been able to match.
From a gamer's standpoint - It allows me to frag my friends and game alongside them like we used to! We all grew up in Pittsburgh, PA - but now we live all over the country. We can't just meet up at the mall arcade anymore and play Mortal Kombat or The Simpson's Arcade Game together anymore - takes a bit of pre-planning, budgeting, and flying to do that. With XBLA, I can just message my buddy DieselBT and say, "I needs me some Castle Crashers and I can't beat that damned monster chasing me on the carriage! Prepare your best sword and join me - IN WAR! Damsels need a-savin'!"
trixie360: WRONG! The correct answer is “trixie360”. :) What is your favorite multiplayer Xbox game?
BahamutZaero: Probably Grand Theft Auto IV, simply because the epic battles that a small group of people can get into mimic something out of an action thriller movie.
trixie360: What is your favorite single player Xbox game?
BahamutZaero: Um... wow, okay, this is a hard one. Grand Theft Auto IV is pretty awesome, as I could just explore Liberty City for days straight looking for all the hidden things and enjoying all the little details. Though right now, Brütal Legend has me pretty well enthralled - but I'm an old-school gamer, so anything by Tim Schafer instantly grabs my attention. Hoping we get to see some more Maniac Mansion games, if Double Fine could acquire the rights to the IP.
trixie360: Favorite Xbox LIVE Arcade game?
BahamutZaero: Castle Crashers! It's like playing the classic arcade games with my friends back home, only online - and with more poo-spraying deer.
trixie360: What do you think is the best game of all time?
BahamutZaero: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. It's got everything I feel is needed in a solid game - great and enthralling gameplay, numerous secrets (hell, the 'game played' meter literally goes to something like 113% once you find everything), some fun humor at points, great boss battles, solid controls, an incredible soundtrack and gorgeous visuals. Despite the game coming out when I was in High School, I still pick it up to play through again. Actually, I have a game design that my company wants to make sometime (probably for XBLA, actually) that follows the "Metroidvania" style that this game and the various Metroid games (especially 3 and 4) have created. We were even in talks with a publisher at one point for it, but you know how these things go... so we'll probably keep looking for other publishers to pick it up and help give it the life it deserves.
trixie360: What do you think is the best film of all time?
BahamutZaero: I know no matter what I say here, it will be the topic of ridicule. The best movie of all time, in my opinion, is Pleasantville. I have never seen another film take on such a deep form of social commentary in such a unique way.
trixie360: What do you think is the best album of all time?
BahamutZaero: Probably Metal Combat for the Mortal Man by Powerglove, simply because it contains hard core remixes of the music I grew up gaming with!
trixie360: Rock Band or Guitar Hero?
BahamutZaero: Guitar Hero, only because it made Rock Band what it is today. Without Guitar Hero, Rock Band may have actually have come across as too gimmicky to make it - however, by easing the population into Guitar Hero, it allowed Rock Band to explode! But when it comes down to it I'll quite happily play either, though I always prefer the Bass or Acoustic guitar.
trixie360: What’s the funniest thing you’ve ever heard on Xbox LIVE?
BahamutZaero: "Shut up! I'm older than 12!" while hearing childish insults flaming around and someone else commenting on all the kids in the room.
trixie360: What is your greatest Xbox LIVE moment?
BahamutZaero: My dad hasn't really played any video games in years, despite him having made them for awhile. So, my greatest Xbox LIVE moment is... getting my father to buy himself an Xbox 360, then me logging online to find him gaming completely on his own. *sniff* The man made me proud!
trixie360: What’s your favorite TV show?
BahamutZaero: It's either Dexter or True Blood... both of those shows I wait (impatiently) to air their next episode.
trixie360: Who is your inner rock star?
BahamutZaero: Jack Black! Seriously, the man is insane in only the most awesome of ways.
trixie360: If they made a movie about your life, who should play you?
BahamutZaero: Jim Carrey. I love that guy! And I think he's the only one who could properly re-create my inner-wackiness*.
*(Inner wackiness is subject to debate. Just ask my girlfriend!)
trixie360: What’s your karaoke song?
BahamutZaero: “$*@& Her Gently” by Tenacious D. I somehow always end up singing that at Karaoke. Though last time I did Karaoke, I attempted to sing “Dr. Feelgood”. Problem is, I don't actually know Dr. Feelgood... so this did not go well, and I insulted the name of all that is metal everywhere.
trixie360: Favorite cartoon character?
BahamutZaero: Darkwing Duck. He was like Batman on Disney powered steroids.
trixie360: What super power would you like to have?
BahamutZaero: The ability to mimic what someone else can do. Then I could mimic all the other super powers, and mimic the movements. I'd be like Keanu Reeves!
trixie360: If you could trade places with anyone for one day, who would it be?
BahamutZaero: Hugh Hefner. 'Nuff said.
trixie360: Seriously? Are we talking circa 1972 or are you honestly signing up for80 year old…um…yeah. Next question! What celebrity would be the worst roommate?
BahamutZaero: Could you imagine living with Pee-Wee Herman? It would be all fun and games and secret words for awhile, but eventually someone would misuse Jombie and then things would get weird.
trixie360: How many people are on your Friends List?
BahamutZaero: 31, though I only really game with 2 or 3 of them.
trixie360: Who's your favorite Superhero?
BahamutZaero: Batman. The fact his villain is The Joker helps quite a lot with this...
trixie360: Hot celeb you’d like to be stranded on a desert island with?
BahamutZaero: Alyson Hannigan. She just seems crazy and would be too much fun to hang out with!
trixie360: Quirky choice. I approve. If you could be any video game character, who would it be?
BahamutZaero: Simon Belmont, because whips are cool. (Yes, that is my whole answer there, and yes, my reasoning is "Whips Are Cool").
trixie360: What’s the worst food you’ve ever eaten?
BahamutZaero: While growing up, I got to try all kinds of exotic dishes as my father was an amateur-professional chef. So while my friends were going home to enjoy burgers, I was going home to enjoy some dish made in Ethiopia that I could never pronounce with a side of the delicious, sour spongy bread that is common in Ethiopian cuisine due to how saucy the food is (sorta like Indian cuisine). Well, since we got to try so many great dishes, we of course had the ones that just didn't work. There was one day he cooked this dessert... it was some sort of a blueberry couscous loaf. I took one bite and had to spit it out - the dish literally tasted (and smelled) just like Play-Doh. Nobody at our table could eat it (except my friend who was over for dinner - I think he ended up eating the whole loaf). And this is saying something, as I'll happily eat natto over rice for my breakfasts, which greatly disturbed my coworkers at a previous game company I worked for, as I would eat it at my desk while reading news before starting work.
trixie360: What’s the first video game you ever played?
BahamutZaero: Okay... we're gonna have to get a little old-school here. So, back to my glory days as a child, my father used to work for a long-defunct game company called Micro Fun. So, as a wee 1 year old, I'd sit on my dad's lap and play video games on our Atari computer and Commodore64. I'll be damned if I can remember the name of it, but the very first video game I ever played was a child's game that he had on the Commodore 64... I remember there was this room in a house, and you could move things around the room and 'stuff' would happen as you did so. If we want to talk about the first game I really remember playing, it was probably a bunch of the games he had on the Apple II+, like Hunt the Wumpus and Miner 2049er. I also used to play my dad's games a lot... he made the first Jigsaw game ever (literally - look it up), and I would play that for hours. He also had this game called Art Capades which never got released (because Micro-Fun went out of business). Art Capades I remember well because it was a game way before its time... you would play with up to 3 other human or AI player's and worked your way across a game board, completing mini-games. Yup - it was basically Mario Party, only back in the 1980s. I like to think a lot of the video game developer genes I've got I earned from him.
trixie360: What’s the last book you read?
BahamutZaero: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
trixie360: If you could go on tour with any band, which would it be?
BahamutZaero: Tenacious D, simply so I could get my socks rocked off.
trixie360: What do you predict will be the 'next big thing' in gaming?
BahamutZaero: From an inside standpoint of the industry, I've been watching augmented reality growing pretty quickly. iPhone apps for the iPhone 3Gs are beginning to pop up, it's the big thing for college students to produce, and overall it's just quickly becoming pretty big. It will be very interesting to see where Project Natal goes with this... I have not had the chance to play with the Natal SDK or development kits yet, but it certainly seems like the device could make way for some pretty solid augmented reality games on the Xbox360.
trixie360: What do you think is the best thing about the Xbox 360?
BahamutZaero: How it brings gamers together in a single environment. No matter who you are or where you are, you can find someone to game with, make friends, and be part of the massive gaming community that is XBLA. Nowhere outside of PAX can gamers so easily interact with one another. (Sure, there could be an argument here that the PC makes it pretty easy too - my point however is that the Xbox360 is a less expensive and more direct way, making it overall simpler for the end-user).
trixie360: What is the Xbox 360 Achievement that was hardest to get?
BahamutZaero: Not one that I got directly, but one I helped my girlfriend achieve (though it was her in the end who got it) was the "One Man Army" achievement in Grand Theft Auto IV. We tried the brute-force tactic of running and gunning for awhile, but it really ended up being about strategy of when / where you triggered the 6-star rating, then finding the right place to wait it out where the cops couldn't find you - and they can get you almost anywhere. But not everywhere. ;)
trixie360: What would you like to be doing in ten years?
BahamutZaero: Continuing to run my game development company, having watched it grow over those ten years, and looking excitedly to where we will be in another ten.
I crouched behind a stack of crates with my FAMAS in hand. The air shattered around me as bullets popped every which way, spelling joy or defeat for my team, written in showers of blood. I rolled my flare along the tarmac and I waited.
With both teams deadlocked and the countdown approaching zero, the crate crash landed a few feet away just as an enemy leaped through a broken window and made a bee line for my reward. No sir. A three round burst to the melon thwarted his boldness, and I collected my prize, a locked and loaded AC130 gunship.
The score was 7200-7300, our advantage, when I took my shot; a victory missile that pierced the glass ceiling of the airport terminal, decimating a pair of enemies and the opposing team’s chance at snatching victory away.
These are the types of multiplayer moments that are peculiar to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, and they’re a large part of the reason that I anticipate many a marathon session with Infinity Ward’s latest gem.
The oodles of multiplayer improvements MW 2 brings to the table are numerous, but here are just a few I’ve grown particularly fond of after a week of dedicated play.
- Upgraded Perks: It’s already nice to sport the Commando Perk, which lets me lunge an extra few feet when I ply my melee attack, but it’s even sweeter that by dedicating myself to the melee strike I can earn an upgraded version of that perk. In the case of the Commando Perk (all Perks are upgradeable), it allows me to fall any amount of distance without taking damage.
- Unlockable Killstreaks: The original Modern Warfare sported three Killstreak rewards: UAV, Air Strike, and Gunship. MW 2 on the other hand offers fifteen ways with which to reward yourself and your team for top-flight performance. These include such noteworthy items as Counter UAVs, a Pave Low, a Harrier Strike, and of course the mother of them all, a Tactical Nuke, which, incidentally, fries the entire battlefield and ends the match in your favor. No questions asked. Of course, you’ll have to pony up twenty-five consecutive kills to earn it.
- New Equipment: The introduction of such items as throwing knives, tactical insertion (use it to generate your next spawn point), and semtex, to name a few, really help spice up your load out. More importantly for me though, they come at the cost of frag grenades, so there’s less grenade spamming in general. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good grenade kill, but it’s a nice change of pace not to have to dodge them at every turn.
- Tactical Maps: The maps on display in MW 2 are, in a word, more sophisticated than the original game. Consequently, greater care must be taken in each section of nearly every map. While the game-speed remains as fast and fluid as ever, the need to be more careful really helps MW 2 feel more tactical. This I like.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has done itself proud, and I think it’s high time I stop chattering about it and fire it up for a few more rounds of MP goodness. See you online!
The wait is over! At 2:00 AM this morning we flipped the proverbial switch here at Xbox LIVE HQ, delivering huge new features to the Xbox LIVE service. Headlining the update are two huge community features in Facebook and Twitter integration, with instant-on 1080p HD video streaming and last.fm functionality round out one of our biggest updates ever.
Facebook users (a demographic which I’m afraid to report, may include your mother), are now able to update their status, connect with friends and share achievements, all from the Xbox 360. The Friend Linker allows you to connect with friends on Facebook who have LIVE accounts but aren’t on your XBL friends list. We’ve also developed an official Facebook Friend Llinker app, available here: http://apps.facebook.com/xboxapp/
For the update-happy among us, the Twitter app offers the ability to update your status and interact with your friends from the comfort of your couch. Keep up to date with the latest from your friends, the Xbox team and obscure celebrities whose renewed fame cannot be sanely rationalized.
The Xbox 360 has always been on the cutting edge of media streaming and with the introduction of Zune on Xbox, we’re now able to instantly stream 1080p HD with 5.1 audio straight into your living room. Shake the walls, wake the neighbors and enjoy picture quality so sharp you’ll need to child-proof it.
Last.fm is the latest and greatest in streaming radio, and now it’s streaming straight to your Xbox 360. Create a station and customize it to your liking to sculpt your ultimate music experience, which you can even share with friends. Or not, because, well there’s a lot of Air Supply in there.
Log on today and check out the new features, then let us know what you think!
