Zune HD owners rejoice. Crickets? Microsoft has recently announced that a batch of new 3D games is now available at the Zune MarketPlace. For Free. That’s right, the following games are available now for free: Project Gotham Racing: Ferrari Edition, Audiosurf Tilt, Vans Sk8: Pool Service, Lucky Lanes Bowling, Piano, and Checkers.
Totally cool for free right! Hopefully this will help Microsoft move some units this holiday season, but having not yet seen an actual Zune HD in person, I’m interested in how good the gaming will be on this thing. If you are a Zune HD owner and download these free games and let me know just how 3D they actually are!
Remember just a year ago, when Wiis were almost impossible to find in stores and you could make a pretty fair chunk of cash by selling one of these hot little properties on eBay? Well, a year makes a pretty huge difference, and now, there’s a Wii in most every home that wants one. Of course, this has posed a whole new problem for Nintendo.
The company that could do no wrong just this time last year, is now facing–get this–a forty percent drop in quarterly revenues, and no immediate indication that things will get better.
Admittedly, there were only so many units they could ever sell, period–who really needs TWO Wiis?–but Nintendo exec Satoru Iwata thinks he’s got the answer: it’s all about the games. People are starting to realize that there aren’t a whole lot of good, high-demand games for their system. After all, you can only play so many Wario Ware titles before you start to lose the point.
But I’m with him on that one–the Wii needs more games. And not just big mini-game collections, either, but actual GAMES. They’ve got a great platform, if only they’d do something with it.
Not too long ago we posted on the expensive but cool TouchScreen Rubik’s Cube and today we have the Classic Nintendo version. Though I don’t recognize all of these icons, I’m sure there are fanboys out there that have these tattooed in special places.
Designed by deviantARTist r4r3truffle, this item is not for sale at this time. I have never been that great at puzzles and I definitely have never completed a Rubik’s Cube. I’m not so sure this version could get me interested.
To help ease the potentially painful transition for those of you upgrading from the UMD PSP to the PSP Go, Sony is willing to throw you 3 free games for the trouble. So far this deal is only going to be available in Europe and goes through October 1st to March 31st.
PSP Go upgraders will have their choice to pick 3 out of 17 games that they will be able to download from Sony’s PSN. The games so far will be all Sony 1st-party titles that include: Killzone: Liberation, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 3, WipEout Pure, Echochrome, LocoRoco, and Patapon. I’m sure the full list will be disclosed soon.
According to Sony, you will have to log on to PSN with your old PSP in order to get the deal. Is this a good enough effort by Sony to make you want to upgrade to a PSP Go? Also, why the hell can’t the US get this offer??
An interesting idea comes to us by way of the folks at Spawn Labs, who have basically introduced us to the equivalent of the Slingbox, but for games.
Basically, what the Spawn HD-720 does is give you access to your own games when you’re not in the house or near the gaming location of your choice. You can connect the “input device of your choosing”, which is an interesting move in and of itself, meaning (if I read this right) you can use your choice of controller for all your games. There’s one thing to remember, though–with this game system, you have to have your games loaded into system memory, otherwise, the only game you’ll be playing is the last thing you left in the CD tray.
They retail for a hundred and ninety nine dollars, and are apparently now available either from the Spawn Labs website or in stores.
How do you attest your dieing passion for the video game Left 4 Dead? Simple. You request one of your friends to build a custom Xbox 360 in its image. But as they say, no good deed goes unpunished. FatalJapan, who received the custom art work on his video game console, free of charge, had no qualms with noting that his buddy left out some of the details, such as a Left4Dead logo, but at the very least appreciates that he fixed the E74 error message.
How do you impress your friends and become a YouTube sensation? Okay, the latter might be a bit of a reach, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this kid reaches some level of stardom. Not only does he manage to solve a Rubik’s Cube while playing Ozzy Osbourne’s Mr. Crowly on Expert mode in Guitar Hero, but he does with his back to the TV, using a mirror of course.
Sure, the song doesn’t require an endless amount of strumming – which he does with his elbow – but I couldn’t even solve a Rubik’s Cube to save my life.
Last weekend I got to try my hand, or should I say feet, at the latest Tony Hawk skateboard game, RIDE. I think it’s pretty fair to say that there has been some skepticism floating around this version since iterations before seemed to be just slight or minor tweaks from previous installments.
Let me start by putting any of those apprehensions to bed. As far as I’m concerned Activision and Tony Hawk have created a game changing (pardon the pun) experience. I really only got to play part of a level, which equated to about 2 minutes of gameplay, but the RIDE board really brings something else to the table. I won’t lie, my legs were shaking a bit since my muscles were constantly adjusting, trying to find the center of gravity of the board – it sits on a bump, a sort of axis which enables you to lean left or right – but that’s what will make the experience so thrilling and exciting. As soon as you begin to master the balance on the board you’ll be able to engage in many more tricks. And for those of you out there that already skate, I honestly believe that the RIDE game will complement your preexisting abilities, unlike the Guitar Hero games which I’ve heard many musician complain about.
Trick wise I was only able to complete an ollie and manual. Both of those moves are carbon copies of the real thing (almost), while the other moves, based on my limited experience, seem to involve the 4 sensors located at the ends and sides of the board. So for instance, you’ll be able to lean down and grab the board (covering the sensor) and perform grab tricks as well as swing your foot over the other sensor to perform a variety of moves.
There are 3 settings – beginner, intermediate and experienced – and while I only got to try out the beginner level, which puts you on a sort of wire so you don’t have to concentrate on steering, I actually can’t wait to try the other settings since I think it will be a more difficult but engaging experience to keep my character and board on the right track. With that said, gone are the days of the Tony Hawk open world levels, but in all fairness I think it’s a good price to pay for the far more immersive experience.
Outside of the above, I really don’t know what else to expect from the game. It’s great to see video games getting closer and closer to virtual reality, although it maybe a ways off, and if you think Microsoft’s Natal experience will replace controllers of this type any time soon, think again.
So despite the fact that RIDE is a $120 video game, it’s painfully obvious that those willing to plunk down the cold hard cash will get paid dividends on their investment.
Diogo from Spawn Studios has been kind enough to give us redemption codes for 10 free copies of the iPhone game MagnetRox. That’s a $1.99 value, and to make things super simple I’m posting the codes on a ‘hidden’ page on GadgetReview. Just go here to grab the code and leave a comment on the post when you’ve used it.
Amazon has the game Need for Speed: Shift for 
