VampireG’s Blog

I know this is probably old news by now, but I have been busy so out of it for a bit. As most Xbox 360 owners will know there is going to be a Dashboard update on December 4th 2007 which will include some new features. Microsoft are keeping quiet about most of the new features but have released a press release about one of them.

It basically allows your friends to see your friend list, I guess what are trying to expand the friends list to allow more people to contact each other. Press release below:

Friends of Friends Coming to Xbox LIVE

Published November 26, 2007

Microsoft is making it even easier to expand your Friends network on Xbox LIVE®, starting with the Fall Dashboard Update on December 4. You’ll be able to check out the friends lists of fellow Xbox LIVE members right from the Dashboard. With this new feature, members can find old friends or connect with new ones within the community of more than eight million people on Xbox LIVE around the globe and send messages and game invites, as well as compare games and Achievements.

With the prevalence of social media websites such as MySpace and FaceBook, this type of capability has largely come to be expected from consumers as a means to relate in an online community. Xbox LIVE continually seeks new ways to better serve the expectations of its members, which often result in free enhancements made available through the bi-annual Dashboard updates.

Friends List Settings
When the Fall Dashboard update is distributed on December 4, the new default setting on Xbox LIVE will be active, enabling members to see the Friends lists of other Xbox LIVE members. If you’d like to keep your friends list private, you can take the following steps to change your settings beginning today:

Log in to www.xbox.com/fof and select one of the three options available for your Gamertag:

• Everyone (only available to members 18 and older)
• Friends only (available to members 13 and older)
• Blocked (available to all members, and automatic for anyone under the age of 13)

Stay tuned for more information about the Xbox 360 Dashboard Update later this month!

For those of you that have Warhawk for the PS3, you will be happy to hear that the first expansion pack is coming next month! The press release is as follows:

Announcing Operation: Omega Dawn
Get a brand new map and a new aircraft: the awesome KT-424 Combat Dropship.

All this in one download from PLAYSTATION®NetworkThe battle began this August when Warhawk™ went online on PLAYSTATION®Network (PSN). Since then, the fighting has spanned the globe as PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) gamers of all nationalities battle for supremacy in this world of multiplayer military confrontation. Whether you’re fending for yourself or enlisting in a team of Eucadian or Chernovan forces to wage war on foot, at the controls of a tank or from the cockpit of the fearsome Warhawk, there’s non-stop action ahead in Warhawk – and it’s about to get even better with the PSN release of Operation: Omega Dawn, the first downloadable Warhawk expansion pack exclusively available from PLAYSTATION®Store. Operation: Omega Dawn delivers a new gameplay experience that expands the title’s strategic gameplay elements by offering a new world to explore and introducing a unique aircraft to the Warhawk universe: the awesome KT-424 Combat Dropship.

With Operation: Omega Dawn, the war between the Eucadians and the Chernovans forces continues as the two countries fight to control the high-tech facilities of a critical new battlefield – the Omega Factory. The battle takes place in an entirely new world - an industrial night-time setting where players will fight through five new layouts of advanced building complexes and huge industrial towers. The new map supports all existing game modes – including Team Deathmatch, Zone Mode and Capture the Flag – and is the largest combat zone to date for Warhawk!

But that’s not all; no new battlefield would be complete without a new piece of kit, and Operation: Omega Dawn comes complete with a serious toy which will enhance the already intense Warhawk experience: the KT-424 Combat Dropship. You’ll activate the vehicle once you gain control of one of the many weapons factories on the world; once you have it, you’re in charge of an advanced aircraft capable of carrying seven soldiers and a ground vehicle at once. The KT-424 Combat Dropship transports 1 pilot, 6 soldiers and 1 ground vehicle; and features a deadly new weapon – the MBEC-3 Heavy Support Cannon. You’ll have loads of opportunity to take full advantage of the new KT-424 Combat Dropship because the new world is full of vertical gameplay which integrates ship decks, raised platforms, and factory rooftops accessible only by airborne deployment.

Are you ready for Operation: Omega Dawn? Only the fiercest, most visionary and most disciplined teams of soldiers can hope to carry the day. We’ll see you there – locked and loaded - on PSN this December.

Operation: Omega Dawn pack features:

Set at night for added impact and tension, the Operation: Omega Dawn pack for Warhawk™ features an enhanced level of teamwork, tactics and coordinated aerial assaults with the new KT-424 Combat Dropship.

• Omega Factory battlefield includes 5 new map layouts featuring advanced building complexes and huge industrial towers.
• KT-424 Combat Dropship transports 1 pilot, 6 soldiers and 1 ground vehicle; and features a deadly new weapon – the MBEC-3 Heavy Support Cannon.
• The 5 large layouts from the original battlefields have been modified to include the KT-424 Combat Dropship.
• All this in one single download from PLAYSTATION Network this December

Ok Mass Effect has arrived in my life, it has been over a year and half since I first heard that BioWare where going to be creating a game within their own universe.

A whole new universe with new races, characters, ships and planets. Knights of the Old Republic was one of my favorite Xbox games and to know that BioWare where going to release a game on 360 got me excited.

Well the game arrived Friday and so far I have managed to invest 8 hours of time playing it, and I have to say it does not disappoint. The game is amazing! The story is interesting, the characters I actually care about, the dialogue system is very fluid and every damn line of speech in the game is actually voice acted.

There a couple of niggles with it however, I mean it is not a perfect game but it is the most enjoyment I have had playing my 360 for a long time, and for me so far this has to be the game of 2007.

I am sure I will write more babble when I get further into the game, however for those of you that own a Xbox 360 and like RPG/FPS games then this has to be in your collection.

So I use eBay and I basically sell my used Console games etc and I have found eBay really useful. Every now and again though you get some idiot who either is a complete retard or just does not understand how eBay works.

So FISHFACE121 you are a complete retard in this case. First you bid on 2 PS3 games, and you successfully win them, so far you think this is all good. But alas once this eBay user had actually won the items he/she/retard then emailed me to ask if they work on a PS2? Well firstly the fricking items said, and I will quote “PlayStation 3 (PS3)”, so you are a dick if you think a PS3 game will work on a PS2, secondly you don’t fricking ask after you have won the item.

This user FISHFACE121 also does not respond to emails I have sent 5 so far, so eBay has now officially picked up this issue and is dealing with it, but alas on eBay I try and stay professional and be polite to all, however on my own Blog I can say what the hell I want and FISHFACE121 you are a complete retard, you need to send your PS2 back from whence it came as you obviously have no idea about Games Consoles.

FISHFACE121 you also should not go near eBay again as you obviously have no idea on how it actually works, in fact save other people the pain and perhaps sell your PC as I am sure you have no idea how that really works either!

 Rant over! I thank you!

So as I mentioned before I managed to end up with two versions of Assassins Creed, one for the 360 and one for the PS3.

I thought this would be a great opportunity to compare the games side by side and share my thoughts.

Price

Well both versions cost me £39.99 from Gameplay so I this is a pretty easy one to be honest.

Tie: XBox 360 and PS3

Gameplay

In essence the games played exactly the same from what I have seen which is basically playing both games up to the first Assassination. The games played the same I could no see difference in content and gameplay at all.

Tie: Xbox 360 and PS3

Controls

Ok I think controls are something of a personal preference. The Xbox controller will suite some people and the PS3 controller will suite others. There is no Sixaxis support in Assassins Creed so be honest for me anyways out of the box I prefer the XBox 360 controller which also supports rumble. However to be fair this is really a tie.

Tie: Xbox 360 and PS3

Graphics

This is the big one then really, this is the one that most people really care about. I am not going to waffle on about how great the game looks etc, as to be honest the game does look amazing on both consoles, instead I will just get straight the point on what is actually not good about the graphics and why.

The PS3 loses out again to the 360, which I was really disappointed with to be honest. For a game that started life on the PS3, for a console with more beef than a Burger King Burger the graphics on the PS3 should be better than the 360, but they are not! Why? I noticed that on the PS3 there was a lot of frame-rate drop when the screen got busy, and lets face it most of the time you are in a busy city so the frame-rate dropped a lot. I also noticed that the textures on the PS3 did not seem as crisp as the 360 although this was only noticed under real scrutiny and would detract from playing the game. However the PS3 did suffer from a lot more pop-up than the 360. Both consoles suffer from a bit of Pop-up however the PS3 more so. I really noticed things such as textures popping-in, shadows appearing from nowhere.

Both games are great to look at, just the PS3 version lacks some polish on textures, suffers from more pop-up and poor frame-rate drop.

Winner: Xbox 360

Sound

Both games use 5.1 surround sound and to be honest they both sounded exactly the same through my Sony Surround System.

Tie: Xbox 360 and PS3

Overall

Well overall the games are pretty much the same on whatever console you choose to buy it on. The Xbox 360 really only has it’s nose slightly ahead here but alas wins this comparison for me. What with the overall better graphic performance and with the achievement system to me it would be my choice.

Overall Winner: Xbox 360

There are few games that I get excited about, Mass Effect by Bioware is one of those games. I have had Mass Effect on Pre-order for over a year now and finally this week the waiting is over. Fingers crossed it does not turn out to be a Mass Disappointment I am sure it won’t be, but there has been a couple of games recently which have been a little disappointing.

I guess I better finish Assassins Creed by Wednesday as hopefully Thursday Mass Effect will arrive on my doorstep. As sad as it sounds I even booked some days off work to play this one!

Ok a bit of a cock up took place when I ordered my Assassins Creed. I originally ordered the Xbox 360 version, and then on hearing a rumor that the PS3 version was going to be better I cancelled the Xbox 360 version and ordered the PS3 version. Well I was a little slow in my order cancellation and low and behold yesterday Assassin Creed for the XBox 360 arrived on my lap.

The interesting point is today Assassins Creed for the PS3 has also landed on my lap, so I think what I will do over the weekend is play them both and give you a honest review of both versions.

However here are my initial thoughts on the Xbox 360 version of the game:

What I like so far:

• Graphics are absolutely gorgeous
• Control system is very fluid and easy to use
• The city crowds actually seem alive
• The sheer size and scale the game portrays is amazing
• I actually like the “twist” as people are calling it

What I don’t like so far:

• The fighting mechanics are a little clunky
• The “Blend in” mode makes the game too easy as you may as well be invisible

Ok so the list of don’t likes currently is not too long, but I have only really played the game for about 3 hours. The really stand out thing for me is the graphics engine, it is amazing the level of detail you get with the distance the game draws. As for the objects that are right up close to you the textures are very detailed indeed.

The character moves very fluidly and I think is a triumph as it could easily have been complicated and impossible to get your assassin to leap from roof to roof.

So far I have arrived in Damascus and I am collecting information for my first contract so to speak. Currently this is new and pretty fun, although I can imagine having to do this over and over again is going to get a little boring but we will have to see.

Overall at present I am impressed with the game. I know you may feel these thoughts are a little thin, but I don’t want to give too much of the game away as it is so new. Lets just say I will share some more thoughts soon and also share my thoughts on how the XBox 360 and PS3 versions sit side by side.

I have just read a story on the BBC News website (found here), about some people complaining to a city council about receiving parking fines on Remembrance Day whilst they attended a Remembrance Service around the corner.

Congratulations to them for attending such a service as those who died in the war should be remembered, but also congrats to the Traffic Warden for doing her job.

Just because these people where attending a remembrance service does not exclude them from parking in a residential parking area! The cheek of some people it pains me!

Maybe when Christmas comes these people won’t mind me parking in their drive ways whilst I attend a Midnight Mass!

Yup that’s right finally at the end of this week we can get our hands on Assassins Creed. A game I was not too excited about but the excitement has grown after seeing the game-play footage available on the net.

The graphics look great on both PS3 and Xbox360, there has been some rumours that the PS3 version is going to be better than the 360 version? I guess we will wait and see, I have opted to purchase my copy on the PS3.

If you have any comments on whether the graphics are better on the PS3 post them here as I would be interested to hear your opinions to why etc.

Well they say if you complain enough then things will change. Well obviously a lot of European gamers where very unhappy with the US only release of the demo for Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune.

Well someone listened somewhere…. you still need to log onto the US store, but the 1.2GB file I downloaded the other night I downloaded again after a tip off from a mate, and low and behold it now works on a PAL machine!!! Hooray for complaining hey!

So if you have a US account, and lets face it any respective Euro gamer will have, then get yourself the Uncharted Demo as to be honest folks I think we may have a PS3 game that actually is really quite good!