The Making of Alan Wake February 20, 2012
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Edge Online has posted up a fantastic article about the making of the game Alan Wake. With Alan Wake now released to the PC, and the next Alan Wake game coming Wednesday exclusive to the Xbox Live Arcade, it’s a great nostalgic trip for Alan Wake fans and newcomers alike! Check it out!
Mass Effect 3 Kinect Demo February 18, 2012
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Joined by diskreader117, Maniac plays the brand new Mass Effect 3 demo on the Xbox 360 and tries out some of the game’s Kinect features included in the demo. What did they think about it and how well did it work, take a look for yourselves and find out.
Xbox 360 Hard Drives Close Up February 17, 2012
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With a lot of the comments I’ve been getting in my previous How-To videos revolving around people having issues with fraudlent Xbox 360 drives I wanted to help people out by showing what actual Xbox 360 drives look like for both the original model and new slims, and what to look for when buying a new drive.
Please note, buying drives that aren’t made by Microsoft is not a wise move. Since starting my how-to series I’ve been troubleshooting for many people having a wide range of problems with non-microsoft drives, ranging from the drives not being detected at all by the Xbox 360 to errors and the inability to play backwards compatible Xbox 1 games like Halo 2.
Alan Wake Releases To PC February 16, 2012
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All steam ahead, Alan Wake has been released to the PC and you can purchase it for download right now through Steam.
Here’s the official launch trailer for the PC version of the game.
There’s a promo going on right now that anyone who purchases the game this week will get an automatic update to the downloadable collector’s edition of the game including some extra downloadable content including the game’s soundtrack.
Alan Wake is out now for PC and is still out for the Xbox 360.
Xbox 360 Color Issues Update Released February 16, 2012
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Since the recent Fall Update (2011), there have been many online 360 users that have been complaining to Microsoft that there were issues with color vibrancy with third-party video apps used by the Xbox 360. During beta testing the issues, they claim, were mostly ignored or swept under the rug. When the update released and many more Live users noticed the problem, Microsoft promised they would fix the issue, and today, they have released a required update which lists a fix to color issues as part of its patch notes.
According to the details of the update, the third-party programs may need to be updated in order for full color compatibility, and that may take some time. From what I heard, people were complaining about this issue in programs like Netflix, but oddly did not have such an issue with Microsoft’s Zune program.
You will be automatically notified about the update upon initial login to Xbox Live. The patch is required for Live access.
Playstation 3 Firmware 4.11 Released February 16, 2012
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A not yet required release has quietly been phased into the Playstation 3 update program in the form of Firmware Update 4.11. When I say quietly I mean very quietly, there is no notification of the update during Playstation Network login. The only way you would know the update was there would be to check the Firmware Update program manually. No patch notes were included with the update, so it is unclear what, if anything the update is supposed to do or fix.
From what I have researched, the firwmare is not required to access the Playstation Network in the United States, but it is required to use the Playstation Network in other nations.
Farewell to the Sony PSP February 16, 2012
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With the first Vita games hitting the market and the Playstation Vita being released within the next few days, I thought it would be nice to talk about the device it’s replacing, the Playstation Portable. I’ve had one since 2005 (shortly after launch) and a bunch of games for it. So I talk about some of the games I have, my thoughts on the device, and what I think the Vita’s release means for the Memory Stick Pro Duo.
My Date with the Calendar Man – Day 5: Valentine’s Day February 14, 2012
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Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Lets visit Julian Day, better known as The Calendar Man, at his cell in Arkham City. Chocolates in hand, we’ll see if he’ll be our Valentine.
Podcast 8 – Uncharted February 12, 2012
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The latest site podcast covers the Uncharted series for the Sony Playstation 3 (and soon Playstation Vita handheld). In it, Maniac talks about his initial memories of it, what he thinks of the games, and what he’s seen of the upcoming Uncharted Golden Abyss for the Playstation Vita.
Hope you’re enjoying all the podcasts, I’m enjoying making them for you!
Taco Bell Playstation Vita Unlock the Box Contest Review February 10, 2012
Posted by Maniac in Reviews.4 comments
During CES earlier this year, Taco Bell made the announcement that they would be providing their customers the chance to win the new Sony Vita handheld early in a new promotion they were planning for this month. Well, the Unlock the Box promotion has started and I have plenty to say about it.
It seems that Sony is quite comfortable promoting their products through fast food chains, and I really don’t have a problem with this because it’s no different from what the motion picture industry does with major summer blockbusters.
By purchasing a Taco Bell 5-Buck Box (it doesn’t seem to matter which one) you will receive a box with a unique identification code printed on it, similar to a CD-Key. By visiting the Taco Bell mobile site on your cell phone while at the store (or if you need to, bring the box home with you and redeem the code at home) and giving it your e-mail address, you have the random chance to instantly win a Playstation Vita before the handheld gets an official release. The site itself is pretty easy to navigate and inputting the unlock code on the site is dirt simple.
However, this is not the only chance you have to win, Taco Bell has also released a mobile app for iOS and Android which contains a fun little Augmented Reality game. The problem is that the app is over 20MB in size, making downloading it over 3G at the Taco Bell impossible on an iPhone. UPDATE: Literally right after writing this review the program was patched to be under 20MB. If you decide to download it after getting back home, be aware you can’t use the app’s full functionality without having the actual five-buck box. Your best chance is to bring your food home with you take out. From the Taco Bell app you have another chance to enter the contest, but you’ll have to have better luck than me to get anything out of that. However, the Augmented Reality game is quite fun and quirky and makes good use of the mobile phone features, and features a whole range of awards once you start playing it.
Well, you really can’t rate a contest on the factors of if you win or not alone, because lets face it, you’re not going to win. UPDATE: What was a pessimistic joke has, if recent controversy over the promotion is true, taken on a new meaning. However, unlike Uncharted’s promotion last year, you got a lot out of just participating in that event even if you weren’t a winner of the contest. Other than access to the AR game, there’s no benefits to entering, and the game cannot be played without a five-buck box in the phone’s camera field of view at all times.
It’s still a nice step towards gaming being treated as a legitimate medium on par with its entertainment brothers and sisters like movies or music. Still waiting to see any of Microsoft’s properties trying something like this. Give it a go, if you like Taco Bell you can’t have worse luck than I did.
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