Hardware Review: Microsofts XBox 360s

Microsoft was first.

Well, with this current generation of video game consoles, they were. The Xbox 360 was released in November 2005, ahead of their competitors at Nintendo and Sony. But being first had its drawbacks. In order to come in at an appropriate price point, there would be no internal Hard drive, no WiFi, no Bluetooth (it still doesn't have that), no Bluray (or that), and eventually would fall prey to overly common hardware breakdowns. Many frustrated hardcore and casual gamers have suffered the dreaded "Red Ring Of Death", having to send their consoles back to Microsoft (MS) for repair or replacement, many times more than once and prompting MS to extend the manufacturer's warranty to an unprecedented 3 years.

It has been 5 years of pleasure and pain for XBox gamers. On one hand you had the best library (for hardcore games), the finest and most utilitarian online service, and you had it sooner. And on the other hand, you paid a high premium for what would become standard features in later consoles like internal hard drives and WiFi (that wireless networking adapter is ridiculously overpriced. Someone should have been shot behind that one), not to mention had to deal with one of the worst hardware failure rates in history. As a Xbox 360 user, I lived in fear of the RRoD and was constantly annoyed by my incredibly finicky wireless adapter.

But no longer.

At this years Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Microsoft revealed their updated XBox 360, the XBox 360s (officially). A sleeker, slimmer gloss black model boasting an internal 250 GB hard drive, improved engineering and internal configuration and heat dissipation, and an integrated WiFi.

My first impressions when I got my model were that it was a very sleek and sexy looking piece of equipment. It has a angular hourglass profile and one silver on/off touch sensitive button placed slightly off center on the front. There are two USB ports in the front hidden behind a small spring loaded door and 5 more ports in the back. That should be enough for anyone. There is also a special port to allow for compatibility with MS's new Kinect controller system which will debut this fall for retail. Older model 360s will have to use a separate and probably overpriced adapter to use Kinect. The unit seems ready to go.

When I got home the first thing I had to do was migrate my data from my old Hard drive to my new one. I had to use a Transfer cable, which was NOT included, to do this but the process only took me a matter of a few minutes. My old 60 GB hard drive only had 15 GB of that space used, and once it was done, I was up and running. As easy as this process was, I really feel that the extra $20 expense of these transfer cables is a little bit much. Especially when you will only do this procedure once or twice during your entire ownership cycle. I found it annoying to have to buy a component that I could only get one use out of. Readers, if you can, buy one used.

One thing I really need to mention is that this thing is quiet. I mean whisper quiet. Really. I used to be able to hear my XBox fan over the sound of my games at times, but not any more. Apparently there is only one fan in the machine now and the new hardware configuration allows for more efficient heat dispersal. Notice I didn't say it didn't get hot. It does. It almost worried me a bit as after a few minutes it seemed as if my fiancee's hair dryer was blowing out of that thing so much hot air was coming out of it. Then I realized it's probably a good thing that all that heat is leaving the machine instead of being trapped inside and causing serious breakdowns. The RRoD is no longer an indicator of hardware failure. Now if there's a catastrophe, one of two things will happen. A red LED light will show up on your power brick, replacing the default yellow, or the system will issue a warning and shut down before any damage can occur. Let's hope it doesn't come to that. I bought a replacement plan just in case. Due to MS's track record, I'm not taking any chances. Hoping for the best but preparing for the worst this time.

I've put in some multi-hour Halo 3 sessions since I got it and the machine's performance has been alright. My disc games have loaded just as expected, but one of my HD games that I downloaded after the transfer hiccuped at launch and needed rebooting. After that, it worked fine. The touch sensitive buttons for startup and disk tray access are WAY too sensitive. A feather touch is nearly all it takes to turn your system off or pop the tray open. The cat has already caused me to rage when she was sitting on top of the machine (it's really warm, remember) and cut my game off with her paw dangling absently over the power button. Watch out for that. My wireless connection seemed a little wonky too at first but I suffered no disconnects like I had dealt with before. I think this had more to do with server side issues than anything client side.

The $299 price point is good, especially if you already own an XBox and can get in on a trade-in deal at a local retailer. You may have to act fast of course. If you have yet to own an XBox, I really can't say this is a bad time to jump in. Many people lamented the extra expense for storage and utility and the 360s alleviates a lot of this. A 250 GB Hard Drive and integrated WiFi for no additional cost (vs. the XBox 360 Elite) doesn't suck at all. The upcoming exclusives for the system are attractive and the built in Kinect compatibility is a plus for casual gamers. But if you are already against MS or the XBox for some reason, this won't change your mind too much, but it's a bit harder now to argue against it.

Review: Transformers: War for Cybertron

Transformers: War for Cybertron.

Playstation 3, Xbox 360, PC

High Moon Studios: developer

Activision: publisher

Why do so many licensed games fail? Well, all too often, we see a product rushed to market to capitalize on popularity. Publishers, so concerned with a bottom line, crack the whip on their developers so that a game can come out “hot”, and the results are almost universally disappointing. Gamers are usually treated to choppy, unbalanced, gameplay, glitchy controls, poor and uninspired A.I., and whisper thin stories among other problems. In other words, we get terrible games for our 50 to 60 dollar investment. Not to mention that the bigger the property, the higher the expectations, and conversely, the bigger the disappointment. We have all seen this happen. War for Cybertron has a HUGE mountain to climb.

For some reason, when I first heard about this title, I actually had high expectations. Although I had never heard of High Moon Studios, and the overwhelming trend of licensed properties translating to mediocre games, and the fact that this particular license has been milked, butchered, and contorted (pardon the pun) for 25 years, there was something about this title that made me say “This will be one to pay attention to”. I could not be happier to be right. Transformers: War for Cybertron is a delight in almost every way.

So here’s how this all came down. High Moon Studios has a bunch of old school Transformers dorks like me over there. Disappointed with the films, and the games, and the way the property has been treated as a whole since, oh, about 1989, and recognizing the love they and other fans had of the original “Generation 1” Transformers they pitched an idea to toy company Hasbro, to tell a story, one that was unattached to any current movie or television or comic or any other entertainment channel. They were armed only with a few character sketches of a redesigned Bumblebee and an idea to tell the story of the end of the war between the heroic Autobots and evil Decepticons on their home planet of Cybertron. Hasbro loved the idea so much that not only did they green light the production of the game; they made the story that High Moon would tell into actual Transformers canon. This game effectively tells what DID happen in those last few days of the Cybertronian war.

So what about the game? Transformers: War for Cybertron is a squad based third person action shooter. You control a single bot that can be equipped with two main weapons, grenades of different types, two special abilities not to mention the ability to transform into a vehicle of some sort at any time completely on the fly. In the single player campaign, 2 indestructible AI allies will accompany your bot. There is a multiplayer co-op mode where you will be matched with other players over the internet. There is also online competitive multiplayer with the requisite deathmatch, team deathmatch, a territory capture/defense, and a few other modes. It’s robust enough but it doesn’t really break much new ground. It’s all executed very well however.

There are 4 “classes” you can choose from in single and multiplayer: a quick scout class (fast car transformation) that excels at stealth and long range weapons, a soldier class (tank) that deals well up close with heavy weapons, a scientist class (jet modes) that is very mobile, and finally a leader class (trucks and large vehicles) that generally can deal heavy damage or support and buff their teammates. The more you play multiplayer, the more abilities and kill streak rewards you can unlock a la Call of Duty. Now, I have a slight problem with this as I feel this unbalances gameplay towards those that have played the longest. New players may be overwhelmed not only by the learning curve (not so bad actually) but also by more experienced players that have maxed out their characters with the best weapons and equipment. I suppose we will see how the competitive multiplayer works out over time.

Personally the star of this show is the storyline. It’s great. Simple as that. The characters are full and colorful, and the story is presented clearly. I never had to really wonder what was going on. Certain characters did allude to events in the past periodically that were not a part of this story arc. It leaves a lot of room open for another prequel strangely enough. Longtime fans will be pleased to hear the smooth baritone voice of Peter Cullen as Optimus (not yet) Prime. We are missing a few other old favorite voice actors, but overall, it’s really good. The banter, jokes, and interplay between the characters while on the missions is fresh, sometimes corny in a good way, and really helps carry the sometimes lengthy levels along. It generally took me anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour to complete each level.

Environment design is good overall. Cybertron feels and looks like a war torn technological hell. It is dark and gritty in a lot of places. I think it could have used a few more colors in the palette though as many of the levels lack their own feel with a few exceptions. It’s actually depressing. However I guess a planet that has been ravaged by millions of years of war won’t exactly look like Tahiti. Nevertheless, a little more difference in the look and feel of the levels would have been alright. The levels are well paced, with numerous checkpoints along the way. Basically, if you hammer at it long enough, you will progress. I did find that ammo would sometimes be a little scarce but there’s usually enough. Try not to waste your shots though. I played through on medium difficulty and sometimes got a little nervous about my ammo. However, you can always transform ant take advantage of your vehicular weapon as well.

Transforming is essential. It doesn’t feel like a gimmick in any way. It’s smooth and fluid and fun to switch at a moments notice from robot to car/jet/truck/tank. The land-based vehicles are all hover cars so you can move and strafe in any direction. This is a good design decision because you don’t feel awkward at all having to line an enemy up in your sights. The jets operate similarly. I was really relieved by this because I felt this would be a major issue the developers would have to answer. Luckily, High Moon did a great job integrating transformations into the gameplay.

I am so glad I got this game. It’s a great diversion from Halo and it shows my favorite childhood property a lot of love. High Moon cares. I almost boycotted this game because I have questioned Activision’s business practices in the past. But I’m glad I didn’t. High Moon deserves to see a major return on their investment here. This game is a must buy. Even if you don’t play online, the story is totally worth it. Now if someone can get around to Thundercats…….

The breakdown:

Graphics: 8 of 10

The look is great. Smooth where it need to be. Gritty where it needs to be. Awesome character designs and models are throughout. I noticed some texture glitching and the aforementioned environment design was a bit of a letdown. But overall, it’s all good.

Sound: 10 of 10

The voice acting is awesome. Really. And the sounds of the transformations are close enough to the original show while being slightly updated to be moth nostalgic and fresh. The sounds of your guns are solid too. There is a real feeling of metal on metal clashing all the time. It’s really fantastic.

Gameplay & Control: 8 of 10

The ability to transform at a whim is just handled superbly. However I think this game could have used a dedicated cover system. At least the ability to duck would have been welcomed. As it stands now, you’re kind of sliding around a little bit. You can hold your left trigger to focus lock though which helps. I also got hung up a few times on the geometry. The physics engine is pretty good, and I dig the way the vehicles control. I haven’t delved enough into the multiplayer to get a real opinion on that, so watch for an addendum later. But I am concerned about the potential imbalance of having the most experienced players having access to the best weapons and abilities. It may turn a few new players off for the sake of keeping other players playing to get their upgrades and rewards.

Overall Experience: 9 of 10

More than the sum of its parts, this one. The single player campaign is about 10 hours. It was fun. I wanted to play it. I’m glad I bought it. I recommend it. I’m looking forward to playing a little multiplayer, but I don’t think it’ll replace Halo 3 in my main multiplayer rotation. We’ll see though. I think I’ll be just fine with fighting a War for Cybertron all summer.

What's really wrong with Superman.

When I was a little boy, one of the first films I remember seeing in the theatres was Superman II. I remember Superman's valiant battle with nearly impossible odds as he faced three villains of equivalent power. I remember the iconic fight in his Fortress of Solitude (cellophane "S" shield throw notwithstanding) and his struggle with revealing his identity to his longtime girlfriend, Lois Lane. I have been a fan ever since. I have seen every film. Watched countless TV shows. I have hundreds of Superman Comic books and graphic novels and other media. I love Supes. But there was something else in that film too. Something that I think now may have really made me the Superman fan I am today.

Superman made a mistake. He wanted to be human, made himself human, and it was a mistake. A BIG one. One that ultimately had to be corrected by kissing the whole memory of it all away, literally.

A lot of time when people criticize Superman, they complain that not only is he all powerful, but he is one dimensional. He can physically beat every foe. It has been revealed that he has a super intellect, making mathematical calculations and the speed of a Pentium III. So he can basically beat every foe mentally as well. He always takes the moral high ground. He is immune from prejudice and racism. And even if he is challenged by the strength and abilities of his foes, be it Darkseid or Doomsday or Luthor, Superman is always right. Truth, Justice, and the American way is the mantra and he is sticking to it. Not exactly deep though is it. And this is a problem.

I don't read many comics nowadays. Mostly a few things here and there (Superman as well) but one comic in recent years has really captivated me, Invincible, published by Image Comics and written by Robert Kirkman. Now, a little backstory. Invincible parallels Superman a great deal. Alien visitor to Earth, blends in with population, super powered, strong, invulnerable, lonely. But there is something I realized when I read a recent issue. Invincible makes mistakes. A lot of them. He is constantly questioning his own morality. He makes errors in judgment. He fails.

Superman doesn't, and his character is hurt as a result.

A lot has been made over the decades about the fact that in the Superman mythos, he is rocketed to Earth by his Kryptonian parents and is adopted by a wholesome HUMAN couple. Nothing wrong with this. But he is raised by these folks and has become seemingly immune to making any human foibles or be prone to making any human errors or have any personalty flaws. A simple farmer and his wife in (literal) small town Kansas somehow is able to teach their alien son about how to be everything good and yet he is spared any of the negatives about being human. Superman never gets really angry. He never questions his decisions. Actually, he doesn't have to question his decisions because his decisions are never wrong. (He may face opposition though) He never shows regret. He never shows any prejudice against anyone. He has no strong faith. He never makes an error in judgment. He never has considered a gross exploitation of his powers for personal gain. Neither have his poor simple parents. Frankly the absence of any one or more of these .. personality quirks.. makes the character ring a little hollow.

I'm not saying that Kal-El has to be an A'hole. But how often do we have to hear that no one is perfect, and yet we as readers are supposed to accept this character as a figure of perfection. What I loved about Invincible was that he made mistakes and has to learn to live with them, if he survives, and hopefully grow with them. This is a relate able quality. And anytime you're dealing with an all powerful icon, which is what Superman has become, then the challenge is how to make this being relate to the readers and consumers. Over time, the writers and handlers of the Superman icon have mismanaged him, focusing so heavily on outward events that his character is little more than an empty Steel suit. I am tired of seeing my favorite hero treated like this.

It is ironic to think of and even say, but maybe taking Superman down a little bit is the only way to propel him to his greatest heights and return him to the status of the greatest Super-hero ever conceived.

Metabolism and Efficiency... Two great things that do NOT go together!

In this day and age, we hear a lot about energy efficiency. It's everywhere. Gas prices go up, and everyone goes out and buys a Prius. People want solar panels on their rooftops. Wind farms dot the landscape like pinwheels in the meadow. We multitask with Blackberrys and Trios and allat to fit more work into less time (this example actually doesn't fit but I like it anyhow, so we'll go with it.)

So efficiency is a great thing. Right?

Well when it comes to your fitness goals, and more specifically your metabolism, efficiency is very bad. An 'efficient' metabolism stores everything! It's that Hybrid Prius. Takes it forever to burn through a gallon of gas, where your body will take forever to burn through a pound of fat. Needless to say, you probably don't want this.

What you DO want is for your body to operate like a thermonuclear blast furnace. You want it to burn EVERYTHING that goes into it and crave more. Think "hungry Pit- Bull". As you attain this monster metabolism, the amount of food you consume will go up. You member those stories this summer about Michael Phelps eating like 6000 calories a day? He had to fuel his activity and his metabolism just that much during training cycles.

You can attain a faster metabolism simply by increasing your ratio of muscle to fat. This means some weight lifting, ladies. You won't be able to do it all on the elliptical. Lift a little and get large results. Fact is, muscle tissue will burn calories even AT REST while fat will just sit there. There may be some truth to losing weight in your sleep after all!

I wholeheartedly endorse a good FREE online calorie counting site like www.myfitnesspal.com to keep track of what you're putting in your body, and staying on track.

Need MOAR Recovery Drink!

I am out of Recovery Drink. So what do I do until my new order comes in?

Chocolate Milk

Yes, you heard me right. An 8 oz glass of whole or 2% Chocolate Milk will do MUCH of the same job as the P90x Recovery Formula. It is NOT as targeted or efficient though. The recovery drink is superior, so bear that in mind. We want the best results, not okay results. Still in a pinch, which we find ourselves in, Choco-milk will do the job.

Owwies

I am a little bit ashamed to say that playing football on TG took just a shade more off of me than I'd like to think. My left leg has had a few problems ever since. First it was my Hammy, now its my left groin. I wasn't worried until One-armed push ups yesterday. As you know, the one-arm push up places strain across the body from the shoulder of the base hand, through the opposite hip, to the opposing toe. ABSOLUTELY NOT GOOD if you are dealing with an injury in that plane of the body, i.e: the groin area.

It hurt. But I haven't lost total function. And I skipped Plyo today and did Cardio X.

If you are dealing with a minor injury, one that you don't believe merits a doctors visit, you must rest the area as much as you can. Ice the sore muscle group for 20 minutes, rest 3-4 hours and ice again. Repeat. Take anti Inflammatory medication for pain such as Advil or motrin (these can have some minor side-effects). Wrap and compress the area as well. You do this and you will be back in the game full speed in a few weeks.

Please continue to work around the area. Don't let a minor injury derail your progress. If you hurt an arm, keep up cardio and leg work. Don't let it stop you. However, if you have loss of function with any injured area, it's important to seek medical attention right away.

Motivation.

I am always interested in what motivates people to get fit. Or, actually, what I find even more fascinating is what causes people who are motivated at one time, to give up on their fitness goals and go back to old habits. I have been thinking a lot about this subject recently, as I made the decision to become an Independent Beachbody Coach.

I think I need to start this by saying, I love the results I've seen in my 120 days or so of the P90x Program. BUT, I still hate getting out of bed. I still struggle with getting out of bed in the dark, staggering into the living room, turning a light on so I can see, groggily trying to remember what workout I had scheduled, pouring a glass of water or recovery drink, then pressing play and suffering for an hour or more. Not a big fan, no.

So what makes me do it?

It's not the results so much anymore. Maybe it's just the idea that I want to be in the best shape I can be in. Maybe it's that I hate going to the doctor so much that I am willing to keep myself in tip-top health and condition, so I never have to go. Maybe it's cause I have now seen first hand what an unwillingness to take care of oneself can lead to down the road. I know one thing, it's definitely not because I hate junk food, cause that just ain't true.

It comes down to one thing. You have to want to change more than you want to stay the same. When I want something badly enough, I move heaven and earth to get it. Or die trying. Personality flaw I guess. Nevertheless it's true for me. However, once my focus wanes, my desire wanes and it becomes easier to slip back, let go and just give up. I know there's someone out there that knows what I'm talking about.

What does it take to get fit? Once you have the desire, where do you go from there? For most people, they join a gym. They take a class. They start to jog. They buy a great big fitness machine that looks like it was stolen from a construction site. They buy all kinds of pills and powders. And all too often, they fail. Going to the gym becomes a time consuming drag. The classes get too expensive or lack focus. Jogging becomes boring and you don't even get thin (not like you want to anyway). That fitness contraption gathers dust in the garage. The pills and powders only succeed in turning your poop green. And then you quit.

For obvious reasons.

Why do these well meaning people fail at something they obviously want so badly? I don't think it's that all of a sudden people don't care about their fitness anymore, or decide to stay overweight. Frankly I think most people lack the proper support systems and programs. All too often, people just do things on their own, with only bits and pieces of the proper information, and often, no program or blueprint for success. And they don't have anyone going through it with them. I myself used to go to the little gym in an old apartment complex every day to run 3 miles on the elliptical and lift some weights, just because I had a friend that was right there. I did this like every day for 3 months. But then, as it turned out, I moved, and he quit going and I only went to the new place's gym once in a year.

Any of you ever see the show "The Biggest Loser"? So much of the success that these great individuals find is totally due to their support system. Whether it's the coaches or their teammates, or their families when they get back home. You need this. Everyone needs the proper support and the proper program in order to find fitness success. There are many of you that are struggling right now to find the success that you want. Don't give up. I know for a fact that the right program and the right support will work for everyone. It fills in the gaps when you don't feel like touching the dumbbells today. Or even when you push yourself a little too hard and can't continue for a bit, the right support can be just the motivating factor you need to get yourself back out there at the proper time.

Lookit, I'm here to help if anyone out there wants to make a change and just needs the direction to go and a little wind to blow. I can do that for you. Just ask.