L.A. Noire Review: The Extra ‘E’ Stands For Exemplary, Princess

On the surface, L.A. Noire is an open-world detective game, in which you solve cases by gathering clues and interrogating suspects, working your way through the ranks of the various departments. But the game goes beyond that, allowing you to establish relationships with some characters while making rivals out of others. And underneath it all boils the subplot of their shared past, building a tension that froths through scene after scene. In a time when many argue over whether or not video games are art, or whether many have viable plots at all, L.A. Noire delivers a gripping story without sacrificing gameplay – and does all of this while feeling like a high-quality movie.

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Posted in PS3, Reviews, Top Story, Xbox 360 | Tagged

Nintendo DS Lite price drops to $99.99; Mario games “go red”

The Nintendo DS Lite is getting a price cut down to $99.99, making it ridiculously affordable. If there are any people left on this planet without a DS – aside from Jack Tretton – they should seriously consider this the best time to hop in with both feet. All five of the people without a DS already, that is.

On top of that, Nintendo will also be changing the packaging of six of the Mario games that “represent some of the best-selling fan-favorite Nintendo DS games of all time.” The games will now come in red packaging, making them easy to identify. Those six games are:

  • Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story
  • Mario Kart DS
  • Mario Party DS
  • Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem!
  • New Super Mario Bros.
  • Super Mario 64 DS

No word on whether or not the red packaging will also come with a price drop as well. As for me, well, I’ve got a DS… and a DS Lite… and a DSi… errr, and a 3DS. But if there was any way I could get this beauty for $99.99, I would do it in a heartbeat.

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L.A. Noire DLC plans detailed by Rockstar

Rockstar Games formally announced their plans for L.A. Noire‘s DLC today, detailing information on new cases, collectibles, and challenges. All of the content will be available on both the PlayStation Network (whenever the Store returns) and Xbox LIVE. The cases are priced at $4.00 (PlayStation Network)/320 Microsoft Points (Xbox LIVE).

The four new standalone cases are:

  • The Naked City (Vice) – available today
  • A Slip of the Tongue (Traffic) – available today
  • Nicholson Electroplating (Arson) – coming 6/21/11
  • Reefer Madness (Vice) – coming 7/12/11

There’s also The Badge Pursuit Challenge for $2.00/160 Microsoft Points and the Sharpshooter/ Broderick detective suits for $1.00/80 Microsoft Points.

A unique way to pay for all of this is to purchase the L.A. Noire Rockstar Pass, which costs $10.00/800 Microsoft Points and gives you access to all the DLC as it comes out. So the total without the pass is $16, saving you a big $6 – but the discount is only for a limited time, after which the pass will go up to $12.

Well, that’s not confusing at all. In addition to all of the paid items, Rockstar Social Club members will be getting a freebie – the Chicago Lightning Detective Suit – and everyone will have access to the Chicago Piano machine gun for free. Hit the jump for the full release schedule.

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Daily Scoop: May 31, 2011 – You know the drill

So we didn’t make it to the beach this weekend, but I did manage to play a ton of video games, do lots of food shopping, sleep a bunch, and did some cleaning! All things I really needed to get done. So even though I don’t have a tan, at least I ate delicious food and caught up on sleep. It all worked out!

Time for deals… Amazon’s Deal of the Day in video games today is the Tritton TRIAX-180 AX 180 Universal Gaming Headset by MadCatz. It’s just $50.00 down from $69.99, and has a “Stereo Analog Connection” as well as an “Inline Audio Controller with Independent Chat Volume Control.” Not as cheap as I’d like it to be, but still a pretty decent deal!

Amazon’s also having a Dads & Grads promotion right now. Week One is from 5/29 to 6/4 and it’s all Wii deals, which includes games as well as accessories – get the NHL Slapshot Bundle for $29.99 or the Nintendo Wii – Controller Bundle for $21.99.

Today’s Tee Fury has good timing, considering I spent a good portion of my weekend playing BioShock 2. It’s called “Petty Morality” and it brings us back to Rapture:

BioShock Infinite is too far away…

Posted in Daily Scoop, Etcetera, News |

Warpback: What We Played in May 2011

May ends with a wimper in the new releases department, but the month that is known for flowers and rebirth did drop several big new titles into our living rooms. As we prepare for the return of Duke and this year’s E3 Expo in June, we look back on what we played in May…

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Posted in Features, Top Story |

See the final box art for Madden NFL 12

Cleveland Browns running back Peyton Hillis vaulted over some stiff competition to earn the right to grace the Madden NFL 12 cover. Today, Hillis has officially been targeted by the Madden Cover Curse as the final box art for the game was revealed. Feel free to click on the image to view a slightly larger version.

Madden NFL 12 will be released for the PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360 on August 30.

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First details of Call of Duty Elite subscription serivce

Activision has been talking up their “Beachhead” initiative, a unified platform for Call of Duty stats and bonue features similar to Halo Waypoint, for a few months now. Today, the company is ready to unveil it under its official name: Call of Duty Elite.

As expected, Call of Duty Elite will carry a monthly fee, which Activision executives describe as “less than fees for comparable online-entertainment services such as Netflix.” For comparison’s sake, the Netflix one-disc package is priced at $7.99 a month. But don’t worry, gamers will have plenty of time to decide whether or not Elite is worth the price as it’s not scheduled to launch until this November, alongside Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

So what will gamers be getting for their subscription fee? Tracking tools will coordinate a wide variety of statistics for multiplayer matches, which can be used to find out which weapons work best on which map. A Theater mode will allow gamers to record and share clips of their Call of Duty adventures. And a Facebook-like Groups feature will let users meet up to plan their multiplayer matches (this feature will also be included in a free version of Elite). Best of all, Elite subscribers will receive all downloadable map packs for free as well, which will likely be the main draw for many early Elite subscribers.

Will you pay for Call of Duty Elite? Or is this just another way for Activision to squeeze another fistful of money out of their cash cow franchise? Let us know in the comments.

[Source: Wall Street Journal]

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

PlayStation Store to return by week’s end

It has taken over a month, but the ApocalyPS3 2011 appears to be over.

Sony has announced that a full restoration of PlayStation Network services, including the PlayStation Store and Qriocity, will be in place by the end of the week. According to Sony, the almost worldwide restoration of services applies to the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia. However, PlayStation Store services will remain down for PSN users in Japan, Hong Kong and South Korea.

For those of us outside those three areas, the following PSN services will be back online by Sunday, June 6:

  • Full functionality on PlayStation Store
  • In-game commerce
  • Ability to redeem vouchers and codes
  • Full functionality on Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3, PSP and PC
  • Full functionality on Media Go

This also means that the games in the “Welcome Back” program will be available to download soon.

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