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Halo 2 wastes lives, 4 billion games played
In all of our pumpkin carving madness, we somehow missed this little benchmark the other day. On October 30th, Halo 2 officially surpassed the 4 billion games played mark. This game hasn't even been out for a full two years yet (eight more days)! Let's do some math, just for fun. That's over 2 billion games a year, 166 million games a month. If the average match lasts 10 minutes, that's 666 million hours wasted. Wait a minute ... 666 million, just in time for Halloween ... is Halo 2 a sign of the Apocalypse? I'm scared. [Via The Xbox Domain]
Tons of new GOW multiplayer vids
The fine folks at GameTrailers are apparently having a ball playing Gears of War multiplayer matches, because they won't stop posting videos of them. Right now, they are up to twelve (!) different videos. We've picked one in particular for its chainsaw wielding, headshot making goodness. Plus, you'll get a chance to see what it's like to play as one of the Locust horde. This video, and all the others, looks like a lot of fun. Check it out after the break. Oh, and the video is age verficataion required. And don't think you can cheat just because there's absolutely nothing we can do to stop you.
Gears of War: Marketing unnecessary?
Let's face it, at this point everyone is at least curious about Gears of War. But some people ... some people are downright nuts about it. The recent trailer and its numerous remixes prove that people are really excited about this game. Seriously, these people are so excited for it that they are actually making their own commercials for it. Come on, have you ever made a commercial for anything? One could say that it's no different from wearing a Nike shirt; people are just showing their love for a certain product. Still, I'm not sure I've ever seen someone make their own Nike commercial. It's like Microsoft doesn't even have to market GOW anymore. That said, the Gears of War montage embedded above kicks ass. Bring on Emergence Day already. We're ready for it (and some are more than ready).[Via digg]
Your Gears of War questions answered
IGN has posted an article that clarifies a few things about Gears of War. The article gives the lowdown on weapon selection, the cheapness of the chainsaw (read: it isn't), multiplayer modes, difficulty, and downloadable content. The multiplayer modes sound like a lot of fun, especially Resurrection. In Resurrection, you have to finish off your opponents. Otherwise, they revive after 30 seconds. According to the article, it makes for great team work as you protect your wounded. It's also worth noting that using the chainsaw isn't as easy as it looks. Epic has spent a lot of time perfecting the balance around the chainsaw, making sure that it's not too powerful. The game has three difficulty modes: casual, hardcore, and intense. Intense is only unlocked after clearing the game on hardcore. Also, don't be surprised if Gears downloadable content hits Marketplace before Christmas.Gears is getting closer every day, and we're getting pretty excited. What should we do to celebrate its release? What do you guys think, is it time for a 360 Fanboy Live party?[Via Fraggerrock]
Some schmo already has Gears of War? [Updated]
Dutiful 360 Fanboy reader, AlexH, spotted a suspicious photo on Flickr. Uploaded by user, Brymo, the picture claims to show off his 360 game collection. No big deal there. Lots of people host pictures of their hobbies, collections, etc. There is one little issue, though. Almost halfway up the stack is a copy of Gears of War. You know, the blockbuster game that's not supposed to emerge until November 7th at the earliest. So, we have three possibilities. One, he actually has a pre-release copy of GOW. Two, he's joking. Three, he likes to steal display boxes from GameStop. In the words of Judge Judy, don't piss on our leg and tell us it's raining. 'Fess up, Brymo, if that is your real name.[Update]Brymo has spoken. He says it's just the box that came with a t-shirt when he pre-ordered at Best Buy. See our follow-up post.
Leaked H3 info is just the beginning
In Friday's Bungie Weekly Update, Frankie speaks briefly about the Halo 3 magazine scans that were leaked last week. For one, EGM has images that weren't leaked via the Swedish magazine, Level. Not only that but the folks at Bungie have one or two more Halo related surprises before the year is over. What these surprises could be is anyone's guess. We'd say that it will be a new trailer at best, and a demo at most impossiblest (not a real work). In other Bungie news, Halo 3 matchmaking tests are going swimmingly and the Halo movie continues apace, despite recent setbacks.Anyone care to hazard a guess about what Halo 3 info will be revealed before New Year's?
Gears of War trailer remixes
Many people, myself included, thought that the music selection in the latest Gears of War trailer was inspired. It served both to highlight the action and to contrast the rawk music that we usually get in game commercials. Still, not everyone liked it, and Aeropause decided to take it one step further. They took the trailer and set it to several different tracks, ranging from country to 80's ballads. In so doing they have proven an old adage: everything needs more cowbell (see above video). Watch our second favorite video after the break.
1UP confirms Halo 3 news, more to come
1UP has officially confirmed the Halo 3 info that we uncovered earlier today. What's interesting is that they reveal all the same details that we discovered. Obviously, this can't be all that there is to the EGM cover story or 1UP wouldn't spill the beans. After all, why buy the magazine if 1UP already told you everything, right? 1UP does reveal another detail or two that we didn't have earlier. One, there will actually be three SKUs of Halo 3, a standard, collector's, and the aforementioned "Legendary" edition. Two, 1UP hints that Halo 3 will include an in game recording option, allowing budding machinima creators to make their own movies, or letting vets record their best runs. 1UP promises to have three solid weeks of Halo 3 coverage. Stay tuned for all the latest info, and be sure that we'll give you the lowdown on the cover story when it shows up in our mailbox.[Thanks, hot zizzy]
New Halo 3 info, new weapons, new grenade [update 1]
It wasn't long ago that Bungie sat down with gaming magazines around the world to share the first real information about Halo 3. And it looks like Swedish magazine, Level, has the dubious honor of being scanned first. To be fair, these aren't exactly scans, but we'll take what we can get. The magazine reveals new details about weapons, vehicles and multiplayer. WeaponsSpiker - a new Brute weaponSpartan laser - a laser that tears vehicles apartNail Grenade - sticks into walls and sends nails everywhereVehiclesThe Mongoose is in! This is the ATV that was cut from Halo 2. It seats two and has no weapons. Designed from recon and quick travel.Multiplayer goodiesThe "Man Cannon" - Spartans do their best Human Bullet impersonations for some extremely rapid transport. Players can still shoot in the air, and can be shot down.ControlsThe X button has a new, still secret feature. Reloading has now been allocated to the bumper buttons. Right bumper reloads the right weapon, and the left bumper reloads the left. Genius. MiscellaneousYou can now see your secondary weapon when it's not in use. In other words, it's actually slung over your shoulder instead of magically appearing out of thin air. Also, a 4 DVD "Legendary" edition is planned that will have material from Red Vs. Blue, documentaries, and a collection of all cut scenes from the game (possibly the whole series?).Please take this info with a grain of salt, as it has all been translated from a Swedish mag that we've never heard of. If anyone has picked this magazine up, let us know. You should be able to confirm all this info when the infamous EGM story finally shows up. So, who's excited? Raise your hand.Update: 1UP has officially confirmed most of this information and has also revealed some more info. Click here for details.[Thanks to both Xboxygen and Aeropause for sending this in.]
Happy random GOW thing day!
Mike from the Xbox Domain sent us a video from Gears of War. We know what your thinking, "I've already seen tons of GOW footage." This one is a little different. Made by an Epic employee during the holidays last year, this GOW video is filled with Christmas magic. Check it out after the break.
Viva Piata achievements cracked open
Piñata Island, the wiki for all your Viva Piñata needs, has a big stick. They have taken that stick, swung it smack into the piñata that is the internet, and cracked it wide open. "What was inside?" you ask. Why, nothing other than a listing of Viva Piñata's 20 non-secret achievements. There are 50 in all, with 30 of them being secret. The achievements range from easy (name one of your piñatas) to requiring Pokémon like dedication (attract 50 piñatas) -- and all of them are worth 20 points. Supposedly, all achievements should be unlocked through normal play. Our favorite is Wealth Master, which requires the player to amass 100,000 chocolate coins, the game's currency. We don't care if they are chocolate, anyone with 100,000 chocolate coins is wealthy in our book. [Thanks, jimmcq]
GOW crew gets busy in Hollywood graveyard
Is anything funnier than sacrilege? We think not. The peeps over at Gamerscore Blog have posted some pictures from last night's Gears of War party at the Hollywood Forever cemetery in Los Angeles. Above we see CliffyB -- "Scratch Master Cliff," as he likes to be called -- laying down some fat beats ... inside a mausoleum. Apparently, the acousitcs are fantastic. It looks like Hollywood's spirits got some revenge, though. See how after the break.
Gears is gold, Emergence Day goodies
Microsoft has just sent word that Gears of War has officially gone gold, which means the game is ready to be pressed, boxed, and shipped. To mark this occasion, several Emergence Day activities have been announced. Set to begin at 12:01 a.m. on November 12th, the activities range from tournaments to gaming with Megadeth. A 24-Hour Leader board Tournament. The tournament winner receives a one of a kind "Gears of War" branded guitar as well as an automatic bye to the finals of a Global "Gears of War" Tournament planned for 2007. Hourly sweepstakes drawings and prize giveaways including the chance to win one of several Samsung HT-P29 Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound Systems An exclusive free "Gears of War" Gamer pic and theme only available on Emergence Day Game with Fame sessions with legendary heavy metal band and "Gears of War" fans Megadeth, the game's lead designer Cliff Bleszinski and other members of the Epic Games team Never before seen videos including a special Emergence Day transmission from Cliff Bleszinski An MTV "Gears of War: The Road to Launch" Sneak Preview Not a bad list of events. Anybody plan on joining the tournament? The 5.1 system looks a little "blah" if you ask us, but we certainly wouldn't turn down a free one. If anybody doesn't want their's, we'll take it. Also, Gears of War is great and all, but we'd like to know if we could also challenge Megadeth to Guitar Hero II. And once again, if you'd like a shot at winning GOW for free, all you have to do is carve a pumpkin.
New GOW trailer pulls at your heartstrings [update 1]
There is a new Gears of War trailer available on Xbox Live Marketplace. This one is a little different from previous trailers. Instead of focusing on killing, death, and chainsaws, this ad focuses more on the "destroyed beauty" theme of the game. Set to the Tears for Fears song, "Mad World," -- performed here by Michael Andrews and Gary Jules -- the mood of the trailer is perfect. We can't help but remind everyone how gorgeous the game is, either. If they really wanted to, Epic could make a Gears movie just using the game engine.For those of you away from your 360, you can check out the trailer on Xboxyde here. We'd still suggest you download the 720p version from Marketplace when you get the chance, though. Only 12 days left, people. Don't forget to enter our Pumpkin Carving Contest if you'd rather not pay for your copy of GOW.Update: The song also includes Gary Jules
Viva Piata demo on Marketplace, sort of
There is a new Viva Piñata "demo" available on Xbox Live Marketplace. It is dubbed an "interactive video," which means it's not really a demo proper. We have been trying to download it all day, so that we could tell you what it's all about. It seems like the Live gods are against us, however, as we have been unable to actually complete the download. It keeps getting stuck at lower and lower percentages, too. Has anyone else been able to grab it? What's it like? Inquiring minds want to know.
Halo 3 demo rumored for early 2007
Game Informer has posted a rumor that we might see a Halo 3 demo in the first half of 2007. Of course, some of our more hopeful readers have suggested we might see the entire game in the first half of 2007, but that's neither here nor there. GI doesn't reveal their "sources," so you'll have to take this with a cubic centimeter of salt. Also, GI speculates that Halo 3 will mark the first demo that isn't free. This is just pure speculation on their part, but it is an interesting question. Frankly, charging for any digitally distributed demo is pretty far fetched, but MS might be able to get away with it for a Halo 3 demo. Would you pay for it? How much?At any rate, demo or no demo, expect some big Halo 3 news shortly. At least the biggest Halo news in a while, as this is the time of year when Bungie typically reveals new tidbits. If nothing else, the much ballyhooed EGM cover story should have some new details.[Via Xboxic]
X360F Contest: GOW themes & picture packs [update 1]
It's getting perilously close to Halloween (CliffyB is going as a bunny. A chainsaw happy, curb stomping bunny). So close that we think it's time for another contest! The prize: a free Gears of War theme and picture pack for your Xbox 360. You may remember that we got a few extras at our local GameStop during the "After Dark" event last Saturday. We couldn't give them away before because they didn't work. Well, now they do. Huzzah!Since the prize isn't as grand as, say, a copy of Lumines Live!, we're making this contest a little easier. All you have to do is leave a comment describing what 360 inspired costume you'll be wearing this Halloween. We'll pick 5 random winners. The winners will be announced tomorrow. See, that's easy. We've got five to give away, so that's five chances to win, five times the fun.But wait, there's more. If you don't win tomorrow, stay tuned for another contest, in which you could win a copy of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (hint: hope you like pumpkins). And hopefully, we'll have even more swag to give away after that. We've gone contest crazy, I tells ya! So, leave us a comment telling us what your (possibly fictional) costume is, and you could be a winner.General contest stuff: only 1 entry, please. Winners will be decided completely randomly. The quality, or lack thereof, of the entry has no bearing on its odds to win. That's it. Have fun.Update: The contest is now over, click here to see the winners.
GOW pictures worth a thousand words
The Gears of War photoshop contest we told you about a couple of weeks ago has drawn to a close. If you don't remember, the object of the contest was to create a Gears of War image. That's it. Some funny (and not so funny) images were sent in to Aeropause and they have picked their winner and compiled some of the best entries into a single post. The entry pictured above is one of our favorites. Head over to Aeropause to check out the winning image (he gets Gears of War!) and some honorable mentions.
X360F at the GOW "After Dark" event
A buddy and I hiked out to GameStop last night for the Gears of War "After Dark" event. You know, the one with the "exclusive" video that's been on the internet for a whole day now. Of course, the dinky YouTube video doesn't really do the game justice like a 42" HDTV (I forced myself not to watch the leaked video so I could see it on a big screen). We met some GOW fans, shot some (probably awful) video, and we even got some swag. Read on for our experience and X360F's first video evar -- shot by good friend and occasional commenter, thomdano (scroll to the bottom if the thought of reading about our visit makes you cringe).
X360F will be at Gamestop tonight [update 1]
Sure, we've all seen the video now, thus nullifying tonight's Gears of War event at GameStops around the US. In fact, Joystiq even told everyone there's really no reason to go. Call me stubborn then, because I'm going. A buddy of mine has even agreed to film it, assuming the GameStop goons will let us. What's more, I promise that any swag I receive will be swiftly given away right here on Xbox 360 Fanboy. So, if by some bizarre cosmic coincidence you happen to be reading this and live in Tulsa, Oklahoma, you can meet my buddy and me at the Woodland Hills GameStop (I'll be the guy in a red shirt that's being followed by another guy with a camera). Come by and chat with us about Gears of War. You might even see yourself on the internet without paying those nasty hosting fees!Is anybody bothering to go to their local GameStop? After all, you will get free stuff, and we're sure you'll see better quality video than the YouTube stuff we posted earlier. So, who's going?Update: The event is over now, and we have some fairly extensive coverage (and a video!). Check it out here.
