That of course is what I’m most excited about.  Finally a place to keep all my God of War trinckets and collectibles.    I didn’t score a review copy so I had to empty the wallet on this purchase.  The good news is that you can get free shipping and 15% off on God of War 3 but it only last this week.  Just click on the image below to get the deal.

Bad grammar throughout the tutorials

Magic Ludo is based upon a classic board game simply called Ludo.  There are two modes of play in Magic Ludo.  There’s challenge mode and casual mode.   Challenge mode embarks you on game play through 13 levels of competition against the CPU.  Level 1 of Challenge mode is a tutorial that teaches you the traditional Classic rules of Ludo on the classic board.  As you progress through the levels you’ll be introduced to the Chinese and African variants as well.  You’ll play through tutorials to learn the rules of these variants as well as being introduced to 2 new game boards.  As you progress through the levels you’ll encounter different challenges, which means the object of the game isn’t always to get your entire team of pawns home first.  Sometimes you just need to get a certain amount of kills to your opponent players (land on the same square your opponent occupies) or perform certain actions that are based upon the rules of the game.

More Bad grammar throughout the tutorials

Casual play offers you the option to choose Classic, Chinese or African based game variants and which board you’d like to play them on (Classic, Chinese, and Tower).  Casual mode offers you several missions within each of these game types that you must complete in order to unlock new missions.

The rules of Ludo are simple.  Each player gets their turn at rolling the die in a clockwise fashion.  A player can only move a player out of start with the roll of a 6.  Rolling a 6 also affords you a free roll of the die thereafter.  In Classic mode when you land on a space already being occupied, you kill that opponent and send them back to start.  You can also jump opponent pieces in your way to play out your turn.  Your main objective in Classic mode is to get your entire team of pawns home.  For instance in Chinese mode, you can stack, or group if you will, your pawns together if you land on the same spot another one of your pawns occupies.  This makes you more invulnerable as you cannot be jumped or killed by a lesser amount of pawns.  So, if you stack 3 pawns together, you cannot be killed or jumped by an opponent with a group of 2.  African mode is similar to Chinese mode as far as stacking your pawns.  The difference is that you can kill a stack of 2 or 3 pawns, but you sacrifice yourself back to start.  If you kill a stack of 2 with your single pawn, your pawn gets sent back to start and they lose one pawn as well.  Another difference is that stacks move slower throughout the board.  If you roll a 6 you can only move 3 spaces.  Basically, you divide what you rolled by 2 and round up.

After 100 rounds and I'm stuck at start with no pieces at home! Grrrr!

Magic Ludo is a great if you like fast-paced casual gaming.  What you will discover is how annoyed you will get by the cheap moves of your CPU opponents.  If an opponent is behind you, expect to have your piece killed and sent home 99.9% of the time.  Expect that it make take 20+ rolls of the die before you even can get a pawn out of start.  Some of the challenges are difficult to achieve and it just takes repeated attempt after repeated attempt to complete.  You’ll constantly find yourself feeling cheated over and over again, but that’s just bad programming practice if you ask me.

There’s also no music to soothe your nerves when the game is getting you down.  And believe me it will.  You’ll also notice the bad grammar during the tutorial levels.  I was fortunate enough to still understand the gist of what’s going on.  Another feature that would’ve made the experience cooler would’ve been the ability to roll the die by shaking the iPhone/iPod Touch.  I guess you can’t have it all, right?

The plus side of Magic Ludo is that it’s free from the App Store.  This is achieved by the rolling in-game ads, but they do not hinder your experience at all.  There’s no other version to purchase that doesn’t encompass ads so, deal with it.  Another plus to Magic Ludo is the ability to expand your game play experience.  For those that can’t absolutely get enough of Magic Ludo – you can download bonus levels beyond the original 13.  You can also opt to purchase an “unlocking” of all the locked levels, so that you don’t have to endure certain challenges.  Having access and download extra content from within the app itself is a plus.

Magic Ludo is available for free and how can you go wrong with that?  Give it a shot and you may find that you’ll actually pass hours away while engaged in completing the challenges that await.

By TeLeKiNeSiS

Army of Two 40th Day

So I’m in Best Buy and looking at the new Army of Two 40th Day and I’m just not convinced that I was in love with the first version of the game to bother with this version.  After all there are so many games hitting the street in the next few months this title just is not exciting me.

Comment if you feel diffrently and have picked up the title and haven’t put it down since yesterday.  So far I’m not seeing any evidence of that in my XBL Friends yet.  There may be more activity this weekend.

We hope you all have a very Merry Christmas.  We all have so much to be thankful for so take time to be with whatever family you have and enjoy.

Meta 3D Studios now offers Adobe® Flash® services that help clients better communicate their Apple iPhone™ application or game concepts. Customers are able to leverage simulated, fully functional Flash® versions of their application or game ideas in presentations to stakeholders, investors and business partners. Utilizing these services will help optimize development time, better manage client expectations, and reduce business risk.

Meta 3D Studios specializes in providing 2D and 3D visual content not only for major AAA gaming console titles and casual games, but also web applications, music videos and feature films. The studio has recently delivered content to a number of Nintendo DS™ games and is currently working on content for a Microsoft XBOX® 360 game scheduled for release in 2010. Developers and publishers are encouraged to contact the studio for more information about services and pricing.

Meta 3D Studios

www.meta3dstudios.com

Remember the wooden game Labyrinth?  Where you guided the small steel marble through the maze by tilting the board?  Well, if you’re old enough to remember – Balloon In a Box will have you going through the same motions.  You assume the role of a, you guessed it, helium filled balloon inside of a crazed maze full of obstacles to overcome.  What you may notice upon loading of the game is the Unity splash screen.  Unity is a game engine that’s capable of creating not only iPhone games, but 360 and PC games as well.  FYI, there’s a free version of this engine available if you’re aspiring to create your own games.

Balloon In a Box offers two unique modes of gameplay.  First is “Box” mode, which offers ten increasingly difficult levels per skill level.  The next mode is “Maze” and it’s simply just randomly created mazes with an option to select from small, medium, and large.  There are no obstacles in this mode, just make your way to the finish as fast as you can.  I began my BIAB journey with “Box” mode at the easy skill level.  You’ll have to work your way through 10 levels before you can unlock medium and the same goes for unlocking the hard.  You will effortlessly make your way through the first few levels with no problem at all.  I was thinking to myself that these mazes are a piece of cake! That was until they threw the obstacles into play.  In the latter levels of BIAB you’ll encounter fans that blow you off course, shooting arrows that want to prick and pop you, along with spiky nail walls to impede your progress.  The good news is that Balloon In a Box makes excellent use of the iPhone’s accelerometer, so the controls are very responsive and pretty accurate.  The more you tilt your iPhone, the faster you go in that direction.  If you level your device out, you’ll slow down the balloon and can even completely halt movement.  This comes in handy when you have to time your movements just right to ease by walls of nails and arrow riddled hallways.

Balloon In a Box is great for the casual gamer who wants to pick up and play right away.  On the other hand, it can be very frustrating when you encounter a difficult puzzle.  In addition to the many obstacles that hinder your progress you also have button switches that open and close different paths.  You never know if you’re opening or closing the correct path to the finish.  This makes it even more challenging because you may not have explored that area just yet.  Any area of a maze that you haven’t explored remains dark until you travel that path.  This can be annoying at times because some of the panels that make the wall of the maze are black and you can mistake it for a dead end.  No need to panic because BIAB offers a tantalizing classical musical score that seems to soothe your gaming woes.  It reminds me of a song that could’ve been part of the play The Nutcracker.  Even with such a great score to play to, I’ve come to learn that the best practice for repeatedly failed attempts at a level is to take a break from the game and try again later.  You’ll be glad you did.

Another thing you’ll notice about BIAB is that it isn’t the most polished iPhone game available.  That’s quite alright because Balloon In a Box makes up for it with casual and simplistic fun gameplay.  It’s a great way to kill time on a bus, train, or while traveling on a plane.  If you want a quick gaming fix that won’t require a great deal of time then Balloon In a Box is great for that.  Not to mention the game is great for those of all ages.  The concepts are easy to pickup and learn in just a short period of time.  I know quite a few people that allow their children to take advantage of their iPhone or iPod Touch and this game is sure to please.

Balloon In a Box at first glance may not be that appealing to the masses, but it’s worth a go.  It’s only $0.99 in the App Store and that’s definitely worth the enjoyment that you’ll receive trying to conquer all the levels.  If you’re into puzzle games and you’re the casual gamer that likes a quick fix then Balloon In a Box should satisfy your craving!

By TeLeKiNeSiS

You remember “Extreme Corn Nuts”? They weren’t your daddy’s corn nuts! Oh no they were TOO EXTREME!

Yeah.

Inferno Pool has that same “Extreme” branding that corporations try to wrap products in, ones often the complete opposite of “Extreme” like corn nuts or white bread. The announcer sounds like the guy who did the Mortal Kombat series (FINISH HIM!), but of course instead of a game based on beating people to a bloody mess where that type of announcing might make a bit more sense, this is a game about…billiards. That’s not all though, every menu is paint splatters and rusted chain link fencing.

I get it you’re “Extreme”, christ it’s a pool game!

Not a very good one either.  First off, when was the last time anyone ever wanted to play a pool game on a console? You already are making a game for like an audience of five people. On top of that “Inferno Pool”, the mode that the game is named after, isn’t the most innovative idea I’ve seen. The whole idea is that when you sink a ball it goes to the other player’s table.   I’ve tried for the past three days to get a game with anyone at all on different types of the day, but to no avail.   If you really want a cheap pool game to tool around with and you don’t mind the ridiculous theme, Inferno Pool could be your game.  You can play games of  8 ball and 9 ball with no real technical problems to speak of.

I can’t help but wonder though, if someone down the line might come up with a good idea for a pool game. I always thought it’d be a good idea to make a pool hustler game, almost a day in the life type of deal like they did with poker. Regardless of what they do, pool needs to have something around it other then just the core mechanic. It’s a tactile game, and it doesn’t really benefit from being translated to a video game. Inferno Pool started with a shaky premise, didn’t add anything new or innovative, and packaged it with a theme even even a cave man could see through. If you enjoy pool and would like to have the ability to play it on your console, I’d wait until someone comes out with something really interesting. My advice? Pass on this one.

Bakugan Battle Brawlers for Xbox. Only $29.99 at the Microsoft Store. Offer valid 12.5.09 and 12.6.09 only!

Sold Out:

• Batman
• Beatles Rockband
• Band Hero

As a kid we didn’t have much money, fortunately I knew enough people that if I wanted to play a specific console I could. I’ve played everything from the Atari to the original Playstation as soon as it came out and being born in such a way and at such a time is an advantage to this day I feel I’m lucky to have had. This wasn’t the case with PCs however and I lament not having had the experience of playing games like Zork and Bard’s Tale in their prime. This includes the series of Lucasarts games using the SCUMM engine like Day of the Tentacle, Monkey Island, and Sam and Max. Luckily the boys over at X-Box headquarters decided to give my kind another shot at checking out why these games were so good back in the day. I had purchased Monkey Island for 800 points and after playing through it I wasn’t that impressed. Thus, when it came time to check out Sam and Max, I didn’t have high expectations. The difference between the games was like night and day.

I don’t know your type of humor, but I really don’t care. Sam and Max is hilarious regardless. If you don’t laugh in the first ten minutes of playing you’re obviously a humorless, soulless, shell of a human and should probably go back to playing games like Myst. The giant robot that attacks the office while quoting old 80’s song lyrics, the little souvenirs throughout the office, there’s a writing quality here that you just don’t get in many games and it’s extremely refreshing. The visuals are great, and while I enjoyed the old voice actors (particularly Max’s VO) the new ones do the job very well.

The game play, for me, is where it gets a bit hazy. I never really enjoyed the point and click adventure style games. I think the puzzles are downright esoteric sometimes and I feel lucky I have that hint frequency adjuster in the options bar. Moving a little hand around the screen is a bit clunky too, it constantly reminds you this was originally designed for a PC. As much as I don’t really enjoy the type of game play, I find myself compelled to see what’s next, what odd character, interesting dialogue, or funny gag is unlocked after completing the puzzle they give you and progressing the story.

I’m definitely recommending buying it, and $20 for 5 episodes is a steal, but not for the game play. Buy Sam and Max only if you want to laugh your ass off and be thoroughly entertained.

By thebohemiangamer

Developer: Telltale Games

Publisher: Xbox LIVE Arcade

Genre: Action & Adventure, Puzzle & Trivia

Game Rating: T (Teen)

Cartoon Violence
Crude Humor
Drug Reference
Mild Language
Mild Suggestive Themes

Online Interactions
Not Rated by the ESRB

We wanted to drop a little knowledge on you guys and let you know the upcoming Game releases for October.
Look for this post at least once a month to help you plan for game purchases.  I’ve highlighed games you need to pay more attention to.

Xbox 360

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising X360 Codemasters Oct 9, 2009
Blitz: The League II X360 Midway Oct 13, 2009
Rock Band Metal Track Pack X360 MTV Games Oct 13, 2009
Way of the Samurai 3 X360 UFO Oct 13, 2009
Magna Carta 2 X360 Namco Bandai Oct 16, 2009
Brütal Legend X360 EA Oct 13, 2009
The Strike Griffin Interactive Oct 6, 2009
Lucidity LucasArts Oct 7, 2009
NBA Live 10 EA Oct 9, 2009
Forza Motorsport 3 Microsoft Oct 23, 2009
Lips: Number One Hits Microsoft Oct 23, 2009
PES 2010 Konami Oct 23, 2009
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 THQ Oct 23, 2009
Fairytale Fights Playlogic Oct 27, 2009
Madagascar Kartz Activision Oct 27, 2009
Tekken 6 Namco Bandai Oct 27, 2009 (Get ready to Be Owned)
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City Rockstar Oct 29, 2009
BioShock 2 2K Games Oct 30, 2009
Cars Race-O-Rama THQ Oct 30, 2009
CSI: Deadly Intent Ubisoft Oct 30, 2009
DJ Hero Activision Oct 30, 2009

PS3

NBA Live 10 PS3 EA Oct 9, 2009
Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising PS3 Codemasters Oct 9, 2009
Blitz: The League II PS3 Midway Oct 13, 2009
Brütal Legend PS3 EA Oct 13, 2009
Rock Band Metal Track Pack PS3 MTV Games Oct 13, 2009
Way of the Samurai 3 PS3 UFO Oct 13, 2009
PES 2010 Konami Oct 23, 2009
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 THQ Oct 23, 2009
Fairytale Fights Playlogic Oct 27, 2009
Madagascar Kartz Activision Oct 27, 2009
Tekken 6 Namco Bandai Oct 27, 2009
BioShock 2 2K Games Oct 30, 2009
Cars Race-O-Rama THQ Oct 30, 2009
DJ Hero Activision Oct 30, 2009
Blur Activision Autumn 2009
Chaotic: Shadow Warriors Activision Autumn 2009
Wii

Cate West: The Vanishing Files Wii Oxygen Oct 9, 2009
A Boy and His Blob Wii Majesco Oct 13, 2009
Rock Band Metal Track Pack Wii MTV Games Oct 13, 2009
LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias Wii (online) Frontier Oct 9, 2009
Spore Wii EA Oct 15, 2009
Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter Wii THQ Oct 16, 2009
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Wii Sega Oct 16, 2009
Ninja Captains Wii Nordcurrent Oct 16, 2009
Shimano Xtreme Fishing Mastiff Oct 20, 2009
Marvel Super Hero Squad THQ Oct 23, 2009
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 THQ Oct 23, 2009
101-in-1 Party Megamix Atlus Oct 27, 2009
Madagascar Kartz Activision Oct 27, 2009
NERF: “N-Strike” Elite EA Oct 27, 2009
Arcade Zone Activision Oct 30, 2009
Cars Race-O-Rama THQ Oct 30, 2009
DJ Hero Activision Oct 30, 2009
Dragon Ball: Revenge of King Piccolo Namco Bandai Oct 30, 2009
JU-ON: The Grudge Rising Star Games Oct 30, 2009 (Really?)
Mountains Sports Activision Oct 30, 2009
Science Papa Activision Oct 30, 2009
U-SING Mindscape Oct 30, 2009
We Sing Nordic Games Oct 30, 2009
Charm Girls Club EA Oct 31, 2009
Littlest Pet Shop Friends EA Oct 31, 2009
Medieval Games Bethesda Oct 31, 2009
DS

Cate West: The Vanishing Files DS Oxygen Oct 9, 2009
Spore Hero Arena DS EA Oct 9, 2009
Amazing Adventures DS Ubisoft Oct 9, 2009
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days DS Square Enix Oct 9, 2009
Scribblenauts DS Warner Bros. Oct 9, 2009 (May be Best Game 2009)
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky DS Nintendo Oct 12, 2009
DRAGON QUEST: WARS DS (online) Square Enix Oct 9, 2009
Cake Mania 3 DS Majesco Oct 14, 2009
Petz Pony Beauty Pageant DS Ubisoft Oct 14, 2009
Angel Cat Sugar DS Rising Star Games Oct 16, 2009
Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter DS THQ Oct 16, 2009
FIFA Soccer 10 DS EA Oct 16, 2009
Harvest Fishing DS Rising Star Games Oct 16, 2009
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games DS Sega Oct 16, 2009
Ninja Captains DS Nordcurrent Oct 16, 2009
Tracy Beaker Ubisoft Oct 16, 2009
Jillian Michaels’ Fitness Ultimatum 2010 Majesco Oct 20, 2009
Marvel Super Hero Squad THQ Oct 23, 2009
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 THQ Oct 23, 2009
Madagascar Kartz Activision Oct 27, 2009
Petz Nursery Ubisoft Oct 27, 2009
Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders JoWooD Oct 28, 2009
7 Wonders II Avanquest Oct 30, 2009
Cars Race-O-Rama THQ Oct 30, 2009
CSI: Deadly Intent Ubisoft Oct 30, 2009
Dolphin Island 2: Underwater Adventure Ubisoft Oct 30, 2009
Science Papa Activision Oct 30, 2009
Charm Girls Club EA Oct 31, 2009
Littlest Pet Shop Friends EA Oct 31, 2009
PSP

NBA Live 10 PSP EA Oct 16, 2009
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Rockstar Oct 23, 2009
Marvel Super Hero Squad THQ Oct 23, 2009
WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 THQ Oct 23, 2009
Cars Race-O-Rama THQ Oct 30, 2009
Football Manager Handheld 2010 Sega Oct 30, 2009
iPhone
  
iCasino CTXM Oct 1, 2009
FIFA Soccer 10 EA Oct 2, 2009
Unbalanced: Fall of the Blorbs 2Real Media Oct 2, 2009
HATTRICK – Spring Loaded Soccer Cinemax Oct 5, 2009
PDC World Darts Championship I-play Oct 5, 2009
BombLink Capcom October 5, 2009
Bass Fishing Mania 2 I-play Oct 8, 2009
Arcade Reality Chillingo Oct 9, 2009
Beneath A Steel Sky – Remastered Revolution Oct 9, 2009
Creepy Slots Mobile Amusements Oct 9, 2009
Cash Cow Chillingo Oct 2009
Extreme Lawn Bowls Mediatonic Oct 2009
Omniball Vendetta Studios Oct 2009
Squeeballs Party PDP Oct 2009
PC

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising PC Codemasters Oct 9, 2009
CITIES XL PC Monte Cristo Oct 9, 2009
Crusaders: Thy Kingdom Come PC (online) Virgin PLAY Oct 9, 2009
Freestyle Manager PC (online) JCE Corp. Oct 9, 2009
HISTORY Great Battles Medieval PC (online) Slitherine Software Oct 9, 2009
Scrabble 2009 PC Ubisoft Oct 9, 2009
Zeno Clash PC Iceberg Interactive Oct 9, 2009
Angel Cat Sugar PC Rising Star Games Oct 16, 2009
East India Company: Privateer PC (online) Paradox Interactive Oct 16, 2009
PureSim Baseball 2 Wolverine Studios Oct 16, 2009
Return to Mysterious Island 2 Iceberg Interactive Oct 16, 2009
Buccaneer: The Pursuit of Infamy Nobilis Oct 23, 2009
Elven Legacy: Ranger Paradox Interactive Oct 23, 2009
Light of Altair Mamba Games Oct 23, 2009
PES 2010 Konami Oct 23, 2009
Scorpion Disfigured Mamba Games Oct 23, 2009
Sokal Pack: Amerzone, Syberia 1, 2 Iceberg Interactive Oct 23, 2009
Torchlight Runic Games Oct 27, 2009
Cricket Revolution Mamba Games Oct 30, 2009
CSI: Deadly Intent Ubisoft Oct 30, 2009
Dracula Trilogy pack Iceberg Interactive Oct 30, 2009
Football Manager 2010 Sega Oct 30, 2009