Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Several years ago the highly decorated and respectable journalists of Derrick Comedy exposed the seedy underbelly of Bro Culture. The pandemic came to be known by many as Bro Rape.  Bro Rape has faded to the background in recent years, likely as a result of bored Bros becoming lackadaisical as a result of nothing present to fuel intense Bro out sessions. However, reports that probably exist somewhere in the stratosphere have been flooding in over the last week revealing that Bro predators are on the move, donning Polos, cheap beer, and sticks (that’s Bro for controllers, FRI) faster than you can say “Who stole my Axe?”

What could be the catalyst for this second coming of Bro Preds? Look no further than the recent release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It is no secret that Modern Warfare titles have long been a hotbed for the dudebros, and now that Modern Warfare 3 has blown the previous title releases out of the water, it should come as no surprise that instances of Bro misfortune are popping up. It seems like the perfect compliment to the perfect chill sesh. Just you, the Bros, a copy of that Modern Warfare 3 dankness, and a couple of cold ‘Stones. Seems innocent enough, right?!? Yea, it’s all fun and games until someone breaks out the big black dildo, ain’t that right Makarov?

What’s Good

Give me your hand, duder – There hasn’t been a massive overhaul to the multiplayer formula that has made the franchise so popular, but there are a couple of new gametypes that really stand out. The first, is hands down the most enjoyable that I played in the new shooter, Spec Ops: Survival. This mode is all about teaming up with one of your most trusted Bros, or a complete rando if you are so inclined, to take on waves of baddies. As you progress and rank up new options become available, from purchasing better firepower, to upgrading that same firepower with scopes, extended magazines and the like. You also gain access to airstrikes, explosives and armor, and a variety of other perks as you progress. All these of course are bought with cash obtained from eliminating the enemy and will come in handy when dealing with the higher-level enemies, like kamikaze K-9s and Juggernaut buttholes.

My second favorite mode had to be the new kill confirmed variation of team deathmatch. After killing your foe, or being killed yourself, a set of dog tags drops to be collected. Collecting gold tags gets you a kill confirmed, advancing your teams ticker for the game score, while collecting red tags gets you a kill denied, preventing the opposing teams ticker from advancing. A kill still nets you personal points, but in order to affect the game score the dependency on tags comes into play. It is a fun twist on a familiar game mode that had me at least somewhat invested in the multiplayer this time around.

Let there be sight – I can’t honestly say any of the new weaponry stood out as anything super special, but I can’t say the same thing about the fancy new ability of hybrid sights. I’m typically a straight up assault rifle type player, though I do enjoy a nice snipe session from time to time, the problem I tend to encounter is the range of scope to strap on that bad SOB. With the hybrid sights I no longer have to choose a single range. The ability to flip between the holographic sight and the ACOG sight (as one example of combination sights) with the single press of a button affords the ability to account for multiple scenarios on the fly and is easily one of the better additions to the weapons cache.

What’s Bad

Not the sloppiest campaign, but not the greatest – It is true that MW3’s campaign is a bit more straightforward and not as convoluted with intertwining storylines as its predecessors, but it is also true that if possible, it is even weaker than any of the previous entries. Without taking time to search for any of the collectible intel throughout the campaign, it only took me a little over four hours to complete, though I have heard it can take around six hours from friends who also played through the story. For the majority of the campaign you take on two roles, that of Captain Price’s team as you track down Makarov (always a step behind), and the other as part of Sandman’s Delta Force team as you fend off the invasion at home before eventually rallying up with Price’s team. For the most part the campaign still functions around cheap thrills, timely explosions, and visceral imagery in order to drive the narrative before it abruptly ends in one juggernaut of a battle, literally. The plot is predicatble, though I admit it went farther in terms of who lives and who dies than I would have expected. There was one roughly ten minute segment that takes place on a plane and plays out just like a fight straight out of Inception that was pretty memorable, but aside from that the campaign didn’t really get my juices going.

Being Elite ain’t what it used to be – The servers are struggling to keep up with the masses, though probably not the servers you would expect. For the most part, the multiplayer matchmaking has been relatively painless, which comes as a bit of a surprise considering issues that past COD releases have seen for their multiplayer. Instead, the issues revolve around the new Elite service that is supposed to offer social-networking capabilities and stat tracking for the hot and heavy Modern Warfare faithful. But it’s pretty hard to deepen your clan recruiting and rip on your friend for how much he noob-tubes when the servers have been overloaded since launch. The statement going around is that the service was even more sought after by Duty heads than the most generous of expectations.  While this may not be a huge deal for those not paying for the service and seek only to take advantage of the free portions, those who sought Founder status and paid for the year subscription for a full list of special features, including that deeper clan support, are likely seething in their basements readying those BBDs for the responsible party.

Worth Remembering

Collecting those tags. I’ve never been a huge fan of the MW multiplayer scene, and that’s putting it politely. But I have to admit that the new kill confirmed variation on team death match held my interest longer than I could’ve ever thought possible.

Worth Forgetting

The down time that Elite is experiencing even a week after launch. If you shelled out extra dough you have a right to be upset with the outage, but rest assured it will be corrected and they have already compensated by extending the subscription by a month to account for the folly. It’s only a matter of time before you can waste away the hours at work by custom creating your classes through elite, only to have them at the ready on your home console.

Let’s be honest for a second. MW3 broke the previous entertainment launch record in less than a week. If you are reading this review and don’t yet have the game, it’s likely due to one of two reasons. 1) You misbehaved and weren’t able to convince your mommy to pick you up a copy, or 2) you suffer from serious Bro-anxiety and are not particularly fond of BBDs. If by chance you are reading this review and are on the fence, then simply know this: the formula hasn’t changed much. It’s still an over the top, adrenaline filled, shockingly short campaign padded by a similar formula of multiplayer with subtle tweaks to the system to try and account for a wider audience not solely interested on measuring their peen size by their K/D ratio. Modern Warfare is Modern Warfare, same as it has been, same as it likely will be in iterations yet to come, the game makes no apologies for that. But why mess with a winning formula?

*MMOMFG was provided a Hardened Edition copy of Modern Warfare 3 by Activision for review on the Xbox 360

Back around this time last year, I reviewed Goldeneye 007 for the Wii. While the game certainly succeeded in exploiting my soft spot for nostalgia, I didn’t find the experience of jumping back into Bond’s shoes wholly satisfying. My dissatisfaction mostly stemmed from two concerns. First, the Wii version was severely hampered by a chronic case of dusty pixels (i.e. the game looked only slightly better than the handsomest pile of turds that ever was dropped). Second, I wasn’t convinced that launching the title on Wii, with the heavy emphasis on motion control, was the right platform with which to bring Bond’s swagger back to the gaming world.

Now, twelve months later, Bond gets his big boy console release making his Goldeneye debut on Xbox 360 and PS3. The game in large part plays out exactly the same as the Wii version and because of this I have decided to compile more of a micro-review to determine whether Goldeneye 007: Reloaded’s release on the HD console delivered on the level I was initially anticipating for the game, or if Bond’s reloaded adventure still largely depends on it’s ability to pull on our nostalgic heart strings for any level of satisfaction.

I prefer my pixels shaken, not stirred…and make sure they’re in 1080p – It is probably the most obvious statement in the whole fat world to say that HD instantly increases the degree of visual satisfaction. But that doesn’t make it any less true, and is most certainly the case for Goldeneye 007: Reloaded. Environments breath with life and offer a gateway into a much more impressive Bond world, one that screams of familiar places and scenarios and yet takes on a much more believable visual identity. From intense fights alongside a dam, to trolling through the streets of Russia in a tank, to maneuvering through a lush jungle, it all screams of childhood gaming revelry, but now those moments are sexier. And if it’s not sexy, then it’s not Bond.

Get a life extension or GTFO – Mi6 Ops Missions is a brand new game mode that presents a great and ever so slightly addictive reason for replayability. There are a variety of different game types when setting up this mode. You can choose from Elimination, Defense, Stealth and Assault. Elimination was by far my favorite, and most visited of the four modes. It is basically a speed-run where you have to eliminate a set number of enemies through levels of your choice. Within each mode a number of modifiers can be tweaked to make the journey harder or easier (from enemy aggressiveness to weapon types), depending on your mood. Tweaking the mods to increase difficulty naturally increases the amount of points that you can rack up given a successful run-through. This as about as close to a horde mode as I’ve seen in a Bond game, and while it may not warrant a purchase all on it’s own, it is still pretty damned fun to chase after baddies with RPGs locked and loaded.

This P feels a little heavy – The P I’m referring to, of course, is Bond’s always equipped P99. I should mention that this point should be taken with a grain of pork fat, as this review comes in the wake of numerous hours logged on shooters like Gears of War 3 and Battlefield 3. That said, the gunplay in Goldeneye Reloaded feels terribly sluggish. Even after tweaking sensitivity, Bond’s gun abilities still don’t live up to par in terms of fluidity that I, and I’m sure most fans of shooters out there, have come to expect.

Baddies not so bad, or smart – One of the most shocking aspects of the campaign is how terribly asinine the A.I. turned out to be. Time after time the noob-like villains trailed out into a corridor, or up a stairwell, in almost a single file line only to be met by the attention of streaming bullets from Bond’s variety of slaying machines. This wasn’t a huge fail, though, as it offered some fairly comical and “seriously?” moments.

All in all, Bond delivers in this latest remake of Goldeneye. There are plenty of action-packed moments heavily aided by an HD makeover that allowed for the satisfactory experience that I had initially hoped for with the rebirth of Goldeneye 007. The inclusion of Mi6 Ops is also a really nice addition and will surely keep fans of the franchise coming back for more. The only thing I can’t fully wrap my head around is the fact that the timing of this release seems a little suspect. There hasn’t really been a whole lot of hype or noise surrounding the game’s release, and it comes just about smack in the middle of a digital-cock-meat-sandwich. I’m referring of course to the releases of Battlefield 3 and Modern Warfare 3. There was also a little title known as Gears of War 3 released back in September. Needless to say the shooter genre is full of some heavy hitters, and while Goldeneye 007 offers a fun little romp down memory lane, it is most likely going to be greatly overshadowed by much larger releases. I can’t honestly say that the game is anywhere near the same level as those releases, but if you find yourself an item short to add onto your X-mas list, Goldeneye 007: Reloaded makes for a great option.

*MMOMFG was provided a review copy of Goldeneye 007: Reloaded for the Xbox 360

UPDATE: Thanks to all who participated, winners have been picked and we will be sending out your codes shortly! As always, stay tuned for more MMOMFG giveaways!

Z-day is upon us (again!), my fellow gamers! If you count yourself as any sort of Zombies fan, this is undoubtedly the map pack you have been looking forward to. I’m talking, of course, about the just released Rezurrection DLC for Call of Duty: Black Ops. As you should well know by now the DLC this time around is full up with Zombies maps new and old; you also probably know that the DLC is still running $15 (unless you previously purchased the hardened edition, in which case the new content is free for you), despite serving a heavy dose of re-mastered maps. If you find yourself lucky, though, you can stuff that green right back into your wallet as we bring you another opportunity to win yourself a DLC code (we’ve got a total of 7 for this giveaway). Here’s what you’ll find in the Rezurrection DLC:

• The all new Moon level
• Four re-mastered levels of Zombie lore: Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa and Der Riese, the Zombie factory that started it all
• An enhanced Zombies Soundtrack including three tracks never before available for purchase
• A new Zombies Moon theme

NHL 12

The coming of September holds a special place in out hearts here at MMOMFG for a couple of reasons. First, it’s usually around this time when the cases of Octoberfest (Oktoberfest) start piling up on store shelves, cases that inevitably fuel a mass pile of empty bottles in our recycling bins. And Second, it means it’s just about time to strap on the bucket and lace up that shiny new pair of wheels. I’m talking beer and hockey, folks, and if you can’t relate to that then you probably have soggy turds for brains. NHL 11 has left quite a skunky taste in our mouths, if truth be told. Once the awe of the new real-time physics engine wore off, the flaws in the AI, goal scoring, and various other exploits shone through brighter than a sieve’s red lamp.

Fortunately for our sanity’s sake, NHL 12 is finally here to save us from the agony of NHL 11, at least that’s the hope of The Mighty Schmucks (our local EASHL team). Read on as we break down the dank, the dusty, and the gong-show-esque qualities of this year’s hockey entry from the minds over at EA.

What’s Good

(Justin) AI won’t ride the pine- Let’s face it, The Mighty Shmucks lost more games than we’d like to remember due to the incompetency of the AI. If I had a dollar for every time they coughed up the puck right in front the net, passed the puck directly to the other team, or tied themselves up against the boards with no one near them, I’d be a rich little Shmuck. Thankfully, a lot of the moans and groans of this year are replaced with sighs of relief. While the AI is still not perfect, they are noticeably better in EASHL games. This makes our 2v2 or 3v3 games much more fun and competitive. The AI now passes pucks up the board, wraps it around the net for a clear, and even dumps it into the O-zone properly when taking it across the red line. Do they still make mistakes? Without a doubt, but then again, so do we. Regardless, the refined AI makes games so much better that we’re more than happy to put last year’s debacle behind us.

(Justin) The bigger they are- I’m a 5’7 170lb left wing who likes to take the body. In NHL 11, if my checking wasn’t high enough, I’d simply bounce off someone. Now, in NHL 12, there is at least some sort of contact and reaction that is made. Even if I don’t knock the puck carrier down, there’s a good chance of knocking the puck loose. This gives my defensemen enough time to get back to their proper positions or to have someone else come in and take the puck up the ice. To a lesser extent, my Be a Pro will actually fall or stumble when attempting a hit. Though this doesn’t help me during the game, it’s a much better approach than simply bouncing off someone like last year.

(Justin) Figure skaters beware - NHL 12 has a slightly slower, more realistic pace to it. Gone are the days of skating around anyone or carrying the puck into the O-zone, going around in a circle, then turning and blasting a slapshot towards the net. With the current tuner (settings), the game feels much more realistic than NHL 11. Some of the added physics to the puck make it so that your stick and puck are no longer glued together. If you want to skate like a jackass around my team that’s fine, but chances are, you’re going to lose the puck in the process and infuriate your teammates.

(Jeremy) Cool stats bro- I was a little leery when I first heard about the new action tracker makeover to the pause menu. It’s no secret that pause menus are one of our least favorite encounters around here, and this addition seemed to only serve to lengthen time spent in that dreaded void. Once I saw what it was capable of however, I quickly found myself almost wishing I had more time to peruse the stat charts. As blasphemous as that may sound, the action tracker really is a neat little addition allowing you to instantly see a healthy breakdown of shots, hits, and highlights on a period by period basis. If you missed something during the game, or simply like stroking your own ego, you can go in at the end to see a list of all the crushing hits and saucy snipes. The breakdown  is further enhanced by a post game summary (in be a pro) that paints a much better picture of your performance for that game than ever before. You can clearly see your BAPs benchmarks and current progress which ultimately allows for a much more satisfying experience when you can see that little bar fill up on a game-by-game basis.

What’s Bad

(Justin) What a bunch of hipsters - Hip checks, as they stand right now, are both over powered and trigger odd hits like the one seen below. Not sure if a slight tuner adjustment can help, but even going near someone with his ass hanging out will send a player flying. Hipchecks are a tough but rewarding check in hockey that are probably the most beneficial when someone is skating along the boards. Right now, it seems to be the De facto hitting method.

(Justin) Fastest sport in the world, or not - Unwarranted pausing is still a constant issue when playing online in NHL 12. As much as we harped on it last year, it seems people still feel the need to pause it 4-6 times a game. A lot of this could be resolved if NHL adopted FIFA’s method of having the AI take over your player while they are AFK. Or if they wanted, they could just limit the number of pauses to 2 per team. I might sound like a bit of QQer right now, but if you can’t set aside 20-30 minutes to play a game, then go do something else. Considering that period intermissions can last up to a minute or two, save your piss/smoke break for after the period.

(Justin) Mr. Mo Mentum - Whether EA wants to admit this or not, there is definitely some type of odd momentum system in NHL 12. There have been quite a few occurrences online, where the opposing team has scored 2 or 3 goals in the first period, in quick succession. Not an impossible feat to come back from, but for some reason the goalie becomes one big sieve. Instead of the game closing out at 3-1 or 3-2, it quickly gets out of hand and becomes 7-2 or 8-1. Simple shots from anywhere seem to go in. The goalies, for the most part are actually a lot better this year, except in these instances. Lesson of the story kids? Don’t let the opposing team score too many goals in quick succession or you’re going to be in for a long night.

(Justin) This ice is choppy- Game freezes are a plenty and you can find a whole horde of people complaining about them on the EA Forums. Thankfully it’s only happened a handful of times to us, but we also ran into the loop bug. This little oddity actually makes the clock go back in time and resets anything that was done in the game. Case in point, TMS was playing an EASHL game when the 2nd period ended. Or did it? The bug actually put 2 minutes back on the clock and we had to replay it all over again. Thankfully neither side had scored so no one was cheated. However, if one team had, the other team would have been pissed. These sort of issues seem to be the norm nowadays on all sports titles as the shorter developmental cycle just doesn’t allow for a long, high quality amount of testing. Caveat Emptor.

(Jeremy) Frozen mittens not as satisfying as I remember - This is probably the one and only time you will hear me gripe about anything relating to the Winter Classic. Overall, I think it may be one of the greatest innovations to the regular NHL season. I also grew a deep appreciation for pond hockey during my time in the Northeast throughout Prep School and College. Naturally, I was a happy little dangler when NHL 12 announced its Winter Classic mode, but the excitement quickly wore off during my first game. I don’t mean to say the mode is a total wash, but sadly it did not live up to expectations. The atmosphere is nice during pre-game and highlights, but once you get into the heat of things all that sort of fades into the background and you are left in what feels like any old arena, except this particular arena happens to be spewing white stuff everywhere. I was really anticipating the weather to factor in and alter the pace of the game, but for my money I did’t see that weather had much of an effect at all during my few games played in the mode.

(Jeremy) Legends should stay retired - NHL Legends wins the “WTF” award by a landslide. When I first heard that NHL Legends was behind a big announcement EA had been saving, I nearly concussed myself from face-palming so hard. Sure, playing as the Great One is a fun little addition. But taking him and putting him on any team you choose, even if it’s offline, is borderline GameShark mode. I just can’t fathom the time spent on this that could have been spent fine tuning all the minor (some would argue, glaring) issues. I’m talking hip check issues, glitch goals, and the ability to juice (which I’m sure will be found out in no time), amongst others. And tell me you wouldn’t rather have an online franchise mode over a Be a Legend mode, and I’ll tell you that you deserve a good slew-footing.

Worth Remembering
The fact that the majority (a big majority!) of our Shmuck games are played with the intensity and competitiveness that we have been waiting for over the past year and a half. Games are no longer won or lost because of stupid AI who can’t seem to get their twig out of their ass.

Worth Forgetting
It’s probably a toss up between the Be a Legend Mode or The Winter Classic. While they are neat features when talking to a friend (“Hey wouldn’t it be cool if you could play as Gordie Howe?”), in practice they don’t serve the purpose that we, and a lot of fans were looking for.

Overall we’re still having fun playing NHL 12. Jeremy and I primarily play online and we’ve noticed a slew of improvements that make playing in the EASHL a blast. While there are still some issues to be worked out (hopefully a patch is coming soon), the pros definitely outweigh the cons for The Mighty Shmucks. Things like Be a Legend, stale commentary, and over powered hip checks really need to GTFO as soon as humanly possible. Is NHL 12 better than NHL 11? Without a doubt. We know where our time spent will be over the next couple of months, especially with hockey season right around the corner. Next year however, EA really needs to give us some sort of “big” announcement or we’ll be somewhat disappointed. But that’s 365 days away. Right now, if you’re looking to join a couple of dude-bros, look us up. We’re always ready to welcome a fellow Shmuck.

MMOMFG was provided a copy of NHL 12 for the Xbox 360 for review purposes

Today, Silicone Knights is treating X-Men fans to an in-depth peak behind the scenes of their latest project, X-Men: Destiny, as well as flashing the cover art for the game of the very same name. In the video below you’ll get a brief history leading up to the events that are to take place in XM:D and it should come as no surprise that mutants and humans find themselves on the verge of impending war once again. We also get a bit more detail about how we will be able to choose our own mutant to mold, path to follow, powers to harness, and team to fight the good (or bad) fight. You’ll likely notice that the game doesn’t look like the shiniest thing in the pixilated world, but as a fan of the X-Men franchise the ability to shape a new mutant and combine powers new and old has me more than slightly intrigued. You can blaze your mutant trail on consoles-wide this September 27.

If there is one thing that the Black Ops Rezurrection DLC has taught me it’s this: there are butt loads of zombos out there. Behind every moon rock, window, and in every sludge pit there are countless undead just chomping at the bit for some brain flavored munchies. There’s no time for introduction drabble in a review like this. In the eternal words of House Stark, “Winter is coming.” Except it’s not winter, it’s zombies, and they aren’t coming, they are already here.

Here’s what you need to know about the Rezurrection DLC, good luck out there.

What’s Good

“Now we’re flying to the moon and back…” – If Savage Garden’s “To the Moon & Back” isn’t the first thing that pops into your head when teleporting up to the moon station you either a) are obviously lying to yourself, or b) wouldn’t know good music if it kicked you square in the pecker (ZOMG sarcasm!). Speaking of things that will kick you in the no-no place, there’s this new Zombies map you might have heard of, called Moon, and if you aren’t quick on your feet it’s liable to kick your favorite appendage right through your cranium. I have to admit, I initially wasn’t a huge fan of the new map. In fact, I was borderline despising it. You are immediately thrust into chaos that is Area 51. You have about thirty seconds to harvest as many points as you can before an alarm sounds and shit completely hits the fan, and by shit I mean marathon zombies and hellhounds, at which point you are forced to retreat to a teleporter that will land you in a lunar space station. Once in the station, the rounds officially begin, after you locate your P.E.S. The pacing of the map threw me for a loop in the worst kind of way at first, but after a few rounds and some much needed adapting, I realized there was way too much going on in the map not to love.

The map incorporates a low-g element into the mix (though you can turn on gravity for certain areas in the map) that makes for some pretty riotous gameplay. We also get a new perk-a-cola, Mule Kick, that will instantly become your favorite, allowing you a third weapon slot. There are now two, count em’ two, new wonder weapons.  The first is a tactical grenade dubbed the Quantam Entanglement Device that is said to either “curse” or “bless” the player who tosses it. Currently there are 15 possible known effects that the QED can bestow ranging from a Scavenger like blast to completely wiping out your earned points. The second will have you pew pewing uncontrollably. The gun comes out of the mystery box as a Zap Gun Dual Wield, but also has a secondary fire which conjoins the dual guns into one to form the Wave Gun, or as I like to call it, the Sterling Gun (use it once and you’ll know why). There are also two new pieces of equipment, a hacker tool that will help cut down the cost on certain items, and of course the P.E.S. that will give you the oxygen you need in those low-g and oxygen-less environments. Of course there is also a new fancy Easter egg and two new zombie types, the Phaser and Astronaut (but both of them are real buttholes). Saying this is the most ambitious map yet is a bit of an understatement, and even though it will feel a little overwhelming at first, once you get your hands on one of those new Wonder Weapons, I guarantee you will bust your Zombies cherry all over again.

Hello, old friends – I think there is something to be said when a developer can spoil you with countless perks, flashy, wet-dream inducing weapons, elaborate Easter eggs, exotic zombie types and locations, and turn around and sell you (albeit a little overpriced, IMO) something bland in comparison, that you have already played countless times before, and still manage to bring joy and excitement to your swiveling little thumbs. I’m talking of course about the four re-mastered maps found in the Rezurrection DLC, Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa and Der Riese. While I’ll admit that my fat eyes don’t really see a whole lot in the “re-mastered” department (aside from some polish and fine tuning) I will also admit that it was a Zombies lover’s dream come true to see some of the old weaponry (I’m talking to you, Wunderwaffe DG2) mixed in with the firepower from Black Ops, not to mention it was just some straight up fun and a nice change of pace to get back to the basics that made Zombies the hit that it is today.

What’s Bad

Something’s missing - I can’t quite put my finger…oh!..wait, yep, there aren’t enough dinosaurs!

If you consider yourself any sort of Zombies mode fan than you already know that the latest content pack is priceless. Well, maybe not priceless, but you know a purchase like this is well worth the price tag considering how many hours you will likely log with the content. I do understand, though, that some will find this a hard sell with only one new map and four older maps, and even though the DLC brings your three downloadable songs and a Zombies theme for your dashboard I don’t really think that helps sweeten the deal much. Bottom line, this pack is geared towards a certain demographic: those who relish in the joy of trying to save the world from the undead. If you consider yourself one such type of gamer, then you can consider this a DLC worth shelling out for.

*MMOMFG was provided a review code for the Rezurrection DLC on Xbox 360

UPDATE 3: Congratulations to ShawnSig, our Friday and final winner! We’re emailing you your code now Shawn! Thanks again for everyone who entered and keep checking back for more contests!

UPDATE 2: Congratulations to Keeran Standing, our Thursday winner! We will direct message you your code shortly. Friday’s giveaway question is now live, good luck!

UPDATE: Congratulations to Mark M., our Wednesday winner! We will message you your code shortly. Thursday’s giveaway question is now live, good luck!

Z-day is upon us, my fellow gamers! If you count yourself as any sort of Zombies fan, this is undoubtedly the map pack you have been looking forward to. I’m talking, of course, about the just released Rezurrection DLC for Call of Duty: Black Ops. As you should well know by now the DLC this time around is full up with Zombies maps new and old; you also probably know that the DLC is still running $15 (unless you previously purchased the hardened edition, in which case the new content is free for you), despite serving a heavy dose of re-mastered maps. If you find yourself lucky, though, you can stuff that green right back into your wallet as we bring you another opportunity to win yourself a DLC code. Here’s what you’ll find in the Rezurrection DLC:

• The all new Moon level
• Four re-mastered levels of Zombie lore: Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa and Der Riese, the Zombie factory that started it all
• An enhanced Zombies Soundtrack including three tracks never before available for purchase
• A new Zombies Moon theme

Online gaming fact of the day: there is nothing more frustrating in all the online-wireless-console-gaming-world than losing connection mid-game. There you are, primed and ready to set that new high score/extend your greatest killstreak/get the GWG in overtime for your EASHL team when all of a sudden…*Pffffft*…your wireless router lets out the rankest of digital farts and drops your connection. Regurgitations of profanity ensue, controllers take unnecessary physical abuse, and you are left once again questioning the decision of your wireless set-up.

Options for a more stable connection are pretty simple, the chiefest among them obviously includes dusting off that long forgotten ethernet chord and plugging directly into the source. For someone like myself however, I am about as keen on running a hundred feet of ethernet cable through my house as I am on using a prickly pear to clean up a bad case of mud butt. Needless to say, I was pretty excited when approached to check out the Powerline Internet AV Kit by Diamond Multimedia. It would appear that the port-a-ethernet kit would allow me to enjoy the best of both worlds: maintain my wireless status, and enjoy the stability of an ethernet connection. (Just to give a reference point in the comparison for this particular review, my current wireless set-up is an Apple Time Capsule 802.11n Wi-Fi base station).

What’s Good

Plug and play - The beauty of the Powerline Kit is in its simplicity. Cliche, yes, but that doesn’t make it any less true. The kit is made to pop out of the box and get you into your online gaming world with the utmost of ease. All the installation that is required on your part is to plug one adapter into an AC wall outlet and connect it to your router with one of the provided ethernet cables and then just as simply plug the other adapter into an AC wall outlet near where you plan on setting up shop and use the second provided ethernet cable to connect to your desired internet ready device. Pop pop! Just like that you’ve got yourself the power of the internwebz at your fingertips. No software installation or network set-up required, just pure sweet internet connection with speed up to 200Mbps.

Versatility: this kit has it - Because the kit provides you with a direct connection to your router you don’t have to fuss over constantly inputting a wireless password (should you protect your network), this makes it extremely easy to quickly provide multiple devices with internet connection whenever you need to switch it up. It may not seem like a huge time saver but it is pretty handy being able to instantly switch between my PS3, Xbox 360, internet TV, or even a laptop without having to worry about re-entering a network password.

What’s Bad

This kit has donks - Other than the ease of instillation out of the box, the first thing that was readily apparent was the bulky build of the two units. This wasn’t a particularly huge deal when plugging into the modem side, but when trying to find space to plug in the receiving end near my entertainment center, I had to do quite a bit of fandangling to get the unit to fit (TWSS!). I finally resigned and found a plug a bit further away in which to ground the second unit and ended up having to fetch a longer ethernet chord as well as the kit ships with two very handy, but very short, chords.

As excited as I initially was about the prospect of enhancing my wireless gaming experience with the Powerline kit, after using the kit for well over a week now I can’t in full confidence say that it surpassed my traditional wireless network set-up. That’s not to say that the product is a total bust by any means though, there simply was still the issue with some instability in the connection as I put the kit through its various paces. I still occasionally dropped out of games because of slight hiccups in signal, and Netflix and ESPN streaming also suffered from time to time because of a similar issue. That said though, the kit performed as was billed by the pretty packaging. The simple fact remains that there is no better way to guarantee optimal performance like plugging in directly to the source. The Powerline Internet AV Kit may not stand as a hands down replacement of a more traditional wireless set-up (though this obviously depends on your current wireless set-up), but it more than certainly stands as a great alternative.

*MMOMFG was provided with a Powerline Internet AV Kit for reviewing purposes. 

I suppose it was only a matter of time before our favorite casual mobile games made the jump to motion based gaming on our favorite consoles. The Kinect seems like the perfect home for the all those simple gesture based addiction factories, the only question is just how well would they in fact translate on the big screen? If Fruit Ninja Kinect is any indicator of things to come, then the answer to that question is beautifully.

What’s Good

We meet again, you filthy banana – At the heart of things, Fruit Ninja Kinect is the same game we all know and love. A mysterious fruit slinger is hell bent on displaying his fruit tossing abilities and it’s your job, nay responsibility, to judo-chop every piece of flying produce to a pulp, only instead of furiously flicking your fingers you have the opportunity to put your air-slicing skills to the test. You’ve got your Classic mode, Zen mode, and the ever addicting Arcade mode, in addition to an all new Party mode (more on this later) and an addictive challenge mode (that will have you constantly trying to beat your high score and benchmarks across several modes). The fruit looks crisper than ever and results in more juicy explosions on the Xbox lending to a very satisfying experience.

Ninjas have to be precise – I was, and still am, utterly blown away by the tightness of the controls implemented in FNK. Tight controls in a game where timing and precision make all the difference between getting a nasty red X, or game ending bomb, and setting that new high score in Classic mode is crucial to the overall experience. Thankfully, Halfbrick did not let me down and went above and beyond my expectations. The success is due partially to recalibration process that literally takes milliseconds as you move back and forth in front of the sensor during play. The precision, though, is due in large part to an onscreen shadow of your real life self (a scaled version based on how far you are standing away from the sensor) that allows you to see your exact position in relation to the fruit you are trying to dominate. These two factors work in perfect harmony to give, what I would consider, the most responsive and without a doubt the tightest motion controls on the Kinect market to date.

Two ninjas are always better than one – If single player is considered “addictive,” then playing with, or against, a buddy, can most assuredly be considered crack. Sweet fruit pulverizing crack. Whether playing Team Arcade or Battle mode, you simply can’t go wrong. Team Arcade is a tag-team version of the popular mode, while Battle mode will most assuredly be the most hazardous to you, or your opponents health in the best way possible. In Battle mode the objective is to only slice fruits glowing in your respective color, either red or blue. Hit the wrong color and you’ll be docked points. Hit a magical white fruit flung at a much quicker pace and you’ll be rewarded with bonus points. It’s sixty seconds of pure chaos and you will tested to your very limits not to “accidentally” judo-chop your friend opponent right in the man-berries. The multiplayer aspect adds a new dimension to a very simplistic game, one that has made this the a much greater Fruit Ninja experience than I would have thought possible.

What’s Bad

Ninjas aren’t built for menu selecting, apparently – The one glaring flaw in FNK lies in the games menus. The hover hand selection tool adopted by most Kinect titles is frustrating enough as it is. That said, HalfBrick’s method for selecting menu items makes the dreaded hover hand method seem like the greatest thing since chocolate covered bananas. True to the handheld version, you must slice which option you would like. The problem is that it doesn’t take so much a judo-chop so much as a judo-twitch to register as a selection. The sensitivity in the menus results in a very annoying process to get to where you want to be. Adding to the flawed menu selection is the poor method implemented in selecting your hard earned Sensei Swag. Thrusting your hand up or down allows you to scroll through the item list, but 9 times out of 10 I guarantee you pass your desired blade of choice and will have do double back again, and again, and probably again to select your desired swag.

Fruit Ninja Kinect was above and beyond anything I could have hoped for in a console version of one of my top played mobile games. Fruit Ninja has been a constant porcelain pony companion of mine and yet I found a new appreciation for the game in its debut on a big boy console. I was skeptical at first whether or not the novelty of the motion-based experience would wear off, but I continually find myself jumping into a quick FNK session every time I fire up my Xbox. The tight controls will breath life back into how you may have expect the Kinect to perform and playing with a buddy adds a level of depth, shallow as it may be, to a very simplistic title but caters to the addictive nature of the game in a way that will likely blow you away. For only 800 Microsoft Points I can all but guarantee you won’t find a more satisfying, addicting, or purely fun Kinect title out there.

*MMOMFG was provided a review code fir Fruit Ninja Kinect

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, nothing quite sets the mood for an evening full of pre-season football and ice cold brewskis as well as a good old fashioned Zombies trailer. Ok, maybe I’ve never said that before, but that doesn’t make it any least true. The Rezurrection ode to Zombies DLC hits Xbox live first on August 23rd and the latest trailer does a nice job of teasing what we can expect in the latest Zombies map, Moon.

The new map features low-g battlegrounds which should make for some epic standoffs and appears to introduce at least two new weapons, one of which I shall henceforth refer to as the Sterling gun as it appears capable of swelling zombies to Sterling like proportions before they explode into a cloud of blood and chunks (and yes, I’m referring to that Sterling…what’s up?!?). The DLC will still run you $15 and you can find a list of what your money will get you below, followed by the trailer:

• The all new Moon level
• Four re-mastered levels of Zombie lore: Nacht der Untoten, Verruckt, Shi No Numa and Der Riese, the Zombie factory that started it all
• An enhanced Zombies Soundtrack including three tracks never before available for purchase
• A new Zombies Moon theme