My new gig.

So many of you reading this probably already know that I write reviews and the like for consoleheroes.com and if you didn't, now you do. Well, I've been in contact with the head hancho over at cheatmasters.com and he expressed that he would like me to come over and do some work for him. I'm pretty stoked about it. More on it later.

Hmm. Dusty.

So if I have any readers, I apologize for my absence. What started as a daily blog turned into a monthly and now it's apparently a bi-monthly affair. Since I last visited some kind of important stuff has happened.

• We are now living in a house. The apartment was nice and all, but we needed something bigger.

OK well that's it. I know, I know. It sounded like a lot of stuff has happened, but not really. The gaming industry tends to slow down during this time of year. Not a lot is coming out right now. No titles out = nothing to report. It's a shame really. You would think I'd be writing a full review of GTAIV or something. I'm not. That hype came and went. I'm actually hanging around, twiddling my thumbs for Wiifit to hit shelves.
I love the fact that it's getting "OK" reviews like a B+ from 1up because it's "actually exercise." lol Well duh. It will be a shame if people buy it, get it home and go, "This is too hard" and toss it to the side. I wonder if Gamestop will take them in on trade? I should ask, maybe I'll get a better deal on mine. Then again, I'm not a big fan of other people's feet being on my stuff. Ew. Forget it.

Well, I guess that's it for now. I promise I'll try to get back into the swing of things.

*click*

It's been a while.

Yeah, I'm dusting off my old blog. It's been a good while since I posted (Call of Duty 4 Beta impressions? Sheesh.) and I figured I'd spout off some stuff to get everything up to speed. A few key things have happened since my last post.

1.) The hit-points.com project has been delayed inevitably. Due to a lack of finding a decent web designer and loss of contact with Bill and Matt over the holiday. Maybe it will be rekindled some day, but I doubt it. On to the next project, I suppose. The irony of it all is that I found a really good web designer but now I don't have the crew to put it all together.

2.) I'm (again) the owner of a PS3. Your eyes aren't going bad. I traded my system in October for the HD-DVD addon for the 360. Not three months later it appears that Blu-Ray is going to win this format war that's been going on and that caused me to trade said HD-DVD player in toward the purchase of a 40GB PS3. A lot has changed in the world of Sony since I saw it last. Games like Uncharted and Ratchet and Clank brought new life to the system for me. Time will tell if my decision was a good one. I'm not having any doubts right now and I'm looking forward to Metal Gear Solid 4 and Final Fantasy XIII when they hit later this year.

3.) Going along with point two, I am also the owner of a PSP (again) only this time it's a slim one. The main pull of the system for me was the ability to stream PS1 games along with Lair to the PSP from the PS3. I've had limited experience with this feature, but I'll say being able to play FFVII and have it actually look decent (on the PSP screen) is a plus.

That's about it for gaming updates, some other stuff has gone down, but nothing to epic. I'll be posting a "Dog Days of Gaming Survival Guide" soon, but as for now that's all I've got.

Call of Duty 4 Beta pt. 1

It's actually hard to forumlate words to describe this game. This Beta as it were. I've played Halo (I, II, III) I've played Rainbow Six Vegas, and I've played the old Call of Duty games. None of them even begin to compare. The level of depth in just the multiplayer beta test is amazing. More on it later.

Xbox360 Messenger Kit : Review

I first heard about this Messenger Kit from Microsoft around the time of the Halo 3 beta. I saw a random photo on the web of this new accessory that appeared to fit seamlessly onto the 360 controller. The first images I saw, I'll be honest, I thought were photoshoped. 'Nothing could be that perfect of a fit' I thought. Time passed and more info came to the surface. The Spring Update (May 07) integrated the MSN messenger into XBL and it became pretty clear what Microsoft was trying to do.

Being one of those people that would rather text someone when I'm trying to get a quick point across, while on XBL I tend to text messages to my friends instead of sending the (assumed) easier voice message. Because of that fact along this is the perfect accessory for me.

When I first got my hands on the packaging, I was worried about how well it would fit onto the controller. I wasn't worried about how it connected to the front of the unit (I had seen many images of it) I was more worried about the back of the controller. The contour of the back of the 360 controller is what made it award winning. I didn't want how the controller fit into my hands to be effected by this QWERTY masterpiece. I was pleased.

While connected, the keypad itself is elevated and at a slight angle. This makes for seamless switching from thumbstick to the keypad. The back of the unit is curved so it fits under the battery pack and snaps solidly into place via little tabs that fit perfectly into the holes for the screws on the back of the handles. Basically, it's a perfect fit.

The keyboard is solid and the keys are crisp. It fits perfectly onto the controller. The only issue I have with the unit is that it seems like you have to type slower than you would a phone with a QWERTY keyboard. I'm not real sure why, maybe it's due to the fact that it's wireless, but i found myself missing letters here and there, missing spaces, etc. That's really my only complaint. The thing is, when that complaint has to do with the key element of the accessory, it's pretty major. Maybe I just type too fast. Beh.

I'll give this accessory my seal of approval, especially if you enjoy text messages or if you play FFXI on your Xbox. Hopefully we will see more and more games that can make use of this accessory (more Xbox MMOs, maybe?) in the future. Either way, I'll slap a big ol' 8 on it.


Pros: Wonderful design, feels solid.
Cons: I lose letters in the transfer?
Overall: 8.5

We aren't kidding.

It's disgusting, really.

Before you read what I'm about to say, keep in mind, I'm not a fan of this 'new age' or horror movies. These movies that are full of absolute shit. It's not horror, it's torture. Saw (I, II, III), Hostel (I, II), etc., etc. Now, before you blow me off as some asshole with an opinion, know that I'm a fan of the Halloween series. Well, all but the one with the girl and the masks. What the hell was that all about? Continue.

So the first Saw movie was decent, the acting could have been better, but overall it wasn't bad. I actually enjoyed it. Saw II's story was a tad lacking in my opinion, but at least the acting was better. Once Saw had some popularity, it would have been easier to pick out better actors. When I saw a preview for Saw III I instantly boycotted the series. By this point I had a strong opinion on that genre and decided it needed to cease. I don't understand how they can whore out a decent movie until it was total shit. I've (to this day) refused to watch Saw III. Now to my real issue.

I was surfing tonight (2:30a) and found IGN. They had a link to "SAW IV" and I threw up a little bit in my mouth. I'm sure all the SAW fans out there are ready to torch my house because I'm "knock(ing) it" before I'm "try(ing) it" but, I don't give a damn. COME ON. A fourth Saw movie? Who gives a shit? Really? I would post a link to the page, but I'm not putting forth the effort. I'm not condoning this shit in any way.

On top of that, it's being released on October 26th. When was Saw III released? LAST FUCKING YEAR! October 27th to be exact. /rant