For this review I’m going to break down this game in three, different sections .

1.) Singleplayer

Well when I bought Bad Company 2 I didn’t plan on playing singleplayer at all but with all the server issues that EA has been having I started to play singleplayer. My first impressions were…. Wow this really sucks. It was dull and boring and felt like it was just tagged on. I kept on playing and it slowly starts to do more things then just run with a gun, shoot a rocket at the tank and pwn noobs. I still have yet to finish the singleplayer but from what I’ve heard it’s a great ending. One major thing that really bugs me is the amount of cussing in the story it seems like every other word is a guy screaming a F Bomb, which is a MAJOR turn off. Overall 6/10

2.) Graphics and Sound

Before I go ANY further in this review I must say the sound in this game is AMAZING! With my Tritton AX Pro headphones I could hear everything from a tank to a boat-from afar to the rockets being shot at my building. The graphics could be better, they don’t seem very polished. Not enough to make the gameplay any worse just something that EA screwed up on.. Overall I give the sound a 10/10 and the Graphics a 7/10

3.) Multiplayer

Now this is why everyone bought the game and I must say this is a BLAST. There’s always something to do whether it be raining down gun fire from a blackhawk or storming the base with tanks. One thing that I don’t enjoy about the multiplayer is the fact that the guns you get at a levvl like 23 can destory a team of level 10s. Overtime I could see it being a issue. One other thing I really enjoyed was the fact that you get blow up anything in your way like being a wall or a tank. I give it a 9/10

Overall I have to say this game is one of the best games I’ve played and if anyone asked me if they should buy the game I’d say YES!

My Overall score for the game is a 8.5/10 with a boost in the graphics for this game it would be a 9/10.

Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgment, an Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network game, is a great example of a tactical RPG, or may be described more accurately as a platform turn based strategy RPG. This game reminds me a lot of Final Fantasy Tactics how you can move your characters from one box to another. You are to use these characters you are given against a pre-determined amount of “baddies” on that particular level. In the training exercises that they have you do at the beginning of the game, you are Tobias, a young boy, who is, you guessed it, just learning about the ways of the sword, the bow, and magic. This does not mean that you are restricted to controlling only one character, you control everyone on the battle field unless there is a special character that assists you in that specific battle.

The game play aspect started out a little clunky and slow but once the game got going it really felt like you could get sucked in and keep playing this game for hours at a time. You are able to use different types of physical attacks such as a regular sword slashing attack and a long range attack that you can switch to, like a bow or another long range weapon and target your enemies from afar. There are also magic attacks like a regular damage attack used to hurt enemies directly, hexes that can slow down or hurt enemies over time like a snare or poison; your magic can also be used to help your characters like the heal spell that gives an ally of your choosing his/her health back, or cure that can take off poisons or snares. Even the technical aspect of this game is exceptional; for example, some regular attacks that you do can actually hurt allies standing next to you if you swing a huge weapon around. The same thing goes with magic, if a magic spell that you use has an area of effect damage to it, you will hurt any allies in the area. So be careful when you choose to unleash a huge magic spell around your allies, because your enemies may die but your allies probably will as well.

The graphics in this game were decent as far as the reactions to attacks and the magic spells that are cast for an arcade game. But as far as the surroundings you can tell that there wasn’t that much put into it and that they were more focused on the game play aspect instead of how the game looked. There were no problems with any of the sounds while attacks were being made, but the surrounding ambiance sounds were very plain.

This game is rated teen for blood, fantasy violence, and mild language. When playing the game, the blood was squirts of red bubbles coming up from a character or enemy that had been attacked, and a prolonged squirt when that character or enemy dies. As far as fantasy violence goes, the above fight sequences is as much violence that you are going to get from this game. If there is any language it is unnoticeable and not overly vulgar.

This relatively new XBLA/PSN game is developed by Hijinx Studios LLC (previously known as PhoenixSoft) and published by Konami Digital Entertainment Inc.

Chances are high that if you have some sort of DLC code for BioWare’s newly released sci-fi RPG epic, Mass Effect 2, you’re probably pulling your hair out right now.

According to Kotaku, there are myriad issues plaguing players’ experience with the game. For instance, there are reports of GameStop codes not working, activation issues on the Cerberus Network (BioWare’s in-game DLC launching pad), and an inability for many players to even connect on the PC version’s Cerberus Network. There are also reports of Blood Dragon armor issues, the helmet in particular being a thorn in some gamers’ sides.

Have any of you fine folks run into similar problems? My course load prevents me from diving into Mass Effect 2 until the semester ends, so I can’t say I’ve experienced any troubles—or the game, for that matter. I might just cry. But if you’re experiencing download troubles, don’t fret, because BioWare handyman Chris Priestly (sorta) has you covered.

According to the keyboard-clacking monkeys at Kotaku, the Dreamcast classic Sonic Adventure may be coming to Xbox Live Arcade in the near future. A port of the game that some consider to be the last decent Sonic title popped up on the gaming press incarnation of XBL on PartnerNet, but was promptly removed when word began to spread. Sega remains silent on the issue.

What say you? I’m not afraid to drag out my Dreamcast and fire up Sonic Adventure whenever I’m in the mood, so this news doesn’t light any fires in my mind. You readers, however, might be jumping for joy at this news for all I know. If so, looks like Microsoft and Sega are about to hook you up. If not, well, there’s always Modern Warfare 2 to keep you busy.

I think we can all agree that the PlayStation  Home arcade is lame. Standing in line, waiting to play a game—that wasn’t much fun in the golden age of arcades, and it certainly isn’t fun doing so in a virtual space. So what can Microsoft do differently on Xbox Live that will attract people who are dissatisfied with Home’s lackluster arcade?

Enter Game Room, a free downloadable virtual arcade (say that three times fast) for Xbox 360 and PC. Players will be able to arrange arcade cabinets in their own personal space and show off their custom arcade to friends on Xbox Live or Games for Windows Live. Avatars will explore these spaces and tackle arcade classics like Centipede, Tempest, Gravitar, and many more. (more…)

Yeah, I know—this place is turning into Hardcore Dragon Age Gamer. I can’t help the news is still slow, so read up and hush.

If you can’t get enough of the nostalgic RPG fun in Dragon Age: Origins, worry not. BioWare’s got their fans covered with an upcoming DA:O expansion—yes, a seriously old-school full expansion—called Awakening, due for release this March. The expansion will ship on a retail disc and will be available in downloadable form, and will cost gamers $39.99.

Players can expect new areas, higher level cap, five new characters (although BioWare has been unclear on whether or not they’re all playable), and lots of new loot. BioWare says players can expect roughly 15 hours of new gameplay in the expansion. (more…)

Finally, I have some good ol’ fashioned gaming news to deliver. Sadly, it isn’t good news.

Chris Priestly, a community manager overseeing the nerds clogging up the BioWare forums, let slip a few hours ago that the Return to Ostagar DLC planned for release today on Xbox Live and PC won’t be on time. Not today, not tomorrow, not next week—well, scratch that, I guess it could be next week. The point is, Priestly said the DLC pack won’t be coming out as scheduled.

The PS3 version of Return to Ostagar had a later, indeterminate release anyway, so maybe this means all platforms will see it at the same time.  Perhaps we’ll be heading back to corpse-filled Ostagar on, say…the 19th? 26th? Hopefully the pack hits sooner instead of ridiculously later.

The next DLC for EA and BioWare’s Dragon Age: Origins, a heart-warming tale of revenge and ogre massacre called Return to Ostagar, hits Xbox Live and the PC on January 5. PSN will see the DLC pack sometime later. If you want to know what to expect in the pack, catch a glimpse below, courtesy of Gamerfuzion and Youtube.

Take a look at the Blue Bomber kickin’ it old-school in the latest Mega Man sequel, courtesy of Evil Avatar and le Youtube.

It’s not much, but it’s something to tide you crazy MM fans over until the game’s release. When is that, you ask? March 2010, my friends.

When Nintendo Power announced the upcoming Mega Man 10 for WiiWare, they neglected to mention that the retro 8-bit sequel will also grace Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. Makes sense, given that it is a Nintendo publication.

Anyhoo, I just thought you XBL and PSN folks would like to know. If you’re hankering for more punishing old-school gameplay that makes Demon’s Souls look like a Disney game, but you don’t have a Wii, Capcom still has you covered. Capcom has plenty of Sheep Man to go around.