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Not 100% sure how I got on this list, but I was emailed about an article today listing the top 25 ultimate gamer vacations, i found it interesting enough to pass it along to you guys - for those of you that only want a recap here is the list minus descriptions and the detailed information about the item they provided:

1. Tokyo Game Show The Tokyo Game Show
2. Games Convention
3. E3
4. Entertainment for All Expo
5. BlizzCon
6. Penny Arcade Expo
7. Consumer Electronics Show
8. QuakeCon
9. Comic-Con International
10. Fan Expo Canada
11. Championship Gaming Series
12. Wiimbleton
13. Major League Gaming Events
14. World Cyber Games
15. DigitalLife
16. Kode5
17. Electronic Sports World Cup
18. Iron Man of Gaming
19. Your Public Library
20. Akihabara, Tokyo
21. Air Combat Adventures
22. Beach rental
23. Mountain View, California
24. Space Camp
25. Your Living Room

 
What: Viva Pinata Party Animals
When: Officially Released Today
How Much: MRSP $49.99

Today marks the officiall release of Viva Pinata Party Animals. Seems a bit different than the original Viva Pinata game which may be good or bad depending on what you tastes are. It seems to be more like a Mario Party or Fuzion Frenzy type game, with lots of mini games to compete with friends and family in. You can play local with your family and friends or take it online to play with people on xbox live. Personally I loved the original game, and my son loves the pinatas so I will have to get my hands on a copy sometime soon. Official press release to follow (its a big one…you have been warned)
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A while back there was a contest floating around called the “Doritos Unlock Xbox Challenge”. This contest invited people to think up an xbox live arcade game “that brings to live the bold spirirt of the Doritios brand”, in other words, create a comercial for our company. Don’t get me wrong, I am willing to give the games a chance, after all I did download and try out Yaris (aka the Toyota advertisement game) and actually paid for the Burger King ad games last holiday season - a game is a game my friends. Some are good, and some not so much - time will tell with these xbox fan created ideas.

From now until Nov 18th you can go to www.snackstrongproductons.com and vote for the game you want developed as an Xbox Live Arcade Game.

Here are the five finalist games that you will be playing and voting on:

• “Doritos Dash of Destruction” by Mike Borland of Sewickley, PA
  In “Doritos Dash of Destruction,” players can choose to control one of two characters.  Either a hungry T-Rex chasing a delivery truck loaded with crunchy Doritos tortilla chips or the delivery truck driver, racing to escape the clutches of the T-Rex.  As the chase begins havoc ensues as the lumbering dino barrels through the completely destructible city resulting in an intense game of cat-and-mouse.
• “Doritos Presents UDC: Ultimate Dodgeball Champions” by Devan Moore of Panama City, FL
  In this futuristic dodgeball game, inspired by Devan’s favorite childhood game and the intensity of Doritos, players start by creating a customized team from a handful of colorful characters.  Then, using special “power up” features to create fire balls, teams go at it in futuristic stadiums and compete for ultimate dodgeball dominance. 
• “Monkeys from Mt. Doritos” by Juanito Lagasco, of Algonquin, IL
  In this quick-play, high-fun, retro-style game, one or more people play as monkeys that collect Doritos chips exploding out of Mt. Doritos.  The more Doritos players collect, the more points they earn and the closer they get to winning.  But, watch out as fellow monkeys and lurking monsters want to steal your prized Doritos chips. 
• “PB’s Quest for Flavor” by Jeremy Mattsen of Colorado Springs, CO
  In “PB’s Quest for Flavor,” PB - the game’s pill bug hero - goes on his quest for the perfect chip flavor. Throughout the game, favorite Doritos flavors are introduced as weapons giving PB unique abilities.  With the strength and power of Doritos, players guide PB through a household of obstacles and enemies to successfully complete his quest.
• “Rythum Racing” by Kenneth Parker of Warner Robins, GA
  In this original racing game, players turn up the volume in game play as they import song files and use music to “drive” the game.  Players race around the equalizer race track, where sounds, beats and rhythms will alter the track.  Deep bass sounds for example might cause the race track to ripple, throwing the race cars up in the air while other elements of the music generate power-ups.

without trying the games at this time the first one gets my vote….why?  Well hes from my state, gotta support the home team!  Full press release to follow.

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Attached to the announcement of Mutant Storm Empire was a statement that microsoft is shooting for a target of over 100 games by the end of the year.  Which shouldn’t be hard to obtain with the release schedule they have been keeping too lately.  They also gave (very small) tips on upcoming releases.  One of which (undertow) I played waaaaay back in May.  Here’s what they had to offer on the upcoming titles - which are not listed in any particular order. 

• “N+”(Slick Entertainment and Metanet Software) – Play as an acrobatic ninja in this addictive action-puzzle platformer. N+ features inadvertently homicidal robots, stylish graphics, a level editor and intense multiplayer awesomeness.
• “Screwjumper!” (THQ) – Players take the plunge in “Screwjumper!” and free-fall into the depths of the chaotic underworld as a Screwjumper, driving aliens back to their home world by destroying their precious mining equipment.
• “SHREK-N-ROLL™” (Activision) – Gamers join “Shrek®,” “Fiona,” “Donkey,” “Puss in Boots” and 20 other twisted fairy tale friends in this hilarious puzzle game designed for ogres of all ages.
• “SpongeBob SquarePants: Underpants Slam™” (Nickelodeon and THQ) – In this quick and fun game, players search the kitchen of the Krusty Krab, the Flying Dutchman’s ship and the Armoury of Atlantis for 99 pairs of underpants.
• “Switchball” (Sierra Online) – Based on real-world physics, “Switchball” is an intricate puzzle game set in a stunning 3-D world where players control an ever-changing ball along a narrow, winding course suspended in midair.
• “Undertow” (Chair Entertainment Group) – This fast-paced action-shooter sends gamers underwater as they battle up to 16 players for control of the oceans! Players race to upgrade their units as they engage in non-stop conquest-style battles through multiple levels of combat action with some of the most stunning graphics ever seen in an Xbox LIVE Arcade title.
• “Word Puzzle” (InterServ International) – The classic pen-and-paper word search game is brought to a new level of excitement on Xbox LIVE Arcade, complete with combos, high-score achievements and the ability to compete against others online.

What: Mutant Storm Empire
When: October 31, 2007 5AM EST
More Info: Xbox Page
Screenshots: My Gallery

For all you fans of Mutant Storm Reloaded, there is a sequel coming your way.  Blast away tons of enemies, solo or as a team with a co-op friend.  Check out the screenshots and more information at xbox.com for more details.  Official press release to follow.

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What: Blue Dragon DLC - “Six Treasures”
When: Friday 10/26/07
How Much: 200 MP ($2.50) 

Well sadly I still haven’t gotten my greedy little hands on this game.  Blame the bills, blame laziness, or just blame all the other games that are out right now, whatever the case for those of you that DO have a copy of Blue Dragon, your game has been extended past the original 3 discs you bought back in August.  This is the second downlodable content released for Blue Dragon is titled “6 Treasures” and will run you 200 MP ($2.50).

The Six Treasures are as items that provide you with new experiences within the game:

• “Whimsical Mind” – growth item that enhances a few randomly-picked categories by 0-4 levels
• “Way of Thieves” – in-battle item that can steal rare items possessed by enemy creatures
• “Devee Phonograph” – allows you to listen to the “Devee-tribe dance”
• “Nothing Glasses” – visualizes all “nothing” points by means of a star-looking symbol (oftentimes you’ll find a lot of items that contain “nothing”, followed by an English-speaking narrator saying “nothing”).
• “Shuffled Helmet” – item that adjusts magical and speed parameters (Magic +40 / Speed -40). Detrimental when used by itself because the speed parameter goes down by 50 points, but when equipped along with “Shuffled Breastplate” and “Shuffled Splint”, this item can quadruplicate the Magic parameters and reverse the Speed parameters. So it becomes the strongest equipment in the game. (Magic +160 / Speed +40)
• “Spring-wind Scarf” – adjusts characters’ HP and Speed parameters by 20%

PlayNC & Arenanet have always been good about giving out unique items or having special events for holidays and this halloween is no different. Having recently dusting off my Guild Wars account (still re-learning my characters as we speak) I was pleasantly suprised to get this press release that they will be having some interesting Halloween activities over the coming days.

In celebration of the Halloween Season, the Guild Wars team will be offering treats and may even have a few tricks up their sleeves for Guild Wars players. Between October 26 and 31, players can take part in a Costume Brawl dressed as famous Guild Wars characters, listen to the wandering Teller of Tales, collect peculiar and interesting Halloween-themed items, and enjoy two towns fully decorated to match the festive season. Every three hours on Halloween, gamers will enjoy a visit from the reigning monarch of the spooky season, Mad King Thorn, who will give each of his subjects a special memento of the season. For more information on all the Halloween events in Guild Wars, please visit www.guildwars.com, and on October 29, be sure to check out the 2007 winners of the Guild Wars Halloween Art Contest.

The Guild Wars franchise of online roleplaying games has sold over four million units in just over two years. Guild Wars: Eye of the North™ is the first expansion for the subscription-free franchise and features new characters, Heroes, items, and story content accessible to players who own any existing Guild Wars campaign. Eye of the North is now available at the Guild Wars In-Game Store, the PlayNC store (https://store.plaync.com), and at many retail locations. For more information, please visit www.guildwars.com.

Microsoft just announced that Age of Empires 3 and Flight Simulator X have just had expansions shipped out today.  I personally love the AOE series, and can’t wait to try out the extras included in the new expansion.  I have never played the flight sim series, so I don’t have an opinion on it, but I do know its rather popular in its genre.

Official release to follow: 

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Unless you were living under a rock or completely detached from the internet you probably all ready heard the rumors of the “arcade console”.  Well its official, for $279.99 you can get yourself a shiny xbox360 console, HDMI interface,wireless controller, 256MB memory unit, and five arcade games (PAC-MAN Championship Edition, Uno, Luxor 2, Boom Boom Rocket and Feeding Frenzy).

Official release and such to follow.

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In addition to all of the family friendly content on your xbox 360, microsoft just annouced they are bringing another huge arsonal of family friendly content. These include hundreds o downloadable video content, exclusive video content from “The Backyardigans” (one of my sons favorites), and some new xbox live arcade games such as “SHREK-N-ROLL” and “SpongeBob SquarePants: Underpants Slam” just to name a few.

Full press release to follow.
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