Are you afraid of the dark? Your enemies will be. After developing the critically acclaimed Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay, Starbreeze Studios comes out in full force with The Darkness. In short, this game is excellent and a must play. Story, style, action and character all merge together wonderfully. The story slowly unravels, the action steadily ramps up, and by the time the game is finished you’re left thinking “Wow, what a great experience, I want more.”

The Darkness is as much about first person shooting as it is about exploration. Between firefights you’ll spend your time visiting sections of New York. You’ll talk to residents and engage in some optional, yet entertaining, side quests. These interactions do a good job of keeping the story moving. The story is told through in-game conversations, text messages, phone calls, and loading segments. When you transition from one section of NY to another the game has to load, but Starbreeze took advantage of this. Instead of watching a loading bar fill, you’re given a short cutscene in which Jackie, the main character and victim of the Darkness, talks about himself. Some of these will be generic reflections on himself and the city; others will help propel the story. These are excellent and really help give the game its dark and gritty atmosphere. The story that is told, its twists and turns, and the general feel are its biggest strength. You don’t need to be familiar with the comic to enjoy it, I wasn’t. Starbreeze must have realized this isn’t a commonly known character, so as a bonus there are a couple issues to unlock, giving you a chance to familiarize yourself with Jackie.
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Maybe it was poor marketing or bad beta participant selections? Or perhaps bad timing with all the focus on the successful Halo 3 Beta and the highly anticipated Forza 2? Regardless of the reason, the 360 now has a title that will be sadly unheeded. Shadowrun is by far the freshest idea to hit the FPS scene with compelling features that expand game-play like never before. Yet the word on the street is stay clear of this one. And I ask, why? Maybe it’s just me, but it feels like the majority of the badmouthers haven’t even played the the darn game yet.

Well I played it, and here’s what I gotta say about it.

Hardcore FPS fans must have this game in their collection. Shadowrun is not for casual gamers. With over 20 different weapon, magic and tech gadgets equippable in countless combinations among four character roles, you can create your perfect FPS personality. Weather it’s a 3 foot tall dwarf with a Rocket Launcher and Shotgun or a monstrous giant Troll with a ninja sword, the possibilities seem endless.

Former Halo fans have every reason to pick up this game. Did you hate having to re-spawn just to get slaughtered by a dual wielding jackass over and over? Well it’s not gonna happen here after mastering the unique game-play. If the only thing you like about Halo 2 multiplayer is the Party System then you are in for a treat! ‘Cause it’s back, just like you remember, with a few extra features Bungie ignored (Like voting to boot griefers out of your party).

OK, so it retails for a full 60 bucks and only returns you 9 maps and no Story mode (there is still a single player mode). The developers claim that there is no story mode because they set all their efforts to balance the multi-player. Well… it shows. All I’m asking you to do is try this game before the badmouth bandwagon picks you up. So go rent it, borrow it, there’s even a demo available on the Marketplace; just play it.

Anyone who cringes at the thought of yet another FPS release should not overlook Shadowrun. You may just discover that it can be an exciting and intense First Person Shooter game that you and your buddies can have good times with. Expect a thorough review from XBLR soon. -Rust.

What is the one of the biggest holidays of the year? Memorial Day. What’s so cool about it? Well, while many people like it because of the 4 day weekend or because it signals that summer is near, Memorial Day is a day that we are to remember all those that gave their life fighting for this country and what they believe in. This day is also about thinking of those that are risking their lives overseas every day. So here at XBL Radio, we decided to hold a game drive for these awesome and sometimes forgot about troops.

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Thats right! its not just a kiddy game! well… ok… maybe it is. That doesn’t seem to stop people from all ages and races from flocking to this insanely addictive game.

Now, if you havent purchased this game. You need to. Its a must have for your collection if you own a Nintendo DS. 1 Million people cant be wrong! Even more shocking news about this game however, is that in Japan, they’ve already sold over 5 million since launch back in september of last year. These pokemon games dont just sell copies… it prints money for Nintendo. I get to thinking though, if it was 1 million in 5 days, will this trend continue, or plateau?

One thing you should know really quick, if you decide to listen to my advice and go buy the game. There are two different versions of the game: Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, so choose wisely. Honestly, neither one is superior at this point, they just have some characters that you cant get on one version, that you can on the other.

-Cypher

Topics Include:

Jump on the Microsoft Bus on playing Guitar Hero 2
E3 Exhibitors Announced
How real is Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2?
Bungie to prep us Halo 3 beta testers
Mass Effect delayed
2 new games coming this Wednesday to the Xbox Live Arcade, again?
Do it yourself, prep your own 120gb HD for the Xbox 360
Contests and Tournaments in the mix
and more!
Music by Theme for Murder
http://www.myspace.com/themeformurder

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http://feeds.feedburner.com/XBLRadioDailyMinute

�
I haven’t even unlocked all the songs on G.H II (which has only been out for a week) and now I can go wild with my MS points?

Thats right!� For just 500 points you don’t even get a “reach Around” by the Marketplace.� Red Octane has already put out three packs of songs for you to buy at 500� MS Points Each.

($6.25 or about $2.00 a song)
*pack 1 = Bark at the Moon, Hey You, Ace of Spades.
*pack 2 = Killer Queen,Take it off, Frankenstein
*pack 3 = Higher Ground, Infected, Stellar

From what I hear, the upcoming SinStar for the PS3 game will allow you to buy the songs individually.� No word if you will be able to transfer� the $2.00+� songs to your mp3 player.

All three packs would make the game come to a ballpark: $115.00 (If you are like most and paid for the Guitar and Game this past week).� That’s more than a real Guitar purchase or a nice down-payment on the Limeted Edition of Halo 3.� Plus, we aren’t finished yet!� Keep in mind this is only week one. � So tell your mom that she will have to either up the allownce or you have to pick between guitar lessons or GHII.� Either way it still won’t up your chances of scorin’ in the real World!

If, for any reason, you have a damaged Microsoft® Xbox 360™ disc and like to replace it, please review the information below:

THIS PROGRAM IS GOOD ONLY FOR XBOX 360 CONSOLE OWNERS IN COUNTRIES WHERE XBOX 360 IS SOLD AT AUTHORIZED RETAIL LOCATIONS.

This program only applies to games where Microsoft is the publisher, and is subject to availability. To check and see if your game is available for replacement, please review which Microsoft products currently fall under this program here. Link to Game List Page

You will need to print and complete the program form.

For additional terms and conditions on this policy, please review the Terms and Conditions.

Once the products have been received by Microsoft, please allow four to six weeks for delivery.

Def Jam ICON at a glance…

The Good

• Easy to learn how to fight
• Managing your crew and girls is fun
• Playing your own music in this game is what its all about
• Good Story line
• Graphics are OK

The Bad

• Achievement points are to far apart
• It gets to a point where you are fighting the same person over and over
• Not enough fighting moves
• No replay value

The Ugly

• Easy to cheat
• Stereotyping

In my opinion this game would be a rental not a buy.
If you wan’t the full review you can download XBL Radio ver. 40

In a recent audio interview with� Ted Lang-Producer for Guitar Hero II, XBL Radio fills us in on what we can expect from the 360 version of GH2.� While Microsoft’s rendition of the� rockin’ title� is� rolled up� with exclusives like Download Content and Leaderboards, the most obvious and expected feature has been left behind.

“The main thing is, Microsoft holds on tightly
to their patented wireless technology.”
Ted Lang, Guitar Hero Producer, RedOctane

It seems like Microsoft, well-known� for reaching out and listening to the gaming community,� is holding out on what� the gamers want this time around.� Many� GH fans� would be happy to pay the premium price for a wireless guitar, yet they won’t have one� to buy at launch.� Maybe� Ted was worried it would turn out like the� wireless headset?� In that case… nice move!

-Rust.

If you missed the interview,� Right� Click and save this audio.� Or you can catch it on XBL Radio Podcast version 37.0 (Feb 27, 2007) - the interview with Ted Lang begins on minute 58 of the full show.

Thats right if you live in Mexico and you want to play GRAW 2 you might have a hard time finding this game.

According to Juarez newspaper the governor of the Mexican state of Chihuahua has ordered the seizure of all copies of the latest version of GRAW (Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2).

Gov. Jose Reyes Baeza Terraces decided to take action after he caught word of what Juarez Mayor Héctor Murguía Lardizábal had to say about the game. Calling it “a crime against the intellectual capacity of Juarez residents”. This is not the first time Tom Clancy has pitted his crew against the Mexican in the last GRAW the ghost were fighting against our brothers from the south of the boarder. I am surprise it took so long for the !@#% to hit the fan with this game, considering that one of the biggest political topic of today is the border as well illegal immigrants here in the United States. While I know this is just a game (a good game at that) I am able to see where some people would have a problem with this game. I mean what have our brothers form the south of the border done to us? What do you think?