We are oh so pleased to announce the completion of our LB Chibi-Robo Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. The online guide will take you through the Chibi-Robo storyline. After all, there's much more for a 4 inch domestic robot to do than just clean. The Chibi-Robo PDF Guide includes Sticker details (so you know how to complete the game's sidequests), Chibi-Door locations, and Frog Ring locations (plus many helpful screenshots).
LB Chibi-Robo Walkthrough and Strategy Guide

Thursday - March 2, 2006

2K Games (a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive) and Bethesda Softworks today announced The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion has "gone gold", meaning the master copy of the game has been completed, and it is ready for mass production. The highly-anticipated title, a single-player and open-ended role-playing game, will hit store shelves in North America and Europe during the week of March 20, and will be available for the Xbox 360 and PC.
Pre-order The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Read the Press Release

Continue reading "'The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion' Goes Gold"

IGN is reporting that today's launch of the Nintendo DS Lite in Japan has been more than successful, with stores selling out before they opened early this morning. While long lines certainly aren't rare with the launch of new gaming devices, it certainly says something that people are lining up for a redesigned gaming device.

The success of the Nintendo DS has been remarkable. Remember when people thought it would fail because it was gimmicky? And there Nintendo was, telling us it was time for a Revolution. The more I play Nintendo games (remember, I just played Chibi-Robo), the more comfortable I am with their upcoming Revolution. I have confidence in them again, and that feels good.

Friday - March 3, 2006

The following events take place between 9am and 10am, on the 3rd day of March, 2006.

So the graphics are kind of funny, the controls are a bit problematic, and I can't get the cameras to line up quite right. With that being said, I am loving my 24: The Game experience. Ever since the show's premier season, Jer and I have watched 24 as a television video game. From the moment I saw the "Young Guns" (another great video game idea, btw) team of Keifer Sutherland and Lou Diamond Phillips go after Dennis Hopper in the underground bunker, I knew this video game moment would come. And here it is, exactly as expected. In three hours I have taken out tens of terrorists, stopped a deadly ricin attack, figured out how Chase and Chloe knew eachother, defused a bomb, and chased a man through the streets of LA. Good times.

If you need 24 Help, please stop by the LB 24 Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. I'll be writing it as I go, so I expect it to move fairly fast.

Thanks to Eurogamer for publishing some new details for LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy. Among the changes from the LEGO Star Wars original is character customization, free-roam vehicles, a general improvement of vehicle levels, a co-op camera that will allow players more freedom to fight and explore, and, my favorite, new character moves, including Chewey's new melee attack, the pulling of LEGO arms out of LEGO sockets.
Read the article

Gamespot is today reporting the Utah video game bill, which aimed to classify violent video games as "harmful to minors", has missed the Utah State Senate's general session deadline, and has, therefore, been sent back to the House Rules Committee.

This marks a temporary defeat of Utah HB 257, which would have made it a third degree felony, with a minimum fine of $300 and two weeks in prison, for adults (parents included) to expose minors to violent video games.

Monday - March 6, 2006

Almost a year ago, we reported on the Hitman(R): Blood Money website going live. Now that the game is only about two months away (May 2, Xbox, PS2, PC) the website has been relaunched with some pretty cool trailers, gameplay video and the normal fare of screenshots, wall papers and character info. What I find to be fun is to check out the international sites which you can access by clicking on the flag of that country. The Hitman series has grown on us over the years. This iteration adds more stealth (yay!), better graphics, smarter AI, and a rival group of assassins not only fighting you for jobs, but trying to kill you as well.
Hitman: Blood Money website

Atari, Inc. has today revealed the first details of its soundtrack for the upcoming "Hollywood-style action-driving blockbuster" Driver: Parallel Lines (aka Driver 4). The game that will play through two eras in New York City has focused its soundtrack on New York music scene of the 70s and the here and now, and will include original exclusive material by Public Enemy, Grandmaster Flash, Suicide, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Arthur Baker, Mylo, Paul Oakenfold, Lifesavas featuring Vernon Reid and the Audio Bullys.

Leading in the 70s will be David Bowie, the Stranglers, Blondie, Iggy Pop, WAR, The Temptations, Funkadelic, Marvin Gaye, Parliament, and Average White Band (plus, I heard some Stanglers over on the Driver: Parallel Lines website). As for the here and now music, expect to hear from The Roots, LCD Soundsystem, TV on the Radio, Kaiser Chiefs, Secret Machines, and The Dead 60's.

Driver: Parallel Lines ships on March 14 for the Xbox and PS2.
Pre-order Driver: Parallel Lines for only $39.99 today.

Continue reading "'Driver: Parallel Lines' Soundtrack Revealed"

Insert funny "Family Guy" reference here. You see, I don't have one because Allison and I never caught the "Family Guy" bug. Many of our friends love the show, but it just doesn't do it for us. We're huge "The Simpsons" fans and I guess that there is simply no room in our hearts (much less our schedule) for another animated sit-com. That being said, we know that it's a good show and there are die-hard fans. And, for those fans, 2K Games has today announced a licensing deal with Fox to make several "Family Guy" games, starting this Fall. We'll update you when there is more info on what kind of games they'll be making.

Continue reading "Stewie Goes Digital"

Tuesday - March 7, 2006

On Feb. 16 I reported on the playable demo for the highly anticipated X360 WWII game The Outfit(TM) via Xbox Live. The level, titled "Estate Assault" is a multiplayer demo in which you can choose to play as Axis or Allies. If you have Xbox Live Silver (the free service) you can only play offline multiplayer. If you have Xbox Live Gold (the pay service) you can play online versus other gamers. I haven't yet had a chance to download the demo and from all reports, it's quite large, so maybe I'll let it download tonight while I watch some TV. I'll report back if the demo is any good.

We are pleased to announce that we are in the process of writing a LB Black(TM) "Basics and Secondary Objective" guide. You see, the game really doesn't need a walkthrough as it's pretty much, "run forward and shoot". However, there are many secondary objectives in each mission and finding them can be a real pain. Therefore, we'll be writing a guide covering the basics of gameplay and detailing each and every location of the secondary objectives. The online guide is currently in its rough draft stage, so excuse the mess.

Thursday - March 9, 2006

Atari, Inc. has announced Driver: Parallel Lines has "gone gold", meaning the master disc has been completed and is ready for mass production. The news serves as confirmation the game will ship to stores nationwide on March 14th for the PS2 and Xbox.

Driver: Parallel Lines, "open, fast-paced driving action-movie experience", focuses on TK, "an 18 year-old driving prodigy seeking fortune and fame" in the 1970s. After TK gets double crossed in one of his driving deals, he is sent to prison for 28 years. When he returns in 2006, he's "older, meaner, and hell bent on settling some serious scores".

With the hype surrounding the game the recent announcement of the game's soundtrack, we're expecting a lot. Please don't disappoint, Atari. Please..
Pre-order Driver: Parallel Lines today!

Continue reading "'Driver: Parallel Lines' Goes Gold"

The chatterbox forums have an interesting post showing a promotional postcard from the Crosswalk Church in Phoenix, AZ. The postcard uses a slightly rotated (to look like a cross?) Xbox 360 logo with the words, "Life 360" in an X360 font face. The card goes on to read, "Admit it - life is not always fun and games." It continues, using various gaming phrases like, "there's no re-start button" and we only get one shot at life and then it's, "game over". Oy. Ripping off corporate logos for a church promotional mailer is walking on thin ice. I bet MS lawyers are looking into this as we speak: Xbox v. God.

Continue reading ""Life 360": Church Uses X360 in Promotion"

Friday - March 10, 2006

Allison has finished up the first draft of the LB 24(TM): The Game Walkthrough and Strategy Guide while I continue to work on the LB Black(TM) General Gameplay and Secondary Objective Guide. Allison is taking some screen shots as we speak and I'm on level 6 of 8 in the Black guide. I have to say, Black is growing on me (no, it's not mold!) after it gave a bad first impression. Allison is truly enjoying 24 and says it's more a great episode of the show than a great video game. Look for both guides to be done early next week. Have a great weekend!

I have fond memories from when I was a kid, watching cable TV (it was new then, people!), and suddenly realizing that it was a free HBO weekend. That meant movies! And, how many of you have old VCR tapes from those weekends where the promotional pitch is scrolling across the bottom of "Return of the Jedi"? That feeling has returned with news that Verizon is sponsoring a free Xbox Live weekend, March 31 - April 2. If you have yet to experience Xbox Live then this is your chance. May I recommend you start with some Project Gotham Racing 3 as playing driving games online are often easier and more rewarding than say jumping into a Call of Duty 2 massacre. We'll remind you of the free weekend as it nears.

Monday - March 13, 2006

Joystiq is reporting that Sony have scheduled a Press Conference for this Wednesday, March 15 (the Ides of March!), in order to discuss the PS3. Things haven't been going well for the PS3 with rumors that it may not even make a holiday launch window due to the fact that there are still manufacturing snafus (Blu-Ray drives and cell processors don't grow on trees). Another key bit of info is that venerable developer Square-Enix has yet to receive final hardware specs. What will the press conference cover? Maybe nothing, maybe everything. We'll have to wait and see if a delay will become official, thus making life a lot easier for the X360. We'll update you after the press conference.

Gamespot has published a fun little article about the overwhelming success of the second launch of the DS Lite in Japan. As you may recall, we reported the first launch of the DS Lite on March 2nd was a surprising success to many, including Nintendo, as stores sold out of their stock before even opening their doors. Now, two weeks later, Nintendo has shipped its Ice Blue and Enamel Navy DS Lites to stores in Japan, and, as Gamespot reports, the overnight lines outside retailers were even longer.

Excuse me while I go invest in Nintendo.

Eidos Interactive has uploaded its new Tomb Raider: Legend trailer to http://www.tombraider.com/, and it is now ready for viewing.

Truth be told, I wasn't that impressed. However, that's not to say I'm not extremely excited for the game...far from it. I've just found that, unless new trailers have something to do with a certain princess whose name begins with a "Z", OR they provide details previously unknown (usually about a certain princess whose name begins with a "Z"), I just don't get too excited about them. There's nothing shockingly surprising about the new Tomb Raider trailer, but it still looks like it's going to be a damn fun game.

Pre-order Tomb Raider: Legend for the PS2, Xbox or PC (X360 and PSP versions coming later)

If you aren't aware, since the launch of the X360, there have been isolated incidences of X360s overheating and crashing. At first, the problems were rare but there seems to be a recent uptick of reported problems if the Xbox forums are any indication. At first, many people thought that the 19,000 lb brick of a power supply was overheating as many people had stuffed it deep into the recesses of their home entertainment cabinet. Last week, a German site thought they had the answer and created an uproar...

Continue reading "The X360 Overheating Roundup"

Tuesday - March 14, 2006

SEGA's survival horror forensics detective game, Condemned(TM) has gone gold for the PC. I played and wrote a walkthrough for the game based on the X360 version, which is the same as the PC game. Condemned is a gory, freaky game. I'm still having trouble going into department stores due to the mannequins. I'm also trying to bury any memory of the game in a deep dark place in my memory. If you get the game for your PC, be sure to only play during the day, with the volume at a reasonable level, and have the LB Condemned Guide next to you for comfort.

Driver(TM): Parallel Lines is hitting North American store shelves today. This is technically the fourth Driver game. We're very excited for this game and we think a big reason for that is that it is aimed at our generation: those of us who are about 30 years old. The game is set in two time periods: the late '70s and present day. The soundtrack leans heavily toward classic '70s hits and the look of the game is decidely '70s cops and robbers TV show. Seeing as this is the style we grew up with, it is natural to be attracted to the game. We'll be writing a walkthrough for the game over the next few weeks, so stay tuned for info. Official site.

Wednesday - March 15, 2006

It's official. The Sony PS3 has been delayed. It will not launch until November of this year in a near-simultaneous launch in Japan, North America, and Europe. The console was slated to launch this Spring, but most gamers and analysts knew that Sony was having too many troubles with it's manufacturing and standards for the Blu-Ray DVD drive, the CELL processor, and a number of other factors including the fact that developers haven't had enough time to make games for it. Today at a press conference, Sony's gaming President, Ken Kutaragi, apologized to the industry reps in attendance for not alerting them earlier, although they would have had to have brains made of mud if they didn't realize that a delay was imminent.

Continue reading "Would You Like Your PS3 with Turkey?"

Thursday - March 16, 2006

With all the business of moving into our first home, I forgot to update you all with the fact that I have completed our LB 24: The Game Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. Whether you're facing a rooftop helicopter, losing cops who are ruthlessly pursuing you, or locating rooftop snipers before they take out the Vice President, this guide will get you through it.
LB's 24: The Game Guide

According to the Miami Herald, a resolution has been proposed to the Miami-Dade school district in Florida to "pressure Rockstar into withholding the release of the action game" while asking local merchants not to carry the game and urging parents not to buy the game.

Bully, a game that has yet to be released, has stirred up much controversy as it allows gamers to beat up their classmates during a time when school violence is still a very serious issue. Which is one of the many reasons, I'd guess, that the game is rated "M" for "Mature".

My suggestion to the school board of Miami-Dade is to stop focusing on this one game, and teach the parents at your schools about video game ratings. The answer is not censorship, nor is it pulling the game from stores so a well adjusted 30 year old like myself can't find it. Start educating, please.

Allison and I can't wait for Nintendo's next DS phenomenon, Brain Age(TM): Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. Due out on April 17, the game is already a smash hit in Japan and was, "written by Professor Ryuta Kawashima, a prominent Japanese neurologist." The game literally exercises your brain, making it work faster and more effeciently resulting in a "younger" brain. Some brain training exercises: count the syllables in well-known phrases, say the names of colors as they appear, draw lines to connect letters and numbers in alphabetical and numeric order, and count people as they enter and exit a house. You can also play agaisnt 15 other people in a "death match" to see who can do math calculations the quickest.

Continue reading "Updated "Brain Age" Fact Sheet"

We are pleased to announce the completion of the LB Black(TM) Secondary Objective and General Gameplay Guide. We decided not to write a full step-by-step walkthrough for this game as we don't feel it needs one. However, there are many pesky Secondary Objectives which are sometimes hard to find and this guide gives you detailed instructions on getting to each one. There are also some General Gameplay items (like shooting Grenades) that will make getting through the game more enjoyable. The $4.95 PDF Version contains all Secondary Objectives. The free version only contains Levels 1-4.

Friday - March 17, 2006

When Sony announced it had to delay the release of the PS3 from Spring 2006 to November 2006, it was assumed by many that all of Microsoft spent the day partying. While we have no confirmation of any parties, its clear that Microsoft CEO Steven Ballmer is quite excited for what the PS3's delay means for his company. In an interview with Fortune, Ballmer made it clear that the news means the Xbox 360 has a better chance at winning the seventh-generation of console wars, and Microsoft is going to use the next few months wisely, as "In every other generation, the first guy to 10 million consoles was the number one seller in the generation". Game on.
Read the article

Are you stuck in this newest release in the Metal Gear Solid series? If so, please check out our MGS3: Snake Eater Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. After all, Subsistence and Snake Eater are the exact same single player games, with the exception of a new and improved camera in Subsistence, meaning the Snake Eater guide will work perfectly for you.
LB's Metal Gear Solid 3 Walkthrough and Strategy Guide

Monday - March 20, 2006

The Financial Times today has an interesting article detailing what's at stake for EA with this week's highly anticipated release of The Godfather. Aside from the reputations of both EA and The Godfather franchise, EA has pumped a reported $10 - 20 million into the project. They also had to delay the game to a post-Holiday release and lowered the price from $50 to $40. Of course, this game is going to sell like free hotcakes, but just how many hotcakes do you need to sell to recoup $20 million in investment and $800 million in market value? My guess is more than eight. Allison will be writing a LB The Godfather Walkthrough and Strategy Guide starting this week.

Wednesday - March 22, 2006

Microsoft yesterday announced that the Xbox 360 shortage is over with weekly shipments now double or triple previous shipments. As Joystiq points out, it took 119 days for the shortage to end. In other X360 news, MS has announced the Spring lineup of games and is bragging that Xbox Live has surpassed the 10 million download mark. They are quick to point out that the mark was reached faster than Apple did with its iTunes downloads. The three big Spring games to keep an eye out for: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Tomb Raider: Legend, and Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter. But perhaps I'm most excited for Uno to debut on Xbox Live Arcade. Keep reading for the full list of Spring games...

Continue reading "X360 Shortage Over and Spring Lineup"

If my calendar wasn't telling me today is March 22nd, I'd think we were kicking off a holiday season, as the number of great and highly anticipated games being released this week is something gamers only see around Christmas. Stop by your local gaming retail store and you'll find the following new games on the shelves today (I, for one, will be rearranging my Gamefly Q so I can play a few of these this weekend):

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC, X360)
The Godfather (PC, Xbox, PS2) (LB The Godfather guide here)
Metroid Prime: Hunters (DS)
Me and My Katamari (PSP)
Metal Gear Acid 2 (PSP)
Tetris DS (DS)

We picked up the game yesterday, played around with it enough to get comfortable with it, and now we've begun work on our LB The Godfather: The Game Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. We'll write it as we go, then clean it up when we play through it a second time. You can watch the growing guide in progress here.

I am about halfway through the LB Driver(TM): Parallel Lines Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. I have just entered 2006 and I have to say that I miss the '70's music. Oh well, beggars can't be choosers after 28 years in prison. In fact, I don't know why I'm worried about music at all when I have so much revenge on my mind. The game is fun but suffers from the same thing that DRIV3R did; annoying police chases when you're just trying to do a mission and long drives to get to missions. Still, the game is fun and has a good storyline and spectacular cinematics.

Thursday - March 23, 2006

The San Jose Mercury News has a Pre-keynote speech interview with Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata. In the interview, Iwata confirms that the Revolution (or whatever it'll be called) will debut this year, that he knows where MS went wrong with the X360 launch, and that he wants to get 80 - 90% of Nintendo gamers online. That online percentage is a tall order considering that Xbox currently has a 10% online rate. This focus on online gaming is in stark contrast to what Iwata said in July of '04, "that customers do not want online games."

Continue reading "Pre-Keynote Interview with Iwata"

CNNMoney's "Game Over" columnist, Chris Morris has the scoop on Sony's PlayStation 3 online plans, which were panned immediately by analysts who believe Sony's expectations are too high for game publishers, meaning they don't believe the revenues Sony plans to bring in from these online plans are realistic.

According to the article, Phil Harrison, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, believes the game industry is moving from the "product era" to the "service era". This explains Sony's decision to go beyond competitive gaming with its online service and, "plans to offer publishers the capability to produce episodic content and hopes to be able to offer other entertainment programming such as movies, music and television shows."

Continue reading "Sony reveals PS3 online plans; confirms new controller"

Thanks to BoingBoing.net for pointing out this truly unique form of punishing players who "misbehave" in the online role-playing game Roma Victor for the PC. According to the Roma Victor site, "Crucifixion is to be used as a form of player 'ban' within the virtual world of Roma Victor, with the length of the ban reflecting the severity of the punishment. For cheating by exploiting a bug and advancing his or her character's skills unfairly, for example, a player might typically receive a seven-day ban; multiple or more serious offences will result in a longer (or even permanent) ban."

Continue reading "Misbehaving players to be crucified in 'Roma'"

Iwata has spoken and the news is good! In his keynote speech today at the Game Developers Conference (GDC), Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata announced that the Nintendo Revolution will play a "best of" of 1,000 SEGA Genesis games and some games from the TurboGrafx console via the Revolution's Virtual Console service. He also announced a new Zelda game for the Nintendo DS. All we know is the name: The Legend of Zelda(R): Phantom Hourglass. Oh boy, oh boy!!! The rest of the speech challenged game developers to think outside the box when designing Nintendo games. Proof of such successful thinking is evidenced in DS games such as Nintendogs and Brain-Age.

Continue reading "Iwata Reveals SEGA on Revolution and New Zelda DS"

Friday - March 24, 2006

As Jer reported yesterday, Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata, while speaking at the Game Developers Conference, announced The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the Nintendo DS. We now have the video of the game Iwata presented to the CDC crowd.

Large (640x480, 12 MB, WMV file)
Small (320x240, 7 MB, WMV file)

Unlike the aforementioned Zelda: Phantom Hourglass video, which was released by Nintendo and made available on Nintendo's press site, this God of War 2 video was allegedly taken during a super secret "cameras off" moment during Sony's presentation at the Game Developers Conference. Someone's in trouble....

Thanks to Joystiq for the heads up.

Monday - March 27, 2006

Here's how I'm imagining the strategy guide for Desperate Housewives would go: Walk forward, notice perfectly trimmed lawn on the right, issue slightly passive agressive remark to Bree about her roses. Continue forward and tell Susan she's an idiot while dodging gunfire from Mike. Avoid Zach as he goes into a bipolar fit and obsesses on Julie. Hang a right and notice sounds coming from the Applewhite's basement. Investigate and you'll realize they are holding one of their own (Caleb) captive. Run over to Gabrielle's house to call the police. After the police leave, gather around Lynette's kitchen table for poker and gossip! Yes, it's true, Disney has announced the Desperate Housewives game in an effort to squeeze everything it can out of the sinking show. Did you know they also have a fragrance line, a high end clothing line, a board game, ring tones, etc. Geez louise.

Continue reading ""Desperate Housewives" the Game"

As we reported last year, Rockstar had announced a new Grand Theft Auto title for the PSP was to launch in 2006. While it was presumed by many the game would be based in the world of Vice City, there was never any sort of confirmation from Rockstar that this was the case. While we are still without Rockstar confirmation, we do have something almost as good, and that's confirmation from the US Patent and Trademark Office, where Rockstar has applied for three separate trademarks for the phrase "Vice City Stories". One trademark is for the VCS software (the actual game, one is for "VCS" merchandise (primarily clothing), and one is for a VCS motion picture or television show. Interesting, no?

Tuesday - March 28, 2006

Joystiq is reporting on a rumor via EGM that a Lost game, based on the popular TV show, may be coming to a console near you this autumn. While this is definitely to be taken with a grain of sea salt, it would make financial sense, especially given the recently announced Desperate Housewives game and the success of 24: The Game [guide]. Since Lost is one of the few shows that I don't watch (not because I don't want to...it just happened that way), I have no witty comment to end this piece.

We are pleased to announce the completion of the LB Driver(TM): Parallel Lines Walkthrough and Strategy Guide. The guide covers all of the story missions in great detail and will give you advice and tips for getting through the game in style. The game was a bit of a disappointment although definitely fun. We just wish the 1970's tunes could have been carried over to 2006.

Download it now

Thursday - March 30, 2006

In case you're wondering why we've been so slow with gaming news this week, it's because we're in the process of moving. Expect it to be slow through the weekend, then we'll kick it back into gear next week. I'll finish up the LB The Godfather Walkthrough and Strategy Guide while Jer will begin work on Kingdom Hearts 2. If you're lucky, we may even sneak a Lunabean Video Game Radio Podcast into the mix! Hoozah!

Friday - March 31, 2006

Thanks to LB moderator, Trancemaster for pointing us to this article which details the chip specs of the Nintendo Revolution. The console will be, "powered by a 729MHz processor - 50 per cent more clock cycles than its predecessor in the GameCube - and a graphics chip set to run at 243MHz". IBM is making the chip for Nintendo, based on the Power PC processor and ATI is supplying the graphics chip. All of this mumbo-jumbo simply means that the Revolution will be much more powerful than the GameCube, but isn't going to try to compete with the raw power of the X360 and the PS3...which is exactly what Nintendo said they'd do.

The Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association (IEMA) is pleased with the results of a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) undercover mystery shopper program which shows great improvement in keeping violent games out of the hands of kids and in enforcing and displaying the ratings system. In 2000, the last time such a study was commissioned, 85% of minors were able to purchase M-rated games. Now, that number has dropped to 35%. Game retailers were also more likely to "card" a customer attempting to buy an M-rated game: 15% of the time in 2000, 50% of the time in 2005. All in all, this is good news for game retailers and the self-regulating video game ratings system, Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB).

Continue reading "FTC Mystery Shopper Shows Improvement"