I know you’re out celebrating the 4th of July as my handy guide suggested but news doesn’t stop for celebrations. July 7th is upon us and for Halo fans around the world that means one thing. Bungie Day. The tradition of Bungie Day was born in part due to the significance the number 7 has played in all of Bungie’s games over the years, including the Halo series (7 Halo rings, Master Chief is Spartan 117, etc.), and each year the developer makes a point to use this date to treat fans to something special – usually new content, a free download or other surprise.
What’s in store this Monday to kick off July 7th?
This year, Bungie is celebrating this day with the release of the new multiplayer map Cold Storage (inspired by the original map Chill Out found in Halo: Combat Evolved), as well as new gamer pics and a Bungie Day Xbox 360 dashboard theme, all for free on Xbox LIVE Marketplace. The Halo 3 Legendary Map Pack will also drop in price to 600 Microsoft points in honor of the occasion.
The Cold Storage facility was once a vibrant, active research center on Installation 05. An accidental contamination resulted in an unforeseen outbreak, which compromised the Forerunner center. Now, emptied and silent, watched only by a local caretaker, the abandoned structure serves as a reminder of how something as powerful as science is ultimately beholden to nature.
Be sure you download the gamerpics and theme on Monday, July 7, because they will be available for one day only!
Developer: DICE
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Rating Guide: How I Review Games
Review:
It can’t be fun to be cast off and ditched into a less-than-stellar company of soldiers. Who would have fun being part of B Company aka Bad Company? It’s filled with the not-so cream of the crop supposedly. Well, don’t tell Sarge, Sweetwater or Haggard that. The eccentric trio of expendable soldiers are at the heart of what Battlefield: Bad Company is about. Kicking ass, taking names and tossing in a joke or two while you’re at it is their game.
You are Preston Marlowe, a young Private who gets to journey with this trio of misfits to take out threats across the world. Lace ‘em up soldier!
Tomorrow we celebrate our independence and while most of us simply look forward to the day off, others look forward to celebrating and finding things to do. If you don’t plan to spend the night firing off multiple rounds of fireworks, then try my July 4th guide on for size. It’s not necessarily what I’ll be doing to the letter but it’s close.
Head out for Hancock - Will Smith is known for his July 4th weekend hits and Hancock appears to be worth a look. It has Charlize Theron in it so that alone makes me want to see it. If you’re not into Big Willie, then make little Wall-E your friend. And of course there’s always Angelina Jolie in Wanted.
Be bad with Bad Company - Gold Rush is a blast. When you’re done playing with the firecrackers and capturing YouTube footage of the events, fire up Xbox Live and head online. Attack and defend and then rinse and repeat. It’s mucho fun. Battlefield: Bad Company should be on the list of things to do.
Ninja Rap, Ninja Rap! - No, I’m not saying that you should break out your old Vanilla Ice movies. This is all about Ryu and the blood splattering Ninja Gaiden 2. Playing through the game on Warrior is almost worth it for the new costumes alone.
Taste the BBQ - Yep. Fire up the grill and toss some chicken and weiners on it. I can only speak for the weather here in Dallas and it’s going to be perfect for some grilling action. 90+ degrees! Yep that’s hot and if it’s good weather in your city, I suggest you grab some BBQ sauce.
Party like a rockstar with plastic - Why not grab the family and partake in some Guitar Hero and all its various incarnations; Legends of Rock or Aerosmith? Or go all out and make the band like Diddy. Rock Band is just as good for a musical party.
Head to the water - Again, my suggestions have the 90 degree weather in mind so why not make a dash for the pool? I’m sure you thought I meant Deadliest Catch Alaskan Storm but that’s a bit too extreme. Instead, sit around the pool and cool off. If it’s too cold in your town, then fake it by sitting around the tub. It works.
Okay I’m a huge X-Files fan and when I say huge I mean H-U-G-E. I actually have to spell out the word huge to let you know how much I followed Mulder and Scully during the fantastic TV years of The X-Files. With that said, I wanted to pass along the fact that there is a free picture pack and theme based on the upcoming movie, The X-Files: I Want To Believe, available in the Marketplace. If it weren’t for the fact that I’m such a U360 nut, I’d have the X-Files gamerpic for all to see. Well, I do have one on my personal account though.
I can’t wait for the movie! It’s the second film based on the hit TV show. I’m ready for Fox Mulder and Dana Scully! David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are an incredible duo on screen as they were on TV. The movie opens on July 25th and I’ll be the first in line.
Do you want to believe?
I came across one gamer’s experience today complaining about being pissed at Microsoft for taking his Microsoft Points away. Who wouldn’t be ticked off having someone rob you of Microsoft Points that you’ve spent your hard earned $ on? I know I would but in this case it wasn’t what it appeared to be at all.
The points were won in one of the various promotions involving Microsoft Points that dish them out as the prize. What most don’t know is that these types of Microsoft Points have an expiration date. That means they expire, go bye-bye and vanish after a certain time. It’s all about reading the fine print. Any Microsoft Points you obtain via promotion, contest, giveaway or special hook-up are subject to expiration. This does not include Microsoft Points you purchase from the Dashboard or buy at a retail outlet.
I’m not sure why it’s like this but I figured I would give you all a head’s up because if you’re like me, you like to sit on your Microsoft Points stash for long periods of time. I also suggest paying closer attention to your account at www.billing.microsoft.com. It has all the information about your points and which (if any) are due to expire. All promotional points are used first so if you have a total of 1000 Microsoft Points and you win 500 Microsoft Points from somewhere, the next purchase you make will use the points you won first.
I hope this helps someone to not lose their minds when their promotional points expire without use. Some of you may have known but others may not have. Use those points boys & girls because some of them may have an expiration on them. You don’t want to waste any points now do you?
Be afraid. Be very afraid. It’s time for Scare Tactics. No, not really but I thought it was fitting considering the next gamer Showcase.
Scare, what is your life is like outside of gaming?
Work, traveling, family. These days I don’t get to play much because of my job. I work for a University and we’re like a small city. Things will calm down eventually and I will be back to playing with my friends online.
Wow. Has it really been over a year since the last time I shared some small interesting facts about this place? I blame it on being busy trying to keep you all happy. Interesting Facts, for those of you who weren’t around during the last one, is when I share a little bit about the behind-the-scenes of U360.
I’m using a few different programs to track the most popular pages, keywords and other things that come through the site. With that said and because of the limits of my current program, I can’t share most of what I used to. I don’t have access to the complete view via cPanel because I’m at work so I’ll just use this basic program that I have access to currently. One of the fun things to do is run the search strings to see where the article pops up.
Let’s look at the top 5 of some Interesting Facts shall we?
One of the coolest Canadians I know and also one of my good friends, Jake Reardon of Microsoft Canada, showed me an awesome set of “essentials” last night for Canada Day today. I can’t share with you all the musical goodies he showed me but I can share one thing from our conversation….free Canada Day gamerpics and a free Canada Day theme.
Naturally this is only available to our good friends in Canada. Why is it that the Canada Day freebies are always so much better than practically anything on the Marketplace? These gamerpics rock! So Intangible 360, Pvt Jokar and all my other Canadian friends, head out and get your download on. And Happy Canada Day! Those of you attending the celebration with Jake are in for a treat.
Even though some things change, more things remain the same with another Wednesday (July 2) release on the Xbox Live Arcade. This time it’s Namco’s Soul Calibur. For 800 Microsoft Points you can relive the days of playing this on your Dreamcast. I might download the trial to compare Ivy then to the Ivy now for business purposes of course.
Unfortunately Soul Calibur won’t feature any online play via Xbox Live so you’ll just have to kick local butt instead of worldwide butt. And it’s also going to have those stupid bars on the side. I’m sure you’ll be able to stretch the screen but oh how I hate the way some of these games are designed.
Want more Rock Band? It doesn’t matter what your answer is actually because you’re getting it anyway. Harmonix, MTV and EA announced Rock Band 2 is set to release this September for the Xbox 360 and other platforms. Yes, that’s this September as in 3 month from now. At least Xbox 360 owners will enjoy a few months of exclusive bliss although I’m not sure who really cares. Rock Band 2 won’t hit other platforms until after the Xbox 360’s release.
“Microsoft has been a great partner throughout the launch of Rock Band in the last year and their continued support is instrumental in supporting the more advanced features and cross title compatibility we will have in Rock Band 2,” a Harmonix representative told IGN. “Of course, our goal is to make Rock Band 2 accessible to all and we look forward to bringing Rock Band 2 to all relevant platforms later this year.”
I know this was no surprise to anyone but I’m actually surprised it’s going to be released so soon. I hadn’t heard anything until now and just like magic, it’s only 3 months away. Harmonix says that things have been vastly improved. The good thing for Rock Band DLC buyers is that it’ll all be playable with Rock Band 2. And there are even hints at cross-platform sharing?
Prepare for a true battle of the bands this year with Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Band 2. Get ready to rock (some more). Which will you choose?
i'll remember that for next time.
Thanks Deaconblade!