GRAW 2: Throwback Pack

May 8, 2007 - Just when you thought it was safe to put Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 on the shelf, Ubisoft is set to release a fat pack of new maps. There's nothing quite like new downloadable content to breathe life back into a game and on Wednesday, GRAW 2 will thrive again on Xbox Live. GRAW 2: Throwback Pack includes seven classic maps as demanded by longtime fans of the series.

The maps, pulled from Ghost Recon 2, GR 2: Summit Strike and the original GRAW, have been completely redone for GRAW 2. Those who've played them before won't have any trouble recognizing the layout, but the visuals are certain to kick open anyone's eyes. All seven of the new maps work with every GRAW 2 multiplayer mode.

Mad Tracks Hands-On Preview

Xbox Live Arcade’s diversity is nice, because there ends up being something for everyone—board games, card games, arcade-like contests, old coin-op titles and more. It’s also proving itself as an outlet for eclectic and offbeat games. Such is the case with D3 Publisher’s Mad Tracks.

The title bills itself as a “party racing game,” and that’s certainly true. It’s a title that, similar to Bomberman or Guitar Hero, draws people in and compels them to play, because it’s simple and entertaining. However, Mad Tracks also offers decent single-player structure.

Pioneer Unveils World's Best Flat Screen TV

Back in January, Pioneer showed at CES a new plasma display panel (PDP) technology that looked as good as the SED prototypes. Pioneer claimed that equipment used to determine contrast ratio of displays doesn’t have enough range to measure their new display and for that reason the company didn’t provide a contrast ratio figure. Well, today Pioneer lifted the curtain on this 8th generation plasma technology, launched under the name ‘Project KURO’ (which means black in Japanese).

The Kuro line-up will be available in 42, 50 and 60-inch screen sizes, in both XGA (available from June) and Full HD (available from September) versions. The 720p panels models will offer a 16,000:1 contrast ratio while the 1080p models will feature a 20,000:1 contrast ratio plus an ‘Optimum Mode’, which intelligently controls brightness so that you get the best picture, regardless of the lighting conditions.

Pioneer has not provided a price list for these Kuros plasmas but since the 720p models are shipping next month, we’ll soon find out if you have to sell one of both of your kidneys.

XBox 360 Spring 07 Update

Ok, we’re getting closer. I just learned that the May ‘07 dashboard release is set to be released just a few hours from now. To be more specific, the LIVE Operations team expects to start rolling out the update after 0200 PT tomorrow morning. I’ll make another post when the team start the roll out.



read more | digg story

Major Nelson Mocks Gamers and Epic Games

On Major Nelson's most recent podcast he and his show guest mock gamers for complaining about the cost of the new Gears of War map packs and also degrade the company that help make the 360 a success.



read more | digg story

Halo 3 Wireframe Screens

Here's a few wireframe screens from Bungie.net for Halo 3. Master Chief looks a little bigger than he did in previous Halos. The last two screens are of the Mongoose. The screens definitely look good and give us more to look forward to. We're quickly approaching Halo 3 beta public [...]



read more | digg story

Xbox 360 Spring Update Videos From Xbox Live Marketplace

Two Xbox 360 Spring Update videos from GameTrailers are downloadable and viewable from your Xbox Live connected Xbox 360. Watch the team that brought the updates go over the new MSN Messenger compatibility feature, the Xbox 360 controller keyboard in action, the new achievement notification popup details and browsing the Video Marketplace.



read more | digg story