12.03.07
Posted in DVD, Movies, Music, Tech, The Tube, Video Games, Weapons of Mass Enjoyment at 6:42 pm by earl
Yes, this is the first annual Ealr’s Holiday Buying GUide, where I show you the coolest gadgets, games, movies, and more to fill your stocking this year. Let’s begin. I’ll start with the Sci-Fi Lover, and move on throughout the whole range.
Sci-Fi Fanatic
-Metroid Prime 3_Wii_$50-This installment in the Metroid series will keep any Wii fan with a love for sci-fi busy for days.
-Heroes: Season 1 DVD_$50-For anyone who missed out on the first season of one of the greatest sci-fi shows on television, be sure not to miss this bargain of a deal with 25 hours of content.
-Halo 3: The Official Soundtrack_$15-Relive the classic tunes of Halo while driving down the road.
-Mass Effect_360_$60-This RPG soon-to-be classic rivals that of KOTOR and is one of the best of this Sci-Fi games of this year.
Fantastical Fantasy Fans
-Wii Legend of Zelda WiiMote Nunchuk-Weapon Covers_?-These babies equip your Wii controller to make you feel just like Link so you can play Twilight Princess in style.
-Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass/Link’s Crossbow Training_$34.99/$19.99-These two Zelda installments are for the DS and Wii, and are great fillers after the year of greatness from Twilight Princess.
-Anything World of Warcraft or Final Fantasy
-Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix_$19-(Insert Harry Potter joke here)
Music Buffs-Any Custom Guitar Hero Guitar_Varies-These guitars can show off your personality and your rocking style as you rock out and show the pwned the instrument used to defeat them.
-Guitar Hero 3_$90-$100_Any game store-This ultimate music game provides an awesome tracklist and cool…..everything that can help you rock and roll all nite!
-Ipod Touch_$300-$400_Apple-Basically the Iphone without the Phone.
-Various Game SOundtracks-God of War 2, Halo 3, GH3, Resident Evil_$15-Take your game obsession to the next level.
Jocks
-Madden NFL 07_$60_Any game store-THe ultimate football game franchise returns once again to make a touchdown.
-Skate/Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground_$60_Any game store-Pick up your board and skate away.
-Sirius Sattelite Radio-With ESPN Radio and Martha Stewart Living, this is the ultimate audio gift for any jock.
-A Football-It was a great gift 50 years ago, it’s great now.
-Football for Dummies-Learn how to Play Football
Retro Dudes-Super Mario Galaxy_$50_Wii-This new Mario installment brings it back old school and proves to be a must have for Wii owners.
-8-Track Player-So you can listen to the latest hits by Aretha Franklin and The Beatles. It’s Dyno-mite!!!
-The Xbox360 Arcade Version_$300-So you can play all of your arcade favorites over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.
Men of Action-Great Action DVDs-Live Free or Die Hard, Pirates of the Carribean 3, Spiderman 3, Transformers, etc._$19.99-These movies are sure to have your adrenaline pumping!
-Assassin’s Creed_$60-This action adventure game pits you in an extremely variative environment.
-Halo 3_$60-This game will keep you busy through next December.
-Halo 3 Controller-Personalize the pwnage
-Halo 3 360-Personalize the Pwnage Even More
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11.29.07
Posted in Video Games, Weapons of Mass Enjoyment at 9:41 am by earl
Activision just announced that there will be two expansions for Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock in the upcoming year. Hopefully, they will share the love on all of the original consoles Guitar Hero 3 was released for-PS2, 360, Wii, and PS3. Word has it that one will be an exclusive Aerosmith expansion. Dude looks like a lady please! Maybe even a boss battle with Steven Tyler!!!! I also hope it doesn’t cost as much as Rocks the 80s.
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11.24.07
Posted in Movies, The Tube, Video Games, Weapons of Mass Enjoyment at 5:17 pm by earl
Since all of the huge releases have come on this monumental year of video gaming, I believe it is time to show the nominees of The Earl Awards 2007. If you would like to suggest winners, feel free to do so. I have also decided to include movies and TV in my awards. Here we go.
BEST ACTION/ADVENTURE GAME OF 2007
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Heavenly Sword
Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga
Assassin’s Creed
BEST SHOOTER OF 2007
The Orange Box
Halo 3
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Bioshock
BEST ROLE-PLAYING GAME OF 2007
Mass Effect
The Elder Scrolls 4 Oblivion: The Shivering Isles
Guild Wars: Eye of the North
Paper Mario (Virtual Console)
BEST STRATEGY GAME OF 2007
World in Conflict
Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars
Supreme Commander
Battalion Wars 2 (Wii)
BEST RACING/ALTERNATIVE RACING GAME OF 2007
Burnout Dominator
Forza Motorsport 2
DiRT
Project Gotham Racing 4
BEST SPORTS GAME OF 2007
NBA 2K8
Madden NFL 08
MLB 07: The Show
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08
BEST PLATFORMER OF 2007
Super Paper Mario
Super Mario Galaxy
Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
The Simpsons Game
BEST RHYTMN GAME OF 2007
Guitar Hero 3 (360)
Guitar Hero 3 (PS3)
Guitar Hero 3 (Wii)
Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80s!
Not Rock Band
BEST PUZZLE GAME OF 2007
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
Mercury Meltdown Revolution
The New York Times Crosswords
Zack and Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure
BEST PARTY GAME OF 2007
Mario Party DS
Halo 3
Guitar Hero 3
Rock Band
GAME MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2008
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Metal Gear Solid 4
Destroy All Humans 3/Big Willy Unleashed
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
BEST GAME OF 2007
Halo 3
Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
Super Mario Galaxy
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
BEST MOVIE OF 2007
Spiderman 3
Transformers
National Treasure 2-It may not be out yet, but it will be awesome
I Am Legend
Pirates 3
BEST TV SHOW IN 2007
Heroes
Monk
Chuck
Mythbusters
(Note: This is the TV Show that has done the best in 2007)
BIGGEST DISSAPOINTMENT OF 2007
King of Queens Cancellation
Brawl Delay!!!
Writer’s Strike cutting short Heroes, The Office, Transformers 2, and more.
$3.09 FOR GAS!!!
If there’s anything I’ve forgotten, let me know.
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11.23.07
Posted in Video Games at 10:54 am by earl
I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving and I hope everyone has safe, happy holidays which can and does refer to Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. This was another huge release week, with great titles like Unreal Tournament 3, Mass Effect, and Mario PArty DS. But one did stand above the rest. It is Mass Effect, thanks to its superb visuals, intense moldable story, and just plain coolness.
Because I’m lazy and I’m still tired over my huge Thanksgiving dinner, I will go ahead and do Game of the Month. Will it be Mass Effect or Super MArio Galaxy? If you know me, you already know the answer. It is Super Mario Galaxy. It is the #1 Ranked Game on GameRankings.com, ending the 9 year rule of Ocarina of Time! It wins.
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11.21.07
Posted in Video Games at 10:25 am by earl
I cannot think of a moment that I have come into school and not have a conversation about Guitar Hero or Halo. The game is just that awesome. I once spent an hour and thirty minutes in class playing Guitar Hero. I am also thankful for Guitar Hero for bringing gaming into mainstream, and even getting the “cool crowd” into gaming. I would give $20 to anyone who can find someone who doesn’t live in a cave that has not heard of Guitar Hero. I am thankful for everything this game has produced. That is, except for the weird fanboys and spinoffs.
I would also like to mention that I am also thankful for the Halo series. It’s true, the only reason these two tied was because I forgot about Halo. But I am pretty close to equal thanfulness with both. However, I am more thankful of Guitar Hero. Halo has just provided hillarious moments I’ll never forget. Guitar Hero and Halo, I am thankful for you!
Happy Thanksgiving, Drive Safely, Happy Holidays.
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11.20.07
Posted in Video Games at 5:31 pm by earl
My favorite gaming series out of all genres is the Ratchet and Clank series. Thanks to fantastic weapons, cool level design, and hillarious story, this game makes me thankful. I have beat the third installment about 4 times, so you’d think I like it. The story is just another thing that has me in stiches for laughing so much:
Skrunch the Monkey-Oooh ooh Ahhh!!!! (To Quark)
Quark-It was mating season!!! How was I supposed to know she was your sister! (He sees Ratchet and Clank)
Quark-How long have you two been standing there?
Clank-Toooooo long.
Ratchet and Clank, I am thankful for you!
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11.19.07
Posted in Video Games at 12:58 pm by earl
My favorite fighting series is definitely the Smash Bros. series, mainly thanks to the great multiplayer, fun levels, and so much more. I am thankful for it for keeping me entertained for 6 years, and for all the great times. Even after 6 years, this game is still not old.
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11.18.07
Posted in Game Reviews at 9:32 pm by earl
(4.75/10.00) Yes, My Name is Earl and I have a review of the not-yet-released Rock Band. How did I do it? Well, I’ll just keep that a secret. Let’s get down to the review. Rock Band is a potential “Guitar Hero Killer”, but to casual fans of this genre like myself and not to hardcore eat, sleep, breathe, can-beat-free-bird-expert, this attempt falls flat on its face. I got a chance to play the drums and guitar portion of this game, but I’ve played SIngstar, I think I could figure out how that works. You play as whoever’s playing your instrument, which can make a lot of difference. First off, the controller setup is a little awkward. Whenever playing “Dead or Alive” on EASY I found the experience difficult if not frustrating. This is mainly due to two things. 1. The keys on Guitar Hero 3 are way easier to hit than the anorexic pathetic excuses of notes. I would hit the note on what would propel me to Star Power on Guitar Hero 3 on Rock Band, and it would say I missed it. But don’t worry, I was too busy trying to hit the overly difficult for easy note repetition to complain. 2. The drum system is messed up! While playing Guitar I can feel my notes to hit them. On Drums, I just have to throw the drumstick down and hope I hit the right pad to hit the note. Half the time I was hitting the plastic between the pads! The character models are nice, and so are the backgrounds, however they don’t really match the graphical power of Guitar Hero 3. You’ll notice I’m referring to Guitar Hero 3 a lot. Well, when you’re imitating the same system used on Guitar Hero 3, except you’re doing it worse, you can’t help not mention the better. I would personally have a stroke if I spent $200 on Rock Band to find out it was this dissapointing. The main redeeming qualities of this game would be the fun character models, extended party aspect not found in GH3, and good tracklist. I personally would rather stick with the neater, smoother system of Guitar Hero 3. I would only recommend this game to pure experts of Guitar Hero that want a harder experience to try out, however I wouldn’t recommend spending $200 on it. Just drop by Best Buy and see what I mean. If you love Guitar Hero 3 and think it’s the best Rhythmn game out there, just stick with it overlook this narrow title.
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Posted in Video Games at 9:11 pm by earl
My favorite racing series ever has got to be the Burnout series, thanks to its fast-paced action, sleek cars, and replayable slo-mo wrecks. I am so thankful for this series for teaching me the dangers of road rage, that car wrecks aren’t all bad, and how to drive. Thank you Burnout, thank you.
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Posted in Video Games at 9:05 pm by earl
This past week was one of the two most collosal weeks in video gaming ever!!! Assassin’s Creed fell into its hay bale of success, Need for Speed: Prostreet raced in mediocrity, UIncharted: Drake’s Fortune was a hit, and many more arrived on our shores. But only one stood tall over the already huge crowd. Usually I would give a tie between such great games, but since most of these games will be competing for the best of 07, the Game of the Week is Super Mario Galaxy. Yes, it’s biased, yes, this game is awesome, yes, I’m a nintendo fanboy. IT wins.
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11.17.07
Posted in Game Reviews at 1:38 pm by earl
(9.5/10.00) I was dissapointed when I found out that Ratchet and Clank 5 was going to be a PS3 exclusive. However, playing the game, I realize next-gen is it’s new home. Goodbye PS2. The game takes place, of course, in he future. Ratchet is the only living Lombax in the universe, thanks to a mad man, leader of the Cragmites, Emperor Percivile Tachyon. He claims revenge on the Lombaxes, including Ratchet, and there is soon a race to find the weapon that the Lombaxes used to wipe out the Cragmites in the first place. The story finally comes down to a climactic Boss Battle, and a cliffhanger ending, involving Clank. The characters and dialogue, in the story, as always, are hillarious. From the Plumber “not recognizingRatchet and Clank in HD”, Tachyon not being able to crank start his doomsday helmet and having to resay his final threat, or anything Captain Quark says, this game is hillarious, even to rival that of the humor in Up Your Arsenal. The graphics in the game are gorgeous, each character having a shiny look not seen in previous games. The voice acting is also great, as it has always been. The weapons, are solid, however, Insomniac has done better. The Groovitron is a classic that even made Tachyon dance, leaving him vulnerable to attacks. The new upgrade system using Raratanium is a welcome addition I hope is in future installments. The game just has an overall cinematic feel in its boss battles, grind segments, and overall combat. I feel as if I’m too picky with this title since Up Your Arsenal was my favorite. The microscopic nitpicky faults are there though. My major would be the fact that I couldn’t really hear most of the dialogue from other characters during firefights, which I really wish I could have. Second, there are a couple of glitches in the game that could have been smoothed out, providing a neater package. Some of the vendor’s lines can seem repetitive. Overall, Tools of Destruction is a great game for the PS3 that any PS3 owner should have in their collection. And besides some minor nitpicky flaws that keep it from perfection that was acheived in Up Your Arsenal, this is a hillarious, epic title that noone should miss.
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Posted in Video Games at 1:07 pm by earl
I know, this one is coming in above Super Mario Bros., but I’m more thankful for what the game did, not the game itself. Unlike this title. You play as Crypto Sporinium, an alien on an adventure to find out what happened to his brother in the 1950s. One reason I love this game is because of the humor. Very few games have made me laugh as much as this one. Pure hllarity. That and the great free roam system. I CAN PICK UP CARS AND THROW THEM AT PEOPLE!!!! WITH MY MIND!!!!! Overall, DAH is a game noone should miss.
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11.15.07
Posted in Video Games, Weapons of Mass Enjoyment at 5:09 pm by earl
Yes, they are finally going to make a video game based on the classic comedy series, Ghostbusters. The game will be a sequel to the first two movies, written by the same guy. Dan Ankroyd, Bill Murray, and the rest of the gang will reprise their roles. I really hope there’s a Stay-Puff MArshmallow MAn Boss Fight. It is said to be in a grittier, Gears-of-War-style combat, which sounds really cool. The game will hit the 360, PS2, PS3, PC…………And the Wii sometime in 2008. Looks like I need to drop by my local movie retailer and watch the first two, because I ain’t afraid of no ghosts!!!!
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Posted in Video Games at 12:36 pm by earl
Thanks to this classic NES game back in the 80s, the video game revolution and the availability of game sale numbers in the millions was born. Thank Mario, Peach, Bowser, for all of your work in lighting the firework that is the video game phenomenon. I am thankful for you.
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11.14.07
Posted in Video Games at 2:04 pm by earl
One of my favorite war games, Battlefield 2: Modern Combat pits you on both sides ofa global war between Kazahstan and NATO. You eventually are trying to stop a mad man from blowing up the world. You know, regular stuff. What makes me thankful for this title is its great replay value. I’ve playeda mission where I have blown up a helicopter of my dudes so many times I lost count. It’s a variative, fun, and hillarious game that any shooter fan shoot try out.
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