I went home for lunch today and was surprised to find that I had already received my copy of Street Fighter IV (4) for the Xbox 360! Living in the UK, I didn’t think it was available until tomorrow (20th Feb 2009).

With it being a lunch break I only managed to fit in about 20 minutes of play, but wow! What an amazing and exciting 20 minutes that was! In the time I had, I managed to play through the Arcade mode on the easiest setting (Very Easy). I’ve been playing Street Fighter games since the early Mega Drive games, but felt I may be a little rusty. I also picked Ken as my character of choice.

At the beginning of the Arcade Mode I was treated to a little animated short of Ken and his wife (or girlfriend?) both discussing him meeting up with Ryu. I thought this was a really nice little touch. It’s little details like this which add to the overall experience. It wasn’t long after the introduction that I got my first experience in fighting. I found straight away that the controls and character movement were extremely fluid. I’d read quite a lot on the Internet previously about people’s troubles with the Xbox 360 controller, but I found the analogue controls fine and very accessible.

Street Fighter IV plays very much like the classic Street Fighter 2 games. There is enough familiarity to please nostalgic fans, but there is plenty of fresh content to please everyone. For the first time ever (except maybe Street Fighter Alpha 3) it feels Capcom have finally understood what it’s fan base have been craving for.

The overall presentation of the game is very high. The only downside so far is that on standard definition TV’s the text can be hard to read sometimes as it is very small and thin. Everything else is a compliment to your eyes.

Whilst I managed to complete the Arcade Mode using Ken I had to skip the end sequences, which meant I missed out on the final boss ending sequence and animated outro. That said, from the short time I had playing this game I got a great feeling from it. I can’t wait to get back after work and the gym to sink many more hours into this fantastic game (and hopefully write a better review!).

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Street Fighter IV (4) is on it’s way! I have just checked out my e-mail inbox and found a confirmation that my pre-order has been packaged and sent in the post. I’m so excited!

Street Fighter IV has already received numerous positive reviews. Check out a few examples below.

IGN
“Street Fighter IV is a fantastic game overall and Capcom should be commended for designing a game that can work on so many levels by appealing to both casual and hardcore players.”

Official Xbox Magazine
“If you’re a novice, a training mode and eight levels of difficulty will help you find your way. If you’re a pro, SFIV contains all the depth you’ve ever loved about the series, without compromise. Capcom simply got the feel of Street Fighter perfectly right.” [Feb 2009, p.76]

GameTrailers
“Fighting games have long been out of the spotlight, and Street Fighter IV basically carries the future of the entire genre. It refuses to make itself accessible, doling out tough love in place of true tutorials or simplified control schemes, but by proving to be deep and fundamentally enjoyable, the series has once again proven itself worthy of attention.”

Planet Xbox 360
“The complexities of the fighting systems are incredible to take in. Hardcore Street Fighter fans will have a field day with developing strategies and putting them into effect. It’s deep enough to satisfy tournament loving players who’d rather win by skill, but it’ll also win over the praise of casual players who love to dabble with fighting games when they have a friend to play against and button-smash without worrying about Ultra Combos and Ex moves.”

GameDaily
“None of the modes – Arcade, Time Attack, Versus – scream innovation, and confusing anime-style cut scenes had us scratching our heads, but the wealth of hidden content, online play and addictive combat make Street Fighter IV one of 2009’s most exciting video games.”

Read more at: metacritic.com

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Me and my girlfriend have had many hours of enjoyment by playing Scene It? Box Office Smash on the Xbox 360 (especially online where we work together against other teams/players). Last week we were treated to some new downloadable content for the price of 560MS Points.

The new Scene It “Award Winners” DLC comes packed with loads of new questions, a new game mode, and an added 250 achievement points to work towards your gamerscore. There is also the option to play “DLC only” games, or mix the two.

The new game mode consists of a number of True or False? questions which you must answer within a limited time. These are based on either an actor or film, giving you 2000 points (ingame, not achievement points) for each correct answer. I felt that whilst this added game mode is fairly simplistic, it adds both variety and longevity to the Scene It game.

So, if you enjoyed the original Box Office Smash game, there is plenty of additional content here to help prolong it’s lasting appeal. The new questions and movie clips are great, making the new Scene It Award Winners DLC pack definitely worth purchasing.

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Got some spare microsoft points? Then buy this!… Now! Okay, download the demo first to see if this is your sort of thing. But you will most likely end up downloading the full game afterwards.

The Maw is quite possibly the most unique game on the xbox live marketplace. It involves you playing as Frank, a little blue alien who just wants to go home (awww). Upon your original capture and imprisonment, you somehow befriend a purple blob… thing called Maw, who you team up with as you begin your adventure.

The game boasts some nice cartoony graphics which are actually quite impressive for an xbox live game. Infact, The Maw is a huge step forward in just about every aspect for 3D xbox arcade games.

To progress through the game you must use your new friend Maw to solve various platforming puzzles. How? Mostly by eating things, swinging around, and smashing stuff. The whole experience is very fun to play, with some nice humorous cut scenes and interesting characters.

I couldn’t believe this game only cost 800MS points, especially considering Microsofts latest trend of selling all the best games (Castle Crashers, Braid, Street Fighter 2 HD..) at 1200. So, if you have 800 spare, or you have some cash to but some more MS points, then definately take a look at this excellent title.

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As most fans of Fable 2 already know, the new downloadable island has been available for a little while now. However, I hadn’t had time to post about it yet! Here’s some of the main points about the game for those still considering the purchase…

Is it worth buying Fable 2 again if you have already sold it?
If you have already sold your copy of the game due to completion or boredom, I doubt you will find this new addon worthwhile. The island’s three quests are pretty short, amounting to only a couple of hours gameplay.

How easy are the achievements?
Very easy. Knothole Island comes with 100 new obtainable gamerscore points, split between 3 achievements. The first requires completion of the main quest line whilst the other two are collectible based.

Is there any replay value in Knothole Island?
Not really. The island has a couple of shops, but nothing that really stands out. The island itself is fairly small and the novelty of seasons can wear off fairly quickly.

Is Knothole Island DLC worth the 800 points?
Whilst my post may sound fairly negative at the moment I would have to say that this is worth the 800 points. I can see that this addon took time to develop, and I’d really love to see more Fable 2 DLC in the future. I really like Knothole Glade in the original game so I was glad to see it’s return in Fable 2.

What does the Knothole Island DLC contain?

• A New Island To Explore (obviously)
• 3 New Quests
• New Clothing Items
• New Potions
• New Weapons
• A Unique Shop

Should I buy the Knothole Island DLC?
Chances are that if you are reading this blog post, you are interested in Fable 2. So yes, if you enjoy Fable 2 even half as much as I do, I highly recommend you purchase this addon. It is quite a small addon, but it is definitely an experience I enjoyed.

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