Xbox Live Rewards Program

You might soon be rewarded for racking up those achievements in your Xbox 360 games.

Microsoft has hinted that there could soon be a new system in place which gives players special offers or content based on their Gamerscore level.

Gamerscore values are pumped up by earningAchievements, virtual gold stars that players receive when they accomplish various in-game tasks. These range from basic things like completing a level, to very obscure side quests and high score milestones that are meant to be granted to only the most hardcore players.

The software giant alluded to the rewards program via Twitter, where it boasted about hitting 50,000 followers.

The company wrote, "We've hit 50,000 followers, which means it's time for an announcement! Coming Fall: a new way to earn Rewards based on your Achievements!"

Microsoft has previously toyed with this idea. It had a pilot program for awarding gamers with digital goodies if they managed to bump up their Gamerscore within a promotional period of time.

However, it was more of a one-time deal as opposed to a legitimate rewards/loyalty program so it likely doesn't relate to this upcoming announcement.

Sony also tried something like this with the PS3 and its online Playstation Network service. A very short-lived rewards program offered prizes including digital content and even physical goods like t-shirts, to users who were highly active within the PS3's online service.

But that program was only ever rolled out to a hand-picked group of users, only lasted a matter of months, and was never offered to the entire PS3 user base.

Battlefield 3 Back to Karkand!

    

  Hey everyone! Are you ready for the new Battlefield 3 maps?  Well I guess there not really new just a revamped version of all the maps, weapons and vehicals from Battlefield 2.  Will we be dissappointed with the new DLC?  I highly doubt it.   The Battlefield 3 game has given us one surprise after another, and well who's to say it'll stop now. 

      Hopefully you pre-ordered the game because if you did you will get Back to Karkand free of charge.  If you didn't pre-order you can always buy it for $15 bucks!

Well here's what to espect.....

Maps

• Wake Island
• Strike at Karkland
• Gulf of Oman
• Sharqi Pennisula

Game Modes

• Conquest Assult

Weapons

• Type 97
• Type 95
• Jackhammer
• MG 36
• Type 88
• L96A1
• Femas
• PP-19
• L85A2
• MP5

Vehicals

• BTR90- LAV
• DPV- Transport
• 535B- Fighter Plane

                        DON'T FORGET TO TALK WITH YOUR TEAMATES!

Click here to see review on Battlefield 3

BattleField 3 Review

       So now that Battlefield 3 seemed to fix all of its bugs I don't seem to remember Modern Warfare 3!  This game absolutely blows MW3 out of the water!  For any of those players out there who haven't tried it....TRY IT!

        There is almost too much to talk about!  Of course we have the new Frostbite engine which makes the game incredibly crisp(fyi if you have a hd tv I suggest you accept the 1.5 G download for extended mapping).  It seems to be the smoothest and most comprehensive game I have ever played.

       Weapons...Although I am not a fan of the weapon system they have in place it seems that in Battlefield 3 they have tried to incorporate more weapons for you to play around with so it seems there is a weapon for anyone.  The real good stuff is when you rank up your weapon unlocking all its attachments making the weapon far easier to use.  This is especially true when dealing with the sniper rifles.

       Vehicles.....Nuts! Planes... Helicopters....UAV...Turrets...on and on...These awesome attachments to the game make the playing ground really feel like a war ground.  It is hard to navigate the airborne vehicles because they come inverted(I think to keep you from mastering too fast).  Picking the right vehicle for you isn't' an easy task and once you find one you have to watch out for missiles and RPG's.

       Gameplay...Slower then normal first person shooters but it seems to simulate real warfare.   Of course I've never been in war I can only speculate.  Rush of course is an old game type but its by far my favorite, these games can last a very long time up to an hour if they are played slowly. Conquest is also a good game..its comparable to domination in call of duty(holding down a base for points).  In my opinion I would wait until you have a good team to play this game because you need to be able to hold down positions and be able to communicate with your teammates.

I can't stress communication in this game enough...If you don't have headphones BUY SOME!  This game is ment to be played as a team or at least your squad has to play together in order to be successful.

Modern Warfare 3 Elite

           Okay, so after the incredibly long waiting period for Modern Warfare 3 to actually come out I also decided to buy the Elite edition only to find out that I would have to wait even longer in order to access my account due to high server traffic.  This made me so mad, not only did I pay 50 dollars for something I can't use, I actually was looking forward to the tournaments the game was offering.  

After going onto MW3 website I found that I was put on a waiting list of sorts so that they could build server strength to support all those who wanted to try this highly anticipated feature. Thats another thing, how did they not know that people will want to try something that is "new."  Xbox said the same thing when Kinect came out "oh, we didn't know people would like it, so we really didn't invest time or money into it, but we'll get back to you on that."

          Anyways,  TWO WEEKS LATER I was able to finally get into Elite only to find that I was going to be pissed off.  They didn't tell you that these so called competitions would be held at weird times and that you have to apply or give an entry to enter.  What's with this!?  I just want to play and win, i don't want to have to wait for players or a playing time...I want to play now!  Anyways apart from this if you look at it from a map standpoint its worth it because you will be getting all the maps and any other download they come out with.  There is also a stats page which seems kinda weak to me, I can't believe they made you pay for the same stats you get in Black Ops for free.

         So...I guess its up to you if your going to get the Modern Warfare Elite edition.   My opinion would be that if you play a lot and you know your going to get the new maps anyway I would just buck up and buy it.  If your on the fence then run the other direction because I know you will not be please with your purchase.

Modern Warfare 3 Online Multiplayer

     

        After the long anticipated wait for Modern Warfare 3 it finally came out!  To be honest I had very high expectation on what this game will bring to the table.  Of course I became mildly disappointed with the lack of anything really new, but as we all know good games are about playability and this game has it.  Of  course the graphics are reminiscent of what we saw in Modern Warfare 2.  Also it seems that there is a lack of team cooperation which makes me angry(YOU ARE PLAYING A WAR GAME ACT LIKE A SOLDIER!)

      

            My favorite part of the new game would be the wide variety of care packages you can choose from.  They have assault packages which help you get kills and support packages to help assist your team or fool the enemy.  Also they have a specialist class which instead of giving you any type of support they give you extra perk (ex.slight of hand, marathon and sit rep.) 

        I forgot to tell you....If you actually survive through all your kills, kill streak will reset and you will have an opportunity to get them unlocked again.  I have also hear that if you get through the list twice that it unleashes an easter egg on the other team and blows them the smithereens!  Overall I am very excited about the multiplayer and know that I'll probably play this one as much as I do MW2.  Hopefully you will agree. I'll get back to you about what Call of Duty Elite is, very very soon.

Call of Duty Black Ops Map Pack

The time has come my geek friends!  New maps are just around the corner.  On Tuesday(Feb.2) Treyarch will release the highly anticipated map pack for Call of Duty Black Ops.  Of course not only will the be giving us nerds 4 highly compelling maps but also a new and improved Nazi map, which from my opinion looks like the best one yet.

First map Berlin Wall.  This map takes place at checkpoint Charlie which if you don't know was the safe zone between the 2 different sides of the wall in which all allied defense would have a safe zone.  This will be a medium sized map with a lot of building circling a court yard.  I really hope that most of these houses allow you to go inside to set up camp and start sniping.  Watch out for the center of the map though...I'm sure if this map is anything like the other call of duties you need to beware of where you are and where your cover is...being in the center of the map is probably not a good idea.

Second map Discovery.  We set the scene in a Antarctic research facility...From what I hear this map may be sniper heaven.  With long lines of sight we may finally be able to snipe without worrying about getting assaulted within 5 seconds of putting our scopes up.  Again watch out for the center of the map...What I hear is that there is a bridge which will probably act as the main choke point...soooo Beware!

3rd Map Kowloon.  This map comes out of the campaign.  There seems to be a lot of windows and open spots to pop your head out of to get a quick shot.  This again will probably end up being sniper/camper paradise, which I have to say is awesome..I'm tired of running around to find a kill I'd rather just post up and let the noobs run into my sights.

Stadium is our 4th and final multi-player map.  This takes place in middle America at a hockey rink.  This map is supposed to be medium sized mostly for assault I think.  To me urban warfare is really where we are headed today so having a gun battle in the middle of a hockey rink is just up my alley.  There seems to be a lot of cover so make sure you check your corners!





Now Ascension is the new and improved zombie map.  All I know is that this map will truly be a challenge and there will be a lot of interactive aspects of the map

Well thats all I know for now...I hope everyone is as excited as I am!