I recently picked up a copy of Alone in the Dark and to my surprise I have found it quite entertaining. Before the games release in June I actually had anticipated it’s release for two reason - survival horror is one of my favorite genres (the original 1992 release invented the genre) and I really enjoyed Eden Games last release (Test Drive: Unlimited). Of course my expectations diminished greatly after reading the mostly mediocre and negative reviews that rolled in. If you were like me you may have missed out on a great game.

Atari released Alone in the Dark on multiple platforms - Wii, 360 and PC (with a PS3 version due later this year) so please keep in mind the following are my impressions of the Xbox 360 version.

The game has a medium learning curve and except for a few times early in the game while I was getting the hang of it, I actually found the controls for each mode of play to be intuitive and well thought out for the most part. You might consider them quirky since some of the actions are unique to this title. I recall the classic Alone in the Dark forced you to use the keyboard and I remember that I preferred to use a joystick or gamepad for control, but once I familiarized myself with the controls they actually worked surprisingly well.

I found the variety of gameplay elements to be well done - I like the realistic physics and detailed character interactions. Eden introduces a unique inventory system that allows you to access your inventory without pausing the game. Thankfully you can combine items in logical ways and having to manage the limited space inside your jacket does make it more realistic. Keeping Edward from bleeding to death by spraying medicine to areas injured and having to apply bandages made certain parts of the game quite intense. Action sequences played well and I liked how the camera switches to over the shoulder Resident Evil 4 style when you fire your gun.

The driving in the game was a bit of a disappointment. The instruments on the dashboard surprisingly didn’t function while driving and the segments themselves were quite linear.

The characters voice acting quality varies widely, but for a video game is adequate. I also found the story to be pretty good - not nearly as good as the originals Lovecraftian goodness but certainly comparable to the typical Silent Hill and Resident Evil fare. I also noticed that those who observed me playing the game appreciated the recap of key events and liked how when I finished an episode it was like it they were watching a show on TV.

I didn’t skip any sections via the DVD style index that turns each level into a episodes split into evenly spaced sections although I was very tempted to during a couple of the segments. Having this option available makes the game even more accessible and should help lower frustration levels for most and is a welcome feature.

Here is compilation of XNA community created games that are featured this year at the XNA Gamefest that is being held in right now in Seattle, Washington.  The XNA Gamefest will also be held this year in London, England August 7th and Tokyo, Japan September 4th and 5th.

Prices will be set at 200 MS points for games 50MB and under, with larger games priced at 400 or 800 MS points. Creators will receive 70% of the revenue generated mailed to them via check on a quarterly basis, though Microsoft will be randomly promoting XNA games, for which they will take an extra 10-20% based on traffic generated.

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Kevin Pereira and Adam Sessler report all the highlights of Microsoft’s E3 Press Conference that occurred earlier today.

Cold Storage map is coming July 7th and will be free of charge courtesy of Bungie. Watch the aptly name “On the Seven7th Day” video from Bungie showcasing this remake of the classic Halo multiplayer map.

Microsoft recently released this video demonstrating how to transfer game and video content licenses from an old console to your new Xbox 360. I have tried this myself and it works great, all you need to have access to Xbox.com as well as having your Xbox 360 connected to Xbox Live. To get your DRM issues fixed, simply head over to Xbox.com the license transfer process.

Joystiq reports that a “trusted source” relayed information on a new detailed “avatar” customization that Microsoft is readying - they look very much like a cross between the already existing Nintendo Mii and PlayStation Home custom avatars.

Here is the text from the above image which was submitted by X3F reader who took an independent survey by Intellisponse for Microsoft-

“Avatars” are digital personas available this holiday for all Xbox LIVE connected members and this spring for all new console owners.  ”Avatars” will be used in place of the gamer picture you have today and give you a much more lifelike, animated, and fully customizable persona for you to reflect who you are online.

In case you missed something from the supposed Intellisponse survey leak (via NeoGAF), here’s what was scavenged.

• ‘Avatars’ to be Microsoft’s answer to Miis and Home
• First video of Silicon Knight’s Crucible: The Evil Within
• Forza 3 to require 2 DVDs, ‘over 400 cars and 100 tracks’
• Guitar Hero 4 priced, new touch-sensitive guitar
• ‘Lips’ is Xbox 360 karaoke with wireless mics, store, DIY tracks
• Powers & Titans - multiplayer superhero game for 360, PS3, PC
• Spider-Man vs. Marvel Zombies creeping to Wii, 360, PS3
• Tony Hawk to get board peripheral on 360, PS3; new Spider-Man to use Wii Fit board
• Ultimate Band coming to 360, PS3, works with Rock Band instruments; new trailer for Wii
• Xbox Live getting massively competitive social games - Jeopardy, Millionaire, etc.

We should expect an official announcement from Microsoft at E3 which begins in one month, July 15th- July 17th at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

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The Consumerist has been following the story of Kevin and the aftermath of his RRoD for a couple of months now. Unfortunately, Kevin’s situation is not at all unique. Even conservative numbers report that 16% of all Xbox 360 consoles may have to go into service for repairs of one nature or another. If the problem is as serious as the Red Ring of Death, a new or refurbished console may be shipped to the unlucky gamer. Normally this sounds like a great thing, but not when it comes to downloaded content from Live. See, the problem is that content purchased from Live is strenuously protected. It is not only tied to your Live ID, but also to your console. Change one or the other and you may not have access to your legally purchased software. By submitting a 360 for warranty repair, you just may fall into that category yourself.

So, what I want to know is why can’t Microsoft let people transfer what they have bought legally from one console to another? Sony allows this. See, content from the PlayStation Network is not tied to an individuals system. If I purchase a game under my login on PSN, I can carry that content with me to any PlayStation 3. The catch is that it is under my unique profile. I can access it from another PS3, other then my own, but I have to have a profile on that machine also. See, Sony realizes that sharing is fun. Log in on someone else’s PS3, download a game that you own but they may not. Think of it like being a demo. They get to play it as long as you are logged in on their PS3. After you log off, they have no access to it. Unless they have your password they can’t get at your content, so what do they do? Buy it themselves if they like it.

I think that strategy is much preferable then the very user-unfriendly Microsoft method of controlling content. Back in March, fellow Consumerist reader James provided an example of what he had to go through to get his content back. After getting “the runaround” he was finally told that Microsoft would re-license his content for his new Xbox, but it would take 20 to 30 days. Days! My question is why would it take so long? Would it be so hard just to look up his account, see the old 360 serial number and change it with the new? Why the extended wait? Why make the consumer suffer? One last question. Why do we put up with it?

**UPDATE**

It seems that Microsoft has made some inroads to fixing the problem. Just a couple of days after I wrote this post, Microsoft released their license transfer tool online. What this tool does is allow the transfer of purchased games from one console to another. A little late for a solution, but their getting there. Now, they just need to come up with a DRM scheme that is as easy as the one that Sony has. Ironic isn’t it. Music DRM from Sony was Draconian, but with gaming, it’s a breeze.

Courtesy of this month’s GamePro, which is as you read this working its way to subscriber’s mailboxes. While the cover feature promises news on all future Halo titles, it only dishes out hard information (and gorgeous new screens) on Halo Wars. But that’s OK. We’ll take it.

Because a console RTS (Real-Time-Strategy) is a new experience for Ensemble, they’ve stripped back their traditional playstyle in favor of something a little more Halo-esque. Which means only one economic unit - “supplies” - and fast, fast, fast battles, with the team promising you can be fighting “within ten seconds” of hitting the battlefield.

Also revealed is at least a partial list of the units that’ll be available.

UNSC Forces

Marines
Flamethrower Marines
Spartans
Warthogs
Scorpions
Cobras (anti-vehicle artillery)
Hornets
Wolverines (anti-aircraft vehicle)
Elephants (!!)
Cyclops (enormous UNSC mech unit)
Vultures (mysterious, enormous vehicle)

Covenant Forces (not all units revealed)

Grunts
Jackals
Hunters
Ghosts
Banshees
Scarabs
Elites

- GamePro July 2008

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This well produced short from College Humor features detectives investigating a mysterious death in Halo 3. Good stuff.

Flipping the calendar to a new month means it is time for another refresh to Halo 3’s Matchmaking playlists. A detailed changelist for the month of June is below. Direct your vitriol, adoration and quirky one-liners to the Optimatch Forum.
Hardcore

ADDED Head to Head (Ranked)

• 1vs 1 hopper
• Relies primarily on Duels-style Slayer (indicator over the head of the person with the high score)
• Smaller maps customized in Forge
• Low weighted instances of Oddball and KotH

UPDATED MLG

• v5 map variants added
• Forge map “Amplified” added for Slayer and KotH
• Blackout replaces Guardian as Oddball map
• Legendary not required on this playlist.

UPDATED SWAT

• ShWATguns variant added
• Shotty starts
• No shields, 150% damage resistance
• SWATball variant added
• SWAT style oddball
• 200 points to win
• SWAT 2 Flag variant added
• SWAT style Capture the Flag
• On The Pit and Snowbound
• Players can not return flags, returns after 15 seconds on its own.
• 3 Flags to win

Ranked

UPDATED Team Slayer

• Decreased weighting on BR start game types

UPDATED Team Objective

• Increased weighting on symmetrical map/gametype combinations, Example: Multi Flag on The Pit
• Increased weighting on asymmetrical map/gametype combinations, Example: 1 Flag on High Ground

UPDATED Ranked Big Team

• Ranked Big Team will be worth double EXP for the month of June
• All restrictions are being removed.
• Fixed bug from May Mid-Month update that made the playlist require Legendary (The June playlist will only require Heroic)
• If Ranked Big Team does not perform well this month, it may be retired in July.

Social

UPDATED Social Slayer

• Team Snipers “Score to Win” requirement increased to 50

DLC

UPDATED DLC Slayer

• Reintegrated Heroic Maps

UPDATED DLC Objective

• Increased focus on asymmetrical games on Avalanche, symmetrical games on Ghost Town
• Reintegrated Heroic maps

Double EXP Weekends (In order of appearance)

ADDED Rockets

• 8 Player FFA Insanity

UPDATED Grifball Spring League

• Bug fixes from the May version so that Carrier Damage Resistance is correct
• Bug fix so forced player color is correct when carrying the bomb.

UPDATED Team Snipers

• Score to Win requirements increased to 50 for slayer games

ADDED 3 Ball

• 4v4v4v4 Gametypes with 3 Oddballs

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