What is Grifball? Well, if you play Halo 3 and use Xbox Live it’s is a custom game type, kinda like a hybrid of hockey & football - sort of… anyways the guys from Red vs. Blue present this nice and informative video tutorial on how to play.

Here are the rules found at the Grifball Official website:

Grifball is an extremely fast paced sport game type that’s played on an open court between two teams of four players. Each team has a goal and each player carries a gravity hammer and an energy sword. In the center of the arena is a single ball that can be picked up by anyone on the field. Each match consists of 5 rounds, with each round ending when someone slams the ball into their opponent’s goal. The team with the most goals wins.

It’s a very simple game by design, but it’s an enormous amount of non-stop action. At any point in time, you are either on defense with your 3 teammates guarding your goal or you are on offense as the ball carrier with three blockers. In a second, the game can turn and you have to be ready to seamlessly change roles.

This recent episode of Systm has David Randolph “out from the studio and dipping into his previous life building interactive museum displays… to cheat at Guitar Hero.

“Or, to look at it in a different light, David’s figured out how to automate Guitar Hero by wiring one of Gilderfluke & Co’s spiffy “Show Control Systems” the BR-miniBrick8 into a Guitar Hero Guitar.

And the tricky part, of course, programming it to play Foghat’s “Slow Ride.”

Wondering what exactly a Show Controller is? Think tiny gadget that can turn other devices on and off… or trigger them… or, you know, control them!”

Mastrmind made the following video documenting his amazing 13.1 second run through F.N.G. playing Call of Duty 4. Not only does this kid show off his impressive speed run, he takes time to break down the all the details each step of the way, offering tips and pointers that should help shave off quite a few seconds off most gamers currently posted completion time.

While watching this video tutorial notice the number of bullet holes that are in the walls - and for firing so few shots, it obviously took REPEATED tries to record a full 2 second faster time than the games developer Infinity Ward’s recorded best. Watch and learn soldiers.

Have you ever wondered how much work goes into the creation of your favorite game?

We have too, which is why we approached Ubisoft about breaking down the making of Rainbow Six Vegas. They were kind enough to explain the timelines behind the scenes and each of the major steps behind the game’s development.

CONCEPTION [ 11 MONTHS ]

• Ubisoft gives a core design team composed of five people (producer, senior producer, creative director, art director, and lead programmer) a mandate outlining the project’s objectives and the target audience.
• Since this is Ubisoft Montreal’s first next-gen title, the team is given more time than is usually allotted for conception.
• The creative team brainstorms to outline the game’s plot, location, and player experience.
• The technical minds decide which engine and tools will be used to create the game.
• The team then comes together to build cheap prototypes to test core gameplay ideas like the new cover mechanic and multiplayer.
• Once the concept and prototype are ready, the team presents them to management in hopes of receiving a green light.

STORY DEVELOPMENT

• One of the big differences between how a story is created in games as opposed to film and literature is the amount of people involved in the process.
• Crafting the story is largely a team effort; while the creative director is responsible for the overall vision, the screenwriter, art director, and level designers are all involved in the process.
• The team brainstorms to draft a general synopsis, then writes the dialogue and fills in the minor details right down to each level objective.

RESEARCH

• Because popular casinos weren’t interested in being targeted by terrorists in a video game, Ubisoft Montreal was faced with the unique challenge of recreating Vegas without destinations that make the city famous.
• The producers sent a team to Vegas for two weeks to capture the essence of Sin City so they could use it to create a believable Vegas doppelganger.

PREPRODUCTION [ 8 MONTHS ]

• The team now brings in a larger production team to build what’s called a “vertical slice” of the game.
• One single-player and multiplayer level are created and polished so they are nearly final.
• The goal is to ensure that the engine and tools are mature enough to incorporate all the ideas brainstormed during conception.
• This test level gives the producers a general idea of how to schedule production, and confirms that the idea will work before Ubisoft commits more money and staff to the project.

PRODUCTION [ 10 MONTHS ]

• As Rainbow Six Vegas enters the production stage, the development team now ramps up to maximum capacity, nearly 150 people.
• The team has answered all of its questions about the game, and now it’s all about execution. Levels are built, code is refined, and art is sculpted.
• The producers have defined the scope and number of question marks facing the game, but must remain flexible to overcome the unforeseen challenges.
• The first major milestone is the alpha stage, where a rough build of the entire game comes together.
• This allows the team to begin the six month process of play testing, during which quality assurance and quality control teams will comb over the game to balance the game mechanics and make sure objectives are clear to players.
• The team continues to fine tune the graphics, audio, and game engine until it reaches the beta stage, which is a complete build with finalized art and audio.
• Now that the game has reached beta, programmers optimize the framerate while the play testers continue to hunt down the remaining bugs.

MARKETING

• One of the major decisions discussed in the first conception meeting is how the game will differentiate itself from the hundreds of titles on the shelves during the holiday.
• Ubisoft decided to keep quiet about Rainbow Six Vegas until it had something that would blow people away.
• That something was the gameplay demonstration unveiled during E3 2006.
• The game had a great buzz around it after the unveiling, so the team decided to create a demo for the public so players could experience Rainbow Six Vegas firsthand before it was released.
• This was a major production challenge because the team needed to pull some people away from the main production schedule to finalize the demo level.
• In the end, Ubisoft believed the exposure paid off.

SUBMISSION & RELEASE [ 3 MONTHS ]

• Once the game finishes beta it goes ‘gold.’ At this stage it is sent to Microsoft and Sony for final approval.
• Each company has its own teams of testers to make sure the title meets quality expectations for the console.
• Once the game is approved, Ubisoft can begin manufacturing discs and shipping to retail.
• The development team can then take a well-earned vacation before starting its next big project.

[source]

Body Pieces
Spartan

EVA……………..Complete Tsavo Highway on Normal, Heroic, or Legendary
EOD……………..Complete Tsavo Highway on Legendary
Scout……………Unlock “Too Close to the Sun” Achievement (Destroy an enemy banshee with the Sp’laser or missile pod in a ranked playlist or campaign)

Elite

Flight……………Complete Tsavo Highway on Heroic or Legendary
Ascetic…………Unlock “Up Close and Personal” Achievement (Kill 5 enemies via melee or assassination in a ranked FFA playlist)
Commando….Unlock “Triple Kill” Achievement (Get one triple kill)

Shoulder Pieces
Spartan

EVA……………..Complete The Ark on Normal, Heroic, or Legendary
EOD…………….Complete The Ark on Legendary
Security……….Earn 750 Gamerscore Points
Scout……………Unlock “We’re in for some Chop” Achievement (Destroy an enemy vehicle with a piece of equipment in a ranked playlist or campaign)

Elite

Flight……………Complete The Ark on Heroic or Legendary
Ascetic…………Unlock “Overkill” Achievement (Get one overkill)
Commando….Unlock “Killing Frenzy” Achievement (Get one killing frenzy)

Head Pieces
Spartan

EVA……………..Complete Campaign on Normal, Heroic, or Legendary
EOD……………..Complete Campaign on Legendary
Security………..Earn 1,000 Gamerscore Points
Scout…………….Unlock “Used Car Salesman” Achievement (Destroy an enemy vehicle containing 3 enemies in Campaign or ranked playlists)
Mark V………….Unlock “UNSC Spartan” Achievement (Reach Sergeant ranking online)
ODST……………Unlock “Spartan Graduate” Achievement (Earn 5 EXP or complete 10 ranked matches)
Rogue………….Unlock “Spartan Officer” Achievement (Advance to the Spartan Officer ranks online)

Elite
Flight……………Complete Campaign on Heroic or Legendary
Ascetic………….Unlock “Steppin’ Razor” Achievement (Get one triple kill with an energy sword in ranked FFA)
Commando….Unlock “Overkill” Achievement (Get one overkill)

Looking to for the 9 skulls in Halo 3? Here are two videos from xTala25x & Slick Nick that detail the locations of the hidden skulls that will net you cool gameplay-altering options, obtain even higher scores in the campaigns meta-game, and 90 achievement points.

ClassicGaming.com’s Museum had this Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) regarding the Sega CD. The following should answer any question you may have, and provide a complete look at the history, a list of all games, little known facts and more.

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1. Duty and Beyond

Your ‘quest’ in Duty and Beyond is simply to deliver a pizza. But who knew that the adventure would take you on an epic journey across several exotic locations in search of the mysterious customer. Simply a winner in the content category, with multiple endings to achieve depending on your final score. Fans of classic LucasArts games (especially Maniac Mansion) will love this one to bits.

Name: Duty and Beyond
Developer: Wandering Adventures
Size: 4.25 MB
[ direct download link | walkthrough ]

2. Reactor 09/Cedric and the Revolution

Warning: contains a short discussion about a mature subject.

With that out of the way, Reactor 09 is simply a fine piece of work by Bernie. Featuring multiple endings and gorgeous art with hues resembling those found in Beneath a Steel Sky, this game demonstrates what the AGS engine is capable of in the hands of a professional.

A bit less controversial is Cedric and the Revolution, in which you play the role of the titular character on a quest to gather enough people for a demonstration. Both are definitely adventure games worth having in your collection.

Name: Reactor 09/Cedric and the Revolution
Developer: Bernie
Size: 4.70 MB, 1.72 MB
Direct Download Links: Reactor 09, Cedric and the Revolution
Walkthroughs:
- Reactor 09
- Cedric and the Revolution

3. Spooks

Spooks is an excellent AGS adventure game by Erin Robinson, where most of the sprites and backgrounds were drawn using MSPaint and nine shades of gray. The story begins as Mortia finds herself in possession of a goldfish on a day out at the carnival. The prize she won from a game of darts is the catalyst of her adventure to seek the meaning of life.

The writing stands out and most of the music employed doesn’t disappoint, although puzzles can be slightly perplexing at times. A small drawback to an otherwise amazing achievement, considering that it’s a first effort and a sign of things to come.

Name: Spooks
Developer: The Ivy
Size: 4.88 MB
[ direct download link, walkthrough ]

4. Knightsquire/The Family Treasure

Knightsquire is basically a remake of buloght’s earlier one room adventure, with new backgrounds and a complete quest involving the rescue of the king’s daughter.

Clicking on the portraits allow you to swap between two characters, since certain actions can only be attempted by either the squire or the knight. Items can be passed around to each other by simply selecting an object, then choosing the recipient. Use the left mouse button to interact and press the right mouse button to examine your surroundings.

The Family Treasure is another lovingly crafted AGS adventure game by buloght that uses a point-and-click interface made popular by classic Lucasart titles. A story about pirates and hidden treasures may not be original but the gameplay more than makes up for it.

Name: Knightsquire/The Family Treasure
Developer: buloght
Size: 849 KB, 985 KB
Direct Download Links: Knightsquire, The Family Treasure
Walkthroughs: Knightsquire

5. Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth

Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth is a new game by Screen 7 featuring the immortal screen legend on another globe-trotting adventure. Out of all efforts by many other fans, this one resembles it’s source material the most.

Like the original, multiple paths can be used to reach the objective. Arcade sequences are optional, depending on your actions in the game. No voice acting yet, plus the length is rather short but this release is well worth downloading even if it’s not the full version.

Name: Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth
Developer: Screen 7
Size: 5.83 MB
[ download page | walkthrough ]

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from bungie.com:

Is Halo 3 beta registration closed?

Yes, phases one and two of the beta have already ended. If you haven’t received an email by this point, then you were not one of the lucky few.

Is there no other way?!

If you didn’t get in to either phase, then you can still get in by buying Crackdown , releasing in the US, on February 20 ^th . Inside every launch copy of Crackdown is an invite to the Halo 3 beta.

How will the Crackdown invite work?

Once the Halo 3 beta has been activated (start date is still TBD) you simply go to the Downloads menu in Crackdown to download the Halo 3 beta. After that, you will need to launch the Halo 3 beta from within Crackdown. You will need an Xbox 360 with a hard drive and an Xbox Live Gold account.

I’m an experienced beta tester with a PhD in Astrophysics and a minor in messaging Bungie to whine about the beta. Why wasn’t I invited?

Microsoft did not choose beta testers based on merit, that would take far more manpower than is realistically possible. Phases one and two were both essentially lotteries or contests. Bungie was not actually responsible for those contests, but rather your local Microsoft Games Studios division. Messaging Frankie, Sketch, KP or any other Bungie employees is futile.

When does the beta start?

The beta will not start when Crackdown is released. The beta will go live when it’s ready, which should be sometime this Spring. The team is currently busy whipping the included content into shape. Our goal is to deliver a fun, solid game experience though it will still very much be a “beta.”

How long will the beta last?

The beta will only be playable for a limited time. Exact timing is still TBD.

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