So it's Valentine's Day--if you haven't noticed or had a significant other that wouldn't let you forget--and EA has released a marketing campaign for its Burnout Paradise title.

The campaign includes mock dating service commercials where couples speak to how they fell in love over games of Burnout. Filled with sexually implicit rhetoric, one guy T-bones his mate at over 150 mph...

With their more mature nature, I can definately appreciate the marketing ingenuity--mostly because I distain online/mass dating services. 

 In any case, if you and your significant other are looking for some 'quality time,' EA suggests a few rounds of Burnout Paradise.

http://www.youtube.com/user/EA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3bLZLAp94I

Okay, I'm going to try to keep this short and work as hard as I can to hold my tongue. I just finished watching 2 hours of "Deal or No Deal" with my parents - no one here actually watched the whole thing (father played Brain Age 2; mother slept; and I surfed the Net). This episode sent me over the edge on what kind of capitalist holiday, filled with corporate gluttony, this season has become.

It all began with my disdain for those oportunists who felt like it okay to take advantage of people in the holiday frenzy. Such individuals listed Wiis on Craigslist for far above retail (i.e. $500), and marketed them as including five (5) games - Wii Sports does not count as five games people. This trend continued even onto today.

Some "spirit of giving." People pawned off the hard-to-find console in the vein trying help others out, but only at the expense of %300 markup. I understand the concept of retail itself operates on markups and standards of Capitalism, but construing outrageous price-gauging as helpful practices is simply despicable.

As Wii-hysteria as a base of frustration, we come to tonight. Normally, I can look past all of the commercialization of the Holidays (Christmas), but the show sent me over the edge. The theme, again, was the "spirit of giving." In a time where people around the world are in need, and during a season that highlights the importance of giving to less-than-privileged, here's NBC handing out gifts to the audience, and money to its contestants.

What about those without any means to have Christmas? Why didn't those advertisers give plane tickets or DSs to welfare families or refugees?

Sure, I know it's a bit unpractical in our capitalist culture, but those advertising dollars could have gone to a bit of a better cause.

Perhaps this is more of a self-serving rant, and altruistic ideals can be extensively debated, but honestly, where's the game show handing out to charities or to the needy? I know I'm not helping the cause by just ranting, but it's some sort of outlet for the frustration that is the commercialization of Christmas.

Feel free to disagree, flame or disregard, but I need some sort of crowd to vent to, sorry.

Ironically, with the conclusion of one of the most commercialized holidays, is the coming of even more potentially great games to blow even more money on. While I may just have condemned Corporate America, I can't help but praise it as well.

Screw you economics, money and fair-market Capitalism! Screw, you.

Happy Holidays all.

Ineffective, in the sense that the game hasn't really grabbed me.

So, the quarter is winding down and I find myself with some time and a little 'extra' cash - meaning I was bored and wanted to buy something. What else to do than check my favorite online garage sale that is Craigslist. After thinking about what I could possibly want, I of course looked up games that I'm currently back-logged to play.

With The Orange Box and Assassin's Creed being atop my list I started my search. Alas, no copies of Orange Box, and AC was much too far away to consider it a deal. Next on the list is Guitar Hero 3, but I didn't even bother. Finally, Mass Effect. I had seen some deals on it before, but I was always just too slow; this time, however, I got lucky.

After a frustrating drive to find an ATM, a round-about drive and $40 later, I finally procured a used copy of said game. Prior to my purchase the seller tacked on a disclaimer: "So yeah, the game froze on me twice, but I've read a few reviews and they say it's pretty common. If you have any problems just get in touch."

Meh. So far I've been pretty lucky with my Microsoft + CL purchases. My 360 hasn't RROD and I picked up Gears for only $45, new.

All of that is beside the point, however. I've had a little less than six collective hours with the action/RPG, and I can't say I'm that impressed. I feel like all of the reviews have really down-played technical issues which are all too common and pervasive. Loading times, texture-popping, lag/frame rate problems all destroy a completely entertaining story.

I loved Knights of the Old Republic; this on the other hand, isn't shaping up too well. Aside from the technical issues, it seems like there must have been an indecision to go either completely RPG or 3rd-person shooter. Thus far, the action seems bland and uninspired. I, think, I would have been okay with turn-based action, similar to KOTOR.

AI issues seem to plague your team as they just stand around and get shot, to only contribute once-in-awhile. Problems with AI aren't only with your teammates however, as the enemy is either completely stupid or outright kamikaze. For the most part, enemies simply round around aimlessly - yet, still hit you quite accurately - or run right towards you, guns blazing. While the cover system is pretty effective, it's not very useful when your foe runs right up and around to kill you (after your buddy just sat there and got killed).

The saving grace - and only thing that's keeping me with it - is the story/dialogue. I love the writing and the options of what to say/do. I also feel that I may be going through it just for the sake of it - which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

All of this, remember, is only based on a few hours and not very much exploration. I've only recently left the Citadel, and just started my first mission. I guess I can't be too critical just yet as there's more to explore, but for the most part, my biggest issues with the game don't seem to be affected by where one is.

I'm willing to plug through it however; I am just really hoping for a reason to hold on to it for more than just one play-through. I really, really want to like this game, but it just feels rushed. Hopefully the sequel will be more polished and fix all of these minor bugs! 

In any case, there will be plenty of time to explore the galaxies following noon, Monday. At that point I will have completed 1/3 of my last year at college, and start a month's worth of vegetation and relaxation.  

Let there be no mistake, my parents have never been very receptive of video games in general. They fall into that category of people who feel that it can be a waste of time. However, I must stress that they are not completely against the games.

Long ago - well not that long ago - games were used as a mediating tool for me and my brother. He being the elder of 11 years, and me the younger, we didn't always get along, especially in the early years. Our first thing we could actually get along with was the SNES. I can still remember my first win in SSF2, the disbelief on my brother's face and his bruised hand from punching me in the knee.

My parents understood the necessity of the system: it was a bonding mechanism, and the best times were hiding Mortal Kombat games when my mother would get home from work. Yet, they belonged to the camp of parents who believed kids need to get out and play.

Flash forward a few years, the SNES has been sold of and I now own a Playstation. It took a good while to get that thing, and I cherished it. It was during a hockey tournament in Aspen, Colorado, my dad was my coach and we were in-between games. While we were hanging out in the hotel room my dad picked up the controller and asked to play some NHL '99 with me.

A couple of years later the PS2 is about to debut. After catching the hype-bug I plead with my mother to get up with me to go get it - without a job I couldn't afford it. She agrees, as long as I wake her up. Well, I didn't get much sleep that night and woke her up around 3 a.m. to go wait outside the local Circuit City. Since then she'll randomly bust that story out exclaiming how much fun she had.

All of this background leads up present day. Between the years my mother hasn't picked up a controller, my father has had a stroke and his brain is still working to rewire itself. I picked him up a DS for his birthday last year with Brain Age to give him a little psychological exercise - he has always valued his intellect and the stroke really disrupted parts of all our lives. Other than that my parents have gradually accepted what the industry is about and will sometimes engage in discussions with me about games/gaming.

All of this has changed since my father picked up the X-plorer Guitar for my GH2. When I was a kid I remember listening to the Allman Brothers Band a lot during road trips. After firing up "Jessica," and some instruction, he's hooked. Whenever I head home he asks me to bring the 360 and GH2, joking that I should leave it there.

As of this Saturday my family came over to watch the 100^th Apple Cup football game, the annual rivalry game between the University of Washington (Huskies) and Washington State University (Cougars). The party started long before the game ever did. My dad actually started to understand how the game works, found some timing/rhythm and completed a couple of songs. After a few tries my mom got tired of watching and asked to give it a try! Well, she wasn't too successful but basically the two of them are addicted.

Judging from this last weekend it might be time for them to cash-in their tube T.V. for an HDTV and 360; probably not, but at least we can all finally agree on video games!     

Oh, yeah, and WSU barely beat out my Huskies. At least they didn't piss on the field this year, fucking Cougs.

Setting: Lights dimly lit, then a single spotlight, curtain raises and in steps our hero: Chris.

 Character: Chris is a broad shouldered, tall, dark and handsome rogue of a figure. Imbued with the power to captivate, Chris enters the scene ready for anything with just a hint of hubris.

 Okay, strike all of that...well, except the handsome part.

I apologize, let me properly introduce myself. I am but a humble student in his last year of undergraduate studies. For as long as I can remember I've been enthralled with gaming. From my early days watching my brother play Pong, to my recent obsession with Call of Duty 4, I have always loved games.

 Not to be without an opinion, my friends could tell you that I have remained a steadfast source of how to allocate expendable income reserved for virtual entertainment; hence my synergistic position here at Game-Spectrum reviewing games.

 I also tend to have a few opinions concerning the industry and the content developers contribute to it. Such insight includes my vision of sandbox titles, narrative depth and interactivity. Sadly my technical knowledge cannot keep up with visions of grandeur, so I realize most of my ideas may not be technically possible. Yet, I can't help but feel my theories are the answers gamers everywhere are looking for - albeit grandiose and overly optimistic.

At any rate, the combination of turkey and wine has found its way through my body. As my head becomes cloudy, my eyelids become heavy and my fingers become lazy, I wish to end by saying I am very excited to be a part of the GS team and look forward to helping propel us through another exciting year!