If you've ever wondered why people berate you in the comments of an article...

Then for all things good in the world, please use punctuation and proper grammar in your comments! You sound like a retard and it's really difficult to understand what you're trying to say.

Also, I'm pretty sure there is a spell-checker in the comment box, please use it, too. There is no reason to use 'text-speak', you have a ton of space to write your thoughts dow.

I might start a flame war over this, but I just have to say something.

Every time I read an article, which may have nothing to do with XBOX Live or PSN directly, I am bombarded with user comments complaining about the price of Live. Yes, yes, I know I don't have to read them, but I like to skim through them and see what people have to say. After all, I think game developers/publishers listen to their audience for ideas on how to improve their products.

Anyway, as I read through the comments, I can't help but notice people slipping into the 'console war' discussion. It's inevitable. I would like to think that people tend to know what they are talking about, but most of them don't. I'm not saying you need to have a degree to be able to understand anything about hardware or even software, but in some cases it might help. But back to my original reason for writing this blog.

XBOX Live's pricing model is fine and here's where the people that complain about the price will stop reading.

At the time of this writing, the price points are as follows:

• 1-year subscription is set at $49.99(+tax if applicable).
• 3-month is $19.99(+tax if applicable).
• Month-to-month is $7.99(+tax if applicable).

For the purposes of my rant, we will exclude tax, mostly because of where you live (U.S., Europe, Australia, etc.), it could be very time-consuming to pinpoint. Of course, depending on where/when you purchase your subscription, the price may vary subtly, but we're concerned with the base prices Microsoft sets in the U.S.

Let's say you make Federal Minimum Wage. If you work for any company that has an income of $500K or more, before they pay out to employees or expenses (i.e. NOT PROFIT), then your minimum wage should be at least $7.25/hr (unless you live in Minnesota, then it's $6.15). So we'll go with $7.25/hr. That means your gross income for the year (assuming you keep your job) is $15,080.

Interesting point here. From what I've read, and please call me out if you can find out otherwise, the Government rated poverty level is about $20k/yr. Hmmm...

So you're making the minimum dollar amount that the government allows and you are a 'gamer'. You spend hundreds of your hard earned dollars on video games a year, maybe even more than you think. Go ahead, take a look at your game collection on this website and see what your collection is worth (according to Gamespot), I'll wait.

So, if you bough all of your games NEW, you've spent about $500 this year. Yeah, I'm high-balling, but to hopefully prove a point. Now, because you have an XBOX 360, you want to play online, aarrghh! But that's another $60! How can I afford that?!? Plus, I have to get an online service, geez.

It's easy, do a little math and you'll find out that it's not that much.

• $50 of $15,080 = .33% of your total income (minus taxes, if any)
• $60 of $15,080 = .39% when they raise the price

If you make the national minimum (and if you don't, you might want to do something about it)

Yes, those are less than half of one percent values. LESS THAN ONE PERCENT! You probably spend more on sodas for the day. Hell, I'm a smoker, so I spend more than that every few hours.

I'll say it again a different way. In November, when the prices go up, I will be spending 16.4 cents a day to use XBOX Live service. That's about $5 a month. I'm sure that I'll find some financial sacrifices to make so I can talk to my friends online.

Since this is my first movie review post, I just want to say a few things:

One, I love my Netflix. It has enabled me to watch so many movies that I would otherwise never have seen. Like this one, The Gene Generation.

B) I try not to judge things by their cover, but like everyone else, I can't help it. It happens.

Thirdly, I like most kinds of movies, but mostly comedies and horror films. Indie and small studio films are often overlooked for their quality. Some have it, some don't, but even indie films have potential.

So, for my first movie review, I'll try to be objective and not give anything away, just in case you want to judge it for yourself.

For starters, the script leaves little to the imagination. I don't believe the actors are to blame for this, it seems they did their best to recover from the poor writing. Luckily, there wasn't as much dialog as there should have been. What I mean is that the viewer was expected to fill in the numerous gaps in the back story. At the beginning, there are few scenes with a voice-over that kind of explain why the city is in the state it is, but doesn't give enough information to make it stick. In other words, you have to be, and are, constantly reminded what the movie is actually about. At least what the plot is suppose to be.

The cinematography is wonderful, though. The camera angles aren't intrusive and are easy to watch. The city models and miniatures look really good, however the overlooks and camera sweeps of the city seem to be a lot of what you see. Little time is spent exploring the subtle aspects of, what could have been a fantastic, in depth masterpiece.

Character development was focused on the two main characters, the beautiful, graceful assassin and her brother (who pretends to be a bad ass with his one friend, but when confronted by anyone else, is a pushover). Supporting characters are flat and unoriginal: a crime boss (who reminds me of Badger from "Firefly") who does little more than bully people, the inventor (who is unconscious most of the time) and the sibling group (two brothers and a sister that pace a lot).

At the end of the movie, I was grossly disappointed. There was closure, sure, but again the writer didn't explain anything! Where was she going? What did she think was out there? WTF? Although sometimes I like these kinds of endings because it leaves a tiny amount of room for speculation, this movie dropped the ball….completely. If they had explained things during the film, or solidly at the beginning, there would be no want. Speculation is good, but only if you have something to wonder about.

In short, the only thing I was left with after watching The Gene Generation, was how bad it was and how it could have been so much better.

Not having played the previous two Forza Motorsport games, but versed in Gran Tursimo, I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of FM3. Beautiful cars and track worlds are excellent eye candy, but I think one of the true beauties of the game are the physics. I am not talking about how the basic vehicle drives around the track, but the fact that each vehicle is exclusively different from every other.

Sure, you have car c l a s s e s and Performance index's, but comparing each car you find that each has its own personality. When you complete a track and have a look at your time you might be impressed with yourself. Then you have a glance at the leader boards for players across the globe and are disgusted with yourself. You have just found out that each and every car is unique. Even if you've been using the same car as the top player in the list, you have used different settings on your car that have turned into major performance differences!

Everyone can enjoy the beauty of this game and just have fun cruising around the tracks as fast as you can. But if you're a competitive racer, your world is as open as you could have imagined. The modification of the cars is so simple that it becomes complex. Variables that aren't even shown to you effect the way the car handles and rides. To be truly competitive, one must know a few of the nuances of how a car will respond to certain modification. The fun therein becomes apparent when you begin modifying exotic cars, cars you have never (and maybe will never) driven.

Although physics are a major influence in the game mechanics, livery design is what make the cars stand out on their own. A nice metallic paint job is pleasant, but when you put those decals on, the design just screams race car! At first, I was sure people were uploading their own photos into the game somehow, but as I fiddled with the vinyl editor, I realized how intricate the designs could be. Literally thousands of vinyl layers can be combined to make photo-realistic images! I am no graphic artist and could never make such flawless decals, so I tried my hand at making manufacturer's logos. After some practice, I became quite good at it... I even sold a couple in the in-game online marketplace (another topic).

The in-game online marketplace is another feat worth trying to top. I'm sure a lot of people have many different ways improve said marketplace, but I kind of like it the way it is. I will say that the menu layout for the marketplace could have been better thought out, but it works and once you get used to it, it flows. On the market, you can sell just about anything you've made, from tuning setups to vinyl groups to entire cars. It's really quite wonderful, even so for people that think they can't be competitive. Cruising the storefronts, I have found people selling tuning setups for specific cars that have climbed the leader boards. You know what they say, "70% car, 30% driver", or was it the other way around?

Before people say I'm a fanboy, I will point out that there are some caveats to this game as well as good points:

The Good:

1. Beautiful scenery and vehicles.
2. Clean and orderly menus.
3. Modifications galore.
4. Physics & vehicle uniqueness.
5. Competitiveness, online play and leader-boards.

The Bad:

1. Loading screens are numerous and lengthy.
2. Races are limited to eight vehicles.
3. Soundtrack is little to be desired. (yes, I know I can stream my own music)
4. No night or dirt driving.

There is so much more to this game that can not be explained in words and I believe the good definitely outweighs the bad, but I suppose you'll just have to play it for yourself and witness the splendor that is Forza Motorsport 3.

*note* please forgive the spacing on some words as they are forbidden by Gamespot because the word itself may become an exploit, but spacing it out seems to be ok. thank you

I'm usually not one for buying XBOX 360™ arcade games, but this one caught my attention while over a friend's house. I hadn't really given it much thought until I got the controller in my hand and attempted to complete a course for the first time.

Suffice to say, I found it extremely difficult to put the controller down. Maybe it was my completionist nature or my need to be good at something, but this game drew me in like Scorpion from Mortal Combat and has yet to let go.
I had to get this game for myself and so I did a few days after. Like I said, I don't don't spend my Microsoft Points™ on just anything, but once I did, I was ensnared again.

So let's get down to it.

The game is nothing more that a motocross character going through a series of obstacle courses. Easy right? Think again. At first, when you're going through the tutorials, beginner and easy levels, all seems like bliss. Sure, you make a mistake here and there and are compelled to restart the course. You achieve gold medals like they were being given out like pencils at an SAT exam. But it's just a warm up, sir. After about an hour or so, you find yourself at the 'medium' level. All the gaming you've done before as a kid are now being tested.

The most simple controls you can think of have now become one of the hardest things to master. Left-trigger to go, right-trigger to brake (front wheel ONLY, btw) and left-analog to lean forward or backward. It's no longer as simple as that. The hills become steeper and the courses now have bumps that will flip your bike forward or back if you're not careful. That left-analog stick becomes your best friend and your worst enemy at the same time...

Physics, physics and more physics. It seems to be common theme in games that catch my attention, and Trials HD is no exception.While you're trying to master leaning forward and backward, keep in mind that gravity does work and the drive wheel will move forward, even if your front wheel doesn't.

If you've ever driven a motorcycle, or a manually shifted car that matter, you know what I mean when I say precise timing of those four controls is essential. It's no longer about trying to hold the trigger down as hard as you can and just go. No, no. You have to be patient with yourself sometimes and other times not, use your best judgment, because there are multiple ways to complete each track, even on separate paths of the same track!

And then there are the challenge levels. These 'tracks' are almost more fun than the normal tracks. Flying through rings of fire and being a human pinball are the best of times. Soak it up.

I enjoy this game, to say the least. I'll let you know when I get past the 'hard' levels...

Once upon a time, you could play games on a console, a PC and Apple computers. Ever wonder what happened to that? Well, nothing happened, you still can (as if you didn't know). People I know complain about the proprietary nature of consoles and how it's ruining the very nature of gaming. The problem I have with this is that it hasn't really ruined anything. Computer games and console games alike, thrive on competition, even if the same company makes the same game for multiple platforms. Is Blizzard hurting for money because they focus on PC?

I own a 360 and buddy runs games on his computer. In fact, he just pieced a new one together for this purpose. In his opinion, console gamers are getting the shaft because they have to buy proprietary hardware to play games. Console exclusives really hurt the games and the industry in his eyes. What he doesn't seem to understand is that he is somewhat of a hypocrite. For instance, what if a game is coming out that is being touted the best game of the decade, or even ever!? Crysis could be this game if you were a FPS kinda person. To truly enjoy all the hard work that Crytek put into the game, I would essentially have to be running the best gaming hardware out there. From a business and distribution standpoint, who is really getting hurt here? The gamers, no, absolutely not. If PC was the only way to go, I would just own the best gaming machine out there which could cost you anywhere between $1500 and $26,000. That is no joke. Just try and build your own by window shopping nowadays. Go to the many online retailers that sell components and build me a machine capable of full-resolution, full-antialiasing graphics and tell me how much it cost. Of course, you say, it all comes down to the graphics card and those are getting pretty cheap (by comparison). Well, IF that were that case a quick search of the most popular electronics sites will reveal a hefty $400 price tag for one of the top tier cards (for both Intel and ATI). So, if he buys the best card out there and I buy my console, I'm already ahead of him.

Don't get me wrong, I built a nice computer and I plan to play games on it as soon as a find a game that I like that's only on PC. I own a console because I'm lazy in some respects. I can't stand it when I buy a new game and try to play it on my computer, only to find out that I can't experience the full thing because my 9500GT is not up to spec. Or, the game devs didn't think about the graphics driver I'm using when they made it and it doesn't work right at all. This is why I own a console. It takes all the guess work out of wondering if my computer will play the game. My buddy and I may be an exception to the rule because we both know a little something about hardware, but what about those people that are considered 'hardcore gamers', but know nothing about how to set up a computer to get the most out of it? For these people, and the lazy, there are consoles. XBOX360, PS3 and the Wii are platforms for lazyness (and don't **** me out because I keep using the word 'lazy', it's the best fit for the scenario).

You won't find system req's on console game cases. It's Plug-n-Play!

"You forgot all the bad things about consoles, like the RROD," you say? No, I haven't. You're impatient. Electronics on a whole are plagued with misfortune. Yes, the 360 had its issue with overheating and bad soldering materials. It was an epidemic. A problem that Microsoft has accepted and since corrected with it's new motherboards. And before you fanboys try to say anything, the PS3 has had its share of problems too. Remember when Sony decided it was a good idea to update all the firmware? Yeah, it bricked a lot of consoles, twice if I remember correctly. So get your head out of your butt. PS3 also has had the BLOD (for you xboxers, that Blue Light of Dead).

The point I'm trying to make is: NO piece of hardware is immune to dead. It will happen and when you least expect it. Unless, of course, you're one of those people that think your console is like a rock and you decided to put it in a cablinet without any breathing room. Yeah, I'll give you some time to go move it before you forget...................................................................................Ready? Okay. Moving on. All that said, the computer your mom bought you when you went to college, is indeed, going to fail one of these days. "It was just the power supply," you say, or, "I can replace parts in my computer cheaply and is still a better value!" Well, that's good, "but you still spent more over its life than I ever will on my console," I will say. Notice I used the singular there. Every generation of gaming platforms require new hardware. The difference in this generation is that console manufacturers thought it better to slightly modify the existing version to enhance performance. At the time of this writing, I am to understand that Sony is going to redesign the PS3 motherboard a third time. They are alone, Microsoft has done it too. This isn't as big a deal as you think. I have two 360s. One is the Modern Warfare Limited Edition (250GB HDD) and the other is a 'first run' Pro model. You know, back when they only put a 20GB HDD and a 'chrome' disc tray on them. The latter had the RROD early in 2009, four years after its birth. I promptly sent it back to Microsoft, who honored their extended warranty. My point here is that you never know when things are going to happen to your hardware, and when they do, you have to ask yourself, "Did I get my $400 worth?" and when your computer 'crashes', you can ask, "Did I get my $1000 worth?"

Because I know you probably forgot about the things I said at the beginning of this, my whole problem with fanboys is that they are hypocrites. They talk the talk, but don't, and probably can't, walk the walk.Think abut what you're saying before you do, maybe even twice. You may not get flamed as much.

My next entry will be about how excited I am about Steam coming to linux! Not because it's Steam, but because they are expanding the gaming industry to people that always hoped they could play games on linux without having to be a master at CLI.