Van Halen is coming over to play

Watch List – The short form

ElMico asked me what I was buying next. Here is my list; sorry no pictures.

• Batman: Arkham Asylum – Aug 25 (PS3?) I liked the demo.
• Guitar Hero 5 – Sept 1 (PS3 – get with Van Halen) For Party mode.
• The Beatles: Rock Band - Sept 9 (PS3) I may rent this first.
• Wet - Sept 15 (PS3?) A girl with a gun and a sword.
• Halo 3: ODST – Sept 22 (Xbox) I need to finish Halo3.
• Alpha Protocol - Oct 5 (PS3?) FO3 but "espionage."
• Brutal Legend - Oct 12 (Xbox for Multi-player) Looks like fun!
• Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - Oct 12 (PS3) For the graphics and story.
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Nov 10 (BOTH PS3 and Xbox) $120!
• Assassin's Creed II - Nov 17 (PS3) I need to finish AC 1st (it started repeating and got repetitive over and over again).
• The Saboteur - Dec (PS3?) Intriguing.

Only two will I buy the day it comes out: GH5 and CoDMW2. The rest I will watch for reviews and sales. Christmas time is coming – and so will the discounts.

Also, the ones labeled ‘PS3?’ don’t have multi-player – so no real reason to buy for Xbox, unless LensOfTruth judges otherwise.

What's on you list? Did I miss something?

Free Guitar Hero Times Two

I'm part of the Best Buy Reward Zone Gamer's Club. I don't know the rules, but they send me coupons - in store money, actually - every few months. I saw on-line that Guitar Hero Aerosmith was $9.99. So, I stopped in to Best Buy to pick it up. I also found Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock was $9.99.

I had a $20 coupon. At the check out, the clerk would not let me use it because the subtotal was $19.98; I had to buy a pack of gum. So, for the price of the gum ($1.50!), I was able to bring home some new games. I'm not too excited about these games, but it should be fun. I've played GH3:LoR on a PS2 was was not impressed. I know Aerosmith has Trophies, so I can add some easy ones to my collection.

Does 'Rhythm' contain a vowel? Oh, "Sometimes."

I live a tough life. I spend all day working for The Man and all night taking care of my family. Then, with the few moments I have at the end of the day, I become Anguissette on the PlayStation3. The above paragraph is not true. I enjoy working for The Man and my family enjoys playing PlayStation with me. So, I have been playing a lot of Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour. (I play my M games after everyone is in bed.)

While on guitar, I can play any song on Medium. I just can’t get down to the orange button. So my fingers stay on green, yellow, red, blue and I play whatever they throw at me. Many songs I would complete 100% if I was not trying to manage my Star Power (Overdrive). I’ve basically finished both games. (I am not going to play the Endless Song List 2 on RB2 – six hours without pausing, no way!) I’ll probably fill out a few trophies on RB2, but since I am not going to Expert, I won’t get them all. I have not played the on-line format - you can play with others or against them. None of my friends seem to be into Rhythm games. (You are? Then send me a PSN invite. PSN ID: Anguissette.)

I’ve discovered that playing with others is a ton of fun. I’ve had guests over – many with kids – and we all play. The adults seem to come out of their ‘proper’ shell and let it loose. From alternate lyrics (“Excuse me while I kiss this guy”) to drum solos – I’ve seen a stuff that will turn you white: Mr.P, I’m thinking about you singing "Eye of the Tiger" . I’ll probably pick up another guitar before the next ‘budding young rockers’ come over. I’ve had trouble with the GH4 drum set: the red pad does not work. To Red Octane’s credit, they did send me a MIDI to USB cable. I tried to adjust the sensitivity, but that did not help. I’m going to try the return-defective-equipment route before attempting the ‘internet fixes.’ I’ll let you know how it works out. Until I get a replacement, we simply use Lefty Flip so the red does not come up that often.

I could not pick a favorite song – I enjoy so many. Paramore, The Killers, The Who, A7X, GnR, and Kent (VinterNoll2) are what I can remember. Not only is a good song important, but also how the game play translates: you need to feel like you are really playing along. So many other songs feel like the Simon game – just follow the lights. If I practiced my real guitar as much as I’ve played Guitar Hero, I’d have millions of dollars and hot-and-cold running chicks.