Ditto... a fantastic launch game that was overlooked. Sadly, I still have yet to play the sequel.

Finally got the gonads to do the Hall of Fame setlist on Rock Band on expert. My friend was on guitar, I was on drums. Fuck you Iron Maiden. We five starred every other song (we Gold starred Tom Sawyer and Enter Sandman) but we barely got three stars on Run to the Hills.

Next up: Endless Setlist.

Major League Baseball: 2K9 - PS3

It's the first full game I've played on the PS3. I tried Metal Gear Solid 4 which came with the system but I gave up after about 45 minutes because I found it to be too confusing (don't laugh, I don't play those kind of games often unless they have 007 on the cover somewhere). I also tried Madden 08, but I couldn't get past the fact that it was the prior season and it just made me depressed.

As for MLB 2K9 on PS3 as compared to XBOX 360 there's no big difference in the two at least when played in the "Classic" style. Baffled I don't think would even begin to describe how I felt when I tried to play the game in the standard style. The only parts of the gameplay I would complain about are trying to run the bases, especially after getting a base hit. Scenario: A man is on first and the batter hits a ball into the gap. I defy anyone not to get into a rundown with the batter after the guy on first scores. I also have absolutely no idea on how to steal a base.

Aside from those two minor problems, the game is a lot of fun and actually somewhat challening. I'm only 4-3 after seven games on Pro.

Started playing Shadow of the Colossus (PS2 - yes I still play that old bastard, until I get myself a new Wii or PS3; I'll definitely get the latter once God of War 3 and the new FF come out) yesterday after having it for more than one year. I actually started to play a few months ago, but I wasn't in a mood so I skipped it.

It's an awesome game. Storywise it kinda sucks. Right down to the bizzarre Japanese ending. But gameplay is great. The scenes where the colossus' die are probably one of the saddest scenes in games ever. The music is brilliant... I felt so sorry for the bastards. Even moreso because it seemed like I was killing them for a pretty selfish and pathetic reason.

Always wanted to play Shadow of the Colossus.

I finished Mass Effect a little bit ago... it was a great game for an RPG, and I'd give it an A-. There was too much item and squad tinkering, and it took me until halfway through it to figure that whole system out, but other than that I enjoyed it a lot.

I've moved onto Ninja Gaiden II . The camera is pretty bad, but being a vetern of the first, it doesn't bother me that much as it's actually better than the camera in that one. The combat is really good as is the additional gore. The graphics are decent, but nothing overly spectacular. Overall it feels perhaps a little too much like the first one so far.... a little dated, perhaps. It'll probably fall into the B+ area when all is said and done.

Ninja Garden 2:

It's really just a bunch of mindless fun. Very mindless. I actually haven't read anything since the 2nd chapter, the notebooks were just so horribly written and the story is awful. But the mindless fun comes in heaps. Love the body parts just strewn about all over the ground. Sometimes I even try to find the guy with the most limbs hacked off, see if I can have one where I cut off both legs at the knees, then cut the torso in half, then both arms and the head. Alas I don't think that's possible.

Graphics: 8.5
Sound: 8.5
Hours to Money Spent Coefficient: 9.0 (haven't really counted, but should be nice and replay-able)
Gameplay: 8.5
Personal Bias: 9.0

Overall Score: 8.7

Rhythm Tengoku for the GBA - - it's been alternately charming and tormenting me with it's infectious little beats and my own crude sense of rhythm...

What is the "personal bias" rating?

And, I'll agree... the story is shit. I'm 3 levels in, and I have no idea what is going on, other than the fact that I think the CIA has got a little lax on its dress policy...

It's just a way for me to up a games score if I feel it necessary. It's kind of like a wild card, rewarding the game for the non technical stuff that my previous ratings dabble in. Like it's a lot of fun, but not a technically perfect game, but I want to reward it for being fun, or immersing me in a game, etc etc etc. (You'll notice my Darkness rating has a personal bias of 10, that's cause none of my previous categories cover stuff like story and what not, which was the REASON I loved the game)

I love in Ninja Gaiden 2 when i come to a body and it has an item. I'm going gimme health gimme weapons gimme........................awww fuck another story scroll, go away!!

Was able to play some COD online with my friends last night. It was nice as a stress reliever. As aggravating as it can be to be shot and killed in the games, it's still way better than doing just about anything else. Especially over a few beers with friends.

Portal - I'm a little late to this party, but it's fun. The AI voice really makes the game so far. The rest feels a little like an IQ test at times, but it is very fun shooting portal holes everywhere and testing things out.

Glad you finally got around to the bandwagon and, more importantly, that you're enjoying it.

OMG is that like Tony Montana from last winter ago because instead of moving forward with games hes moving backwards. He shouldnt be playing old shit like Orange Box, Mass Effect, Rock Band and Beautiful Katamari, he should be playing newer shit like ..um I cant think of any at the moment.. maybe Civilization. Stay in the present and stop living in the past

Well, you'll be happy to know that I also just picked up a brand new game the other day... something called John Woo's Stranglehold! And, I'm hearing good things about this Burnout Paradise that was just released, and I'll get that soon. When Condemned 2 gets released, I'll be all over it on day #1 too! If there is a new game, I'm on top of it...

Spiderman: Friend or Foe (Xbox 360): A game that Mrs. Montana is primarily playing. It reminds me a lot of the lego games... you can't really "die" and you can drop in and out of co-op at any time. Lots of collecting of items, and some fairly easy achievement points. She likes it a lot. It was definitely better than I thought (from what I played so far). It's a little repetitive and not very deep, but overall it's a great 2 player game, especially for more casual gamers. Grade: B

Mrs. Montana should be playing Civilization. Its probably not your game but you mentioned your wife's taste so it should fetch you achievement points as fast as she did on Viva Pinata.
Speaking of Viva Pinata, they are coming up with number 2 this september

She doesn't know that Civilization game exists yet. As soon as she figures it out, I'm sure she'll snag it up (she loves those games). The extra points will be nice, but I hardly see my 360 as it is now, so I hate to tell her about it anytime real soon!

Soul Calibur IV (Xbox 360) - My early impression - Soul Calibur has always been my second favorite 3D fighting series (after DOA), and so far this one doesn't disappoint. It's certainly the prettiest fighter to date - the character models are especially good (Yoda looks really kick ass!). It plays really smooth and the characters are all pretty bad ass, with tons of cool moves. I love the character create too. There are a lot of interesting new characters, and it is really easy to unlock the 15 (or so) characters that you can earn (can be done in under 2 hours, easy). On the only negative so far... it is a fighting game, and the whole genre is starting to feel a little dated. But, if that's your thing, this is really good. It'll likely end up in the A- area.

Sid Meyer's Civilization Revolution (Xbox 360) - Mrs. Montana says it's better than the last one. It's more animated, easier to figure out, and she likes playing on the 360 better than the PC. It's addictive as hell, and she's always saying "just one more move before I quit". From what I've watched, it looks like a fun strategy game with a lot of character and humor. She gives it an A.

Strangelhold (Xbox 360) - A nice substitute for a true Max Payne game. Very cheesy, but the game seems to realize that it's kind of ridiculous and embraces it.

Ninja Gaiden II (Xbox 360) - Played a few more levels... still a solid game, but it's just not grabbing me when I play it and I can't put my finger on it. I'm always thinking about playing other games when I'm playing it.

Portal (Xbox 360) - Finished it... what a cool little game, and one of the funnier ones I've played in recent memory. The hype was well justified. I'll look forward to a full fledged standalone sequel!

Picked up a couple more (m)oldies:

Viva Pinata Party Animals - Thought it might be a fun party game... it isn't... it sucks donkey balls. Boring and repetitive mini-games. Just poorly done all the way around. However, it's great for achievement whoring... 700+ points in about 4-5 hours of play, with another 200 being pretty easy. So... as a game it's a D, at best. As an achievement whoring game: A-

Monster Madness - Sounds great on paper, and at times looks like it should be good... it's like Zombie Ate My Neighbors old school type game. However, it's overly complicated on all levels and something about it doesn't jibe quite right. The voice acting is some of the worst. Worst yet, it's a terrible game for achievement points. It's looking like a D+ game.

There was a lock-in at my church for youth/college kids last night into this morning. Through some fancy wire-work we managed to get the ultimate Rock Band set-up. The four rockers were on the stage, facing outward, watching the TVs (normally used by the church singers) to see Rock Band. Then we had the same image projected behind us on the wall so everyone could see it, with the sound being blared out of the speakers for everyone to hear. It is potentially the greatest thing I've ever conceived/done. There were a few brief moments when it surprisingly felt completely authentic (thank you Afterlife).

Avatar - I played it for 5 minutes and got my 1000 points. A+

Ninja Gaiden II - Finished it. Not as good as the first (which is one of my all time favs), but definitely has some great moments. I'll settle in at a B+ for it.

Lego Indiana Jones - Great co-op game to play with Mrs. Montana. Not as good as Star Wars Lego... the space setting, force powers, and futuristic weapons in Star Wars work a lot better than IJ. Still it's cute, fun, and has a good sense of humor. B+

NBA Live 08 - A massive improvement over 06 and 07, but it still can't even carry 2K8's jock strap. Still, it's the first NBA Live game that is actually playable in quite some time, so that's encouraging for the series. B-

This is worse then killing those puppies.