A few weeks ago, Activision announced the full track list for Guitar Hero: World Tour. I’ve been so in to playing Rock Band 2 (Addictive as always, but they broke the game parts with this new installment) the last two weeks that I forgot to post this up. I’ve soured on the last couple of installments of GH due to the horrible Guitar Battles. GH Aerosmith only had one battle - that I remember, so hopefully they learned their lesson and will make them optional or kill them all together in this installment, as I think Guitar Hero is a better game than RB. But I’m not sure about this set list, I only recognize about 20 of these tracks. When are we going to get a R and B Hero (especially funk stuff like Rick James, The Brothers Johnson, etc), or Guitar Hero: Prince set? Here’s your complete listing. I’m tired of all the Grunge rock. Beat It seems completely out of place.  Here’s the complete list.

• 311 - "Beautiful Disaster"
• 30 Seconds To Mars - "The Kill"
• Airbourne - "Too Much Too Young"
• The Allman Brothers Band - "Ramblin’ Man"
• Anouk - "Good God"
• The Answer - "Never Too Late"
• At The Drive-In - "One Armed Scissor"
• Beastie Boys - "No Sleep Till Brooklyn"
• Beatsteaks - "Hail to the Freaks"
• Billy Idol - "Rebel Yell"
• Black Label Society - "Stillborn"
• Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - "Weapon of Choice"
• blink-182 - "Dammit"
• Blondie - "One Way or Another"
• Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band - "Hollywood Nights"
• Bon Jovi - "Livin’ On A Prayer"

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In one of the goofier things I’ve seen in awhile comes a game company called 20Q.net.  They have produced a series of pop culture quiz games. They have one for Star Trek, Harry Potter and The Simpsons.  The Harry Potter game is shaped like a snitch, while the Star Trek one comes in the form of the Enterprise. I’ve been playing with it the last day or so and it’s kind of neat.  20Q™ is an artificial intelligence, a website, a company and a phenomenon that speaks for itself at http://20q.net. Players think of something, and 20Q™ guesses what is on their mind, in twenty questions or less. Each time the online game is played it learns a little more. After more than 62,000,000 games played and half a billion questions asked, 20Q™ has evolved from an experiment in artificial intelligence into a software development firm that licenses games built on the capabilities of the 20Q A.I.  It’s an interesting concept, but I’d prefer to see this game available on mobile platforms (I’m sure they are working on it) instead of the big, bulky packaging it currently comes in.

One of the great classics is getting the loving special edition DVD Treatment. Next week, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, 50th Anniversary Edition hits the streets October 7th (next week).  This colorful adventure is the screen version of one of the classic tales from “1001 Arabian Nights.” It tells the story of Sinbad (Kerwin Mathews) and Princess Parisa (Kathryn Grant).  When they unexpectedly stop on the island of Colossa on their way to Baghdad, they find themselves battling all types of dangers, such as evil magicians, a man-eating Cyclops, a fire-breathing dragon, and a sword-wielding skeleton. Directed by Nathan Juran (20 Million Miles to Earth, First Men ‘In’ the Moon), the newly remastered film stars Kerwin Mathews (The 3 Worlds of Gulliver), Kathryn Grant (Anatomy of a Murder), Richard Eyer (The Invisible Boy), and Torin Thatcher (Witness for the Prosecution). The DVD contains an audio commentary by Ray Harryhausen, visual effects experts Phil Tippett and Randall William Cook, author Steven Smith and producer Arnold Kunert; six featurettes: Remembering The 7th Voyage of Sinbad in which Ray Harryhausen reflects back on the 50th anniversary with a look at the film, drawings, artwork, models, etc., The Harryhausen Legacy; The Music of Bernard Herrmann with Herrmann biographer Steven Smith; A Look Behind the Voyage with interview footage; This is Dynamation; and Ray Harryhausen Interview by Director John Landis, plus the music video Sinbad May Have Been Bad, But He’s Been Good To Me. 

I adore this movie. The DVD includes -

Audio Commentary with Ray Harryhausen, visual effects experts Phil Tippett and Randall William Cook, author Steven Smith and producer Arnold Kunert
Music Video: Sinbad May Have Been Bad, But He’s Been Good To Me Photo Gallery

Featurettes:

- Remembering The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
- The Harryhausen Legacy
- The Music of Bernard Herrmann
- A Look Behind the Voyage (includes interview footage)
- This is Dynamation (Special Effects)
- Ray Harryhausen Interview by Director John Landis

Start revisiting memory lane by watching these clips, after the break. 

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Ubisoft announced that War World is now available on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Developed by Third Wave Games, War World is a fast-paced third-person shooter that combines a unique blend of heart-pumping action and tactical gameplay, introducing an entirely new genre to Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360. Complete with next-gen visual effects and robust gameplay, War World throws players directly into combat on the battlefield of a war-torn planet. Control one of 10 different Mechanoids, each with special abilities, and wreak havoc throughout the 100-level single-player campaign. War World is truly the first of its kind on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 with a robust multiplayer game set available through the Xbox LIVE online entertainment network. War World on Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 is rated "T” for Teen and can be downloaded for 800 Microsoft Points.

D3Publisher (D3P), a publisher and developer of interactive entertainment software, today announced that RocketBowl™ is available now for download on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. A refreshing twist on a classic sport, RocketBowl offers a 50’s style retro-futuristic vibe, out-of-this-world courses and rocket-powered bowling balls for a perfect game of fun on Xbox LIVE® Arcade for Xbox 360. Players will compete in tournaments, challenge their friends in multiplayer, test their bowling skills and more! Players can enjoy the robust, full game features of RocketBowl for 800 Microsoft Points.

In addition to an indoor bowling alley, RocketBowl features 10 crazy courses filled with ramps, tunnels, loops, hills, curves and more to create a bowling experience like never before. Players will enjoy fun and varied gamplay modes as they take on the different courses in Free Play or challenge the course pros in Tournament and Challenge mode where they can wager and win money to upgrade more than 15 unique bowling balls including Strawbally, 8-Ball and the Kalamazoo Special. RocketBowl offers exciting mulitplayer mode matches with up to 4 friends competing against each other over Xbox LIVE or locally on one system with Xbox LIVE play featuring unranked Player and Ranked matches.

In a monumental first for the gaming and music industries, Metallica’s highly anticipated ninth studio album Death Magnetic will be available in its entirety as downloadable content for Activision Publishing, Inc.’s (Nasdaq: ATVI) Guitar Hero® III: Legends of Rock day and date with the album release this Friday, September 12.  Featured on the downloadable album will be two Guitar Hero® exclusive renditions of “Suicide & Redemption” with extended solos by James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett.  Gamers looking to shred, drum and wail away to the Death Magnetic downloadable album need only purchase the content once as it is forward compatible and will integrate seamlessly with Guitar Hero® World Tour when it launches this October.

In addition to the two exclusive versions of “Suicide & Redemption,” Guitar Hero fans will live out the surreal Metallica experience with: “That Was Just Your Life,” “The End of the Line,” “Broken, Beat & Scared,” “The Day That Never Comes,” “All Nightmare Long,” “Cyanide,” “The Unforgiven Ill,” “The Judas Kiss” and “My Apocalypse.”

“We’ve been working very closely with Metallica and we’re extremely excited to offer Death Magnetic not only in its entirety, but also with the exclusive recordings of ‘Suicide & Redemption’ as downloadable content to Guitar Hero fans,” said Tim Riley, Vice President of Music Affairs for Activision Blizzard.  “We’re proud to be setting a new precedent for our two industries, making an entire new album available in two different mediums simultaneously.”

Metallica’s Death Magnetic album will be available for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock on September 12, 2008 for download on Xbox LIVE^® Marketplace for Xbox 360^® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft at a cost of 1440 Microsoft Points and in the PLAYSTATION®Store for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system at a cost of $17.99.

I’ve always wanted to learn how to play Gin Rummy. Sierra Online has brought one of the most famous classic card games to Xbox LIVE® Arcade with Gin Rummy. First introduced to the world almost 100 years ago, Gin Rummy comes to life online, where players can ‘knock’ out opponents with big scores and bonus points for endless hours of casual card game fun.

In Gin Rummy, players strategically select the right cards to create combinations of sets and runs to complete their hand, and in turn cleverly discard to minimize the risk of getting caught with a handful of high cards. Featuring six popular game modes, including Classic, Speed Gin, Hollywood Gin and Three-Hand Gin, players can also create their own rules for a truly unique experience. The game comes with rapid automatic scoring at the end of each match to get a detailed breakdown of each player’s points and bonuses. Gin Rummy features multiplayer for up to four players, with Xbox LIVE Vision support that lets players build up the atmosphere as the games progress. In addition, players can select from numerous game themes, including game skins, card decks and entertaining music selections. Gin Rummy is available now for Xbox LIVE® Arcade for 400 Microsoft Points. To help us noobs along they also released a tips and tricks video. 

Presented by David Fincher and Spike Jonze, and from acclaimed Director Tarsem comes THE FALL, starring Golden Globe® nominee Lee Pace.  On Blu-ray Disc™ and DVD September 9th! Filmed over a period of 4 years in 18 different countries, Tarsem’s The Fall is an unforgettable movie experience. In 1920s Los Angeles, Alexandria (Catinca Untaru), a 5-year-old girl hospitalized from a fall, strikes up an unlikely friendship with Roy (Lee Pace, TV’s “Pushing Daisies”), a Hollywood stuntman shattered by a near-fatal movie set accident and his lover’s betrayal.

To pass the time, he tells Alexandria the epic story of Governor Odious and the 5 remarkable heroes determined to defeat him – a dazzling world of magic and myth. Only when the line between reality and fantasy begins to dissolve does Alexandria realize how much is truly at stake. Presented by David Fincher (FIGHT CLUB) and Spike Jonze (ADAPTATION), THE FALL is an awe-inspiring, cinematic tour de force. Check out the clippage.

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I love Oliver Stone, he’s gone off the deep end in the last few years, but I’m really curious about his George Bush bio, W.  Here’s a new clip from the movie.

It’s almost time for me to go back to War. Oh, the stories I can tell about my experience using modern weapons to take out some middle eastern despot. Or the time I had to make it through a village without being spotted. Or the time I thought I rescued that downed chopper pilot and got nuked instead. Good times, good times. My favorite game from last year, Call of Duty is returning this fall. Boot camp will soon take on a new meaning, as  Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) and developer Treyarch, have confirmed plans for Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer betas in October for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and separately for download on Windows PC. These betas will serve as an early chance for players to practice the tactics needed for survival in the intense chaos of Call of Duty: World at War’s Pacific and European theaters. Players will experience the game’s new squad system, as well as fan favorite perks and kill streaks.  All preparation for the full battle will commence on November 11, 2008 when Call of Duty: World at War is released to retailers nationwide. “We are excited to share a sneak peak of Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer with the community,” says Mark Lamia, Treyarch Studio Head. “The team has worked hard to build upon the great history and foundation of Call of Duty multiplayer and we can’t wait to go online to ramp up for our November launch.”