Last week I told you what Blu-rays to purchase, this week we’ll talk about the world of Video Games. It’s been an interesting year for games. A lot of sequels and licensed games came out this year, not much original fair and it never felt like an overwhelming crush of titles this year. With that said, you can’t really go wrong getting your loved one one of the games or gear on this year’s list. There’s a little something for everyone. And no, there’s no Playstation Move or MS Kinnect on my Holiday list because I think both technologies are too new to properly judge and I generally HATE motion controlled gaming – although I have been having fun with my Wii lately Epic Mickey, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, James Bond, and The Michael Jackson Experience have all been awesome Wii Games.
One of the weirdest games to come out in quite a long time. Heavy Rain is like playing a real life detective movie. It’s unique and original. The game takes a lot of patience to play though. However, it’s well worth the time. Heavy Rain is an interactive, single player, action adventure game in which every decision players make influences the evolution of a desperate quest to catch a deadly killer poised to strike again. Featuring a complex and dark storyline meant for mature audiences, the game is a PlayStation 3 exclusive featuring a variety of possible endings, advanced crime scene analysis, replayable chapters, four playable characters and the ability to continue play as remaining characters in the event of your current character’s death. Buy Now.
Call of Duty: Black Ops
There’s not much to say here, it’s one of the premiere first person shooters. Treyarch does a masterful job of incorporating all the elements that Call of Duty fans love and come to expect while incorporating just enough new stuff to keep the long running series fresh. Call of Duty: Black Ops is a first-person shooter with stealth and tactical play aspect that puts players in the role of a shadow soldier fighting in a variety of historically representative fictional Black Ops missions of the Cold War era. Created with the input of actual Black Ops soldiers from the time, the game mixes traditional Call of Duty tactical shooter gameplay with new gameplay options designed to expand the players’ experience. Additional features include extensive multiplayer options, along with new vehicles and explosive new weapons. Buy Now
Call of Duty: Black Ops PrecisionAIM Controller
You can’t play Call of Duty with just any old controller, no you have to go that extra mile and get Mad Catz’s awesome Call of Duty Controllers. The grip on these things have a nice feel to them. Get a leg up on the enemy with the improved “Combat” buttons of the Call of Duty: Black Ops PrecisionAIM Controller. Located right where your ring fingers normally grip the bottom of the controller, these new larger and textured buttons are even easier to find and can be operated without the need to remove your fingers from other controller buttons. A simple selector switch allows for quick and easy remapping of the “Combat” button function. When you’re ready to increase your headshot count, switch the selector to the new PrecisionAIM mode for improved accuracy. Buy Now
Speaking of Rocking, this year the Band Game genre has suffered, Guitar Hero Warriors of Rock was very disappointing, but the folks at Harmonix have shown why they are innovators. Rock Band 3 takes the music genre back by adding a Keyboard Track to their game, as well as trying to turn their game into a teaching instrument by adding Pro modes that aims to teach people how to play real instruments. Buy Now
You don’t like cheap plastic, fake instruments? Mad Catz has your back with their Rock Band Midi Kit. Plugging directly into the console via USB, the MIDI PRO-Adapter works as an interface between the console and MIDI instrument, converting the MIDI messages into console controller data which the game translates into on-screen action. The MIDI PRO-Adapter features a velocity sensitive adjustment for MIDI drums designed to reduce cross-talk during play. An Overdrive activation button coupled with full-featured action buttons and D-Pad for in-game navigation all deliver the perfect blend of video game and real-world rocking. Buy Now
For something completely different, give the Gamer on your list a copy of the stealth assassination game Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood is an epic action game for Xbox 360 and the PS3 set across a blend of present and historical time periods, that places the player in the role of the leader of a Renaissance-era guild of assassins out for vengeance against the remnants of the Knights Templar. Set primarily in Rome, this sequel to the critically acclaimed Assassin’s Creed II features returning characters from the previous game and includes new features such as the ability to command members of your guild in combat, a new arsenal of weapons and multiplayer game support in which players can assume different assassin characters. Buy Now
Tony Hawk Shred takes skateboarding games to a new dimension by providing a skateboard peripheral with the game. This year’s installment comes with a brand new board, as well as the ability to pull off tricks a bit easier than last year’s installment. Go big! Clear huge gaps, perform over-the-top tricks during massive drops, and ride out roller coaster grinds! All new snowboarding: Feel the rush as you speed down mountain peaks filled with breathtaking big airs, crazy spins, and incredible flips. Buy Now
“Halo: Reach,” developed exclusively for Xbox 360, is theblockbuster prequel to the landmark “Halo” video game franchise and is the biggest game yet in the Halo series.“Halo” is one of the biggest video game series in history, and is the top selling franchise on Xbox. It has defined a generation of gamers and changed how people view video games. “Halo: Reach” tells the tragic and heroic story of Noble Team, a group of Spartans, who through great sacrifice and courage saved countless lives in the face of impossible odds. The planet Reach is humanity’s last line of defense between the encroaching Covenant and their ultimate goal, the destruction of Earth. If it falls, humanity will be perched on the brink of destruction. Buy Now
Disney Epic Mickey is an action-adventure platforming game for Wii™ console that sends Mickey Mouse on an epic journey of creativity and discovery. As Mickey, the player is propelled into Wasteland, an alternate world made up of Disney’s forgotten creative efforts, and is given the power to wield paint and paint thinner to dynamically change the world while determining Mickey’s path to becoming an epic hero.
Through the use of this unique paint and paint thinner, the key components of animation and Mickey’s tools for impacting his world, players will have the ability to shape how the story unfolds as they discover the concept of “Playstyle Matters” – an innovative style of gameplay created by Disney Interactive Studios’ Junction Point, led by industry luminary Warren Spector, where players creatively tackle different challenges in the world to explore all the possibilities and storylines – but with consequences for their chosen actions. Buy Now
The Michael Jackson Experience
Michael Jackson The Experience is a dance and party game for Wii in which players at all levels can groove right along with the King of Pop. Designed as a complete Michael Jackson gameplay experience, the game features 26 unforgettable hits, authentic choreography, lyrics to each song and visual representations of “The Gloved One” made famous in live performances and music videos for each song. Additional features include: 4-player support, and multiple modes including co-op and competitive as well as a practice mode. Buy Now
TRON: Evolution is an immersive 3rd person action game that pulls players onto the digital grid of TRON. Explore TRON’s cities using free running mobility, navigate among unique rebel factions, and fight an epic battle against a dictator’s seemingly unstoppable army as the powerful System Monitor. Seamlessly connect from single player story mode into 10 person multiplayer battles with martial arts inspired light disc combat and thrilling light cycle chases in the prequel story to the highly anticipated film, TRON: Legacy. Buy Now