Silgrad Tower The Morrowind Mod

Just when you thought Morrowind was awaiting a magazine cover give away, along come a group of dedicated Modders with a mod which adds a large chunk of Morrowind's mainland west of Vvardenfell, opposite Hla Oad in the south to Andasreth in the north.

The Silgrad Tower project started in 2002 as an extension for TES3: Morrowind, and over time a living, vibrant world was lovingly crafted.

Sprawling over 225 exterior cells, Silgrad Tower offers over 35 quests, hundreds upon hundreds of fully detailed homes, caves and over 1,000 NPC's. In this new world, most are friendly but others aren't. If you want to see and experience everything in this world, expect to have your hands full for a long, long time.

Silgrad Tower doesn't alter or change anything in the main game and starting the mod with an existing game should work without a hitch.

Thanks to Deitrix for heads up, vid from NRnoremorse

Download from Silgrad Tower Official Website

Clickable inkies silgrad tower Morrowind Mod PC mods game

Battlestations Midway (xbox 360) Preview

Xbox 360 version, due January 30th in US and currently on retail shelves in Europe, Battlestations: Midway follows the story of naval recruit Henry Walker, whose first assignment as a gunner at Pearl Harbor is the starting point of an incredible career at the heart of the US Pacific Fleet in 1942, in what was to become one of the most inspirational military campaigns in history.

Promising a blend of 3rd-person action with, large-scale naval combat, the game attempts to bring to life the great Pacific battles of World War II. From the chaos of Pearl Harbor, through the Philippines, Java and the Coral Sea all the way to the epic Battle of Midway.

Preview summary
"The in-game environments are as lush and lovely as you'd expect, with all sorts of weather effects and lots of detail, and visual flourishes include a camera that follows bombs and torpedoes after you've fired them"... full preview from Eurogamer

"Like a chess-match with guns. While the graphics still need some work, this is a solid strategy game that RTS fans and action fans will enjoy alike." full preview from IGN

Wallpaper from Midway Official Website
Screenshots (18) from gamespy
Trailers on xboxlive and Gametrailers.com


Clickable inkies Battlestations Midway Battlestation Midway Midway RTSxbox 360 preview screenshots trailers website wallpaper video game

Samurai Executioner Manga

From the creators of Lone Wolf and Cub comes Samurai Executioner. Before Koike and Kojima created Itto Ogami, they created Kubikiri Asa, better known to Lone Wolf readers as Decapitator Asaemon. He was the equal to Itto, bearer of the sword Onibocho, the man charged with the duty of testing the swords for the shogun.

Samurai Executioner is based on the decapitator himself, in life before his fatal duel with Lone Wolf. Many of the stories focus not on Asaemon, but on several of the people he meets in the course of his work. More often than not they are the stories of the criminals he executes, told as their last words before receiving the fatal stroke.

Each volume is written with historical accuracy, although the characters themselves are fictional. In the back of each book, Dark Horse has provided a glossary to help define the many Japanese terms used to keep the stories authentic.

Halo Wars Preview

Yes it's Halo as a Real Time Strategy game, “Halo Wars” is the next big real-time strategy game from Ensemble Studios, creators of Age of Empires. Designed exclusively for the Xbox 360, “Halo Wars” allows you to take charge of the human UNSC armies and see the Halo universe from a totally new perspective. The action takes place before Halo during the UNSC’s first deadly encounters with the Covenant. Players will lead the crew of the UNSC’s “Spirit of Fire” from initial skirmishes to an all out war against the evil Covenant.

As to whether you can play as the convenant?
to be confirmed

As to when the game will be released?
to be confirmed

As to the perennial issues with RTS games and consoles?
the game "was created for the Xbox 360 from the ground up, which meant we didn't have to make compromises or shoe-horn in artifacts from a Windows PC game. We were able to take all the best aspects of RTS games, make them work perfectly on the Xbox 360, and exclude the rest."

hmmmmmmm! haven't i heard that before.... here
still I've got my arthritic fingers crossed

Trailer from Donleno
Halo Wars Official Website
Preview from IGN
Halo Wars, Wallpaper from Official Site

Clickable inkies halo wars preview trailer wallpaper xbox 360 PC

Crackdown (xbox 360)

Playing as a super-human agent assigned to take out the filth that has starting filling up all corners of your city. Luckily the housands of gangsters have neatly grouped together into three criminal organizations. Your overall goal as an agent is to defeat the bosses of these organizations, bringing peace to your beloved city.

Billed as the first-ever truly 3-dimensional persistent playground, touted as a GTA clone with more action.

Demo due on xboxlive on January 18th
US release on February 20th
October 27th release in Europe (why for so late??)

Official Website
Screenshots (30) from Eurogamer
Wallpaper (5)
Videos (24) from IGN
Preview from Gamespot

Clickable inkies Crackdown xbox 360 preview Box Art website screenshots

Merry Christmas

Wishing you and yours a happy and peaceful Christmas.

And to those I hold dear, who have made my year a lot happier by taking the time to visit and comment, a massive big bear hug and a big sloppy elderly Christmas kiss.

. . . . . . . elderly

Norad Tracks Santa
101 Classic Christmas Videos
Alternative Christmas Wrapping paper
Rudolf's Kick and Fly game

Star Trek Legacy Review

Bringing together all five TV series in one gaming experience, the PC version was slated for it's clunky controls, luckily the 360 version has undergone a rehaul and in the nick of time to manage a not too shoddy 72% from 7 reviews on Metacritic.com

Reviews Summary
This is a must-own title for anyone who claims to be a Trekkie.
Graphically things are just too bland overall
Interesting achievements to unlock if you stick with it
Wears thin when forced to replay a mission because your objectives weren't very clear.
Some nagging flaws, Legacy isn't a title that will appeal to everyone.
This game excels at staging space battles on an epic scale
Captures the grandeur and feel of epic starship battles
A fantastic action-strategy title

Star Trek Legacy Official Website

Clickable inkies Star Trek Legacy Review Xbox 360

Fantasy Art H.R. Giger

Hans Ruedi Giger is an Academy Award-winning Swiss painter best known for his design work on the film Alien. Working predominantly in airbrush, Giger creates monochromatic canvasses depicting surreal, nightmarish landscapes. His most distinctive style is the representation of human bodies and machines in a cold, interconnected relationship.

Giger's main influences were painters Ernst Fuchs and Salvador Dalí. Giger is perhaps the best known sufferer of night terrors and his paintings are all to some extent inspired by his experiences with that particular sleep disorder. He was originally educated as an architect and made his first paintings as a way of art therapy.

Giger Official Website
Giger US Site
HR Giger Online Museum



Clickable inkies H R Giger fantasy art fantasy artist alien

Leona Lewis the World has a new Diva

X-Factor winner Leona lewis singing her debut single
"A moment like this" and so overcome as to be quite unable to finish the final line of the song.


Clickable inkies Leona Lewis single a moment like this XFactor X Factor

Mercenaries 2 World in Flames preview

Following on from the suprise 2005 xbox hit, Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (xbox 360, Ps3) is an open-world action game set in a war-torn world. A power-hungry tyrant messes with Venezuela's oil supply, sparking an invasion that turns the country into a warzone. Set for next gen release in Q3 2007.

But for you, international crisis is a positive: You as a mercenary, must profit from chaos. Mercenaries 2 features a slew of potential clients, all willing to pay you to do their dirty work. Dirty deeds, done for exorbitant fees. These are world powers with deep pockets, deep grudges, and enough arms and ammo to start World War III.

Preview from 1up
Mercenaries 2 Official Website
Screenshots from 1up

Clickable inkies mercenaries 2 world in flames mercs2 xbox 360 ps3 video game official website preview screenshots

Blue Dragon Xbox360 preview

Already out in Japan with a release date still to be confirmed for the West, the game (spread across 3 discs ) has achieved a remarkable 37/40 (92%) from Famitsu weekly. Stock (10,000 units) of the special edition xbox360 bundle was sold out on release. The bundle included the 360 core system, 5 mini-figures, a faceplate and the game for the same price as a normal bundle.

Blue Dragaon is the first of two epic RPG projects for Microsoft by Mistwalker, the studio founded by Square-Enix's Hironobu Sakaguchi. Blue Dragon features characters by designer Akira Toriyama, and tells the story of a young boy named Shu, who battles enemies using his "Dragon Shadow."

Blue Dragon Official Website (slow loading)
Blue Dragon Screenshots from IGN (26)
Gameplay the first five hours from IGN
Blue Dragon characters from Playasia
Blue Dragon Soundtrack from Playasia
Blue Dragon " Watashi no Mizu to Sora" from Playasia

Clickable inkies Blue Dragon Bluedragon soundtrack video game preview music theme screenshots website xbox 360

Sonic the Hedgehog Walkthrough (Xbox 360)

Sonic's 15th Aniversary release on the xbox 360 did not achieve the runaway success Sega may have wished for. Those of you with a copy, will by now have overlooked it's imperfections and control system and may be very glad indeed of the following expertly researched Walkthroughs. From character guides to boss faqs, from the silver episode walkthrough to the town mission guide....

Gamefaq Walkthrough, FAQ's
Achievements and Unlocks from gamespot
Unlocks from neoseeker
Walkthrough in Spanish (hey im struggling here)
Sonic the Hedgehog Official Website

Clickable inkies sonic the hedgehog walkthrough xbox 360 cheats hints acheivements unlocks tips faq

Gears of War Walkthrough

Already i hear you saying "what?!!! a walkthrough for a shooting game", but trying to locate that last illusive cog tag or being pinned down for the 30th time on the same level on insane mode is enough to rattle the strongest resolution. As per usual the most effective walkthroughs are to be found on Gamefaq, although i've included the best of the rest to add a little piquancy to your search for a solution.

Gamefaq Walkthroughs from... erm Gamefaq
Gears of War Walkthrough from Unlimited Gamer
Walkthrough from OCModShop
Tips from Xbox.com
Gears of War Fansite
Gears of War Official Website

Clickable inkies gears of war walkthrough cheats hints tips faq guides cog tags Gow walkthru xbox 360

Cyber Vixen of the Year 2006 Alyx Vance

Just one winner from a list of categories from Spike TV's 2006 Video Game Awards winners. Alyx Vance, is a character from Half-Life 2: Episode 1.

Best song went to YellowCard for their composition "Lights and Sounds" featured in Burnout Revenge for the XBOX 360, vid from phoenxbenj

Best game went to The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion More details from joystiq.com

Clickable inkies Best games 2006 spike tv videogame awards

Sega Sign Alien

"Sega have agreed a deal with 20th Century Fox for a series of games based on the "Alien" movies. The publisher, best known for its "Sonic the Hedgehog" video game franchise, is developing multiple next-generation and PC video games set in the "Alien" universe, including a first-person shooter and a role-playing game, with the first product to ship in 2008."

UPDATE! February 2012,
5 years later and the latest Box art above, for SEGA’s upcoming Aliens: Colonial Marines for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms set for for a "late June 2012" release.

Aliens: Colonial Marines Websit Official Website
any excuse for me to post a Sigourney weaver picture.

Clickable inkies Sega Alien game games licence

Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom Review

Well it appears the "Ultimate next-gen experience" and the "immersion" in "vibrant environments" weren't enough to satiate the thirst of the reviewers in this action RPG for the Ps3. Scoring just 60% from 17 reviews on Metacritic.com.

Reviews Summary
Dark Kingdom isn’t particularly innovative, falls prey to a number of RPG clichés.
Mind-numbing button mashing with unremarkable stages.
Lacks the sense of grandeur seen in other next-gen games.
Average, if occasionally very frustrating example of the genre
Feels like it was ported over to the PS3 from a pre-existing console
It still isn't "bad", it's just old fashioned and disappointing
Technically modest, fun for a while, but monotony eventually sets in

Clickable inkies Untold Legends Dark Kingdom Ps3 review

Virtua Fighter 5 Wallpaper

Latest instalment in sega's fighting game series. Once again, realtime visuals and character animation are promised, Virtua Fighter 5 will feature an all-star cast of 17 fighters. Out on Ps3 in Japan on December 31st with US release in March 2007 no date confirmed for Europe (typical)

wallpaper from top to bottom:

Akira YukiSarah BryantAoi Umenokouji

Trailer from Eurogamer TV
Screenshots from Eurogamer
Wallpaper (18) from Japanese Site

Clickable inkies ps3 virtua fighter 5 wallpaper trailer

Tetsuya Nomura's Final Fantasy Versus XIII Trailer

Part of a series of games called Fabula Nova Chrystallis: Final Fantasy XIII.

There are three games in the series, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, and of course the main installment of the series, Final Fantasy XIII. FFXIII is expected sometime in 2007 for Ps3, with versus even further along the gaming calendar. Vid from EldonPaul

Clickable inkies FFXIII versus FFXIII trailer Final Fantasy XIII versus ps3

Thicker strap as Wii floors the opposition

Japan: 27th November to 3rd December

Ps3 sells 187,836 units (opposed to xbox360's lifetime best of 178,070)
but the gutsy little Wii tops a whopping 350,358 in its first two days on sale

story from Spong.net

and on a even happier note, it appears Nintendo have responded to the design fault in the Wii-mote strap, GoNintendo are reporting new shipments of Wii are coming with a much thicker tether. Just in time to save some European TV screens. Or was it really a fault at all?

Clickable inkies Wii remote wii-mote strap nintendo sales Japan console