Toys for Kids & Adults

Halo is the next Star Wars?
I don't know why this got under my skin, but it did, so I'm just going to go with it.

Ina Reuters articlethat reads more like a Microsoft press release, we find this sentence:

Hailed by some as the "Star Wars" for Generation Xbox, the "Halo" franchise has spawned a mini-empire of licensed toys, clothing and tie-ins.

What in the world? Who is hailingHaloas the nextStar Wars? And, for goodness sake, Generation Xbox? Why does Microsoft suddenly get the rights to stamp their brand on an entire generation?

I'm as big of aHalofan as the next guy, and it is a terribly successful brand, butStar Wars? Yeah. Talk to me when kids are toting around Master Chief carrying cases to safely transport all of theirHaloaction figures, the way kids did in the 80s with theDarth Vader carrying case.

Interestingly enough, the guy who wrote this "article" has the last name "Hillis". I find this strikingly similar to Hillys, the name of the people in the 2003 Xbox titleBeyond Good&Evil. InBG&Ethe Hillys had their life force sucked out and/or had spores inserted into their brains that made them unknowingly work for the evil DomZ. You don't suppose Microsoft spored Hillis, hence the article/press release, do you? Sure, it's a stretch, but so is comparing the success ofHaloto that ofStar Wars.

Medal of Honor: Airborne Walkthrough and Strategy Guide begins
We are beginning work on theLBMedal of Honor: AirborneWalkthrough and Strategy Guidefor the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC versions of the game.

Per usual, you can check in on our growing guide as it's being written. Enjoy!

LBMOH: AirborneGame Guide.

Update:For those who needMOH: Airbornehelp beyond the current scope of the walkthrough, please post your questions in ourMOH: AirborneHelp Threadin our forums.

Wii down, X360 up, PS3 down – Industry up 46%

The US video game sales numbers for August are in and the industry is up 46% year on year. EA came in tops on the software front withMadden '08selling 897,000 units for the Xbox 360, and coming in 2nd for the PS2 and 4th for the PS3.

BioShockcame in 3rd with 491,000 units sold and Nintendo'sMetroid Prime 3andMario Strikers Chargedboth were in the top ten.

In the console war, the Nintendo Wii still leads the pack but dropped 5% coming in at 404,000 units sold.

Meanwhile the Xbox 360 jumped 63% to 277,000 units due in large part to aprice cut.

Sony's PS3 dropped 18% to 131,000 as the effect of their $100 price cut seems to be wearing off.

Reuters article

A violent video gaming thought
Many argue that parents who refuse to buy their kids violent video games doesn't solve the problem of kids playing violent video games, because those kids will go to a friend's house and play them. I say, so what if they do?

There are a lot of things that kids aren't allowed to do at home that they do with their friends. However, if you've told your kids that you don't want them to be playing these games, at least they'll understand that they're doing something you, as a parent, don't approve of.

Believe it or not, the fact that a child knows he or she is breaking the rules, does affect how they look at what they are playing. Dig?

And that was my violent video gaming thought for the day.

The 'Halo' effect — Stock Watch

I've assembled an interesting video and a few articles which delve into how you can make money off of the halo effect of, well,Halo 3.

Depending on who you believe,Halo 3will pull in anywhere from $500 million to $1 billion between game sales and console sales.

Here are the video/articles, and below, my analysis:

Cramer video onHalo 3…be warned you have to watch a 60 second Viagara ad.

Halo 3: T-Minus Two Weeks

GameStop takes aim at casual gamers

Although it's tempting, I wouldn't invest in Microsoft in the short term because, even though theHalo 3numbers look huge, they are a mere drop in the bucket for MSFT in general. If you're going for the long term, I think there are better, more growth-oriented (and still safe) stocks out there, even in the technology field…say Intel (INTC) for example.

Continue reading…

'Super Paper Mario' Walkthrough — for our European friends
Just a little reminder for those of you in PAL territories who only just received the Mario RPG last week:

Lunabean'sSuper Paper MarioWalkthrough and Strategy Guidenot only walks you through all eight chapters of this Mario adventure, but it includes an extensive "extras" section that will please Character Card collectors, Treasure Map hunters, Cooking experts, and Pit(s) of 100 Trials divers.

Check it out in all of its strategy guide glory here:

LBSuper Paper MarioGame Guide

Bioshock Etch-a-Sketch
Really?

Source