Ok, following up on my previous.
Video game consoles! Ill attempt to make this as 'in-depth' as possible.
I've been lucky to be able to purchase all 3, so lets start at the 1st one I got.
The XBOX 360!
Very nice to look at I must admit!
Ill admit, the PS2 kicked ass over the original Xbox! The games were immense on the PS2 and to be honest, all the Xbox has was Halo. How times have changed.
When I got the console, I noticed how much of an improvement it was over the previous generation. I love the fact (and its the same with all next-gen consoles) you can turn on, and off, the console with the remote. Very useful if your a lazy bugger like me :p
The controller fits snuggly into your hands, and one plus point over the ps3, is that it is battery operated. You can either
a) use normal AA battery which you buy or
b) use the rechargeable battery kit. Each charger kit can fit two rechargeable batteries at the same time so thats very useful as well.
When u press the big 'x button' on the controller, you can also access the main console menu, sign into your profiles, switch on/off the console and also view how much battery power you have left.
The main Xbox 360 menu is also very slick, although the PS3 one does look slicker (PS3 menu is just like the PSP one!)
What about the hardware itself?
To be honest, its too soon to say. Im sure you've heard about the wonders of Gears Of Wars, and whilst it is visually AMAZING, deep down inside me I keep thinking that something better will come sooner or later once game developers can fully harness the power within the machine.
In aspect to that, its even more apparent for the PS3 with not that many games out...yet. Right now I find the Xbox 360 more visually pleasing, but its has been out an entire year longer then the PS3, and it took one year for Gears Of Wars to come out. Give the PS3 time and one game should be released that can challenge Gears, only time will tell.
Remember, the Xbox 360's launch titles were not that great either!
Something that annoys me about the 360 though is how loud the machine can get You get the impression that the internal fan is really suffering inside the machine! Compared to the PS3, it sounds like a monster truck (ok..I exaggerate a bit..) but the PS3 is very quiet.
I also worry more with the Xbox 360 overheating then the PS3 so I invested in a 'fan-platform'. It cools the machine whilst holding it in place which is very useful.
What you see above is one of the awesome accessories you can purchase for the 360.
That is the Xbox Live Vision camera. Supposing you download one of the games available online (like UNO), you can put that on and see yourself on screen, and the other you are playing online. Very cool! In one specific game, Rainbow Six Vegas, you can take a picture of your face and 'map' it onto your game character!
One thing which the 360 dominates on is their online action. This, is simply put, amazing. It adds entire new dimensions to your game. Bored or finished with the story mode? Log on, and blast your way through some mates online.
Xbox has a huge advantage over the PS3 in that their online play was implemented with their original console, and it proved popular even then. They have had years to develop it. PS3, if wise, should stick the basics shows on the 360 if they want to combat that.
Take note that online isn't just for downloading games. You can download add-ons for your games, patches, updates and so forth. Game demos are also available.
If you wanted to be really cunning, you create another account (done by setting up a new Hotmail Account) but registered in the States. This is done so, your main account, will be 'registered in Singapore' (technically speaking...Xbox live isn't available here...) for gaming. This way you don't acquire much lag because your more likely to connected to local servers...not American ones.
The American one is for downloads only available in the States. Every day, more and more are added. Movies...tv shows and so forth. The best part is, the movies are HD! If you have a 360, or PS3, its advisable to buy a HD (high definition) tv to fully enjoy the graphics. Although we don't have HD-DVDs, you can still download the HD movies!
On both accounts though, you can also download 'arcade games', Mortal Kombat, Street-Fighter etc. Every month, more and more are added and I must admit, they are rather fun!
Ah but then comes the question of price.
To be honest, its alright. Anybody can log, and create, an Xbox Live account. To play online though, you have to pay. For those without credit cards, you can pop to your local gameshop and purchase a 'top-up' card. 3 months will set you back about RM80. I find it more worthwhile to purchase a one year card for about RM199, but since its so worthwhile, you may find it hard to find!
Compare this price with that of World of Warcraft, you do save quite a bit more! Once you can pay that, you can play online with any of your games.
There are also Microsoft Points. These are needed to download the arcade games, movies and anything thing else that charges. You usually get a 1600 point card for about rm80. To download an arcade game will set you back about 300-500 points, so even though I don't buy much stuff in the market place, its nice to have the points just in case.
Don't worry, no points are needed to play online games (only the membership fee which I mentioned before - the 'top up' card). Just top up your account and you become an xbox live gold member.
The PS3 beats the 360 in one aspect of online play though..its 100 % free. With the exception of downloading movies etc, you can play any game you buy online. With this you certainly save money!
Should the PS3 online take off though, I wouldn't be surprised if a fee is charged, but with (apparently) close to a million people, extra, creating xbox live accounts following the release of Gears of Wars, you'll never be short of gamers to play with!
By the way, if you don't like wires, you can buy the 'wi-fi' add on for the 360. The PS3 though, only the 60 gig version, has inbuilt wi-fi! I've never liked wi-fi too much to be honest, so I tend to stick to my ethernet cables.
Ok, this has taken more time then I expected so I shall continue tommorow.
Adios!
(I haven't touched on the Wii!)
I had to throw this end of this post, it really upsets me! I've always been a big fan...
(FROM CNN)
Editor's Note: The following story reveals information about the Marvel Comics' "Civil War" storyline and a key character. If you'd rather not know, stop reading now.
NEW YORK (CNN) -- He fought and triumphed over Hitler, Tojo, international Communism and a host of supervillains, but he could not dodge a sniper's bullet.
Comic book hero Captain America is dead.
After close to 60 years in print, Marvel Comics has killed off Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, one of its most famous and beloved superheroes amid an already controversial story line, "Civil War," which is pitting the heroes of Marvel's universe against one another.
In the comic series, Rogers was to stand trial for defying a superhero registration law passed after a hero's tragic mistake causes a 9/11-like event.
Steve Rogers eventually surrenders to police. He is later mortally wounded as he climbs the courthouse steps. (Watch the story of an American hero 
)
Marvel says the comic story line was intentionally written as an allegory to current real-life issues like the Patriot Act, the War on Terror and the September 11 attacks.
"Every child knew about 9/11," says Dan Buckley, president of Marvel Comics. "If [he] could see a TV he knew what 9/11 was. The other similarities [to] things going on are just part of storytelling."
It was a violent and strange end for an American hero.
Captain America first appeared in 1941, just as the United States entered World War II. He was a symbol of American strength and resolve in fighting the Axis powers, and later Communism.
As originally conceived by creators Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, Rogers was a man born before the Great Depression in a very different America. He disappeared after the war and reappeared only recently in the Marvel timeline. For a superhero many thought perfect, it was perhaps a fatal flaw for "Cap," as he became known.
"He hasn't been living in the modern world and the world does move," says Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada.
Quesada said he wanted to readers find their own meaning in Cap's end.
"There is a lot to be read in there. But I'm not one who is going to tell people, this is what you should read into it, because I could look into it and read several different types of messages," he told CNN.
The character's death came as a blow to co-creator Simon, the Associated Press reported.
"We really need him now," Simon, 93, told The AP.
Still, one has to wonder: Is Captain America really dead? Comic book characters have routinely died, only to be resurrected when necessary to storylines.
Joe Quesada agrees -- but said times are different now.
"There was period in comics where characters would just die and then be resurrected. And the death had very little meaning and the resurrection had very little meaning," he said. "All I ask of my writers is if you're going to kill a character off, please let that death have some meaning in the overall scope of things."
Besides, he said, there are other important questions left unanswered.
"What happens with the costume? And what happens to the characters that are friends and enemies of Cap?" Quesada said with a smile. "You're going to have to read the books to find out."
RIP CAP!
Benji Madden
Colby of Mtv
Need I even say who this is :P
Or how hot she is???
Joel Madden
Mooky of One Buck Short!
Adam, a friend, and D
D, myself, J-Lo and Uttttttttt :P
