The year 2010 is coming to a close and we have had some stellar games released this year.  I can’t really say if it was better than 2009, but it sure wasn’t worse.

January of 2010 started off with some major releases right after the holidays, which makes sense since there are a lot of gamers walking around with Christmas money and gift cards.

There is no correct way to describe Bayonetta.  The music is like no other game on the market.  The action is non stop and the combat is as intense as in any game you ever played.  I will admit, as for the story I was lost….lost lost lost as in Jack on the Island…yet I still played and continued to play because it was fun and looked cool.  It’s real cheap right now (20-30 bucks u.s.d.) and a great game to add to your collection.

Bayonetta

Darksiders made its debut in the gaming world and came with a nice mix of Zelda and God of War series.  The game had it’s moments of fun, frustration, repetition, and then became fun again for me near the end.  The art direction of the game (headed by Joe Mad ) was fantastic.  The story started off pretty good with a nice epic battle between Heaven, Hell, and Earth but the next 10 hours were kinda dry.  Mark Hamill’s character was kinda of annoying, fast forward to the last 4 hours of the game and the heat is on again.  If there was a way to keep the excitement of the first 2 hours and the last 4 hours of the game it would have scored higher for me…but overall if you got nothing on your gaming queue check it out!

Darksiders

For the full Article click here

Halo Reach releases September 14, 2010. Win a Free copy at gamersdigart.com!

Halo Reach is coming soon and all you have to do is sign up and leave a comment on the site here!

Most simple contest ever announced here..

Rules:

1.)Register an account on the site (Gamersdigart.com)

2.) Leave a comment in the comment section of this article of why you like the Halo series.  Leave comment here on this link (http://www.gamersdigart.com/features/34/142)

That is it…I will take all the members who leave a comment and put all the names in a random computerized drawing to select the winner.  The winner will be announced here Tuesday September 7, 2010.   No Bull…no entry fee….Register leave a comment and you are entered!

Good luck!

How much do you like the Halo universe?  How much do you like playing Halo 3?  What if I told you and three friends could win your own copies of Halo Reach here at Gamersdigart.com It is very possible and easy to do. Starting August 13th, 2010 there will be a Halo 3 4 vs 4 tournament here on the site.

There is a will be a small registration fee of $5.00 USD.  The tournament will be open of anyone who can participate.  There is no age limit on this battle… but kids have your parents pay the fee (don’t swipe their card without them knowing about it!)

This is a great chance for you and your friends to put your team work and skill to the test.  We have given away multiple games here on the site, but this is the first time we are offering a contest that is not art related.

For registration details click here!

It is known by many as the game that defined the third person shooter for this generation of gamers.  There are many games that have spawned based on the cover system but none hold the popularity as the Gears of War franchise.

The first game introduced us the world of Sera.  More importantly it introduced us to the Locust.   A deadly force that has attacked mankind not from the skies, but from underneath their very feet.  The game was a smash to play through.  The cover system (new for 2006) was fun to play and battle in, the enemies were tough as nails and the experience was very memorable.  It was kinda on the short side, but the multi-player was plenty of fun.

In 2008 Gears of War 2 hit.  It was an instant classic here! Epic took all the things that were great in Gears 1 and gave it the ‘ol sequel steroid shot of bigger action, better graphics, and more game play.  The campaign made the first one look like a walk in the park.   It introduced a new enemy type to the game…a sort of flood like third army type.  The game finished with a whole lot of death on the human’s side and the Locust’s side.  The main attraction of this sequel turned out to be the Horde mode.  It was truly a “bonding” experience as players were forced to fight together or die alone.

In less than a year, Gears of War 3 will be upon us all.  Many of the core elements in the story have changed drastically from the first two titles.  The first game was COG VS Locust.  The second game was COG VS Locust as well along with “who the hell are these discolored locust” mixed in.  Both titles were heavily militarized.  In the third title the Military might of the Cog has been broken with the sinking of Jacinto.   A major new game play mode will be a new 4 player campaign mode and a new arcade mode.

The Locust Horde has seen it’s own set backs as well.  There is an emergence of the Lambent.  Imulsion is having a bad affect on the Locust introduced us to the Lambent in  the second game.  Now in the third title we get to see the evolution of these creatures.  As they attack and become more of a threat don’t think the Locust are gone forever.  Think Halo Series with the triple fighting going on between Humans,  Covenant, and the Flood.

The third title is easily going to be Microsoft’s Big hit of 2011.  It will represent 360′s first trilogy to start and finish on the system.  It will represent the the graphical and technical leaps from 2006-2011 and will represent what the 360 can do as a system.  The Gears franchise has always set the bar for what this generation of games can accomplish.  Set your calendars for Tuesday April 5, 2011, it’s gonna be one hell of a ride!

more Gears coverage here!

Well…I want to take back some things I stated earlier in my initial Halo Reach article….

Holy Moly…I am addicted.  This is a far superior beta then I first imagined.  It has superior upgrades and to call it Halo 3 the second coming is an insult to Bungie.  I have played multiple rounds tried all the classes extensively and WOW….

Bungie has taken a lot of flack over the years about how Call of Duty and Battle Field 2 has all these online perks and levels that make it trump the Halo Series.  One thing Halo has never relied on…was the Best Software.  They always had great graphics, but not the best and that is fine.  The colors are bright and the characters are nicely polished.  Where Halo has always excelled at and infected millions of gamers is their addictive combat and game play.  The Reach Beta is the same way.  With two levels and a couple of different game modes…Reach is simply Fun as Hell.  Friday added Invasion to the mix and wow…talk about a strategy laced adventure.

You are placed with 6 friends and as the Spartans you defend and as Elites you capture.  Simple enough right…wrong! After an objective is complete more weapons and classes are unlocked.  Add in vehicles and multiple spawn points and two man/elite combat teams  you are in for a treat.  There is a feeling of bad-assery when you are charging a base with 5 other elites. Capturing the points and unlocking weapons gets your blood boiling.  Then add in your team mates yelling battle field cries in the voices as elites…the action gets out of control.

The sense of power of being an alien “invading: force and wiping out the puny Spartans…these demons… it is quite fun.

Start as the noble Spartans and there is another feeling.  You are six Spartans charged with the duty of defending your base against these…creatures.  They just want to kill, the good news is you are bred to kill.  Use tactical combat to defeat and push these foes back back back!

I believe all gamers want to feel like winners…that is why we play games.  The halo series has presented a great campaign story in which you take on the role of Master Chief (talk about wnner!) and also crafted an online system so perfect we are still playing it close to 10 years after the initial release.  4 on 4 and get to 50 kills to win.  Since Halo 1 we have played this game.  Of course they have made tweaks and additions…dual wielding, jet packs, power ups, etc….but getting to 50 kills…that is what halo multiplayer is all about!  Creating those awesome moments in gaming becomes all that more awesome when you defeating not AI but Real life opponents!

Bungie always gives you an extra treat….go to Bungie.net and any player can check out how good or bad they did in a match.  Like a member even said in the comment section on this site..Halo is one game where you can feel like a king one round and feel lose that feeling in less than a second in the next round…the joy of playing with people…there is no difficulty setting.

I don’t always win, but when I do…the feeling is good…no GREAT!

The reach beta is only here for a limited amount of time, enjoy some great hot action while you can.  Enjoy the series that made you buy an Xbox in the first place in a whole new light! If anyone is looking to get into some Reach Beta action feel free to send an invite! dreno360!

Halo Reach Beta is here…have you played it..what are your thoughts???

For me, I think the beta is a decent beta.  It offers players a chance to get an early crack at the game to help polish it out before the final release date later this year.  I thought the graphics were ok…similar  to Halo 3 with some minor improvements, but not as good as I expected.  (I know I know it is still the beta)

Once you get over the fact that you are playing a new version of Halo 3 you will simply go out and play the game you have com to love for years. (Not bad at all if you like Halo) Their are four different classes that add a nice twist to the game play.

The Scout class has a Sprint, which finally allows for running in a Halo game.  With all the Call of Duty games having a sprint function this special class seems outdated as sprinting in a game shouldn’t be a special ability.  Of course it’s only good for a short burst and requires time to recharge, like all the other powers.

Guards have Armor Lock, which makes your guy crouch down and become invulnerable for a short time.  This is cool but be careful as it leaves you VERY vulnerable once it depletes.
The Stalker class gives you the fan-favorite Active Camouflage ability, which is good for sneaking around undetected and dealing out brutal assassinations on unaware folks.  This is by far my favorite class as active camo was something I always looked for in all the Halo multi-player games.

Airborne gives you a cool ability, a jetpack! It allows you to get an impressive amount of air and really changes the dynamics of the game.  The Spartans look like Star Wars Bounty Hunters with the jet packs and all.  If you can get the hang of them they are HIGHLY effective in getting the drop on a foe.

Now this I can get into and sink my teeth in….

But the multi player looks promising I can’t wait for invasion!

I look forward to seeing all the new entries on a weekly basis and love how random people will drop a sketch or illustration into the challenge.  Every week or so a member from the site selects a new topic and by that monday the following week everyone post their take on that challenge…Left 4 Dead is next on our hit list and you will soon see some sketches in the forums that reflect this.  Here is break down so to speak on ALL the challenges and the entries to ever appear on this site…

Big thanks to all who have contributed to the Monday Challenges!  For anyone who wants to contribute to the future challenges we look for new art.  That is the point of the challenge; to create NEW art before the week’s deadline.  Enjoy!

Week 1: Mario

by d-reno

by kalel06

Week 3 Team Fortress

by kendall

by squeak117

by d-reno

by kalel06

pencils by kalel06 & colours by kendall

Week 4: Megaman

by kendall

by squeak117

pencils by squeak117 & colors by d-reno

by d-reno

by d-reno

by kalel06

Week 5: Resident Evil

by timkelly

by timkelly

by squeak117

by d-reno

by d-reno

Week 6: Bioshock

by lukedenby

by timkelly

by squeak117

by d-reno

Week 7 Dead Space & Oddworld (yes 2!!)

by lukedenby

by timkelly

by timkelly

by squeak117

by d-reno

by flamingshark

Oddworld

by lukedenby

by timkelly

by squeak117

by d-reno

Week 8: Half-life

by squeakk117

by flamingshark

by kalel06

by kalel06

by lukedenby

by d-reno

by mezmacko

Week 9: Batman

by d-reno

by flamingshark

by lukedenby

by d-reno

by squeak117

by d-reno

Week 10: Gears of War

by squeak117

by d-reno

Week 11: Ninjas and Samurai

by squeak117

by d-reno

Week 12: Halo

by squeakk117

by d-reno

Week 13: Heavenly Sword

by d-reno

by squeak117

Week 14 Darksiders

by flamingshark

Week 15: Mass Effect

by nuclearplastic

by d-reno

by kendall

by squeak117

To participate in the current challenge (left 4 Dead series click here!