Matt Hayes

Playing coop Gears of War with my best friend (40 miles away) while sipping egg nog.

If I win, it will be the best birthday present that I or my little family will have ever received. You guys rock!

Matt

If I win, I will have no choice but to send you money (albeit a small amount, otherwise I wouldn't bother entering this contest).

Thanks for sharing!

Dudes1 Take a closer look...that isn't just a fantasy FPS...it's FUCKING LORD OF THE RINGS!!!

For the Fantasy F@#$!ng Win!!!!!!!!!!

If you have to pass around a single controller like all the other console ports of yore, then no thank you. Not even for free.

I did the same thing. I feel quite good about it actually.

I’m a big GTA fan so when I stuck in the demo for the first time this
past weekend I went into it with a critical eye. I was fearful of
another True Crime which originally proved to be fun for about a whole hour
before I conceded that I’d much rather be playing GTA or Shenmue (i.e.
it more or less sucked).

I was a little wary at first. The art style to me is rather flat
somehow, and the character models could use some more fleshing out in their
overall detail. But once I started to get into the game probably after
about twenty minutes of tooling around, I really began to enjoy myself.
There are many little nuances about the game that make it stand out
above GTA. I like the fact that I can buy my food/alcohol/illicits and
keep them in reserve for my health and energy bars (plus you can get
loaded for the heckuvit which adds some entertainment value). I love the
fact that after you hit the water, you can simply warp to shore as
opposed to being forced to swim a half mile. Beating the change out of the
homeless is hilariously wrong. And beating the change out of the
newspaper box is just darn right. The random bystander chatter is by no means
clever, but comedic nevertheless.

The gunning is good, probably at least Mercenaries good, the physics
are a tad arcade-y. Driving is not quite as decent at GTA, but the
handbrake sliding around corners is very responsive. I had no trouble
getting around at high speeds (though why the cops’ cars were faster than my
own squad car was a little confusing to me). Endless gun battles with
cops are not aggravating by any means (as they can be in GTA). Shooting
gang members is satisfying and beating one fellow perp after another is
as easy as pointing in a different direction, allowing you to take on
multiple enemies simultaneously. No switching targets with a crusty
targeting system.

In fact most of the annoying gameplay problems that many people have
with GTA have been eradicated. I can climb over fences and walls, even
taller than I am. What a concept! When I get busted or sent to the
hospital I still lose a chunk of money (based on percentage), but I retain
all of my weaponry so I don’t have to start reacquiring guns to start
holdups or firefights. Hoorah!

The actual missions are more or less what I’d expected them to be, with
enough variety to keep me interested in the several provided in the
demo. Every storefront is a bad joke as with GTA, and maybe the joke’s
grown old overall, but it’s a new joke at least. Explosions are highly
entertaining especially when you and/or others are set aflame and begin
running around in circles. I can’t wait to see the environmental
system I’ve seen previews of incorporated into the actual game.

Since I got the demo I’ve popped it in over and over again, and my
sessions have gotten longer each time, even though I’ve been repeating a
same missions. And I’m thoroughly entertained every time. So truth be
told, if you’re a GTA fan, this *is* a game worth picking up. The
customization that I got a taste of has me wanting much more. I may even
shelve my Dead Rising purchase in order to pick up Saint’s Row three
weeks later. I’ll just have to compare demos to figure out which I want
more.

Sure Moto GP looks amazing, but it's about as fun as plucking bits of asphalt from your road-rashed ass. Motorcycles are supposed to be *FUN* to ride. Why the hell can't somebody make a *fun* motorcycle racing game?

Also:

Grandia ii
Marvel vs Capcom 2
Resident Evil: Code Veronica
Bust-A-Move 4
DOA2
Quake III

the list goes on and on...

There may be some minor framerate stuttering in the single player, but I'm having a blast playing it. It's still fun as hell and that's what is most important by far. Oh yeah the multi-player is also pretty great (though there is occasional lag due to some players' crappy connection speeds).