The Video Game Critic

Let me know what you think about this new set of Xbox reviews.

Good reviews. It's odd to think that the Xbox edition (which was supposedly more powerful) plays second fiddle to the PS2 edition of Mega Man. As for The Thing, that title looks really interesting. I am always looking for cheap survival horror titles. I'll have to check this one outr.

The Thing was a pretty good game, except for one insanely tough section near the end where you have to go down a stairwell with tons of creatures, turrets and steam jets and no health packs or ammo pickups(better hope you brought enough beforehand, otherwise you're really screwed). The only way I managed to survive that part was to position the medic by the crates at the top of the stairs so he couldn't follow me and so I could keep getting healed without worrying about him getting killed or turning into a monster.

You downgraded the whole thing cause the two fighting games were locked from the get-go and you were unwilling to clear MM1 or 2 to get them unlocked?

I have mega man anniversary edition for Xbox. I think it deserves an A+. It has an insane amount of quality gaming on one disc. The ability to save your games is great because you can just play at more of a relaxed pace (not having to grind it out in one sitting.) As far as controllers go I use the wireless Xbox controller and it's not bad.

I bought a second Xbox console to keep hooked up to my Trinitron CRT largly for this game. The music is amazing and as the critic said so are the graphics.

In the reviews of the consoles, the critic gives the PS2 and Xbox controllers B and B- respectively, while making similar comments about the Xbox controller, to the Megaman review.

Has the critic's general opinion of the controller become more negative or is it just that Megaman's control setup happens to hit everything the critic doesn't like about the controller?

It's odd. I actually prefer the Xbox Controller S to the original playstation 2 controller. I think the button layout is great and I've never had any problems with it. Are the controllers the main reason for the differenrt ratings in the reviews?

About the controller delay on modern TVs, there are some things you can do to minimize it.  First of all, if the TV has something called "game mode," turn it on.  Basically what it does is turn off processes that slow down the TV's processing.  For example, many LCD and LED TVs have programs built in to reduce motion blur.  These are good to have ON if you are watching an action movie or sports event, however, the TV needs to "process" the signal as it comes in in, so it causes a delay.  Not good for gaming.

If the TV doesn't have a "game mode,"  you can still reduce the delay by turning off any special video features you can find on the menu.  Each manufacture has it's own terms for these things, so look for things called "Motionflow," "Led Motion," etc.  Basically, if you see things on the menu that you can turn off or disable, do it.

Liked the look at Xbox's version of the Mega Man Anniversary Collection, but it actually came out in 2005 for the Xbox (it launched in 2004 for PS2 and Gamecube only).  Also, why does the Xbox review have the difficulty icon while the PS2 one doesn't?  Also, regarding the lag, this is one of those Xbox games that also works with the 360.  Did you try playing it on that and if so, did it introduce lag? Because I don't tend to notice any when playing the old Xbox games I have on my 360 (when they're compatible, of course), though I went PS2 all the way with Anniversary Collection.

What I like about this site is we get to give the a review of his style. 

I never saw the Mega man remix collection.  If I had I would have bought it.  Really it looks cracking (Cracking meaning good in Scotland). 

I played The thing as I loved the movies and read the short story by John W Campbell.

I think that the critic is dead on with this one.  The early levels are superb and John Carpenter makes a cameo in the game.  That in itself is really cool.  It can be played on 360. 

What is bad about it is the way the difficulty is ratcheted up at the end. Dr mentioned it and I agree.  I would probably give it a B. Just because you will never get another game based on the thing released.