I finally got around to buying Mass Effect (Call of Duty 4 is on the way), and it's pretty fun so far. The pace is typical Bioware, in that you have to spend a lot of time talking to characters and figuring out where to go to progress the many possible storylines. It can get a little old, but there's also a lot of good stuff in there, too. They obviously spend a lot of time coming up with the details for their stories. They think big when they create a world, which I suppose is a good thing. I'm less than 10 hours in (out of a supposedly 30-hour game). I'm eager to see how it all ends.

Of course, the main reason I bought it is for the full nudity and graphic sex. How was I to know Fox News was hyping the game inaccurately?
Keighley Sets Mass Effect Record Straight... Or Tries To

But at least the author recanted her statements, even if Fox has yet to issue a correction:
EA vs Fox: Lawrence Recants Mass Effect Judgement

Mass Effect is on my list of games to get. As for Call of Duty 4--what a thrill ride--you should love it.

My 360 is semi-retired right now. Actually, it's residing in the trunk of my car. I'm taking it down to the river. . .no, no, I'm waiting to return it to Best Buy--when the finally get some more in stock, that is.

So, to fill the void I went old school and got Final Fantasy XII for the PS2. So far so good.

Best Buy doesn't have any in stock? What's that about?

The 360 I gave my sister is freezing on them all of the time now. Unfortunately, no matter how much they still use it, it won't give them the 3 red rings error, which would qualify for the free repair. Here's hoping it shows them mercy soon.

My coworker's boyfriend is also having problems with his. There's audio, but no video, so it's another one that doesn't qualify for the 3-year 3 red ring warranty. It's almost like they released an update for the 360 that prevents a 3 red ring error and instead makes them do something else funky.

Yeah, I got the product replacement plan with Best Buy, so I don't need to wait for the red ring of death. The last time I played it, it froze 7 times within a half hour. I decided to box it up right then before I tossed it out the window.

Back when I was in college (2002) we had an old Nintendo console that still worked. Think about it, the unit was probably 15 years old or so, and still working. Granted we had to jam a screwdriver into the loading hatch to keep the games locked in place--but it worked. I think Zelda only had one save spot still supported by the internal battery in the cartridge.

Yup, had my 360 elite since August. . .

You do the math.

CV, the box comes with a 1 year warranty against all failures,and a 3 year warranty against the red ring of death.

I have heard of people putting towels or blankets over there 360 and leaving it running to force a three ring error. I personally think those people are lucky that they didn't burn their house down.

Anyway, MAss effect was a great game.. The dialogue scenes were actually very fun to watch. The way you get to interact in the conversation and the great voice acting made it so that I skipped only a couple of cutscenes... and some of them are very long.

I rented the game and beat it in 14.5 hours so it was pretty short. I only did a few side quests though, and stuck mostly to the main missions.

Yes, both units I talked about were past the 1 year mark, so they would have needed the 3 red ring error.

As for Mass Effect, I'm trying to do as many quests as possible, since I want my character to get as much XP as possible. You know, to compensate for my inexperience in real life.

How ironic, my xbox 360 elite works (most of the time) and freezes up some of the time, and I have been waiting for over a month to exchange it (I got them to write on the receipt that I can exchange once they get stock in). Best buy has been out of stock in Canada for the elites for the past month (online too). I wonder what the heck MS is doing?

I am moreso wanting to exchange it out to get the Falcon chip set...I bought It last month, so I midaswell get the falcon while I am so close to the release of the falcon chip.

I, too, am a huge fan of Mass Effect. I'm probably around 25 hours in and haven't beat the main quest yet. I like to get the most out of my $60 purchase so I tend to watch all the conversations and do the side quests. Luckily the incredible graphics, facial expressions, and voice overs makes this a very enjoyable process, at least for me. There are some technical problems such as texture pop in and times where the frame rate drops quite a bit, but nothing that takes away from the incredible story and character development matched with it's immersive atmosphere and dialog. I'm also an Elder Scrolls: Oblivion fan, so I'm plenty use to those slight interferences.

And by the way, I am currently on my 3rd xbox 360. Luckily for the extended 3 year coverage it hasn't been a real problem, just an inconvenience. I love the library of games for the 360, but dang the first few batches of 360s are unreliable.

on my 3rd xbox 360 here as well

Yeah, I'm on my second 360. When my first one got the red rings of death, after the one year warranty period had passed, I let my dad's friend have it, because he wanted to see if he could get it to work. Not too long after that, they announced the extended warranty for the 3 red rings. D'oh.

And yeah, I got way into Oblivion. Over 200 hours, so I got my money's worth. Even with all of the tedium, I still enjoy these long, involved RPGs. I love the openness of Oblivion, and Bioware seems to do a really good job with story.

What's the basic story of Mass Effect? I'm currently playing Oblivion (45 Hours) and I love it. I'm not sure I would like Mass Effect though...

you're the commander of a space ship, you visit different plannets trying to figure out a vision that you have experienced that potentially leads to the end of the universe.

100+ hours on oblivion here.

I beat all of the main quest, and allof the faction quests except the fighters guild. I got half way through the fighters guild quests before I had to take a break.

^ This is why I have avoided video games in the past dozen years. I'm afraid that's all I will do!

Kinda like Don Cheadle's character in Reign Over Me. He tells Adam Sandler that he's not into video games, he's not an obssssive person....then he becomes totally obsessed with beating this creature - stays up all night playing the game!

Charles, are monster trucks available in Mass Effect?

You do get to drive some type of tracked vehicle with machine guns and missles when exploring some of the planets. The controls are not that great though.

Yeah I've clocked in almost 200 hours with Oblivion, one hell of an addicting game.

It can be pretty fun driving the Mako in Mass Effect as you ramp uncontrollably over hills and what not, but as far as maneuverability is concerned, the controls are pretty horrible. You could almost consider it a monster truck with its 6 huge tires.

Anyone here looking forward to Fallout 3?

Into Oblivion on PC right now too... 72 game hours. Great game!

Well, I finished the main storyline of Mass Effect. Pretty cool. I wanted to spend more time building up my character, but I got drawn in and wanted to see the conclusion. Or, a conclusion, anyway. I missed out on the love scene, though. I'll have to go back to an old save and try to get more of the achievements.

But before that, I should really put Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare in. I haven't even played it once yet.

I haven't played call of duty in a while myself. I rented burnout paradise and played that for a week or two.
I just rented enternal sonota for something different. Only about an hour and a half in so far.. but seems pretty good...

Off to go play it now.

Also, I just saw that in march some downloadable content will be available for mass effect. I guess they are expanding the universe, adding some new planets and side quests.

I, too, just finished the main storyline. One of the better stories I've experienced in a video game, a satisfying end that also leaves you wanting more with Mass Effect 2. It also makes you want to go back it play it all over again just to see the different outcomes.

I have Call of Duty 4 and love the online multiplayer so far. Haven't played the campaign yet but have heard good things. I also heard there are some new maps in the works for this spring.

My gamertag, surprisingly enough, is PT Ryno if any of you need an extra.