About Andrew Crews

Recently I posted my love for my turbo controller on Twitter and I received a ton of questions asking how a controller can make you a more efficient gamer. Over the years, my Blue Hori Turbo Controller has saved me hundreds if not thousands of hours of gameplay that I simply did not want to be a part of. As of right now, that same controller is no longer available but luckily the Black Hori EX2 controller has made some improvements and replaced my now ancient turbo controller at retail stores. What this controller does that makes it so special is that it allows you to flip a switch that presses certain buttons 13 or 27 times a second for you. So if you are serious about Gamerscore but not into the idea of achievements like “play [X] amount of games” or “play for [X] amount of hours”, then check out a few examples below showing how this magical piece of equipment has bailed me out many terrible games and saved me a fair amount of time while maintaining a high Gamerscore completion percentage. Read More

Last week we took a look at the top five XBLA in-game songs that help establish a mood while you venture through five various games. But for this week let’s take a look at the top five XBLA end game songs that make the payoff for making your way through a campaign that much more sweet. These are the songs that mark an epic ending to a great adventure. The kind of song so good, it’s almost worth paying through the game a second time just to hear it again. But luckily we have YouTube for those of us who want listen over and over again. And with that said, let’s take a look at our list:

Read More

You know those songs you come across in a game sometimes that are so good that you find a safe spot, put the controller down and just listen to the music? Those moments where you completely forget what you are doing while you are mesmerized by the melody? Well that’s what this list is dedicated to. Those moments in gaming where the music captures your attention and your imagination. Moments of music so good, you wish the level would never end. Music so captivating that you hum these songs to yourself for days, weeks, months or years later. These are the top five in-game songs in XBLA.

Read More

Napalm and Evil Empire addons for Toy Soldiers: Cold War were developed by Signal Studios and published by Microsoft Studios. They were released on March 25, 2012 for 400 MSP each. A copy of both addons were provided for review purposes.

Toy Soldiers: Cold War is a great game. We loved it when it first released and since its August 2011 release, the possibility of DLC has been a roller coaster ride to say the least. Now the Napalm and Evil Empire additions have finally released and unfortunately it might not have been worth the wait. A few fun additions were made but a severe lack of content makes these addons a bit of a let down. Read More

Hi, my name is Andrew and I’m the Community Manager here at XBLA Fans. You might know me better as the guy running the twitter account that gives out codes for games every day. As you can imagine, I get asked a ton of questions about our contests. I strongly feels that openness leads to a better experience online and in life. So I figured I would explain my processes to you all a little in case you were curious about what I do and why I do it. So let’s talk a little bit about contests, shall we? Read More

Fez was developed by Polytron and published by Microsoft/Trapdoor. It was released on April 13, 2012 for 800 MSP. A copy was provided for review purposes.

A few years ago Fez started making noise in the indie game scene as a game that had the potential to create a sense of immersion that would rival even the most cherished indie titles like Braid or Limbo. Polytron took their time with the game but now that Fez has finally released on XBLA, it’s clear that their time was well spent. Creating a game that forces gamers to truly think and explore these days is a fairly tall order. But Fez does just that. A sense of adventure and exploration accompanied by the classic 8-bit look will leave gamers swearing they have gone back in time to era they grew up in. An era where subtle clues were left behind for gamers to discover and slowly piece things together providing a true sense of accomplishment. An era where things may have initially looked simple but were far more complex once properly studied. Read More

Majestic-12 is a 3D side-scrolling shooter being developed by Exis and is being published by Reverb. The story of the game begins with you controlling your choice of one of five characters and setting out on a mission waging war against the aliens that have ambushed the defenses at Area 51 and captured the rest of your comrades.

The game features a very colorful bullet hell that takes a ride through eight stages broken up in to sixteen missions. Each stage will feature two bosses one at the end of each internal mission. Six of these stages are 3D side-scrolling action packed environments filled with many upgrades and power-ups for your characters. The other two stages are 2D shoot-em-up levels that feature a style similar to the one Sine Mora offers. The screens aren’t overwhelmed with loads of enemies and bullets but instead focuses more on precise and strategic placement of each shot fired. The 3D levels however feature a bit more of wide bullet patterns that require more precise maneuvering. It’s quite a nice blend of styles and it really helps keep the game fresh as it goes. Read More

With PAX East now behind us, a lot of attendees are probably reflecting on what a great experience this past weekend was. You’ve heard our thoughts and initial impressions on our three daily podcasts we recorded while in Boston and you have likely read a write up or two on a game that we covered while we were there. But let me tell you about some of the finer points on the PAX East experience that might not be covered on many media sites. These are the unexpected heroes of a PAX experience that truly make it an unforgettable weekend. Read More

More price drops hit XBLA!
Read More

South Park: Tenorman’s Revenge was developed by South Park Digital Studios/Other Ocean Interactive and was published by Microsoft Studios. It was released on March 30, 2012 for 800 MSP. A code was provided for review purposes.

South Park games have generally been good over the years. South Park Rally, South Park: Chef’s Luv Shack, and even South Park: Let’s Go Tower Defense Play! have all been solid titles leading one to think that when adopted in to a different form of entertainment, the brand would be presented with the same attention to quality that shows in each weekly episode. Sadly that is not the case with South Park: Tenorman’s Revenge. You’ll probably crack a brief smile during the opening story book cinematic, but shortly after that you’ll likely be filled with rage, frustration and absolute disbelief.

If you’re not familiar with South Park storylines, then all you really need to know is that Eric Cartman and Scott Tenorman pretty much hate each other. As a prank that started with Tenorman swindling Cartman out of $10, the rivalry quickly spiraled out of control as it lead to Cartman ultimately tricking Tenorman into eating his dead parents. Now Tenorman is back for his revenge and this time he has taken one of the most prized possessions from Eric Cartman, his Xbox 360 hard drive. Read More