a girl on games // a look at minecraft on xbox

Minecraft, a sandbox game of box placing to build whatever your heart desires, has been out for years on PC. It was only in May of 2012 that the game was released as an arcade game for Xbox Live. Since then, Xboxers have been building whatever they could imagine. While the PC version already has the creative mode and tons of mods, the XBLA version is still very basic. (There is a patch coming for Xbox for this mode but the date is still unannounced. The patch is also going to include more than 40 skins for your characters.) You could literally spend hours building villages, treehouses, towers, and elaborate mines to your heart's content but then what? Show it off! I'd love to go see what other worlds people have built. Here are a few examples with some hilarious commentary courtesy of XBLAFans.









Though extremely simplistic, the game is addictive and fun and even Josh, my 4 year old nephew loves it.

a girl on games // e3 game round-up

Though it's been a while since E3, I wasn't around much to blog about it. There were a lot of cool new games featured but also a lot of not-so-cool projects in the works. Also, when will E3 figure out that hardcore gamers are the only ones who watch E3. No one wants to watch Usher sing or kids playing the Kinect. Enough with my ranting, here are some of the games I'm looking forward to.

Watch Dogs is an open world game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and scheduled for release in 2013 for PC, Xbox, and PS3. I love how the game incorporates technology that allows you to manipulate your surroundings. It's like Grand Theft Auto on crack, if crack gave you crazy nerd powers and a kickass cellphone, that is.





The Last of Us is a survival-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog for the PS3. That's right, it's an exclusive. Hopefully I can get my hands on a PS3 to play because this game looks awesome. Not only do the graphics look amazing, but check out how the NPCs (nonplayable characters) react to the things you do in-game. 



Tomb Raider, developed by Crystal Dynamics for PC, Xbox, and PS3, has been receiving a lot of attention lately. Scheduled for release in March 2013, the game has stirred up interest in the "reboot" of the character Lara Croft, showing how she got her start, and also has raised some eyebrows regarding the portrayal of women in video games since it has been said the game will include an attempted rape scene. Here is some E3 footage showing some gameplay.


Assassin's Creed III is developed by Ubisoft for PC, Xbox, PS3 and Wii U. It's schedule to be released in October of this year. I've never been a huge fan of playing Assassin's Creed (I know, blasphemy) but I'd love to watch someone play this game. The games setting of The American Revolution alone has my attention. Watch the amazing naval battle (YEAH!) gameplay here and see the PS Vita's Assassin's Creed III: Liberation introduction at E3 here.


South Park: The Stick of Truth is being developed by Obsidian for PC, Xbox, and PS3. The last South Park game was an arcade game for the Xbox but this will be a full on Role Playing Game. You get to create yourself, or anyone else you want, as "the new kid" in South Park to help the boys save their town. Of course, South Park Digital Studios is collaborating with Obsidian so I'm sure this game will be as fun as it is funny. The game is scheduled to be released in March 2013.


 Last but not least, Beyond: Two Souls, is a PS3 exclusive developed by Quantic Dream, the same team who developed the highly acclaimed Heavy Rain. Does that girl look familiar? No, it's not the same girl from The Last of Us, it's Ellen Page. This trailer leaves me with two questions. Why do these awesome games have to be PS3 exclusives and if I pout about it, will it help? and who the heck is Ivan?

a girl on games : Portal

My friend showed me this amazing Portal video. Anyone who knows video games knows Portal. How awesome would a Portal movie be? Probably this awesome...

a girl on games: arcade edition

Since I'm a through and through Xbox girl, when I say arcade games I mean games you can download onto your console through Xbox to play. Since I'm nice (just kidding- it was a coincidence) 2 of the 3 games I am profiling are also available from the Playstation Network, or PSN. Since these games are downloadable, that means they don't have the type of visuals a disc game would have. Basically, don't expect the graphics or game play to blow you out of the water. These games do, however, hold their own. Without further ado, let 

me introduce you to three of some of my favorite arcade games. 

First up is the stunning Limbo. It's a 2D side-scroller which just means it's like those Mario Brother games you played as a kid, moving the characters from the left side of the screen to the right. While the game play seems simplistic, and it really is, it's still a challenge and it's still beautiful. The film noir styling and lack of color gives Limbo an intriguingly creepy feeling. 

You start the game playing a name-less boy in search of his sister. You're not really sure why she is missing or where you are (some kind of forest that leads to an abandoned industrial-type land) and you never really find out. As with the monochrome design and ambient soundtrack, the lack of a specific story line only adds to the mystery and intrigue of the game.

The games physics system is the real main challenge. Getting across the environment without falling down steep drops, swinging from ropes, climbing ladders, you really do it all. However, I should warn you. You will die. A lot. It's basically a die and restart kind of game but luckily the game doesn't send you back to the start every time you fail.

See that giant spider there? I'm sure you didn't miss him. He is one of the few antagonists in the game. You only actually see a couple other people the entire time you are playing and they usually end up trying to crush you with giant boulders.

See? Pretty rude.

This is a great game. You can get it on either Xbox live or PSN. 

Next up...

Aww. Isn't that a cute title? It's pronounced "eelo-meelo" and it is probably the cutest game I have ever played. I mean, just look at these guys...

The blue one is Ilo and the red one is Milo. Or maybe it's switched. Either way, they are adorable. Ilomilo is a    3D puzzle game. You play as both characters who are, of course, on opposite sides of the puzzle and your goal is to get them together so they can have picnics and tea parties. Yeah, I'm not joking. Cute overload, right?

They are so close yet so far! You have to get the characters to meet each other face to face, like this...

And when you do, they do a dance. Also, see that little guy on Milo's (the red one) back? There will be 3 of those little guys on each puzzle and you just pick them up and carry them with you, collecting all of them all the time unlocks more puzzles. 

The puzzles start of easy and get more difficult, as with most puzzle games. You can pick up certain blocks and place them to fill gaps so you can cross. One of my favorite characters in the game is named Sebastian, he helps you out when you need it. This game is only available on Xbox live, so sorry PS cute-lovers. Get an Xbox. 

And last but not least...

You didn't think I could profile games and not include a First Person Shooter, did you? Good. Now, quick history lesson. What was happening in 1943? WWII is what. This game puts you smack dab in the Pacific playing as either the Americans or Japanese.

There are so many awesome features about this game that I love. One, the map size. You literally start off on a battleship and take a boat to an island to capture. I feel like the map sizes are a perfect size. What makes them not too-big? Oh yeah...

You can drive vehicles! Boats, tanks, jeeps, and even... wait for it... AIRPLANES! Whaattt???!! I know right. How awesome is that? Remember, this is a downloadable game so that stuff is pretty rare. 

Now this is a capture the flag type of game with 5 "bases" to capture on each map. The more flags you have, the quicker your opponents bar will go down, the sooner you win the game. Speaking of opponents, there can be up to 24 people playing on a map at a time. Crazy, right?

Now there are a few things that had to be cut down. You can only choose from 3 classes: infantry, rifleman, and scout. Also, there are only 3 maps, but you play each map twice in a row, just on the opposite team the second time. You can also play Air Superiority, which is just airplanes trying to shoot each other down, which can be fun too. The only thing about this game is sometimes the servers go crazy and there is major lag but I haven't noticed it lately. Check out Battlefield 1943 on both Xbox live and PSN. 

What are some of your favorite arcade games? Is there anything video game related you would like me to feature? Let me know!