I've said in the past that I am not the biggest Live Arcade player, but I think I may have found my latest addiction. Uno, everyone's favorite childhood card game, was added to the Live Arcade lineup on May 9, just in time for E3. From the start, playing the game on a 360 as opposed to a table with real cards felt very natural. It is very straightforward and easy to control, and even if you have never played Uno before you should be able to learn the rules and concepts very quickly. I quickly discovered that it serves as the perfect game to play when I just want to settle down (as opposed to the tabletop version of Uno, which usually ended with the family fighting). It is easy to lose track of time though: yesterday I hopped on with the intention of playing a quick round of single player but ended up playing for two hours against the computer. The achievements are also quite easy (which could be good or bad, depending on your style and level of obsession with gamerscore). I only downloaded the game two nights ago, but have already unlocked 9 out of 12 achievements as of this writing.

 

Best of all though, the game is a cheap 400 points. Give Uno a try, and if you see me online, hit me up for a game. 

Well folks, after literally years of speculation, Bungie and Microsoft have formally announced Halo 3. The game was unveiled today at Microsoft's E3 press conference (which hopefully I will have time to post about later) where the first video of the game was shown. The trailer shows the Master Chief wander through the African savannah on a post-apocalyptic Earth while Cortana shares ominous messages with the viewers. The tranquility of the scene is interrupted when Banshees, Phantoms, and Covenant Capital Ships roar over the Chief's head towards an enormous artifact at the bottom of a crater. The artifact appears to activate, the screen flashes white, and Cortana states: "This is the way the world ends". The trailer ends with the text "Finish the Fight: 2007" appearing on screen.

 

Bungie has confirmed that the trailer is rendered in real-time with the Halo 3 engine. Read Bungie's official announcement here, and be sure to look at the screenshots, storyboards, and wallpapers.

 

Also, the Marketplace recently added the Halo 3 trailer, and a Halo 3 picture pack and theme, so if you get a chance, go check it out.

 

 

The Free Gold Weekend back in April was a hit, so Microsoft has decided to take it up a notch, just in time for E3. Starting tomorrow, Monday, May 8th, Silver users will again be granted Gold status and be given access to all of the features that Gold members have. However, instead of the event lasting a couple of days like last time, this event will run all the way up to 11:59 PM on Sunday, May 14th. Yes, a full week. If that's not exciting enough, take a look at some of these features and events planned during the week:

 

Playable game demos and trailers: Experience the most exciting games on Xbox 360™. You'll get to play the same demos and watch the same trailers as those on the show floor.

Game with Fame celebrity tournaments: Go up against your favorite movie and rock stars or pro athletes playing the latest games in the E3 edition of Game with Fame.

Play and Win contests: Win big prizes with the latest Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Arcade titles. We have Play and Win events scheduled every hour of every day throughout E3.

E3 Behind the Scenes: Check out exclusive developer interviews and reports straight from the show floor.

Exclusive hi-def movie trailers: Get a first look at some of the upcoming blockbuster films. You can't get these trailers anywhere but Xbox Live Marketplace!

Limited-edition E3 gamer pictures and themes: Spice up your gamer card or splash a new E3 theme across your Xbox 360 Dashboard with these one-of-a-kind downloads.