Microsoft and LucasArts announced today that “Kinect Star Wars” and the Xbox 360 Limited Edition “Kinect Star Wars” console bundle will both be available on April 3rd, 2012 in North America for $49.99 and $449.99 respectively.  Star Wars fans of all ages will soon be able to bring the Star Wars universe home and become part of the films like never before with the power of Kinect for Xbox 360.

With five dynamic modes – Jedi Destiny: Dark Side Rising, Podracing, Rancor Rampage, Galactic Dance Off and Duels of Fate – “Kinect Star Wars” makes it possible for Star Wars fans of all ages to delve into immersive Star Wars experiences. In addition to the previously announced Jedi, Podracing and Rancor modes, Xbox 360 and LucasArts have today unveiled new additions to the game, including:

• New experiences within Jedi Destiny Mode, including:

• Space battles: As you travel the Galaxy to face an evil that threatens to undermine the fabric of the Republic, you’ll engage with forces of the Empire in intense space battles

• Speeder Bikes and Landspeeders: Pilot iconic Speeder Bikes and Landspeeders on your epic journey

• New duels: Battle opponents like Count Dooku and Darth Vader on your journey to become a Jedi

• New Duels of Fate mode, a battle-by-battle experience to sharpen your Jedi skills against the Dark Side.

• New Galactic Dance Off mode loaded with Star Wars-themed pop tunes where those still honing their Jedi skills can take a break to battle Darth Vader on the dance floor or bust a move “Solo style.”

The Limited Edition Xbox 360 bundle will also debut alongside Kinect Star Wars on April 3rd, and is available now for pre-order through participating retailers. This first ever custom Xbox 360 and Kinect bundle includes an R2-D2 blue-and-white themed console, a custom Xbox 360 Wireless Controller inspired by C-3PO and the first ever white Kinect sensor.

Priced at $449.99, the Xbox 360 Limited Edition Kinect Star Wars Bundle will include:

• Kinect Star Wars game
• Custom R2-D2-themed Xbox 360 Console with custom sounds
• White Kinect Sensor
• Custom C-3PO-themed Xbox 360 Wireless Controller
• 320 GB Hard Drive
• Xbox 360 Wired Headset
• Kinect Adventures game
• Exclusive DLC – now known to be the C-3PO unlockable for Dance Mode.

See larger image Xbox 360 Limited Edition Kinect Star Wars Bundle (Video Game) List Price: Price Not Listed New From: Check Amazon For Pricing In Stock This title will be released on April 3, 2012.

Children have no problem making their own fun.  Give them a few outdated toys, a handful of couch cushions, or a backyard, and a child will use their imagination as the catalyst to somehow create something entertaining for themselves.  This is an ability that’s likely lost on most people as they age, but Double Fine Happy Action Theater is a quick and enjoyable return to form.

DFHAT is a composition of 18 scenarios, the vast majority of which impose no goal or direction on the player.  The game simply provides a setting and lets the player make their own fun.  Smashing a city and swatting at helicopters a la King Kong, or feeding and subsequently scaring a group of pigeons is surprisingly cathartic when you aren’t prodded to do these things; rather, you do them because you can.

It’s immediately clear that while developing DFHAT, Double Fine made sure to place an emphasis on accommodating the way kids would play it.  DFHAT has no menus that are necessary to play the game; each situation starts as soon as the last one ends, and they cycle endlessly.  There is no drop in/drop out process to go through; players can join and quit DFHAT seamlessly and the game does a great job acclimating accordingly.  Lastly, each scenario only carries on for a few minutes, which is probably on par with the attention span of most children.

While the functionality of DFHAT is tailored to children, it doesn’t mean that the game is made exclusively for them.  Adults will be able to find enjoyment in each of the scenarios at least a couple of times through, and it certainly works better as a party game than a solo endeavor.  However, it seems that adding young ones to the equation will make for exponentially more opportunities to replay the game.

Ultimately, it’s near impossible to provide a review for a game that doesn’t strive to be a game.  DFHAT quite competently puts all the pieces in place for players to have fun, but it’s up to the players to make something of those pieces.  So, in lieu of a collection of deep statements about where the developer succeeded or failed, all I can really offer is that I had fun while playing DFHAT, which must mean that I was doing something right.

This week, LA Noire invades the Deal of the Week. Pick up Game Add-Ons and Avatar Gear 50% off their standard asking rate. Check out the list of deals below.

Game Add-Ons

• Reefer Madness Vice Case – 160 MS Points (or $2.00)

• Nicholson Electroplating Arson Case – 160 MS Points (or $2.00)

• A Slip Of The Tongue Traffic Case – 160 MS Points (or $2.00)

• The Naked City Vice Case – 160 MS Points (or $2.00)

Avatar Gear

• The Badge Pursuit Challenge & Button Man Suit – 80 MS Points (or $1.00)

• The Broderick Detective Suit – 40 MS Points (or $0.50)

• The Sharpshooter Detective Suit – 40 MS Points (or $0.50)

All deals will be active from January 24th through January 30th. So suit up and go solve some murder cases!

[LA Noire DLC - Deal of the Week]

Elite Drop 1: Liberation, a militarized Central Park in the heart of NYC, featuring a vast landscape ripe for long-range sniper and LMG kills. Mounted turrets on opposing ends of the map offer overwhelming firepower to anyone brave enough to man them.

See larger image Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (Video Game) List Price: $59.99 USD New From: $35.95 In Stock Used from: $29.95 In Stock Release date November 8, 2011.

One thing Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning has going for it are the brains behind its creation. While Big Huge Games are no strangers to success, partner  38 Studios is a new company with a lot to prove. This means that thinking outside the box and looking for ways to differentiate itself from the pack  leads to innovative tweaks to your typical sword and sorcery formula. You also have Todd McFarlane (yes, THAT Todd McFarlane) designing everything from armor to weapons to creatures while the story and lore is being penned by renowned fantasy author R. A. Salvatore. Oh, and Ken Rolston is leading the team as executive designer. Does he sound familiar? He should, considering he was lead designer on Elder Scrolls entries Morrowind and Oblivion. So, Reckoning has the pedigree, but does it have the actual game to back it up?

After choosing your race (One of four groups breaking down to Humans, Light Elves, Dark Elves, and Nomads), your looks, and your skill set you realize that you are, in fact, dead. Not to worry! Thanks to the wonders of Gnomish science, you’ve been brought back to life as a veritable blank slate, with no memory of your past and a destiny that, unlike everyone else in the Kingdoms of Amalur, is yours to write as you so choose.They throw a lot of lore at you in a short amount of time, and none of it seems all too new. You’ve got evil immortal elves waging war with all the mortal races, and your return from beyond the grave signals a change in the world.

Blah, blah, blah, it’s not necessarily riveting stuff, but from the time I spent with the demo, it’s obvious the developers are trying to craft a distinct world entrenched with a deep history and richer cultural dynamics. With only forty minutes to explore the open world portion of the game, I found myself rushing from NPC to NPC trying to play through as many quests as possible, so it’s tough to decide whether anything really resonates. There at least seems to be some interesting people and agendas at play in this world, and the handful of quests I embarked on were either interesting spins on genre favorites or new territory altogether.

Combat is a fascinating mix of magic and hack-n-slash, something the developers compared to “Oblivion meets God of War“. As a third-person title, your character is front and center at all times, chaining moves (you earn more complex ones as you level up) between primary and second weapons in order to create combos. You can also throw magical attacks into the mix. I played with a nice lightening spell and a promising shadow cast, which confused my enemies for a few seconds. Fighting was fast and fun, and when I gained enough “Fate Energy” (or something) I unlocked a temporary sort of God-Mode where I tore through enemies and utilized weaponry summoned from another realm. Quick time events are thrown into moments like these, which lead to brutal kills and awesome finishing moves.

All the other staples of a great roleplaying experience are there. Weapons can degrade and also evolve through smithing and enchantment, while the world is full of fantastic loot for you to add to your arsenal. The skill trees (broken down into the areas of Might, Finesse, and Magic) look to have a ton of variety to upgrade through, while the Destiny system (your characters Class and bonuses) can be leveled up and swapped out at any time. So, if you get bored playing the Thief, you can turn around and start leveling up the Warrior if you so choose. Unfortunately, the game suffers from a wonky camera (you have to fight the damn thing at times to get anything done) and a tendency to bug out when you get thrown into bigger fights. Conversations aren’t exactly riveting, and the cartoony style of the game (akin to the new Star Wars MMORPG) might not appeal to everyone.

Reckoning is still very much a dark horse for me, an unknown quantity that could rise to become an entertaining romp through the RPG genre or fall flat on its face and fade into obscurity as an experiment that should’ve been shelved. Honestly, only time will tell.

While the nitty gritty details surrounding the Xbox Live Arcade House Party have been slowly trickling down the grapevine for weeks, the last specifics were finally revealed today by, the host with the most, Microsoft.

The emphasis of the announcement may have been on the releases and their prices, but Microsoft also confirmed that the guests with the best attendance will receive a parting gift for their dedication.  Anyone that purchases all four House Party games will get a nice 800 MS Point kickback.

Here is the full list of games, release dates, and prices:

• February 15 – Warp – 800 MSP
• February 22 – Alan Wake’s American Nightmare – 1200 MSP
• February 29 – Nexuiz – 800 MSP
• March 7 – I Am Alive – 1200 MSP

Anyone interested in learning more about any of these titles would be well-advised to check out this post which gives a bit of a description about each one.

Mr. Hawk’s long-running video game franchise is getting a reinvention of sorts this summer.  The next installment of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater will be an amalgamation of the series’ first two titles, in an effort to revitalize the skating legend’s brand by taking it back to its roots.

Recently, the first seven levels to be included in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater HD were announced.  All seven courses are fan favorites and sure to resonate when the game’s released.  The revealed levels are:

• Warehouse
• School 2
• Mall
• Phoenix
• Hangar
• Marseilles
• Venice

As an aside, the screens that were released confirm the inclusion of Rodney Mullen, Nyjah Huston, and, of course, Tony Hawk.

With many rumors, and leaked images over the past few days, Capcom has announced that Resident Evil 6 is in full development and scheduled for release on the Xbox 360 on November 20, 2012 with a Windows PC version to follow. Blending action and survival horror, this latest installment in the multi-million selling franchise is the most ambitious, immersive and feature rich title of the series to date and promises to be the dramatic horror experience of the year.

It has been ten years since the Raccoon City incident and the President of the United States has decided to reveal the truth behind what took place in the belief that it will curb the current resurgence in bioterrorist activity. Due to be by the President’s side is his personal friend and Raccoon City survivor, Leon S. Kennedy, but when the venue suffers a bioterrorist attack, Leon is forced to face a President transformed beyond recognition and make his hardest ever decision. At the same time, Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance member Chris Redfield arrives in China, itself under threat of a bioterrorist attack.  With no country safe from these attacks and the ensuing outbreaks, the entire world’s population is united by a common fear that there is no hope left.

2K Games announced today that BioShock Infinite from Irrational Games will feature a new form of play – the 1999 Mode, designed to challenge players in a variety of ways – each requiring substantial commitment and skill development. Those who played the original BioShock may remember how difficult the original game was. A certain achievement required players to not only play on Hard difficulty, but were not allowed to use any of the respawn points known as Vita Chambers. The reward was a 100 point achievement, and a certain feeling of accomplishment. We can only imagine how difficult the 1999 mode will be, and the reward at the end of the journey.

1999 Mode is a way of playing designed for gamers who long for the days of games that demanded more of the player. It will include tweaks and features that BioShock fans will not experience in a standard play-through of BioShock Infinite, no matter the difficulty level.

“We want to give our oldest and most committed fans an option to go back to our roots,” said Ken Levine, Creative Director of Irrational Games. “In 1999 Mode, gamers face more of the permanent consequences of their gameplay decisions. In BioShock Infinite, gamers will have to sweat out the results of their actions. In addition, 1999 Mode will demand that players pick specializations, and focus on them.

“I’m an old school gamer. We wanted to make sure we were taking into account the play styles of gamers like me. So we went straight to the horse’s mouth by asking them, on our website, a series of questions about how they play our games. 94.6 percent of respondents indicated that upgrade choices enhanced their BioShock gameplay experience; however, 56.8 percent indicated that being required to make permanent decisions about their character would have made the game even better.”

In addition to these permanent decisions, 1999 Mode will feature demanding weapon, power, and health management. The mode also takes a much harder stand on player respawning, sending the gamer directly to a “Game Over” screen if he or she lacks the resources to be brought back to life. It’s not for the faint of heart.

As we get closer and closer to the agonizingly ambiguous “2012″ release date for the highly anticipated Trials Evolution, the folks at Inside Xbox have conducted an interview with RedLynx Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Jason Bates to help quell the anxiety.  Bates drew attention to a lot of the same things that we did in our preview, such as the mentality behind multiplayer races, the outdoor environments, and the inclusion of Skill Games.

We’ve contacted RedLynx about whether they have a more concrete release date in mind.  We’ll be sure to update you on the off-chance that they do.