Finally snagging a 360.. What's some bargain titles that are mandatory?

Nerdtendo

As the thread title says... A friend of mine decided to upgrade to the newer 360 model, and he's selling me his old one for 100 bucks. To let you know right away, I've never really played any 360 titles, so I'm a complete virgin to the system. I plan to snag Crackdown, as I'm sure it's around 20 bucks now. I'll probably get Dead Rising as well because ZOMBIES. And Assassin's Creed, of course.

Also, I've got a four year old that enjoys playing games, too. Are there some titles that would be appropriate for him that I could get into as well?

Raiden333

Earth Defense Force 2017, especially if you have a friend to play with you.

Also, be sure to go through XBLA, I own (and play) far far more of those games than actual 360 games

TetraNitroCubane

As a reduced-price title that both you and your four year old might both enjoy together, I'd recommend Banjo Kazooie: Nuts n' Bolts. It's a little bit like lego vehicle construction with talking animals, but it's wicked fun and creatively rich for any age group.

MrVyngaard

If you don't have it for another console/computer system, Bionic Commando Rearmed is an EXCELLENT buy on XBLA.

Nerdtendo

TetraNitroCubane wrote: »

As a reduced-price title that both you and your four year old might both enjoy together, I'd recommend Banjo Kazooie: Nuts n' Bolts. It's a little bit like lego vehicle construction with talking animals, but it's wicked fun and creatively rich for any age group.

Sounds perfect.. He loves Everybody Edits and Minecraft.

Also, Earth Defense Force was one that I intended getting. I might have to get that one first. Looks awesome.

Madpoet

Condemned is really good, though not really appropriate for the lil un.
Combat is a little brutal, but once you get the hang of it the game is worth the play through.

Lucascraft

--Gears of War 1 is only 10 bucks these days
--Both of the Rainbow Six Vegas games are fairly cheap.
--Tomb Raider Underworld is cheap.
--Fable 2 is cheap

Mister_Penguin

I don't know that it's mandatory, but Red Faction: Guerilla is $20 for a new copy right now. The ability to destroy structures in creative ways is tremendously fun, and makes for a nifty take on the open world shooter genre [Especially since you get rewarded with currency for destruction.]

Frem

Geometry Wars 2! Retro-style neon glowy arcade shooting game. Like Robotron, if you're familiar with that. It's cheap on XBLA, it's flashy and insane, and it has really fun co-op. Guaranteed to maybe not give you seizures.

Burnout Paradise is another good one. You'd think from the box that it might be a game about racing cars, but it's really about crashing them repeatedly at high speeds. Any racing which may occur during this time period should be regarded as coincidence. No bodies or anything; I can't think of much of anything in it that would be offensive for your youngling. For the optimum in child brain development, set the soundtrack to the classical stuff. Nothing quite like running opponents off the road at a million miles an hour as the orchestra crescendos in the background. Alas, it is lacking somewhat in multiplayer; they decided to make it more along the lines of pass-the-controller-back-and-forth as you do 30 second things than it is normal racing. For single player though, it's golden.

LEGO (or Beatles) Rock Band is a lot of fun, if you feel like buying a few expensiveish plastic instruments.

-Tal

All of the Lego games are cheap and fun family co-op experiences.

UnbreakableVow

Raiden333 wrote: »

Earth Defense Force 2017

Wonderful

Didn't even have to scroll down

You guys are on it like flies on shit :^:

Synthesis

'nother vote for Tomb Raider: Underworld, which is cheap. In various genres, Resident Evil 5 and Halo 3 can be had for cheap and have a lot of replay value. Overlord can be found cheap as well, and is a very enjoyable Pikmin-style game with a great sense of humor--the sequel is not as popular. Dead or Alive 4 and Soulcalibur IV are both fun multiplayer 3D-fighters, but their singleplayer is lacking (unless you like unlocking stuff to play dress-up or survivor modes, in which case you're in luck!).

Both Gears of War titles are also enjoyable third-person shooters. Dead Space is an excellent third-person horror shooter, and is actually pretty creepy at times. Tales of Vesperia is an excellent JRPG and Ghostbusters (which is worse on the PS3, apparently), is a lot of fun, but single and multiplayer (only online though), and is pretty much required getting if you're fan a of the movies. On the arcade, both Monkey Island games are a lot of fun.

Nerdtendo

UnbreakableVow wrote: »

Raiden333 wrote: »

Earth Defense Force 2017

Wonderful

Didn't even have to scroll down

You guys are on it like flies on shit :^:

Did... Did you just call my topic shit? Or was that me?

:cry:

I actually never liked the tomb raider games, so unless underworld is a huge change, I don't think I'll like it. Of course, because of my dislike for the series, I never bothered even looking at underworld.

UnbreakableVow

Nerdtendo, play the new Tomb Raider games. You can download the demos first, but they're very different from the old ones. Legend is one of my favorite games this gen (I found Underworld kind of lacking).

Synthesis

I'd agree, check out the demos.

Do Underworld if exploration and atmosphere matter more to you, do Legend if you really want to shoot lots of guys (I mean entire brigades of Japanese mobsters) and ride a motorcycle on a sort of rail chase. They're pretty different games.

Speaking of killing oodles of guys, if you enjoyed them previously, consider getting Metal Slug. The Xbox 360 is an excellent platform for two people to get their slugs on.

Raiden333

Nerdtendo wrote: »

UnbreakableVow wrote: »

Raiden333 wrote: »

Earth Defense Force 2017

Wonderful

Didn't even have to scroll down

You guys are on it like flies on shit :^:

Did... Did you just call my topic shit? Or was that me?

:cry:

I actually never liked the tomb raider games, so unless underworld is a huge change, I don't think I'll like it. Of course, because of my dislike for the series, I never bothered even looking at underworld.

He's complimenting me for mentioning EDF2017 right out of the gate.

Because it's the most amazing underrated 360 game ever made.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJhI3V05yHM

Blackbeard7

I'll put in another vote for Banjo-Kazooie N&B. It's not traditional BK but it's a lot of fun regardless if your imagination doesn't peak at flying wangmobiles like mine did.

If you do want traditional BK, the first one and tooie are on XBLA if you don't own them already.

Mr_Grinch

If you haven't already you could pick up Rock Band pretty cheap, nothing more fun for father and son than rocking out on a plastic guitar and plastic drum kit.

Kitsuna

I'm moderately surprised that nobody's suggested Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2. If you like RPG's and haven't got them on PC then those are definitely ones to get.

Another one that might be worth a look is Alan Wake. It's billed as a psychological action thriller and so far I'm enjoying it. It has an interesting story and lots of atmosphere.

As for games you can enjoy with your kid, the Lego games are generally recommended by all.

Rhesus Positive

If you're in the UK, Gamestation are doing a 2 for £20 deal on a bunch of games at the moment; I picked up Fallout 3 and Oblivion. Even without a deal they're pretty cheap these days, and will serve you well for many hours.

joshofalltrades

Nerdtendo wrote: »

Also, I've got a four year old that enjoys playing games, too. Are there some titles that would be appropriate for him that I could get into as well?

It's usually around $2 at GameStop

Spoiler:

Just kidding



I got this when my son was 4 and he loved every damn minute of it

Synthesis

Exactly what he wants for his son--a video game training him to be a mask-wearing stalker.

DogEight

I have four year old twin boys and we play Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise together. It's got a great art style and surprisingly deep and addictive gameplay.

If you want better recommendations for yourself, you should give us some more information on what type of games and genres you've played and liked in the past.

November Fifth

Demo everything you can first and use rental services for most everything else. If you do buy, try to get stuff through Games on Demand. It is much quieter to play games off of the HD than disk.

I picked up a 360 in January and these are my recommendations so far (this is based mostly on the amount of time that it took for me to complete the single player campaigns in these titles. If you are going to be playing online multiplayer or like to go back and collect stuff in games you might get more mileage out of them):

Mirror's Edge- Rent
Batman Arkham Asylum- Rent
Bioshock- Buy
Dead Space- Rent
Overlord- Pass
Battlefield: Bad Company- Rent
Left 4 Dead- Rent
Red Faction: Guerilla- Rent
Bayonetta- Rent
Halo 3- Rent
Resident Evil 5- Rent
Mass Effect- Buy
Assassin's Creed- Pass
Fallout 3- Buy
Grand Theft Auto IV- Buy
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare- Rent
Gears of War- Rent

YerMum

One more recco for EDF 2017, it's awesome

12GaugeRage

EDF 2017 is only fun when paired with massive bongloads.

But it is fun.

"EDF! EDF! EDF!"

Pookiepoo

"The ACID! It's eating through my armor!"

"It's like ... an army of red GIANTS!"

To the OP regarding EDF 2017 recommendations: The game is terrible in every technical aspect. Graphics are HORRIBLE. Voice work is HORRIBLE. Sounds are HORRIBLE. Vechices are 100% unusable. Somehow, the fun is still there in boatloads.

Just don't buy it as a benchmark for what your 360 can do. My watch could do things better.

EDIT: Viva pinata for the kid. Cute, harmless, addictive fun. You will enjoy it too.

jefe414

Kitsuna wrote: »

I'm moderately surprised that nobody's suggested Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2. If you like RPG's and haven't got them on PC then those are definitely ones to get.

Another one that might be worth a look is Deadly Premonition. It's billed as a psychological action thriller and so far I'm enjoying it. It has an interesting story and lots of atmosphere (especially if you liked Twin Peaks).

Also, ask your friends. I liked Alpha Protocol, Dead Space, Batman: Arkum Asylum and others. I borrowed them though. Another good Xbox live game is Shadow Complex. Like Super Metroid.

DogEight

November Fifth wrote: »

If you do buy, try to get stuff through Games on Demand. It is much quieter to play games off of the HD than disk.

This is terrible advice. You're going to pay full retail price for a digital copy that you could most definitely find both new and used at a much lower price just because it's quieter? You do know that you can install games to the hard drive, right?

XBLA: Castle Crashers, Alien Hominid, and Shadow Complex are all very good.

UnbreakableVow

Synthesis wrote: »

Exactly what he wants for his son--a video game training him to be a mask-wearing stalker.

He's doing it well; when I looked at that picture I didn't even notice the King, I thought it was The Sims for a second

Synthesis

DogEight wrote: »

November Fifth wrote: »

If you do buy, try to get stuff through Games on Demand. It is much quieter to play games off of the HD than disk.

This is terrible advice. You're going to pay full retail price for a digital copy that you could most definitely find both new and used at a much lower price just because it's quieter? You do know that you can install games to the hard drive, right?

Given that you can almost always get older games cheaper than you'll find them on Games on Demand (it's a case of the "Steam and other DD often makes games more expensive" phenomena), and installing games onto hard drive in effect makes them as quiet as purchasing them as downloads...really, the only immediate disadvantage is that you might scratch the disc.

On the other hand, you can bring that game to your friends and enjoy it with them without bringing over your hard drive or your entire Xbox, or lend it or, if you are unhappy with the game, have some hope to resell it--all distinct advantages of owning it on disc.

Oh, and I guess DVDs take up space.

Nerdtendo

DogEight wrote: »

I have four year old twin boys and we play Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise together. It's got a great art style and surprisingly deep and addictive gameplay.

That game just looks awesome on every level.. I think his mom will like it too, she loves Animal Crossing.

If you want better recommendations for yourself, you should give us some more information on what type of games and genres you've played and liked in the past.

After 25 years of gaming, if there's a genre I somehow missed, it should be on the list of suggestions anyways.

As for genres I don't like, I don't feel like I really have to mention sports games here. There's a few genres that tend to be rather stale to me, now... but I even find a gem in those every once in awhile (turn based RPGs, and Paper Mario being the gem).

Also, in general... I just try to be a budget gamer. It's extremely rare that I'll buy a title new (I'm a WoW addict... so expansions), and I've found that there's an enormous library of fantastic games that I've yet to play. I'll be replacing my broken PS2, for example, and snagging up a bunch of last gen games I've never had a shot at. I've gotten pretty good at ignoring the hype of newer games, and find that the older games that truly shine still get talked about. Shadow of the Colossus will always be fantastic.

Thanks for the suggestions so far.

corin7

The Darkness, Gears 2 and geo wars 1 and 2. I have like 90 360 games and those have hands down been my favorites.

Samir Duran Duran

Another vote for Rock Band. It is 80 bucks about plus the cost of some DLC but if you have friends it is mandatory. You never really know someone until you watch them sing roxanne.

L4D2 provided you can play regularly with people you know. Everyone you meet randomly online thinks the basic rules of teamwork don't apply to them.

the Orange Box is pretty cheap now but you've prolly played those games at this point I dunno.


I always wanted to try the Darkness, is it good?

Zilla360

Light the slash-signal!

http://slashsignal.wikispaces.com/Xbox+360

corin7

Samir Duran Duran wrote: »

Another vote for Rock Band. It is 80 bucks about plus the cost of some DLC but if you have friends it is mandatory. You never really know someone until you watch them sing roxanne.

L4D2 provided you can play regularly with people you know. Everyone you meet randomly online thinks the basic rules of teamwork don't apply to them.

the Orange Box is pretty cheap now but you've prolly played those games at this point I dunno.


I always wanted to try the Darkness, is it good?

The Darkness is a flawed gem. As a shooter it kind of fails. But then it really isn't about the shooting so much. In the beginning it feels like it but then your powers start growing and guns seem kinda dumb at that point. A lot of it's design has yet to be rivaled imo. The story and characters are great, and you can do some optional things that really change how the world feels. It is one of my favorite games of all time and can be had for dirt cheap now.

Rock Band is a mad amount of fun with the right people, but not budget gaming in any way shape or form. I shudder when I think how much I have spent on it and how much more I will be spending this fall. Worth it tho if you have the cash.

Synthesis

Sort of taking for granted that OP has a computer that he can run Portal and the other bits of The Orange Box on, even if only at low visual settings. They can be run on very meager settings.

I guess he could be posting from a library or something.

templewulf

I'm not the average gamer, so my list might not be to your liking, but here goes:

FPS:

• Orange Box: I don't really care for Team Fortress 2, but everything else in this is pure gold for the price of lead.
• Rainbow Six: Vegas (1 or 2): I dramatically prefer R6V to Gears of War and Halo. Modern Warfare is a close second with better graphics and level-up type mechanics, but I don't enjoy the gameplay as much as R6V

Fighting Games:

• Soul Calibur 4: I still love this game. The created characters look almost as good as the main cast, and I rarely ever feel like the game is cheating me. The trick to enjoying most fighters is a good community, though, and you might want to start a new thread if you want to get SC4 players out of their hadoukens and Distortion Drives..
• Super Street Fighter 4: It functions on old-school SF2 hadouken-spam level as well as the new ultra polished level. It's so nuanced that I often say "WTF" when something doesn't work the way I expect, but it's still top dog for most fighters.

Action Games:

• Bayonetta: Holy shit. Holy shit! This game is awesome out the wazoo, but definitely more suggestive than your kid needs to see.
• Batman: Arkham Asylum: This is the only superhero game anyone needs to talk about ever again. Batman will brutalize punks all goddamn day. If you liked the Batman Animed Series, this is a must-buy.

Adventure/Platforming:

• Mirror's Edge: This game is basically 3D sonic with awesome instead of suck. If you like time trials it's extremely replayable; if not, you should still rent it.
• GTA4: I do not like Grand Theft Auto in general, but most seem to think it's a good deal of fun.
• Braid: Excellent platformer on the Arcade service if you can stand its self-aware artiness.

RPGs

• Mass Effect: Fucking incredible. Just get it.
• Dragon Age: Fucking Magical. Just get it if you like elves and magic.
• Puzzle Quest 2: It probably belongs in the puzzle genre, but you can sink hours into it like an RPG. 2 is much better than 1 (IMO), but they're similar enough that you don't necessarily need to play 2 if you already own 1.

Samir Duran Duran

I would actually recommend downloading GTA:SA instead of buying GTA4, once you finish the main missions theres really not much to do in GTA4.

ChewyWaffles

If no one has said it yet: Condemned!!!!

projectmayhem

I promise you. You need to only pick up two games.

Castle Crashers


Geometry Wars 1 or 2


I assume that there might be some other games you want. But damn it, this is all you need.