Sony on the other hand has always been on the forefront of technology (+1 for blueray!). The current PS3 is already using blueray discs, 3D capable, and boasts really incredible graphics, so what more will the PS4 have to offer? Being economic of course! At the age of recycling and being green, all the electronics we own definitely run up the electric bill. The new PS4 will consist of 60% of recycled materials and have a type of smart start system where the game starts from your last saved position rather than booting up the entire start up sequence. Power consumption already being lowered in the new PS3 systems will most likely be carried over to the PS4. I can see the gaming benefits from the fast start, and the greener machine, I mean after all, who really wants to pay a big energy bill at the end of the month?

Within the new two or three years we should be getting a real sneak peek of the systems and with more more detailed specifications and images of what they will look like. As for now everything can change. What would you like to see in the next generation console? Controller specifics, hardware specifics, or system capabilities let us know!

January 18—LittleBigPlanet 2 (PS3)

Best: LittleBigPlanet 2 returned in Q1 of this year to provide customers with a new take on the LBP series. Instead of Sackboy up close and personal on the coverart, here we have him blasting off on an arcade machine with various worlds in the background. You don’t even have to play the game to realize there are multiple worlds and many things to do within the game itself. I pin this among the best because it shows off so well what the previous LBP coverart did to an extent (though this cover could have shown the different costumes users are allowed to put on Sackboy; maybe an inconspicuous Solid Snake cameo).

January 18—MindJack (PS3, WIN, XB360)

Worst: Mindjack…Well if there isn’t anything worse than a man with a Bluetooth in his ear on the cover of your game. Ok, so maybe I haven’t played the game, but from the cover art, I’m not too keen on picking it up anytime soon. It looks to me, from the cover, as if this were an Alpha Protocol mixed with that secret service game no one liked (not to mention the monster on the cover looks like a robotic ape). You’re not gonna fool me this time, blue eyes.

January 25—Magicka (WIN)

Worst: Who invited the Shy-Guys to come party with the Gears of War guys?

February 7—Mario Sports Mix (WII)

Best: Nothing says Nintendo better than Mario. This colorful and vivid cover tells it all without having any more words than simply, “Mario Sports Mix.” A plethora of games are found on the cover. Dodgeball, volleyball, basketball, and hockey are all on the cover and playable in the game. No doubt about it, Mario covers usually make the cut as the better cover arts.

February 8—Test Drive Unlimited 2 (WIN, 360, PS3)

Worst: Now with this cover, I can’t tell if I’m racing a car or starring in a romantic film in which I set up a heist with my lover and successfully pull it off and move to a far-away island…

February 8—You Don’t Know Jack

Worst: Nothing says “play me!” like a bushy-eyebrowed  animated man glaring at you. No, no, blue eyes, you won’t get me this time (although, let it be known that the “Fresh New Scent” at the top is a nice touch to the game).

February 15— Back to the Future: The Game (PSN- 17^th, iOS)

Best: Simple, yet says a lot. Join Marty McFly and his antics as he travels back to the future, as the title suggests. Those who remember the movie should fit right in with the game. Hop in your DeLorean and GOOOOOOOOOOO.

February 17—Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (PS3, XB360)

Best: Thought it may seem cluttered to some, I find this to be one of the better covers of the year. The Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 cover is good as well, but I prefer this one. This one shows the combat between two sides while also portraying the characters of the game.

February 22—Bulletstorm (PS3, XB360)

Worst: The only thing that should be booted in this situation is this cover. I don’t see the point of just having a shoe as a cover. Alright, I understand that this is the shoe, boot, whatever, that is worn in the game, but still…a little more creativity could’ve been used to choose a cover for the Epic Edition of the game (it doesn’t affect the gameplay. The game is good).

March 1— Fight Night: Champion (PS3, XB360)

Worst: The simplicity is there, but the cover of the game gets overshadowed by Ali fighting at the bottom.

March 29— Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12 (PS3, XB360, WII)

Worst: Not saying that the cover isn’t good, it’s just that if Tiger Woods’ name is on the cover, you would imagine that he would be a bit more prominent. Tiger Woods has not had an exceptional last couple of years, but I guess for the game to sell, they had to limit how much space Woods was allotted.

May 3—Motorstorm: Apocalypse (PS3, XB360)

Worst: There just seems to be too much going on with this cover. There’s a motorcycle, sports car and an all-terrain vehicle. The street is being destroyed and buildings in the background is blowing up. It seems as though the focus isn’t on one set aspect of the game. Sony seems to be throwing all the elements of the game at you without you being able to figure it out on your own.

June 14—Alice: Madness Returns (PS3, XB360, WIN)

Best: If anyone remembers the first Alice game, they can easily identify with this one. Fans of Alice can easily tell there isn’t the peachy wonderland in this game. Holding a bloody knife and a  with blood on her apron, Alice returns with even more madness than before; pun intended.

July 19—Call of Juarez: The Cartel (PS3, XB360)

Worst: The game wasn’t good and neither was the cover. This cover reminds me a lot of another game… Duke Nukem, perhaps?

August 2—Limbo (XBLA)

Best: The simplicity and mystery in this cover is what makes it good. The curiosity of the boy on the cover gives players the same curiosity as to what he’s running towards. This Limbo has nothing to do with a stick and bending over backwards.

October 4—NBA 2k12 (PS3, XB360, PS2)

Worst: As much as I’d like to commend 2k for their normally good basketball covers,  they lost some brownie points with this one. I know they wanted to promote Michael Jordance on the cover, but I find that there should have been a better pose. The way his jersey is morphed it seems as though he is the number 3x. 2K should come back stronger next year with a cover art that gets a customer’s attention. Then again, with no NBA Live (read: Elite) series, people had no choice.

October 11—Forza 4 (XB360)

Best: Simple, elegant.  The detail in the car preview the amount of care and detail put into the game.

October 25—Battlefield 3 (XB360, PC, PS3)

Worst: The battle of the one-man-standing-while-holding-a-gun continues. They did it last year and so did their Call of Duty counterpart. This cover is getting tired and these companies know that since their game will sell well, they need not try on the cover of their games.

November 8—Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 (PS3, XB360)

Worst: I think Activision could have done better with the cover of this game. The guy with the gun thing is getting tired and, quite frankly, I think it’s time for something new. I don’t think there will be something new because this is an established cover, along with Battlefield’s, but a guy can dream, can’t he?

November 13—Super Mario 3D Land (3DS)

Best: Here we have another Mario one. This one puts the game into perspective. The worlds are 3D and the adventures are the same as they always have been. Subtle things not many eople will notice are on the cover. Mario’s shadown on the wall shows him in a Tanooki suit and the brick block has eyes.

November 15—Saint’s Row: The Third (XB360, PS3)

Best: Last on the list is Saint’s Row. Don’t get me wrong, the game is great, but the cover is…well, I don’t know. I love the detail on the cover of the game, but you don’t really know what to expect from it. After looking it over a couple of times, you can see that the cover is more than just a badge. There are silhouettes of guns and women, all major players in the game. THQ did well with this one.

Halo: Reach Classic All Stars: Team East Wins
Starcraft 2: 20th Seed FXOLeenock
Halo Reach: 1st Seed Instinct
League Of Legends: Team Solo Mid
Black Ops: 7th Seed Quantic Next Threat

This is where action breaks loose and you get your toes wet again in Max’s chaotic world. The weapons system has been broken down to either carrying a single double handed weapon, or a single or dual wield single handed weapons. Heading through the hallways of Max’s apartment complex, we’re able to see the detail of every little thing, like the destruction  of the surrounding environment, individual bullet paths and shells ejecting out of the chamber of the gun in bullet time, and the way the A.I. reacts to Max.  Even after the first few minutes of the demo, you can really tell they’ve put so much work into it. All the characters play such a dramatic roll and they all tell a story, that you can see within their facial expression and body movements. As the demo was played, the developers stated that the new A.I. wont just stand around and follow a set pattern to find Max hiding, but they’ll go through the area and aggressively search and flush out people in hiding. Also with every batter the final bullet that kills the bad guy will be a bullet time cut scene, meaning the camera will follow the bullet to finish up the last kill.

There’s tons to be seen in Max Payne 3, and my words couldn’t possibly describe the depth of everything we’ve seen. The great thing is that Max will be back in March 2012, and an even better thing… Multiplayer! Not much is known about the multiplayer but we’ll keep you informed when we find out more.

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I recently read an article that toyed around with the idea of having the Xbox 360 run the new Windows 8, of course this is all speculation from hearing the rumor of Windows 8 possibly being able to play Xbox 360 games. The gears in my head started moving and I started wondering, why hasn’t Microsoft come out with a PC/Xbox 360 console type of system? Of course there are a lot of reasons why it may or may not be possible since the layout of the circuitry and chip sets may be a little different but all in all it could be possible. After all, the early buyers of the Playstation 3 included the option of loading Linux to the hard drive to run different applications. If not create a computer to run Xbox, why not create and Xbox that can run Windows?

If you really think about it the possibility of a PC or a Mac integrating a full system set up into a regular computer isn’t that problematic. Even if you’re a fan boy of either be it Playstation 3, Xbox 360, or even possibly the new Wii U, maybe even all three could quite possibly be set up into your computer. Emulation has come a long way into making old games playable on computers already so why haven’t game makers just bit the bullet and offered the combination of the two? With emulation comes with controllers, and many people have just used the Xbox 360′s controller to play many of their emulated games. Of course the PS3 controller can be used as well but with some minor downloadable software to recognize the six-axis and buttons, same for the Wii controller. While almost all consoles have the HDMI output and most TV’s have HDMI inputs, playing your games on the big screen can be as simple as hooking up a HDMI from the tower to the TV, and if you’re worried about there being too many wires around or not having the computer in the same room as the TV, then wireless would be the way to go. With a separate adapter that allows everything from the PC to stream to the TV who says it’s not possible?

Considering all the benefits for the consumer that could come out of joining the console and PC, it really could be beneficial to developing companies as well. Instead of spending millions on research and development for how the next generation console will look and what it can have, they can spend it on developing add-ons that are plug and play. Don’t have Blue-tooth? No problem, just add an adapter. Want better visuals in your game to make it run smoother? Just go out and upgrade your video card. Consumers also get the benefit of having the best platform to play on, giving them the most up to date game console, having only one place to store all their games whether it be direct download to the hard drive or by disc, and the comfort of playing with keyboard and mouse for more precision or with controller to play a little more casual.

The big three have always been ridiculed over the price of new consoles, but if they system was integrated with so much more the entry point to buy the new system wouldn’t be frowned upon. Considering most PC’s even on a budget only cost around $500-$700, and with customized behemoth computers that can cost up to $5000 or more, why can’t we have the best of both console and PC worlds in one? Gamers and their family probably would most likely look into purchasing the system since it kills two birds with one stone, a PC and a game console for the family to use. The console company would also be able to create different entry points into the system. Casual players most likely would purchase the lower priced system, and hardcore gamers may spend money on the system that gives the the best performance out of everything.
Again just keep in mind this is all just food for thought. Whether this is what the future of gaming can become may be a coincidence but just keep in mind that you read it here. Also you kind of have to admit, you kinda want that PC system that can do all that stuff so you don’t have to turn your computer on while playing your console, just to see who wants to play a round of Call of Duty on Facebook. If companies were to come out with something like this would you be willing to purchase it? If you would or wouldn’t let us know why, we’re definitely interested in hearing from our readers on the subject.

So we’ve been hearing alot of hype for this new game Uncharted .. 3 I believe. We played it a bit at E3 this year, yea its pretty awesome. After the announcement that there would be a Multiplayer beta for the game to be released, we thought we’d share the love to you guys and girls out there. So today we’re giving out a number (it’s alot!) of Uncharted 3 Beta codes and maybe your one of the lucky ones that will get one. All you have to do is comment below on what your most excited about for the game itself.

We will choose at random later today but PS your chances are better the earlier you comment as we’re giving the codes out in spurs. Be sure to be signed up to lvlone.com as we are sending them out to the attached emails of users. Also if you think you have no chance, think again cause we got plenty of codes to give out.

Now that E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) has ended last week and our team has recuperated from the event we want to get you! involved. Yes we attended E3 and saw some really cool shit but thats only the tip of the ice berg. Be apart video game site that’s growing and plans to do big things in the future. Do you have a love for games? Have an opinion on certain topics, are you maybe good at certain tasks? Well we’re looking for you, hell all of you!

You will have access to some of the most exclusive news, info, demo‘s/games, contacts and events you have seen in gaming. Any skill you think you have we maybe looking for whether your good at social networking, writing articles, PC titles, Indie, MMO’s, consoles, advertising knowledge, shoot a flame thrower!? etc. nows your chance to be apart of something big and a fun with a fun team at that.

Send us a message here or type in a short one and sent here.Put your interests and any part you might want to be involved in with the header “I want to be apart of LVLONE!” and we’ll go from there. We welcome all and can’t wait to here from you.

It was exactly one year ago where Onlive were just getting their foot in the door and showing the world what cloud gaming looked like. With TV, blu-ray player deals and a Micro-Console they have pretty much blown the doors right open for the service. One of their next entries was the Onlive app running on tablet devices unveiled at their booth at E3. LVLONE got a chance to sit down with them and get some hands on to find out what it was all about.

To note this isn’t the same app on the iPad which is just a viewer but will be an update in the future. We were given a demo of how the new app works on the iPad 2 and like the desktop version of the software this one works just the same. Like the desktop version you can view, purchase and play Onlive right on your tablet device.

We were first treated to an example of how it played by checking out Lego Batman. The buttons are laid out on the sides of the tablet and can be configured in anyway. They went as far as to say if a dev had certain button layouts that was beneficial, it would come pre-customized to suite it. While we noticed some connection drop, that had to do more with the congestion of networks in E3.

The second demo was Assassins Creed Brotherhood, showcasing that even some of the most graphically intensive games can run on a tablet device because of the Onlive software. The game looked great and the only lag noticed was almost about the same amount from the desktop version. They are currently look at the best ways to map complex games of this nature with touch pad. While they do have the universal blue tooth/wifi controller some will not have this option if they don’t want it.

Other plans like having the service running a cloud based browser which would essentially enable the ability to run flash on the iPad 2 and touch pad sensitive games were also shown. Along with making games have touch capabilities. Onlive has certainly impressed me on how far they have come in a short amount of time. I’m really excited in the direction the platform is going, who knows maybe we’ll see MMO support in the future?