So, nearly five months after we separated, my ex-wife and I are divorced. As anyone who has been in such a situation knows, the finality is a burden, but also a blessing. Our marriage began 8/7/06 and ended 5/27/08. So, where does an Xbox 360 play into this? She got me one as a wedding gift April of that year. Here's the irony- it also died on the day we divorced. Isn't that something else? My marriage and my wedding gift both end on the same day! Talk about coincidence. Honestly, I was more distraught about my 360 dying than getting a divorce. Perhaps that's because my 360 treated me better than she did? I could turn it on anytime I wanted (see also *creepy*), it didn't leave dirty dishes, clothes, and trash all over my apartment, it didn't argue with me, and it didn't treat me like trash. It gave me hundreds of hours of gaming goodness ranging from Castlevania: Symphony of the Night to Uno and everywhere in between. I made some good friends on Xbox Live. It was there whether I was in a great mood or wanted to punch someone in the throat. Ultimately, it even lasted longer than my marriage.

In closing, to my ex-wife, I hope you sober up and realize some of your potential. That and good luck meeting another dude who will put up with your crap like I did.

To my 360- rest in peace. You did good to last longer than my marriage.

I know many of us gamers have problems with titles for the aforementioned consoles costing $60 for standard releases and $70+ for special editions, etc. Most of us usually don't mind paying the extra money for a AAA title like a Gears of War, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, BioShock, Grand Theft Auto IV, etc. These titles have production values through the roof in all areas. Their graphics are amazing by any standard. Gameplay is either revolutionary or redefines that genre in some way. Music and sound effects are crisp with excellent recording methods utilized. Controls are spot-on and natural within the genre.

Ok, so if these companies (Epic Games, Infinity Ward, 2k, RockStar) know these titles will sell at astounding rates and they stand to make a substantial profit from this, why do they still charge the $60 price tag? Do they have to do this to offset the so-called cost of next-gen development and make a reasonable profit? Absolutely not. They charge that price because they know fans will pay it.

Take Grand Theft Auto IV for instance. Clearly, this is an amazing title. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions are the #1 and #2, respectively, games of all time on gamerankings.com. In one weeks sales of this title exceeded $500 million. Would it hurt RockStar games to have sold the title at $50? Maybe a few million, but when they've already made over $500 million, would it hurt them? Doubtful. How about Cliffy B buying a sports car with a six digit price tag? What about the consumer? While I also doubt they had complaints about paying $60 for the game, I doubt they would have complained if the game only cost them $50. Personally, I find this whole situation morally apprehensible. A company charges the standard price, knowing they will make massive profits off it. So while gamers like myself work 30+ hour weeks, live in an apartment, pay for everything themselves, drive a car with a four or five digit price tag, and attend a university full-time these big-wigs can buy more sport cars, live in larger and more luxurious dwellings, hire more domestic staff, and retire whenever they choose and still take vacations whenever they choose to wherever they choose for however long they choose. I know that creating games is their job, but why should I have to wait for the price for a title to come down because I can't afford it. Not everyone can afford to spend $60 on a game whenever it comes out. We have to budget.

Instead of charging $60 for a game because it's the norm, how about showing a little loyalty to the consumer. Perhaps we could buy more games if they were cheaper. Don't cut the quality, just the price tag. You'll still make more than enough profits from titles such as the aforementioned to offset selling them $10 cheaper. Who knows, you might even sell a few more because they are slightly more affordable to the average consumer such as myself who has to make sure all bills are paid, vehicles are running, they have clothes to wear, and food to eat. Putting us in a potential where we have to choose between a game and new clothes or eating is downright sickening.

The Virtual Console, Xbox Live Arcade, and Playstation Network all offer retro titles (NES-N64) for download to your storage device. For this post, I'm going to talk about the Virtual Console. There are many classic titles available, ranging from Ninja Gaiden and Mario from the NES to Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Prices range from $5 for an NES title to $12 for a N64 title. Sounds fair right? Not so much. Take for example the three Ninja Gaiden NES titles available for download. Each one will cost you $5, so $15 for all three. However, with a little work, you can have all these games for less. I'm talking about Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox. Not only does this amazing Xbox title only cost ~$10 (EBgames and GameStop), but you can unlock all three NES Ninja Gaiden games by collecting all 50 Golden Scarabs. Doing so will unlock the original game, and completing other tasks will unlock the other two. Another rip-off? The Sonic the Hedgehog titles. Each one will cost you $6. To download all the Sonic titles available (Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic 3, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic Spinball, and Dr, Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine) will cost you $48. You can pick up the Sonic Mega Collection (+), get all these games and more, and spend about $20. Makes a lot of sense, doesn't it? To think, even the rule of buying in bulk applies to video games. Pay more for a single game, pay collectively less per title for a compilation. Beware downloadable services. Make sure the game(s) you want to purchase isn't/aren't available elsewhere at a lower price first.

Ok, yet another news article of brilliance. On March 19th, 2008, a Japanese man stabbed a man to death. The same gentleman went on a violent spree on March 23rd, 2008. He stabbed eight civilians at a local mall. Seven of them were seriously injured, and one died. Found in his bag was a copy of Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword and some cards from The Eye of Judgement. He is also known to be a fan of Dead or Alive: Xtreme Beach Volleyball, fighting games in general, and Final Fantasy.

The article found here shows an "expert" as stating that he learned of the weak point of the human body through fighting games since most of his victims were stabbed in the neck. Ok, seriously, GET OFF YOUR SORRY-ASSED SOAPBOX YOU IGNORANT, RAVING, BIASED, INCOMPETENT JACKASS!!! Video games do NOT explain violence. If they did, there would not be any violence in recorded history prior to the 1970s. Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't there been violence throughout all of human history? Individuals who act on violent behaviors such as this are clearly psychologically unstable/unhealthy. The criminal was even quoted by police stating, "I just wanted to see what it was like to kill. It could have been anyone." Yet, some "experts" quickly blame video games based purely on circumstantial evidence. Oh, shut the hell up already.

Here's an idea for these "experts." How about you do some research on the effects of violent media? Yes, younger individuals are more susceptible to acting out scenes or lyrics found in violent games, movies, and music. That said, those who have psychologically matured and are stable are generally able to discern between fantasy and reality and not act on violent impulses. Perhaps they should research the cathartic effects of violence on these healthy individuals. The research is out there. For those who are unfamiliar with the term cathartic, it means having a pacifying or calming effect on an individual, a mean of emotional purging. Perhaps that explains why we play so many shooters and violent films fascinate us so. We know that we should not act on violent impulses, so we seek a medium that allows us to safely express our aggression without acting out against others or committing such acts as mentioned above.

Bottom line- do your homework. Experts, of all individuals, should know to seek all available information before making a statement of conclusion. Perhaps these individual need to accept the fact that violence is a part of human behaviors. No single medium can explain acts of violence. Video games cannot explain this any more than they explain Columbine. The reality of the situation is that some individuals are simply unable to control and not act on violent impulses. Research even supports that violent media can prevent violent behaviors. How about looking some of it up before you blame media?

How about looking at the social and family structure of these individuals before assigning blame? Is there a history of substance, alcohol, physical, sexual, psychological, or emotional abuse? How about a previous psycological diagnosis? Family history of violence? Direct exposure to violence through non-family relationships or interactions?

Look for primary causes and positive correlations before trying to prove false positives and illusiory correlations.

These are my thoughts on the current state of Ninja Gaiden II-

Graphics: Thus far, they lack the visual impact Ninja Gaiden had on the Xbox. Even so, the character models and animations show impressive detail. Some of the environments, such as The Temple of Sacrifice, show great artistic detai and expanse. Little touches like the bodies, body parts, and gore remaining on screen are nice. My only concerns at this are point the occassional frame-rate drop and the final layers of visual polish.

Sound: Ryu's battle cries return with all their power and several new ones have been added. Sounds effects should be top notch as well. Weapons have a great sound when impact is made, whether it be a blade slicing through flesh or the tonfa bashing in the skull of a Black Spider Ninja. Little English voice work has been displayed thus far, but what is available is solid. The music will likely be the least impressive aspect of the audio. That said, it should be enjoyable.

Control: The control should be as tight as the prequel and improved. Combat looks very fluid and deliberate. Ryu appears to handle quite smoothly. My concern here is how the camera will control, especially in small areas, and its consequences on movement and combat.

Gameplay: Once again, story will likely take a backseat to action. The combat looks deeper, faster, and more fluid than before. Hopefully platforming will be kept to ninja-appropriate situations. Fights should be engaging every time. Bosses should be huge, powerful abominations that require skill to topple (read: no spamming Flying Swallow or Flock of Swallows or spamming Ninpo).

Overall award expectations: Bloodthirsty, Great Sound Effects, Oh Snap!, Great Boss Fights, Sharp Control, Outstanding Gameplay, Superior Animation, Sharp Control, Great Sequel, Sucks You In, Technically Proficient Graphics.

Estimated GameSpot score- 9.5

As previously posted, I have a job working at a treatment facility for children with emotional and psychological problems. As is to be expected, there are therapists that work with the children. Every week I am there when the therapist conducts group therapy. Being a psychology major, I am naturally quite interested in what this gentleman has to say. The topic of the therapy was anger. A natural emotion, right? He addressed that nobody makes us angry. Sounds like a load of crap, right? He went on to further explain that the reason nobody is responsible for making us angry is because they provide us an opportunity to become angry. Do they reach into our heart or minds and manipulate us? No, they provide stimulus. How we react to the stimulus is entirely up to us. It makes a lot of sense when you think about us. Someone insults us or threatens us. We tend to make an automatic and subconscious decision to react in an adverse manner. Seriously, think about it. I'll use my recent circumstances for an example. My ex-wife took all of the money in the bank account except for two cents. All the money in that account I had deposited. As a result of insufficient funds in the account when a bill was to be automatically withdrawn, I was charged a $20 service charge. How did I react? I called her up and reamed her out. Most of you would do the same, right? In hindsight, I didn't have to react by allowing myself to become extremely irrate. Instead, I could have taken pity on her. She has no job, had to move out, move in with a dictator for a mother, and rely entirely on her parents to pay her bills so she could keep her vehicle and cell phone. Desperate times call for desperate measures, right? The only place she could get money, even though it meant lying and stealing, was from the account that was in both of our names. I could have taken a step back and thought about that. She has no money and no income, what else could she do? Even though I was extremely pissed off, she did not make me angry. She provided me with an opportunity to get angry. I made the decision to be angry. Did I have the right to be angry? Hell yeah! Did she have the right to take that money? Hell no! Either way, I had to take responsibility for my reaction. Now I think before I allow myself to react in an adverse manner. I take responsibility for if I become angry. Think about it? The person who has anger issues is always the victim. Somebody else always pissed them off. Take responsibility for your emotions. If you let somebody else manipulate them, you've already lost to them.