Bookshelf Gamer

ICO: Castle in the Mist

Undeniably one of the best games from the Playstation 2 catalogue, ICO: Castle in the Mist was a game I had rented but never finished and then fell through the cracks of my very growing game backlog.  So when I saw that Viz was publishing Miyuki Miyabe’s novelization of the game under their Haikasoru imprint, …

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Gamer

The Baconing (DeathSpank)

Status: Completed the Baconing! Achievements: 10 of 12 Gamerscore: 155/200 DLC Purchased: None Things seemed to be all well in good in Spanktopia after DeathSpank collected all of the Thongs of Virtue and vanquished Sandy. But the peace didn’t last forever, as DeathSpank soon discovers his wearing of all of the Thongs at once has created a new evil: …

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Gamer

Professor Layton and the Last Specter

Status: 1 playthrough of The Last Specter complete Total Time:  19hr 1min Puzzles Solved: 138  Total Picarats: 5048 Professor Layton and the Last Specter (or Specter’s Flute, depending on your region) it the first in a trilogy of prequels to the best selling puzzle series. Layton receives a letter from his old friend Clark Triton, requesting his help …

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Project Backlog

Alan Wake’s The Signal and The Writer DLC

Status: Finished both The Signal & The Writer DLC Achievements: 41 of 67 Gamerscore: 740/1500 Months after finishing Alan Wake’s original content and downloading both DLC add-ons, I still hadn’t gotten around to actually playing the new episodes. I’d see the box for the game sitting on the top of my 360 shelving unit and think “Maybe this …

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Gamer

Alice: Madness Returns

Status: Finished Alice: Madness Returns on Normal (but man…) Achievements: 31 of 50 Gamerscore: 415/1000 DLC Purchased: Original American McGee’s Alice (Online Pass Content) I love the dark and macabre, things that make me jump out of my seat or emit a small scream. Horror movies and games filled with puzzles are right up there in my books and …

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Gamer

3rd Birthday

Status: Completed one playthrough on Easy reaching level 21 in 11hrs 37min, the second on Normal reaching level 29 in 11hrs 21min Over a decade has passed since gamers last saw Aya Brea and her clone/daughter/sister Eve (a relationship that confuses many). 3rd Birthday begins with Aya having no recollection of her past, found in a …

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Gamer

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood

Status: 1 playthrough complete, no multiplayer Achievements: 35 of 60 Gamerscore: 690/1250 DLC Purchased: None There are few games that cause me to scream obscenities at my television on a regular basis that I still find enjoyable and push through to complete. The Assassin’s Creed franchise currently ranks number one in that category, with Brotherhood feeling more like an …

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Gamer

DeathSpank: Thongs of Virtue

Status: Completed Thongs of Virtue main story Achievements: 11 of 13 Gamerscore: 190/215 DLC Purchased: None Impressed with the first part of DeathSpank’s tale, I made sure to pick up the second installment before I stole Lord Von Prong’s Thong. It was a smart move because I immediately began playing Thongs of Virtue. Damn Hothead and their addictive game. …

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Gamer

DeathSpank

Status: Completed DeathSpank and cleaned up all those achievements Achievements: 12 of 12 Gamerscore: 200/200 DLC Purchased: None I picked up DeathSpank and its sequel during the recent EA sale on the Xbox Marketplace, months after checking out the demo and wishing I had the points to grab it at launch. Santa deposited some points to my account at …

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Gamer

Professor Layton & The Unwound Future

Status: 1 playthrough of Unwound Future complete Total Time:  21hr 29min Puzzles Solved: 164 Total Picarats: 5531 Purchase Professor Layton and the Unwound Future from Amazon When a mysterious letter arrives in the post claiming to be written by Hershel Layton’s apprentice, Luke, from 10 years in the future only a short period after the two witness a failed time traveling …

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