While we continue the Duke Nukem Forever death watch, 3D Realms has confirmed that the reissued Duke Nukem 3D for XBLA is not only finished, but has passed MS certification and ripe for release..

The original PC game (released in 1996! Good grief, I'm old) looks incredibly dated now, but the gameplay is still quite fun — especially on multiplayer. There is something just so satisfying about shrinking your opponents and squishing them beneath your size 13 combat boots..

Check the link below for a list of XBLA achievements that popped up on Acheive360Points.com.

1. Piece of Cake - 25 Points
Complete "L.A. Meltdown" on any difficulty or in co-op.
2. Let's Rock - 25 Points
Complete "Lunar Apocalypse" on any difficulty or in co-op.
3. Come Get Some - 25 Points
Complete "Shrapnel City" on any difficulty or in co-op.
4. Game Over - 25 Points
Complete "The Birth" on any difficulty or in co-op.
5. Duke's Mighty Foot - 10 Points
Step on 40 enemies after using the Shrinker on them.
6. Looks Like Cleanup on Aisle 4 - 10 Points
Step in a pile of excrement.
7. Shake It Baby - 10 Points
Tip an exotic dancer.
8. Oomph, Uugh, Where is it? - 10 Points
Find 70 secret areas.
9. Alien Maggots are Gonna Pay - 10 Points
Finish the "Hollywood Holocaust" level in under 3 minutes.
10. Gonna Rip Em' a New One - 10 Points
Get 100 total kills in ranked Dukematch games (Online).
11. See You in Hell - 15 Points
Get 250 total kills in ranked Dukematch games (Online).
12. Hail to the King, Baby - 25 Points
Earn respect and get 500 total kills in ranked Dukematch games (Online).

Duke Nukem 3D XBLA Finished, Coming 'Soon'; Rewards Stripper Tipping, Stepping in Poop [Shacknews]

“Your ‘WoW’ score would be just one factor that will go into your Blizzard Level. And rather than call it a ’score,’ we just wanted it to be like you’re leveling up on Blizzard games… You’ll have this Blizzard identity, and you’ll be able to see things like ‘Oh, this guy was great at Diablo III, but he never played Starcraft and he was mediocre in WoW. That sort of thing.”

It's an interesting system from a community standpoint, but simply brilliant from a sales point-of-view. We already know the gamer score thing helps move crappy 360 games. A WoW gamer who isn't a big RTS fan might have skipped out on StarCraft II, but if it were tied into an overall Blizzard level system? Fantastic.

Blizzard Plans To Track Gamer Achievements Across ‘WoW,’ ‘Starcraft’ And ‘Diablo’ [MTV Multiplayer]

"We've wanted to add them for a long time," WoW game director Jeffrey Kaplan, who is as enthusiastic in person as he appears in this picture, told Kotaku. "I'm a huge fan of achievement systems in other games; I love Xbox's system, and I also think Steam did a really good job in introducing achievements. We always talked about it for WoW... [since] players are always measuring themselves against other players."

Why the decision to include achievements, then, with such a heavily status-based leveling system at the core of WoWs mechanics? Big difference, said Kaplan: "With levels, you're gaining tremendous character power... skills, abilities, access to more items and areas... with the achievement system, we really wanted it to be a history of your accomplishments. Not gaining character power through it... we wanted it to be a reflection of your character's power."

So how does it work? Squirrels ensue:

Blizzard says it's built a really expandable system, resembling a character "score," as a reflection of the things you've done in the game. The rewards are largely cosmetic, playing into the player's desire to "show people their trophy case."

"The greatest example is the Xbox gamerscore, which is for absolutely nothing," Kaplan said, adding that despite the uselessness of achievements from the perspective of game mechanics, it's still a great way to create further engagement. He told us about a friend of his who meticulously played the Avatar: The Last Airbender game strictly for the amount of points he could accrue.

Over 500 achievements are ready as of now, said Kaplan. "I think by the time we ship we'll have close to 700 achievements. We have 500 in the beta right now, and that number grows by 10 to 20 a day at this point. we're really getting a lot of content in there, kind of crossing all the different aspects of the game."

Among the achievements are what Kaplan called "fluff flavor" accomplishments. Like what? An NPC called "Haris Pilton" sells an item called the Gigantique Sack for 1200 gold. Buy it and earn the achievement, "My Sack Is Gigantique."

Some are fairly light, like "Kill 15 Turkeys In Three Minutes." Kaplan admitted that not every achievement has a super-clever name — with the aim of 700 different achievements, that's understandable. Another one? "To All The Squirrels I've Loved Before." Address a certain number of in-game squirrels with the "/love" emote, and be credited toward the achievement.

One thing that's bugged Kaplan in general about achievements in the past is that there's no gauge of how far you're progressing toward the available unlockables. With WoW, that won't be the case — you'll see, for example, how many squirrels you have left to love before you hit sweet success.

"A whole slew" of the achievements will also still apply to the base game and to the Burning Crusade expansion.

“It all depends on how you treat them,” Rucinski said. If you have a strong relationship with female characters, they may help with missions. However, he told me that some of them are “bats–t insane” and can get you into trouble. “One may ask you to assassinate a high-level person,” he added. “Maybe that’s not something you want to do, but she’s really hot. But there are obvious repercussions.”

See? These are the sorts of decisions guys named Michael have to deal with every day. We don't want to kill, but the ladies are so hot! Alpha Protocol will let players get busy with women via Mass Effect style cutscenes, with achievements for being a total manslut as well as just saying no repeatedly. Achievements for having sex? Fox is going to have a field day.

‘Alpha Protocol’ Will Have Plenty Of Sex Scenes, ‘Ladies’ Man’ Achievement [MTV Multiplayer]

Some achievements will carry rewards such as tabards, pets, and other prizes, and Blizzard promises more with each new content update. Players will be able to compare their achievements with others both in-game and via the Armory.

My girlfriend just got her first character to 70 this week, and asked me what she could do now. If she can be patient it looks like Blizzard has an answer forthcoming.

Wrath of the Lich King Achievements [World of Warcraft]

A big part of this is so that we can show our play habits and our performance off to our buddies; seeing a My Gamercard on someone's website is like an instant badge of recognition. So it's unsurprising that a company called Playfire has rushed to be the first to create a Gamercard service for PS3 trophies (hopefully 2.4 squares away soon). It's currently in beta, and here it is!

The... trophycards? support themes, too letting you skin the cards with Killzone 2, Metal Gear Solid 4, LittleBigPlanet or SuperStardust HD.

No sooner than Pyro's unlockable weapons drop than does the grinding and achievement farming begin again with great intensity. Alec visited an achievement servers to witness the depravity himself firsthand and, of course, found himself unlocking 14 achievements and getting the Flare Gun. "It’s as though someone’s stamped LIAR on my Steam page."

Loads of good vignettes in this piece. If you like TF2 or have an opinion on achievements, give it a look.

Achieving Nothing in TF2 [Rock, Paper Shotgun]

• resents the hell out of all achievements and is parodying achievement whores OR

• knows that cynical motives on behalf of Microsoft and the developers are the reason for game achievements. But he can't help himself from collecting all of them or

• agrees completely with and loves the concept of achievements.

I think it's between 1 and 2. And for myself, I'm between 2 and 3. I look on it this way, when you get a game that you really, really enjoy, the achievements show that you got your money's worth. Hokey, I know, but for those titles that don't have a 100 percent-completion model (and for some that do) the achievements can add another reason to keep on enjoying it.

Why Achievements are Awesome {TeamTeaBag]

Also, you can get that bumper sticker via CafePress

First of all, I loved the look of it. The name certainly describes what the map was like, looking like something out of Disney's Big Thunder Mountain railroad ride. Lots of wooden structures, water towers and mine car tracks. But the map isn't just a new area, it also features a new gameplay type called Payload. Basically how it works is this: the map has three separate areas and players are split into offensive and defensive teams. The goal of the offensive team is to push a mine cart loaded with explosives through the map, capturing the defensive team's bases as they go. The cart moves faster depending on how many people are surrounding it and leaving it unattended will cause it to start rolling back towards the beginning again. The other team of course, tries to stop the payload from reaching it's goal.

The map wasn't the only thing going however. We were also privy to the new item system that will be instituted with the next update. This also ties in with the thirty six new achievements for the Medic class. By gathering some or all of the new achievements, you can gain three new unique items. One third of the achievements will net you The Blutauger, a new syringe gun. This weapon does not give critical damage, but instead sucks health from the enemy on impact. Earn two thirds of the achievements and you will get The Critzcrieg, a new medigun that will rapid fire critical rockets. Getting all the achievements will see you receiving The Ubersaw which takes melee combat damage and converts it into Ubercharge. Four direct hits with it will charge up whatever Medigun your Medic has currently equipped.

Team Fortress fans are going to have a field day with this new map and if you want to get all those new weapons (and I know you do) take a gander at all 36 achievements after the jump!

First Do No Harm: Play a full round without killing any enemies and score the highest on a team of six or more players

Quadruple Bypass: Heal a teammate who is taking fire form four enemies at once

Group Health: Work with two other medics to deploy three simultaneous Ubercharges

Surgical Prep: Have an Ubercharge ready before the set up phase ends

Trauma Queen: Deploy three Ubercharges in less than five minutes and assist in five kills during that time

Double Blind Trial: deploy an Ubercharge within eight seconds of a nearby enemy medic deploying his

Play Doctor: In a team with no Medics, be first to switch to Medic after a teammate calls medic and heal 500 health

Triage: Deploy an Ubercharge on a teammate less than a second before they are hit by a critical explosive

Preventative Medicine: Block the enemy from capturing a control point with an Ubercharged teammate

Consultation: Assist a fellow Medic in killing five enemies in a single life

Does It Hurt When I Do This?: Kill fifty Scouts with your syringe gun

Peer Review: Kill fifty Medics with your bone saw

Big Pharma: Assist a heavy in killing thirty enemies where neither of you die

You'll Feel a Little Prick: Assist in killing four enemies with a single Ubercharge on a Scout

Autoclave: Assist in burning eight enemies with a single Ubercharge on a Pyro

Blast Assist: Assist in exploding five enemies with a single Ubercharge on a Soldier

Blunt Trauma: Assist in punching out for enemies with a single Ubercharge on a Heavy

Medical Breakthrough: Assist in destroying eight enemy Engineer buildings with a single Ubercharge on a Demoman

Midwife Crisis: Heal an Engineer as he repairs his sentry gun while it's under enemy fire

Ubi Concordia, Ibi Victoria: Assist in killing five enemies on an enemy control point in a single life

Grand Rounds: Heal two hundred teammates after they have called for Medic

Infernal Medicine: Extinguish one hundred burning teammates

Doctor Assisted Homicide: Assist in killing twenty nemeses

Placebo Effect: Kill five enemies in a single life, while having your Ubercharge ready but undeployed

Sawbones: Hit enemies with your bone saw ten times in a row without dieing or missing

Intern: Accumulate seven thousand heal points in a single life

Specialist: Accumulate ten thousand heal points in a single life

Chief of Staff: Accumulate ten million total health points

Hypocritical Oath: Kill an enemy spy that you have been healing

Medical Intervention: Save a falling teammate from dying on impact

Second Opinion: Ubercharge two teammates at once

Autopsy Report: Provide an enemy with a freeze cam shot of you taunting above their ragdoll

FYI I am a Medic: use a bone saw to kill five enemy spies who have been calling for Medic

Family Practice: Ubercharge ten of your steam community friends

House Call: Join a game that one of your friends is in and then deploy an Ubercharge on him

Bedside Manner: be healing a teammate as he achieves an achievement of his own

Here's a sampling of personal favorites.

• Manhunt 15G - Complete the most wanted side missions from the police computer.
• Assassin's Greed 20G - Complete all 9 assassin missions.
• Warm Coffee 5G - Successfully date a girl to be invited into her house.
• Key To The City 100G - Achieve 100% in "Game progress" statistic.
• Let Sleeping Rockstars Lie 10G - Kill a Rockstar developer in a ranked multiplayer match.

Consider it all unconfirmed, as the list could be fabricated and we haven't received confirmation or denial from Rockstar themselves.

For the full list of rumored GTA IV Achievements, hit up the sources.

RUMOR: Complete Grand Theft Auto 4 Achievement List [Xbox 360 Achievements]
GTA IV achivements list. (Biggest spoiler warning ever) [GameSpot Forums]

I've emailed the PR folks to find out how exactly they'll show up in the PS3 version of Dark Sector. If you're interested in the nitty-gritty, hit the jump for the games achievements and entitlements, which are broken down into level completion, combat and multiplayer.

I'll make sure to update when and if we hear back.

ACHIEVEMENTS (X360) / ENTITLEMENTS (PS3)

LEVEL COMPLETION - 300 PTS.

Name: Prologue
Description: Completed Chapter 1
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 1
Score: 10

Name: Exposure
Description: Completed Chapter 2
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 2
Score: 10

Name: Baggage Claim
Description: Completed Chapter 3
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 3
Score: 10

Name: Moths To The Flame
Description: Completed Chapter 4
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 4
Score: 10

Name: The Shipment
Description: Completed Chapter 5
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 5
Score: 10

Name: The Bait
Description: Completed Chapter 6
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 6
Score: 10

Name: Industrial Evolution
Description: Completed Chapter 7
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 7
Score: 10

Name: Unnatural History
Description: Completed Chapter 8
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 8
Score: 10

Name: Threshold Guardian
Description: Completed Chapter 9
Achievement Parameter: Complete Chapter 9
Score: 10

Name: The Dark Sector
Description: Completed the game
Achievement Parameter: Complete the game
Score: 100

Name: Dark Sector - Brutal Difficulty
Description: Completed the Game on Brutal Difficulty
Achievement Parameter: Complete the Game on Brutal Difficulty
Score: 110

COMBAT - 200 PTS

Name: Headhunter
Description: Decapitated 30 enemies
Achievement Parameter: Decapitate 30 enemies
Score: 10

Name: Incinerator
Description: Incinerated 30 enemies
Achievement Parameter: Incinerate 30 enemies
Score: 10

Name: Electrician
Description: Electrocuted 30 enemies
Achievement Parameter: Electrocute 30 enemies
Score: 10

Name: Jack Frost
Description: Killed 30 frozen enemies.
Achievement Parameter: Kill 30 frozen enemies
Score: 10

Name: Finesse
Description: 30 Aftertouch kills
Achievement Parameter: Kill 30 enemies with Aftertouch
Score: 40

Name: Hardball
Description: 30 Power-throw kills
Achievement Parameter: Kill 30 enemies with Power-throw
Score: 35

Name: Sharpshooter
Description: 30 Headshots
Achievement Parameter: Get 30 headshots
Score: 10

Name: Glaive Master
Description: Completed a level by only using the Glaive
Achievement Parameter: Complete a level by only using the Glaive
Score: 10

Name: The Finisher
Description: Performed 30 finishers
Achievement Parameter: Perform 30 finishers
Score: 10

Name: Double Decap Latte
Description: Two decapitations in one shot
Achievement Parameter: Get two decapitations
in one shot
Score: 15

Name: Jack the Jackal
Description: Took the Jackal for a ride
Achievement Parameter: Take the Jackal for a ride
Score: 35

Name: Skeet Shooter
Description: Shot 10 projectiles in mid-flight.
Achievement Parameter: Shoot 10 projectiles in mid-flight
Score: 10

Name: Weaponsmith
Description: Applied 5 upgrades in the market
Achievement Parameter: Apply 5 upgrades in the market
Score: 10

Name: Greed
Description: Collected over 50,000 rubles
Achievement Parameter: Collect over 50,000 rubles
Score: 10

Name: Researcher
Description: Collected 10 weapon upgrades
Achievement Parameter: Collect 10 weapon upgrades
Score: 10

Name: Master Researcher
Description: Collected all the weapon upgrades
Achievement Parameter: Collect all the weapon upgrades
Score: 15

Name: Rebound
Description: Killed an enemy with a reflected projectile
Achievement Parameter: Kill an enemy with a reflected projectile
Score: 15

Name: Ghost
Description: Used cloaking to get a finisher
Achievement Parameter: Use cloaking to get a finisher
Score: 35

MULTIPLAYER - 200 PTS

Name: Glory
Description: Finished best overall in a ranked match (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter: Finish best overall in a ranked match (Multiplayer)
Score: 30

Name: Veteran
Description: Scored 500 points (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter Score 500 points (Multiplayer)
Score: 30

Name: Hero
Description: Scored 5000 points (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter: Score 5000 points (Multiplayer)
Score: 40

Name: Champion
Description: Best overall in a ranked team game (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter: Finish best overall in a ranked team game (Multiplayer)
Score: 30

Name: Comrade
Description: Scored 500 points in ranked team games (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter: Score 500 points in ranked team games (Multiplayer)
Score: 30

Name: Hero of the people
Description: Scored 5000 points in ranked team games (Multiplayer)
Achievement Parameter: Score 5000 points in ranked team games (Multiplayer)
Score: 40

I'm ashamed to admit that the game that I've come closest to getting all achievements is Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix followed closely by Shrek the Third. Sad but true.

Xbox 360 Achievements

Now Bizarre Creations is taking the achievements game a step further in The Club. In an achievement aptly (and pointedly) named "No, Seriously," gamers are challenged to rack up 10,001 kills during online ranked matches. Low blow, Bizarre. And we love it. Let the impossible achievement arms race continue!

The Club one-ups GoW's Seriously achievement [Xbox360Fanboy via DigitalBattle]

A lot of folks got uptight about it when the Achievement list was leaked. They were yelling on the forums about how we're awarding anti-social behavior. Won't somebody think of the children and all that nonsense so, you know, to our credit we listened to the fan-base, and we patched the Achievement to remove that team-killing portion, so everything's well in the universe once again. Never let it be said that we won't listen to the fan-base and if there's something that they feel really strongly enough about, we're always willing to go back and take a second look.

Regardless of what you have read, achievements are not disappearing for users

This afternoon Microsoft officially responded to our request for a comment, saying mostly the same thing Hryb said:

Xbox LIVE is not erasing Achievement's earned while playing on the service. If any member is having trouble with their Xbox LIVE service, we urge them to contact 1-800-4-my-xbox.

German Site TeamFortress 2 has listed what they say are the 36 new achievements for the game's Medic class that Valve mentioned way back in last year.

Most of the Medic-centric achievements seem rather lackluster, more like gimmies than something you have to really work for, like helping with a capture or healing for a "long time." There are a couple of neat ones in there like the "killing a scout with the syringe gun achievement.

Hit the jump for the full list via Team Fortress 2 [Via Evil Avatar]

Assist Capturer- Helping while capturing
Top Score Board - Leading the Score Board at the end of the game
Syringe Scoot - Killing a Scout with the Syringe Gun
Switch to Medic - Switching from another class to the Medic
Simul Charge - (?)
Setup Charge - Charging the Uber during Setup-Time
Save Teammate - (?)
Falling Teammate - Healing a falling teammate and securing him from death
Rapide Charge - (?)
Kill While Charged - Killing an enemy while Uber's ready
Kill Healed Spy - Kill an enemy Spy, who just stole Heal from your team
Invite Join Charge - (?)
Heal Under Fire - Healing while burning
Heal Large - Healing for a long time (how long?)
Heal Huge - Heal for an even longer time (?)
Heal Grind - Being an MegaUberSuper-Medic (when?)
Heal Ingé - Healing an Engineer
Heal Callers - Healing teammates, who called for a Medic
Heal Achiever - (?)
Freeze Cam Ragdoll - (?)
Extinguish Teammate - (how to extinguish?)
Medic Counter Charge - (?)
Charge Juggle - Giving Uber to different teammates
Charge Friends - Ubering a Friend
Charge Blocker - (?)
Bonesaw Spy Caller - Killing an enemy Spy with the Bonesaw
Bonesaw Nomisses - Killing an enemy with the Bonesaw without missing the target
Bonesaw Medic - Killing some enemies with the Bonesaw (how many?)
Assist vs Nemeses - Getting a Assist-Kill againsta Nemesis
Assist Soldier - Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Soldier
Assist Scout - Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Scout
Assist Pyro - Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Pyro
Assist Medic - Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Medic
Assist Heavy Long - Assisting a Heavy for some time (how long?)
Assist Heavy- Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Heavy
Assist Demoman - Getting a Assist-Kill while assisting a Demoman

I'm sure that Microsoft—and many third parties—would love to add these options to older Xbox re-releases. The cash revenue from achievement whores could make even Psychonauts finally turn a healthy profit.

Will Xbox Originals have Achievements? [Microsoft]

LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga has got to be the most outrageous milking of a solid franchise I've ever seen. I mean they essentially took two of the games they already made and turned it into a third game and are charging full price for it. Of course I want the shit out of this game, even if they are taking advantage of my twin lusts: LEGO and Star Wars.

In their defense (and mine), the game will feature things like Wii lightsaber fights SIXAXIS motion sensing and such. Of course there's also a chance to earn 1,000 achievement points on the 360. Hit the jump for the full list.

So what's better? A few bitchy achievements that give you a boatload of points? Or a million little achievements that are each worth nothing on their own? I prefer a multitude of achievements leading me like breadcrumbs through the game. Because that little Xbox beep signaling another achievement unlocking makes me salivate with the best of Pavlov's dogs. And it also gives me a craving for hydrogenated cheese.

The Orange Box - 99 Achievements! [DaKing240]

For those who'd like to add a bit of sexual objectification to your otherwise very healthy, loving and mutually-respectful relationship, this feisty garment will run you $13.

ACHIEVEMENT LOCKED UNDERWEAR [via playgadgets]

It looks like the Halo 3 achievements have popped up over on the official Xbox site, I've posted pics of them all on the jump, but be warned, the names for the game's nine campaign missions are in there so don't look if that bothers you.

Halo 3 Achievements [Xbox]

Wing Commander Arena is coming to the Xbox Live Arcade in the "coming weeks" and Electronic Arts just sent me a cool little magazine called Star Soldier to prep me for the game's launch.

The January 2701 issue of Star Soldier is 60 pages of ads, articles and details about the game and the universe in which it exists. It's pretty neat. The thing does a really good job of blending fictional pieces (like bios of the top 12 mercenary pilots and ads from Joan's Fighting Spacecraft) with hard facts (like the game's play controls, fughting maneuver tips and a list of Achievements.)

I've tried to scan in a nice collection of the fact sheets for your perusal. Brian Crecente

While the graphics and achievement names are final, the point values are still subject to change. Useful in planning your Halo 3 launch day playing strategy. Michael Fahey

Halo 3 Achievements [Xbox360Achievements.org]

Let's go kill some locusts!Kim Phu

EXTERNAL PRESS RELEASE

This press release is from Microsoft's website.

Gamers, Ready Your Weapons. Stop. New "Gears of War" Multiplayer Achievements Added. Stop. End transmission.

London — On Thursday, 14th June, the stakes get even higher as "Gears of War®", rated M for Mature, releases eight new Achievements for the "Annex" gametype and the "Hidden Fronts" Multiplayer Map Pack on Xbox LIVE®.

In addition to adding new Achievements, worth a total of 250 points, "Gears of War" developer Epic has improved the Roadie Run controls so players have greater control of their movement and can better annihilate their pestilent enemies. The title update will also help squash multiplayer exploits and provide general housekeeping.

For more details visit http://gearsofwar.com/news/

For those who have yet to man up and join the battle, the "Annex" gametype is now available for free and the "Hidden Fronts" Multiplayer Map Pack is available on Xbox LIVE® Marketplace for 800 Microsoft Points. All four multiplayer maps will be made available at no cost over Xbox LIVE® on 3rd September 2007.

I can't believe I just typed beat the golden poo snake.

Anyway, Xbox360Achievements.org has a full listing of point procuring feats to be included in the game once it drops (like a golden poo snake) later this year. You go look them over while I try to purge these words from my brain. Michael Fahey

Blue Dragon Achievements [Xbox360Achievements.org - Thanks Walter!]

Brandon Sheffield over at Insert Credit has dug up this wonderful collection of Atari 2600-era Activision patches. After meeting the challenges like reaching a certain score or beating the computer, players would snap a pic of their TV screens and send them in. Activision would reply with a patch and a letter of congrats. In short: These are the first Achievements. That letter of congratulations is class, and I kinda wish they'd do that now. Even an email would be nice! Brian Ashcraft

Patchese [Crunchy Superman via Insert Credit]

The list seems a bit unbalanced at first glance. Beating the game on normal nets you 100 points, while heroic and legendary only nets you 50 apiece? Poppycock I say!

Heehee. Poppycock is an awesome word.

Just completing the game you've probably already finished nets you 490 - 590 points (if you do all three difficulty levels), and the rest are spread among various multiplayer achievements, including two viral ones, which are always good for a giggle.

A nice little list, but are achievements enough to make a gamer want to upgrade his PC to Windows Vista? Seeing as my home computer has recently undergone a much-needed Vistectomy, have I finally met a Halo product that I won't impulsively buy? Michael Fahey

Halo 2 launches onto Vista, now with achievements. [Achieve360Points.com via Arrogantics]

That having been said, Xbox 360 Achievements.org it trying again to gather the required number of people online in order to spread the achievement love. Apparently the last one, held by Achieve 360 Points.com, didn't work as planned, and X360a has stepped in to give it a go. Personally I think EA should just give them the points for buying the game in the first place, but until that happens this is all they've got. Good luck with that!. Michael Fahey

X360A 1000 people online attempt... [Xbox360Achievements.org]

More ideas! MTV's Stephen Totilo has come up with a novel use for that Live Vision Camera. A pretty good use at that — Having it set so it takes a pic every time you score a 360 Achievement. These photos would next appear next to your Achievements for your Xbox buddies to see. He writes:

We'd wind up with a visual chronicle of the time I'd spent at any given game. There'd be shots of me bright-eyed and thrilled, winning an Achievement for completing the first section of "Halo 3," followed by a photo of me slouched lower in my seat, winning the Achievement for advancing to another section of the game. There would be a picture of me bleary-eyed next to an Achievement for finishing the game. There'd be ones for me winning various multiplayer Achievements, the photos snapped across several months and showcasing subtle changes in my hairstyle and the decor of my apartment.

Goofy, definitely, but not a bad idear at all. Brian Ashcraft

Totilo's Live Vision Idea [MTV]

Game Stooge, baby brother of established game blog 2old2play is the newest in an ever expanding world of game sites on the web. Currently, it's updated rather infrequently, but they do have a pretty funny article up right now listing the top 10 Xbox 360 achievements that we'll never see. It's a great list and I got quite a few chuckles out of it, so I thought I would share some of my favorites.

• Viva Pi ata: No Incest Unlock this achievement by breeding worms that are not related as brother and sister or as mom and dad. Worth: 20G
• Frogger: Childhood Reborn
  Unlock this achievement by purchasing this game thinking it will help you regrasp your inner child to find out it's really just...Frogger. Worth: 200G
• Dead or Alive 4: Got Skillz?
  Defeat an opponent without mashing buttons. Worth: 10G

There are a few more good ones on the list, but I'll let you go to Game Stooge and see them for yourself. Which ones are your favorites? Flynn De Marco

Top Ten Achievements That Will Never Be [Game Stooge]
[image courtesy lovegreen.dk]

Achievements are one of the single greatest things that the Xbox 360 brought to gaming. So why do they have to go ahead and cheapen it with some silly give-aways?

Since the brilliant idea hit in November 2005, more than 200 million achievements have been unlocked. And they weren't unlocked to win prize. They were unlocked out of pure unadulterated love for competition and the game.

Now, though, now, you can use all of those points to gather some bounty from Msoft and Old Spice in their Old Spice Experience Challenge.

While it's nice that they are giving something to the gamers, I think it cheapens the who idea, the purity of gaming for gaming sake. Of playing for the score and the achievements instead of some free points or a T-shirt.

Hit them jump to read the rules on how you can leverage your hours of gaming pleasure into a couple of hundred Microsoft points or a free t-shirt. Now that's spicy. Brian Crecente

Since launching in November 2005, Achievements and gamerscore have taken the gaming world by surprise. The "Achievement Unlocked" alert makes not firing once in the first 60-seconds of "Geometry Wars Retro Evolved" appear perfectly normal. Looking for hours on end for the 50th survivor in "Dead Rising" - just another day's work. In fact, since the Xbox 360 launched, more than 200 Million Achievements have been unlocked.

Achievements and gamerscore allow gamers to compare success, attempt unique in-game challenges and find value in playing games over and over. The reward for Achievements is an exciting and challenging way to play games, and only Xbox 360 offers it.

Since Xbox 360 gamers love to be rewarded, we are happy to announce the Old Spice Experience Challenge.

Xbox 360 is teaming up with Old Spice to bring the first Rewards Challenge to Xbox Live. Gamers will be charged with increasing their gamerscore by 1,500 between February 12 and April 12, 2007. That's 60 days to bring your overall gamerscore up by 1,500 for the chance to earn a bounty of rewards. In order to participate, you need to have a valid Windows Live ID with your Xbox LIVE gamercard linked, be a legal resident of the 50 United States and District of Columbia (expect future challenges to be global in scope) and at least thirteen years-old.

Reward Package Qualifications
Level 1 (Gamers who have an annual gamerscore between 0-4,999 at time of entry): Game Picture, Dashboard theme, Contra for Xbox LIVE Arcade
Level 2 (5,000-9,999 annual gamerscore): Level 1 Package, 100 Microsoft Points and a contest T-shirt
Level 3 (10,000+ annual gamerscore): Level 1 Package, 200 Microsoft Points, contest T-shirt and Fusion Frenzy 2
In addition, Old Spice will give Level 1 and 2 the gift of experience by upgrading their Rewards Level for 2007.

Think you can do it? With more than $500,000 in total rewards, such as Microsoft Points and Xbox 360 games, it is time to tackle those unbeaten games and start unlocking Achievements, because this Spring the rewards go beyond just having an impressive gamerscore.

Be sure to log on to www.xbox.com/rewards on February 12 to sign up for participation. Reward quantities are limited so gamers who reach the set goal will be awarded on a first come, first served basis only.

NBA Live 07 fans and achievement point whores everywhere are grousing over the games 100 point "Online with 1,000 people" achievement, which requires you be playing the game and connected to live with at least 999 other players doing the same. While not an impossible achievement to reach alone, Acheive360Points.com has decided to organize an event on the 10th of this month to make sure that as many people obtain it as possible. To that end they are asking NBA Live 07 players around the world to boot up the game this Saturday at 8:00 pm Eastern time and stay connected for at least an hour to make sure everyone has a chance at the elusive prize.

It strikes me as bizarre that such a thing as 100 lousy points to your gamer score could draw people together in a concentrated effort of the magnitude they are aiming for, but I've always been a big fan of bizarre, so I might just rent a copy of the game and lend a hand. Michael Fahey

Achieve360Points.com - 1,000 People Online Event [Achieve360Points.com - Thanks David!]

Msoft's John Porcaro put together this cool little video showing some of the achievements you can unlock in Crackdown on the Xbox 360. The clip shows, in order, Body Juggler, Chain Banger, Driving High, First Blood, Front Flipper, Stunt Driver, Car Juggler, Shot-Putting, Global Impact, Airtime Assassin, High Flyer and Base Jumper.

Body Juggling rocks. Brian Crecente

Achievement Unlocked Generator [Technology-Ninja - Thanks Tu Madre PWN!]

Unscripted drops a few hints about what we can expect from the fee-free reward system, which will allow a limited number of gamers to win... something merely by playing. I'm having Numb Thumb Club flashbacks.

Gamespot later followed up with Microsoft, who told the online pub that, while they don't comment on rumors, commented on the rumor by indicating that the company "is always exploring ideas for how we can reward our loyal customers" and to look for more info soon. Michael McWhertor

Rewards for Achievements? [Unscripted 360]
Rewards coming for Xbox 360 achievements? [Gamespot]

Eddie there joins Yngwie Malmsteen as solo achievement names, with popular duos like Keef & Mick, Joan & Lita, and Page & Plant making up some of the co-op titles. There's even an award for buying all the songs, which I think they should take away when new downloadable songs come out until you do your civic duty.

Xbox360Achievements.Org has the full list posted, so go check it out and then get practicing. There's a long road ahead indeed. Michael Fahey

Guitar Hero II Achievements [Xbox360Achievements.Org - Thanks Walter!]

It's Alien Hominid, the 2D side scrolling shooter, but in HD.It's hard, it's artistically fresh, and it's very straightforward. Shoot stuff. Throw grenades. Don't get hit. It's inexplicably fun. This is another strong title for Xbox Live Arcade.

Since I don't have much more to say about it, other than "me like", here are the Achievements for Alien Hominid HD.

Alien in Training 5
Complete level 1-1 of the game.

Hungry Yeti 10
Eat 50 KGB agents with the Yeti.

City Destroyer 10
Destroy 25 buildings during one game.

Juvenile Alien 10
Complete the game on Easy Difficulty.

Adult Alien 15
Complete the game on Medium Difficulty.

Expert Alien 20
Complete the game on Hard Difficulty.

Head Chomper 20
Head bite 50 enemies without touching the ground or firing.

Killing Spree 15
Kill 1000 enemies during one game.

Mad Hatter 20
Unlock all of the 31hats that are in the game.

Perfect Fight 30
Defeat the Final Boss without using a continue.

Survivalist 25
Survive any challenge mode for 20 minutes.

WMD 20
Reach 5000 Km in Super Soviet Missile Mastar.

Pray for a quick release! Michael McWhertor

EXPLORER (Multiplayer) Win 5 Team or Solo matches on each original MP map with at least 5 different gamer-tags in the room

VICTOR (Multiplayer)
Win a public player match in all original game types with at least 5 different gamer-tags in the room

TEAM PLAYER (Multiplayer)
Win 30 co-op matches with at least 6 gamer-tags in the room

ASSASSIN (Multiplayer)
Find and kill an opponent who has the Assassin Achievement

CRACK SHOT (Multiplayer)
Kill 10 players with gunshots and at least 5 gamer-tags in the room without reloading or dying

The Assassin achievement sounds interesting: sort of like a game of tag. Since it's multiplayer only, I wonder who the first Assassin will be? My guess would be a member of the Ubisoft team. Florian Eckhardt

Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter Achievements [Achieve360Points.com]

Case in point: EGM's Dan Hsu recently mentioned that the Playstation 3 will have its own version of Xbox 360 Achievements called Entitlements. While it certainly sounds like something inspired by the 360, I think that it's great that Sony isn't too proud to recognize that Achievements have been tremendously successful and should be a part of gaming, no matter the platform.

I hope that the industry continues to do this. I would hate to see one company not do something just because their competition did it first. Brian Crecente

Sony to Award Entitlements [Video Game Jocks]