Every Xbox gamer has them. They might lie in a pile in the corner of the room, gathering dust. They might sit on a shelf, neglected and unloved. Or they might still be nestling on the shelves of your local game store, begging to be bought. I’m talking about the games you should have played but didn’t. Maybe you just didn’t get round to them, maybe you were short of cash when they came out, or maybe there was another game that was dominating your Xbox at the time. I like to call these games my ‘Pile of Shame’ because every time I think about them I get a pang of guilt...
But don’t worry! There are always times when you can reduce your own personal Pile of Shame, and right now is one of them. Sure, the last few weeks have seen a few quality new Xbox titles like Rayman Raving Rabbids, Championship Manager 2007 and the awesome Guitar Hero II, but things are still a little bit quiet. Sometimes quiet time is good time though – because you can catch up on some of those older games and boost your GamerScore with all those Achievements you missed! So what’s in your Pile of Shame? Personally, I need to finish Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 and juice some more GamerPoints out of the superb multiplayer mode. Virtua Tennis 3, Sega’s brilliantly addictive tennis sim, is also begging to be played. Since the Xbox 360 version is the only version you can play online, I definitely need to do some work on my world ranking. Then there’s Viva Pinata. I lost a massive chunk of December playing this little beauty, and I think it’s about time I headed back to my garden to do some romancing! If you’ve never played Viva Pinata don’t let the cutesy graphics fool you. Under the fluffy surface lies a hulking beast of a game that will get its claws into you and keep you playing for months. Don’t forget that there are also loads of great games on Xbox Live Arcade. I know I’ve missed Boom Boom Rocket, the mesmerising rhythm action game from the team behind Geometry Wars, and Rare’s JetPac Refuelled, a reimagining of their classic 1980’s shoot ‘em up, deserves some more of my trigger finger time. Phew! My Pile of Shame is bigger than I thought, and it looks like I’ve got plenty to keep me going. Have a think about what’s been nagging you for some playtime, and remember that these opportunities don’t come along very often – especially with titles like Forza Motorsport 2, ShadowRun and Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars just around the corner! If you want to discuss your personal Pile of Shame you should join the party over at the Xbox.com forums, and don’t forget to drop by and say hello at my blog, www.AceyBongos.com. In the meantime, I’m off to catch up on some GamerPoints!
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