I’ve been away for some time. We just finished a really elaborate project at work so I hope to find a bit more time to write.

The problem is that the IR transmitters range doesn’t reach the headset that well when I play Call of Duty because I don’t keep it directly next to my television. It is so tall that if I did it would cover up a portion of the screen, and I just can’t have that.

What I hope to accomplish here is to remove the feet from the bottom and the hanger for the headset and fashion some sort of stand to allow me to set the box on its side in front of the television without blocking the view while still allowing the signals to get directly to me without any static being caused.

Here is a really shitty paint drawing of what I’m describing:

This might seem stupid easy…But there is one catch: I must make it look sleek and stylish. At least somewhat. You see, I am a stickler for good looks. Which means there can be no duct tape, no bungie cords and certainly no big wads of gum holding this thing together. That is my challenge should I choose to accept it.

Which I do.

Well it looks like operation “Rejuvenate Halo” worked perfectly. Including a free Halo 3 map pack download in Halo Wars, which released last week, helped Halo 3 reclaim the top spot on the list. Along with that it also helped Halo Wars make it to number six. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is still sitting in the top three right behind its newer counterpart World at War, which is a surprise to me. How that game has managed to stay so highly played after a year and a half AND a well received sequel is anyone’s guess.

Xbox 360 Top Live Titles (based on UU’s)

1 Halo 3
2 Call of Duty: WaW
3 Call of Duty 4
4 Gears of War 2
5 GTA IV
6 Halo Wars
7 Left 4 Dead
8 Halo Wars demo
9 FIFA 09
10 STREET FIGHTER IV

Top Arcade Titles (Full Versions purchased)

1 Watchmen: The End is Nigh
2 Castle Crashers
3 3 on 3 NHL Arcade
4 Worms
5 UNO
6 Braid
7 Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
8 Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
9 A Kingdom for Keflings
10 Marble Blast Ultra

The above arcade list is based on full versions purchased.

Original Xbox Top Live Titles (based on UU’s)

1 Halo 2
2 Star Wars: Battlfrnt 2
3 Counter-Strike
4 Fable
5 Splinter Cell Chaos
6 Conker: Live Reloaded
7 Doom 3
8 Burnout 3
9 Call of Duty 3
10 Star Wars: Battlefront

Top Community Games NEW! (Full Versions purchased)

1 RC-AirSim
2 Aquarium HD
3 DrumKit
4 TV Calibration
5 Rumble Massage
6 ZP2K9
7 Bowling X
8 Miner Dig Deep
9 Remote Masseuse
10 bricks4ever

Title above taken straight from Team17’s facebook page says it all. This is the first. Feast…

While it does look like the first one with an avatar thrown in, I remain quite excited by the image. Some new weapons? More players in multiplayer? Different game modes? Who knows? Not me.

Xbox’s Major Nelson released this weeks top 10 played games on Xbox Live.

Not many big surprises on the list. World at War is still on top. Halo 3 is second followed by Call of Duty 4. I cannot believe 3 on 3 Hockey is selling on Xbox Live Arcade….that game looks really bad. The big surprise for me is Fifa 09 making the top ten. Maybe soccer is making a bit of a push for popularity in the eyes of our youth?

Xbox 360 Top Live Titles (based on UU’s)

1. Call of Duty: WaW
2. Halo 3
3. Call of Duty 4
4. Gears of War 2
5. GTA IV
6. Left 4 Dead
7. Street Fighter IV
8. FIFA 09
9. Halo Wars Demo
10. Guitar Hero World Tour

Top Arcade Titles (Full Versions purchased)

1. Braid
2. 3 on 3 NHL Arcade
3. Castle Crashers
4. Worms
5. Uno
6. Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
7. A Kingdom for Keflings
8. Death Tank
9. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
10. The Maw

Top Community Games (Full Versions purchased)

1. RC-AirSim
2. Aquarium HD
3. Bowling X
4. Miner Dig Deep
5. Rumble Massage
6. Remote Masseuse
7. DrumKit
8. TV Calibration
9. bricks4ever
10. Golden Royal Blackjack

Those users who may have strayed away from Call of Duty World at War in the past month or two should be pleasantly surprised if and when they next boot up their Cod5 disc. A new map is available for download on the Xbox Live marketplace for the low low price of nothing at all. I am using new map pretty loosely however, as it is just a new version of a map that dates all the way back to the Cod:Waw multiplayer beta.

Be that as it may, I am still honestly excited to see what the waterfront village looks like during the day. Care to join me? Just leave your gamertag right here and I’ll hit you up next time I’m on.

I just stumbled onto a new feature found on Xbox.com called Free Your Avatar. It’s pretty simple to use and has a fairly large catalog of props and backgrounds to help you create your work of art.

It’s unlikely I’ll be posting anything this weekend so I just wanted to take this opportunity to say…

The Left 4 Dead survival pack coming this spring will include a new “survival” mode, along with two new multiplayer maps: death toll, and dead air. I hear they will also be smacking the store shelves with a version of the game that will include all of these new items.

What is survival mode? I have no idea. But my best guess is that it has something to do with surviving something…

For those of you that have not heard, my Xbox 360 has hit a bit of a rough patch. Luckily I purchased a two year replacement plan from Best Buy so I’ll be back in business as soon as I can get into the store and pick up a new one! Look forward to hearing from all of you who didn’t have the same forsight.