Xbox Originals: Jade Empire
Price: 1,200 MS Pts. ($15)
Size: 6.17 GB
In the world of console role-playing games, Bioware's Jade Empire is something of a legend. Released in 2005 on the Xbox to wide critical acclaim, garnering an incredible 9.9 from IGN's own David Clayman, Jade Empire cemented Bioware's position as a preeminent creator of engrossing RPGs. Now Jade Empire is available as an Xbox Original, meaning you can download it as a single file from Xbox Live Marketplace and play it from your hard drive. If you already have the original game, you won't see any benefit from downloading Jade Empire, as it comes with the same minor backwards-compatibility issues of the box version. But if you've never played Jade and have some hard-drive space to spare, download this game and see what all the fuss is about.
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords: Revenge of the Plague Lords
Price: 700 MS pts. ($8.75)
Size: 14 MB
With possibly the longest title in the young history of downloadable content, PQ:CotW:RotPL is a force to be reckoned with. But it's more than its formidable name that makes this add-on to one of our favorite XBLA games loom so large. Plague Lords opens up new areas in the southern area of the map, adds four new playable character classes, and adds tons of new spells, items and creatures. It also ups the level cap to 60, so completionists – time to get cracking.
N+ Level Pack 1
Price: 200 MS pts. ($2.50)
Size: 284 kb
Finally, the additional content N+ fans have been waiting for. This PC-to-console cult platforming hit is notoriously difficult in parts, but developer Metanet is here to make it all better. These 150 new N+ maps are one the easier end of the spectrum, which should be good news to all those players who are hopelessly stuck somewhere in the game. There are also 50 new co-op maps included, so grab a friend and jump around like ninjas together. That sounds a little weird….
Demos: Too Human and Tales of Vesperia
Price: Free
Size: 1.09 GB
Ah, Too Human. Subject of the most Internet speculation and message board flaming since the collapse of JenniCam. Is it great? Is it terrible? Is it (gasp!) somewhere in between? Time to take a stand and download the demo. Are you for free trials of upcoming videogames, or are you against them? While you're at it, grab the demo for Tales of Vesperia, the latest installment in the famed Japanese RPG series. We're big fans of the art style and character design in Vesperia, although we still have no idea what's going on. All we know is that the pipe-smoking dog is no slouch in a fight.
Gears of War 2 Theme and Gamerpics
Price: Free
Size: 5 MB (Theme), 204 kb (Pics)
Now this is what we're talking about. A free Dashboard Gears of War 2 theme, and a free pack of Gears 2 gamerpics. Microsoft and Epic could easily have charged for these, but they must be regular readers of On the DLC and know that nothing burns our bunions more than publishers who charge for this type of free advertising. This theme features images of Marcus and friends holding back the Locust horde and grasping COG tags somberly. At the bottom of each blade, you'll see "Gears of War 2, November 7, 2008." Impress your friends.
Ninja Gaiden II: Mission Mode
Price: 800 MS pts. ($10)
Size: N/A
It appeared -- and then, like a ninja in the shadows, it was gone. A new pack of downloadable content was relased for Ninja Gaiden II this morning, and we quickly grabbed it before it mysteriously disappeared from Xbox Live Marketplace. Although it's unclear at this point when the majority of gamers will be able to grab Mission Mode, here's what we do know: The pack features 24 missions, including Karma Attack missions, which are all about earning a high score; and Survival Missions, where you face a seemingly insurmountable horde of enemies with a single weapon. If you're a big NGII fan, then this Mission Mode is a must. So when Microsoft puts it back up on Live again, grab it.
1942: Joint Strike
Price: 800 MS Pts.
Size: 150 MB
We wanted to love 1942, but it just wasn't meant to be. It looks slick, and it's fun while it lasts, but the spotty online play and relative lack of replayability just didn't put the wind beneath our wings. We know there are hardcore arcade aerial shooter fans out there who will disagree. But for us 1942, while a fine game, didn't live up to our expectations.
Go! Go! Break Steady
Price: 800 MS pts.
Size: 105 MB
Work at IGN long enough and you'll learn that Xbox Team editor-in-chief Hilary Goldstein has an obsession with walruses. He has stuffed walrus toys cluttering his workspace; there are walrus posters on his walls; and he smears his tent with walrus blubber to keep out the cold San Francisco winds. It's not surprising, then, that he snuck a walrus reference into his Go! Go! Break Steady review this week. Shameless. Go! Go! is an odd little game (hence the flippered mammal reference) that mixes breakdancing, puzzles and music. We liked it, but it's nothing revolutionary. So if you're in the mood for some urban flava, sink your tusks into this one.
Rock Band Tracks: Nine Inch Nails and Shinedown
Price: 160 pts. ea., 440 pts. for NIN pack.
Size: About 20-40 MB ea., 121 MB for NIN pack
With a solid two thirds of the IGN editors out of the office this week licking their E3 wounds, none of us had time to try our hands at these songs, so download at your own risk. But the risk here isn't probably all that great. The previous Nine Inch Nails released for Rock Band are a ton of fun to play, so we're assuming these songs – "Burn," "Capital G" and "Last" -- will be, too. We aren't really Shinedown fans, so we'll reserve our judgment of those tracks ("Junkies For Fame" and "Devour") until a bunch of their fans write in to tell us how awesome they are, at which time we will begin to seriously dislike them.
Guitar Hero III Virtuoso Track Pack
Price: 500 MS pts.
Size: 67.37 MB
If you at all fancy yourself a guitar hero and wish to test your mettle against some of the greatest shredders of all time, then do yourself a favor and download this pack. Have we played them? Not yet, but not because we don't want to. We've just been too busy working on our Buckethead fan site. The KFC-container-wearing virtuoso's "Soothsayer" joins Steve Vai's "For the Love of God" and Joe Satriani's "Surfing With the Alien" in this three-song collection of technical tendon testers.
Disruptive Art: Futura Resistance Theme
Price: 150 MS pts. ($2)
Size: 2 MB
We'll plop down points for killer Dashboard themes, but this one is pretty ho-hum. It's described as "grunge meets high-tech," but we don't really see much of either here. With that said, themes that aren't trying to sell something are few and far between on Xbox Live, so if you're looking for something fairly slick but nondescript, this will do the trick.
University of Georgia Picture Pack
Price: 100 MS pts. ($1)
Size: 200 kb
Question: Do you now or have you ever attended the University of Georgia, or does a member of your immediate family currently attend said university? If the answer is yes, you'll probably be interested in downloading this.
NASCAR 09 Montreal Track – Gilles Villeneuve Circuit
Price: 320 MS pts. ($4)
Size: 55.51 MB
We weren't big fans of NASCAR 09, and the thought of downloading another track for the game makes us feel kinda sleepy. If you're a huge NASCAR nut, it goes without saying that you've already grabbed this one. Fence-sitters steer clear.
Marathon: Durandal Map Packs
Price: 400 MS pts. ea. ($5)
Size: 2-4 MB
There's only one problem with Marathon: Durandal. It makes us sick to our stomachs. Make no mistake – it's a great classic shooter. But there's something about the XBLA version of this Bungie blast from the past that gives us motion sickness. In fact, just looking at these maps makes us kinda queasy…
Ace Combat 6 Missions: 4 and 9
Price: 350 MS pts. ea. ($4.50)
Size: 12-18 MB
Please let it end.