Tales of Vesperia

A New Generation of Tales Unfold

A power struggle begins in a civilization dependant on an ancient technology, the blastia, and the Empire that controls it. The fates of two friends traveling separate paths intertwine in an epic adventure that threatens the existence of all. Tales of Vesperia marks the first Tales RPG release in high-def with detail and graphics never before seen in the series. Now, real-time battles are more exciting than ever with over limits, the ability to unleash fatal strikes, combinations and burst artes. The next evolution of the revered role-playing series comes to the Xbox 360.

Key Features A classic series returns: The newest installment of the Tales RPG series keeping the established gameplay formula that fans love Next Gen sights and sounds: First Tales RPG game with high-definition graphics, broadcast quality animation, and Dolby surround sound Evolved real-time battle system: New refinements and additions to the trademark Tales real-time battle engine making for dynamic, action-packed RPG fighting Fan favorite character designs: Characters designed by famous manga artist, Kosuke Fujishima, responsible for popular series’ Ah! My Goddess, Sakura Taisen and You’re Under Arrest Immersive look and feel: Detailed environments, animation and an artistic style so good, it’s like playing a cartoon Dramatic story: Gripping tale of a young hero on a quest for justice, trust and friendship filled with unexpected twists and turns at every step A decade of Tales: The first game celebrating the Tales 10 year anniversary

Characters designed by famous manga artist, Kosuke Fujishima View larger image A classic series returns. View larger image

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Tales of Vesperia Amazing with Some Hitches
Firstly, let me say, this game was amazing relative to any RPGs currently available on the market. The battle system is engaging (although somewhat a button masher) and the character development is believable. Even the interactions between characters seems realistic and you slowly begin to see character relations evolve as the story progresses (few very of the RPGs on the market have believable character progression from what I’ve seen so this is impressive).

Story:

The story begins with the main character Yuri Lowell who lives in the Lower Quarter who, by chance, is sent out on the world. I’m not going to spoil anything regarding the story but as the story progresses you slowly will see how Yuri’s own problem slowly becomes less of an issue as he uncovers greater issues. There are hardly any moments in the story when you have no idea what’s going on and each piece of the story leads you to the next seamlessly. However, the story often has moments where, even at the end of the game, you’re confused just to what had occurred. There are a lot of times where loose ends are not tied up and it just is confusing as to the purpose of the story in regards to that because of it. Without spoiling anything, also, the story does get better as it goes on but the end was somewhat anti-climatic and I had not expected it to end as it did. Regardless, the story, even as it is, was engaging and fun to play through.

Battle System:

The battle system in the game is very similar to any other Tales game but this time in 3d space. Tales games generally have side scrolling battle arenas where you instantly are placed in once you encounter an enemy on the map. In these battle arenas you use your skills button or your attack buttons to fight the enemy while other characters in your party automatically use their own abilities. In Vesperia you have to pay attention to the whole arena because often your healer will be attacked while you’re fighting up front so you have to force yourself to run over to the attacker to protect them. This adds a bit of difficulty to the old system.

Voice Acting:

Voice acting in Vesperia was well delivered and very few times do the lines sound out of place, with the wrong emotion, or not as part of the environment. Oddly enough there is a mix of some lines having voice acting while others not. For the most part key scenes do have voice acting, however.

Creation System:

In towns you can use items found through monster fighting and on the world map to create new items. An example of this would be to take your old weapon plus some other ingredients to make a weapon + with higher attributes and skills often more so than what you’d find in the store. Some items can only be found through the synthesis so it’s imperative to play around with it. Luckily the game tutorial system does a pretty strong job of teaching the use of this system so you’ll pick it up quickly.

Linear:

The game is, for the most part, fairly linear. In dungeons there is only one path to get to your destinations and even after you have a mode of transportation you find that it’s unlikely you can really explore more. To give it credit though you are able to reach areas with higher level enemies quickly you just will find yourself spending a lot of time searching for these areas because you don’t have many other choices. Towns are also fairly small and while the backgrounds often show big cities you are limited to the areas you can explore. Often there is just the item shop, the inn, and one or two places to enter although this isn’t necessarily bad if you consider the other extreme where you search forever in a town you only spend 10 minutes in anyhow.

Exposition:

A lot of the story is done through exposition and while you often know your next step you may feel like you’re being force fed a lot of the info. I liked the level of exposition because I often would leave my game for periods at a time so it got me caught up with the story but I can see it annoying people who would play the game non-stop through the story.

Getting Around (Confusing):

The only real annoyance I found was more toward the end of the game. While in the beginning the linear environment forced you to go a certain path at the end of the game (when you can fly) you’re told to goto certain areas on certain continents as if you’d have any idea where these places are. Given I don’t have a giant map of the game world this left me confused for awhile. It should be noted that there is a way when flying around to find the game map (I think it was the select key) so you can sort through each area to find the destination (or so) where you wanted to get to continent wise but it’s not very intuitive. Given there are so many continents in the game and everything has a fairly unique name you may get confused as well.

In general, I thought this game was much better than the other Tales I’ve played and has a story that is both exciting and interesting with plenty of character interaction to keep you interested in continuing on. Toward the end of the story the game begins to get more confusing with aspects of the story not fully explained and a somewhat anti-climatic ending (although exciting none the less) but in general you’ll be driven to play more. Definitely one of the few RPG games for the XBox 360 to add to your collection.

5 Stars The most dramatic improvement in the Tales series in a long time.
I’ve been a longtime fan of the Tales series, and while it hasn’t always made improvements, the series has steadily evolved. What Tales of Vesperia introduces is something that the series has always lacked: a deep element of customization.

Vesperia’s new skill system allows players to choose from well over a hundred skills that grant everything from plain stat boosts to new features that dramatically alter the gameplay. Players can focus on adding skills that enhance particular aspects of the battle system they enjoy, and customize each character to their liking. The most interesting skills though are unique to each character, and serve to differentiate the cast more than any other game in the series. While one character is specialized in utilizing powerful charged attacks, another is specialized in lengthy aerial combos. No character feels like an inferior version of another character, because each character plays completely differently.

Vesperia’s new skill system is an excellent addition to the series that already has the greatest battle system in an Action-RPG. Throw in an unusually strong pair of heroes, and you have the makings of the best RPG on the 360.

2 Stars Complete garbage, do not play this game
After beating Tales of Symphonia atleast 5 times back on the GC, I was exciting to see the newest game in the franchise to arrive on the 360, however it turned out to be one of the worst games that I have ever played

The story starts out with poor 21 year-old named Yuri who lives in the lower quarter of the capital of the empire and one day, someone steals a blue rock (known as blastia which is the pinnicle of technology and a way of life for people) and takes off with it, howver due to removing it, it causes all of the water to go everywhere and flood the lower quarter. Yuri decides to go after said thief with his ragtag team that meets along the way which include a princess, his dog, a 12 year old orphan, a perverted old spy, and a half naked spear weilding elf dragoon.

The main problem with this game is the lack of story, because quite frankly, there is none. You spend 1/3 of the game trying to recover the afermentioned rock, and then the story changes drastically another 3-4 times that follows the same pattern (something major happens, everyone leaves for a while, everyone meets back up, etc.) And the ending is one of the worst, most complete garbage excuses for a game that I have ever seen.

On your first playthrough, it’ll take you

5 Stars A New Tales for the Xbox 360
Tales of Vesperia is the newest Tales game in Bandai-Namco’s long running series of action RPGs. Though the series have a strong following in Japan, causing the Xbox 360 to nearly sell out when Tales of Vesperia got released, the games are not as popular overseas. As such, previous entries in the series have gotten shoddy localization efforts with cut voice acting and added glitches/bugs. However, as the latest game in the series, Tales of Vesperia received high production values during localization with a great translation, good voice acting, and best of all, voiced skits! Continue reading for a detailed review on the game’s gameplay, story, and more.

Gameplay: 9/10

Tales of Vesperia plays quite similarly to the previous major console Tales game, Tales of the Abyss. The Free Run ability returns that allows players to control their characters on a 3D battlefield to circle around enemies, dodge attacks, and dish out attacks on enemies. A battle can have up to four characters on the battlefield at a time, where each can be controlled by a separate human player, granted there are four Xbox 360 controllers available, or have some characters controlled by computer AI. The AI is pretty good and players can give commands to AI controlled characters via menus. The battle system is like a fighting game where players can attack enemies in real time on a 3D battlefield. Attacks called artes that consume TP can be assigned to different button combinations that can be executed in a certain order to perform combos. There is now a noticeable, yet not distracting, border around the battlefield to indicate the area where the player can move about. This is actually an improvement over Tales of the Abyss where players are unaware of the invisible borders of the battlefield until he/she reaches them. There are seven playable characters in Tales of Vesperia, each with different fighting styles and abilities including a swordsman, a healer, a heavy hitter, a mage, an archer, and a spear user who specializes in several aerial combos. There is also now a dog character named Repede, a first in the series, who is a fast attacker. Players can choose whoever they desire to play as.

Some new additions are added to the battle system. In Tales of Vesperia, there is now a feature called an Encounter Link that allows different groups of monsters to enter a battle if the player runs into different groups of them at the same time. This causes more monsters to be in a battle rather than if the player only ran into one group. There are also a new feature called Fatal Strikes that can deal massive damage based on the player’s correct use of artes and reflexes. Overlimit level is also back in Tales of Vesperia and like in Tales of the Abyss, is visible as another bar, allowing players to know when they are capable of using one to their advantage. Overlimit allows players to perform powerful Burst Artes and Mystic Artes.

Players can also partake in Secret Missions that are special conditions that, if met, will reward players. These special conditions usually involve performing certain tasks in specific battles such as boss battles. They are actually quite easy to miss and the use of a guide may be necessary if players desire to complete them all.

Graphics: 9/10

Tales of Vesperia uses beautiful cel-shaded graphics that rival other Xbox 360 games such as Eternal Sonata. The characters sport a slight chibi look, but that is to be expected since all of the Tales games have such a style. Characters in battle are fluid with many different animations for their many different attacks. There are also quite a few anime cutscenes spread throughout the game. These are wonderful on their own right, but are hardly necessary since the in-game graphics practically look like an anime anyways. Fighting in cutscenes outside of battles are a little stiff, but are better than many of the previous entries in the Tales series. Characters each have their own distinct looks and players can collect costumes for the playable cast that changes their apparel during exploration, battles, and in-game cutscenes. A new addition to the series is the capability to decorate characters with accessories that also show up during exploration, battles, and in-game cutscenes. These accessories include stuff like sunglasses, bunny ears, hats, etc. As with previous Tales games, equipping different weapons on characters will appear in battles and in-game cutscenes.

Story/Characters: 9/10

Tales of Vesperia follows a typical story of the JRPG genre. However, the best part of the story is the colorful fictional world that is presented to the players–a world filled with dangerous monsters and cities protected from the outside with barriers powered by Blastia. Several elements are presented to the player including topics such as Blastia, aer, etc. that help paint a colorful and believable fictional world by backing up topics such as magic with fictional scientific theories and laws.

An interesting aspect about Tales of Vesperia is the average age of the cast of characters. The characters in Tales of Vesperia are a bit older and more mature than the characters in previous entries in the series. As such, rather than having the story overly emphasizing on character growth, the characters are more experienced and have already established developed personalities. For example, right off the start, the game’s protagonist, Yuri Lowell, is a very interesting character that is mature, confident, and sarcastic, traits that set him apart from most of the previous heroes in the Tales series.

There are a total of seven playable characters with an eighth temporary one (much like Asch in Tales of the Abyss). Each character has a distinct personality and background story. The cast is probably the best part of the game as each character is given much dialogue and screen time to further allow the player to better understand the character. Much of these are revealed in skits, interesting little conversations between the characters in the party. An interesting thing to note is that the skits are all voice acted now. In previous Tales games, the skits are unvoiced and players are forced to follow the automatically scrolling text written below the characters talking, but not in Tales of Vesperia.

Sound/Music: 9/10

The voice acting in Tales of Vesperia is quite good. Of course, many of the voices should be familiar with those who frequently play JRPGs and/or watch anime. The entire playable cast has great voice acting that fit the characters’ personalities. The best thing to note about the voice acting would be the usually silent skits in the previous Tales games are now all voiced. This inclusion to the several voiced cutscenes throughout the game and battle cries adds a whole bunch of voice acting in the game.

The music is very fitting to the game. As usual with the Tales series, the music will sound similar to tracks from previous entries in the series. Battle music, especially boss battles, are intense and changes depending on who the party is battling. Outside of battles, players are still greeted with many different tracks that range from silly clown like music for humorous cutscenes, dungeon exploration music, peaceful town music, to epic tracks. Also something to note would be the theme song, Ring a Bell by Bonnie Pink. For the first time in the localized Tales series, the introduction animation has a song with vocals, and it’s pretty good too.

Overall: 9/10

Overall, Tales of Vesperia is a great game that seems to have received quite a high production localization compared to previous games in the series. Those with an Xbox 360 should buy the game to enjoy a wonderful JRPG experience. While the game doesn’t do much new, it is still fun and refines what was presented in the previous entries in the series. Tales of Vesperia is another great entry to the Tales series with a fast paced battle system, interesting story and world, and a great cast of characters. By buying the game and showing support for the Tales series’ localization, other games in the series that have came out in the past or are coming out in the future will have a better chance of getting translated as well.

5 Stars Tales of Vesperia
Graphics: I found the Cel Shaded Animisc graphics to be well done and very catchie. However I do watch alot of anime myself so look at some videos and pictures to judge if the graphics would suit you.

Story: Awesome story I have loved every previous tales game and this lived up to my expectations. 70 hours logged to beat the game and finish the story.

Content: With Titles and crafting aspect influencing costume pieces to weapons and armor the replay ability is there for at least 2 or 3 play throughs. I am currently on my 3rd and still loving the game.

Buy/More Info

Halo 2

Halo 2 continues the story of Master Chief, the heroic super-soldier who defied the invading alien Covenant and survived. The Covenant leaders within Halo are angry at this unheard of event. To save face, they launch an invasion of our planet. Earth’s defenses are breached, and we’re all in danger — unless Master Chief can lead a small military squad to victory against Covenant forces, in all-out guerilla warfare!

User Ratings and Reviews

3 Stars good purchase
This one of the best deals i have found on a game by far. Halo 2 is a game where the multiplayer is not that interesting but the in depth story line is all there this game should be played for the story line if nothing else.

5 Stars Grandson loves Halo 2
I have no idea how to play this game, but my grandson does and he loves it.

5 Stars Good Game, But Could Be Better
Halo 2 is a good game, but not perfect. The campaign is fun, a little short, but fun. The levels are great on any difficulty, and I love the Elite missions. They are fun and challenging, a great twist to the game. The only two things I wished that did not happen in the game was the short storyline, and the ending. They leave you hanging, waiting for the third Halo. Campaign is fun, but it is not a fun game unless it has a good multiplayer. The multiplayer maps are great, but there are not enough of them. Bungie could have waited a while to bring out the game to make more multiplayer maps. Overall a good game.

Campaign- 4 stars

Multiplayer- 4 stars

Fun- 5 stars

4 Stars Not as good as the first, but still an excellent follow-up
After the incredible installment of Halo it seemed like every gamer around simply couldn’t wait to play the follow up! Well here it is, finally in my hands! I’m happy to report that overall this is a very solid follow-up to the first installment. There are a couple minor things that I didn’t like, but there are a lot of things they added into the game that are just awesome.

After the first game I was kind of wondering how they would follow it up since the Halo facility blew up and the Master Chief with Cortana were the only two sentient beings left alive. Well Halo 2 brings us deeper into the lore of the rings and their Forerunner builders. Apparently there is definitely more than one ring, or else this game wouldn’t have made as much sense without a Halo facility. I really don’t want to give away any of the story line because it’s a really intriguing story so far. To be honest the story is really what held this game together for me, but let’s just say that they end up coming upon another Halo ring and there is already a major Covenant armada on site. The best chance for survival is to get onto Halo and fight from there because we all know the Covenant will not destroy the ring. The best part of the story is that the covenant between the species that make up the Covenant doesn’t seem to be nearly as strong as we all assumed. In order to take us down that path we get to play as a Covenant elite named the Arbiter. This is one of the better changes they made to this game! It was a lot of fun to play on this side of war and see things from their perspective.

That’s all I’ll get into for the story. Honestly the game play and mission details are fairly rehashed from the first Halo. This is sort of unfortunate, but somewhat expected because what’s Halo without Halo? But running missions through the Library to find the Index again seemed tedious and uncreative, although they managed to spice them up a little by throwing in the new Brute character named Tartarus (and the brutes in general). The thing that really saved these repetitive elements was the backdrop story of the Covenant. Also they threw in new lush atmospheres found on Halo. Halo is a big place and it stands to reason that not every place is going to look the same, so it was nice to see them try and capitalize on newer elements. This gives us some familiar maps and ground as well as giving us whole new terrains to explore. One of my favorite is that at one point we end up on Earth and go through a whole urban warfare sequence. That was probably one of my favorite parts of the game.

Aside from the repeated levels the only other major problem I had with this game was the HUD. If you read my review for the first game you would remember that I mentioned that the view was great because it gave you sort of a mock peripheral vision. In this game it feels like you’re looking through a very confined screen, which makes it a little more difficult to play in co-op mode. This is unfortunate because it feels like they removed something that I thought was an improvement to a First Person Shooter game, maybe they felt it was an error? Of course I think this was more than made up for by being able to dual wield weapons and being able to use the Covenant energy swords. Though they got rid of the MA5B standard issue assault rifle from the original game and that made me sort of sad. Oh well, I can now wield two Needlers!

Overall I thought this was a very fun game. I even enjoyed going through the Library again, so while some may find that “uncreative”, which it is, I still enjoyed it. The Flood takes a bit of a back seat in this game and show up more as an annoyance until a big revelation at the end. Story wise this game is much bigger and more ambitious. I think if you were into Halo for the unique world and story you will also like Halo 2 just as much. So be prepared for a wild ride to save the universe and see how precarious the Covenant’s species allegiance just might be.

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5

3 Stars just average
played the first halo. it had some great moments. mind you, it wasn’t perfect. game was too dark, some maps were reused, & too much backtracking. i dont understand why bungie couldn’t have included a map so i’d know where i was going. also, the library chapter was plain repetitive tedium. halo 2 was basically the same, probably even worse. i mean, playing as the arbiter sucked. basically too much hype. but the multiplayer is where halo shines. solo campaigns are just ok.

Buy/More Info

Xbox 360 Elite Bundle

Introducing Xbox 360 Elite, the premier Xbox 360 console package that includes a massive 120GB hard drive, a HDMI port, and HDMI cable, all wrapped up with a premium black finish. Xbox 360 Elite also includes a black wireless controller and black Xbox LIVE headset. Xbox 360 Elite has enough space for a whole library of Xbox LIVE Arcade games as well as downloadable high-definition TV shows, movies, music, and all the other content available from Xbox LIVE Marketplace.

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars xbox360 is the best
this is the best game system ever invented it has great graphics and great games

5 Stars Why? Because its black and cool looking!
Never gives me any problems, nice shiny look to fit in the spot Im putting it, can do a lot with it! Well my review is not going to compare the old 360 with this one as I dont own an old 360 rather tell you what I enjoy about this one which could be the same as the old one, I dont know… Coming soon you can watch Netflix which is great. I love you can rent movies and watch them from your xbox. I can link up to my computer as a media extender to watch movies on the big screen! The hdmi cord comes with it plugged right in to my radio and sounds LOUD and Crisp! Must say I like the sound quality better then the ps3. I watch all my dvds on it ( no blue rays ) have to have a ps3 do something I guess. Chat with my friends online! Check to see what new awards they got on the games I got and set out to beat them! I like it? ya. I like the games I play? Duh (wouldnt play them if I didn’t). What makes the games on the 360 better then playing them on other consels? I get little creidt that I achieved something that my friend can see showing I did it. Others do not do this. Plus many games you just cant get that 360 makes (Halo3). Anything you do not like about it? When I first got it, I had a digital input in my radio and an hdmi port in my tv, but the extender will not let you plug an hdmi and a digital cord into the 360 together so I had to use the yellow red and white. Upgraded my radio and now it has the hdmi port (reason I got it) and works great. Why do you want such a huge hard drive? I rent moveis all the time and download clips and free shows, free games, new maps and extras! I have a bunch of games my dad likes saved right to the hard drive. Why have more then you need? Because less is a worse feeling!

2 Stars X-box 360 is the best for serious gamers
I only gave this product 2 stars because I already had a X-box 360. It got the red rings of death and I couldnt get microsoft to send me a box so i could send it to be fixed.

So I bought the cheapest Elite I could find on this site. At first it was great. Then I noticed about an hour in the game graphics would warp like theold Nintendo cartridges would when not in the system right, but right enough that they would still play. I thought it was the game at first, as I had played other games in the Elite and non of them had the same problem, until I played Halo 3 in my Elite and it did the same things in less than an hour.

Afte that I decided to return it and finally get on Microsoft about getting my old 360 repaired.

The 360 is really the best system for serious gamers. If you have a wii, most likely you play it when friends are over or if you want a good work out, not if you want to do actuall gaming with quality games. The ps3 has almost no titles, while the 360 while not the best in graphics and not always kid friendly has the widest selection of games for the serious and grown up gamer. For that I would give the system 5 starts but this particular system I bought only recieved 2.

5 Stars So far, so good
I’ve been using this model for over a month now. No issues so far.

5 Stars Very happy customer
I just got my 360 yesterday, and first of all, the Elite Bundle I ordered from Amazon was not repackaged in any way, shape, or form. It had the “Go Big” on it, it has the Falcon chip, and the games came factory sealed. Everything is perfect.

That being said, this is an amazing piece of hardware. Everything is so seamless. Downloading demos from XBox Live is ridiculously easy. The Marketplace has an awesome selection of items ranging from original XBox games (Psychonauts!) to TV Shows to some pretty excellent Indie Arcade games.

Everything you want to do, you can do it, and do it easily. For instance, I was playing Forza, and I decided I wanted some of my own music during the races. So I just loaded some music on my thumb drive from my PC, popped it in the USB port on the front of the 360, and I was good to go.

The graphics are awesome, the sound is great. If I had ONE gripe, and it’s not a big one, the fans on the 360 are a little loud. But if you have music going you won’t even hear it.

GET ONE!

Buy/More Info

Xbox 360 Quick Charge Kit

Box Contents: Charging stand for two batteries, one Xbox 360 Rechargeable Battery Pack, and an AC adapter.

With the Xbox 360 Quick Charge Kit, you can recharge in a flash and kiss disposable batteries goodbye. Your Xbox 360 Wireless Controller needs a new battery? Swap in a fresh pack from the Quick Charge Kit. Multiple wireless controllers? Pick up a couple of extras, so you’ll always be ready with a fully charged battery that’s ready to go. Quickly recharge up to two battery packs at the same time.

User Ratings and Reviews

1 Star Worst blister pack I’ve ever encountered.
I am slouched in my computer chair as I type this… bloody, winded, and defeated. A mere shadow of my former, confident self. I have long known that it is folly to wrestle with a blister pack without the benefit of scissors, but just as I always feared… they’ve finally built a better blister pack.

I cut the top edge. Thinking the fell packaging bested like so many that preceded it, I laid down my scissors, placed my fingers into its open wound, and pulled apart with great force, barely suppressing an animalistic victory cry…

It is a good thing I supressed that victory cry, friends, for had I not I would have looked very foolish (in addition to stressing my intercostal cartilage) when the package refused to yield, and laughed off my efforts.

“Alright”, I thought. “I’ve some more tricks up my sleeve.” I reclaimed the scissors and set to work removing the left seam of the package. An unholy snap! My scissors lay broken, and my arm (not my hand, ladies and gentlemen, but my ARM) was slowly welling up dark, rich blood in the deep gouge left, presumably, by the flying bit of brittle plastic which the package had flung at me, to protect itself against my insistent slicing.

I retreated to the bathroom, treated and dressed my wound, and crept back, warily, to the field of battle. The package lay on my bed, looking quite battered, yet smug and very self-satisfied. I live alone. Today, there will be no reinforcements. Knowing that all the hopes of my discharged Xbox 360 controller batteries depended on my efforts and my efforts alone, I crawled to the scissors on the floor, and fell back immediately to a safe distance to plan my next attack.

I decided that where guile had failed, boldness might succeed. I would cut directly down the center of the front side of the package: straight through the heart of the renegade guardian of my Quick Charge Kit. I did so, with speed and precision comparable to that of a feline ninja… or at least a fat guy with a serious grudge against a plastic shell. The gash was glorious. No fewer than 4 inches long, and terminating below the product within, so that even if the package proves unusually hardy, I will almost certainly pry the fault apart far enough to retrieve the device within. I placed one hand on the right seam, and the other near the bottom of the new gash, of which I’d made a gift to my adversary, and pull will all my strength. My ribs glow white hot, filling the room with excruciating brightness and my consciousness with a pain the likes of which I hope never to know again. I drop the package onto the bed, and stumble back to my chair, falling backward into it.

As I lay here, maybe dying, I reflect on that final sequence of mistakes… which ONE, if any, could have saved my life and sanity, had I only not made it… Was it my choice to use scissors instead of fire? Was it my hubris-fueled insistence upon opening the package with my own efforts, just because I am 25 and an adult who should be able to fend for himself, where I might have simply left it aside until I next visited my parents four states away, and then, tail tucked firmly betwixt my thights, I could have asked mommy to do it. Was it my decision to buy this product in the first place? Who can say, for certain?

My musing continues… if I recover from my injuries, how will I respond? Do I launch another assault on the dread unopenable package? Do I crown it the prince of my home, swear eternal fealty, and begin designing a new flag to represent the sheer dominance and magnificence of this mighty blister pack?

But one thing, gentle reader, is certain: you can learn from my experience. Just say no to inaccessibly-packaged consumer goods! It’s not too late. *cough* *cough*

Avenge… me…

5 Stars Very handy and useful
Small, easy to store and very handy and it charges the battery packs very quickly. It’s a must have for anyone with the rechargeable battery packs. Highly recommend this item!

5 Stars nothing to complain about
I bought this after my dog chewed up the end of my charging cable. This charges the batteries much faster and it will charge two at the same time.

5 Stars Fast and reliable
The product is amazing: charges the batteries real fast and its easy to use. Excellent purchase

5 Stars Works and better than having cords
Works perfectly. Better than having those chargers with the cords. I just pop them in and out when the battery gets low.

Buy/More Info

Xbox 360 Play and Charge Kit

With the Xbox 360 Play and Charge Kit, you ensure that the XBox gaming will last you much longer. This special kit will keep your wireless controller’s batteries from running down while you play. Includes rechargeable battery pack and charging cable.

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Reliable yet slightly disillusioned
This product works GREAT! It recharges and lets me play without giving me lag or trouble. The only negative hit on it is that I bought it with the understanding that when I plug it in, I can turn my controller from wireless to wired. Using this thought, I thought maybe I might be able to use my wireless remote to play my games on my computer too. Unfortunately, when I plugged it in, it did not work. The wire is only used to charge the remote. I still have to get the wireless adapter to be able to use it on my computer. I thought that just by plugging it in, I could use it like a regular remote control. Oh well. At least it recharges when it’s attached to my computer.

3 Stars Charge time is too slow
Since this charger charges via usb the charge time is a little slow, you can conect the cable to a computer or charge it y while you play…

I didnt give it five stars or four because i never seen completly charge, never seend the light of the cable turn green or turned off…

The battery can lats like a week charged playing two hours daily, if it was me i would pay alittle more and go for the XBOX 360 QUICK CHARGE KIT that can cahrge teo batteries at once…

also agood thing of the play and charge kit it comes with a batterie

4 Stars Not exactly as advertised, but still a good purchase
First of all, despite what it says on the packaging, you will NOT get 25 hours of play on one charge; more like 5 or 6. Second, the charge indicator is inaccurate and inconsistent: sometimes it’ll say it’s full when it’s actually almost dry, and other times it’ll say it’s running low when the charge is actually okay.

Not that it’s too big of a problem, because when the controller is actually running low on charge, the lights around the Xbox Guide Button will begin flashing. As you’re playing, you’ll notice the flashing lights out of your peripheral vision. That’s when you pause your game, look down at your controller, and see it’s crying for more power. You simply plug the cord into either USB port on the 360 and you’re set! The light on the charger will be red as long as the controller is still charging, and when it turns green you know it’s full.

Overall, I’m very happy with my charger and it’s already paid for itself in all the money I’ve saved in not having to continuously buy more batteries. If you have a cordless controller, this product is pretty much a must-have.

1 Star This actually kills the batteries!
When I first got my 360 in 2006, I picked up 2 of these, and used them often. When I had the controllers plugged into the system with them, I noticed something.

A lot of times, after I turned off my console, the fans on the console would keep running if I had one of the play and charge kits plugged in. I thought it was just continuing to charge the controller. Little did I know, it was actually draining them.

In less than 6 months… neither of the batteries I got with the play and charge kits held a charge at all. These are bad news and a waste of money. The Xbox 360 Quick Charge Kit is a much better investment. I have been using this since then and have had no problems with it at all. Not to mention it charges the batteries much more quickly.

It’s a little more expensive, but well worth it.

5 Stars Happy with the Play and Charge kit!
The Play and Charge kits kick the crap out of using batteries. If you don’t have these buy two now! Unfortunately, the 360 only has 2 USB Ports so buying more than 2 is useless. Enjoy though!

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