achievements posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Madden NFL Arcade Achievements are funny, disturbing

by Richard Mitchell { Nov 4th 2009 at 7:15PM }

Everyone loves Achievements. That's a fact. As such, we really appreciate it when developers put some thought into their Achievements. While the 'cheevos for Madden NFL Arcade -- as unearthed by MGC -- are fairly standard in their execution, the names are all pretty amusing. We're particularly fond of "Like a Boss," likely named for the (incredibly NSFW) song of the same name. One that we're not so fond of is "2 Points 1 Win," making Madden NFL Arcade the second game to riff on an abhorrent internet meme that we refuse to explain (don't investigate if you value your sanity). Hit the source link for the full Achievement list.

Halo Waypoint live with Dashboard preview program, includes Avatar Awards

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 30th 2009 at 5:15PM }

It's not quite Wonka's chocolate factory, but the Xbox 360 Dashboard update preview participants are getting a taste of some delectable bonuses regardless. Earlier today, those lucky folks were granted their promised early access to the Halo Waypoint beta. Lo and behold, 11 Avatar Awards arrived alongside the addition (five for each gender's Avatar, one for both), unlocking based on various Achievements from Halo 3: ODST, ranging from Recon helmets to ODST t-shirts. Microsoft has provided little in the way of details on the addition, so feel free to let us know if you see anything particularly strange or interesting.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Gamasutra examines Gamerscore and game completion statistics

by Xav de Matos { Oct 28th 2009 at 2:30PM }

In a new feature, Gamasutra looks at Xbox 360 Gamerscore and game completion statistics in search of a reason why some players stop playing games in their library.

According to the feature, a game's overall difficulty is the biggest culprit from discouraging players from completing a game. Using data of 14,000 players regularly surveyed provided by Microsoft and the top 13 Xbox Live titles in 2008, it was concluded the group unlocked less than half of the possible Gamerscore on average. Gamasutra notes that the selected users in the survey tend to be more hardcore than the average player, so overall completion rates are expected to be even lower.

Another point of the study was to determine the average completion of a game's campaign mode. Using data of games that award campaign completion Achievements, it was determined that only 30 percent of the surveyed group did not play games until the end. Gamasutra theorizes that the reason so many gamers neglect a game's campaign is due to frustration. Having experienced the -- sadly, often horrific -- world of Xbox Live, we'd also guess many of the hardcore gamers examined skipped the campaign in favor of pwnin' n00bs online.

Rumor: Assassin's Creed 2 Achievements and Trophies surface discreetly

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 25th 2009 at 11:30AM }

Once again, we've bitten the bullet of plotline spoilification for you lot, and measured the believability of two recently released lists of Achievements and Trophies for Assassin's Creed 2. Our initial impression is that they seem legit -- but they also contain references to a number of plot points and gameplay mechanics you may want to remain in the dark about until you get behind the wheel of Ezio Auditore Da Firenze.

Check out the rumored list of Achievements and Trophies after the jump. We'll contact Ubisoft to see if we can confirm their authenticity.

Read: Assassin's Creed 2 Achievements
Read: Assassin's Creed 2 Trophies

Continued →

Call of Duty Classic Achievements are pretty achievable

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 14th 2009 at 5:00PM }

Xbox360Achievements.org has uncovered the Digital Accomplitrons for Call of Duty Classic, set to to be bundled with special editions of Modern Warfare 2 and to be release on XBLA "eventually." Much like the most recent iterations of the Call of Duty franchise, Classic doesn't have a single multiplayer Achievement, which should hopefully keep everyone focused on actually playing the game. The Achievements that are there offer points for completing campaign levels, completing the game itself, and accomplishing a few more challenging objectives.

We're particularly fond of "Pea Shooter," which tasks players with completing a mission using only the pistol and no melee attacks. That's hardcore, son.

Left 4 Dead 2 Achievements confirm final campaigns, detail new features [update]

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 12th 2009 at 6:00PM }

The Achievement aficionados over at Xbox360Achievments.org have uncovered the Xbox 360 Achievements for Left 4 Dead 2. The Achievements offer some insane challenges -- "Survive a campaign on Expert skill with Realism mode enabled" -- and, if accurate, also confirm the recently uncovered "Dead Center" and "Hard Rain" campaigns. The Achievements also detail some new features and confirm other rumored features, most notably a defibrillator which can be used to revive teammates. Also mentioned is an adrenaline power-up to boost speed, deployable ammo upgrades and ... a bile bomb. We really hope that last one does what we think it does.

Head over to X360A for the full list (warning: watch for spoilers ... and Tanks).

Update: A Valve representative has confirmed the veracity of the two posters as official, saying simply, "They're legit."

Pitchford: Easy Achievements boost sales by up to 40,000 units

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 7th 2009 at 6:00PM }

We knew that there was contingency of Xbox 360 owners who place a remarkable amount of importance on their largely unimportant Gamerscore -- however, a recent Official Xbox Magazine interview with Gearbox president Randy Pitchford has got us worried about our fellow man. According to Pitchford, developers who tweak their game's Achievements to make them a tad easier to obtain can boost sales of said game "by something like 10 and 40 thousand units."

Yes, Pitchford claims that there are 10 to 40 thousand people out there who purchase games based on their capacity to bolster their e-peen. That represents around $2.4 million being spent on making an inconsequential number slightly larger. Our faith in humanity wasn't just shaken by Pitchford's report -- it was absolutely obliterated. We're gonna go watch Rudy a few times until that faith is restored.

[Image]

Dance the night away with Gay Tony Achievements

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 6th 2009 at 1:50PM }

Ahead of the impending release of The Ballad of Gay Tony -- as DLC or as a part of the Episodes from Liberty City retail disc -- Grand Theft Auto IV has been updated with new Achievements on Xbox.com. Ten new Achievements have been added for The Ballad of Gay Tony, totaling 250 points and bringing the grand total for GTAIV to 1500 points. Players are rewarded for various tasks in the expansion, including base jumping, cage fighting and -- Joystiq's favorite -- dancing flawlessly.

Head over to Xbox 360 Achievements for the full list.

Modern Warfare 2 Achievements and Trophies revealed

by Griffin McElroy { Oct 4th 2009 at 11:30AM }

Our fingers have turned to goopy nubs as a result of our transcription of the Achievements and Trophies in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. We didn't keep an exact tally of the accomplishments therein, but we're fairly certain the total number approaches eight skajillion. You'll find the efforts of our toils listed after the jump -- be wary, there are a few minor spoilers in there. For instance, at some point during the game, you kill a bunch of terrorists. Stop the presses!

Read - Xbox360Achievements.org
Read - AllPS3Trophies.com

Gallery: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Continued →

Halo 3: ODST miniFAQ

by James Ransom-Wiley { Sep 22nd 2009 at 2:57PM }

Whether you're preparing to drop right in or are wavering outside the enlistment office, this is your basic field guide to Halo 3: ODST.

Jump to a specific answer by clicking on a question below, or view the entire FAQ after the break:

WARNING: FAQ contains spoilers pertaining to names and descriptive elements of Campaign and Firefight missions, Achievements, and certain hidden/unlockable content.

Continued →

Smack your Lips for new Achievements

by Richard Mitchell { Sep 21st 2009 at 6:25PM }

Have people been clamoring for more Achievements in Lips? Is this something people want? We're asking an honest question here, because we really don't know. Regardless of the demand, it appears to be true, with Xbox360Achievements.org spotting nine new Achievements for the game, adding another 250 points. It's unclear if these Achievements are available now, or will be made available as part of future DLC. It's also curious that these Achievements would be added so close to the launch of Lips: Number One Hits.

Whatever the truth is behind this mystery, we're sure exuberant box art models everywhere will be thrilled!

[Thanks, NBA Kirkland]

Remember Market Garden with a Hell's Highway Achievement on Sept. 17

by Xav de Matos { Sep 11th 2009 at 8:30PM }

Next week, gamers will finally be able to unlock an Achievement in Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway worth 50 Gamerscore points if they play the game at any time on September 17, while connected to Xbox Live. The Achievement -- Remember September '44 -- references the War War II mission that sent Allied Airborne troops into the Netherlands to kick-start Operation Market Garden, which is also the basis of the game's story.

Since Ubisoft's tactical shooter was delayed from its original Holiday 2007 date into late September '08, the Achievement has never been available for players to unlock. Until now. So on Thursday, September 17, grab a copy of Hell's Highway and fire up those Xbox 360 consoles. Because who can say "no" to freebie Gamerscore points?

Swiss Xbox.com outs Mass Effect 'Pinnacle Station' DLC [update]

by David Hinkle { Aug 24th 2009 at 11:31AM }

Update: Reader Codemonkey76 points out that the listing is now on the US Xbox.com page right here. Interesting!

Remember when those Achievements for Mass Effect showed up online -- you know, these ones that mention Pinnacle Station? Well, the Swiss Xbox.com has offered up new details, pricing the DLC at 400

($5) and billing it as a series of battle scenarios lasting around "2–3 hours." The Swiss Xbox.com listing says the DLC has been available since June 16, an obvious error.

So, Bioware, EA, would you just officially announce Pinnacle Station already?

[Via Eurogamer]

Fairytale Fights has 'Kill 1,000 Children' Achievement (for now)

by Richard Mitchell { Aug 20th 2009 at 8:30PM }

We've already told you that Fairytale Fights allows gamers to take control of fabled characters like Snow White and hack virtual children to bits. This in and of itself is a little disturbing (and somewhat amusing in the context of the game), but we never dreamed PlayLogic would actually include an Achievement for mass child homicide. And yet, here we are: UGO reports that the game contains an Achievement for killing 1,000 children.

Apparently the Achievement is on thin ice, and likely won't be included in the final game, but the ability to kill children should still make the cut. As such, you still can kill 1,000 children, but you'll need a pencil and paper to keep score.

[Via Game Politics]

New Mass Effect Achievements hint at DLC (finally)

by Richard Mitchell { Aug 20th 2009 at 8:00PM }

It's been quite some time since we've heard about new downloadable content for the original Mass Effect. In fact, the last time we heard about it was when BioWare teased fans that they might hear about DLC soon. That was back in June, and BioWare has said bupkis on the subject since. Thankfully, it looks like the company doesn't have to, as the original Mass Effect has been stealthily updated with new Achievements on Xbox.com.

There are three Achievements, each worth 50 points, bringing the game's total to 1200. The Achievements give us a few details about the DLC's contents. According to the descriptions, Commander Shepard should take part in "Ahern's survival mission" as well as several "combat scenarios on Pinnacle Station." Sounds like we're getting that fight club after all.

We've contacted BioWare in hopes the company might finally drop some details. We'll update this post with any new info.

[Via X360A. Thanks, Jp!]