20th November 2009

How to Win Mafia Wars

Do you believe that you can’t win Mafia Wars? Okay, there isn’t a checkered flag in your Mafia Wars future.  Yet I argue you can win Mafia Wars.  There are 4 goals in Mafia Wars:

  1. Leveling with tier mastery on the side
  2. Building and arming a large mafia crew
  3. Raking in the money so spending your hourly take is the challenge
  4. Gathering collections and achievements for bragging rights

If you agree about those four Mafia Wars goals, then we do know how to describe a winner.

Picture of the Mafia Wars Winner

  • You have mastered the jobs and tiers
  • Energy is abundant at your high level
  • You have the best weapons, armor, and vehicles for your huge mafia family
  • You have so much take that it’s hard to spend it all
  • You’ve vaulted all Mafia Wars collections and earned many achievements

That list may seem impossible.   That Mafia Wars winner has really mastered the goals of the game.  What’s the trick to becoming a Mafia Wars winner?  I hesitate to impose self-help advice onto Mafia Wars, but these 2 rules will help you to win:

  • Design easy, short term goals to reach for
  • Seek information

Creating short term goals

The following goals would be helpful in getting a beginner going in the right direction.

  • Aim at the three time mastery of Street Thug tier
  • Work on adding to your mafia until you have the same amount of members as your level
  • Begin building up your investment property holdings by aiming to buy ten buildable lots
  • Check your vault for nearly finished collections and add a needed item to your wishlist

Tiny goals like those are possible for anyone.  If you start moving in this way, you’ll end up in the winner spot in no time.

Collecting Information about Mafia Wars

No one said Mafia Wars would be a piece of cake.  There are many details that make getting to a Mafia Wars win real work.  Challenges are at every turn of Mafia Wars because the millions of people who play it make the game new every session.  And no one knows every strategy or hint out there!  Investing time into the pursuit of Mafia Wars tips is going to yield results.  Players that seek out the latest strategies, game updates, and inside tips will have a leg up in the long run.  Visit this site for Mafia Wars how to tricks.

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

Where to go for an Xbox 360 Premium System

Are you one of the many people out there who are on the hunt for an Xbox 360 Premium system? If so, then you should know that there are a few retailers in particular that you can visit if you want an Xbox 360 Premium system or even the Microsoft Xbox 360 Core system. Of the hundreds out there, here are a few that are definitely worth considering.

While features like movie and music playback and Internet access have made the Xbox 360 video game system ideal for all home entertainment purposes, its staple source of entertainment is in video games. Some of the biggest titles on the Xbox 360 are listed below, but you must understand that there are literally hundreds more to choose from. RPG fans will delight in the Xbox 360 video game system because they get to choose from the likes of Mass Effect and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Shooter fans will love Call of Duty 4 and Gears of War, while any type of gamer will love Grand Theft Auto IV and Fallout 3. The game library for the Xbox 360 video game system is already very large and complete, but there will be hundreds of additions to it over the years.

A Cheaper Alternative

If paying or more for a video game does not sound too appealing to you, then you can choose to rent Xbox 360 games. The new business model has consumers paying a small monthly fee in exchange for renting the largest selection of games available, from just released blockbusters to obscure games from ten years ago. For or a month, gamers can rent games for as long as they like without any late fees. This is a smart alternative to buying expensive games, because gamers often only finish games once (if at all), and much of their or purchase goes to waste. Of course, renting games isn’t exclusive to the Xbox 360 video game system, and PS3, Wii, and PC gamers can all rent video games for much cheaper than it would cost to purchase them.

Lastly, most 360 games become discount Xbox 360 games over time anyway. It’s not uncommon to find games that are at least 18 months old to cost just half of what they did originally. Purchasing older games is another great way to save money. There are some fantastic titles like The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion which have fallen in price because of their relative age to other Xbox 360 titles. If you absolutely must purchase some of the upcoming Xbox 360 games like Fallout 3 when they launch, then by all means, go right ahead. However, you will end up paying more, and for any games that can wait, waiting for several months really opens up the options for discount Xbox 360 games.

The bottom line is that this is a fantastic video game console, one that is definitely worth trying for yourself. Keep in mind that the prices are constantly lowering on the older Xbox 360 pro system as newer versions take their place, and so you can wait even just a few months and the cost will drop dramatically. You do always have the option of buying the game used, but you have to be very cautious if you decide to go this route because you can never really be too sure of the condition of the game if you are buying it used.

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

Has Your Character Choice Sunk Your Mafia Wars Leveling Strategy?

How unfair is it that the initial time you logged on to Mafia Wars you had to pick a character type although you had no clue about Mafia Wars strategy for leveling up?  Sadly, there is no way to alter your initial character choice once it’s made, anymore.  It wasn’t always this way; once, you were able to pay Godfather reward points for a change in character type.

I’ve heard rumors that Zynga will reintroduce the Mafia Wars character type alteration option back into the game, but so far that’s just what it is…rumors.  Although I’m surprised Zynga doesn’t bring back the character change option, because they could rake in lots of reward points.  Lots of Mafia Wars gamers would be thrilled to pay the reward points fee to alter their Mafia Wars character type, I bet.  Zynga must really be busy with Moscow and the programming for American West if they are overlooking the chance to make easy money on this character switching option.

For now you are stuck with that initial character you picked while you were still in the dark of Mafia Wars strategy for leveling.  You had 3 picks for Mafia Wars character:

Mogul
Maniac
Fearless

Related to each character is one primary benefit, a top mafia spot, and a come-and-go power.  In order to follow the leveling discussions that follow, here are the character descriptions.

Mogul Character in Mafia Wars
Major benefit: receives the 60 minute take every 54 minutes.
Top Mafia position: Bagman
Come-and-go power: When you occupy the Bagman spot in another players crew, you have a chance to earn double the money on a certain percentage of jobs.

Maniac Character in Mafia Wars
Primary benefit: Energy returns at one point every three minutes, rather than 1 point every five
Top Mafia position: Button Man
Bonus power: When you occupy the Buttonman spot in another player’s mafia, you can attack a Mafia Wars gamer with superior stats, crew size, and weapons, armor, and vehicles and sometimes win the fight regardless.

Fearless Character in Mafia Wars
Major benefit: Health rebuilds faster – one point every 2 minutes as opposed to 1 every three.
Top Mafia position: Wheelman
Come-and-go Power: When a fearless occupies the Wheelman spot in another player’s crew, a Fearless can complete a certain percentage of jobs without losing energy.

Most Mafia Wars strategists agree that the Mogul character doesn’t assist a player to level up any faster in job-based leveling.  Mogul is an awesome character for Mafia Wars money because they get more than two hours of extra take every day.  In the lower levels of Mafia Wars – and in Cuba, too! – the additional income a Mogul earns is a real help for a player.  Once you figure out Mafia Wars property investment, though, you’ll get plenty of Mafia Wars income whether you are a Mogul or not.  That makes the Mogul character’s major benefit a little useless before you get to far up the leveling ladder.

Mogul character out of the argument, you get into a heated argument about the most advantageous character for strategic Mafia Wars leveling when you start talking about Fearless and Maniac.  These are summaries of the debate:

Arguments in Favor of Maniac

Since energy is what earns that experience to get you leveled up, Maniac is the best Mafia Wars character for leveling.  In Mafia Wars, you can’t ever have too much energy.  And although the Maniac’s intermittent power doesn’t help you much once you achieve a certain level and only attack when you know you can win the fight anyway, the energy recovery of the Maniac is always helping you level faster.  So Maniac is the best leveling character to choose.

Arguments in Favor of Fearless

The superior Mafia Wars leveling character is Fearless.  While speedy health recovery is deemed a worthless quality by most, the come-and-go power of completing some jobs at no energy cost is so beneficial that quick leveling is a guarantee for Fearless.  The leveling strategy only works if someone puts you into their top mafia Wheelman spot, which can be a hard sell since your character isn’t much of an asset to a crew at first.  Once you get into that Wheelman positon, you can get between three and eleven percent of the jobs for zero energy cost.  Leveling up while in Wheelman will go much faster.  When the jobs start consuming more energy as you advance into the higher tiers, the Fearless bonus power gets more meaningful.  And Fearless’ more speedy health recovery actually are pretty useful after level 35 because the fightlist in Cuba tends to drain your health rapidly, and who wants to pay for hospital stays with pesos?

So, what’s the conclusion – is Fearless or Maniac the superior leveling character in Mafia Wars?  Assuming you can get into the Wheelman spot in someone’s top mafia, I think Fearless is going to level most quickly for you.  Regardless, you can carry away this observation from the leveling controversy.  If you want to level with speed, you’ll have to learn all you can about handling your Mafia Wars energy.  Clearly, Mafia Wars leveling hinges on maximizing your energy.

Maybe you’re bummed now that you realize you’re initial character choice will limit your leveling speed.  There is always room for improvement in Mafia Wars leveling, regardless of character, if you get the most from your energy!  Another option is to open another Facebook profile you use just for a Mafia Wars speed level up character.  You can still use your current Mafia Wars character to promote your new character into top spots, run preparation jobs, and gift items to your new character, too!  Just don’t have so many characters going that you can’t keep track (yeah, don’t get me started on that story!

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

Mafia Wars Bodyguards and Whipping Boys

You’ve got to love collecting the criminal lifestyle when you play Mafia Wars.  And Mafia Wars bodyguards are certainly part of that mafia mystique.  Sure, they are useful defensive equipment (DEF 25), but there are better to be had in the game.  What’s the lure of bodyguards?

Regardless of mobster status, bodyguards have the real effect of keeping you from being pistol whipped on the fightlist all the time.  Newbies getting targeted by higher level players is de rigour for the game, so it’s no surprise that finding defense like Mafia Wars bodyguards is at the top of a new player’s list of needs.

Looking for where to find Mafia Wars bodyguards?  You will find bodyguards in the loot from the Protect Your City from a Rival Family job in the Hitman tier.  One cool thing about those bodyguards is that you can earn a set while you are still in those beginner levels.  (If you’re already going to Cuba, you can get a Guerilla Squad with even greater defense than bodyguards in El Padrino tier – Storm the Presidential Palace.)

The job that earns you Mafia Wars bodyguards is really very experience/energy smart, as well.  You’ll spend 31 energy and earn fifty-eight experience.  Experience to energy ratio of 1.87 makes that job is a good bet for leveling, [as well].  It’s a good energy investment and gets you the bodyguards, arguably the top defensive equipment available to lower level players from job loot.  The strengthening of your defense due to bodyguards will enable you to defeat a gamer who attacks you when your attacker is generally equal to you.  I recommend that you get bodyguards for as many members of your crew as you can.

Maybe you have a more difficult problem than a few Mafia Wars bodyguards can remedy.  Has a experienced gamer with infinitely larger crew and massively superior equipment made a favorites tab of your game profile for the sole purpose of attacking your character every time you log on?  Not fun and bodyguards may not be enough to end the abuse.

We better go over a bit of Mafia Wars fight strategy.

Is your personal defense stat a sad zero?
Are you waiting to add mafia members ‘when you have time’?
Have you neglected mafia equipment?

Alf Hassed fight strategy will equal you becoming a floor mop for Mafia Wars.  When you’ve attracted a Mafia Wars bully, you won’t be able to continue to allocate all your skill points to energy; you’ll want to invest some into defense.  Attackers also target players with a teeny mafia because they are easier to beat.  You’ll have to add some crew size.  And you’ll have to equip that crew as well as you can afford – every one needs a weapon, armor, and vehicle.  When you equip your family with the best equipment for defense, you’ll be stronger when you are attacked and therefore a better bet to win the fight.

Good luck and go find some Mafia Wars bodyguards!

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

WoW Leatherworking – Gear Up & Trade

Leatherworking belongs to the crafting professions in WoW and therefore it allows a player to create a many great items. At first you will focus on creating Leather Armor but you should know that Leatherworking is more than that. You probably know that you are going to need loads of leather for the Leatherworking profession. Choosing Skinning as your second profession would be ideal since you will have the opportunity to gather all the mats you need by yourself. At a later stage you can also make Mail Armor but we’ll get back on that later. Click here for more on WoW Leatherworking Leveling Guide.

Next to the armor you can make you can also make useful and profitable items like leather bags. Armor kits are also something that made Leatherworking useful. A Leatherworker can also create Leg Armors which are great because you can apply these on the armor you wear to make it stronger. What’s nice about a Leatherworker is that he or she can also create Leg Armors which are soulbound and can only be applied on the Leatherworker’s own gear. These SB Leg Armors have a better quality compared to the ones he is able to sell/ trade.

Besides these Leg Armors one can also craft Fur Linings that can be applied on the Leatherworker’s bracers in order to improve these heavily. A Leatherworker is able to craft different types of Fur Linings that he can use to improve his dps, spell casting or tanking abilities. With the variety of items he can make, a Leatherworker can earn a nice amount of gold as well as boost his stats. As you progress with your Leatherworking profession you will be able to specialize and choose between specific branches For the best leveling guide click here: Ultimate Guide WoW

Dragonscale Leatherwork.

Leather is not the only type of armor you can make with Leatherworking.  If you specialize in Dragonscale Leatherworking you will be able to create more and better Mail Armor items. The Shaman and Hunter class will have benefits from this spec because they wear mail.

Leatherworking Elementally.

Elemental Leatherworking is great for the casters among the Leatherworkers. If you choose this type of Leatherworking you will be able to create armor specially designed for casters.

Tribal Leatherworking. Feral Druids and Rogues are the type of characters that will benefit from this branch. It allows them to specialize in creating Leather Armor which provides them with a lot of damage or tanking attributes depending on their needs.

Being able to specialize yourself in particular parts of Leatherworking is great because you can then fulfill the needs of your character better. Specializing yourself in Leatherworking does not mean that you can’t benefit from some great abilities that a Leatherwork will receive at later levels like in example those Leg Armors we talked about earlier.

Basically, you can say that Leatherworking is great for Hunters, Shamans, Rogues and Druids because they will benefit the most from the items that can be crafted. With the other nice trade goods you can make like the armor kits and bags you will be able to earn some money with your profession as well. Besides the bags and armor kits etc. you can also create a variety of epic and rare items that can be sold on the Auction House. Because you can also improve your own bracers and use those Fur Linings for your legs, Leatherworking is a great profession. If you would like more on WoW Leveling, click here: WoW Leveling Guide

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

EA Sports To Release a Unique Range Of Toys

Global computer animator, EA Sports has announced that they will be providing the branding for a new range of sports equipment created by Toy Island. The high tech “virtual coaching tools”, which will use motion and infrared sensors, are being designed for children of the ages of three to twelve which is a very large spectrum.

The numerous sports that the equipment will be built for is Baseball, American Football, Basketball, Hockey and ‘Soccer’ (Football). There is even talk that they may bring out their own range of surfboards. EA Sports boss Peter Moore said that “Our goal is to take the EA Sports brand much deeper into the fabric of sports, and into new markets that allow more people to unleash their inner spirit of both sports and competition.
Considering that EA Sports are more known for their prominence in the computer animation game industry this is a very interesting development for them. It will add so much to the already enormous brand and is sure to almost double their profits. This new idea will also open the doors for new relationships to be carved with local retailers and will get the EA Sports brand recognised on a much larger scale than ever before. Among the aids due to be released you can expect things like, footballs, shin pads, football boots, action figures, snowboards and many more are still to be announced.

It is understandable that EA will be looking to branch out especially in such an un-predictable time in terms of our global economy. It is pretty wise of Electronic Arts to be looking outside of computer animation and into toy making because it is broadening their profit revenue stream. Many companies have been put into liquidation recently because of their lack of knowledge on the market. In order to help keep your business (small or large) up and standing on its own two feet you will need to diversify the product ranges. This is absolutely imperitive.

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

Inscription – The Inscribed Wisdom

With the release of the latest WoW expansion WoTLK we gained the possibility to take the Inscription profession. This profession is very useful especially now when players got a chance to put 3 major and 3 minor glyphs on themselves which will improve their gaming performance greatly.

As a Scribe you are able to create various class specific glyphs as well as various vellums, scrolls, off-hand tomes and Darkmoon cards. If you choose Inscription as your profession you will receive the ability called milling. For Milling you will need a lot of herbs to produce mats needed for Inscription. Click here for more on WoW Inscription Guide

Where to train

Inscription trainers could be found in every capital city and allow a player to train his skill up to 300. For 375 skill a player needs to visit a trainer in Hellfire Peninsula while for 450 skill he needs to seek a trainer in Northrend.

What are vellums used for?

Vellums can be used by Enchanters because it allows them to place their Enchants on the Vellum. Vellums enable an Enchanter to place an Enchant on vellum and to place these Vellums on the Auction House. This also allows an Enchanter to enchant gear of his alt chars.

What about glyphs?

Glyphs are a new feature in WoW. A player is able to place on himself 6 glyphs of his choice. You can use three major and three minor glyphs. If your character has a dual talent build you can use 6 different glyphs for each build.

Tomes

A Scribe can also produce various BoE (Bind on Equip) off-hand tomes. These tomes will not bring much profit to a Scribe but at some point they can be quite useful. For the best leveling guide click here: Ultimate Guide WoW.

Minor Inscription Research

Minor Inscription Research is available for everybody that takes Inscription as profession. With this research a Scribe is able to discover a new glyph which he can later craft. If you want to do a research you will need:

- Virtuoso Inking Set

Reagents: Moonglow Ink and 2x Light Parchment

With the mentioned mats a Scribe will be able to make random scrolls and while doing that you have a chance to discover new glyphs (minor).

Herbalism and Inscription

As every profession has its counterpart, Inscription has Herbalism. Herbalism is suggested as a good second profession since one will need large amounts of herbs to craft mats for the Inscription skill.

Inscription = profitable?

You can earn quite a bit of gold with Inscription. Just by making the glyphs you can earn quite a bit. Some glyphs are better for selling than others though. However, you will be able to discover more glyphs as you go and you will be able to craft them.

If you take Enchanting and Inscription you can also make a lot of money out of selling Enchants which can be placed on the Vellums. Perhaps you are already an Enchanter. Use Inscription to sell enchants on a more convenient and faster way. If you do it like this there will be no need to stand in the cities all day announcing which Enchants you can make.

Lastly you can also sell Darkmoon cards which go for nice amounts of gold. Once combined into a deck you can take a quest from it. The quest requires you to visit the Darkmoon fair where you can hand in the deck and receive an awesome epic trinket in return. If you would like more on WoW Leveling, click here: WoW Guide

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

Role-Playing Games, Their History and Kids

If you’re a modern gamer, you’ll almost certainly look back over the last two decades of the gaming industry in terror. Back then, gamers were all too far-away from the actions they made during play whether it involved shooting or platforming or usually both. Now, it’s a totally new world dominated by players themselves, thanks to MMORPG which has given rise to role-playing multiplayer gaming. At the present, people actually co-exist in a virtual world while playing and being the actual characters. What’s even neater is you get to live in an online world where other real people interact with you first-person, whether you’re talking Diablo II, Everquest II or the invincible World of Warcraft. In the beginning, MMORPG felt like a classic craze that people would sooner or later outgrow as a new tend took over. But it’s been twenty years since the arrival of this genre and it has so far not shown signs of waning. Every gamer would tell you that the adrenaline rush is addicting and this is most likely responsible for people’s unceasing passion for role-playing games from their tabletop beginnings to this digital age. On the other hand, while it’s tempting to restrict ourselves to the fun and thrills brought by this gaming phenomenon, it gives rise to security concerns for gamers who are inevitably predisposed to bringing their digital battles beyond virtual. It is not unusual to hear about gamers actually getting into fights once they’ve stepped out of their gaming universe and into the real world where they actually get to meet each other in the flesh. And these fights aren’t to be taken for granted. Some have escalated to serious proportions, as well as grave injuries and even death. The type of games people play are exclusively their judgment but the issue becomes particularly sensitive for minors who are just as likely to be hooked as their adult counterparts and maybe even precariously so. This not to say that MMORPG should be proscribed among young players but there should be, by all means, restrictions obligatory by both family and social authorities. Teenagers are mainly impulsive and they are probably the ones who need to be able to balance their addiction before they get into serious trouble from the dynamics of a mere fantastical world. This is where parents should take more vigorous steps in keeping their children alert where they should particularly for those who are just at the start of their teenage years. Self-enriching activities such as martial arts and music should be cultivated without unavoidably keeping them away from gaming which remains to be a worthwhile activity for a young person whose will always have the natural propensity to game. As always, the trick is for these kids to balance between gaming, school and other productive activities. After all, there’s no stopping them from wanting a fun game which is simply synonymous to computer games in this day and age.

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments

20th November 2009

A WoW Leveling Guide Especially for You

Perhaps you’re a newbie or maybe you’re a veteran player who is on a quest to use every type of character there is. Your expertise in the game and your experience in the game do not matter as much because everyone, regardless of seniority would consult a WoW Leveling Guide. Why? Everybody wants to level up as fast as they can and with the constant updates that the game puts the players in, there is always something new to learn and new tricks to master. Everyone is pushed back to the basics and that is why the proliferation of leveling guides has been on the rise. For some leveling guides, they claim that within a few days you will reach level 80. Claims of most other guides state that you will be in the lead after 7 days only. While they all promise the same thing, each WoW Leveling Guide has a different approach and a different mechanic on how to go about this.

Of course there are intricacies to the kind of leveling guide that you should go for. Are you looking for an Alliance Leveling Guide or a Horde Leveling Guide?
Do you have an inclination to have daily quests added? Do you want a guide which will teach you how to earn a lot of gold even while you power level? It is because of specifications such as this one that a WoW Leveling Guide may or may not work for you. One more decision making aspect is the extent of knowledge that you possess on the subject of the game. Most guides include a play by play account of starting from scratch to hacking your way towards level 80. However, there are some players who are impatient and cannot stand to repeat the basics of the game. Face it, if you have been playing the game for years, do you really need to know what the races are and what the job classes do?

For a WoW Leveling Guide to be truly effective, first of all, it has to be integrated in the game. Simply reading the contents of a guide is very different from performing the directions in it. Oftentimes something gets lost in translation between the written copy and the one in your head. This causes twice as much confusion for new players who have limited knowledge about the game.

Numerous guides nowadays use the method of integrating their instructions in the WoW game itself. So a player will not find himself alt+tabbing every few minutes and then returning to play for a couple of minutes only to alt+tab back. It is quite imaginable just how annoying it is for players when their WoW Leveling Guide is the old kind.

Aside from the map integration, a good guide will also show you legal and legitimate ways to achieve your desired level in the shortest time possible. Some people think they can get away with duping players into paying for their guides that feature illegal ways to achieve your goal. It is a sad fact that some players would still push through with the questionable methods however, when retribution comes, these are the people who cry the hardest. So look for a WoW Leveling Guide that allows you to level up the fastest without tinkering with the natural order of things and bypassing the system. Not only is there more honor in that method, you can make sure that by the end of the day, all the time you spend leveling will not be taken away from you in the form of the very painful banning of your account.

posted in Arcade, Blogroll, Retro, Shooter, Side Scroller, Space | 0 Comments