Unfermented Deal: Final Fantasy XIII for $20!

Today's Unfermented Deal is going to be short and quick, unlike the the video game of which the deal is on. How clever are we!






For an unknown amount of time, Amazon.com is selling Final Fantasy XIII for $19.99 (shipping will be extra). The only caveat is that it's only for the Playstation 3 version of the game.

If you love the Final Fantasy series, you probably already own the game, thus making this deal useless. If you've been curious about the game but just didn't want to shell out the $59.99 retail upon release, now is your time to buy.

The PS3 version of the game garnered a Metacritic rating of 83, which is like akin to a high "C" grade if one were in grade school. The game lasts most players over 45 hours which comes out to about $.44 per hour of game play. Ha!  Take that, forth grade math class!

As always, clicky the linky for quicky purchasey.......it's belowy. Sorry.

Use a 360 Controller to Play PS3 Games! (kinda)

Microsoft burned you twice this week, you say? You aren't too keen on the upcoming $10 increase to Xbox Live! and you feel betrayed by the software giant for their expecting you to buy a new and improved Xbox 360 controller for $64.99? Are you one of the enraged gamers threatening to ditch "Micro$oft" once and for all and make your gaming bed in the Sony camp? Well, Nyko is trying to make the transition a bit easier for you.

Nyko, maker gaming peripherals such as the Nyko Intercooler, knows that the reason some gamers prefer the Xbox 360 controller over the PS3 controller is the all important comfort factor. Like the Blackberry thumb before it, PS3 gamers often complain about thumb strain after hours of gaming do to the placement of the Dualshock 3's analog sticks. That's what they claim, at least. Sinners.

Doesn't hurt that it also looks like a Bat-a-rang.

Nyko claims that, besides looking like an ancient rune of evil, the controller will boast a bunch of features that gamers actually care about. 

• Layout similar to that of the Xbox 360's controller 
• 25 hours of Lithium-Ion battery life (charged by mini-USB)
• 25 foot wireless range (with use of wireless USB dongle receiver)
• "Soft" coating for comfort
• Rumble support for all of your rumble needs 
• Tilt controls (think Sixaxis......not too loud or Sony will sue)
• Easy to use tilted/angled triggers

For under $35, you could probably do worse. You could try to stuff a PS3 controller's innards into a 360 controller's shell. But trust us, it's not as easy as you'd think. If we may speak farm to you for a moment, picture the outcome of trying to mate a pig with a goat. Seems like a good idea, but in the end, it's a hideous bastard of misalignment.

It's available until the end of the month (August 31). If you want to give it a whirl, we've included a link below to set you on your way.

Unfermented Deal: LittleBigPlanet 2 Pre-Order

Since the dawn of home console video games, gamers have often dreamed of the game they would create if they were given the tools to do so. Some games had scaled back level creation tools, but nothing that gave the user the sense of ownership that they desired. Computer development tools became available, but often just lead to horrible flash games and uninspired mods of current games.

British Game developer Media Molecule changed all of that with 2008's PS3 exclusive, LittleBigPlanet. The game not only introduced to the world to Sony's newest part-time mascot Sackboy, but also introduced the ability to create an entire platforming adventure world that you could create, play, and share with friends and the world through Sony's online service, Playstation Network. The game was an immediate hit when it was first announced at Game Developer's Conference in 2007 and eventually sold over 4.5 million copies world wide (as of post date). Media Molecule looks to push the envelope this holiday shopping season with LittleBigPlanet 2.

LittleBigPlanet 2 promises to deliver everything that it's predecessor offered times 10011. That's huge. We don't even know what that number means because we just made it up. But we can just from what we know that if you enjoyed the first games, you have a ton of reasons to be excited about this sequel. It's not even fair to call it a sequel. It's a whole new ball game.

If you can think of the genre, you can create it. Create an army of sackboys to destroy the strongholds of your enemies in a RTS game. Blast away at undead sackboys in your own FPS. Buy the game at a store or have it shipped by UPS. Alright. That last one is not a game mode. But it's punny. What's not funny is the pre-order we're about to drop on your sack, boy!

Amazon is offering up some bonus content and free shipping (release day delivery for a fee or for free for Amazon Prime members) if you pinky swear to buy it from them. You'll lock in the probably-won't-change-by-release-day price of $59.99 (which you will not be charged for until the game ships) and you'll get some sweet little exclusive extras for your downloading pleasure once you receive the game (download codes will be emailed after game's release). 

Amazon will be giving you 6 Sackboy skins, two of which are Ratchet and Clank, the comical heroes of the aptly named Ratchet and Clank game franchise. Use them to create your own Ratchet and Clank game or make them food for the Rancor beast that you're sure to create to destroy every environment your twisted mind imagines. 

If you're ready to hop on board the Imagination Creation Station, we've included a handy picture link below to hold your hand and get you started. We can't wait to horrify you with our creations on Playstation Network this fall. LittleBigPlanet 2 will create their monster in your living room on November 16th.                                

The PS3 Can Now Do Something Sony Doesn't Want It To Do

When Sony launched the third installment in their Playstation brand of video game consoles, they knew they had a winner on their hands. The Playstation 3's (PS3) take off from the retail runway in 2006 was a bit bumpy due to the high price tag and lacking online gaming service, but the turbulence eventually eased to smooth sailing. The console offered video game and home entertainment enthusiasts a great built-in Blu Ray player, quality game library, the ability to install a secondary operating system, and a host of content in the form of digital downloads. As the brand's slogan stated, the PS3 truly did just about everything.

Sony's competition, the Nintendo Wii and Microsoft's Xbox 360, had major issues with piracy. Hackers made it possible to play backed up copies of video games through console hardware and software modification. While playing a backup of something may sound harmless to those outside of the video game industry, it's not as innocent as you copying some songs off of your favorite Wham album onto a mix tape for your late night crying sessions. In the video game community, the ability to play backups almost always leads to piracy. Through the use of torrent sites, unsavory (or cheap) gamers are able to freely download pirated copies of games and play them without ever owning their own original copy. Outside a hut in Malaysia, this is a pretty illegal and profit crushing activity. Sony's PS3, however, is considered to be quite unhackable. Until now.

In April of this year, Sony released a firmware update (v3.21) that completely disabled the ability to install a secondary operating system. The move was made because of mounting security concerns due to a vulnerability opened by the installation of Linux based operating systems on the console. The hardcore nerd sector of the PS3 fanbase was extremely distraught by this; some even filed several class action lawsuits against Sony citing a form of false advertising. As you're about to find out, this may have been all for naught.

Through the use of a simple USB thumbdrive, The PS Jailbreak allows PS3 console owners to unlock the ability to play PS3 games without a disc. The drive contains a software hack that tricks the console into thinking that it's now a developer's test unit. Users are given the ability to play games from any USB storage device formatted in FAT32. Currently, only PS3 games can be played using PS Jailbreak; PSone, PS2, DVDs, and Blu Ray movies are currently not supported. The embedded software is currently set to run on Playstation OS v3.41, but one would imagine that the device (and the inevitable knockoffs) will be ready for the software updates that Sony will surely deploy in a vain attempt to stop the hack. 

The device is currently in extremely short supply as of post date, with price points ranging from $120 to $150 (USD). This may seem like a high ticket item to some, but considering the $60 price tag on most console video games, it would pay for itself after two or three game downloads. 

Welcome to the Hacked Club, PS3. You tried, but the thieving bastards won in the end. You now truly do EVERYTHING again. And by the looks of it, it's just the beginning. We only hope that this won't lead to the eventual removal of USB ports on future PS3 consoles.  

Learn how to lie with the help of video games!

Some parents buy their kids educational video games to teach them how to do simple math through cute little interactive songs or matching games featuring their favorite creepy talking animals. There are games that teach little girls how to care for babies. There are games that will teach you how to cook, although often with horrible results. There are games that will teach bible lessons.....often with horrible results. Typing of The Dead is a video game that teaches you to type while you blow the brains out of rotting zombies with very satisfying results. This fall, video games will finally teach us something useful; the fine art of verbal deception. 

THQ, the developer who brought you a bunch of professional wrestling games, wants to really ramp up the drama with Truth or Lies. You won't be warping through pipes to avoid telling your pixelated parents where you've been all night. You'll be lying your ass off into a (not included) USB or wireless microphone (unknown as of post whether Nintendo's Wii Speak peripheral will be supported). The game will use a specially designed voice calibration program that somehow measures the stress level in your voice to determine if you're a honest saint, a rat bastard liar, or a murderous nut job who can mask their human emotions to pass themselves off as a normal, non-homicidal person. 

With it's playful "truth or dare" premise and bargain title price tag ($40 on 360/PS3, $30 on Wii), it will surely find it's way into the rotation during parties. The game has the potential to make those parties fun and memorable; with inside jokes for you to litter your friend's Facebook walls with for weeks to come, or infamous; with broken hearts, hurt feelings, and destroyed friendships. With the ability to step outside of the game's 3,000 questions and ask your own questions, you can stage your own Maury Povich Show in your living room. 

So suck it, Jack Thompson. Games are educational. And that's the truth. You just won't be hearing us say it. 

Play Nintendo With Your Eyeballs!

Top this, Microsoft Kinect!

These days, we know that the less buttons, the better. When you don't actually have to think about how to control your pixelated plumber, the more immersed you are in the game world. Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony would have you believe motion controls are the future of video games. Wave your hands, flick your wrist, scan your body into a creepy moving camera and bounce virtual balls off your digital face. We certainly have come a long way since the days of the Nintendo Power Glove (it's so bad). But for the crazy Texans at Waterloo Labs, we haven't gone nearly far enough.

Using a modded Nintendo Entertainment System (you remember than grey and black horizontal toaster, right?) and a set of medical grade electrodes, the mad scientists from the Lone Star State are able to warp through a game of Super Mario Brothers sans hands and controller. The engineers insist that you'll be able to control any NES game with this control setup, although one would imagine that trying to play Abadox this way would bring new meaning to the term "twitch shooter".




Let's just hope this control method limits itself to the classic and simple NES controller. It's scary to imagine where the electrodes would have to be placed in order to compensate for the input commands needed to control Nintendo 64 games. Yikes.

For more information on this and other things that are bigger in Texas, head on over to Waterloo Labs. The website even contains instructions on how to do this mod yourself. If you are down with looking like a crazed lab rat in a methamphetamine test lab while saving the princess, we implore you to do so. And make sure you send us the video. And we want you to say "Now you're playing with balls. Eyeballs!", just for a goof.

Unfermented Deal: Fable 3 pre-order bonus at Amazon

  If you own a Microsoft Xbox 360, there is a high probability that you've heard of the Lionhead Studio's Fable franchise. There's a good chance you've played one of the two released games in the series. If you haven't played either Fable or Fable II, you are seriously missing out. Seriously. Not to say it's better than sex or Lost, but it's pretty great. You really should play some Fable.

Right. So, here's a trailer for the next installment, Fable III.

The fine folks at Amazon.com have a pretty snazzy pre-order deal going on for the standard edition of the Xbox 360 game. If you pre-order the game at $59.99, you'll receive a $20 credit for a future video game purchase when Fable III ships. I suggest that you take that credit and apply it to Deadly Premonition. It's under $20 and it's the best worst game on the Xbox 360. (See Amazon for complete details)

To take advantage of this awesome deal, clickity on the handy link I've provided below. Easy peasy, Weezy. Don't say this blog never did anything for ya.