Funny you both mention the quality of games almost monthly…just wait for July…
I was about to say, you must have had a better month than PAL but we seem to have caught up in the last six months. July = “Quality” 
1 Like
I’ll just put it up front: July 2005 was a snoozer of a month for Xbox, unless you were massively into Halo 2 MP or up-ports of old PC games your dad played. While I enjoyed Halo 2 MP quite a bit, I felt bad about putting a map pack as my pick of the month so we’ll go in a different direction and give the nod to what I feel is a solid but not spectacular game.
July 2005
Sid Meier’s Pirates!
Sid Meier! You’ve made around a million games haven’t you? Civ, Alpha Centauri, X-Com. Whatever you think of strategy-type games, you gotta respect this guy for creating some true classics. Pirates! is one of his many works, and one I’ve always considered a bit forgotten when compared to the rest of his creations. I first dabbled with the franchise back on PC in the late 80s/early 90s as a young buck, and this Xbox version is what I’d called an modernized version of that game with controller in mind.
As one might imagine, Pirates! is a game about being a pirate. For younger gamers, think Sea of Thieves but done up as a strategy game. This isn’t an action title by any means, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less fun to sail the seas here, pillaging and whatnot on a quest to pay back some debt. Or something like that, if I recall correctly. It’s hard to really describe the game in much detail other than to say it’s basically a pirate-life simulation in the same vein as as Civ or other strategy title. That means it’s meant to be infinitely replayable, and the challenges you face each time could vary in ways which keep the game fresh. I can’t say I dumped a lot of time into this Xbox version, but played the PC edition quite a bit and later the XBLA 360 release. It works well with a controller, has the old school quirky humor, and is generally not a bad way to spend a few minutes or hours here or there.
I think the easiest way to play is on Xbox 360/One/Series via BC (XBLA version and you can get achievements hoorah!) and it’s generally dirt cheap on sale or not. If you love pirating but need a break from SoT (or can’t get into it like yours truly), give it a go and let me know what you think.
August 2005 was another fairly dry month for Xbox, and I’d say gaming in general. I think excitement was building towards the future, with the Xbox 360 right around the corner. A gamer always finds something to play though, and I did indeed find a worthy title in August.
August 2005
The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction
I don’t even think I need to write anything here. Just look at that cover, an 8.9 out of 10 tells you everything you need to know right? Btw, what’s the difference between an 8.9 and a 9.0? Just throw the devs a bone, sheesh!
Anyway, the game…it’s the definition of a video game. Hulk is the Hulk in this one. There’s not a lot of thought, story, anything of that nonsense. This is a game about being powerful and destroying stuff as the purple pants angry guy. And it succeeds, truly, in a way many super hero games didn’t at the time. It didn’t try to be anything other than fun. The basic gameplay is you running around a big city location and doing missions which all basically led to Hulk smash! This could also be said about the downtime between missions. If that sounds boring, well, you’d be wrong. Hulk feels fun to move and play, not like a lumbering sloth. I can’t tell you just how much fun it was to run around and destroy stuff, it felt as good as swinging in a Spider-Man game. There’s not too much else to say here. It’s a decent looking game for the time, sound is whatever, story is lol. Check it out though, it’s fun.
Shoutouts to both Ghost Recon 2 and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary Collection. I love throwback collection, I’m a sucker for them.
1 Like
Our July was as weak as our August. Pirates was a good enough game for the former, even though I didn’t play it at the time, its the only game from my “choice” I have enjoyed, and then only on PC.
I haven’t played anything from our choices of August, well Monkeyball if that counts, so OK yeah Monkeyball Deluxe, why not, that’s cute and we need more monkey ball like games.
We had to wait a month for Hulk @anon98342452 
My wife loves Monkey Ball! She’s not a gamer but this one she’s pretty darn good at!
1 Like
I’ll say up front that September was a tough one to choose a game, which one deserved highlighting. If we’re strictly talking about best game of the month, I’d be torn between Burnout Revenge and Ninja Gaiden Black. I know I picked Ninja Gaiden for a previous month, and Black is essentially the definitive version so I’ll leave that out, and I believe I picked Burnout 3 for another month and again, Revenge is basically the definitive edition. So I’ll go in a different direction!
September 2005
X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse
I don’t think I picked the original game, and Lord knows I’m not pan on back through the thread but I thought X-Men Legends 2 was a worthy pick for the month, purely to highlight it, despite there being some games that many consider GOAT in their genres. Legends 2 is an action RPG set in the Marvel universe. I think it plays a lot like Champions of Norrath or other action RPGs of the era, which is a good thing. It’s a solid formula, feels weighty, and there’s a lot of content here. A large number of characters to choose from including all your favorite X-Men, a decent enough story to push you along, and an absolutely fantastic multiplayer setup. It’s not a lot different or even better than the first in the series, it’s not innovative, but Legend 2 has it where it counts and that’s the fun department. I don’t know of an easy way to play it anymore, but I can confidently say that I’d rather play this than the recent-ish game released on Switch.
Of course, shoutouts go to Ninja Gaiden Black, Burnout Revenge, Indigo Prophecy, Far Cry Instincts, The Suffering, and Wallace & Gromit Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Big month!
1 Like
I was going to pick Revenge like you said @anon98342452 but you’re right I’ve done that before on two months so time to pick something different.
September 2005 : Fahrenheit
OK so the second half gets daft, the sex scene is awkward and the camera and controls aren’t perfect. Also the “action” scenes are at odds with the games premise. But that opening, is just so unlike anything before or since, and the knock on effects of your actions further down the story is satisfying in a way few games have managed since.
I think it was Eurogamer who reviewed it back in the day who said something like their brain says its only average but their heart says it is excellent. I kind of feel like that, its myriad little issues are not enough to take the shine off. I only vaguely remember The Nomad Soul which I have personal reasons for liking, but this is definitely my favourite Quantic Dream game.
Well, here we are, one month from the launch of the next generation Xbox 360. Did the original Xbox going to go out with a whimper, or a bang? The answer lies between.
October 2005
The Warriors
The Warriors is a game by Rockstar that id wager many don’t know exists. It’s a fairly niche IP, with the movie being something for a cult classic and definitely not mainstream. It was an odd release for sure, especially for Rockstar, but at the time they were doing games that weren’t called Shark Bucks and had some quirky titles in the lineup.
The Warriors is a brawler, plain and simple. It doesn’t do anything special, from gameplay to sound to graphics. I actually think it’s a bit ugly. That said, there’s something comforting in the brutal gameplay and it’s a heck of a lot of fun to play. If memory serves, the story is some sort of continuation of the movie but I could be wrong. It doesn’t matter in the end, it’s just a reason to run around kicking the booty of anyone you come across. The world is well realized and matches the aesthetic of the film quite well. There’s just not a lot to say here, but if you like beat-em-ups you’ll have a good time with this one. I don’t know of any easy way to play this on more modern machines, but if you come across it and don’t have a Game Pass backlog (or otherwise!) give it a shot and let me know what you think.
Shoutouts to SSX Tricky (love this game), Fable Lost Chapters, Blitz the League, Stubbs the Zombie (Halo engine!!! Good soundtrack), Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland, Crash Tag Team Racing, The Sims 2, and Call of Cthulhu Dark Corners. See? There’s a lot here so while nothing is amazing, there was a lot to play as the Xbox said its goodbyes.
2 Likes
We’re so close to the 360! Excited to see what games you highlight for it.
November 2006, we’ve finally hit the second Xbox strangely named…360? I’m not going to talk about the hype for the console itself, just that it was unreal and something about Elijah Woods. This is about games! Generally, a launch has maybe 1-2 solid games and a lot of filler. What’s on display for the Xbox 360 is actually incredible, it was hard to choose. Get ready for a long shoutouts section…
November 2005
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
You probably think I’m crazy with this pick, but I legitimately think that Geometry Wars was the best title at the launch of the 360, and it’s certainly the one I played the most. My friends and I would go for hours into the early morning, slamming back junk food and beers and trying to beat each other’s scores. Geometry Wars is kind of my ideal game in many ways. It’s so easy to pick up, it has a timeless look, and leaves you with that “just one more run” feeling that so many games try to capture but never hit. I think it’s as close to the perfect game-game that you can play in many ways. It drives my competitive spirit and has so many opportunities for those amazing moments where you feel like you’ve done something you shouldn’t have been able to, or that your skill has actually paid off. It’s just a fantastic game in every sense of the word. Try it out, it’s a no-brainer.
Shoutouts…COD 2, Kameo, Gun, Amped 3, PGR3, Perfect Dark 0 (hey they tried), Quake 4, King Kong, Zuma Deluxe, Outpost Kaloki X, Condemned, NFS Most Wanted, Ridge Racer 6, and of course Hexic HD (amazing pack-in). What did you play most at launch?
4 Likes
December was unsurprisingly less release heavy after the smorgasbord of games new console owners enjoyed in November. This month saw only a handful of decent releases, and once again I’m rolling with an XBLA title.
December 2005
I hate this cover. It’s like a treasure troll mixed with Gollum. Terrible. That said, the game itself is a decent amount of fun. It’s essentially a platformer with a weird movement mechanic: you control your main character by extending your frog-like tongue, attaching it to different spots and swinging. It reminds me a bit of bionic commando in some ways, but without any dpad movement. Wik’s a fair looking game for the early XBLA era, nothing mindblowing but serviceable. Same can be said about sound, it’s there but not memorable. There’s a lot of content here, I think over 100 levels which obviously increase in challenge and become more interesting. I want to say it had some form of MP, but I never tried it so I can’t comment. This is an overlooked game of solid quality and design that kept 360 owners busy if they somehow didn’t have anything to play from launch.
Shoutout to Dead or Alive 4. I like this game, it’s one of those fighting games where I can mash my way to success but I really despise the over-sexualization of the female characters. It feels gross to play to me personally. What was your pick for December? Or any prior month you haven’t mentioned?
2 Likes
oh my, some catching up to do…
1 Like
I love this thread.
2 Likes
Thanks for that. Makes it worth continuing the effort on my part. Would love to see other people post about their games more often!
1 Like
New year, new games? Well, sort of. 2006 started off with a whimper for the 360 and I doing even have a shout out for the month. This was definitely a backlog month (you couldn’t have gotten through the launch stuff yet!), but there was still one game released I enjoyed quite a bit.
January 2006
Marble Blast Ultra
At this point, you may be asking: “Ok Delroy…three months in a row of XBLA? What gives? Do you have an indie agenda?” I mean, sort of, yeah. But that aside, I truly believe these were probably the best games on display for the platform and I’ll be darned if they aren’t good, fun games! And honestly, they deserve the face time because they often go overlooked. Ok, off the soapbox, on to the game…
Marble Blast Ultra is another one I’d call a “gamer’s game”, and to get it out of the way yes, it’s a lot like Monkey Ball. If you like Monkey Ball, you’ll probably enjoy this one and might have already played it. The conceit here is that you navigate through 50 or so levels, ramping up in difficulty of course, trying to reach the goal as fast as possible, sometimes collecting things along the way. The levels are well-designed and can get tricky to traverse. I know it tested my patience at times, as I didn’t feel I had good control over the marble.
It can few wonky at times, like the marble is on ice, leading to some fails that can feel unfair but this mostly happens when you’re rushing. Which is kind of the point. It looks good for what it is, clean is the best word for it. Gets the job done. This is a good game to play with a podcast, book, or your own music on as the sound here isn’t important and not memorable. Multi-tasking, productivity, yay! I’m not sure if this is BC, but it’s worth a go if you have the means.
No shoutout from me as mentioned above. Did you play MBU? What did you think? Do you like Monkey Ball(s)? (Heh, ok I’m 6 again!)
1 Like
OK some catching up to do 
So 360 Didn’t release until December 2005 for us, and I didnt get one until the following March when Oblivion arrived, So I shall continue with Xbox until then I think, Or maybe go 50/50 I dunno lets see…
[edit] phew was a rough couple of months in there 
October 2005: The warriors
I Ummed and ahhed about this month, there were a few decent games released but “The Warriors” was so surprisingly good, I had to choose that.
I do love the film though so that probably swayed my opinion of it, and like Delroy says, its a little rough, but its solid and fun to play.
November 2005: True Crime
True Crime, Streets of LA was an easy choice. Like its “sequel” Sleeping dogs it was an excellent open world action adventure game.
A “GTA like as a cop” The game had a morality system, allowed you to take enemies down non lethally, and even had a branching story which would continue after failing a mission. Imagine that Rockstar!!
December 2005: Meh
I mean, Prince of Persia, maybe, probably, I never played it though.
January 2006: My cup runneth over
I mean, really?
I am regretting sticking to Xbox until March now 
February 2006: Psychonauts
Nearly a year later Psychonauts came to the UK. A YEAR LATER! God those days were rough when you had to hope and pray you might get a game.
Other good games we got though were Black, and TOCA 3. I like A touring cars game, since its part of the sport to drive into each other.
March 2006: Oblivion
The game that finally made me get a 360, and one of the Elder scrolls games I remember most fondly, despite being stuck in that bloody picture with the trolls with next to nothing.
I would go back and play but I lost so much save game data by not uploading it to the cloud when I had the chance, this, Viva Pinata the list goes on!.
1 Like
Yikes on a lot of that…you “chose…poorly” by waiting for sure haha.
1 Like
February brought one of the first games to really wow me for the 360 from a graphical standpoint. This isn’t to say there weren’t some great looking games already out for the circle, but this game made me sweaty with how good it looked. You’ll see what I did there…
February 2006
Fight Night Round 3
I’ve never been a big real life boxing fan. Scratch that, I actually couldn’t care less about boxing, MMA, etc. Karate Kid? That’s pretty cool though. Anyway, boxing is whatever, but boxing games are fun at times. I thought Ready to Rumble on Dreamcast was a ton of fun way back when, and who can forget Mike Tyson’s Punch Out!? The Fight Night Series is (was?) a sim take on boxing compared to the aforementioned titles arcade take, but it was a good time to pummel an opponent with big red gloves with some great graphics. Round 3 took the series to the “next gen” and looked unbelievably lifelike. You could see sweat! Sweat! The boxers glistened with it! The boxing itself was interesting, using the analog sticks to throw punches. There was a lengthy career mode, all the bells and whistles and production of an EA Sports title, great announcing. Just a good sports punchy game. Did I mention the sweat and how good it looked? Next gen, for real. Dude on the box looks sad but should probably be happy due to the check he likely received for looking sad.
Shoutout to Full Auto by Sega. It’s a fairly decent car combat game, lots of explosions and some fun tracks. I remember it got pretty tough, or maybe I’m just terrible at these games, idk. I need a racing line and rewind!
2 Likes
Here’s the biggie, the first truly massive Xbox 360 game that really shows its chops as a “next gen” system and huge step up from the Xbox. As I look at the games released this month, there’s good there but it all pales in comparison to the month’s best.
March 2006
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
This should’ve been obvious, especially with @Cerysnetics stealing the thunder above 
. And rightfully so, Oblivion is a heck of a game and was downright stunning upon its release. This is classic Bethesda, and you can see its DNA in pretty much every modern BGS title moving forward. It had a major impact on the genre and what an open-world RPG could be. I don’t want to get into the systems and all that (I’m typing on a phone as I do with all these for goodness sake plus lazy so…), so I’ll focus briefly on the experience. I love the world on display here. It felt alive, it felt massive, it felt like going on an adventure to a new place. Stepping out of the cave for the first time, looking over the landscape and thinking “where the heck do I go?” was such a powerful feeling. I spent hours lurking around caves, traversing huge fields, and taking in the forests. The story is also fairly good, but I’m not an ES “nerd” so these things just work for me. Combat is janky, there’s plenty of egregious BGS bugs, but it never truly detracted from my experience with Oblivion. I dumped so many hours into it, played it for months. Lovely game, one of my favorite of the 360 era.
Shoutouts go to Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (GRAW!!), Top Spin 2, and Far Cry Instincts Predator. All good games, but yeah not Oblivion.
2 Likes