School is fast approaching, and students everywhere are preparing for the grind of homework, new classes, and terrible professors. Unfortunately, they are probably overlooking all that downtime between classes.
Take it from me – I know first-hand how boring it can be having two hour breaks between classes and being cooped up in a dorm room with nothing to do. Luckily, thanks to my mistakes we are determined to change that for you.
We have put together a guide to help improve your stay at school and also to get your parents to shell out some extra cash to send you packing with a much needed care package.
…and if your parents don’t love you, don’t worry about it! We have teamed up with various companies to send one lucky gamer to school with a plethora of gaming-related goods.
Zoom by Nyko
Dorm rooms can be small, cramped, and smelly. Obviously if you are a Kinect gamer, all of the above make for one of the worst environments for gaming. Luckily, Nyko has created an attachment for the Kinect that places a wide angle lens over the camera that reduces the range needed by 40%.
That’s a difference that almost cuts the range needed in half. More importantly though is that Kinect is a fun party gaming platform. If you have friends over, girls over, a party, etc., I assure you the Kinect is a sure hit that will let you to interact with girls while they jump up and down with you.
TurtleBeach Headset
I am a proud owner of two TurtleBeach headsets. I initially bought them because I was sick of breaking $30 generic Microsoft ones, and by “ones” I mean eight of them. Being a big online gamer I felt the purchase was worth the price ,and with TurtleBeach offering a variety of options for PC,PS3, and 360 at a wide range of quality and prices, there is no reason not to snag a pair.
I don’t know your exact living situation, but if you are unaware, TurtleBeach headsets also offer surround sound gaming through your headphones. Now if noise is an issue which it may just be, it might be in your best interest to be courteous to your roommates while also getting the full gaming experience. I mean if EA and DICE are going to put you in the middle of a war in Battlefield 3 with insane realistic quality, it would be unacceptable not to hear the building crumbling beneath your feet so you can escape danger, right?
KonrtolFreek Thumbstick Adapters
Have you always wanted to up your game? Well, you might want to check out the various thumbstick adapters from KontrolFreek. For the most part, these various thumbsticks give you more leverage and better thumb grip, which means more accuracy or power in your games. KontrolFreek makes a bunch of different adapters; the most popular are the FPS Freek line, which is perfect for the HALO or Call of Duty fan. But if you like racing games and sports, KontrolFreek has some specialized thumbsticks for those as well, and the latest RcadeFreek turns your controller into an old school arcade stick. All these adapters are priced in the $10-$20 range and are great for improving your FPS game.
Linksys WES610N Wireless Entertainment Bridge
Are you bringing multiple consoles and/or computers with you to school? Does your dorm offer you WI-FI, but do you not want to shell out money for WI-FI adapters or cards for all your devices? Then check out the Linksys WES610N Wirelss Entertainment Bridge. Packed with a 802.11 B/G/N radio and 4 port ethernet switch, you can harrness the full power of your dorm WI-FI and connect 4 devices at the same time.
G155 by Project GAEMS
Definitely one of the more pricier items on the wishlist but easily my top pick. The G155 is a portable game station that transforms into a gaming briefcase. When you open it up you are greeted by a 15.5″ LED HD screen, HDMI support, integrated stereo speakers, and the perfect spot to place your PS3 or Xbox 360.
Not only is it TSA compliant but this will allow you to take your gaming experience anywhere. Your roommate has to study, you are going home for the weekend, et cetera it will allow you to game on the go. Its portability could easily make you a much needed commodity on campus, getting you invites everywhere because you have the hook up.
Clothing
Believe it or not you will also want to put a damper on the gamer stereotype of unwashed, unclean, up until 5am playing video games. Luckily that doesn’t mean you have to hop into your nearest Hollister and listen to awful music playing at unnecessarily high volumes. Companies like Ubisoft with the UbiWorkshop or the Bioware Store offer game specific apparel that doesn’t scream “LOOK AT ME I PLAY VIDEO GAMES!” and looks awesome regardless if you game or not. To top that you can just get a whole wardrobe for the year at J!NX where their whole clothing collection is for the gamer. They were even cool enough to offer a $100 gift card for our giveaway and when some of their partners include Attack of the Show and The Guild you know that they hit our demographic perfectly.
GAMES GAMES GAMES
So far we’ve talked a lot about neat hardware and gadgets for you to take back to school but now it’s time for some games. So far this year we have seen a ton of great games hit stores and we still have what could be an amazing Fall, so here are some choices you and your friends might want to check out.
DiRT3
By far one of the top racing games on the market. Codemasters has been perfecting their racing engine for years and all the hard work shows in the latest version of the DiRT franchise. From the stunning visuals to its intense on-track action, DiRT 3 is a great single-player and even better multiplayer game.
Operation Flashpoint Red River
If you are looking for an FPS war sim, this is your game. Codemasters has been building the Operation Flashpoint franchise for years and they always put extra attention on details. Operation Flashpoint is a nice change of pace with FPS games, and it’s great cause it’s squad based so it’s a blast to play with friends. And being somewhat open world your tactics can change each time you play a mission.
Steam Games
Money is always tight living on campus. Luckily Steam as the tendency of offering deals almost on a daily basis, and during Christmas time the deals are even more ridiculous. Some developers even end up very successful from the platform. Tripwire Interactive for example has a great following through Steam, and makes the WWII genre relevant again with Red Orchestra. So you never know what you are going to find on Steam, so be sure to keep up to date with Steam deals because you can end up snagging great games for very low prices. Plus Steam now has a slew of Free to Play titles, including Team Fortress 2!
NCAA Football
What better way to show some college spirit then taking to the gridiron with your school team. NCAA Football is an amazingly fun and great looking football title. The series has come a long way over the years and this season is by far the best yet. From the amazing visuals to the new on field mechanics. Plus you can start up a Dynasty with a bunch of friends!
Future Titles
There are a ton of great games coming out this Fall and holiday season and looking forward a few awesome titles you might want to think about picking up are:
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Lets face it the COD franchise is a massive success and the games are highly addicting especially their multiplayer. And MW3 is building off of MW2’s Spec Ops mode and making it even more intense with Spec Ops Survival where you and your friend face off against round of enemies. If you like fast pace in your face shooting action MW3 is going to be blast.
Battlefield 3
Yeah it’s going to be a war between BF3 and COD:MW3 but the fact of the matter is our time with these games so far has been a blast and both have their own strengths and weakness. BF3 is gorgeous at least on the PC and the massive maps, vehicles and team based gameplay is a blast to play. If you like your shooters a bit more strategic BF3 is the way to go.
Uncharted 3
Drake is back for another adventure and if you’ve played the first 2 Uncharted titles you are going to want to continue the epic adventure of Nathan Drake. The game is solid and smooth to play both solo and in multiplayer. Gamers who enjoyed Uncharted 2 will be right at home with 3.
Gears of War 3
There is not much I can say to sell you on picking up Gears of War 3. Even if you aren’t a big multiplayer fan, people can not resist the campaign, it stands as my favorite non-RPG story off all-time. With this edition bumping up campaign with four player co-op throughout it just sweetens the pot. I even found the multiplayer more fun than the past two,great balancing went into the gameplay and it shows. So although there are a ton of sure hit games coming out this Fall, Gears of War 3 has 1,000,000 pre-orders for a reason…and that’s only on one console.
Star Wars The Old Republic
Not much to say but, oh boy is Blizzard going to get a run for their money. EA/Bioware is setting up a massive assault on the WoW foothold and after spending time with the latest build at E3 they have the ammo to back up the attack. Old Republic is going to offer gamers so much gameplay it’s insane. Each class has it’s own unique storyline and the new twists on MMO mechanics from the cover system to the companion system is going to be a welcomed change to all MMO fans.
