Blacklight: Tango Down
Mafia II
Dead Rising 2
(Ignition; PS3, X360)
(2K; PS3, X360)
(Capcom; PS3, X360)
While there is no dearth of first-person military shooters out there, Blacklight: Tango Down aims to prove that an explosive, fully realized experience can be delivered without a bloated budget and equally distended price tag. The latest in a tidal wave of downloadable gems, Blacklight: Tango Down plops you in the near future as a covert military operative with all manner of gadgets, like a visor that can see through walls, and infinitely customizable weapons, like shotguns with sniper scopes, as you battle your not-so-altruistic counterparts, The Order. With a soundtrack reminiscent of some of Aphex Twin's best, twitchiest work rounding out the "pros" column, Blacklight is an affordable, fun alternative to the oftdaunting Call of Duties of the world. Ryan Rayhill
Hearkening back to the heyday of the goodfella, Mafia II takes aim at the heart of La Cosa Nostra and delivers a gangster epic head and shoulders above much of what Hollywood has been able to churn out over the last 40 years. As Vito, a downand-out thug, you and your lifelong pal, Joe, begin a quest to ascend the ranks of organized crime in a tale that sprawls from the post-war 1940s to the baby boom of the 1950s, with everything from the advent of rock 'n' roll to the introduction of Playboy magazine being fully represented in the fictional metropolis of Empire Bay. And yes, any Playboy you come across can be‌ perused. With a violent, Coppola-worthy story, innovative mission structures, and a sprawling, visually seductive world at your fingertips, it's no wonder that Mafia II is a friend of ours. Ryan Rayhill
A little bit Running Man and a lot bit Dawn of the Dead, Dead Rising 2 is set a couple years after the original's zombie apocalypse has taken hold of the country. As former motocross champion Chuck Greene, you are lured to the Vegas-esque Fortune City in hopes of not only striking it rich on the zombie-massacre game show called Terror is Reality, but also finding your daughter, who also may be lumbering around this ersatz Sin City as one of the infected. With zombie hordes ranging from the dozens to the thousands on screen at any given time, it's a good thing that just about anything you can find laying around the casinos, restaurants, and shopping centers of the city can be used as a weapon—with varying degrees of effectiveness, of course. Ranging from useless poker chips and erotic massagers to flame-spewing Super Soakers and chainsaws strapped to a dirt bike, the amount of items that are both lethal and hilarious are expansive to say the least. Mixing horror, gore, and humor, Dead Rising 2 is one of the year's must-play games. Ryan Rayhill
( I g n i t i o n ; W ii )
R o l a n d V P -7 V o c a l Processor MSRP: $639; roland.com
A great tool for producers, live performers, or people who just like to eff around with their voice, Roland's VP-7 Vocal Processor stands as one of the most intuitive and multi-faceted vocal-effects pedals currently available. Run a MIDI cable from any of your synths into this box, plug in a microphone, and create any number of vocal harmonies yourself, or use the available voice types Female Choir, Boys Choir, Gregorian Choir, and Jazz Scat to have the box sing for you. The remaining options allow for continual manipulation of the created sounds, and a classic-sounding vocoder thrown into the mix definitely doesn't hurt the VP-7's appeal. Patric Fallon
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