Alrighty, so I actually saw these yesterday in storeparser.com, but wanted to wait for an official announcement because 1)it’s easier to copy and paste from the major as opposed to that site and 2)in case they added something which certainly happens.  At least I’m honest.  There is some good stuff in here, personally I’m eyeing Contrast for the X1, possibly the Walking Dead Telltale Mini-series, also for X1 and then perhaps something out of the cheap 360 pool like Escape from Dead Island or Shred Nebula.  But it’s not as good as I hoped, that’s for sure.  But certainly plenty to mull over and there are supposed to be daily deals.  Though honestly, I’m sure they will all be related to the X1 and not 360 BC.  Enjoy.

And here I thought we wouldn’t get anymore announcements until a couple of days from now for this epic sale going on.  We get the announcement of Games with Gold for January, and honestly it is an excellent one.  I have been eyeing the Cave ever since they made the BC announcement and Rayman Origins despite owning on disc, I can always go for that extra digital copy.  On the X1 side, we get the tower defense game from the same developers who made the Van Helsing games along with Season 2 (we got Season 1 a while back as well) of Killer Instinct.  I don’t really see a weak game in the bunch (unless Van Helsing turns out to be a dud).  Enjoy.

Xbox One

January 1st – January 31st

• World of Van Helsing: Deathtrap

January 16th – February 15th

• Killer Instinct Season 2: Ultra Edition

Xbox 360

January 1st – January 15th

• The Cave

January 16th – January 31st

• Rayman Origins

The week of Christmas it is.  A magical place.  A time of the year when Daddy’s around the world get to pull down their…wife’s ornaments from the attic and possibly break their ankles and legs.  But enough about me, we have sales to worry about or do we?  Well, actually that answer is very unfortunately no.  No BC Sales.  Now, there are supposed to be BC sales come December 22nd when they start doing their end of the year celebration.  If I was to recommend anything out of this sale that might go BC in the future, I would lean towards Remember Me or possibly Street Fighter X Tekken.  The rest probably are not going to happen.  Anyway, that’s that for now, enjoy.

Now that my friends, is a mouthful.  This also represents the last of the 2016 games that will be released for backwards compatibility.  Here are the three announcements:

No more games for 2016

Announcement 1

Announcement 2

These certainly range from the eagerly anticipated (Bully) to the interesting (Planets Under Attack) to the bizarre (Catherine, Clannad).  I’m not sure if I own a digital copy of Bully but I know for certain I have it on disc.  Raskulls I also own and loved it when I first got it…but at least for me when I got to a certain point, I just flat out didn’t want to play it anymore (it gets REALLY hard).  I know a lot of people will be happy about Catherine, but it’s honestly not my bag.  Still there is a lot here, and the last announcement of 2016 in regards to newly released games delivers.  Enjoy kids.

• Bully: Scholarship Edition $14.99 (available for a little cheaper on disc but XBLive sales are common for this one)
• Catherine $19.99 (available for a little cheaper on disc)
• Clannad (Japan Only) – 4104 ¥ (and should be available on disc as well)
• Planets Under Attack $14.99
• Raskulls $9.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Raskulls Reinforcements 1 $1.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Raskulls Reinforcements 2 $1.99
• Skydive: Proximity Flight $6.99

As many of you probably heard about, Lost Odyssey was free to download for about an hour or two a couple of weeks ago.  It was a glitch at the time, but it was a sign of things to come.  Well today is that day as Major Announced early this afternoon.  In addition, Blue Dragon can also be downloaded digitally now, but at the price of $19.99.  Links provided below, grab Lost Odyssey while you can, enjoy.

• Blue Dragon $19.99
• Lost Odyssey (Free until December 31st, presumably $19.99 after that)

I admit, I had my doubts, especially after the Bioshock collection got announced for Xbox One.  But the team came through and even before Christmas day. They are three fantastic games, and personally if you have never played these three, I would either get the Rapture Edition which includes Bioshock 1 and 2 and all of the DLC along with the complete edition of Bioshock Infinite (which of course has its own DLC).  That will run you about $35 to $40.  Or you can just purchase the Bioshock Collection for Xbox One which is also around $35 to $40, your choice.  Now obviously, if you don’t care about DLC…you can probably get each title for about $5-$10 each in disc form.  Of course, there are digital options and they are listed below but a wee bit overpriced in my opinion.  Enjoy.

• Bioshock $19.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Ryan Industries Plasmids and Gene Tonics (FREE!)
• Bioshock 2 $19.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Rapture Metro ($9.99)
  • DLC w/Achievements: Protector Trials ($4.99)
  • DLC w/Achievements: Minerva’s Den ($9.99)
  • Free DLC (no Achievements): Kill ’em Kindly (turn all blunt objects into golf clubs)
• Bioshock Infinite $29.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Clash in the Clouds $4.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Burial at Sea Episode 1 $14.99
  • DLC w/Achievements: Burial at Sea Episode 2 $14.99 Part 1 / Part 2 (Note: Part 2 is free, but you’ll need Part 1 to play it)
  • OR purchase the Season Pass for Bioshock Infinite at $19.99 to get all of the DLC.

Welp, another slow week as you might guess which will probably be the pattern until some new year’s sale.  Personally, I’ve been splitting my time between Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2, Batman: Telltale and Gems of War (the never ending grind to Level 100).  PvsZ2 is really a gem and perhaps the only thing I don’t like about it is the fact that you can’t pause single player missions.  You basically have to find a safe zone.  But achievements are ridiculously fun and plentiful.  This one will probably be in my wheelhouse for a while.

So, as you can tell below, there are officially no BC sales.  If one wants to play with possibilities, I would say any of the first three (Alien Rage, Dogfight 1942 or Enemy Front) stand a good chance.  I could easily be talked into buying Alien Rage if it pulls a Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (patent pending).  $2.99 is well worth it.  I doubt any of the Spiderman, TMNT stuff will go BC, but you never know.  Enjoy kids.

Welp, most people will consider these three throwaway titles, but I for one am excited about Shadowrun at least. The other two are honestly games that I have never heard of…however apparently I downloaded the trial of Space Ark at one point.  Not sure what I was on, but that’s what it says.  Anyway, a complete copy of Shadowrun on disc can be found very cheaply, I scored a complete nearly mint copy about three or four months ago for $5.  So, enjoy.

• Shadowrun $14.99 (much cheaper in disc form)
• Shotest Shogi $9.99
• Space Ark $9.99

Welp, I have been playing three games on rotation basically for the last week.  Batman: Telltale series where I finished the second episode, Gems of War (up to level 73, still trying to get a mythic), and freshly started Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare 2.  PvsZ2 is a fantastic game so far. It’s light hearted, full of charm and the achievements are entertaining as well.  This week, we only get one BC game on sale, but it’s a good one.  Foul Play is just a mere $2.49.  The others, like Guncraft and Juju are certainly candidates for BC, but  I would hold off unless they run an announcement in the same week.  Oh and I do talk about Pinball sometimes on this column, I will mention that Bethesda Pinball is up right now at $10.99 (works with Pinball FX2).  That’s a bit pricey, but you do get Skyrim, Fallout and Doom tables to play with.  Enjoy.

Welp, I was pretty sure we would get an announcement today but after Oblivion on Tuesday, almost anything is going to be a let down.  I mean, I’m sure Injustice fans will be quite happy, but it’s second fiddle to an ES game.  Oh, and Outland is free today (Games with Gold) just so you folks know.  Enjoy your weekend if I don’t have anything else to post before then.

• Injustice Gods Among Us $19.99 (Do yourself a favor and grab the Ultimate Edition on disc for $16.32 at Amazon)(Note: This game has a ton of DLC but none of it has extra achievements)
• Haunted House $4.99