#WIN a Copy of Santa Claus is Comin’ To Town for Nintendo Wii

What’s Christmas around here without giveaways?  And I just so happen to have a pretty awesome giveaway for y’all—check it out!

Remember the 3 awesome games I told y’all about the other day?  Punch Time Explosion XL, Sing 4: The Hits Edition and Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town—well I’m giving them away…all of them!  There are 3 giveaways so make sure you enter all 3!



First up is Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (Nintendo Wii!

Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town in based on the popular children’s movie and it has been a favorite around here for the past week!  If you have a Wii, you have to check this game out—it’s pretty cool!

How would you like to win Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town for Nintendo Wii?  Check out all of the details and enter using the Rafflecopter entry form below!

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3 Hot Video Games For Christmas 2011!

I hope everyone has had a chance to check out MIBR 2011 Holiday Gift Guide—it’s full of fabulous gift ideas for all members of the family!

 

My Lil’ Man is all about video games and though I do limit the time he spends playing them, I’m convinced that he would spend all day every day playing if I would let him! 

 

Needless to say, video games are always a great gift idea for Lil’ Man—so they are always at the top of his wish list for birthdays and Christmas!  This year for Christmas Lil’ Man has asked for just about every video game known to man, so when I was given the opportunity to review a couple of new video games I just couldn’t say no!

 

We received three video games for our review:  Punch Time Explosion XL, Sing 4: The Hits Edition and Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town  and I can’t wait  to tell all of you about them!

 

Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town (Nintendo Wii and DS)

Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town is available for $19.99 wherever Nintendo Wii and DS games are sold.

Developed by 1st Playable Productions, LLC, and published by Red Wagon Games, Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town allows families to share the magic of this classic holiday special in a whole new way. In this platforming adventure game, players join Kris Kringle and his friends as they escape the Burgermeister Meisterburger and bring toys to the children of Sombertown. Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town is an easy to play and fun game for the whole family.

 

Airing annually on ABC, Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town tells the story of how Kris Kringle became Santa Claus and how many favorite Christmas traditions came to be.  It is one of the longest running holiday specials of all time and since its debut in 1970, millions of families have tuned in, making it a top-rated TV special year after year.  For more information you can check out the Santa Claus is Coming to Town Facebook page!

 

Buy Santa Claus is Coming to Town (Wii) Now!

 

 

Sing 4: The Hits Edition

Sing4: The Hits Edition for the Wii™ system from Nintendo is now available for $39.99 and rated “T” for Teen. For a limited time, Sing4 comes packaged with a microphone.

 

Sing4 and the Sing4 YouTube Contest transform karaoke, one of the world’s most popular forms of entertainment, into an immersive singing experience. Aspiring professionals and amateurs alike are empowered to get into the game and get online to show off their singing talent. 

 

Buy Sing 4: The Hits Edition (for Wii) Now!

 

Punch Time Explosion XL

 

Step into the shoes of 26 Cartoon Network stars (8 new characters) including: Ben 10, Samurai Jack, and Johnny Bravo to battle for cartoon supremacy. The fast-paced, all-new console fighting game features iconic locations with five new battle arenas.  Additionally, the game has a variety of multiplayer options including numerous battle modes, as well as an in-depth story mode that introduces an all-new co-op gameplay experience – all supporting up to four players. Punch Time Explosion XL cinematic attacks and powerful dual-character team synergy attacks bring together unexpected, impressive blows to opponents. An in-game store will give fans an opportunity to unlock new characters and arenas, unique costumes, and memorable cartoon clips from their favorite TV shows.

 

Check out some of the awesome screenshots from the game below!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Punch Time Explosion XK is available for PlayStation®3, Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii™. Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion XL is an affordable and family-friendly title (rated E-10+) that everyone will love. The game is the only brawler of its kind this season and makes a great holiday gift, priced at $39.99 Xbox 360 / PS3 and $29.99 Wii.

 

Buy Punch Time Explosion XL for PS3 Now!

 

Lil’ Man loves Cartoon Network (and Samurai Jack, and Johnny Bravo are two of his favorites) so I know this game will be a huge hit in our house!  And I don’t know about anyone else, but I can’t wait for the next family game night so that we can all play Sing 4: The Hits Edition—I see a good time in our future!

 

Disclosure:  I received the products mentioned above from the company or PR to facilitate my review…all opinions are my own and were not influenced by the sponsor!

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Holiday Gift Guide: NASCAR Unleashed for PS3

It might be getting closer to Turkey day, but here at Misadventures we’ve been talking about the hottest gifts this holiday season!  I have another great gift idea for those of you who have a little (or big) gamer on your list!

 

 

Lil Man loves video games; seriously I’ve never seen a four year old reduce his father to tears over a football game (true story people).  While I don’t like for my son to play video games that often, my mother always told my sister and I that video games “rot your brain”—that’s probably why my children have every game console known to man (sorry mom ) , I don’t mind for him to play every once in a while.   And when he’s not beating his father at football, he’s all about racing cars—that’s why I knew he would love NASCAR Unleashed!

 

 

 

 

About NASCAR Unleashed…

 

In NASCAR Unleashed, racers break free from the track and take over everything else (the pavement, beaches and off-road areas of some of NASCAR’s most beloved tracks!  The thrill of racing in a new, yet familiar environment is what makes NASCAR Unleashed so exciting and tons of fun!

 

Key Features:

 

*  All-Star Pack:  15 of NASCAR’s biggest and best drivers including; Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Joey Logano, and many more!

 

*  Racetrack Déjà vu:  Player race on real life NASCAR tracks with a bit of a twist.  Players make their way across familiar parts of the track and burst into brand new areas that they never expected!  Tracks include:  Daytona International Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway, Martinsville Speedway Talladega Speedway.

 

*  Bumper to Bumper:  Bumping and grinding is the name of the game as players have to fight their way up to pole position.  Opponents don’t make it easy though as they’ll be every bit as ruthless as you on their quest to be the best!

 

*  Arcade Action:  Racing is wild, fast and crazy as players drift around corners and hit massive jumps while trying to avoid being wrecked.

 

*  Unlockables Unleashed:  After winning events, players will be rewarded with fun and goofy upgrades that can be used to customize their cars into something unique and outrageous! 

 

I’ve also got the inside track of some of the best tips and tricks to help get you started!

 

1.  Randomly throughout the race a challenge car will pop up in the top right corner…Complete these challenges for more boost!

 

2.  The more points you gain the faster you can unlock new paint schemes for your car.

 

3.  Always stay behind a car in traffic to draft them!  If you’re doing it right you’ll see wind passing around your car.  You can do one of two things from here:  slingshot your car around them (you’ll use the extra speed of the drat to pass them) or continue drafting.  If you continue to draft, your bottom right boost meter will continue to build.  Once it’s filled unleash your boost!

 

4.  If you lose yourself in a corner, press the drift button and try to recover with finesse. 

 

5.  The pits are your friend!  If you get beat-up during a race, going into the pits fixes your car and gives you a boost.

 

And there ya go—5 very helpful tricks for NASCAR Unleashed—nothing like a few kinda/sorta video game cheats to put a lil’ pep in your step!

 

If you have a video game fan on your holiday gift list then NASCAR Unleashed is definitely a great choice!  You can check out NASCAR Unleashed on Amazon!

 

And while you’re checking out the game make sure you check out “Battle of the NASCAR® Kids” championship tournament held last weekend for charity! 

 

BUY IT!

 

 NASCAR Unleashed is available November 1 for Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, the Wii™ system from Nintendo and the Nintendo 3DS™ hand-held system at $39.99.  Check out NASCAR Unleashed: Arcade on Amazon.com! 

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Tony Hawk SHRED Review {Great Gift Idea}

What lets you score big air, even bigger tricks, and is on every boys  wish list this Christmas?  Tony Hawk SHRED of course! Tony Hawk SHRED is the latest offering in the super charged, adrenaline pumping, world of action sports video games.  The follow-up to last year’s RIDE game, Tony Hawk SHRED takes players on a big air, trick filled, super ride in not just one, but two disciplines; skateboarding and snowboarding!  Game play centers around the use of SHRED’s skate/snowboard controller which is completely dependent on the rider to pull off gnarly kickflips and killer grinds by moving the board as you would a real skateboard or snowboard.  Available for PlayStation 3, XBOX 360, and Wii Tony Hawk SHRED is sure to be a smash hit this holiday season!  Sound like fun? 

Here’s some more information about the game from the official SHRED website:

Tony Hawk®: SHRED’s motion sensing skateboard/snowboard allows players to control the action with their feet to perform amazing tricks in the game. Using the board as a skateboard, clear huge gaps, hit massive drops, and ride out roller coaster grinds. Using the board as a snowboard, speed down mountain peaks filled with breathtaking big airs, crazy spins and incredible flips. The game’s intuitive controls and multiple difficulty levels make it easy to pick up and play. It’s time to SHRED.

The Board

At first glance the skateboard controller looks like a regular skateboard (sans wheels), but upon closer inspection you notice that there are several “smart sensors” located all around the board, these sensors allow the gamer to push for speed, execute amazing grabs and set up for larger than life tricks.  The board works using motion sensing technology allowing the rider to rotate, lift, and tilt the board to pull off tricks.  The board’s gritty surface mimics a real skateboard and allows for traction during game play as with a real board, the curved bottom of the board allows for stability and full range of motion during game play.

One of the “smart sensors”   

The Characters

Aside from Tony Hawk (who I always insist on being when I play) Tony Hawk SHRED features a cast of characters straight out of the X Games.  Louie Vito, Geoff Rowley, Chaz Ortiz, Lyn Z Adams Hawkins, and Shaun White to name a few, game play can be different each and every time you play!

The Locations

One of my favorite parts of any Tony Hawk game are the different locations and levels of play.  SHRED features locations including New Orleans, Hawaii, Greece, French Alps, Melbourne and many, many more!

Game Play

Grab big air and pull off the sickest tricks throughout the many different levels and locations of the Tony Hawk SHRED game.  Learn how to skate like a pro by utilizing the many tutorials before hitting the streets or the slopes to shred!

Me learning how to skate with the tutorials

I have to be honest here and tell you that I am a TOTAL Tony Hawk fan!  I have loved (and kicked butt at) every Tony Hawk game around so the opportunity for me to test out this game was a blast for me!  Let me start by admitting that yes, I played, I mean tested this game before anyone else in my family got a chance, you know for the sake of my review and all.  And since I’m admitting stuff I might as well go ahead and admit that I kinda, sorta used to know how to ride a skateboard and do a couple of tricks, (one of my cousins spent his entire summer one year teaching me) though it has been ages since I’ve actually been on a skateboard and successfully pulled off a trick. 

When I first stepped on the board to go through the tutorials it was kind of awkward for me, as a result it was a little difficult to get my board to do exactly what I wanted it to do.  After many trails and errors I finally got the hang of how I was supposed to move my board and I was doing tricks in no time…which was majorly cool I might add.  When I finally got to hit the streets I was quickly moving through the areas and racking up major points doing what I do best with Tony Hawk games…grinding!  My husband even got in on the act and commented, “this is cool…it’s like a mini-workout”.

My husband demonstrating how to do an ollie

There is no doubt in my mind that this game will be a HUGE hit with boys (and a lot of girls) and it’s the perfect addition to your gaming arsenal!  If you have tween/teen boys and girls at your house you have to check out Tony Hawk SHRED…chances are really good that they already have  this on their holiday wish lists!

Buy it!

Tony Hawk SHRED is available at GameStop, Walmart, Toys ‘R’ Us, online at Amazon (Tony Hawk: Shred Bundle) and wherever video games are sold! 

Make sure you check out Tony Hawk SHRED and tons of other great holiday gift ideas in Misadventures in Baby Raising’s 2010 Holiday Gift Guide!

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Easy Piano for Nintendo DS {Review}

We are huge video game fans at my house.  Everyone from my husband to our smallest children enjoy video games and while I don’t mind my children playing video games in moderation it’s always nice to see them choose an educational game over something not so educational.

Recently I had the chance to review a Nintendo DS game called Easy Piano and I was more than happy to check it out.  My oldest daughter loves music and has shown a lot of interest lately in learning how to play an instrument so I knew this game would be perfect for her.  Easy Piano by Valcon Games, released April 13 is an extremely unique  game that can not only teach you to play the piano but also to read and compose your own music.  Some of the cool features of Easy Piano:

• It includes a real keyboard that attaches to the DS.
• You can play using the keyboard or unplug it and use a stylus.
• You can master songs in Quick Game mode to earn new songs.
• You can compose and even save up to 3 original songs and even replay your compositions using different instruments.
• Learn to read  music from a very awesome instructor and so much more!

With 2 difficulty modes, 10 lessons, and a ton of mini-games Easy Piano has all of the musical bases covered.  Not only is this game fun and entertaining it is also educational.  I don’t know about you, but if I had the choice between buying my children a video game that can teach them to play an instrument and a game that has them shooting at everything under the sun, I would choose the educational game 10 times out of 10.  We (yes I said we…it was fun) really enjoyed Easy Piano and I think you (oh and your kids too) would as well.
Buy it:  Easy Piano retails for $39.99 (price includes game and keyboard) and is available at Wal-Mart, Amazon, and other online and offline retailers.

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