Xbox Live has scheduled 24 hours of downtime starting Monday, September 29 at 12:01 AM PST in order to prepare for the new Xbox experience that gamers everywhere are so incredibly excited about. When you log back in a full day later, Microsoft has stated no changes will be readily apparent as it is not the update but instead just the preparation for it. Obviously we can’t go an entire day without gaming; I’m pretty sure it’s not even physically possible. With a decent amount of single player only games in the Xbox 360 library, that day would be the perfect opportunity to try out one you haven’t yet played. I have listed my top 11 one player only picks perfect to fill your time while you wait for Xbox Live to come back online. Maybe you’ll discover a new one. Perhaps you’ll rediscover an old one. Or you could be like me and just sleep that day. Whatever works.
BioShock, Shooter, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: BioShock is the “genetically enhanced” first-person shooter that lets you do things never before possible in the genre. Turn everything into a weapon, biologically mod your body with plasmids, hack devices and systems, upgrade your weapons and craft new ammo variants, and experiment with different battle techniques.
Buy or Rent: Buy. Winning entirely too many awards to list, this game is definitely worth your money. If you don’t, those little sisters may stick their Big Daddies on you and trust me, you don’t want that.
Mass Effect, RPG, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Mass Effect is a sci-fi action RPG created by BioWare, the commercially and critically acclaimed developer of Jade Empire and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Mass Effect delivers an immersive, story-driven experience coupled with awe-inspiring visuals, delivered exclusively to the Xbox 360. As one of the first human beings to step onto the galactic stage, you face a grave threat that may destroy all of civilization. Your job is complicated by the fact that no one believes that there is any threat at all. Travel across an expansive universe, exploring the uncharted corners of the galaxy, searching for pieces of the truth in order to discover how to defeat the coming destruction.
Buy or Rent: Buy as the campaign will take you anywhere from 20 to 30 hours to complete. Plus, there’s hot alien sex. If that’s not replay value, I don’t know what is.
Dead Rising, Action, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Dead Rising follows the harrowing tale of Frank West, an overly zealous freelance photojournalist on a hunt for the scoop of a lifetime. In pursuit of a juicy lead, he makes his way to a small suburban town only to find that it has become overrun by zombies. He escapes to the local shopping mall, thinking it will be a bastion of safety, but it turns out to be anything but.
Buy or Rent: Rent as you can easily beat it in one day (approximately six hours) and will more than likely be frustrated by the shitty save system. See what I did there? Shitty? As in bathroom? As in … nevermind.
Devil May Cry 4, Action, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Devil May Cry 4 immerses you in a gothic supernatural world, where a new protagonist clashes with a familiar hero. As the new leading man Nero, unleash incredible attacks and non-stop combos using a unique new gameplay mechanic with his powerful “Devil Bringer” arm. With the advanced graphical capabilities of Xbox 360, high-definition visuals and intricate detail come to life as you explore new and exotic locales. Dynamic action and undeniable style combine with explosive fighting options and a gripping story to produce incomparable experience that only a Devil May Cry game delivers.
Buy or Rent: Rent if you are a button masher. Buy if you have bad ass timing as the replay value is nearly infinite.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, RPG, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Step into the most richly detailed and vibrant game world ever created. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is the latest chapter in the epic and highly successful saga from Bethesda Softworks. Oblivion is the sequel to the best-selling, award-winning role-playing game (RPG) The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, named 2002 RPG and Game of the Year for Xbox. Oblivion is another leap forward in role-playing with its combination of freeform gameplay and cutting-edge graphics.
Buy or Rent: Buy as you will easily get at least a few dozen hours of gameplay with a single run through of the campaign, assuming you actually see the ending of this game instead of becoming obsessed with each and every side quest.
Assassin’s Creed, Action, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Assassin’s Creed is the next-generation game developed by Ubisoft Montreal that redefines the action genre. Assassin’s Creed merges technology, game design, theme, and emotions into a world where you instigate chaos and become a vulnerable, yet powerful, agent of change. The setting is 1191 A.D. The Third Crusade is tearing the Holy Land apart. You, Altair, intend to stop the hostilities by suppressing both sides of the conflict. You are an Assassin, a warrior shrouded in secrecy and feared for your ruthlessness. Your actions can throw your immediate environment into chaos, and your existence will shape events during this pivotal moment in history.
Buy or Rent: Unless you are masochistic and have a thing for repetitive gameplay, rent this one. Although I guess if you are really masochistic, you can buy it and then pull all of your hair out. Both options sound fairly exciting.
Condemned: Criminal Origins, Action, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Developed by award-winning Monolith Productions for Xbox 360 Condemned: Criminal Origins allows players to experience a heightened level of psychological tension as they use their instincts, forensic tools, and melee combat to track serial killers and bring them to justice. As Agent Thomas, an investigator in the FBI’s Serial Crimes Unit (SCU), you will pursue relentless serial killers through urban environments filled with sociopaths lurking on the periphery of humanity. Weapons and ammunition are scarce, leaving the you vulnerable to a gallery of mentally deranged criminals. Careful detective work and precision reflexes are your primary means of survival.
Buy or Rent: Assuming you aren’t a serial killer who strikes frequently and uses pipes as your preferred weapon, rent it as you can beat it one day (approximately 10 hours) and it has very little replay value.
Hitman: Blood Money, Shooter, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: In Hitman: Blood Money step once again into the shoes of the world’s greatest assassin, Agent 47. When assassins from Agent 47’s contract killing firm, The ICA, are systematically eliminated in a series of hits, it seems a larger more powerful agency has entered the fray. Sensing that he may be the next target, Agent 47 travels to America, where he prepares to make a killing.
Buy or Rent: Either or as you can beat it one day but overall has excellent replay value.
Ninja Gaiden II, Action, Rated Mature
Features from Xbox.com: Ninja Gaiden II makes its long-awaited debut on Xbox 360 as the blockbuster action-packed sequel to Ninja Gaiden. Ninja Gaiden II features a new and improved game engine, developed from the ground up exclusively for Microsoft and Xbox 360 by Team Ninja and legendary game developer Tomonobu Itagaki, creator of the famed Dead or Alive franchise. Guide Ryu Hayabusa on a mission to avenge his clan and prevent the destruction of the human race. Armed with an assortment of ninja weaponry, help Ryu to skillfully maneuver through a world fraught with peril and danger. Ninja Gaiden II features an all-new gameplay engine, new auto-health regeneration system, levels, adventures, enemies, and thrilling combat with an extensive assortment of ninja weaponry, representing a true evolution of the highly popular franchise.
Buy or Rent: Rent but make sure you do some thumb exercises so you can last playing through it on more than one difficulty in a short period of time. I’m sure you have the endurance to go multiple times in one day, right?
Blue Dragon, RPG, Rated Teen
Features from Xbox.com: Famed game producer Hironobu Sakaguchi of Mistwalker and developer Artoon present the highly anticipated Xbox 360 exclusive Blue Dragon. Featuring the character design of Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball Z and music by Nobuo Uematsu of Final Fantasy, Blue Dragon is an epic role-playing game that centers on a young boy named Shu and several of his friends. Encountering various people on a planet where numerous ancient ruins remain, the characters and their shadows travel through a world full of mysteries and illusions, where the slightest touch can cause reactions of unparalleled magnitude.
Buy or Rent: Despite having a lengthy campaign, diehard RPGers will want to rent this game before purchasing to see if the nontraditional cartoonish style appeals to them.
Lost Odyssey, RPG, Rated Teen
Features from Xbox.com: Lost Odyssey is the story of Kaim, an immortal character who has lived more than 1,000 years. He doesn’t remember his past, and he doesn’t know where his future lies. Throughout Kaim’s journey, a handful of characters will join him on an odyssey to discover their intricate past and destiny, leading you through a dramatic story of massive scale. Lost Odyssey features breathtaking visuals and an epic adventure made possible only by the power of Xbox 360.
Buy or Rent: While gameplay will run you approximately 40 hours, rent this one first to see if you can make it past the super slow loading screens without throwing your controller at your tv.
What single player only games would you recommend from the current library of Xbox 360 games? Any on the list you wouldn’t recommend?
Posted by mendicantbias00 on September 24, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Uhhh wait a minute…what about Halo 3 Campaign???
Ill probably be playing that or Mass Effect.
Posted by Deadlock on September 24, 2008 at 1:43 pm
No GTA4? Oh Well, I can play Bioshock all day…
Posted by bs angel on September 24, 2008 at 1:44 pm
The list is of games that support single players only. I know I am fairly social and tend to focus a lot of multiplayer. That is why I wanted to use this opportunity to play those titles that are solely a one person experience. :)
Posted by ashame on September 24, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Great list of games I’d say. I just finished Lost Odyssey. Only took me 110 hrs.
Posted by ashame on September 24, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Oh and for the 29th my choice would be Eternal Sonata :mrgreen:
Posted by mendicantbias00 on September 24, 2008 at 1:59 pm
@ bs angel
Ahh…my bad. Mass Effect it is!
Posted by Dan (tehviruss) on September 24, 2008 at 2:02 pm
Play Bioshock with headphones on at night. It’s so creepy!
Posted by bs angel on September 24, 2008 at 2:04 pm
You and your RPGs ashame! 110 hours is crazy, although I probably put that many into Viva Pinata so I shouldn’t talk.
Dan, too bad Dead Space isn’t out yet, eh? ::shakes fist:: That would have been perfect!
Posted by Queen 0f Blades on September 24, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Ah, Mass Effect. I may or may not have accidentally forgot to save after the sex scene, then may or may not have proceeded to die and have to re-watch said sex scene. ¬w¬
Posted by davyboy94 on September 24, 2008 at 2:14 pm
i ahve oblivion and blue dragon , blue dragon is really hard :S and ive jsut started playing oblivion again
Posted by gigglepie on September 24, 2008 at 2:16 pm
All I need is my mass effect and some hot cocoa and I’ll be good, wait is the 29th a monday? Then it’s mass effect monday anyway, happyface.
Posted by SonofMacPhisto on September 24, 2008 at 2:30 pm
The Orange Box is for me! :)
Half-Life 2 took me about 20 hours to complete the first time round, then the two episode lasts 6-8 hours. Then there’s Portal! Even Team Fortress 2 is fun to run around in by yourself, if only to check out the super cool artwork and silly characters.
Anyway, more then enough to last an entire day.
Posted by gigglepie on September 24, 2008 at 2:32 pm
…or everyone could play Shadowrun, no, wait…
Posted by Sorel on September 24, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Oh, Oblivion… the game that’s great but totally does not deserve its rating. Too bad that I got reminded of that mess…
And then Blue Dragon with the most insane/boring achievements ever. The best solo game if you’re a perfectionist, with getting everything in the game taking… forever.
Posted by Das Kalk on September 24, 2008 at 2:43 pm
what about Half life 2? i liked it… Good list angel, mine would probably have some older games too. Like this:
Halo 3 (still need skulls and meta-game)
Ocarina of time
Half life 2
force unleashed
Kotor 1
Kotor 2
super mario 64 (yep, got it)
perfect dark (this too)
Donkey Kong 64 (also this one)
banjo kazooie (that’s right)
oh and last but not least…
Halo CE
Posted by Vash on September 24, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Lost Odyssey is a perfect pick. I incourage anyone who is a fan of JRPGs to get it.
Posted by PikminGod on September 24, 2008 at 2:55 pm
no one mentions the force unleashed?
FOR SHAME!
Posted by Aperture S on September 24, 2008 at 2:55 pm
I’m quite mad a microsoft. I have monday off college and was planing to sit down and make good progress on the new ranking system now I cant.
:(
Posted by Das Kalk on September 24, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Excuse me but read my list pikmin god, that game is quite epic and the reviews are lying
Posted by Mondo Titan on September 24, 2008 at 3:06 pm
..a whole day.. *sad face*. great looking list Angel but i would definitely add Star Wars: The Force Unleashed to it. in fact, i might have to rent it this weekend just to have it ready for Monday :).. either that or there’s always Crackdown.. ahhh, good times.
@ Das Kalk: you forgot Jade Empire. but i wouldnt stop there, as Chrono Trigger is a class act not to be missed on a day of no live.
Posted by Caelan96 on September 24, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Bioshock will spend alot of time in my disc tray. Maybe Oblivion… but Bioshock’s better. Freakin’ scary on a dark night with headphones on though.
Posted by Caelan96 on September 24, 2008 at 3:10 pm
BTW, I’m surprised you didn’t mention Force Unleashed? I’ve never played it, but I hear it’s pretty good.
Posted by Nid on September 24, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Mass Effect, Force Unleashed, and Viva Pinata for me.
Posted by Das Kalk on September 24, 2008 at 3:35 pm
@ mondao titan: I KNEW I FORGOT SOMETHING!
Posted by bs angel on September 24, 2008 at 3:39 pm
The Force Unleashed omission was simply a brain fart on my part. I haven’t had a chance to play it yet plus it came out so recently that it completely slipped my mind. I probably would have given it a spot on the list had I remembered.
Posted by SonofMacPhisto on September 24, 2008 at 3:46 pm
Granted… XBOX LIVE might be down – but if you really want to MAN UP you go plan yourself a LAN party! ;)
Posted by Ragingterror on September 24, 2008 at 4:05 pm
’m sure you have the endurance to go multiple times in one day, right?
Like you wouldn’t believe…
I’ve played plenty of RPGs in my day, and when I found out that Blue Dragon was produced by the same development team that did Chrono Trigger (One of the all-time greatest in my opinion), I was immediately interested. Too bad this one turned out to be such a disappointment.
Posted by Chickenwaffle on September 24, 2008 at 4:18 pm
I would play Bioshock again, but I haven’t played Oblivion in a while and I still have some achievements to get on it soooooooo……….I’ll play Portal :D
Posted by Das Kalk on September 24, 2008 at 5:25 pm
We forgive you angel, but it is worth the sixty bones. The X-Play review was completely out of whack. And there’s a lot of replay value!
Posted by Mizzy on September 24, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Wouldn’t recommend Blue Dragon if you like the repetitive button-smashing to find hidden object. Plus little to no character development.
And Marumaro’s voice will drive you effing crazy REGARDLESS of language choice.
Posted by Arteen on September 24, 2008 at 7:48 pm
My current obsession is Tales of Vesperia. The game is fantastic! It’s an action-RPG with fun characters and a great battle system.
Worth noting is that the game supports up to 4 players in local co-op, and there are 7 playable characters with vastly different play styles. I played through Tales of Symphonia (a previous game in the series) with 2 (and sometimes 3) other friends, and it was a blast. Of course, it’s a great solo game as well.
Slaying adorable monsters has never been so much fun.
Posted by Havoc 101 on September 24, 2008 at 8:15 pm
Star Wars Battlefront
Star Wars Battlefront 2
You should buy both if you love big skirmish battles. And star wars.
Posted by bs angel on September 24, 2008 at 8:23 pm
I wasted way too many hours on both of those games Havoc, they were amazingly fun.
Posted by Havoc 101 on September 24, 2008 at 8:23 pm
Marathon Durandal is also a good one for solo.
Posted by Havoc 101 on September 24, 2008 at 8:32 pm
If Dead Space was out, it would be on my list, even though I haven’t played it, yet. It looks (well how can I describe it) AWESOME!
Posted by silvercube on September 24, 2008 at 9:39 pm
What!
No DDR mentioned. Oh my goodness!
Posted by MERLIN on September 24, 2008 at 10:13 pm
my vote easily goes for Oblivion, which I am knee-deep in right now, with like my 4th character. The replay value of this game is actually phenomenal when you pick a different character class.
Posted by Mace Windex on September 24, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Bioshock and Mass Effect are two of the best games I’ve ever played, period. Also, nice list. I’ll have to check a few out.
Posted by Lan Mordreth on September 25, 2008 at 2:18 am
I’d prolly play Ninja Gaiden 2 but I stopped playing it for a month or so and now I can’t do anything in the game. Just got the werewolves and I get pwnt pretty hardcore. As it is I’ll prolly continue to play Rockband 2 since you don’t need much from Live for that.
Posted by Rhamsey on September 25, 2008 at 7:23 am
god, took me a year to beat oblivion. i was stuck doing every quest i found. or just stealing every item in every house. or trying to find all of the nirnroot (sp?) anyway, that is one game if you get this monday, you will be playing forever.
Posted by JediMasterSal 0 on September 26, 2008 at 9:43 am
The Force Unleashed
I bought it first day and took Halo time out of it before finishing the game. So I’ll play the last two levels I need to complete the hard level and get most of the achievements.
TFU is a good game. Not great, in my opinion. But for a one day game it matches up to just about anything else. Not so much replay value in the 360 version, except for achievements.
Posted by 368 Days Later « Hawty McBloggy Invites You to Play on September 28, 2008 at 1:07 pm
[...] Their first idea was to load up Arrival. After we finished watching the short introductory cutscene, my “Campaign Complete: Legendary” achievement instantly popped up. If I would have known the fix was that easy, I would have done it long ago! Next up were the terminals. We ended up doing all of them, making sure I got the red triangle each time. Their best guess was that I had backed out too early with one of them before. Regardless, another achievement unlocked! Then we worked on some of the smaller achievements I still hadn’t gotten. As I can only shoot stationary targets with the laser, they had me pick up invincibility and then took me up in a hornet. They got me super close to a banshee so there was no way I could miss it and then one year and three days after Halo 3 was released, I unlocked the “Too Close to the Sun” achievement. About fucking time, eh? They were also determined to get me “Headshot Honcho” so they wandered around lowering shields while I sniped trees, rocks, and everything except for the targets. Two hours and four achievements later, I had received a very nice 175 point boost to my gamerscore. Despite the fact that I am the biggest n00b in Halo history, they never made me feel bad and were nothing but patient while I prayed and sprayed my way through the objectives. While I typically don’t worry about the achievement side of things, I’m pretty motivated right now to finish up the meta-game ones I still need. I think I may have found an activity for tomorrow’s Xbox Live downtime. [...]