As promised this week?s column is dedicated to the starving student Xbox owner. Every system has its hits and epics and especially in the case of Xbox, what with the 360 now on the market, most of these games have dropped in price. So here I give you my top five picks for games you can pick up for under $30 Canadian. Enjoy, and good luck with the student loan.

Sonic Mega Collection Plus
Now, I?m always iffy when it comes to games that basically recycle old games. Retro sells but sometimes it can be overdone. With Sonic Mega Collection Plus I?d say that you get the most bang for your buck. There are twenty games included in this title and while I don?t see why the developers couldn?t have squeezed the Sonic title for 32X on there, which was Knuckles Chaotix, the most important ones are included: Sonic two and three with or without Knuckles and Sonic 3-D blast. This is classic Sega Genesis gaming at its finest and the games that made Sonic a strong opposition mascot. SMC Plus also comes with another game I strongly recommend ? Comix Zone. This was a title that was severely underrated.

X-men legends
I?ve probably annoyed a substantial amount of people by writing about this game and its sequel so many times. But if you didn?t read my rants about XML before or can?t get enough of them then you?re in luck. I actually didn?t play this one myself until it dropped in price but I soon purchased the sequel afterwards. The Action-RPG fits the X-men so well that I couldn?t imagine them appearing in any other genre. It has allowed players to ultilize not just the standard X-men you?d expect like Cyclops, Wolverine and Storm, but also characters like White Queen, Collosus and Jubilee. Definitley worth investing in.

Medal Of Honour: European Assault
It is important that I give this first-person-shooter its proper respects. I have never been comfortable with how Electronic Arts handled this genre, mainly because of what they?ve done with the 007 license. Rare?s Goldeneye raised the bar for this genre but when EA inherited the rights they brought nothing new to the table for the Bond first-person-shooters for too long. Now to put my foot in my mouth: Medal Of Honour: EA proves that the developers not only know how to handle FPS’s but also how to deliver. While MOH:EA doesn?t offer anything too innovative, I?d say that it encapsulates all the things that work: plenty of weapons, an engaging story, good sound, A.I.-controlled squadrons under your command and particularly on the Xbox version, smooth graphics. There are plenty of World War II shooters around but MOH: EA is the best place to start if you?ve never tried one.

Half-Life 2
Yet another first-person-shooter? Already? Damn straight, because this is Half-Life-freaking-2 I?m talking about here. When I played through and beat the first Half-Life I thought to myself wow, now that deserves a medal. I was excited about the sequel except I really didn?t know how they could actually improve on the original. Particularly in the case of enemy A.I. and enemy animation the developers at Valve were years ahead of their time with Half-Life. The sequel, I am happy to say, is absolutely marvellous. The story picks up where it left off. The head of Black Mesa ? the guy who bore a striking resemblence to the smoking man of the X-files ? is now in cahoots with the vicious alien race that has taken over earth. That?s important to note so I?ll say it again: the aliens in this game, just like in the original, are the most terrifying, blood-thirsty things you?ll ever point a gun at. The game itself looks freakishly good and served as one of the best examples of the Xbox reigning as the graphics champ. If you never played this one and perhaps liked the taste of Counter-Strike, definitely pop this like it?s hot.

Star Wars: Battlefront
Whether or not you?re a Star Wars fan I assure you, you will like this game. There have been many great Star Wars games ? Jedi Knight II and Knights of the Old Republic come to mind – but SWB has really taken the force to new heights. In a nutshell, it?s a game in which you command an entire army, such as rebels or the dark side. That said, the game doesn?t operate like a real-time strategy but instead like a third-person action game. You basically keep on re-spawning until your army captures all the enemy?s command posts or you run out of units. While the sequel gives you the advantage of using the cooler characters such as Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader as well as the option of vehicles, SWB and its sequel are surprisingly similar. Nevertheless, if you haven?t played this one yet then now?s the time.






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