FFXIII, Bioshock 2 and Saints Row 2 avatar gear hit Home, 360

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Blitz of new stuff you can buy includes costumes, decorations, vague sense of remorse

Today was an unusually big day for premium avatar accessories. First came the news that Final Fantasy XIII- and Bioshock 2-themed outfits and decorations had debuted on Home,running from $1.99 to $4.99 each...

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Above: That hot dog's bun should really be bigger. Right now it's like a vest

While we're normally not to keen on the marketing-drivenHome or the avatar-costume money pit in general,this stuffwas just too weird not to delve in and check out firsthand. Starting with the Final Fantasy XIII items, the new stuff includes four outfits(at $4.99 each), enabling your avatar to cosplay as Snow, Lightning, Sazh and Vanille. The first two were revealed in tasteful, somewhat boringscreenshots released by Sony and Square Enix...

... while the rest are revealed in these less tasteful screens, taken by me:


Above: "Damn you, $2 gunsword model! You stay on the couch, airship model, until I get done berating this one"


Above: Vanille's sense of style can make even the dumpiest avatar... less obviously dumpy (from the front)

Then we've got the Bioshock 2 costumes, whichall sell for $4.99, but are a little more interesting. Theseinclude a "Bouncer" Big Daddy...

... a slightly less lunky Rosie...

... and aBig Sister, which can be worn by male or female avatars.


Above: If you're not going to make them dance, what's even the point?

All three of the costumes are susprisingly detailed, and have it all over their more cartoony 360 counterparts, which were made available ages ago.

Interestingly, both consoles have a Big Daddy doll you can buy, although only the 360 Avatars seem to actually do anything with theirs.

That's as opposed to the Home version of the doll, which just seems to act like an avatar arm extension.


Above: Don't be fooled - the quickest way to get him to lift it up for the camera was to make him gesture

Finally, Home userscan buy a Subject Delta helmet for two bucks, but nothing else to wear with it. What the hell's up with that?


Above: THIS IS ONLY A THIRD OF AN OUTFIT

Of course, none of this stuff actually does anything aside fromlooking cool and advertising to everyone that you have $5 to throw away. Butif forking over actual money to dress up an imaginary version of yourself is your kind of thing, then hey, today's a pretty huge day.

Apr 22, 2010

Mikel Reparaz
Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.