I look at OXM every so often and I'm just really amazed at how bad it is. There's little or no objectivity at all. Alot of Sony and Nintendo bashing and the reviews are often completely off. I'm always amazed that every XBox game is (I'm paraphrasing) "the greatest console game in the history of gaming!". At least Official Playstation Magazine will tell you if a game is terrible and they have done so numerous times.

I imagine with a fledgling console that really needs some good press, and a magazine that has newly hit the stands, the editorial staff is more likely to tow the line for Microsoft. Microsoft and it's partners probably dump a ton of money into the magazine for advertising so they know where their checks come from. Unfortunately the magazine, as a result, is almost unreadable.

I personally think a lot of people are too hard on OXM but I haven't really read any console magazines since the old Atari 2600 mag. (anybody remember what it was called???)

I have had a subscription since the first issue and have not regretted it. I do get sick of Halo (and now Halo 2) being mentioned on every page. There hasn't been as much GC or PS2 bashing as in the beginning which is nice. They still do some digs but it seems the writers all play GC and PS2 games b/c they mention Zelda, GTA, and other exclusives to those consoles quite often when talking of gameplay (without the digs).

It is funny to go back and see where they spoke really highly of up and coming games and then complain about them when they comes out (b/c the game sucks).

As far as them praising every game in their review section...I have seen no evidence of that. They have dozens of games that have a score below a 6 (which to me means average or below). Not many games get higher than a 9 and frankly, those that did deserved the high score.

Granted they aren't as harsh as XBN but to claim there is no objectivity (in the reviews at least) is wrong. They may be a little nicer in their final score but they usually call a spade a spade. No objectivity in their previews...well...that's a different story.

To change the subject some...did anyone read the item about the HDDVD: V-Inc Bravo D1 (page 21 of new issue)? Is this really a good product that I have not heard about or are they just pushing something they got paid to push? I would like to hear from someone on this.

Regarding the demos on this disc:
Ghost Recon: Thunder Island - have not played it yet. I didn't care for the first one so I am not excited about this one. Count me in as one of the few wo is not into squad based games.

Mace Griffin - seemed just okay. Nothing special. The flying part was pretty easy and kind of dull. The FPS was your normal FPS.

Soldier of Fortune - thought it was crap. Graphics suck (except for shooting off people's limbs). Gameplay was terrible.

Another quick off topic subject: I really love the Pop Quiz section each month on XBN. They take a Developer, President, etc. of a software company and then show them various screen caps of various games and then get their opinions on the games. I have not heard of or seen more than half of the games they show. It is a pretty cool section. I was just curious if anyone likes it as well.

I'll give OXM credit: The PS2/GameCube bashing has been toned down recently. And they do seem to be a bit more critical lately with their reviews. I've noticed that they seem to be more in line with other mags now. I just don't personally care for the writing style. I noticed with the last few issues that I received that I was sort of flipping through OXM and scanning the articles while EGM and especially XBN are holding my attention more.

Of course, OXM is more current that XBN due to the monthly vs. bi-monthly publishing schedules.