Unfortunately, Mudvayne has now fallen into a category of successful alternative metal bands that have changed their sound, or toned it down, to sell more records. I can only believe that after the major success of "Happy?", they wanted to make an album of radio-friendly tunes to hopefully carry on that success.

This trend is disappointing, as we have all seen Korn, Linkin Park, Finger Eleven, and many more bands take this route. Now don't get me wrong: I still own all the recent albums from these bands, and listen to them from time to time. They aren't bad albums, per se, but they lack the energy and excitement that their earlier albums provided. What we are left with is a collection of songs that are listenable, even catchy at times. The problem is that they don't stand out from the hundreds of other bands that permeate the airwaves. The edge they had is gone.

When Mudvayne released LD:50 in 2000, that album became the soundtrack to my college days. It was intense, unpredictable, heavy, and unlike anything I had or have ever heard. In my opinion, it is one of the best albums of the last ten years. While it may be the least accessible to the average listener, because of the insane song structures, screaming, and overall heaviness, it is their masterpiece. Every song on the album felt like an integral piece, meant to be listened to as a whole.
Mudvayne has altered their sound since their debut, becoming less intense and more radio-friendly. Also, their albums became less like albums, and more like collections of random songs. The End of All THings to COme bridged the gap from metal to hard rock, and Lost and Found was much more hard rock than metal.
The New Game is not a bad album. There are some really good songs on here, such as "Do What You Do", "Dull Boy", and "Fish Out of Water". If you are a diehard fan of LD 50, I would suggest you listen before you buy, or at least try to take it for what it is.
It sounds like there is hope for the future, as there are rumors that we will have a HEAVY Mudvayne album within the next year.
THe New Game gets 3.5 Stars from me, as it can't compare to earlier Mudvayne. They are still better than 75% of the garbage out there, though.

Big time disappointing album. Only 2 songs are worth listening to, the recycled Dull Boy and We The People. The uniqueness of Mudvayne is gone, the heaviness is gone, the noticeable bass lines are gone, the intense screaming that seemed to have substance behind them are gone. What you have left is boring, radio friendly, cookie cutter rock music.

Is it me or do you notice that when bands stop using swear words without inhibition (such as w/ this album) there music becomes a little more bland, (i.e Slipknot, Deftones and now Mudvayne). I guess that's a sign of them trying to become more radio friendly and wanting more record sales.

Let me just start this by saying that this album is the final nail in the coffin for my hopes that Mudvayne would get back to the LD 50 Mudvayne I know and absolutely love. I loved Pantera and I love Mudvayne, but Hell Yeah was just... I couldn't stand that album. In comparison to that, this album is 5 stars but if you're going to like this album as a Mudvayne fan, you have to almost view the band as if this album is the completion of redefining themselves. I mean, when was the last time you heard Gregg bust out a guitar solo? You will on this album, and a couple of them at that.

I gave this album 3 stars because while I liked listening to the album, not a whole lot of it makes me want to keep this CD spinning over and over... and that really saddens me, because I used to be all about this band. They've gone from having a sound that's completely their own to a sound that's extremely radio-friendly and non-enjoyable to spin any more than once or twice through as a listener. Chad has stated that they consider this as growth in themselves as musicians. Because they consider this album the fruition of growth, I decided I would rate this album based on the Mudvayne that's obviously here to stay; a new Mudvayne that's far, far away from the complexity, honesty, and purpose of LD 50.

I'll still check out future Mudvayne material in hopes of hearing some semblance of LD 50; an album I STILL listen to straight through and repeat it with the desire to hear more and more. Sorry, Mudvayne. If any of you happen to read this, I'm thrilled that you're all satisfied with yourselves and feel that you're growing as musicians. I completely appreciate that perspective but each album has brought about a certain distancing from someone like me who basically considers LD 50 to be as musically important with its statement as some of the most influential albums of all time!

"The New Game" is appropriate when considering this is obviously the finality of Mudvayne's musical growth and direction. It's not bad by any means; there's a lot of good music on here, but it's just not interesting to a listener like me who looks for the complexity and musical statement once made by the same 4 individuals on LD 50.

I typically like when artists change in time. I have no problem with new Metallica versus old; I feel the same about AFI or Tool. Even Mash held its own after eleven years. I think we just ask that a conscientious effort for quality be present.

The album starts off kinda odd but promising. But it's more of the same, with a few guitar solos thrown in for good measure. I was surprised to hear Do What You Do for the first time on the radio. In the middle of a long drive at night I sought refuge from the doldrums of midnight driving. Bam, there it was.

Sadly my hopes were dashed the first time I laid ears upon the record. What could have been good (though I doubt great) gave way to more of the same and eventually the bargain bin. Chad's propensity towards politics now seems like Ain Soph Aur is forever gone. Okay, well enough, because I thought Choices was a good song.

But he makes little effort in comparison. Even Lost And Found was different in that respect. At least that album was cohesive and still showing care towards the result. I did not get that feeling at all with The New Game.

It somewhat saddens me to say it too because I've seen numerous Mudvayne shows. Interstates and borders be damned, I will drive however far to the nearest show. With this album I'm a little hesitant to think of such devotion now. There is another album supposed to come out soon. I only hopes it makes up for this haphazard effort. If this is a sign of things to come I confess my road tripping days for Mudvayne are just as well over with my nostalgia for them.

Ryan and Matt are obviously the more talented half of the band. Greg was creative enough to get around his limitations. But the whole Nu Metal (whatever label you want to hide behind) relied heavily on power chords anyway. It's no surprise the scene has faded. It is surprising to see that even such a band that really pushed it further would succumb to it as well.

Let me make clear Chad's voice sounds just as great as ever. His lyrics are nowhere near par for most of the album though. The band can't over compensate enough to save the album for that reason. There are some good riffs here and there but nothing to bring it all together.

Bottom line, even for die hard fans, this isn't a game worth playing.

If you want to listen to an album like LD 50, then go buy... uh, LD 50. No, this album isn't what you might expect from Mudvayne, but the great thing from this band is that they don't have to define themselves and box themselves up the way most of the reviewers here apparently have. They're going to experiment with new sounds, new formats, new themes, and if you really do like THE BAND and not just the swearing and screaming, you'll be able to still enjoy them. The talent is still there. You can hear that this band cares about their music. They're still a supremely talented band that went in a slightly different direction than everyone is used to, and their fans are freaking out? Really? My God, calm down folks, it's not the end of the world.

So what, Chad doesn't swear every 15 seconds like he did in previous albums. He still has the scream down. And what do you care if they make their CD more radio friendly? They may love the music, but they still need to make money otherwise no one is going to pay them to play music. If you want Mudvayne to never change, then just keep LD 50 playing and never listen to anything else. But if you can appreciate watching this band twist and change and still maintain the essence of what they were, then you'll like this album.

No, it's not their best album, but as a huge Mudvayne fan, it's no exaggeration for me to say that I can listen to this CD on repeat all day and find something interesting and new each time I listen. They haven't worn the facepaint for years now. Their look has evolved. Let their sound evolve, too.