Archive for December, 2007
The first two Soldier of Fortune games were some of the best first person shooters I have played. This one, however is just not in that league. This game traverses a completely wrong path to gamer fun.
The visuals are attractive and bright. You get to play a mercenary amidst a world wide terrorist organization that is dumb enough to give all its operatives the same neck tattoo. How cliched can you get!
However this game is not lateral at all. It is completely linear. There are many flaws in the game. If you die you need to restart the game from the last checkpoint. This makes the game pretty frustrating.
Bad AI adds to make this game pretty boring. The weapons hardly recoil. Although the good part of the game is that the weapons are pretty effective. The visuals are quite similar to the earlier games. If you want to see separated body parts less often, then you can choose a low violence option in the game.
I liked the music although I did not like the rest of the audio. The voice acting is off mark. Since so many great first person shooters have been released this year, I will not recommend this one. Soldier of Fortune: Payback is for those who want blood, gore and (sigh) frustration.
December 28th, 2007
Time Crisis 4 which includes Guncon 3 is another offering form Namco Bandai. You can buy it at a price of $59.99. If you have played Japanese arcade games in the 1990′s this game is going to bring back memories.
The Time Crisis series is probably the last remainder of the arcade light-gun games. The setting is pretty straightforward. It is a first person shooter that is handicapped by motion controls that do not work so well.
With this game you will get a GunCon3 light gun controller and infrared sensors to be placed somewhere near the top of your television. There is a trigger and four more buttons on the GunCon along with an analog stick. The controller is comfortable to hold.
In this game you can play one of two modes – complete mission mode or arcade mode. The storyline is thus. You get to be a part of a triad that is after a terrorist group that now has a biological weapon in their control.
This game is an attempt of a light-gun game at being a first person shooter. Unfortunately the attempt fails miserably. I have enjoyed the Japanese arcade games more than this one. I have also enjoyed many other FPS’s more. This game is not highly recommended. Rent it if you want to get a feel of the Japanese arcade games of the nineties though.
December 23rd, 2007
Colin McRae has come up with another winner. DiRT gives you an experience that has enough variety to keep you racing for quite a while. Everything about DiRT looks extremely well thought out ands executed. Where DiRT fails to continue the overall excellence of the McRae line is in the lack of effective multi-player game play. When you are with a few other racers, your options are limited to random assignments of cars and tracks and the time limits are, well, limiting.
With several racing modes (Rally, Crossover, Rallycross, Rally Raid, CORR and Hill Climb) available, you can keep returning to this game for a different look. The cars look fantastic, while exhibiting different handling characteristics, and the racecourses have enough variety to keep them interesting. The real bonus comes from the damages sustained and how they look and affect your choices. Bumpers fly off wildly, tires roll bounce like no tomorrow, and your viability realistically rises and falls with the amount of damage you incur.
The handling is another matter. On the more difficult settings, you will free as if the car is part of the river way at a water theme park, drifting through turns without any feeling of being solidly in touch with the track. Also, there seems to be a problem with the turning focus. With front and rear wheels, turning should feel linear or close to it. The cars turn as if they are stuck on a stick that rotates as a whole, instead of the back wheels following the front.
DiRT is a great looking game that needs a bit of tweaking in the handling and multi-player areas. Keep it up, Colin.
December 22nd, 2007
The insular music business provides a neat counterpart to the previous installment of Def Jam. Real fighting has been substituted for wrestling and the results are satisfying. In the Build-a-Label mode, you rise from humble beginnings into a position of power in the recording industry. As anyone knows, this industry is dirty and Def Jam: Icon does not mince about with niceties.
All of the requisite cliches come into play as you wade through attractive ladies, gangsta types, and even a paternity suit. Game play demands your complete attention because of the music tie-ins.One area that the publishers did not skimp on is the music and the way you can choose a favorite song to play as you beat down your opponents. You gain power and unlock features as you go but the best part is the ability to time your songs to the fights. Song choices are outstanding as the roster of licensed rap and hip-hop stars is very impressive. The Def Jam label is, of course, so heavily involved in this title’s production that the stable of artists required to participate (Big Boi, Bun B, E-40, The Game, Ghostface Killah, Jim Jones, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Method Man, Mike Jones, Paul Wall, Redman, Sean Paul, Sticky Fingaz, T.I., and Young Jeezy,) is a who’s who’s list of the best in the genre.The unique DJ controls enable you to scratch and manipulate the music at the crucial times to the point where your character makes turntable types motions in the air when prompted. So Def Jam: Icon makes for a good experience with fighting combos, cultural relevance, and a decent enough story.
December 22nd, 2007
In a re-release of an old title from 1995, Reflection has re-tooled the epitome of the chaotic racing game. Destruction Derby makes improvements on the original that make it a worthwhile purchase. For those tired of making left hand turn after left hand turn, Destruction Derby has a series of player modes that vary the approach just enough to warrant this re-invention.Â
The Stock Car Racing play is interesting only as far as making competition colorful and noisy. The best part of Destruction Derby is in the Wreckin’ Race where the elements of the race mode are combined with the demolition derby aspects to take the venture on a collision course with other players.
As a single player game, Destruction Derby satisfies but fails to provide the WOW that you are looking for. Track layouts are relatively simplistic but that should be expected in a racecourse game. Graphics have been taken to the PS3 level but the excitement still lies in the bangin’ and grindin’.
When you start demolishing other players, then you realize that your aggressions are surfacing. The visual of watching a wreck spinning out behind you is a WOW moment that repeats itself every time. Debris flying around each impact gives you a moment of satisfaction that the pristine racing oval fails to provide.
While the driving controls are a bit balky, the overall experience is worthwhile. Destruction Derby delivers a guilty pleasure that you might keep from your close friends.
December 22nd, 2007
If you want to whack a few guys who are bothering your action, we’ve got just the solution—The Darkness. You’re a young hit man for the Mob and your uncle Paulie has plotted to blow you to oblivion for your role in a muffed transaction. You want to get back at him in the best possible way and somehow The Darkness has infected you. What is this force?Â
Extra arms appear that act as whips, you develop vision that won’t quit in low light, and you get recuperative powers that can’t be believed. As your quest to avenge yourself against Paulie advances, your powers increase with the addition of guns and a black void that swallows up baddies. Four auxiliary beings (Darklings) add to your flexible killing tools but drain your available power.
This is all set in New York City (imagine that) in an environment that is downtown dirty and dingy. You always seem to know where to go as you go from room after room in a limited but free movement scenario. The back-story is more than adequate and the graphics are evocative of the urban landscape where we imagine all wise guy stories are staged.
Guns are unfortunately the best weapons provided and targets are achieved without much trouble. Auto targeting detracts from the difficulty The Darkness could otherwise benefit from. Some of the action is uncomfortably gory (eating the hearts of your enemies?) but the visual sumptuousness grows on you.
Single player mode is the best play while online multi player mode has a few pitfalls when one player can’t keep up. All in all, The Darkness is a successful title in spite of the limitations of somewhat simplistic play.
December 22nd, 2007
As a continuing series deriving from previous versions, Dynasty Warriors: Gundam seems aimed at those knowledgeable about the back-story. Exposition is sadly lacking for those who are not familiar with the anime series. What background that is given is not fleshed out at all, assuming that a few words or cut scenes will suffice to set the stage. If the game play were unique in any way, this would redeem the sketchy story but this is not the case.As you blast away at wave after wave of bad guys, you slowly insinuate yourself into a state of numbness, almost like a mantra designed to induce a state of nirvana. Repetitively repetitive, Dynasty Warrior: Gundam does have sixteen characters you can play across a few modes with several missions in each. The objective still is to mash buttons until your fingers get stiff and your mind has shut off.Pick out your protagonist and put him into the Mobile Suit mech that wins fields located in various environments around the provided maps. The maps are about as much explanation as is given in the game’s spoken interludes between missions. Numerous storylines seem to appear without rationale or motivation other than to provide targets to be blown away.Dynasty Warriors: Gundam needs too much improvement for this series to continue to be viable. Latch onto other mech games that have more interesting story lines and game play.
December 22nd, 2007
This game has been created by Sony and is available at the cost of $59.99. Included along with this game is a Playstation Eye Camera.
This game scores full marks for innovativeness. You fight it out using real cards that are picked up by the camera. There is a stand included for the Playstation Eye. The moves you make while you play with the cards are sensed by the camera and they result in great action on your TV.
The game begins when you draw five cards from your deck – which consists of thirty cards. The most common cards are summoning cards. They can summon monsters or machines. These cards each have their own function on the visual part of the game. The other interesting cards include spell cards that are very effective as well.
This game can be played easily, by even a novice, but to be an expert at this game requires time and practice. Watching summoning cards creating video game magic on the screen is something else.
This game can be played against a friend or the computer or even online. Online playing however takes away the social aspect of this game and half of its fun with it. In addition online playing can be affected by cheating.
This game is highly recommended for playing with friends. Set up The PS Eye, set out the map and begin playing. If you like card games and video games you will experience double the pleasure with this one.
December 22nd, 2007
Mx Vs ATV is an offering from THQ and Rainbow Studio’s. It is available from Amazon at a price of $59.99.
If you are interested in fast, extreme sporting action then this is your kind of game. The environment where you play is big, you can explore with your vehicle to the limits of your pleasure. If you want you can download a demo version of this game before buying the full one.
The high strung tension on the race tracks is one part of rhythm racing glory. The other is the big environs. Both these are yours in this offering. You get to race through streams, jagged rocks and canyons. Do a backflip if you like. The world is your oyster.
When you are playing this game at times you will be left wondering whether you are on a Mx, ATV or an airplane. With the help on modern hardware Mx Vs ATV has taken the adventure sports experience to a whole different level.
I have always wanted to ride an Mx as well as an ATV. However the danger overrode the thrill. With this videogame I finally rode my dream. If like me you like adventure but do not care to go to the trouble live your fantasy with MX Vs ATV the video game. Its Fun.
December 20th, 2007
Judging from reports about the number of labor hours lost due to March Madness tournament pools, College Hoops 2K8 should gather a load of interest as we enter the college basketball season.
With some nice additions to last year’s model, hoop fans will find plenty to keep them busy.
One aspect taken from 2K7 is the 6th Man Advantage and it still needs some work. Crowd reaction seems random when one score elicits thunderous applause and the next score does not raise crowd noise at all.
The biggest improvement is the Play Designer function that allows the more knowledgeable and adventurous among us to make our own play sets and defensive alignments. This creates so much more variety that College Hoops 2K8 takes on a complexity not seen before in a sports games.
By supplying a Tutorial mode, the publisher helps you work on some of the fundamental controller moves and helps you focus on skills you might otherwise ignore.
The All-American Challenge comprises fourteen drills that are designed to test you skill level and thereby improve your stats and you players’ games.
College Hoops 2K8 offers decent graphics but the action is not always as smooth as you would like. On the audio end, the music fits well but the commentary timing seems off and rather generic.
The title is a good addition to the dedicated gamer/hoop fan who merely wants to get psyched for the upcoming tournament. Online tournament play is available and promises more competition.
December 16th, 2007
Robert E. Howard created Conan seventy or more years ago, not knowing that his barbarian would lend himself so well to future generations’ need for diversion.
Well, perhaps he hoped that the literary arena would find interest but he would be pleased that the computer age has taken on Conan and done so with panache.
After a short exposition concerning an evil wizard and a combative warrior queen, Conan’s jaunt through dank, musty caves, white-capped mountains, and rubble-strewn cities begins in earnest. As Conan meets squads of enemies, his single sword gets proliferates as he skewers more and more opponents. Weaponry accrues to him as he works his way through a thoroughly convincing world that Howard would readily recognize.
The fighting makes up the strength of this game as Conan’s skills grow and diversify. You will need to change your approach as the enemies learn to parry your moves as you repeat a particular maneuver. The big difference is the level of gore. Conan pulls arrows right out of his body and continues to disembowel and otherwise disfigure the onslaught of warriors sent at him. Very impressive.
You will have some issues with the repetitive audio track, although the music fits the action nicely. The actor, Ron Perlman (Hellboy), voices Conan but sounds a bit too cultured to be a barbarian. Some of the gratuitous flesh will make you wince but overall, Conan is a worthwhile investment, even if the adventure times in on the short side.
December 16th, 2007
You are prepared for the noted filmmaker’s trademark gore and inventive killing methods with this title and your blood thirst is satisfied.
However, the game play does not stray far from the standard first person shooter, straight ahead movement, sitting duck targets you can find in many games.
Armed with an impressive panoramic march through time and space, Clive Barker’s Jericho comes equipped with what could be a compelling story about the Firstborn, God’s failed prototype for Man, and the vengeance it seeks for being banished to the Abyss. Jericho is a squad of seven, dispatched to a Middle Eastern city to block the release of the Firstborn into the world, and their back stories, if a bit hackneyed, at least inject a little interest into the game. Each of the seven has distinctive strengths and weaknesses, some paranormal and some physical. All of these qualities can be used to combat enemies who crop up everywhere but who don’t have enough mobility to get out of the way of an elderly bulldozer. The squad can split up into two sections but this doesn’t help in achieving the objective. Just aim and plunk away on your own.
An inordinate amount of time is spent resuscitating your comrades as they inevitably get wasted. If this is supposed to be a point and shoot game, why should you bother to keep bringing your squad members back to action?
Heads, guts, and limbs all splattered over the hallways and walls of the fight locations are enough to satisfy the visceral need for gore but Clive Barker’s Jericho needs more difficult game play to truly be a winner.
December 16th, 2007
Medal of Honor Airborne is published by Electronic Arts and is available for the price of $59.99 for a new games. Here is a review of the game and if it is good use of your holiday money.
This game is a first person shooter set in the World War 2 (frankly I have lost count of how many are there). However, even if you have played many such games, this game can still regale you if WW2 FPS games are your thing.
The game starts out with you parachuting into the action. There are axis soldiers to kill, a world to save and a lot of the responsibility rests on your shoulders. Green smoke indicates safe landing areas and if you do not land in a safe zone, you stand a good chance of getting killed.
Once you land you have to face Nazi’s through six levels of this game. For the average person, this game would last about seven to nine hours. You have different missions from detonating explosives to destroying enemy tanks, guns and more.
As you go through the levels, you might find the first three levels boring. The action picks up in the next three though and that in itself increases the overall enjoyment of this game.
The game has issues with the frame rate on the PS3. This con is made up by the last three levels- a real reward after you wade through the first three. The online multiplayer gameplay is pretty intense as well. If you like action games from the WW2 era, this game comes highly recommended.
December 16th, 2007
This game is manufactured by one of the best video game making companies – Electronic Arts. It is available at a price of $57.99 for the PS3 version and $ 49.99 for the Xbox 360 version. This price is for the Orange Box pack of 5 games.
The five games in this pack are Portal, Team Fortress 2, Half Life 2, Half Life 2: Episode 1 and Half Life 2:Episode 2. Of these 5 games Half Life 2 and Episode 1 are games that have been released earlier and have been added to this compilation. Portal, Team Fortress 2 and Episode 2 represent completely new content, that is available for the first time with The Orange Box.
This game is available as a PS3 version as well as a version for the Xbox. Both versions are identical. This game compilation is fresh and not boring. I would rank the three Half Life 2 games as among the best shooter games out there. In addition Portal gently teases the mind with its humorous puzzles in a brilliantly entertaining way.
Now the issues with these games. Some problems are presented in the frame rate for the PS3. It is annoying. Aside from this there are no major technical issues on this pack.
So would I recommend this game pack. Yes. Highly. 5 great games for the price of one represents great value and this is what holiday shoppers are looking for. Whether you are buying this game for yourself or as a gift, it is highly recommended.
December 15th, 2007
This game is based on a film that in turn was based on a fantasy novel. This is why to fully enjoy this game, you need to be familiar with The Golden Compass, the film or the novel by Philip Pullman.
You get to play Lyra Balacqua. She makes an effort to save Roger, her friend from evil kidnappers. Lyra’s companions include Pan her Daemon – the physical embodiment of her soul as well as a huge polar bear called Iorek.
The Golden Compass is something owned by Lyra, it can answer all her questions. The gameplay is a little mixed up and can leave you with a lot of questions.
You get to explore a lot in this game, but much of it is downright boring. There are some good ideas in platforming, but parts of it are boring as well. I did not like how the controls are so difficult to use, it is difficult to maneuver Lyra.
There are many timed button sequences in this game. Iorek has three enemies – witches, wolves and Tartans. He uses standard melee attacks and pounds the ground as well. Most of the foes are beaten using a single button.
There are other gameplay elements. Lyra attempts to fool her enemies by performing some minigames.
All in all the fantasy of the film has not been properly captured by this game. There are many elements in the gameplay and they are not well coordinated. Spend your money on a better game.
December 13th, 2007
It’s hard to imagine the developers of Championship Sprint making a worse choice than taking the wheel away from the original arcade game but that is just what they have done. By making this game downloadable, the makers have eliminated the only part of the game that was worthwhile. Without the wheel, the controls of this exceedingly monotonous racing game are so sensitive as to be impossible to go around the track once and not run into a wall or another racer.
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Even when the walls open up to let you take a short cut, you can’t respond quickly or precisely enough to take advantage. Besides, the walls open often enough to make the short cuts redundant and unnecessary. Only one opportunity to upgrade presents itself on each level so once you have passed the wrench in the road (I did laugh at the reference to the fork in the road—if it was intended or not), you might as well spin the dial on the radio to get a better song.
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The game is also meant to be played online but this presents more problems. First, you have to find someone to play and then you have to deal with a time lag that can be maddening. So you just race and race and race and race—you get the picture. Championship Sprint doesn’t have much to recommend it so sprint away from whatever site you can download it from.
December 9th, 2007
Events in Radiator Springs begin to heat up as Lightning McQueen establishes new headquarters and Mater decides to host a new racing tournament. All of the familiar spots can be seen here like the Wagon Wheel Motel and Willie’s Butte and you will see most of the characters from the movie as well.
And just like the movie, the game is aimed mostly at young gamers with rather simplistic action and easily controlled racing moves. What make Cars: Mater-National Championship interesting for the younger set is the number of tracks and the ability to take on the various personae of the movie roles. Voices are done by the same actors (Larry the Cable Guy, Tony Shaloub), thus lending a certain amount of credibility to the game.
The look of Cars: Mater-National is commensurate with the movie also so that kids will have gravitate to it more readily. This is an environment that kids will have an easy time adapting to and probably will not get bored too quickly with the tracks and game play. The responsiveness of the controls is a bit sluggish but will probably not get noticed by youngsters.
Mini-games are an important part of Cars: Mater-National Championship as the game shows us 17 races across 14 different tracks in the story mode. The challenge mode features 28 events in three different categories, (Trophy Hunt, Elimination, and Beat the Clock.) It is this variety that will make this a favorite among the kids who have seen the movie (and there are lots of those) so Cars: Mater-National gets a thumbs up but primarily for those who have just stopped sucking their thumbs.
December 9th, 2007
With graphics that do not pretend to be real and non-stop action, Calling All Cars has the formula for lots of fun. Saturday morning cartoons are brought to mind here in a maverick cop and robbers game where the objective is simply to catch the bad guys. Suitable for single or multi-player modes, the pace is frantic and the action varied. The arcade aspect of this game is attractive while the online experience is enhanced by a split screen function that adds excitement exponentially. Practically devoid of a story line, you will nonetheless find yourself shouting at the screen as your quarry (or opponents) outsmarts you again and again.
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But the most fun comes from the online players with headsets who offer a running commentary on the action. The fun of the game is commensurate with the verbal cleverness of the participants. The vehicles are evenly matched which makes for some very close multi-player contests. You can take control of another player’s captured criminal by crashing into his car and escaping with the prey.
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One limitation is the sparse number of maps (4) but this is really only a minor gripe. You are designated to catch a crook and the map points the way. How you get there is most of the fun as each map has a varied environment that keeps even the most prolific user on edge as the action gets extremely hectic. Some might say that using four players makes it a bit too chaotic. Anyway, the path back to the jail can be just as dangerous as the capture. Three weapons are available but you might just choose to be a bully and smash into the other competitors to take the crook yourself.
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Calling All Cars is more than worth the ten dollars you will put out for this exciting and enjoyable game.
December 9th, 2007
Castlevania has a long history that cannot be detailed in this space so suffice to say that gamers everywhere are aware of the premise of this astounding game series.
What distinguishes this game from its forbears is the absence of the whip in the protagonist’s arsenal for he now wields an incredible array of weapons. Alucard—mmm, what could that possibly spell backwards? Alucard is the protagonist waking from a long sleep and searching his father’s castle for clues as to why the original hero, Richter Belmont vanished mysteriously. Along the way, he encounters some rather grim enemies amidst a gothic environment that has no end of surprises. Hidden passageways populate the numerous rooms of the castle and the gruesomeness of the monsters is particularly appalling.
The 2-D backgrounds are surprisingly deep and gorgeous to look at. The game play and the astounding number of weapons are what make this game so good. Alucard’s attributes increase as he kills enemies and uses the available weapons, so you shouldn’t pass on kills when you have the chance. The map system reveals itself as you go from room to room, and while you can buy the map at any time, this won’t do you any good because you can’t get into some areas until later in the game anyway.
Working your way through the castle in numerous ways with a variety of weapons will keep any long-time fan of Castlevania’s past games occupied for repeated plays. This game you will love to play repeatedly. It goes right for the throat.
December 9th, 2007
This game is available for a price of $39.99. There were many bad things I had heard about this game and I was wondering whether my money would be wasted on this one. The things I had heard were numerous.
My pals told me that the motion controls were really bad, terrible, from hell! etc. I found out that things were not that bad actually. If you just want to get into the heat of things right away in a game then this game is not for you.
If you do not mind practicing a bit and honing your skills, this game will prove really enjoyable. There is a training section where your skills can be practiced. The good thing about this game is that the sixaxis controllers are used to their full ability. The bad thing about this game is that you cannot play with a joystick. The same two sides to a coin story.
If you continue playing this game you will get better and better at it. If you really like dragons, then you have the incentive for it. The fighting is fun and novel and I really enjoyed it. The story in this game is great and I loved the music as well.
So would I recommend this game. Yes, I would. It is good enjoyment and at the price of about 40 dollars, I would say that it is worth it.
December 9th, 2007
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