D+PAD Issue 6 (April 08)

ISSUE 06 | APRIL 2008

THE GOD RETURNS

GOD OF WAR: CHAINS OF OLYMPUS - REVIEWED E: ALSO IN THIS ISSU

RAINBOW SIX VEGAS 2 TOMB RAIDER UNDERWORLD GRAN TURISMO 5 PROLOGUE ALONE IN THE DARK RESISTANCE 2 & MORE!

PLUS!

PREMIUM CONTENTMENT

Do we really need DLC?

02

I write this fresh from the slaughter of our deputy editor; his merciless killing captured in perfect definition, his body lying broken and lifeless from a tirade of bullets having torn through his vital organs. Sitting here unmoved by the ruthless slaying, I ponder whether we now live in a toughened society, a society tolerant of portrayed violence, resistant even to simulated butchery of our closest friends.

Of course, I’m referring to our late-night session of RS: Vegas 2 our visages captured flawlessly with our underused Xbox LIVE Vision cams. But before you all tell me “it’s just a game”, I do have a point to make. Less than a mere decade ago, Perfect Dark’s intention of using the ill-fated Game Boy Camera to capture gamers’ faces and render them in-game caused uproar, eventually forcing Rare to veto the idea. Today the very same concept slips by unnoticed.

Maybe it’s because we’ve got bigger fish to fry; the recent turnaround on the ban of Manhunt 2 proving to be an interesting (and headline-making) decision. But does the decision to release an interactive medium rumoured to contain a scene of graphic necrophilia show a significant downturn in our society’s moral standards?

Obviously, I don’t hold the answer. But what I do know is that gaming never used to be like this - and it never used to be this good.

David Scammell Editor editor@dpad-magazine.com

ISSUE 06 | APRIL 2008 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

David Scammell

17 08

DEPUTY EDITOR

TOMB RAIDER UNDERWORLD

Stuart Leech

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STAR WARS: THE FORCE UNLEASHED

SUB EDITOR

Tom Hoggins NO MORE HEROES

24

DESIGNER

David Scammell TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX VEGAS 2

CONTRIBUTORS

Richard Angus Zoheir Beig

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GOD OF WAR: CHAINS OF OLYMPUS

James Bowden Ian Freeman Stefan Goerke-Hewitt Greg Latham

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Graham Naunton RESISTANCE 2

Emily Knox Simeon Paskell Emmet Purcell

26 13

JUST CAUSE 2

Richard Rohani GRAN TURISMO 5 PROLOGUE

Rhys Simons

NEWS

04

The latest headlines from the world of gaming

XBOX LIVE CHEATERS NAMED AND SHAMED MICROSOFT EXPOSES CHEATS, RESETS GAMERSCORE

BD-LIVE COMES TO PS3 The latest firmware update for PS3 (v2.20) adds Blu-Ray Profile 2.0 (aka BD-LIVE) to the console’s extensive list of features. The update allows new interactive features to be accessed on PS3, including downloadable video content, ringtones, games and more.

Microsoft has rolled out a campaign to punish cheaters caught illegitimately harvesting achievements in an attempt to crack down on Xbox LIVE deceit.

The scheme looks to name and shame anyone that has gained achievements dishonestly by resetting their gamerscore and labelling their gamercard appropriately, as pictured right.

As well as BD-LIVE, v2.20 also includes a number of extra features, including support for WMV and DivX files larger than 2GB, and “Mosquito Noise Reduction” for improved movie playback. The firmware is available to download now.

As explained in Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb’s latest podcast, specific and automated criteria are used to determine if a player has earned achievements by using tools that circumvent the game or avoid gameplay entirely. A player who meets these criteria will be subject to having their gamerscore corrected.

Rather than ban offenders from the service altogether, Microsoft believe in players “reforming themselves”.

Offenders will be unable to regain any previously earned achievements, but will be allowed to earn new ones - provided they do so legitimately of course.

GTA ELITE IN PRODUCTION

METAL SOLID 4 LIMITED EDITION REVEALED Mass Effect’sGEAR new alien race - the Batarians

It’s been revealed that a special edition GTA IV Xbox 360 Elite is in development. The console, which is decorated with GTA IV artwork, is painted with automotive-quality paint and set to include themed accessories.

SPECIAL EDITION PS3 ALSO IN THE WORKS Plans to release a limited edition Metal Gear Solid 4 package have surfaced on the net. The pack, which is rumoured to only be available in the US , is set to include a bonus Blu-Ray disc containing making of documentaries, an interview with Hideo Kojima and four chapters of the graphic novel. A bonus soundtrack CD is also reported to be included in the LE, reported to cost a wallet-stretching $84.99.

PGR4’s new hydrogen-powered Peugeot Flux

Seemingly not content with the recently released Ceramic White and Satin Silver versions of the

PS3, a special “Steel” edition is also currently in production as part of the Japanese Metal Gear Solid 4 bundle. The bundle, which launches at the same time as MGS4, is due to cost 51,800 Yen (£262).

No plans have been announced for any of the special edition Metal Gear merchandise to make their way over to Europe, although we’re willing to bet Europeans will be able to get their hands on the limited edition when Metal Gear Solid 4 releases worldwide on June 12th.

But before you get your hopes up, only 500 units are due to be produced. See you on eBay...

NEWS

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The latest headlines from the world of gaming

SONIC UNLEASHED FIRST SCREENS LEAKED

CALL OF DUTY 4 MAP PACK DATED

PREY 2 INBOUND Human Head Studios has confirmed that Prey 2 is officially in development. The sequel to 2006’s chart-topper puts us back in the boots of Tommy, who’s since been framed for the disappearance of his family and girlfriend.

Set to build on the “mind-bending portal and gravity-defying gameplay of the original”, Prey 2 is in development for Xbox 360 and PC. There’s currently no word on a release date.

HALO 3 MAP PACK GOES FREE Having filed a trademark for the name ‘Sonic Unleashed’ earlier in the month, footage and screens of SEGA’s next Sonic title have leaked onto the internet.

What looks to be a hybrid of Sonic Rush and Sonic and the Secret Rings, Sonic Unleashed appears to be taking the famous blue hedgehog back to his side-scrolling roots. And about time too, we say.

At the time of writing SEGA had neither confirmed or denied the validity of the screens, nor officially announced that Sonic Unleashed is in development.

Call of Duty 4’s “Variety Pack” will be hitting Xbox LIVE Marketplace on April 3rd for 800 MS Points, it’s been revealed.

Halo 3’s “Heroic Map Pack”, first released back in December 2007, is now available to download for free over Xbox LIVE Marketplace.

The pack is set to contain four new maps: “Creek" a wide-open village ravaged by combat, "Broadcast," an enemy communications building with confined corridors and wide-open parking lots, "Chinatown" a foggy downtown district, and "Killhouse", a desolate training warehouse filled with a variety of building mock-ups and soft and hard cover points.

There is currently no word on when the pack will be released over PSN. The pack, which contains the three maps “Standoff”, “Rat’s Nest” and “Foundry”, originally cost 800 points. Three new maps are due to hit Xbox LIVE Marketplace on April 15th in the upcoming “Legendary Map Pack”, with a further two due to be released in the future.

COMING SOON

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Why you won't be leaving the house for the next few months WII FIT

GRAND THEFT AUTO IV

Yes, yes. We know we’ve been sitting around playing video games too much at least one of the team is already on that Slimming World nonsense.

Packaged with the Wii Balance Board, Wii Fit features a wealth of healthy activities to try and shift that excess blubber.

It’s almost here. Finally we will take to the streets of Liberty City as EasternEuropean crook Niko Bellic as one of the most anticipated games in history makes its belated arrival.

For all the scoffing that Wii Fit isn’t actually a game, combining exercise and our favourite pastime to make for an enjoyable workout could be a masterstroke that gets a lot of new people off the couch. We’ll be donning our stretchy Lycra in preparation for our Yoga class on April 25th.

With vastly improved combat, technical marvels RAGE and Euphoria making up GTA IV’s engine and one of the most dynamic open-world cities ever created, this could not only be the best GTA yet, but the finest game in recent memory. As our anticipation reaches fever-pitch we’ve already booked our ticket to Liberty City for April 29th.

Have you?

UEFA EURO 2008

MARIO KART WII

THE WORLD ENDS WITH YOU

Ok, so our crappy England team won’t be there, but that doesn’t mean that we’re not excited about this summer’s football festival in Austria and Switzerland. EA will once again take us there in digital form with a derivative of the FIFA engine on April 11th. You can ‘Captain Your Country’ to glory in an all-new mode that involves moving up the ranks to captaincy, or go online in a ‘Battle of the Nations’.

Our favourite plumber and chums finally race onto Wii next month in the long-awaited next entry into the ever-popular kart series. With 32 tracks to choose from there will be plenty of opportunity for wheel-towheel clashes, sneaky positioning of banana peels, stunts and wheelies to perform with the new motorcycles.

Square-Enix’s DS-exclusive JRPG finally reaches European and North American shores next month after a long translation process. Made by the team behind Kingdom Hearts, TWEWY follows the story of Neku Sekuraba, who finds himself caught in a deadly game that could cause him to be erased from existence. To escape, Neku must use his mind-reading abilities to find clues and battle ‘Noise’the physical manifestation of people’s negative thoughts.

And yes, if you must you can take England through qualification again to reach the tournament. We just hope you do better than our Steve did.

The game comes packaged with a nifty wheel accessory to house your remote, and you can even take to the races online.

We’re practicing our drift-boosts and green shell aim for April 11th even as we speak.

It’s a fascinating story premise, and the game looks terrific. We can’t wait to travel to Shibuya to help on Neku’s quest, April 18th.

PREVIEWS

07 08

STAR WARS: THE FORCE UNLEASHED 360, PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, DS, PC

THIS MONTH’S BIG RELEASES

LET ME REPHRASE THAT...

04/04/08 Condemned 2: Bloodshot (360, PS3) Dark Sector (360, PS3) NEVES (DS)

“Well I believe Doug Lombardi, who’s our lead marketing director at Valve, has announced Portal 2, so we can’t wait!” – Valve designer Kim Swift accidentally reveals Portal 2’s existence.

11/04/08 Assassin’s Creed: Altair’s Chronicles (DS) Assassin’s Creed: Director’s Cut Edition (PC) Mario Kart Wii (Wii) Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (PC) UEFA Euro 2008 (Multi) 18/04/08 The World Ends With You (DS) 25/04/08 SingStar Summer Party (PS2) Wii Fit (Wii) 29/04/08 Grand Theft Auto IV (360, PS3)

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RESISTANCE 2 PS3

“I don’t want to win over [my audience’s] little college sister, because that’s not the kind of game I do. I’m not going to make Zack & Wiki. I’m not going to make f**king Cooking Mama.” – Cliff “Gears of War” Bleszinksi makes it clear he won’t be going soft in the future.

“We've actually made it a big focus to include more churches and now synagogues and mosques in Resistance 2.” – Insomniac CEO Ted Price jests at last year’s Resistance controversy.

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JUST CAUSE 2

360, PS3, PC

“OutRun 3” – A Sumo Digital representative accidentally spills the beans. “[Mass Effect PC] is a conversion...BioWare hates ports” - BioWare’s Chris Priestly tries to make a big deal out of upscaled textures and increased resolutions.

"You know, I think that when you try to do games that are about a mass market, and Turning Point is definitely a high concept idea, that with the time and money we had we did the best to execute on, our target was not really the core gamer.” - Spark Unlimited CEO Craig Allen tells gamers Turning Point isn’t for them. And we agree.

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ALONE IN THE DARK

360, PS3, PS2, Wii, PC

’S MOST WANTED

GRAND THEFT AUTO IV

MARIO KART WII

CONDEMNED 2: BLOODSHOT

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TOMB RAIDER UNDERWORLD

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BRUTAL LEGEND

360, PS3, PS2, Wii, DS, PC

360, PS3

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STAR WARS THE FORCE UNLEASHED As we said in our Spotlight on 2008 feature last month, the concept for The Force Unleashed is possibly the greatest ever devised. Cast as Darth Vader’s secret apprentice, you are tasked with traversing the galaxy in a quest to wipe out the last remaining Jedi.

Simply put, it’s a Star Wars fanboy’s wet dream.

FORMAT 360, PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, DS PUBLISHER LucasArts DEVELOPER LucasArts (360, PS3) RELEASE Q2 PREVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

PREVIEWS

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The Force Unleashed is set to bridge the gap between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, charting Vader’s attempts to destroy the Jedi.

Playing as the Dark Lord’s powerful apprentice, The Force Unleashed is being treated as a genuine chapter in the Star Wars saga, complete with new action figures, a tie-in novel and Dark Horse comic books. That such a multimedia project can be produced with such conviction and swagger is indicative of the incredible pull that the Star Wars licence still creates - a series that has captured the imaginations of many for over 30 years. Cynics may say it’s a cash-cow that will never be put to pasture, but the rate at which new Star Wars media is devoured suggests fans have a hunger that may never be sated. That the secret apprentice is being explored in great detail over several different projects makes the mysterious character all the more intriguing.

More importantly, the game itself is looking fantastic - mainly due to the combination of three sophisticated technologies to create it.

The widely used Havok physics engine is one of these, but the two new engines also used make the game a technology poster-child.

Pixelux’s ‘Digital Molecular Media’ (DMM) engine imbues objects with real world properties, so that all objects in The Force Unleashed react realistically to what is going on in the environment around it. So, rather than wood breaking in a pre-set animation, it splinters and smashes as it would in reality based on where it is hit and with how much force. It’s certainly an impressive technological showpiece and within the context of the game looks a huge amount of fun; trees are felled by your flying lightsaber, while metal is dented and warped as you hurl hapless foes into barriers, crates, walls and TIE fighters.

PREVIEWS

10 These enemies are also afforded real world properties by NaturalMotion’s ‘Euphoria’; an engine that renders characters to behave realistically “on the fly” with animations made in real-time. Within The Force Unleashed this means that enemies will try to grab on to whatever they can (including each other) to avoid being sent hurtling to their doom by your Force Push.

It all makes for a fairly unique and technologically advanced experience. As you send a Stormtrooper flying across a battle-torn hangar bay he makes a grab for one of his comrades. As both are lifted off the floor by the tremendous force, they’re sent crashing into a pane of glass that shatters into a thousand pieces, the resultant shards sent scattering across the area.

The force unleashed indeed, but for all its technical bravado the empowering feeling of being a Dark Jedi at the height of his powers is the real appeal of the game. At the start of the game the secret apprentice is already a powerful man, and as you work your way through the game you will be able to assign ‘force points’ to enhance your four core powers; force grab, force push, lightning and saber throw.

These powers can be combined in a number of ways to create different vicious and visceral ways of despatching the oncoming swathes of rebel soldiers and Stormtroopers alike; such as fuelling your saber with lightning before launching it at a foe you have suspended 10 feet off the ground. Hopefully, these combos are as numerous and interesting as the developers insist, or else combat could become repetitive once the initial wow factor of the tech has worn off, especially considering the worry that cannon fodder enemies will make up a great deal of the game. Nevertheless, we are assured that challenge will be provided by powerful Jedi and other force-adepts.

However, in many ways the stylish slaughter of masses of troops is what has fans fired up in the first place. Being able to wield the force to such an immense degree has been something oddly lacking in Star Wars video games up until now for fear of having the player too powerful. Thankfully this caution has been thrown to the wind for The Force Unleashed and the result looks set to be a spectacular adventure; intense combat framed in destruction and evil power. And let’s face it; we all know that falling to the Dark Side is more fun.

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PREVIEWS

RESISTANCE 2 It’s the game that sceptics of Sony’s black box love to hate – titters of mirth abound at its insipid colour palette, the guffaws at the predictable enemy AI and the snorts of contempt at the unspectacular graphics.

Even the Church of England had a pop, to put it mildly. It doesn’t help matters that Insomniac’s launch title is still the ‘go to’ game for many recent purchasers of the PS3, and when said adopters have already experienced gems such as Halo 3 and Call Of Duty 4, Resistance’s flaws are really placed under the spotlight.

FORMAT PlayStation 3 PUBLISHER SCE DEVELOPER Insomniac Games RELEASE November PREVIEWED BY Graham Naunton

But let’s remember that the conclusion to Master Chief’s endeavours and the globetrotting adventures of our SAS friends came a full six months after the release of Resistance, so perhaps it’s a little unfair to directly compare Insomniacs second FPS effort to benchmarks of the genre. But whilst the original was solid in terms of its single player campaign mode, it lacked charm. The multiplayer facet was a completely different story though – it is still, even now, a fantastic advert for the PlayStation Network. Lag-free forty player skirmishes, alongside stellar comms and an impressive matchmaking system are not to be underestimated, and continue to take those unaware by surprise.

It’s just a shame that not much else about the game did. It’s entirely feasible that many gamers wouldn’t have delved too deeply into the multiplayer after yawning their way through the misadventures of US Marine Nathan Hale and his one-man army act against the extra-terrestrial menace, the Chimera, in 1950s war-torn England. It had a great premise to draw players in and there was plenty of entertainment to be had, but it lacked that one major hook, that one genredefining moment of gaming glory that could have transformed a good game into a great one.

Its successor, Resistance 2, has a great chance of making this leap.

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This time around the campaign sees Nathan Hale return to his homeland, the US of A, to repel the renewed Chimeran invasion. After their defeat in England two years previously, the Chimera have been doing some serious upgrading and are deadlier than ever – so far we’ve seen dozens of them on screen at once sporting heavy armour, packing some serious heat surrounded by huge Sentinel walking battle tanks. One particular strain of Chimera new to the sequel is the Chameleon; a Predator-esque foe that uses advanced camouflage to become practically invisible…right until it’s feet away, chewing off your squad mates face. It’s up to you to spot it by looking for footsteps in mud, light suddenly refracting, or changes in the direction of rainfall. Easier than you might think, given that the visuals have received a makeover that is much more pleasing on the eye – blue skies (albeit blotted by enormous Chimeran ships), lush green grass and weather effects that look to flex the PS3’s muscle.

If this all sounds a bit daunting for you to combat by yourself though, take heart in the fact that there is a second co-operative campaign mode to take on, only this time you’ll be fighting alongside up to seven friends. A whopping eight player co-op has been confirmed, where completing a number of objectives and employing strategic teamwork is the order of the day. The multiplayer facet is even bigger this time around with the promise of huge sixty player online battles as well as a

class system including medics, sniper rifle wielding special ops troops or your standard grunt. It’s hard to be heard amongst fifty-nine other voices, so you’ll be placed in smaller squads with specific objectives. One example would be joining an assault squad to capture a flag, or to provide defence as a sniper back at base. There could be dozens of different scenarios, making for some epic battles.

What’s becoming clear is that Insomniac has reached for the proverbial dial and cranked it up a fair few notches since the first game – more players online, more game modes, more enemies, more graphics and inevitably, more guns. Now, whilst none of these new features are bad by any means, we still hope for more in terms of substance. Not substance in a materialistic sense (it’s clear we’re getting plenty of that), but more of a substance that will evoke something within us. In other words, a game with some soul. The great games of each passing generation have it all in common – those goosebump-inducing, spine-tingling, gasp-sucking, air-punching moments of surprise, fear, accomplishment and empathy.

Resistance 2 can give us guns, fancy graphics and all of the dozens of online combatants it likes, but if it doesn’t give us those moments we live for in gaming, then it will ultimately suffer the same fate as the first game. It doesn’t have a divine right to be so, but Resistance 2 looks and sounds like a really special title. We’ll find out when it invades our shores later this year.

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PREVIEWS

JUST CAUSE 2 Smell that? Revolution is in the air. It’s a smell that should be instantly familiar to those who played the original Just Cause back in 2006, and joining that recognizable aroma is the familiar face of Special Agent Rico Rodriguez - veteran instigator of revolutions in politically unstable paradises.

Back in 2006 the original dropped you deep into enemy territory, armed with all the abilities of your average Hollywood action hero; planes were there to be hijacked and close to 99% of the objects on the island were yours to ignite and decorate the sky with thick plumes of smoke. Freedom was the game’s buzz word and while the gameplay held up to the tagline, the more technical elements began to close gaping mouths and taint the experience that had at first been so inspiring.

FORMAT 360, PS3, PC PUBLISHER Eidos Interactive DEVELOPER Avalanche Studios RELEASE Q3 PREVIEWED BY Greg Latham

However, a lot has changed in the past few years. The development team at Avalanche has had time to work out how to improve the sequel, Rico Rodriguez has had time to hone his skills and learn a few new tricks and Tom Sheldon, Rico’s ex-mentor has had time to concoct a devastatingly evil plan on the tropical island of Panau. Oh, and only one man can save the day. Parachute in order?

Let’s jump.

It’s clear that Avalanche has approached the sequel rather methodically; singling out each core gameplay element and deciding how best to improve on the original’s framework.

The most noticeable of these changes is the graphics engine, which is no longer constrained by the capabilities of last-generation consoles. If recent screenshots are anything to go by the new engine has been put to good use. The environment looks to be far more varied, with lush beaches and tropical locales merging with snow capped mountains and volcanic craters. While such graphical changes are usually swept aside and given fairly insubstantial weight, Just Cause is a game that relies on its visceral merits and the advancements made to the Avalanche engine should only raise adrenaline levels further.

PREVIEWS

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Avalanche has also worked towards improving the enemy A.I, which closely resembled a horde of out-patients in the first outing. In Just Cause 2 your enemies will utilise the environment around them; effectively taking cover when your fire becomes too intense and calling in reinforcements and air support if they feel the battle is slipping away from them. If you linger in an open area for too long, your enemy’s shots will also get more accurate as they hone in on your position. Combat this time around appears to be taking on a much more tactical and versatile tone.

With this ace up their sleeve what chance does Rico have to combat their newfound gunning finesse? Thankfully Avalanche has endowed Agent Rodriguez with a new Hybrid Locking system, utilising both the quick-fire advantages of assisted aiming and the precision of manual aiming. Now Rico can target specific areas of the body and drop an opponent to his knees, or cause a painful injury. Improvements have also been made to Rico’s trademark grappling hook that can now be fired and attached to most objects in the game, and when combined with your parachute can result in some truly extravagant manoeuvres.

The improvements made to the combat also apply to the various vehicles that can you drive in the game. While the first games handling left much to be desired, the development team has now made the experience of driving each

vehicle in the game a much more unique and interactive one. Players will now be able to feel the transition from tarmac to dirt and will have to adjust accordingly, while also keeping a vigilant eye out for stray tree trunks and divots in the road that may impede your progress.

One feature that looks to have been left in the dark is a multiplayer component. Nevertheless fans of the original game will be overjoyed that the developers have chosen to focus on the single player and have lessened the focus on side missions, giving you the choice as to which missions to tackle, and when. Choices will determine how much allied support you have going into battle and the difficulty of a particular mission; the premise of freedom has extended beyond Panau’s lush beaches and colossal mountaintops.

Looking down Avalanche’s proposed checklist, it’s hard to see an area that they may have overlooked. The team’s ambition clearly matches the scale of the extravagant island they’ve created, and initial impressions are certainly promising. Let’s just hope that Agent Rico is up to the monumental scale of the task at hand…

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PREVIEWS

ALONE IN THE DARK Since the dawn of fictional horror, creators have preyed on the inherent human fear of the dark. They have attacked our aversion to the unknown, our terror of what lurks in the shadows or under the bed; what can not be seen can not be measured, and what can not be measured can not be fought. As the famous journalist Dorothy Thompson said “Fear grows in darkness; if you think there's a bogeyman around, turn on the light.”

FORMAT 360, PS3, PS2, Wii, PC PUBLISHER Atari DEVELOPER Eden Studios RELEASE May PREVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

For Alone in the Dark’s burly protagonist Edward Carnby, this is sound advice. Game producer Nour Polloni says that light must be “used as a completely integrated part of the gameplay itself.” As he traverses New York City’s Central Park, Carnby will need to use torches, flares and fire to illuminate his way to the Park’s terrible secret. Fire has always been man’s biggest enemy, yet one of its most useful tools; as long, of course, as it is kept under control. Eden Games have gone to great lengths to get Alone in the Dark’s fire to behave realistically and the result is impressive; fearsome flames flicker and crackle in the murk, casting a great golden light and creepy, kinetic shadows that shuffle across nearby walls. The dynamic lighting is visually splendid, but the behaviour of these blazes and how you, the player, can use them will be the real test.

This is where Alone in the Dark’s impressive inventory system comes in. Carnby dons a jacket that can hold a number of portable objects; you can select an object for each hand and combine them to create a useful tool or a deadly weapon. For example, piercing a bottle of fuel with your knife and launching it across the room leaves a trail of fluid running along the floor. By selecting your lighter you’re then able to set the fuel ablaze and send flames searing towards your enemies or a troublesome obstacle. Or you can throw the bottle before shooting it with your pistol to create a huge explosion. The inventory isn’t just about fire and makeshift bombs either; you can combine a glow-stick and sticky tape before throwing it at the ceiling to create a handy light for the room, or pierce a blood pack to attract carnivorous beasts to one spot.

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Our hope is that the possibilities for these items are as endless, ingenious and impulsive as they seem, with various different ways of getting out of a tight spot; rather than the game holding your hand through set-pieces. Featuring a number of physics puzzles, being able to approach each in a unique way will be a real boon for the game. The physics engine itself looks superb with wooden doors crumpling under repeated battering with a fire extinguisher or splitting to its knots under fire-axe duress. It may not be as incredible to see as it was back in 2006, but is looking suitably robust for a game that will make heavy use of its assets.

What we’ve seen of Alone in the Dark so far is technically impressive. However, the game is also looking to draw players in with its narrative drive. Featuring an episodic structure with eight self-contained entries, Polloni hopes this configuration can recreate the thrills, spills, twists and turns of the best TV shows - “The main inspiration for the episodic format was the recent crop of US TV dramas like 24, Lost, and Prison Break. We analysed these shows and what makes them so great - the paced dynamic of each episode with action, character development, plot revelations and cliffhangers - then translated this into the dynamic of the game.”

A brave move and one that would require an enthralling script to have players reaching for the control pad, rather than the DVD remote.

Therefore ‘Sleepers’ author Lorenzo Carcaterra was hired to weave Alone’s story. The New Yorker’s experience in novels, television and film could be Atari’s ace in the hole for Alone in the Dark, and considering the perceived hectic lifestyle of the game’s demographic, breaking the game into several manageable chunks could be a masterstroke. In total, Polloni promises 10-15 hours of gameplay; taking into account the free-roam hub area of Central Park, which has been painstakingly recreated by the Eden team.

A lot of research went into the decision of using Central Park as the game’s setting, using satellite imagery and thousands of photos to make a geographically accurate gameworld.

However, the folklore of Central Park will also play an integral role in Alone’s tone and story.

Drawing on curious tales of ghosts and conspiracy, the creators know that the real-world connection will undoubtedly capture people’s imagination.

This, along with the Freudian bedfellows of darkness and solitude and the technically impressive game engine, means that Alone has certainly captured our attention. The real challenge for Eden now is to take all of these promising components and mould them into one cogent whole. Should they do that, Alone in the Dark could reclaim some of its ground as the granddaddy of survival horror.

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PREVIEWS

TOMB RAIDER UNDERWORLD Now that gamers have emerged from their purportedly cloistered bedrooms into lustrous, minimalist living rooms - or so Nintendo would have us believe - great graphics are ostensibly no longer a requirement for an enjoyable game. While there may well be some truth in that statement, Tomb Raider and Lara Croft have always provided the player with appealing eye candy to enchance the feeling of immersion in its various exotic locales. Ms. Croft’s latest adventure is no different.

FORMAT 360, PS3, PS2, Wii, DS, PC PUBLISHER Eidos Interactive DEVELOPER Crystal Dynamics RELEASE Q4 PREVIEWED BY Ian Freeman

Taking aesthetically pleasing locations and revolutionising them with a variety of masterful design techniques, Underworld fuses the mystifying jungles and temples with luscious HDR lighting that, when coupled with an ambient orchestral score, provides a truly sensory next generation experience. As rain runs down Lara’s everglorious body to be collected in dynamic puddles on the ground, it would be easy to become entranced by her incredibly realistic movements.

The suavity of her motions has now been achieved through motion capture - a surprising first for the Tomb Raider series – with the alteration being both effective and axiomatic.

Lara’s new ability to ‘free-climb’ through the typically cryptic environments could provide the flow needed to replace the stiff movements of the previous games - our buxom adventurer graciously ascends jutting rocks, creating magnificent moments akin to the recent Assassin’s Creed. Sadly, however, it seems the surfaces our heroin is able to grab onto will still be limited to obvious outcrops and poles that protrude from sheer rock faces.

While Crystal Dynamics should be lauded for attempting to provide Lara with a new, stimulating set of skills, occasionally it can be taken too far. The promised feature that causes balance beams to become slippery when wettherefore easier to fall off- is a nice touch but could lead to annoyance. Few players would be awed by the imposing mud particles after falling into them for the tenth time.

Another element seeing change in Underworld is the combat. Although gunplay in the series

PREVIEWS

18 Another element seeing change in Underworld is the combat. Although gunplay in the series has usually proved to be adequate rather than excellent, Underworld aims to add a new component- AI skirmishes. With both poachers and jaguars to fight, Lara can often leave the two to weaken one another before finishing both off with a couple of deft pulls of the trigger, aided by her new helpful ability to target two enemies at any one time.

If either witnesses you in their peripheral vision, however, there is a large chance they will engage you rather than the other enemy, nullifying the opportunity to sit back as the two aggressors battle for their lives.

After showing such a high level of visual capability at constructing real world scenarios, it will be interesting to see what the Mayan Underworld holds for the player, and not only in an ocular sense. Eric Lindstrom, the Creative Director of the high budget project, states his desire for the game’s core elements to “translate into next-generation gameplay", although he continues to be evasive about what exactly is contained in the fascinating, yet disturbing landscape.

While Tomb Raider Underworld will undoubtedly be a commercial success for the troubled SCi, we will have to wait slightly longer to see if the initial promise develops into a consummate whole when Lara returns this Christmas.

19

..

PREVIEWS

BRUTAL

LEGEND

In the modern gaming world where multimillion dollar mergers, publisher pandering and development teams in the hundreds are commonplace, it’s almost a relief to know that Tim Schafer and Double Fine Productions are back with their most ambitious and outrageous offering yet in the form of Brütal Legend.

FORMAT 360, PS3 PUBLISHER Sierra DEVELOPER Double Fine RELEASE TBA 2008 PREVIEWED BY Graham Naunton

Schafer himself, one of the last true auteurs in the industry, is an interesting proposition.

His games are renowned for their razor sharp comedic dialogue, accessible game play and frankly bizarre characters and locations. But where do these incredible ideas come from?

Like the protagonist Razputin from Double Fine’s last effort Psychonauts, we’d love to stick a miniature doorway on Schafer’s forehead, open it up and take a closer look into the mind of one of the most creative game designers in recent years - although we’re not entirely sure we’d make it out with our sanity intact.

But maybe we don’t have to resort to anything as drastic, given the subject matter of his latest game – heavy metal music. It’s Schafer’s most personal work yet - after a chance meeting with a roadie, touring with metal legends Megadeth, Schafer was fascinated by the man behind the scenes; making sure the rock band does indeed rock.

He ponders “I kept thinking about [the idea that] there's a certain kind of guy who gets things done, and they're kind of like a hero, they fix anything, but you can feel with some of them that they want to do something even more heroic, like they'd love to really be tested. What if they had to save the world?”

It’s taken over 15 years from original concept to full production, and Schafer wants to make sure that it’s been worth the wait.

PREVIEWS

20 After being warped back in time to an alternate dimension via his cursed belt buckle, rock band roadie Eddie Riggs is entrusted with saving the enslaved human race from a demonic horde led by the evil Lord Dolivicus. Problem is, Eddie can fix broken guitar strings, tune drums and drive the tour bus without much difficulty, but leading a human resistance to freedom from evil tyranny? A slightly bigger problem. It’s the typical story of one man digging deep to discover heroism he never thought he had in him to triumph over evil. But in Brütal Legend, that’s the only ‘typical’ you’re likely to see. The beauty of Schafer and Double Fine is that they never seem to look at what’s ‘hot’ in gaming at the moment – like an artist, it starts off in Schafer’s head as a vision, and with a bit of luck and plenty of hard work it becomes a reality. It’s really a case of wish fulfilment on his part, but when the final product is as rich in detail and creativity as Brütal Legend, it’s rather ungrateful to complain about it.

The game is an epic open world rock opera – where mountains are carved into the shape of guitar amplifiers, volcanoes spew forth motorcycle chrome and rivers of blood cut through the landscape. Not quite sure what we mean? Dig out some of your dad’s old metal records and take a look at the covers.

It’s the living, breathing organic manifestation of rock – and everything that is associated with it. To be more precise, think of an extended version of Psychonauts’ summer camp – filled with plenty of places to explore and people to interact with, smeared in plenty of Double Fines trademark quirkiness.

The single player campaign sees Eddie take on a number of missions linked to the plot, as well as a number of side quests. Players can make their way around the landscape on foot or by using a variety of upgradable vehicles, and the game itself plays like a fairly generic hack and slash, although we’re extremely wary using the word ‘generic’ to describe Brütal Legend. There are two primary weapons – a traditional twin bladed axe, and one of a six-stringed variety. The latter can be used to perform various attacks, from unleashing lightning bolts to face-melting guitar solos which – obviously – actually melts faces.

There’s also the chance to lead a squad of AI-controlled heavy metal minions into large-scale battles, occuring at several points in the story. Your companions each fall into different classes, one of which seen so far is The Bouncer. This brute uses enormous fists to decimate enemies and Eddie can also pick him up before launching him to the floor, creating huge shockwaves. Every character class can be interacted with in this way, as well as more standard battle commands mapped onto the d-pad. Have them attack, or create a defensive mosh pit around you, shielding you from harm.

As with all of Schafer’s efforts, there’s a risk of the bizarre nature of his games simply not striking a chord with the mass market. This time however there’s hopeful optimism, with the grunt of next generation hardware making more of Schafer’s creative dreams come true, additional online play and the stellar voice-over cast including Jack Black as Eddie Riggs and metal legends such as Motorhead’s Lemmy and Judas Priests’ Rob Halford. With Schafer’s sharp scripts combined with trademark Jack Black fireworks, expect a lot of laughs. We’ll be looking for our inner rock gods and develop a penchant for leather trousers when Brütal Legend takes the stage later this year. And here’s one rock show where an encore is a must.

REVIEWS

21 22 24 26 28

THE RATINGS

CLASSIC MOMENT

An essential purchase.

You need this game!

360, PS3

360

PATAPON

36

TURNING POINT: FALL OF LIBERTY

38

FRONTLINES: FUEL OF WAR

50 52 53 54

’S MOST PLAYED

NO MORE HEROES

Wii

34

48

The Death of Aeris - Final Fantasy VII - 1997

PS3

BEAUTIFUL KATAMARI

46

Dismal, avoid

GRAN TURISMO 5 PROLOGUE

32

44

Fans only, worth a rental

TOM CLANCY’S: RAINBOW SIX VEGAS 2

360, PS3, PC

ARMY OF TWO

42

Good fun but ultimately nothing special

PSP

30

40

A great game that provides plenty of entertainment

GOD OF WAR: CHAINS OF OLYMPUS

PSP

360, PS3, PC

360, PC

LOST: VIA DOMUS

360, PS3, PC

LOST ODYSSEY 360

FIFA STREET 3

360, PS3

SONIC RIDERS: ZERO GRAVITY Wii, PS2

ACE ATTORNEY: APOLLO JUSTICE

DS

BATTALION WARS 2 Wii

SEGA SUPERSTARS TENNIS

360, PS3, PS2, Wii, DS

DYNASTY WARRIORS 6

360, PS3

CONFLICT: DENIED OPS

360, PS3, PC

55

ASSASSIN’S CREED: ALTAIR’S CHRONICLES

56

PROFESSOR LAYTON

DS

57 58

NO MORE HEROES

RAINBOW SIX VEGAS 2

GRAN TURISMO 5: PROLOGUE

58

DS

BLEACH: SHATTERED BLADE

Wii

UNREAL TOURNAMENT III

PS3

PRO EVOLUTION SOCCER 2008

PSP

REVIEWS

22 They shall seek peace, and there shall be none

GOD OF WAR

CHAINS OF OLYMPUS

P

resumably hard at work on Kratos’ PS3 debut, God of War creators SCE Studios Santa Monica entrusted the reins of their portable deity to Ready At Dawn; the talented bunch of ex-Naughty Dog and Blizzard developers having proved their worth with Daxter’s solo jaunt back in 2006. It seems the handover was a shrewd move, as Kratos’ handheld entrance puts virtually everything currently available on the PSP to shame.

FORMAT PSP PUBLISHER SCE DEVELOPER Ready At Dawn REVIEWED BY David Scammell

Very little of what we know and love has changed for Kratos’ portable endeavour.

The usual mix of mythical beasties, head-scratching puzzles and visual prowess all make the transition unscathed, and even God of War’s famous instant loading makes the jump.

On a console stricken with slow disc read times and inherent loading issues, a fully streaming world is as much of an achievement as the visuals themselves which for a handheld title look simply stunning.

Making full use of the increased processor power offered by the recent firmware update, Chains of Olympus’ lighting and particle effects are unparalleled on the console. When factored in with superb animation, vibrant vistas and detailed character models, Chains of Olympus’ looks rival even the best of the last generation machines.

Despite our anti-hero being shrunk to miniature proportions, none of Kratos’ audacity has been lost in the process. As he leaps, swims and slices his way across Attica and Hades wielding the trademark Blades of Chaos, Kratos also has access to a multitude of magic learnt over the course of the game, as well as the Gauntlet of Zeus, a mystical weapon that allows him to strike down his foes with unmitigated power, and the Sun Shield that allows our hero to parry. It goes without say that God of War is strictly for an adult audience; our ferocious anti-hero engaging in minigameportrayed acts of sex assorted in with the malevolent violence.

REVIEWS

23 “A STUPENDOUS ACHIEVEMENT...

A HANDHELD BLOCKBUSTER”

As has always been a highlight of God of War, impressive mythical bosses make their return; the reptilian behemoth Basilisk tearing through the city of Attica only mere moments into the game. Over the course of the game you’ll face off against many other legendary beasts, including Cyclopes, Medusas, Minotaurs and other mystical beings, although disappointingly the awe-inspiring bosses crop up on much fewer occasions than in the previous titles.

Regardless, the unrelenting hack & slash action is still the best there is, with stylish and devastating moves pulled off with relative ease.

While it must be said that Chains of Olympus doesn’t attempt to add anything new to the series, it perhaps would have been reckless to make such changes to the lucrative franchise on a platform home to more than a few misguided spin-offs. Hopefully the much-anticipated PS3 offering will provide us with plenty of spice before Kratos starts to feel stale. But if we’re to find fault with anything about Chains of Olympus it’s that it’s over far too quickly. As you reach the five hour mark and the credits roll in you’ll be left yearning for more. There’s always the obligatory God mode to try your hand at, or the wealth of unlockable extras to find, but for long-term substance, GOW is severely lacking.

Nevertheless Chains of Olympus is a handheld blockbuster; a veritable crossover of all that has come before it and a stupendous achievement for the platform. While some people may soon start to tire of GOW’s fairly repetitive nature, Chains of Olympus is everything a God of War fan could have possibly hoped for on the handheld.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

24 You win some, lose some, it’s all the same to me

RAINBOW SIX

VEGAS 2

E FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PS3, PC PUBLISHER Ubisoft DEVELOPER Ubisoft Montreal REVIEWED BY David Scammell

ver since its PC conception, Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six series has always relied on tactical squad-based play for its success. It’s always been about planning meticulous attacks, securing entry and exit points, and taking down hostiles quickly and quietly. So it’s unfortunate then that Ubisoft’s console transitions seem to be leading the series down a more nonchalant line, realigning Rainbow’s profound strategic status within a growing audience of casual gamers.

Yet, despite toning down the tactical focus, Vegas was still unbelievably fun.

The Sin City setting was perfectly suited to the context; the intensity of hostage situations and exploding skyscrapers each conveyed with the majesty of a Hollywood blockbuster. In relation, Vegas 2 feels more like a “straight to DVD” sequel. Gone are the inspiring casino layouts and neon-emblazoned strips, replaced by generic corridors and cut and paste office blocks.

And because the glamour is sorely missing, the condensed level of tactical play hits you harder than ever. A title that was once proud of its “hardcore” gameplay, now seemingly reduced to almost that of a standard FPS, albeit sticking with limited squad mechanics for good measure. Gone are the days of planning detailed attacks, instead faced with room after room with which to breach and clear. To make matters worse, as death comes so easy in Vegas, you’ll often (read: always) find it more appropriate to send in your crack-shot bulletsponge squad mates to clear out each room beforehand, patiently waiting outside to mop up any escapees. There’s still an element of strategy involved tagging which enemies to take out first, or selecting a manner to breach - but it’s so watered down it ultimately makes little difference to proceedings.

Of course, this is still Rainbow Six so it’s fair to expect a handful of exhilarating moments along the way. It’s just a shame that they show little in the way of emotion.

REVIEWS

25 Whether it’s feeling the shockwaves from a nearby hotel explosion, being just a tad too late to save a group of duly-gassed hostages or witnessing the death of a colleague, the non-interactive sequences are expressed with such a lack of enthusiasm that it’s hard to evoke an emotional response. Few levels show fleeting moments of genius, one highlight coming from a rappel into a terrorist-run theatre in order to disarm a bomb, but moments like this are cruelly absent for the most part. Further into the game Vegas 2 throws you into the world alone, left fighting for survival off of your own back. It comes as quite a shock, not only because the rulebook is unexpectedly shot to pieces and the safety net of your squad suddenly gone astray, but because it’s arguably the best section of the entire game.

And when you’re saying that about a squad-based shooter, you know something somewhere has gone badly wrong.

Thankfully, Vegas 2’s saving grace comes in the form of the series’ renowned multiplayer and overhauled XP system, ‘A.C.E.S.’. Now crossing over into both the single-player and multiplayer components, the A.C.E.S. system rewards a player’s talent with new weapons and bonus equipment. Each kill awards a small amount of XP, with bonus XP earned for skilful kills like a well-placed headshot or while firing blind. The system offers a level of

almost unparalleled replay value and elevating your custom-created character to the highest ranks will keep gamers playing for months to come.

Multiplayer remains typical to the original with the silky-smooth cover system promoting impressive gunfights and intense face offs.

Cult-favourite ‘Terrorist Hunt’ returns offering a welcome distraction to the campaign, allowing for four players to seek out a set number of AI-controlled terrorists across the twelve maps on offer. Adversarial modes include options for archetypal ‘Deathmatch’ and ‘Team Deathmatch’ games, as well as offer up more strategic alternative such as ‘Attack & Defend’, a mode reminiscent of Counter-Strike’s planting/diffusing team-based play.

Vegas 2’s glaring lack of innovation and simplistic tactical gameplay may be enough to turn off any long-term series fans, but beneath its uninspiring exterior lays a solid framework and engaging multiplayer. Ubisoft Montreal may have shown their hand too early, but the lack of any direct competition outside standard run and gunners means they can bluff their way to the pot with an Ace High.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

26 Baby you got the keys, now shut up and drive

GRAN TURISMO 5

PROLOGUE Y

ou just can’t please some people. Not content with the near-infinite wait for their next fix of the ‘real driving simulator’, you would think a cut-down (and appropriately cut-price) release would suit the petrolheads salivating at the thought of HD GT. But in many cases, apparently not - the sentiment of “isn’t it just a demo?” positively buzzing around many a gaming forum.

FORMAT PlayStation 3 PUBLISHER SCE DEVELOPER Polyphony Digital REVIEWED BY David Scammell

But in spite of those marring preconceptions, Prologue remains signature to the series; the similar clean interface, familiar jazz soundtrack, outstanding handling models and typically striking visuals all primed and ready. Running at a super smooth 60FPS, Prologue’s near photo-realism shows exactly what the oft-underachieving PS3 can be capable of.

The included circuits go some way to show off the graphical leap between generations - London’s city streets pushing the abundant colour palette and subtle, but substantial, lighting effects to the very edge. And then you start to notice the little things like the oncoming rush of air audibly fading as you creep into a rival’s slipstream, or the nigh-on perfect particle effects kicking into sight as you career off track. To call Polyphony Digital presentation sovereigns would be somewhat of an understatement.

Other tracks include series staple ‘High Speed Ring’ and ‘Daytona International Speedway’ that, while uninteresting at first glance, act as a showcase for GT’s handling model – which naturally remains second-to-none. Each car, from the slow and heavy Mini Cooper, to the light and speedy Ferrari F2007, genuinely feels different to drive; the shift in balance and the variance in weight conveyed accurately on the track. And talking of the revered Ferrari F1, the first time you get your hands on it and its appropriately high-pitched engine whine is truly an unparalleled experience within the genre. But that doesn’t come without a slow and painstaking slog beforehand.

Thankfully, the droning license tests are gone allowing players to get straight into the races at hand, but the first couple of hours seem agonisingly slow as you race your way through the A, B and C-Class events. Prologue eventually comes into its own after unlocking the S-Class events and, with it, the ability to tune your car’s setup, but by that point it’s practically over.

REVIEWS

27 “MUCH MORE THAN JUST A TEST DRIVE”

Which is where Prologue’s biggest failing lies - in the game’s inability to encourage continued play, taking a back seat to a gamer’s own willingness to explore past the preset events. While much more than just a demo, quite how long it lasts is more down to each individual’s enthusiasm to tinker beneath the bonnet or rinse and repeat events in order to build up that collection of shiny, virtual cars. You could always admire the stunning frontend however; the elegance of Gran Turismo expressed with My Page your car of choice sitting gracefully aside a stunning backdrop within a wealth of visual extras.

Or you could venture online - Prologue acting as the first game to take the seven-figure selling series online in the western world.

While trouble-free, the limitations of PSN once again rear their ugly head within the 16-player races; the lack of an in-game XMB or friends list acting as the biggest dilemma.

It’s also rather limited (especially when compared with stalwart online racers available on rival platforms) with only preset events on offer rather than giving players the ability to create their own races. Also new is GT-TV, Gran Turismo’s video service that allows you to download documentaries and episodes of Top Gear, if you feel that way inclined.

But even with the level of polish and visual fidelity on show, there’s still the odd blemish the inability to change any options during a race, the long and tedious process of getting into another car, the lack of an option to look around the stunningly rendered car interiors, or the cycling of a single music track realigning Prologue’s status as a pre-release exhibition. If we ever have to hear the dire sounds of The Klaxons again it’ll be all too soon.

There aren’t many franchises that would get away with releasing a cut-down ‘demonstration’ of what’s to come, but luckily for Sony, GT is one of them. In spite of the uninspiring online mode and indestructible cars hinting at Gran Turismo’s lack of will to change, the expansive event line-up, abundance of vehicles, and graphical fidelity that PS3 users have been yearning for make Prologue much more than just a mere test drive into the world of HD GT.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

28

NO MORE We can be heroes, just for one day

HEROES R FORMAT Wii PUBLISHER Rising Star Games DEVELOPER Grasshopper REVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

ecently, many Wii owners of a more… experienced nature have been questioning if the console is actually for them.

“Where are OUR games?” they cry.

Feeling that for every Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime there is an avalanche of games aimed at Nintendo’s new, ‘casual’ audience; ones that are sweeping up the sales of the more prodigious titles, therefore diluting them. A wistful hankering, perhaps, for ye olde days when videogaming was still a somewhat niche past-time; a private thing to be shared only with other people ‘in the know’. Now of course, that ‘private thing’ has been walked in on by your Nan. Well, it’s time to stow that belly-aching, jaded-gamer friends. No More Heroes is a game made especially for you. Travis Touchdown – our cool and arrogant protagonist - spends his free time in his cluttered motel room. The walls are covered in anime posters, action figures line the shelves and, if you look closely, you’ll find an N64 tucked away in there somewhere. Travis is an Otaku nerd, who likes to watch wrestling videos. An exaggerated caricature of dorkiness perhaps, but one that is closer to the truth of the game’s demographic than some of us would like to admit.

Where Travis likely differs, though, is in the fact that he is an assassin. Finding himself 11th in the Assassin’s Association’s leaderboards, he is now on a quest to become number one- “All that matters is who is best” is his oft-repeated mantra. And it is in the attempt on Number 10’s life we take up control of Travis, drawing his beam-katana to fend off the approaching goons. The katana bears more than just a resemblance to a lightsaber; that familiar throbbing hum cuts the air as Travis wields it to devastating effect.

Locking on with Z-targeting, katana combos are performed by tapping the A button before finishing off your foe with a swipe of the remote, the direction of which is prompted on-screen. The B-button is used to beat your opponent dizzy before grabbing him for a crunching wrestling manoeuvre, performed by gesturing with both the nunchuk and remote. Combat is No More Heroes main draw, and is an incredible amount of fun.

The satisfaction felt dealing the killerblow with a swing of the remote is palpable and notably more immersive than wildly swinging for basic attacks.

The large number of bodyguards that usually protect Travis’ target are often not particularly difficult to cut through, but the challenge comes in performing

REVIEWS

29 “[NMH] KNOWS ITS AUDIENCE AND GIVES THEM EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT”

stylish slaughter; the faster you complete a mission and the less health you lose on the way determining your reward. Of course, you must battle a highly trained assassin in a ‘ranked match’ before you can collect, and this is where No More Heroes really shines.

Each target you fight is markedly different from the last; some grotesque caricatures, others startling in their normality. Few are comic-book villains (though one takes the definition and runs with it- you’ll see what we mean) but instead come across as fairly complex characters; no better or worse than Travis himself.

Each character seems to have a story to tell; snippets of which are revealed in the superb dialogue that passes between Travis and his target. The story of a young arrogant assassin climbing up the rankings is but a framework for the game to build itself on, but these exchanges can be laugh-out-loud funny and even surprisingly poignant at times. Games positioning themselves as ‘narrative-led’ could learn a lot from Suda51’s outstanding script.

It’s not just in character that these boss fights differ either. While the basic strategy of learning an attack pattern, then blocking or dodging and waiting for your chance to strike is a fairly pervasive one, most fights throw in a touch of innovation or outright quirkiness to keep things fresh. Each boss battle is a memorable one, and not just within this particular title.

Before meeting your targets, cash must be raised within the hub-town of Santa Destroy to pay the ranked match entrance fee. Travis can take on odd-jobs around the town, or freelance assassination missions. The jobs are a mixture of the mundane; from garbage collection to graffiti cleaning. Each is a 3-minute task that flirts with tedium; a wholly deliberate ploy to make you work for your money and open up an invitation to the more exciting assassination missions. These typically pit you against a large number of goons, but also have their own sprinkling of variation. Occasionally, building up your cash with these side-jobs can be something of a grind; impatience can set in waiting to

hit the amount needed to open up the next ranking match. And some players will, perhaps understandably, wish that the task of making money to pay for the more exciting things in life be left firmly in the real world. However, new jobs are opened up after each ranking match and they are not devoid of their own charms.

Unfortunately, Santa Destroy is where the game shows its rough edges. While No More Heroes features Grasshopper’s trademark cel-shaded style – characters generally look terrific - at times in the town, the game can look downright ugly. The purposeful cardboard cut-out nature of the town is one thing, but the game has horrendous texture pop-in and occasional framerate hitches. They’re small niggles, but ones that jar against the overall stylish aesthetic.

Nevertheless, it seems almost ungrateful to grumble about a few technical deficiencies when so much of No More Heroes is designed purposefully to make you grin from ear-to-ear.

Like the 8-bit stylings of the HUD or the first time Travis’ association contact – the loquacious, lubricious Silvia Kristel - calls and you have to hold the remote up to your ear. So much imagination has gone into the smallest of things that it raises No More Heroes from a very good game, to a very special one. One that knows its audience, and gives them exactly what they want.

It’s a game that is framed in a marvellous geek-chic snapshot. A game that knows what it does best, and does it wonderfully.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

30

ARMY OF TWO Building castles in the sky

T

here is a wonderful story surrounding the making of the recent ‘Rambo’, in which Sylvester Stallone found himself surrounded by over half a dozen screenplays, each of which saw his muscle-ridden grunt visiting a different contemporary conflict. Predictably confused, Stallone apparently phoned the United Nations and asked them which war would be the best location for his film. One suspects the developers at EA Montreal had a similar dilemma with regards to choosing a setting for Army Of Two, albeit one with an easier solution: “we’ll take them all”.

FORMAT REVIEWED PlayStation 3 OTHER FORMATS Xbox 360 PUBLISHER EA DEVELOPER EA Montreal REVIEWED BY Zoheir Beig

So Army Of Two’s brief campaign mode takes in such real-world arenas of war as Afghanistan and Iraq (alongside China and Miami), something that is more interesting for the themes raised as a result of this than for the gameplay contained therein. Whereas games from as far back as Desert Strike to last year’s Call Of Duty 4 have alluded to contemporary political events as a device to heighten realism, Army Of Two leaves little room for such artistic license.

In an early cutscene one of the protagonists awakes to rolling footage of 9/11, a startling moment swiftly followed by a mission which sees you frantically defending yourself against “Al-Qaeda” suicide bombers. Does the extra dimension of interactivity and actual news events add a distasteful context to these Middle East excursions? Or is Army Of Two justifiable videogaming catharsis for Americans? Suffice to say the game’s

world, one where private military organisations are replacing the national forces, is painted with large swathes of patriotism and flag-waving, and will be interpreted as either uncomfortable or long-overdue depending on your point-of-view.

Anyway, despite this macho aggression Army Of Two is actually quite reticent when it comes to action. The firefights, no doubt in keeping with the game’s emphasis on realism, are more tests of endurance than spectacular set-pieces (with the exception of a wonderfully sustained shoot-out within Miami airport). As the story progresses, as the basic strategic system becomes second nature, so Army Of Two starts to resemble the likes of Virtua Cop and Time Crisis over the more instantly obvious comparison of Gears Of War. Though this isn’t necessarily a criticism of the game, it is a surprising semblance further compounded by directional arrows that

REVIEWS

31

underline the rigidly linear nature of the levels, a cover system that lacks any real flexibility, and enemy AI that veers between persistent to shambolic.

The game’s supposedly unique idea, that you play as one part of a two-man army (the clue’s in the title), is more successful than the aforementioned flaws, but still isn’t explored deeply enough to actually warrant having the game built around this one theme. Save for helping each other reach high ledges, flanking the occasional armoured guards and, er, opening doors, it is perfectly possible to play Army Of Two through with disregard for your partner (unless they are wounded, in which case you need to heal them in a manner reminiscent of Gears…). One noteworthy development is the ‘aggro’ meter, which increases the more you fire and kill; once full an optional ‘overkill’ mode allows for a small period of increased power. Because the needle swings between both characters the feature works best when in co-op mode with a fellow gamer, encouraging further violence and adding some healthy competition to an area of the game that suits this two-man dynamic the best, even though overall it all feels a little under-nourished.

Which essentially sums up Army Of Two. There are base pleasures to be found here once you get over the initial suspicion that what EA has done is set a solid marker for future games in the series (a feeling the rather hurried conclusion does little to dispel), as opposed to attempting a reinvention of the third-person shooter genre. The game flows well (the gradual introduction of mines, hovercrafts and shields helping break the repetitive nature of the firefights) and although visually it rarely threatens to leave images burnt into gaming memory, neither does the game descend to the depths plumbed by the deservedly maligned Kane & Lynch (EA’s title was supposedly delayed for a few months to avoid clashing with Eidos’ similar buddy third-person actioner, though next to that travesty Army Of Two comes across as if born from the hand of Miyamoto himself).

Like the private war organisation it depicts, Army Of Two is morally dubious and yet professionally executed - the videogame Michael Bay would make if he grew up with NES as opposed to Super-8, and a title we think will be remembered in years to come more for its politics than the actual gameplay.

Stallone would certainly approve.

VERDICT

32

BEAUTIFUL But here we are the rolling people

KATAMARI T

his writer remembers the first time he laid eyes on Katamari Damacy; a seemingly esoteric, wantonly oddball and distinctly Japanese creation whose kaleidoscopic colours, simple controls and subtle commentary on materialism gone rampant could not have been more opposed to the generic mass-market videogaming fare that is the norm. Keita Takahashi’s game was a truly “alternative” offering.

FORMAT Xbox 360 PUBLISHER Atari DEVELOPER Namco REVIEWED BY Zoheir Beig

However, such initially radical works rarely maintain this sense of excitement with time, the thrill of the new replaced by comfort and predictability. Because the games revolve (quite literally) around a solitary idea, this sense of dawning familiarity is something that arguably happened quicker to Katamari Damacy than it perhaps should have; and yet without a rolling katamari to control and wreck havoc across various environments the games would cease to be Katamari games. Creating something so grippingly unique from birth can clearly be as much of an albatross as it is a magnet for plaudits. How to progress a series without losing the essence of what made it so special in the first place?

Beautiful Katamari doesn’t offer any immediate answers. Ominously the first thing you notice is that despite this being the series’ first leap into the next-generation, the visuals are, if

anything, more muted than the PS2 games, while the story (The King Of All Cosmos has left a hole in the sky after a particularly powerful tennis serve) comes across as trying too hard to recapture the surreal humour of old. Clipping and slowdown also rear their ugly head in the first few levels, which just to make matters worse feel recycled from previous games and somewhat barren by comparison. It is as if what you’ve put in the Xbox 360’s tray is someone’s poor facsimile of what a Katamari game should be.

Thankfully things significantly improve once this initial disappointment has faded. Katamari Damacy is after all one of the most beautifully designed

REVIEWS

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videogames of recent times, with a system of rewards and increasing challenge that taps into the completist lurking within most gamers. So the experience of playing Beautiful Katamari quickly reaches a peak of compulsion that overrides the superficial neglect of the presentation. Each level requires an intelligent approach, with many sessions conceivably spent simply formulating strategy and working out the layout of the world (quick tip: once an extra section is open don’t hesitate to explore). Some courses even break with tradition and instead of a particular size set markers of varying criteria; a particular highlight is ‘Roller Roaster’, which requires your Katamari to reach 10,000 degrees Celsius, a task made tricky by the numerous cold items dotted around as obstacles. It is imaginative uses of the core Katamari mechanic like this which suggest the series does have a strong future, especially if Namco hurry and release the oft-rumoured Wii version.

Once the modest number of levels have been cleared there is still the lure of high scores, given an extra dimension here thanks to the ever-present online leaderbords. There are also several multiplayer components, though in all honesty Beautiful Katamari is best enjoyed as a solitary pursuit: by turns relaxing, demanding and entirely joyous. For those yet to experience Katamari, this last description is particularly apt when thinking about the soundtrack, an amazing combination of j-pop, jazz and dance that is as distinctive a part of the experience as the gameplay or the visual style (the flat animals are still the highlight).

Takahashi, who was not involved with this third entry, seemingly understands the inevitability of diminishing returns better than anyone. At one developers conference soon after the original’s release he attacked the idea of sequels, observing that most games were “tainted with the stink of big business”. The sense of freshness may have dissipated (unless of course you are experiencing Katamari for the first time, in which case prepare for sensory overload), but despite our earlier reservations that the host hardware is barely exploited, this is still the same wonderful game that entranced this writer, and several thousand alongside me, those four years ago.

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PATAPON When two tribes go to war

Y

FORMAT

ou’ll be hearing a lot of this tub-thumping chant of the Patapon; the incessant beat that burrows deep inside your head and is nigh-on impossible to shake.

You rap the undulating tempo on your desk, clink a spoon on the side of your coffee-cup; even when you’re brushing your teeth the beat of those drums spill into the real world. Suddenly everything needs to be performed in perfect, pulsing rhythm...

PSP PUBLISHER SCE DEVELOPER Pyramid/Japan Studios REVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

You take on the role of The Almighty, worshipped by the Patapon tribe and destined to lead them towards Earthend to cast their eyes on ‘IT’. In order to fulfil this destiny, the Patapons must fight their way past the Zigoton army who will seemingly do anything to stand in their way. A proud hunting tribe, the Patapons’ fighting spirit and resolve are spurred on by their deity’s thunderous drums...

But just what the hell is Patapon? The game is a curious blend of rhythm action and real-time strategy; to meld two such wildly different genres is a brave enough move in itself, but Pyramid and Japan Studios have made Patapon with total unabashed quirkiness and, frankly, this is as bizarre as it gets. The charming yet

creepy Patapons are bloodthirsty monochrome eyeballs who traverse a bright, colourful world battling the Zigotons and other huge creatures of the land, wailing a high-pitched chant that ebbs and flows in time with your movement. The whole thing becomes a cacophony of colour and sound, yet one that somehow makes perfect sense once you wrap your initially boggled mind around the game’s concept.

You begin with just a small party of spear wielding hunters (Yaripons) and are tasked with taking them to Patata Plains to hunt for their food. To kindle the fire in these Patapons you must bang your drums in time with the pulsing beat, with each drum assigned to one of the PSP’s face buttons. You combine these drums to form a song that makes your Patapon charge forward, dancing and chanting as they go. A different song will have them attack their enemy, while another will make them stand their ground and defend. At first, trying to manage your group of Patapons in this mad, musical way seems slightly complicated, but once you tune yourself into the pulsing beat you soon have the little critters jigging and singing their way across the screen to your every whim. Perform enough beats in a row, and your Patapons will enter ‘Fever’ mode whereupon their chanting will rise to a zenith and the fired up tribesman launch their barrage of arrows and spears with extra zeal.

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35 Keeping in ‘Fever’ is the game’s rhythmical challenge; as your Patapons hit the high, the music subtly shifts and the chanting gets more frantic. It’s this initial moment that is likely to throw you off course and can occasionally become a source of frustration, particularly as the game can be a harsh master. Some of the game’s many missions can fall on the miss of one beat; your Patapon army lay to waste due to a split-second of hesitation that dumps you out of fever mode.

Certain missions can take a turn for the tedious as you fight your way through, only to slip at one crucial juncture. Love for the game can turn to hate within the space of a drum-beat.

So for all its outwardly quirky appearance, Patapon is not afraid of teaching you a lesson; it will decimate your underpowered army, making sure you know only to come back when you’ve built your forces to a worthy level. To do so you must gather resources and ‘kaching’ (Patapon’s currency) to give birth to new warriors. Each class of Patapons – including cavalry, archers and huge club-wielding brutes - have their own strengths and weaknesses and must be equipped with weapons and armour scavenged from battle.

“A BREATH OF FRESH AIR”

The strategy comes from combining three classes that most suit the mission at hand.

While some missions are simply a case of choosing your strongest team and making sure you keep yourself in fever mode; some do require a certain amount of tactical nous to get through. As you progress into the game’s later stages, the strategic side of Patapon deepens so you can ill-afford to neglect the upkeep of your army. Unfortunately, this is where Patapon can become something of a grind, as resource gathering basically means repeating several hunts and battling the same bosses ad infinitum. Kaching can be hard to come by and a lot of the resources needed to birth Patapons can only be found in certain stages, which you must return to frequently. Still, it is perhaps appropriate that you are made to work for that super-powered Rarepon.

Any frustration that may occur while playing Patapon is easily lost in the breath of fresh air that the game undoubtedly is. Especially when you’re pounding those drums in a perfect beat as your Patapon army tear down Zigoton forts and bring great beasts to their knees, all the while dancing and perpetuating their infectious chant...

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36 Who do you think you are kidding Mr. Hitler?

TURNING POINT FALL OF LIBERTY

T

FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PS3, PC PUBLISHER Codemasters DEVELOPER Spark Unlimited REVIEWED BY David Scammell

urning Point makes us cry.

When the title was first revealed back in 2006, the concept couldn’t have been closer to what the market badly needed.

With the WWII genre bent into nothing but a cash-cow, once highly-regarded franchises rapidly became “get rich quick” drivel, hence little-known developers Spark Unlimited’s ingenious idea to innovate the market. But if ever there was a stark representation of a great idea being badly implemented, Turning Point is it.

Maybe we’re just being picky but we expect a so-called ‘finished’ game to at least be playable from start to finish without having to suffer an experience hindered by bugs. Given gaming’s exorbitant pricing structure we believe that statement to be even more significant, but in any case, it’s obvious Spark think differently.

From the frequent slowdown and horrendous clipping issues, to enemies lined up in our sights and suddenly disappearing, Turning Point is a glitchridden mess to the point of absurdity. And we’re not just talking superfluous glitches like twitching bodies or texture

pop-in (of which there is plenty), but game-breaking bugs. Take for example not being able to use an essential object and thus unable to progress, or having the game completely lock up as a result of blowing up a door you weren’t yet supposed to. Quite simply, Turning Point’s complete lack of quality assurance is inexcusable.

But if the incessant glitches weren’t enough, the stiff animation, appalling AI, horrendous lighting and textures bad enough to make even the most modest of PS2s blush, are all testament to how poorly designed Turning Point is. Enemy intelligence (if you could really label it as such) is nigh-on absurd; Hitler’s army seemingly portrayed as a bunch of schizophrenic maniacs that overwhelmingly take charge at you one minute and stand around scratching their arse the next. One particular moment of madness allowed us to stand in an open street and snipe each and every one of our invaders undeterred. While we’re appreciative of that moment for allowing us to get the game over with quicker, we don’t think many gamers would welcome the lack of hostility shown by a purportedly merciless force.

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37 Adding to the unrelenting lunacy, unclear mission objectives and indistinguishable waypoints led to many moments of bemusement, and, in one case, amusement, as we finally realised we had to climb on top of some poor sod’s fridge in order to progress. Quite why we couldn’t just use one of the thousands of ladders that apparently littered 1950’s North America, we’re not sure. Meanwhile checkpoints are few and far between, often resulting in having to replay huge portions of a mission after an inevitable (and often unfair) death handed to you by the onslaught of potato masher-wielding Nazis. The scarcity of checkpoints is enough to put off even the most perseverant of gamers from progressing beyond the opening levels, let alone the casuals the game is apparently intended for.

We could go on about Turning Point’s technical weaknesses for a while - we’ve got a list here as long as our arm - but we feel we’ve said enough. Amongst all of its garbage programming, Turning Point’s biggest disappointment comes from Spark’s inability to turn an innovative concept into an exciting and gripping game. Other than the variance in locales, (which for the most part you really wouldn’t notice, nor care about) Turning Point does very little to differentiate itself from other titles in the genre.

And in spite of the inspiring context Turning Point doesn’t so much follow a storyline, but more often a case of being thrown into random and disparate scenarios, handed a gun and told to sort it; the jump between assassinating the US President one mission and ending up in the Tower of London the next, a jarring realisation of the careless lack of flow.

At times Turning Point can show moments of true potential; the half-decent environmental grapples and White House assault fleeting glimpses of how things could have been. But in its current form, Turning Point doesn’t even deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as other shooters currently available on the home consoles, let alone share the same shelf space.

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FRONTLINES Where bullet holes scar the minarets

FUEL OF WAR B

y now you’ve no doubt read countless articles telling you how the Xbox 360 has an unprecedented number of first person shooters. How unexceptional titles come and go without even making a scratch on the genre. And how it takes something special to pull loyal gamers away from the few more than stellar performances already available on the console. So how could Frontlines possibly hope to compete in an ostensibly unbreakable market?

FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PC PUBLISHER THQ DEVELOPER Kaos Studios REVIEWED BY David Scammell

In the light of Call of Duty 4, you’d fully expect Frontlines to be just another one of those “come and go” titles that does little other than to briefly satisfy the hungrier gamers hankering for their quick fix of semi-decent FPS action. And in many ways you’d be right. Other than an (admittedly remarkable) 50-player online component, Frontlines’ combination of Battlefield-style territorial gameplay and GRAW-style near-future weaponry does indeed do little to enhance the genre, and more so simply mesh together those that have come before it.

Taking place primarily in the Middle East, the near-future setting acts as an unnerving parallel to real-world events as we follow the ongoing struggle between the Western Coalition and the Red Star Alliance. From the get go Kaos Studios’ history with multiplayer shooters

is obvious, and to look at Fuel of War as a single-player conversion of Battlefield 2 wouldn’t be too far from the truth.

Predominantly based around capturing territory and pushing forward the frontlines, each of the game’s seven single-player maps are littered with controllable vehicles and useful gadgets, such as explosive remote control drones and laser pointing devices used to call in tactical missile strikes. Impressively, the multitude of available character classes (from the aggressive anti-tank soldier to the restrained sniper unit) offers the player the chance to carve each mission exactly as they see fit. Whether storming a base in an Apache-like attack chopper, or slowly creeping deeper into enemy territory with only a sniper rifle and support drone to rely on, the options are there for you to do so.

And it can certainly be intense. The first time you witness the desecration and orange-hazed skyline of a freshly atomically-obliterated battlefield is more than enough to get your emotions running high, despite the typically brash voiceovers of your accompanying squad that do nothing but lower the sentiment of the situation. However, given their grandeur, it’s disappointing that these iconic set pieces are few and far between. Even the final invasion of Moscow is somewhat of an anti-climax given the lengthy build up; the once-mighty Red Army signalling their defeat all too easily and unconvincingly.

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Of course, the more regular occasions of flying a C4-packed drone into an enemy’s stronghold or targeting artillery fire on unsuspecting hostiles are unashamedly “cool”, but it’s nothing we haven’t seen before. In fact, squint too hard and you’ll be convinced you’re playing just another Tom Clancy game. The lack of originality is Frontlines’ biggest downfall, merely meshing together elements of previous games to create an amalgamation that simply works well, rather than exceptionally.

So while Frontlines’ single-player may not break any boundaries, multiplayer is where the game truly comes into its own.

Offering support for up to 50 simultaneous players, it’s clear from the start that Frontlines’ online component means business. All the elements of the single-player game make the transition, including the various character classes, drones and controllable vehicles, although now with the added bonus of fully-flyable jets. Who could help but raise a smile when their heat-guided missile satisfyingly collides with a mid-flight MIG? And despite the unprecedented number of players in a game at any one time, it’s all smooth sailing with little to zero lag -

provided you’re playing on one of THQ’s dedicated servers. It’s an impressive feat given the enormity of the maps and the multitude of gamers playing within. One glaring omission is the lack of variant modes that restricts players to long territorial-based games each and every time. A simple Team Deathmatch wouldn’t have gone amiss, and the lack of options is something we feel may setback the game’s long term integration with online players.

While limited and not particularly lengthy, Kaos has done an admirable job in translating a full-on multiplayer mechanic into a gripping and fulfilling single-player offering. And those able to tear themselves away from Call of Duty 4 or Vegas 2 for just a moment will find a solid and enjoyable addictive multiplayer component.

Given that you can find a lobby full of decent players, Frontlines can easily stand up with the big guns as one of the better online multiplayer experiences available on Xbox Live. And ultimately, you can’t ask for much more than that.

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LOST: VIA DOMUS Dude, you've got some...Arzt...on you

M

uch like movie adaptations, TV show crossovers have never been particularly good - Alias, Buffy, South Park, 24, CSI... you name it, the videogame translations have all been poor. So can Lost: Via Domus finally change our preconceptions of licensed videogame pap, or is it going straight to DVD?

FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PS3, PC PUBLISHER Ubisoft DEVELOPER Ubisoft Montreal REVIEWED BY David Scammell

At first glance, Via Domus seems to be a dream come true for fans of the respected TV series. Packing all the presentation finesse you’d expect from the big-budget brand, Via Domus dumps you onto the mysterious tropical island alongside the show’s familiar castaways, each gloriously rendered within the recognizable locations. “Previously on Lost” video-reels introduce the start of each chapter, themselves kicking off with an absorbing snippet as the Lost logo characteristically zooms into the foreground; it’s clear Via Domus was always intended to be an interactive alternative to the popular ABC show.

So far so good, and despite the odd bit of slowdown and tearing, the excellent presentation is backed up by some truly lush visuals; dense foliage fills the detailed forest areas to bursting while the blistering midday sun shines down on the unforgettable beach wreckage. But, as seems to becoming more commonplace, style over substance is yet again order of the day. Much like the aforementioned 24: The Game, Via Domus is home to a vat of fantastic source material filled with colossal potential, but yet has been wasted on tired gameplay and shallow puzzle sections.

Telling the story of amnesia-suffering protagonist ‘Elliott Maslow’, a character introduced specifically for the game, Via Domus follows the everyday man’s efforts to regain his memory and escape from the mystifying island. As is typical to the show, Elliott holds a fascinating past – rather fortunate given the backstory elements are far more interesting than any action there is to be had on the island.

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41 The majority of your time with Via Domus is spent traipsing through the island’s dense forest on the hunt for various items.

In an unknown environment filled with excitement and adventure this would have perhaps been an attractive prospect, but following flags to direct Elliott through a desolate preset path is neither exciting nor gripping. Even when the dreaded black smoke is added to the fray later into the game, Via Domus can’t shake the tedium, and we regularly found ourselves wishing for the next cutscene to kick in so we could continue with the story. Never a good sign.

WILL LAP UP VIA “FANS DOMUS’ CAPTIVATING STORY AND STUNNING AUTHENTICITY

”

More interesting, however, are the flashback sequences - regular intervals that piece together Elliott’s paparazzi past. Appropriately played out behind a camera lens, these sections require Elliott to reproduce a destroyed photo to trigger his memory. Choosing an appropriate spot, setting the correct level of focus and carefully timing the perfect shot leads to opening up the memory, allowing Elliott to find out as much as possible at his past.

They’re arguably the more exciting parts of Via Domus and go some way to explain his purpose on the island.

You’ll also be treated to regular puzzles, but despite being a major part of the game they’re never particularly well thought out, and turn out to be another of Via Domus’ big letdowns. Clearly targeting the casual market looking for an easy run, the puzzles do little in the way of adding a challenge, only acting as a mean to prolong the four hour story. If there was any variation it wouldn’t have been so much of a problem, but having to repeatedly route electrical circuits or answer ‘Mensa-lite’ IQ questions (1-3-5-? anybody?) only leads to irritation.

Another disappointment is Via Domus rarely showing its “Enter The Matrix”-style simultaneity. Despite taking place over the duration of the first and second season, that fact mostly goes unrealised other than in the opening scene. Few key moments from the show are merely hinted at, while other highlights are skipped altogether. As many Lost fans would agree, it would have been nice to at least have been a part of some of the standout moments of the show playing out in the background to Via Domus’ story, rather than faffing about with black smoke in the Dark Territory or fiddling with fuses in The Swan.

At the very least, Lost: Via Domus is disappointing. Having made excellent use of a movie license in the past with Peter Jackson’s King Kong, Via Domus feels like an indolent cash-in from the French giant, rather than the self-respected game we expected it to be. Fans of the series will lap up the game for its captivating story and stunning authenticity, but for the rest of us, it’s just another one to add to Ubi’s growing list of ’must try-harder’ titles.

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42 I'm so tired of being here, suppressed by all my childish fears

LOST ODYSSEY T

FORMAT Xbox 360 PUBLISHER Microsoft Game Studios DEVELOPER Mistwalker REVIEWED BY Greg Latham

here’s something to be said for tradition. The shrewd old sage sitting in the corner of a room watching the young relentlessly attempt to innovate and add ‘fresh’ new ingredients into life.

The old man would probably laugh, chuckle to himself, content with his achievements knowing full well that they’ll stand the test of time. And stand the test of time they have. Lost Odyssey is the wise old man of the role playing world, drenched in the tried and tested gameplay mechanics and structure of RPGs from the last ten or so years. With Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi at the helm, Lost Odyssey takes on many of the hallmarks of that critically acclaimed series, yet twists them slightly to ensure that it has its own identity and isn’t simply a neatly dressed title, pressed out of an RPG cookie-cutter template.

Lost Odyssey tells the story of an immortal named Kaim, struggling with the burden of eternal life and the memories that lay shattered in his mind. The story that weaves its way through the heart of the game is incredibly epic and yet oddly personal at the same time; interweaving the political turmoil within each province with Kaim’s past and present dilemmas.

Although this choice may seem like a

potential dead-weight from a narrative perspective, the balance that developers Mistwalker have managed to create means the two are able to co-exist and complement each other beautifully.

This balance must be accredited to the ‘A Thousand Year Dreams’ feature; a series of short stories brought to life via subtly implemented visuals and airy music that depicts the recently unlocked memories of Kaim and his fellow immortals. The feature is entirely optional, but it’s an unexpected masterstroke from the developers. The stories are written in a simple fashion allowing you to express your own imagery onto the story; many of which are emotional heavyweights, pulling on every available heartstring and throwing knockout punches that will move most players to tears.

Otherwise, Lost Odyssey is a fairly conservative RPG. Utilising a traditional turn-based combat mechanic, the environments, although beautiful, are fairly typical densely-populated city and barren wilderness affairs. The linearity present in the environmental paths also extends to the combat; those who have grown accustom to the freedom of movement and choice afforded to them via the likes of Mass Effect and Final Fantasy XII may find the ordered turn-based combat system of Lost Odyssey a little off putting.

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Likewise, those who have never been a fan of the system will not find a saving grace in the combat mechanics either.

Having said that, the combat system itself is incredibly well implemented, and although the difficulty of some battles may trouble players, it only reflects better on the system when a complete overhaul of your battle tactics results in a convincing victory.

Time elements are also thrown into the combat foray, but strictly speaking, the combat is measured and tactical.

Defensive strategies may prove as equally effective as their offensive counterparts, and the various skills that you’ll have to

assign to your characters before each battle prove to be critical to your success.

In fact, there’s such a great deal of customization and fine tuning within Lost Odyssey that it keeps combat consistently interesting and challenging. Not that it particularly needed to deliver in this respect given that the story will keep you hooked for the game’s gargantuan length; spanning four discs and forty to sixty hours of gameplay.

Although suited in all the hallmarks of traditional RPG attire, Lost Odyssey excels in every department. There are subtle deviations on tried and tested methods, but every element of Lost Odyssey has been honed to perfection. The characters are as vivid as the environments are beautiful, and the soundtrack, performed

by Nobuo Uematsu, heightens the many emotional moments present within the story. At times, the lack of innovation may dull the experience and there are certain pitfalls that make combat too easy, but the emotional high and lows that Lost Odyssey is able to conjure up more than make up for the dull middle notes.

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FIFA STREET 3 Catch me if you can, Cos I’m the England man

F

FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PS3, DS PUBLISHER EA DEVELOPER EA Canada REVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

IFA Street is a football game where the pitch is a stretch of concrete overlooking a Tokyo skyline, where players use rabonas, rainbow kicks, lollipops and any other flick or trick you can think of that hasn’t had a name made up for it. A football game in which even the heftiest of players can backflip off a wall to avoid a defender’s tackle that closely resembles a roundhouse karate sweep.

There’s no referees, no offside and opponents are not abashed to send you crumpling to the tarmac while you attempt a bicycle kick. High-paced and high-scoring; FIFA Street is what you’d get if you crossed football, basketball and ice hockey before hosting it on an oil rig platform.

Sounds great, right? So why is it that EA’s last two attempts at bringing soccer to the streets have been so roundly derided? To an extent it was a franchise that people found turning their nose up at easily, scoffing at the cynical smash ‘n’ grab raid targeted at our nation’s spotty-faced, tracksuit wearing youths.

After all, those ‘bozos’ who bought and enjoyed FIFA Street wouldn’t know a good game even if it bit them on the particulars, would they? Perhaps people were just pissed off that someone at EA thought it was a good idea to put some berk from So Solid Crew on commentary. Now that’s much more understandable.

Whatever your opinion on the previous games, it’s difficult to deny that they lacked a certain... character. For all the fancy-dan skills on display, they felt

rather soulless. This is not a problem that FIFA Street 3 suffers from (on the outside at least), having visual charm in abundance. Rather than go for the quasi-realistic wax ogres of their primary footballing franchise, Street 3 gives 250 professionals a stylistic, cartoon makeover. Each player model is a terrific, exaggerated caricature of their real live selves. Cover-star Peter Crouch looks like an extra from a Tim Burton animated movie; pale thin taffy stretched to breaking point before being topped off with a mop of blonde hair. All shapes and sizes are catered for; Wayne Rooney is bigger than the proverbial brick outhouse, all muscle and scowling features. Not someone you want to run into down a dark alley, even in cartoon form.

For all the wonderful artwork, the players need to perform out on the pitch. And for the most part, FIFA Street 3 achieves what it sets out to do; which is to be a fun, accessible 5-a-side kickabout without the trappings of a full blown simulation.

Rightly eschewed by these sims, Street 3 utilises a ‘sticky-ball’ mechanic. It’s something of a throwback having the ball as part of the player’s animations, rather than a separate entity while in possession, but it is entirely apt in a game which is all about close-control and OTT play.

Tapping Y will flick the ball up, from which you can either unleash a volley or have an impromptu game of keepy-uppy, even holding the left trigger to rest the ball on various body parts. The now perennial EA ‘trick-stick’ is also used to perform a variety of drags to bamboozle defenders.

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45 “FLAMBOYANTLY FUN FOOTIE”

These all look great, with terrific animation enhancing the overall visual splendour, though they do feel somewhat automatic and whether your shimmying and shaking beats your man doesn’t always seem down to pert timing. The real thrill comes from combining these skills into one display of showboating, culminating with smashing the ball into the net. For every trick you perform you add power to your ‘Gamebreaker’ bar which, when full and activated, maxes out all your players. You can juggle the ball through the entire opposing team before unleashing an unstoppable scissor kick into the top corner, or scamper along the wall before flicking a cross over for a diving header.

Attacking football is the name of the game here, and you do have a certain amount of freedom.

It’s not just about winning; it’s about winning big and with style.

That said; it doesn’t excuse the game’s woeful stab at defending. Tackles seem to work at random, and even when you think you’ve nailed the timing, a juggling adversary will occasionally pay no mind to the repeated toe-punting you’re dishing out. It almost spoils the game, as the tackling and dribbling don’t seem to be consistent with one another, and it can make for some infuriating moments when your opponent skips through, rather than past, your Van Damme style kung-fu kick.

Defensive grumblings aside, FIFA Street 3 really is a lot of fun, especially in multiplayer. The game features a robust online component, with a few modes to choose from in ranked and unranked matches. However, this can’t match sitting side by side with a pal after you’ve just played a one-two with the wall before powering a shot past his hapless keeper. Single-player however, is a little lacking, and although the CPU AI is strong enough to give you an enjoyable game, the challenge mode is terribly thin. Indeed, some modes are only to the game’s detriment - the ‘Gamebreaker’ mode, where only goals can be scored while powered-up, can go on for far too long, becoming a tedious war of attrition. It’s a shame that more wasn’t made of the singleplayer - a career where you build a team of stars around a customised player a la NBA Street perhaps; any excuse to create a stylised caricature of yourself.

This lack of a significant career mode among some other niggles make it difficult to recommend FIFA Street 3 unconditionally. It’s unashamedly shallow and it will give some of the more ostentatious among us a rash; but it’s flamboyantly fun footie that’s ideal for pre/post pub knockabouts when a match on PES or FIFA 08 just seems a bit too much. And should it find its way into your collection, if it makes you feel better, you could always call it a guilty pleasure.

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SONIC RIDERS I’ll be back one day, just pray for me. I’m on my way, surfing on a rocket

ZERO GRAVITY I FORMAT REVIEWED PlayStation 2 OTHER FORMATS Wii PUBLISHER SEGA DEVELOPER Sonic Team UGA REVIEWED BY Simeon Paskell

n videogame terms, it’s fair to say that Sonic the Hedgehog is somewhat of a veteran. Recent years, however, haven’t been too kind to the old fella, and to say he’s made a few wrong turns would be somewhat of an understatement. The once proud figurehead of a gaming corporation has been subjected to all manner of degradations; from losing his spot in the limelight to Shadow the Hedgehog, to a disastrous first outing on the current crop of consoles. That gamers the world over would like to see the blue spiky one hit his stride again is undeniable, so it’s far from encouraging that his latest Playstation 2 outing sees him (yet again) scooting into view on a hoverboard…Sigh.

Sonic the Hedgehog has always been about speed. You don’t buy a Sonic game for brain wrenching puzzles or complex combat. You buy a Sonic game because you want to run fast through lush environments while marvelling at azure skies. It is understandable that SEGA thought a racing game would be a perfect occupation for Sonic and chums to while-away their twilight years, but the lukewarm reception its predecessor received means that Zero Gravity has everything to prove.

As has become the norm for Sonic titles, Zero Gravity opens with an ambitious and unquestionably good-looking CGI

sequence. After stumbling upon a fallen meteorite, Sonic and his furry friends are set upon by heavily armed robots intent on laying their hands on our heroes’ discovery. A strong narrative isn’t usually central to racing games of this type, and the paper thin plot that is weaved around the ensuing ‘high-speed’ hoverboarding doesn’t add much, bar supplying a vague sense of purpose to the single player mode.

Cutscenes and plot aside, Zero Gravity’s success or failure rests on its ability to thrill, and unfortunately this is where Sonic’s hoverboard ploughs into the dirt all too quickly. Borrowing liberally from ‘Mario Kart’, ‘SSX’ and ‘Wipeout’, it would seem to be a title with a solid grounding, even without attempting to win any prizes for originality. However, where those titles excelled through pin-point controls, engaging level design and genuine verve, Zero Gravity barely even gets the key in the ignition.

Like Martie McFly first getting to grips with the hoverboard in ‘Back to the Future 2’, Zero Gravity wobbles, shakes and eventually sinks into a pond of its own lack of ambition. Most importantly the sense of speed is never convincing; what should be a blazing dash through the sixteen available courses (spread over eight worlds), in fact barely moves beyond a pedestrian stroll. Even at maximum speed, you are never slapped around the face with the intensity of the races a la ‘Wipeout’ and the combat struggles to replicate the slapstick humour of ‘Mariokart’. The vague trick system adds little to the experience, and smacks of a developer simply ticking boxes.

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47

In some respects its lack of pace could be seen as a blessing, as the controls lack the fluency and intuitiveness to carry Sonic around the twists and turns of the tracks with any kind of grace. Add to this the uninspired track design, and you are left with a racer that underperforms in nearly every aspect.

There are saving graces. The trademark eye-melting Sega visuals are in place, and aesthetically the game has a spark that is lacking in its gameplay. The Botanical Kingdom is a particular highlight, with curling plant tendrils contrasting against the electric blue sky. Additional touches

such as the Gravity Drift (which sees your character enter a pseudo bullet-time to help take particularly tight corners) show promise, but even this is poorly executed.

Once the single player mode has been exhausted (which ultimately doesn’t take long), Zero Gravity attempts to retain your attention through its upgrade system and multi-player modes. A range of new boards are available but their impact is minimal at best. Similarly, the three multiplayer modes (Free Race, World Grand Prix and Survival) are lacklustre in their attempt to wring out more enjoyment, adding very little flesh to the skeleton of the core game.

Despite Sonic the Hedgehog’s (now somewhat tainted) heritage, it is hard not to see Zero Gravity as anything other than a pretty but vacuous cash-in.

The classic chime that accompanies ring collection is enough to make you yearn for past glories, but nostalgia alone is not enough to carry a game as poorly executed as this. One of the power-ups sees Sonic and co. shedding their hoverboards and breaking into a sprint and, for a brief moment, you get a fleeting glimpse of what a Sonic the Hedgehog game should be. However, the stark truth is that Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity merely supplies yet more evidence that Sonic needs to shed the excess baggage and get back to his day job (if only he could remember what that was…).

VERDICT

REVIEWS

48

APOLLO JUSTICE

You and your 'objections' and your 'evidence'! You don’t know anything!

ACE ATTORNEY

T FORMAT DS PUBLISHER Capcom DEVELOPER Capcom REVIEWED BY Emmet Purcell

he trouble with so-called “cult” videogames is that once they have given gamers that cherished piece of quirky originality, they begin to milk the formula for all its worth, knowing the loyalty of their fan base will repel any message board attacks. As the first non-GBA port of the Ace Attorney series, complete with a new title character, gameplay innovations and redrawn environments, has Apollo Justice managed to defeat the Capcom formula of flogging a dead horse?

As a supposed new era it is worrying that Capcom felt they had to turn this entire title into an overarching Phoenix Wright storyline. Not only that, but our beloved Phoenix has undergone a severe personality change - his “bad-ass” attitude and lack of warmth conflicting with his earlier persona. Couple that with the fact that the new additions, Trucy, sidekick foil for Apollo and near identical to PW’s Maya, and meek prosecutor Klavier are so underwhelming that the only real enjoyment comes when Phoenix Wright stalwarts enter the fray.

The sad truth is that for anyone who enjoyed that final, DS-only case in the original Phoenix Wright and wondered just where Capcom’s imaginations would lead in the years since release, the answer is not nearly as far enough as your own. In fact, Apollo Justice relies so much on the goodwill of fans of earlier titles that the developers not only had little trust in their gameplay innovations (some of which appear twice before disappearing), but also no trust whatsoever in their title character. It may say “Apollo Justice” on the box but make no mistake; this is yet again the Phoenix Wright show.

Which begs another question; by including Phoenix to such an extent, surely Capcom knew that much-loved series staples like Detective Gumshoe and the Fey’s would be sorely missed? Should their storylines be wrapped up in the second Apollo Justice? And when does Apollo Justice actually begin this era, free from intrusion? Clearly, a lot of poor choices have been made in the “rebooting” of this particular series.

REVIEWS

49

If we sound overly-callous it’s because the Ace Attorney titles are essentially an interactive storybook for fans, and as such the excellent writing instils brand loyalty and character fandom not often found in rival franchises. With the prospect of an entirely new trilogy, Capcom appear to have caved into fans demands for more of the same. For discerning fans like ourselves however, we expect more of the unknown and more than a game that still looks like and plays like a GBA port, particularly given the length of time granted to the development team to cook up original content.

Despite these misgivings, Apollo Justice is still a fine title and one any fan of the series should (and will) sample for themselves. The dialogue is as sharp as ever and despite a worrying side-story about 15 year old Trucy’s “panties”, the cases themselves are spot on; the final case in particular pointing towards a likely continuation of the courtroom innovation.

As such, the “more of the same” of Apollo Justice is as satisfying as ever, but those craving a more ambitious take on the Attorney series will be left bitterly disappointed.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

50 Induction then destruction

BATTALION WARS 2

C

hristmas 2005 - a time of next-gen debuts, handheld Grand Theft Auto and the first time gamers got to be virtual guitar-playing heroes. But unphased by this period of excitement and anticipation, Nintendo’s Advance Wars spinoff Battalion Wars came storming onto the GameCube; unapologetic for its brash, vibrant take on the third person action genre.

FORMAT Wii PUBLISHER Nintendo DEVELOPER Kuju Entertainment REVIEWED BY Rhys Simons

Sitting down with BW’s sequel for the first time, you’d be forgiven for checking the calendar to make sure we really are in 2008. As with the original, each mission provides the player with a small battalion with which to complete a number of objectives, usually culminating in the capture of an enemy HQ. In addition to ground and air units, we are now given access to a naval fleet, throwing battleships, frigates and submarines into the combat mix. However, unlike the strategic variation we expected, naval combat fails to provide a sufficiently different feel during battle - the entire fleet merely acting as tanks on water.

In an attempt to move closer to the prestigious Advance Wars series you can now commandeer enemy bases. Presumably, this was in an attempt to add an element of tactical depth, but, unfortunately, has achieved the opposite effect.

Instead of allowing the player to choose which units to build at will, each unit automatically respawns at their appropriate construction.

It’s a baffling inclusion, especially considering Battalion Wars likes to think of itself as a strategy action title. The respawns eliminate any desire for tactical play, simply encouraging an all-out uneducated approach. After all, if you do lose that all-important tank, no matter; another will respawn in a few seconds.

It’s a shame, because even though it’s hard not to raise a smile when firing out shells left, right and centre, the slow, considered approach is undeniably the more enjoyable option. The only remaining reason to take your time is to achieve an S-Rank rating in order to reveal hidden extras, but even that can prove testing. At numerous points completing an objective requires a certain unit to be kept alive. This in itself is easy enough, until inexplicably towards the end of a mission, the wrath of the Almighty rains down on this one unit, duly obliterating it (and the entire mission) in a swift and unexpected assault. When care and attention has been taken to achieve that all-important S-Rank, coupled with the complete lack of in-mission checkpoints, to call BWii infuriating would be something of an understatement.

REVIEWS

51 Another patience-tester passed over from the original is the horrendous camera positioning, seemingly never allowing the player to see everything they’d like.

Somewhat bizarrely however, none of these flaws ultimately break the game’s endearing spirit. With only seventeen short missions available the game is over before it really starts to grate, but it’s deplorable these issues weren’t rectified between titles, only acting to make BWii feel like a two year old GameCube title dressed up in a Wii frock.

Something positive to come out of the Wii iteration though is the natural control overhaul and, thankfully, BWii can sit proudly in that exclusive collection of games that can honestly say have benefited from Nintendo’s new control scheme. Pointer functionality has achieved the most in alleviating control issues from the original; taking out enemies through pointing and shooting now delightfully simple. Ordering troops around the battlefield has also been streamlined and fitted to the d-pad, allowing you to scroll effortlessly through your individual units.

Battalion Wars 2 still has the capacity to be a whole lot of fun, and the inclusion of the Wii’s best online mode to date shows what great potential the series has.

But ultimately, BWii really is the same war, making the same mistakes and picking up a few new ones along the way.

If you were a fan of the original or are looking for a shallow but entertaining distraction, Battalion Wars 2 could well be your game. If, however, you’d like something much more tactical, you’re still better off with a war of the advanced variety.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

52

SEGA SUPERSTARS TENNIS And you can tell they're all the same underneath the pretty lights. Anyone for tennis, wouldn't that be nice?

W

e wouldn’t normally begin by mentioning achievements, but as SEGA Superstars Tennis is host to some of the most ingenious titles ever devised it would be somewhat of an injustice for them to go unnoticed. From the After Burner achievement for hitting a 100mph serve, the OutRun achievement for running 6km, or the SEGA Rally achievement for a 40 shot rally, Sumo Digital’s intention of creating an inspired homage to one of gaming’s greatest contributors is clear from the off.

FORMAT REVIEWED Xbox 360 OTHER FORMATS PS3, PS2, Wii, DS PUBLISHER SEGA DEVELOPER Sumo Digital REVIEWED BY David Scammell

And that intention becomes even clearer beyond the lovingly-created opening FMV; SEGA’s trademark blue skies and blissfully nostalgic sound and music each falling into place alongside the memorable characters.

As self-admitted SEGA fans, Superstars is to some extent, a dream come true.

Built on the excellent Virtua Tennis engine, Superstars’ mechanics are solid, albeit simplified. Each court is inspired by SEGA games of past and present, and whether it be Sonic’s iconic Green Hill Zone, Ulala’s Space Station, or the courtyard of House of the Dead’s “Curien Mansion”, there’s something instantly endearing about each one. We dare anyone not to raise a smile during Samba de Amigo’s delightfully charming Mexican stage, complete with the instantly recognisable Samba de Janeiro playing in the background.

But where Sumo Digital does so well in capturing the essence of SEGA, it loses by not knowing what to do with the task at hand.

Alongside a typical Tournament mode and the obligatory online and offline multiplayer options lies Challenge mode, consisting of a series of standard games and missions.

Showing more than a passing resemblance to

the practice mini-games from the earlier Virtua Tennis’, challenges are made up of a combination of mediocre tasks themed around each stage. However, unlike VT where playing mini-games meant gaining experience and improving your abilities, Challenge mode feels more like a means to pad out an otherwise limited game. While many missions are obvious filler - the glut of games and tournaments that flood certain courts reinforcing that notion - others are inventive recreations of classic SEGA titles; the bubble bursting gameplay of Puyo Pop and the opening mission to Virtua Cop (sorry, Virtua Squad) recreated perfectly within the context.

Much more fun comes from trying out each character and their respective courts. Each character falls into a subcategory of speed, power, spin or all-rounder, with every one of them bringing their own personality and unique special ability into the game. But of the sixteen available, quite why we’re given lesser-known Gum and Pudding to play as rather than other unduly missing SEGA favourites is something of a mystery. Something to look forward to in the inevitable sequel perhaps?

It’s hard not to view SEGA Superstars Tennis as anything other than a novelty. But while many would expect the charm of Superstars to be a superficial method of covering up a sub-par tennis experience, with the admirable VT framework behind it, that’s simply not the case. It might not have the lasting appeal that other titles in the genre boast, but as an affable jaunt of all things SEGA, Superstars Tennis is a worthy package for any long-term fan.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

53 A warrior acts as if he knows what he is doing, when in effect he knows nothing

DYNASTY WARRIORS 6 ‘A

Ubisoft

FORMAT REVIEWED PlayStation 3 OTHER FORMATS Xbox 360 PUBLISHER Koei DEVELOPER Omega Force REVIEWED BY Simeon Paskell

change is as good as a rest’, or so the saying goes. What then, for the Dynasty Warriors, a series that has changed little from one instalment to the next? Although massively successful in their native Japan, Dynasty Warriors titles have been criticised for their lack of progression, poor AI and repetitive gameplay. For those of us not already won over by its curious, somewhat flawed charms, it is a series whose success can be hard to understand.

However, developer Koei knows its audience, and feels perfectly comfortable releasing the sixth in the series with very few adjustments having been made.

So, DW6 is very much business as usual.

Serving up lashings of tactical warfare based on the Chinese historical novel ‘The Romance of the Three Kingdoms’, players must slice their way through swathes of warriors in order to dominate the battlefield. Where other titles have striven to expand their boundaries (taking Burnout Paradise as a prime example), DW6 has little desire to stray from the groundwork laid by its predecessors. Although the PS3’s increased power enables sharper visuals, faster frame-rates and (even) more characters on screen, the game does nothing to convert the doubters or upset hardened fans. It plays it safe and is no more (or no less) engaging than Dynasty Warriors 5.

At its core, Dynasty Warrior’ is (and always has been) a mouth-watering premise - take to the battlefield as a legendary hero with an army at your side and confront an enemy horde packed as densely as a field of wheat, waiting to meet the cold hard steel on your blade. The sense of empowerment from this idea alone is dizzying and

in many ways DW6 delivers. Leaping into the air to rain death on the unfortunate foot soldiers at your feet, sending them scattering like rag dolls in a hurricane in the process, it is easy to feel the power wielded by your chosen general surging through your SIXAXIS. The ebb and flow of the overall battle can also be engaging, and your role as both spearhead and tactician is at times palpable.

As immersive as these factors can be, the more time you spend with DW6, the more difficult it is to forgive its shortcomings.

Resident Evil 4 is living (or should that be ‘undead’) proof of the rewards that can be reaped by breaking away from a stale format, but the best that DW6 can offer is the ability to swim and climb ladders.

Reading like the promotion material for an 8-bit era platformer (‘SWIM!’, ‘CLIMB LADDERS!’), the significance and impact of these additions will be lost on all but the most committed ‘Dynasty’ warrior, especially when all that awaits you at the end of your swim or ladder climb is yet more button-mashing combat… …And button-mashing combat it surely is.

If any game were to give you RSI, it would be Dynasty Warriors. Although a broader range of moves and animations have been added, the implementation of the combat is still as subtle as putting your fist through a window. Pumping the ‘X’ button for all you are worth could be seen as mirroring the chaos of the on-screen carnage, but it can also prove to be extremely dull. For a game focussed on combat, the fighting mechanic is immensely unsatisfying and it’s disappointing that Koei have not taken the opportunity to overhaul and refresh this aspect of the game.

Similarly neglected is the AI. After single-handedly wiping out all but a few soldiers, to see the remaining survivors stand motionless, barely registering your existence can all but destroy any sense of realism. Although it does serve to emphasise the prowess of your character, the frustratingly lifeless automatons that serve as enemies (and allies) fall way short of expectations. That they can also disappear and re-appear with the panning of the camera further breaks the illusion.

Dynasty Warriors 6 will be hailed by series-fans as another great instalment.

Although it does little to take full advantage to the processing power available on the current-gen systems, it offers an experience on par with Dynasty Warriors 5, and walks with the same stubborn, cocky gait that trademarks the series. However, the lack of genuine evolution and an unwillingness to broach the many faults result in an experience that, yet again, fails to fully capture the potential of its core ideas. Sadly, Dynasty Warriors has found itself in a cul-de-sac, and it desperately needs to embrace change. Failing that, maybe Koei should just give it a rest.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

54

CONFLICT: DENIED OPS Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional

W

FORMAT REVIEWED PlayStation 3 OTHER FORMATS 360, PC PUBLISHER Eidos Interactive DEVELOPER Pivotal Games REVIEWED BY Emily Knox

hen it comes to FPS’s, there’s something particularly fun and exhilarating about teaming up with a friend or competent bot and blasting away at the enemy together. And with two characters that have such different roles; Graves; a sniper, and Lang, the stereotypical close up combat/heavy weapons guy, Denied Ops’ prospects for good teamwork and making use of each character’s specific skill sets could be great.

Unfortunately, if you’re going to play co-operatively together via split screen there isn’t an option to split the screen horizontally. That’s fine if you have a particularly large widescreen TV to share, but since most of the combat takes place on a level plane in front of you - rather than a long way above or below – it’s a definite setback, making the gameplay unnecessarily awkward for any gamers playing on a 4:3 set. A strange problem to encounter for a game promoted for its co-operative play.

Graphically the game is a letdown, barely looking like any step from the PS2 to PS3 has been made at all with blocky character models and unappealing outdoor areas.

Each level is littered with generic exploding barrels and canisters, along with an endless stream of identical soldiers to gun down. The action is broken up by pressing the odd button to stop an alarm or hack a computer, or by a vehicle section. While driving around blasting things from a tank ought to be great fun, like the aforementioned teamwork, it’s let down by difficult

controls and the most typical outcome drive said tank through a particular area, shoot a couple of other tanks, then get out when you reach a pile of impassable rubble.

Playing alone, your AI teammate works well for the most part (not including the irritating comments they spout or cliched chats you endure at the start of levels).

Should you die he’ll come running to your aid in order to revive you - and that doesn’t mean blindly wandering through gunfire to his death, he’ll shoot his way through and clear the area for you to get back up.

Alternatively you can switch instantly with a nice level fly through to the other character and come to your own aid within a time limit.

Graves’ sniper rifle feels somewhat of a letdown, with a seemingly deliberate level of inaccuracy put in place to promote a sense of realism. In reality it’s just plain frustrating and can make lining up the perfect headshot pointless, especially when a perfectly good shot to the neck only knocks the enemy back temporarily.

Graves’ health is delicate so it’s important for him to stay back and pick people off, making Lang the preferable choice with his tank-like qualities.

mission to take on next. The bane of being forced to work as a team is dealt with well, with hardly any case of your partner getting stuck round corners and left behind.

Even the annoyance of them dying is a rare occurrence as they tend to hang back a little behind you, but still keeping a good enough input to gun down some bad guys.

Thankfully the game considerably improves as you progress. After a tragically dull opening level with some of the most atrociously overpowering and irritating music we’ve heard in recent years, you’ll be rewarded with better weapons and upgrades, as well as the choice of which

It’s just a shame that the levels (for the most part at least) are as repetitive and linear as they are. Shooting bad guys and reaching a button only offers a certain amount of fun before starting to grate, and despite its few highlights you’ll soon lose interest in the simple and forgettable story.

While there’s a certain element of fun to be had, the restrictive gameplay, underwhelming graphics and poor design choices each do nothing to add to an experience that is sorely lacking.

And with far more polished FPS games already available, Denied Ops simply isn’t worth parting with your cash for.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

55

ASSASSIN’S CREED ALTAIR’S CHRONICLES Give me names, I’ll give you blood

L Ubisoft

FORMAT DS PUBLISHER Ubisoft DEVELOPER Ubisoft REVIEWED BY Tom Hoggins

aunching amidst much fanfare late last year, Assassin’s Creed was a game that had players and critics alike split down the middle. Whatever camp you were in, Ubisoft’s introduction of Altair demanded an opinion. However, one thing that couldn’t be denied by even its biggest detractors was that Assassin’s Creed was a gorgeous game. Its Kingdom was an immersive world that came to life particularly while Altair was in free-running flight over the beautiful, sun-baked cities.

It is perhaps surprising then, that Ubisoft have chosen Nintendo’s graphically modest handheld for the next game in the Creed canon. Unfortunately, the stretch shows.

Gameloft have made a valiant attempt at re-creating the likes of Damascus and Jerusalem in Altair’s Chronicles, retaining the colour-coded sheen that each city received in the home console version, but the result is ropey to say the least.

Characters are disjointed slips of colour and the environment manages to clash with itself, with unclear edges and a confusing sense of depth. This is disappointing enough from an aesthetic standpoint, but when the visuals impede on the game itself (more on which later) we know that Chronicles is in trouble.

Sensibly, there is no attempt at converting Creed’s ‘social-stealth’ third-person gameplay to the DS. Instead, Chronicles is a straight-up isometric platformer,

drawing on Altair’s skill at free-running across rooftops. Marked as a direct prequel to the events in AC, it seems that before we joined Altair for the first time in the Arabian cities, they were lined with vicious traps.

Spike pits, falling blades and swinging boulders all vie to stop Altair in his path, presumably put there by those pesky Templars. It’s all rather old-fashioned and a cliched retread of platformers past, right down to the arbitrary ‘push block onto pressure pad to open door’ puzzles. While this isn’t necessarily a criticism in itself, to get away with such lack of originality the paths you must traverse should be well-designed and enjoyable to tackle. For the most part this just isn’t the case, mainly due to Chronicles committing one of gaming’s cardinal sins- killing you through bad design.

You will die in Altair’s Chronicles, you will die a lot, and most of the time it isn’t even your fault. The aforementioned sense of depth (or lack thereof) will lead you to jumping for ledges that aren’t where you’d expect; you fall and die. The (non-adjustable) camera is often positioned in such a way that you can’t see what is ahead of you, necessitating a leap of faith; you fall and die. Collision detection is wildly inconsistent, creeping past pipes that billow great gushes of water, you think you’re giving them a wide berth when suddenly you’re propelled across the screen and... you guessed it... you fall and die. It’s massively, massively irritating. It’s also a shame, as when Chronicles isn’t

mercilessly murdering you it can be a fairly fun, if incredibly basic experience.

Occasionally there are flashes of what could and should be done in a game of this genre; a fleet-footed dash across the environment while under attack from the Templars’ catapults one particular highlight. Combat is also fairly assured, if somewhat rudimentary. You tap X and Y to perform simple sword combos, and R to block and parry. It works well enough, but is crying out for a lock-on system, as often you find yourself slashing into thin air.

Other weapons such as throwing knives are introduced throughout the game, but tend to be used for the odd puzzle before being forgotten. And of course, no DS game would be complete without the perfunctory use of the touchscreen.

Chronicles uses it for pickpocketing and interrogation, which are straight rip-offs of Operation and Ouendan/Elite Beat Agents respectively. They work well enough, but come across as afterthoughts.

Which sums up Altair’s Chronicles fairly well - an afterthought. It’s not an egregiously awful game by any means; combat is competent and at its best the platforming can be fairly enjoyable. But some glaring fundamental flaws coupled with the fact that the meagre story on offer adds nothing to the Assassin’s Creed lore whatsoever drags it below mediocrity.

Which, ultimately, makes it something of a pointless venture.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

56

PROFESSOR LAYTON Professors muddled in their intent, to try to rope in followers to float their malcontent

AND THE CURIOUS VILLAGE

W

FORMAT DS PUBLISHER Nintendo DEVELOPER Level 5 REVIEWED BY Emmet Purcell

ith his ubiquitous top hat and gentlemanly manner, Professor Layton is a video games character that fits the Sherlock Holmes archetype perfectly.

Yet Layton is not only adept at solving crimes; for his first Western adventure it’s puzzles that instead need solving. Oh sure, there’s still a mysterious inheritance dispute to be solved, but the bulk of the gameplay consists of nearly every in-game villager handing our hero and his young sidekick Luke (the Slippy Toad of DS voice-acting) with a variety of random, taxing puzzles, from illusions to trick questions and ball-puzzle combinations. Indeed, this is a most curious village, and well worth a visit.

With a charming French art style, most reminiscent of the 2003 animation Les De Triplettes de Belleville, Layton’s old-European sensibilities seem at odds with most Japanese developers’ ideals. Yet the intriguing style fits this title’s unique atmosphere like a glove. With tremendous full-motion video cut scenes, voice acting and downloadable weekly puzzles, this is a title that seeks to overload gamers with a myriad of puzzles and secrets for its substantial (10 hours+) single player mode.

A point and click adventure at heart, Layton could more commonly be described as “Brain Training with a storyline”. And what a fine storyline it is, with a particular third act twist that caught this reviewer blind-sided. Each of the characters are also characterised in such a manner as to make the gamer not only interested in returning for another puzzle, but also hoping to be enraptured with the villagers wild stories and escapades.

Ah but those puzzles, puzzles, puzzles. No matter how much one can wax lyrical about the art style or characterisation of Professor Layton, one’s enjoyment will undoubtedly come down to what they take from the game’s main feature – puzzles.

Layton has so many puzzles (120, not including weekly downloadables) that some don’t even take place in the main game, and must be unlocked upon solving completely separate in-game puzzles found when the title is on pause. Puzzled?

You will be.

And ultimately it’s this fierce reliance on puzzles that is Layton’s one undoing. The title’s mystery storyline is one that DS adventure fans will want to quickly follow up on, in the style of Hotel Dusk or Phoenix Wright’s episodic-paced stories. Yet more

often than not, the puzzles themselves have no bearing on the plot or occur in such haphazard situations (after a man’s brother has been kidnapped, he immediately decides to ask you to help out with a puzzle) that the balance of puzzles/storyline becomes severely deficient. Bringing together puzzle and point and click fans under the DS umbrella is a masterstroke of game design from Level 5, yet some fine-tuning could have left both groups equally pleased.

As the beginning of a franchise (the Japanese are rapturously awaiting the third instalment), Professor Layton and the Curious Village is a game sure to win over the hearts of as many Western fans as it already holds in the East. It may have the most irritating video game sidekick since Sonic’s Tails, but grit your teeth and you’ll find puzzles that make you feel smarter and a plot that makes you feel like an idiot for not paying attention once that big third act twist occurs. Rest assured that when Professor Layton and the Devil’s Box arrives hopefully at the end of the year, there will be a top hat-wearing army of enthusiasts ready to sample another chapter of the DS’s next adventure success story.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

57

BLEACH: SHATTERED BLADE Spirits are always with you

I

chigo Kurosaki and the cast of Bleach are clashing Zanpak-to in this cel-shaded fighter for Wii. Set immediately after the Soul Society arc, Shattered Blade is based around a game-exclusive episode of the exciting story.

FORMAT Wii PUBLISHER SEGA DEVELOPER Polygon Magic REVIEWED BY Richard Rohani

However, what this ultimately means is that the game has no bearing on the events from the anime series. In order to solve their personal problems each character is told to collect Sokyoku shards, giving leeway to the random battles between the characters fighting over the elusive shards.

Ultimately, collection of the shards releases a hollow, a game exclusive arrancar, which the player must defeat to win.

The story is told via a series of stills with the occasional in-game conversation, complete with wholly inaccurate lip-sync.

Voice acting is woeful and as expected, the entire game is voiced by the inferior English cast with no option to switch to the original (and superior) Japanese voiceovers.

The one-on-one fighting is fairly straightforward. Swinging the Wii Remote unleashes a flurry of fast swipes, and holding down A at the same performs a strong attack and B for a special attack. As well as concentrating on their fighting,

players must be aware of their stamina and Bankai bar. Once filled, a shake of the nunchuk activates the Bankai making your character stronger, faster or able to summon a buddy.

Another gameplay mechanic is the inclusion of a mid-battle minigame event as players clash blades, although much like the core fighting this simply comes down to swinging the Wii-mote at the correct time. The direction you swing determines the type of attack and its strength against your opponent's attack, who simultaneously does the same. After five rounds of this rock-paper-scissors mechanic, the winner is determined and the damage is dealt to the appropriate player. It doesn't occur too often in battles, and thankfully so given its tedium and ineptitude. Some swings don't register properly - a horizontal swipe may be read as a vertical swing, doubly irritating when it causes you to lose the round. The same problem is also present during the standard fighting, often resulting in performing a different attack to the one you wanted. In a game where control over your character’s movement is paramount, poor precision clearly isn’t acceptable.

Shattered Blade does offer a wealth of characters to play as, and it will take some time to unlock them all. Most characters become unlocked after beating arcade

mode, but some also need unlocking via the numerous episodes. The characters all play how you may expect, with differing styles depending on their abilities.

Ishida and Orihime work better at range whilst Kenpatchi favours closequarters battle. The most outlandish play style is awarded to Hanataro whose sword attacks heal his opponents, making him difficult to play with.

Bleach: Shattered Blade can have its moments of both fun and frustration, and fans will enjoy acting out duels from the series on their Wii. But there’s nothing on offer here for anyone unfamiliar with Bleach, which by our reckoning, is probably most of you.

VERDICT

REVIEWS

58

UNREAL

PRO EVOLUTION

TOURNAMENT 3

SOCCER 2008

FORMAT

FORMAT

PlayStation 3

PSP

PUBLISHER

PUBLISHER

Midway

Konami

DEVELOPER

DEVELOPER

Epic Games

Konami

REVIEWED BY

REVIEWED BY

Tom Hoggins

Tom Hoggins

A

fter being exclusive to PC for just a few short months, Epic brings its macho, sci-fi FPS to consoles. And the good news is that little has been lost in translation to the PS3. For all the problems Sony’s machine seems to have with the Unreal Engine, UT3’s breakneck, frantic blasting runs smooth as silk and looks terrific. The grimy sci-fi arenas and burly character models all glisten, full of detail.

The odd case of texture pop-in can jar, but when the game looks as good as it does running without the hint of a framerate chug, it would be churlish to complain too heartily.

The PS3’s controller also handles the fast-paced shooting remarkably well. While the spongy analogue sticks may not quite give you the degree of accuracy of the 360 controller or keyboard and mouse - with which the PS3 game is compatible the aiming is more than competent and the button layout is thoughtful and intuitive.

The game’s campaign is essentially a series of multiplayer matches dressed up with impressive narrative cut-scenes. It’s a decent enough distraction, but serves little purpose other than to

train you for the real meat of the game.

Therefore it’s a good job that UT3’s outstanding online multiplayer runs nigh-on perfectly over PSN. Matches are easy to set-up and you are able to jump into a game in the blink of an eye, keeping up with the game’s ethos of non-stop carnage. Of all the games we tested there was barely any lag detected and matches would play out to their bitter end. The lack of cross-game invites is still something of an albatross for PSN, but it’s the only moan we could possibly have about UT3’s component. The maps are superbly laid out and not without a few sprinklings of innovation either. And the ‘War’ matchtype where teams must control ‘nodes’ across the map before destroying their opponent’s ‘core’ is one of the finest new modes in online multiplayer.

UT3 is still a PC FPS at heart; but Epic has brought its behemoth to the PS3 with skill and finesse that’s difficult to ignore. While solo play leaves much to be desired, the fantastic multiplayer means the Unreal Tournament is still one well worth participating in, whatever your platform of choice.

VERDICT

R

egular readers will remember that we weren’t too enamoured with PES 2008 when it hit the new-generation of consoles last October, feeling it was a further stagnation of a once great series - particularly in the light of the excellent FIFA 08 which embraced the new tech superbly.

While the new PSP version is hardly a huge leap forward either (being based on the PS2 engine), the handheld version manages to remind us why we loved PES in the first place. The responsiveness of the PSP controls seems to have been refined. Therefore the zippy, enjoyable game of football that is PES’s staple is far more comfortable to play than previous iterations, though still a little awkward due to the PSP’s slightly cramped layout. The odd framerate dip mars proceedings, but overall the on-pitch experience is classic PES that has translated well to the small screen.

Master League is present and correct, as is a fully-fledged edit mode, but the most interesting additions to the PSP is the PS2-exclusive World Tour mode and impressive connectivity between your handheld and your PS2. Should you own

these two versions of PES you can transfer your Master League data to your PSP and back again, allowing you to take your quest for silverware on the road whenever you like. The World Tour mode is an entertaining sideshow that harks back to the superb ‘Scenario’ mode on Konami’s ISS games. Setting you the task of travelling the globe with a team of your choice to face off against various nations, you must adhere to some set rules and victory parameters. Unfortunately, there is still no option to play online over the PSP infrastructure, which seems a glaring omission.

It is perhaps slightly damning that PES 2008 feels so much more at home on the less advanced technology. But that is an issue to be resolved in next year’s inevitable home-console release and players looking for that PES magic right now would do well to go with the feature-packed PSP version. It’s comfortably the best handheld PES yet, and arguably the finest sports game on the console.

VERDICT

DOWNLOAD

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N+

DARK MIST

KIRBY 64: THE CRYSTAL SHARDS

At times during N+ as you guide your miniature ninja across a slew of ingenious, yet nigh-on sadistic levels, even the calmest of players will have to swallow expletives that would turn the air bluer than the deep sea itself. Yet the game is as difficult to put down as it is to succeed at. The simple premise of guiding your ninja to an exit - via a button to open the door - is incredibly addictive due to the lithe, acrobatic ninja skills that your tiny ‘stickman’ displays. There’s even a layer of strategy, due to the yellow collectables that add to your time limit - do you head straight for the exit, or risk yourself to extend your ever decreasing time?

Following our gallant heroine Artemis on a quest to rid the world from darkness, Dark Mist plunges us into the twin-stick shooting dungeons of “the blue planet”. Besides fending off numerous charming foes and screen-filling bosses, the titular mist regularly crops up to slow down the action, reducing our heroine’s line of sight and concealing walkways, enemies and hidden items. Without having to rely on cat-like reactions to progress, Dark Mist can be a much more tranquil shooter than other games of its ilk, but still manages to retain the madcap ‘must-try-harder’ gameplay the genre is famed for.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards was one of the N64’s dying puffs - a pink floaty puff that attempted to strut its way into our hearts. As a 2D platformer set in a 3D environment, anyone accustomed to Kirby’s unique skills will know the series’ hook – sucking up enemies and absorbing their powers. In this outing Kirby can combine two different abilities to provide forty different attack combinations.

Seeking out and testing each of these is the games main draw as sadly, seven years on, the game‘s ridiculously basic platforming hasn’t aged well.

Our biggest gripe (aside from flying controllers and broken windows) is being unable to save while in the middle of an episode, as having to repeat levels to get to that spitefully difficult fourth stage is not good for our calm. However, a combination of gameplay that is genius in its simplicity and levels that are brilliant in their complexity mean that N+ is one of the best original titles available on the marketplace.

As long as you can keep your temper, that is.

Perhaps the most visually impressive title available on the network, the top-down, cel-shaded graphics lend themselves well to the action at hand, showing more than a fleeting nod towards Link‘s latest. With only a dozen levels, Dark Mist may be short (and thankfully so, given the lack of mid-game saves), but Game Republic’s laudable take on the popular genre is enough to keep anyone coming back to it time after time, and deserving of a place in every PSN user’s collection when it launches later this month.

Network: Xbox LIVE Arcade Price: 800 MS Points

VERDICT

Network: PlayStation Network Price: £TBA/$TBA

VERDICT

Network: Virtual Console Price: 1000 Wii Points

Things are mixed up with the odd vehicle section and boss fight, but only offer a small distraction from the main game. A collection of minigames are also available to play, though on a platform filled to bursting with them, you won’t find much use for them beyond a curious peak.

Ultimately, Kirby 64 just isn’t worth the high admission price, and only fans of the series or those looking to brush up on their King Dede knowledge before Super Smash Bros. need apply.

VERDICT

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PREMIUM CONTENTMENT?

Each month two members of our writing team argue over a particular hot topic from within the world of gaming.

This month we tackle premium downloadable content. Is DLC a great way to expand a game’s lifespan, or an easy way for publishers to squeeze even more cash out of gamers?

“LIMITED AND PROHIBITIVE” - THE ARGUMENT AGAINST We’ve lived without it for years. Some utterly wonderful titles have come and gone in that time. Games like Ocarina of Time, Final Fantasy VII and Super Mario 64. Yet, with the online boom in the gaming world now in full force, downloadable content has become near-essential. Much of it is productive – demos, trailers and the introduction of cheaper ‘arcade’ style games have offered gamers more choice than ever before. The problem, however, comes from premium content for retail games. Are developers sculpting mini-masterpieces worthy of our extra money? Or are they merely holding original content back and charging excessive amounts for limited expansion? Whilst I have tried to believe in the former statement, in most cases, the truth appears to reflect the latter.

I’ll open with the most contentious point regarding premium content – the price.

For the most part, it really is pure extortion. Classics such as Gears of War would have been in the pipeline for several years, and so paying out the RRP for the title is justified. However, whilst I garnered hundreds (yes hundreds) of hours of enjoyment from that game, just a tiny fraction of that came from the four maps I spent 800 points on. It simply wasn’t worth it – the maps were hit and miss, not enough people bought them and it cost a substantial chunk of the

price of the original game, making it poor value for money. How about Knights of the Nine, the Oblivion ‘expansion’? Around £8 for an infinitesimal gaming experience is almost verging on the ridiculous. Worse still, premium content doesn’t depreciate as retail games do. Sure, maps sometimes become free, but don’t expect the price of premium content like Crackdown’s to lower over time, when really it should.

In truth, price wouldn’t be a major problem if you could sell the content on with the game. Not a chance of that happening, though. Nope, it’ll sit on your hard drive until you delete it, unplayable once you’ve sold on your game. Surely there are alternatives?

Shivering Isles released as an expansion pack in physical form to Oblivion, as well as DLC. Now, that depreciates in value and can be sold on. Why then, didn’t they opt to release it first, or at the same time as the premium content?

Simple. Digital distribution is worth more. Publishers don’t have to create the physical product and many will be swayed into pay top whack. So there you go – over £20 of your hard earned cash, sitting on your hard drive. I fail to see how an expensive piece of digital data stowed away on my hard drive is in any way more appealing than a cheaper, physical package sitting proudly amongst my collection.

I also worry about the notion of developers and publishers deliberately holding content back because they know they can sell it post-release. Car packs for games like PGR 4 and Forza 2 are prime examples, where sticking those extra eight cars in the game to start with would cause no problem. Yet, they hold back and charge you an extra four hundred points. Not that much perhaps, but it adds up. Mass Effect too has given just one extra hour (if that) of play for the same price with the recent ‘Bring Down The Sky’ expansion. Many enjoyed Mass Effect – I myself relished the thirty hours I spent with it – but most would agree that, aside from the four main missions, it was a little barren. Surely this extra bit of gameplay would have been squeezed into the game should premium content never have existed?

You would certainly think so.

Let’s think about it. Years before now, when the PlayStation and the N64 were fighting it out, premium content was non-existent. Despite this, the fantastic quests we were taken on with Snake, Link and Mario provided more than enough entertainment for any gamer.

Why then, in an era where even the most committed are struggling to keep up with the stream of expansive, beautiful and creative games of real excellence, are we pining after more? We are paying the prices they are putting in

front of us, meaning they will take no steps to change the price.

Premium content has never been a bad idea, but in practice it is limited and prohibitive. It’s an issue many of us probably wouldn’t think about too much as the cost seems so small by comparison to retail games. On closer inspection however, it is clear; developers and publishing houses are seizing the opportunity to produce content that could, and in some cases should, have been put into the game from the start.

Richard Angus

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“IT’S NICE TO HAVE THE CHOICE” - THE ARGUMENT FOR Once again I choose the short straw of a D+BATE, one which is almost certainly contextual and entirely subjective to the type of premium DLC in question. At first thought it’s easy to plump for a particular side (and I could guess which one it’s probably going to be) – but if you can hear what I have to say amongst the cries of “overpriced maps FTL!”, we can begin to put things into perspective.

It appears that one of the most critical and commercially successful franchises of all time is placing the term ‘DLC’ on the tips of our tongues more than ever – Grand Theft Auto 4. Given the fact that I’m trying to defend premium DLC here, you can probably guess which version I’m most looking forward to. But the point is this - the concept of ‘choice’ is very important. Microsoft clearly realise it (they should do, given the $50 million-sized crater in their bank balance), and publishers realise it.

I’m not just talking about the ‘which console does little Jonny want to play it on?’ choice, but in terms of the extra opportunities Rockstar’s latest – or indeed any game with DLC – can offer.

So to put it simply, the choices you have and your own gaming (or even moral) preferences go hand in hand. You can choose to

have extra content, or choose not to. All right that’s a bit blunt, but a good example which comes to mind is PS3 launch title MotorStorm.

Since release MotorStorm has seen a plethora of premium DLC ranging from four new tracks and a time trial mode, to more cosmetic items such as new vehicles and paint liveries. MotorStorm was the first game to really challenge me with a should I or shouldn’t I situation, but ultimately it wasn’t so hard. Do I like MotorStorm? Yes. Am I getting rid of the game any time soon?

No. Do I like the look of the content? A new track alongside new vehicles and single player challenges sounds good to me. And at £3.49 I’m more than likely to get my money’s worth. The result? One purchase of said content, one weekend of fun on MotorStorm, and several hours worth of online madness. So, the golden question – was it worth it? Yes, yes it was. But if we replace that content with paint jobs - no sale. Am I upset, furious that somehow my game experience will be diminished in comparison to those with funkier paintjobs? No. Do I feel sorry for those buying pointless extras? Not if it‘s their choice to do so.

And you can apply this to most, if not all, DLC over any game which offers it.

Admittedly, when I read about microtransactions for the first time, I was

MotorStorm’s DLC included a new Time Trial Mode

immediately repulsed – it begged the question of why it was necessary at all, what it added and, if my worst fears of DLC being necessary to continue a game’s narrative came true, what it would take away. It has now become clear that DLC is not ‘necessary’ in terms of being absolutely crucial to complete a game - fears of paying a fiver for the right to challenge the game’s final boss being allayed. Price is a big issue for people, which is obvious given the fact that games aren’t exactly cheap to begin with. But if the content is what people want from a personal viewpoint, and if the price is right, then I see no problem. As I keep pointing out, it’s nice to have the choice.

I’m an optimistic kind of guy – certainly no conspiracy theorist by any stretch of the imagination - but I’m also not narrow minded enough to see things from the other side. As stated, DLC is subject to your needs in relation to the game, and there are obvious boundaries as to what DLC is acceptable and what’s not. Again, it’s still relative to each player; can’t be bothered to unlock all of the best cars in Need For Speed: Pro Street? Buy them as DLC. Want to give your golfer in Tiger Woods top stats?

Get your wallet out then. But either way, it’s your choice. It may be an easy way for EA to make a quick buck, but is it harming the industry? Not so far.

DLC introduced a new race to Mass Effect

The one thing I will say is that there must be absolute trust between developer and gamer in the sense that no content has been deliberately held back from the retail version, only to be milked as DLC. The recent variance in Burnout Paradise’s pre and post-release map is slightly disconcerting, but we need proof that claims of map portions deliberately being cut are true of course.

So, premium DLC then. If it gives an extended amount of pleasure from a game at a competitive price then I don’t see it as a threat to the industry. Expansion is nothing new; cut-price expansion packs once dominated the charts, so can DLC really be classed as anything other than digital evolution?

Pretty soon (if XNA and PlayStation Home have any sort of success at least) DLC may even be coming from bedroom developers, ie. “us”. Will you be moaning then? Whether you agree with my viewpoint or not, one thing remains clear – you have the choice.

Graham Naunton

DLC brought a new multiplayer gametype to Gears

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WHAT THE REST OF US THINK The issue isn't choice - indeed the concept of DLC should be considered as a way to enhance a gaming experience. It's the fact that premium content, as a business model, is not implemented in the most effective way.

The value added proposition of premium content differs from title to title. As an example you can spend 800 points for three Halo 3 maps or, for the same amount, four Call of Duty 4 maps. At the extreme EA is charging gamers to unlock cheat codes and weapons in a beta.

There seems to be a lack of control and little in the way of guidelines.

The average cost of a videogame is no longer it's RRP, it’s also the cost of premium content, which is effectively a base for inflation. A game that costs £40 off the shelf could well be £60 after premium content is applied. Over the course of this generation gamers will spend pounds on premium content that will eventually be of no use.

I've bought premium content before but got burnt. These are now dud files on my HDD for games I no longer own.

It's dead money.

To summarise, I like the idea of DLC but I fear that the situation is only going to get worse. The more we buy in to premium content the more developers and publishers will push the boundaries and, on reflection, gamers have only got themselves to blame.

Stefan Goerke-Hewitt

GET IN TOUCH

It's a difficult one to judge. In theory, DLC is a superb way of getting that little bit extra out of a game, whether it be a multiplayer map or an expansion pack. However, developers seem to be abusing our trust by releasing games with DLC already coded onto the disc. Which is a shameful way of squeezing fans for all they've got.

DLC will be an important facet of gaming in this new era of connectivity, of that I have no doubt, but there needs to be more regulation over the more 'shady' cases we've already seen. As long as this is the exception, rather than the rule, I'm all for DLC because it can undoubtedly add to an experience, and whether or not you wish to partake in these extras is, as Graham so succinctly puts, your choice.

Tom Hoggins I'm sticking with Anti-DLC. I know this doesn't apply to Nintendo so far, but what if Smash Bros. had a DLC model? Would we still have features such as the 'create your own' maps and have them freely distributed online?

Or would the cast of fighters be cut in half and drip-fed to us as DLC? Richard Rohani I'm unwilling to fork out any more for DLC as games are so expensive to begin with. I know I don't have to buy every extra for a game, but if you like the game, you'll feel like you're missing out if you don’t.

Emily Knox

We’re not the only ones with an opinion and we’d like to hear your thoughts too.

Do you like the idea of DLC or are you worried about the direction the industry is taking?

Send an email to debate@dpad-magazine.com with your thoughts on the subject and we’ll print the best next month.

If it gives me a way to get more out of a game I've really enjoyed then I'm all for DLC. However developers definitely need to be wary of not holding back content from the original release, and consider the fact that it's non-physical nature will ultimately make it useless in determining cost.

Rhys Simons

GALLERY

sebastien monediere

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dante www.ov3rflow.com

GALLERY

nicolien beerens

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say your prayers www.cataclysm-x.deviantart.com - n.beerens@gmail.com

GALLERY

br yce kho

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cloud vs sephiroth http://buraisuko.deviantart.com

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