Issue 12 by PhonicaMagUK

the mobile phone and gaming magazine

Issue12

phonica magazine uk

WHAT’S INSIDE VOLUME 1 ISSUE 12 2010

NEWS Three announces Data Plams for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G Samsung S3370 arrives exclusively on Three LG Viewty GT on Three O2 Launches Embedded Laptops Dell Streak Launches exclusively on O2 O2 announces Data Plans for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G in the UK Michael Jackson video game coming to PS3 Nintendo announced next incarna on of DS will be 3D US university students gets rid of grades, brings in XP system Bane going solo in future Rocksteady game

FEATURES 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

PREVIEWS All Points Bulle n Split Second: Velocity The Exiled Realm of Arborea (TERA)

16 18 20

COVER ART Can you judge everything by its cover?

MOUSEBREAKER.COM Flash gaming websites are growing in popularity… let’s see what this one has to oﬀer.

FORGOTTEN GEMS: GUNMAN CHRONICLES A Valve cash-in or a brilliant piece of fan-based blas ng?

REVIEWS 38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56

Nokia N8 Nokia X2 & X3 HTC HD Mini God of War 3 Final Fantasy XIII Just Cause 2 Red Steel 2 Yakuza 3 Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce

THE GUIDE Games: Phonica’s 20 Recommended Vehicles

Mobile Phones

phonica magazine uk

EDITOR IN CHIEF Kevin Leonce

GAMING EDITOR Sco Tierney

CONTRIBUTORS Rob Hobson Ian Duncan Paul Park

CREATIVE SERVICES & DESIGN Sco Tierney www.sco - erney.com

EDITORIAL editorial@phonicamagazine.co.uk

ENQUIRIES info@phonicamagazine.co.uk

ADVERTISING adver sing@phonicamagazine.co.uk

WWW.PHONICAMAGAZINE.CO.UK Become a Fan of Phonica Magazine UK on Facebook & Twi er Phonica Magazine ÂŠ All material in this publica on is covered by copyright. All rights reserved. No part of this publica on may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmi ed in any form electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, in whole or part without wri en permission of the publisher or the copyright owner. Please note that whilst every care has been taken to ensure that all the data in this publica on is accurate at the me of going to print, the publisher cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, whether caused by negligence or otherwise, or for any loss, however caused, occasioned to any person by reliance on it; and hereby disclaims any liability for it. Opera ons and some features are network dependent; please refer to your network provider for full details.

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EDITOR’S LETTER Yes…Another issue again! Welcome. The Phonica Tower had been buzzing with excitement. Rumours of the an cipated shutdown the launch of the iPhone 4G is expected to cause has many stocking up on supplies: Granola bars, Coca Cola, iPad, PS3 with God of War 3 and Just Cause 2 and you’re well prepared in case you don’t make it past your front door on June 24th. Not wan ng to wait for own iPhone 4G I updated the so ware for my exis ng Apple paraphernalia like the geek I am envisioned to be. Oh…..my…..wow! Adrenaline should be manufactured and sold to those not fortunate to produce enough, if any at all. No telling, the Cuper no guys have struck again. Most, if not all, of the wonderful things we all asked ourselves why our Apple devices didn’t do they have managed to address. Headlining is the mul tasking func onality, which I do hope most app developers do hasten to update their apps so it (mul tasking) can be truly revered and appreciated….I mean you Skype. Now that I have ﬁnished my editor’s rant do have a look at what’s in this issue. From Nokia’s latest addi ons to the mobile device market (no ce I was careful not to refer to them as phones!) to the exci ng game reviews and features ﬁ ed neatly in this issue….just like the HTC HD Mini. Check out the previews onf some of the gaming tles soon to be released as well. Enjoy reading Your Editor in Chief

Kevin Leonce

phonica magazine uk

NEWS

THREE UK ANNOUNCES DATA PLANS FOR iPAD WITH WI-FI + 3G Three UK recently announced it will offer dedicated data plans for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G, which began May 28. All data plans will be available without a contract, providing the freedom to ac vate or cancel a plan at any me. iPad allows users to connect with their apps and content in a more in mate, intui ve and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolu onary Mul -Touch user interface. iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G models are just 0.5 inches thick and weigh just 1.6 pounds — thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook — and deliver up to 10 hours of ba ery life for surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching videos or listening to music, and up to nine hours of surfing the web using a 3G data network. “Three is pleased to offer compe ve data plans for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G in the UK,” said Marc Allera, sales and marke ng director at Three. “Our network, the largest in the country, has been op mized for the mobile Internet, ensuring our customers enjoy the very best mobile performance on iPad.” www.three.co.uk/ipad www.apple.com/ipad

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NEWS

THE SAMSUNG S3370 ARRIVES EXCLUSIVELY ON THREE. Packed with Three’s internet services, including Skype, Twi er, Facebook, Windows Live Messenger and Email on Three, the Samsung S3370 brings high end smartphone beneﬁts to Three’s Pay As You Go customers. Facebook and Twi er is great on the Samsung S3370, displaying live updates or tweets directly from the home screen of the phone.

Sylvia Chind Head of Branded Devices, Three UK said “We’re excited to be ranging the Samsung S3370. It’s the ﬁrst branded touch device to be speciﬁcally tailored to our Pay As You Go customers. Together with our strong 3G network this social networking phone brings our customers the internet services they love at a low price” The Samsung S3370 is available on Pay As You Go for £79.99. www.three.co.uk.

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NEWS THE AFFORDABLE LG VIEWTY GT ARRIVES EXCLUSIVELY ON THREE The exclusive LG Viewty deal on Three offers a phone built for social networking with a touch screen and 5.0 megapixel camera at just £15 a month. With Twi er and Facebook access straight from the touch of the home screen, anyone can get online and connected in seconds over Three’s high speed 3G network. The LG Viewty GT’s easy social networking access with its high megapixel camera lets users upload pictures of friends, family, holidays, gigs and days out from the handset straight on to Facebook in a doddle. Sylvia Chind Head of Branded Devices, Three UK said, “Social networking has taken off in a big way, and with the LG Viewty GT making the most of our fast 3G internet access, keeping up to date with tweets and on the pulse with the latest pictures uploaded on to Facebook is easy and affordable.” Available in silver, the LG Viewty GT is available from £15 a month with unlimited internet, texts and 75 any me any network minutes. As with all phones on Three there’s free Skype, Windows Live Messenger and, more recently, Twi er, too. www.three.co.uk

phonica magazine uk

NEWS O2 LAUNCHES EMBEDDED LAPTOPS O2 recently confirmed its commitment to the mobile broadband market by announcing two laptops with built in mobile broadband exclusive to O2. The new ultra-thin Asus UL30A laptop and the Samsung N150 netbook with embedded SIM cards will only be available from O2. The launch of O2’s first embedded devices follows a launch into the lucra ve laptop market last year. With the laptop market con nuing to grow rapidly O2 has moved to offer customers these laptops with the full service wrap that has proved so successful for mobile broadband customers.

“CUSTOMERS ALSO HAVE ACCESS TO THE WIDEST WI-FI NETWORK IN THE UK THROUGH BT OPENZONE AND THE CLOUD.” Customers signing up to the new deals will beneﬁt from inclusive Wi-Fi, an extended two year warranty, 30 days O2 Techies support, McAfee Internet Security for the life of the contract and O2’s 30 day ‘Happiness Guarantee’ allowing customers to return the laptop if they are not sa sﬁed at no addi onal cost.

Felix Geyr, Head of Home and Broadband at O2, said: “We know that customers want to be able to click and go without the hassle of having to load up a mobile broadband dongle and our new range will make surfing the web and staying in touch even easier. The laptop market has exploded in the last 18 months and we believe these two laptops from Asus and Samsung will once again give O2 customers a great experience. “By purchasing the laptop from O2, customers are benefi ng from award winning customer service and a number of addi onal services that other providers charge for. Now we have our O2 Techies. If customers have problems ge ng started they can contact a technical specialist who can talk them through the start up process for no extra cost. Customers also have access to the widest Wi-Fi network in the UK through BT Openzone and The Cloud.” The Samsung N150 is currently available online and in O2 retail stores 30 on a 24 month tariff priced at £25 a month which includes 3GB downloads + 500MB Wi-Fi and 300 texts. There is also a one-off upfront payment of £29.99. The Asus UL30A is also available and will cost £30 a month on a 24 month tariff which includes 3GB downloads + 750MB Wi-Fi and 300 texts. The Asus will have a one off payment of £79.99. www.o2.co.uk

phonica magazine uk

NEWS DELL STREAK TO LAUNCH EXCLUSIVELY ON O2 NEW 5-INCH ANDROID-POWERED DEVICE AND O2 A PERFECT MATCH Dell and O2 announced that the Dell Streak will be available exclusively on O2, bringing the internet, entertainment, easy turn-by-turn naviga on and thousands of Android Market apps to customers looking for a big screen experience without having to carry a laptop around. Available since the beginning of June through O2 stores and online at www.o2.co.uk and www.carphonewarehouse.com, the Dell Streak features a 5 megapixel camera, fastprocessor, built in Wi-Fi and can easily connect to a range of social networks. “The Dell Streak is a bold new class of product, something we wanted to bring to our customers first,” said Steve Alder, O2’s General Manager Devices. “This means we can con nue to offer our customers a range of the very best devices to make their lives a bit easier.” “The Dell Streak hits the sweet spot between tradi onal smartphones and larger-screen tablets,” said Ron Garriques, president, Dell Communica on Solu ons Group. “Its unique size provides people new ways to enjoy, connect, and navigate their lives.” O2 will be enhancing the Dell Streak experience with its intelligent network, great value tariffs and award winning customer service. This includes O2 Gurus in O2 retailstores and smartphone specialists in customer service to help customers get the most out of every product and service. www.o2.co.uk

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NEWS

O2 ANNOUNCES DATA PLANS FOR iPAD WI-FI + 3G IN UK O2 announced further details of its dedicated data tariffs for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G. All iPad data tariffs will be available without a long contract and include unlimited access to BT Openzone and The Cloud Wi-Fi hotspots at no addi onal cost. Apple and O2 have worked together to provide a breakthrough way to easily ac vate, manage and monitor an account right on iPad. Customers will be no fied as they approach their data limit with a direct link to iPad se ngs to check data usage, top up the account and upgrade or cancel their tariff. iPad allows users to connect with their apps and content in a more in mate, intui ve and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolu onary Mul -Touch user interface. iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G models are just 0.5 inches thick and weigh just 1.6 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and deliver up to 10 hours of ba ery life for surfing the web on Wi-Fi, watching videos or listening to music, and up to nine hours of surfing the web using a 3G data network.

“We are truly excited to provide service for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G,” said Sally Cowdry, O2’s Marke ng Director. “We’ve worked closely with Apple to make sure customers get an excellent experience when using their iPad Wi-Fi + 3G on O2. Not only will it be quick and easy to buy value for money data access from the device, but customers will also beneﬁt from our overall, award-winning service wrap which includes great network and great customer service and the added beneﬁt of access to thousands of public Wi-Fi hotspots.”

“UP TO NINE HOURS OF SURFING THE WEB USING A 3G DATA NETWORK.” O2 will be suppor ng iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G with a range of great value Pay & Go mobile broadband tariff op ons, giving customers the freedom and control to switchon or off mobile data as best suits their needs, directly on the device. O2 micro sim packs for iPad with Wi-Fi + 3G will be available through O2 retail stores and O2’s website. Visit www.o2.co.uk/ipadtariffs for more informa on. www.apple.com/ipad

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NEWS MICHAEL JACKSON VIDEO GAME COMING TO PS3? INCLUDE YOUR OWN SEMI-FUNNY JACKSON LYRIC GAG HERE, BECAUSE I CAN’T THINK OF ONE

With Sony recently scooping up Michael Jackson’s estate for a cool $200m, rumours are afloat that we may see a King of Pop video game in the not too distant future. With the success of The Beatles Rock Band – it being the major guitar based party game atop a mile-high stack of other tles – Sony may see a Jackson tle as a worthwhile venture. The Independent reported that Sony have purchased the en re Jackson estate, which gives them free reign to use Michael Jackson’s released and unreleased material in any way they see fit. This would include the right to release ten new albums, along with video games and DVDs, by the end of 2017. Rob Stringer, chairman of the Columbia Epic division of Sony, laid down this belter of a quote: “There may be theatre. There may be films and movies. There may be computer games.” Concrete evidence of a game, indeed.

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If Sony were going to release a Jackson PS3 game (and let’s also not rule out the PSP) then it would surely be a hit. There’s a massive fan base to be tapped, the river of Guitar party games is s ll flowing strong (please let there be a drought!) and if a game, similar to The Beatles RB could be produced, Sony would be laughing all the way to the bank. Imagine a game that spanned Jackson’s en re career, with tracks from his early days with the Jackson Five, all the way through to his final work during that ill fated tour. Even for those who weren’t fans of the King of Pop’s music, that’d be a hard game to turn away. As always, we’ll have to wait and see. Chances are Sony will play the lazy card and simply release a Jackson Singstar (yippee), and reap the cash from one of the best record collec on of all me. But hopefully, if they put the effort, me and expense into a true and apprecia ve piece that does the great man credit, it could be a winner. And if they could put a cleaned-up version of the classic Moonwalker game on the disc also, that’d be just great. Sco Tierney

NEWS

NINTENDO ANNOUNCED NEXT INCARNATION OF DS WILL BE 3D PLAY GAMES WHILE YOU COMMUTE IN A WHOLE EXTRA DIMENSION Sketchy details have emerged of a 3D enabled version of Nintendo’s DS handheld console. The update took the media by surprise and was casually announced in a press release. The major new feature will come as part of a broader update of the pla orm. Perhaps the most exci ng development is that the 3D will not require players to wear any kind of goggles – a bonus if you’re going to be gaming in public (or already wearing glasses). Nintendo have yet to announce how exactly the system will work, however. A demo was released back in February of a DS Ware game that used the handheld’s built-in camera to track the movement of the player’s head and adjust the image on a regular DSi screen to create the illusion of 3D. The idea appeared to work pre y well.Patent ﬁlings by Nintendo suggest that the pla orm will also have a thumbs ck to allow the manipula on of objects in all dimensions and improved wireless connec vity, sugges ng it’s more than just a gimmicky update.

Other details in English have yet to emerge but several mainstream Japanese media sources are repor ng a range of addi onal features, including an accelerometer and force feedback. Ba ery life is also rumoured to be ge ng a boost. A er it dipped down to nine hours on the DSi reports suggest that Nintendo is aiming to get it back up to 15. It’s an interes ng development and a bold move from Nintendo. 3D is the hyped-up technology of the year (apart from the iPad, of course) but it’s s ll largely unproven and content is a major problem. It’s quite hard to imagine images popping out of such a small screen but with the right games it could be a lot of fun. Those who a ended E3 a few weeks ago were treated to a special preview. Nintendo announced that the system will be released by the end of the ﬁscal year that ends on 31 March 2011. Ian Duncan

phonica magazine uk

US UNIVERSITY GETS RID OF GRADES, BRINGS IN XP SYSTEM HEY I’M A LEVEL 44 PHYSICS PhD STUDENT For the last year, game design students at Indiana University have been working not to gain good grades, but experience points and level ups. When they start the course, undergraduates have 0XP and are at level one, as you might expect. By comple ng quests (wri ng coursework essays) and defea ng bosses (mid term and end of term exams), the students could make progress and gain experience towards comple ng the class. The professor at the head of the class, Lee Sheldon, drew heavily on World of Warcra when designing the system and players are organised into guilds with which they must complete certain tasks.

“IT WILL BE UP TO MANAGEMENT, TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO EDUCATE THEMSELVES.” Students don’t have to pay for their tui on using money accumulated by their avatars in the game, which is probably a good thing since course fees for one year at the university would come in at 6,000,000gp (that’s $40,000).

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According to Lee, the students have responded well to the change. He also told an Australian news site that he thinks the tac c of mo va ng people by giving them clearly defined goals, like those offered in role playing games, could have relevance beyond games design classes. “As the gamer genera on moves into the mainstream workforce, they are willing and eager to apply the culture and learning techniques they bring with them from games,” he said. “It will be up to management, o en of pre-gamer genera ons, to figure out how to educate themselves to the gamer culture, and how to speak it most effec vely.” It’s a neat idea but then again anyone who has ever played an MMO will be familiar with the amount of ‘grinding’ involved in progressing through the levels. Indeed, one of the cri cisms of such games is that they too much resemble work. Lee also made no sugges ons as to how he handles player vs player combat in the classroom. Ian Duncan

NEWS

BANE GOING SOLO IN FUTURE ROCKSTEADY GAME? IT WOULD BE ‘CRAZY’, AND POSSIBLY UNPOPULAR… BUT IT COULD HAPPEN In a recent interview with Videogamer, Rocksteady Studio Director Se on Hill hinted at the possibility of a Bane spin-oﬀ game. Although the idea was suggested rather than set in stone, it makes for interes ng thought, and makes more sense on closer inspec on. “I think one of the things about working on Batman is that you really get to see how good all the villains are,” he told Videogamer. “I really think there’s scope to take some of those villains, even some of the not-so-famous ones like Bane, who has a phenomenal backstory, and really work on turning that into something original and fresh.” “That’s kinda of something [that would be] less popular, but something that could be really interes ng and exci ng. That could be crazy.” So would a Bane game work? Well it all depends on how you view the character of Bane, and how a game could be built around his mental and physical a ributes. If you look, watch and read through the various carna ons of Bane that have appeared in games, comics and ﬁlms, you’ll see a wide mix of interpreta ons. In the horrendous Batman and Robin (oh the nightmares!), Bane is cast as a dumb, brainless and easily manipulated beast. As he crashes around like a mad gorilla, grun ng and waving his arms fran cally, you’d assume that a Bane game was a very bad idea. Similarly, although he is portrayed with more intelligence in Batman: Arkham Asylum, he is s ll whi led down to a basic, angry beast.

But, if you read Batman: Knigh all, the popular and smart comic, you’ll see that Bane is much more than just a toxic fuelled ba ering ram. In the comic, he plays characters oﬀ one another, calculates his moves while studying Batman, and when he ﬁnally gets the op mum opportunity he defeats Batman by breaking his back. Sure, he s ll gets stuck-in and lays the smackdown to anyone that gets in his mutated way, but there is a smart character behind the outlandish muscles.

“I REALLY THINK THERE’S SCOPE TO TAKE SOME OF THOSE VILLAINS AND REALLY WORK ON TURNING THAT INTO SOMETHING ORIGINAL.” If Rocksteady do decide to produce a Bane game, then it’s not as bad an idea as it sounds. Sure, they could just produce a dumb beat-em-up where Bane bounces around the scenery, punching baddies and groaning like a bad tempered Bull. But, if done correctly in a manner that does the Bane character jus ce, it could be a really decent package. But in reality, it’s unlikely we’ll see a Bane game any me soon. Batman: AA2 is due out this year (but it’ll be more likely to be seen next year), and Rocksteady have got to make sure they get that tle spot-on before embarking on any spin-oﬀs. Sorry, but in the words of Bane, I have just “Smashed!” that rumour. Sco Tierney

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEWS ALL POINTS BULLETIN PUBLISHER: EA GAMES DEVELOPER: REALTIME WORLDS FORMAT: PC AVAILABLE: MAY 2010

COPS AND ROBBERS GOES ONLINE You can bet that a game adver sing itself on the tagline “let the urban war begin” is going to have the an -gaming crowd in a ﬁt, if it becomes popular of course.

A few years ago it would have been unthinkable to have an MMO without some kind of level system. Now the idea seems to be really taking oﬀ and it should put a bit of the fun in the genre.

All Points Bulle n (APB) is a city based MMO developed by Real me Worlds and published by EA. Players will take on the role of criminals or “those who catch criminals”. That’s not to suggest that they’re policemen or anything – they seem to be more like vigilantes.

“THE CONCEPT IS PROMISING. HAVING A MASSIVE CITY TO RUN AROUND IN AND START GANG WARS SOUNDS GREAT BUT THE EXECUTION MIGHT BE LACKING.”

The concept is promising. Having a massive city to run around in and start gang wars sounds great but the execu on might be lacking. Rather than one big metropolis players will be limited to 100 player combat regions and 250 player social areas. It’s hard to work out from the game’s online FAQ but it looks like the structure will be something similar to Global Agenda where missions take place in dis nct areas. In other words, it’s not a true MMO with a seamless world. Not that that’s necessarily a problem, but for a game set in a city and one that will draw immediate comparisons with GTA it starts to look like a pre y major limita on. Gameplay will be third person and it looks like there will be a focus on driving, and drive-by shoo ng. Pre y standard stuﬀ but fortunately there’s some features in the game that look a bit more innova ve. The ﬁrst is that an absence of level progression. Some items will give you a slight edge as you progress but the emphasis will be on skilled based combat.

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The game also has its own loca on based VOIP system so characters can talk to each other the way humans do in real life – no fancy voices in your head coming from nowhere. It’s not clear how strictly the developers will s ck to this but if there really is no party or team chat it could make for interes ng encounters (not to men on workarounds). Indeed, Real me World seem to be exploring quite a few new ideas with the game. The level of customisa on op ons for character’s appearances is impressive and you will be able to port your own music into the game. Ian Duncan

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEWS

SPLIT SECOND: VELOCITY PUBLISHER: DISNEY INTERACTIVE STUDIOS DEVELOPER: BLACK ROCK STUDIO FORMAT: PS3, XBOX 360, PC AVAILABLE: MAY 2010

RACING LOOKS SET TO GET A WHOLE LOT DAFTER, THANKS TO A SQUIRT OF NITROUS AND A GENEROUS HELPING OF TNT. The current trend that appears to have transcended into nearly every racing game, is a fran c sense of ferocious, uncontrollable and devasta ng speed. The two best examples of this are the excellent Burnout Paradise, which pushed gamer’s reac on mes to and beyond their natural limits, and the truly wonderful Motorstorm: Pacific Ri . Both abandoned any sense of realism, and just dived face-first into the oncoming traffic of OTT spills and extravagant thrills. And now we have Split Second: Velocity, a racer that mixes the best of both, and throws in enough TNT to split the earth in two.

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Split Second: Velocity is set in a world where TV shows, similar to The Running Man and Death Race, are the current ra ngs topper. One of these shows (that Split Second: Velocity is based around) allows the racer to drive through rapidly crumbling inner-city tracks, against a number of other thrill-seeking compe tors. To be honest, it’s a miracle that a show such as this got past health and safety, as the tracks feature enough sharp edges and broken glass to warrant an immediate shut-down. But luckily it appears that those with noses made for s cking-in have been locked away in a far away basement, and the racing goes oﬀ without a slip.

PREVIEWS

Split Second: Velocity’s main feature is the manner in which the tracks deform and reform throughout a single race. This is all controlled by a player’s ‘Powerplay’ HUD, which is ﬁlled by the player performing stunts, sliding the car or by passing objects with only an Ants antenna to spare. Once you’ve got enough on your meter, you can trigger all manner of mad explosions and destruc on, resul ng in new areas of the track opening up. For instance, when the opportunity arises, you can unleash your power and bring down an en re freeway bridge, giving you a more direct route to the ﬁnish. From what we’ve seen it all looks mindlessly epic. Just imagine Burnout Paradise during a bombing raid and you’re halfway there.

Another feature that interested us was the manner in which the game progresses. As the game is based upon a TV show, Split Second: Velocity is essen ally a collec on of seasons which are broken down into 24 shows, with 3 races per show. This could become resome (if driving through a bomb range can become boring?), but luckily Black Rock have introduced a fair amount of variety into proceedings. One episode features a race that involves the driver racing against a swarm of manic trucks, as they dump explosive barrels from their trailers into your path. You don’t see that in F1. Split Second: Velocity doesn’t look set to be pulling any punches, and from what we’ve seen it looks to be a fran c, blinding and totally silly blast of racing adrenaline. We only hope that the basics have been taken care of, such as car handling, diﬃculty and varia on. Although Split Second: Velocity looks a huge amount of fun, we just hope there’s more to it than da eﬀects and rampant visuals. But hey, it looks a lot of fun regardless, so who cares? Sco Tierney

phonica magazine uk

PREVIEWS THE EXILED REALM OF ARBOREA (TERA) PUBLISHER: EN MASSE ENTERTAINMENT DEVELOPER: BLUEHOLE STUDIOS PLATFORM: PC AVAILABLE: TBC

“SIGH, ANOTHER PRETTYLOOKING MMO”, I HEAR YOU SAY. WELL, THIS ONE SEEMS TO HAVE SOME SUBSTANCE TO GO WITH THE STYLE. HEAR ME OUT.

With six races and eight classes and no passive fac ons á la Alliance vs Horde for World of Warcra , players are encouraged to form their own allegiances, with both Player vs Player combat and Guild vs Guild combat to be an integral part of the game. However, unlike most Asian MMOs the focus is most deﬁnitely less on PvP and more on Player vs Environment – emphasised by the fact that enemies now have collision detec on, where players are unable to pass through other Crea ng an MMO from scratch is an incredibly risky business. Not only do you have to get hold of enemies. This encourages strategy in order to protect the more valuable, “squishier” classes such as healers quality developers and designers in order to put the ideas you’ve amassed onto the digital screen, or casters with walls of heavy armour – something that you’ve got to make it worth a customer’s me by may become pre y common during the game.

making it appealing. The second objec ve is made even harder by the rise and subsequent fall of a The biggest change that TERA has implemented is the number of highly-rated tles, and expecta ons combat system that now acts much like an FPS game. grow with each contender falling at the feet of Ranged classes are given a crosshair and hit targets none other than World of Warcra . TERA, however, is beginning to look like the real deal. Billed as the ﬁrst “true ac on-MMORPG”, TERA has an incredibly experienced developing team made of former Lineage designers in Bluehole Studios, and the visual nous of these ar sts have not gone to waste, with excellent, if slightly cartoony, graphics. Asian MMOs are pre y well known for excellent graphics (with insane computer requirements tagging along) and TERA does its best to comply.

“THE BIGGEST CHANGE THAT TERA HAS IMPLEMENTED IS THE COMBAT SYSTEM THAT NOW ACTS MUCH LIKE AN FPS GAME.”

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much like a shooter, while melee classes can only hit when their a ack anima ons land on their designated target. This goes both ways, meaning players can ac vely look to dodge and weave through waves of a acks, sidestepping smashes and arrows. The system begins slowly, with enemies making obvious visual signs, but later on players may need to memorise a ack pa erns and rota ons in order to not be there when the big mace swings through the air.

Lastly, with a star ng level cap of 60 and a “poli cal system” that will inﬂuence and aﬀect such allegiances made among players has been mooted, in order to make each and every server unique. TERA is set for release mid-2010 in Korea, with US and EU releases in early 2011. Paul Park

phonica magazine uk

FEATURES

Cover art

CAN YOU JUDGE A GAME BY ITS COVER? They say you can’t judge a book by its cover, and to a certain extent you’d have to agree with this point for nearly everything that has a cover. You can’t judge an album by its cover, you can’t judge a film by its cover, and of course you can’t judge a 99p ready-meal by what’s on the cover. You can judge a man by his suit, though, but that’s completely different point. So, can you judge a game by its cover? A good game cover (please note I’m saying ‘cover’ not ‘box’, as when was the last me a game came in a box?) should do a series of things, in an a empt to ul mately sell the game. Firstly, the cover must sum-up the feel of the game, and give a correct impression of the game’s overall tone. If the game is a serious, dark and sinister piece, then the cover must reflect this. Take the cover of Manhunt for example, with the distorted image of a twisted killer’s face on a TV screen. It perfectly conveys the sinister feel of Manhunt, without resor ng to clichéd spla ers of blood or images of violence. Shame the game was a bit naff, and obscenely overrated, but I digress…

“SO CAN YOU JUDGE A GAME BY ITS COVER? WELL ULTIMATELY, NO.”

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In a similar vain, the cover should also give the poten al buyer an idea of what happens in the game, and what genre the game is. For a good example see any of the recent GTA games, with their colourful montages of violence, guns, car crashes and general havoc, being a perfect 5” x 7” sum-up of the game. For a bad example, see Just Cause. It’s a nice image of the game’s character, Rico Rodriguez, posing like Che Guevara, with a corroded backdrop of a star, but it doesn’t give any indica on to what the game’s actually about. We can probably establish that the game involves some form of rebellious ac vity, but how? Is this a manic no-holds shooter, a deep and involving plot-based adventure, or a strategic puzzler? From the cover we get no indica on, and in that respect the cover fails to inform the buyer and therefore sell the game. But it’s a great game though, so all is forgiven. The main focus of a cover is to catch the eyes of any poten al buyer. A cover should be immediately recognisable and dis nguishable against all the other thousands of games it shares the shelves with, and leap out and yell “buy me!” (not literally of course). It doesn’t have to do this with big bold colours and crass images, and at mes a more subdued approach can work wonders, as is the case with the desaturated Fallout 3 cover. But it must stand out, and spark immediate interest from the buyer. The Beatles Rock Band is a case where the cover fails to convey any sense of excitement of the otherwise colourful and joyous game. A grey cover with a murky image of the Fab Four. Boy, do I hate that cover.

One thing that has changed vastly over the past twenty years, is how the cover can accurately represent the graphics in a game. If you go back (way back!) to the games of the Spectrum, those casse e-based covers were nothing like the games they adorned. It was the same with most Mega Drive, SNES, and even PS1 tles. There was some superb cover art, but 99% of the me the actual game graphics were nothing like what the cover suggested. But now, with the DS being an excep on, the visuals on a cover can match those of the graphics. Although you s ll get the odd nasty surprise, with certain Wii games s ll failing to live up to their covers. So can you judge a game by its cover? Well ul mately, no, and it could be argued that today, a game’s cover is less important. With stacks and stacks of opinions, buyer’s guides, previews and reviews, a cover no longer has to a ract a en on and sell the product, as most buyers know what game they’re going to buy before they enter the shop. Also, with more sales accumula ng from online retail, a cover isn’t as important as a sales device because search engines will do that job for them. And don’t get me started on online sales. But regardless, we gamers love a good cover. So here are a few of our favourites, that have enchanted us as much (and in some cases more) as the games themselves. Sco Tierney

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FEATURES

Borderlands Publisher: 2K Games Developer: Gearbox Software Format: PC, PS3, Xbox 360 Released: 2009

Many games strive for ever more graphical realism, banking at least partly on the idea that the closer something comes to real life, the more immersive the experience will be for the player. While this obviously pays dividends - billions of them - with something like Modern Warfare 2, there are acres of reasons for abandoning this real world fidelity for something... different. Although plenty of games exist that completely abandon the “real”, it’s o en more intriguing for me when games try to find a blend. Borderlands, Gearbox Games’ sci-fi redneck shooter, does this rather adeptly. The original design had the steampunk feel of the exis ng one, but had a rela vely gri y art style. Art director Brian Martel cites Gorillaz and Pixar as his influences in redrawing the pale e to the game’s final, cel-shaded style. “It’s been a symbio c rela onship between the new look and the game: each one feeding into and off of the other. The style of the gameplay begat the new look which freed the game to have more a tude and more fun and ul mately each made the other be er for it.”

OK, so Borderlands may not have bonded the RPG and shooter formats in quite the ground-breaking way it promised, but it’s s ll an excellent game. The mul player is memorable - more so, perhaps, than the story - but the thing that really stays with you is that cel-shaded desert and the slowly turning wind turbines on the horizon. Bleakness has never looked so appe sing. The poster image is the same as the box art, and features a well-adjusted individual doing a sort of metaphorical self lobotomy. There was something wonderful about seeing this, stretched over 11 feet or so, on every sta on on the London Underground. Commuters. Exploding heads. Commuters. Exploding... it’s not quite as disturbing as the FPS enthusiast who suddenly, while walking through a park with his girlfriend, ﬁnds himself spo ng lines of sight and looking for convenient cover. But it’s reasonably close. In a fun way. Perhaps the real reason I loved the Borderlands cover was because it reminded me of XIII, a deeply ﬂawed piece of ubercool from 2003. Not, admi edly, a great shooter, but it was the cel-shaded style, inspired by the comic on which the game was based, that drew me in. Borderlands is far superior as a shooter - and, thanks to the current gen, as a visual spectacle - but I faintly regret that, unlike its predecessor, they couldn’t get Agent Mulder and Batman to voice it. Rob Hobson

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FEATURES

Grand Theft Auto III Publisher: Rockstar Developer: Rockstar Format: PC, PS2, Xbox Released: 2001 I’ll admit, straight out the gate, that I nearly made an almighty fowl-up with this piece. I was originally going to write about the GTA: Vice City cover, which I was convinced, set the tone for all the GTA covers that followed. You see, in the UK, we didn’t get the comic-style cover that adorned the US version of GTA III. So, I’ll just acknowledge my mistake, move it to one side, and get on with the piece.

“THANKS TO GTA III, ROCKSTAR NOW HAVE A SIMPLE BUT EFFECTIVE DESIGN.” GTA III’s cover looks like a harsh mix between a comic and a stained-glass window. All eleven panels are set with peculiar angles, which although should look unbalanced and ungainly, works perfectly as a ﬁnal piece. And everything that sold GTA III (and the GTA series as a whole) is referred to on the cover. There are wild car chases, explosions, guns, helicopters, memorable characters, and of course, a sexy lady. There’s no image of a pedestrian ge ng crushed to death by a lorry, or a policeman ge ng shot in the face, but I suppose that may upset a few people. Damn this poli cal correctness!

The GTA III cover is a great piece of design, and as a stand alone piece it’s tremendous, but what really makes it memorable and ul mately successful is that it sets the blueprint for every GTA tle that followed. Think back to the covers of San Andreas, Vice City, Vice City and Liberty City Stories, China Town Wars and GTA IV, and you’ll no ce that they are all rela vely the same. They all follow the same design of GTA III, with a ring of panels that encapsulated everything from the game and series, with the classic Grand The Auto logo in the middle. A simple design, but an extremely eﬀec ve one. Before GTA III, the covers Rockstar used for their GTA games were mixed, with no real theme of standard design running through the series. If you remember, GTA2 had a pre y dull cover featuring a man stealing a car from the view of a spy satellite, and the UK version of GTA III featured an odd 70’s style movie poster. To be honest, they all looked a bit of a mess, and they didn’t do jus ce to the games themselves. Luckily, thanks to GTA III, Rockstar now have a simple but eﬀec ve design that can be reused on all their games, with enough room for interpreta on and improvement. If and when GTAV is released, we’d expect to see a similar design used, as it is now the recognisable trademark for the GTA series. Come to think of it, if we see GTAV using the panel design, that design will be over 10 years old! Sco Tierney

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FEATURES

Sim City 3000 World Edition Publisher: EA Games Developer: Maxis Format: PC Released: 1999

I love going up in tall buildings and looking down on them. I love standing at the bo om of tall buildings and looking up at them. We’re not so great at tall buildings in the UK but I’ve always got my love for the Gherkin and I can see it winking at me from the road where I live. I ﬁnd walking around in Shinjuku or Manha an just great. So it probably won’t come as a surprise that I’m a fan of the Sim City 3000 World Edi on cover. The vision of suburbs leading up to the downtown area sums up the promise of the game. The sa sfying feeling of building up a city with leafy areas inhabited by wealthy Sims on the outskirts and a strong commercial centre bringing in the tax revenues. Every version of the game has had skyscrapers on its cover but I think it was the third installa on that really nailed it. Sim City 4 crammed slightly too many buildings on and le too li le room for the other buildings to breathe. Even the original 3000 didn’t quite get that balance between concrete and greenery quite right. Some might prefer the jolly ﬂying saucer hovering over the bustle of the city on 2000 but it lacks the simplicity of the later game’s art.

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The gaudy gold text over the image keeps the classic Maxis style while sugges ng the glamour that comes with being the mayor of a simulated city. But most of all it’s that over-the-top collec on of skyscrapers hogging the centre of the image that really appeals to me. The central road draws the eye into the middle of the cluster which mushrooms up out of nowhere. Whenever I’m lucky enough to be at the top of a tall building, I always look down and wish I could just rezone a li le bit and maybe reconfigure the mass transit systems so they run a bit more effec vely. The lack of people on the cover conveys that mix of tranquillity and omnipotence that comes from looking down on a city, even one that you know full well is dirty noisy and messy at ground level. It’s worth finally poin ng out the blue sky in the background – in Sim City it never rains and while there is something drama c about a rain slicked city street, it’s hard to beat the feeling of si ng out in a park and looking over the skyline on a sunny day. Ian Duncan

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FEATURES

Diablo II Publisher: Sierra Entertainment Developer: Blizzard North Format: PC Released: 2000

Being a Blizzard fanboy doesn’t start off just randomly. It starts with something that will stay with you for the rest of your life, and for me, it was the Diablo II cover. The image of the Lord of Terror staring out at you balefully with red everywhere really caught my eye, and it stayed with me un l I finally faced off against him in his Chaos Sanctuary. Opening those five seals, defea ng his lieutenants, hearing his roar as you ac vate the last one – a quick glance to the game cover beside my computer before running full pelt with the barbarian roar. The rush a er watching his death anima on, the soulstone embedded in his forehead sha ering with a blinding light – I could do no more than look in awe. Having played Diablo I, the roar of the Butcher’s “FRESH MEAT!” was engraved into my memory thanks to some rather gory and intense toe-to-toe fights. The storyline of the unnamed warrior defea ng the Lord of Terror under the town of Tristram, then taking the ul mate sacrifice of embedding the single remnant of Diablo – his soulstone – into his own forehead in order to enslave and control it, was fascina ng, and drew me into the game even further.

And when the unnamed warrior began travelling, under the inﬂuence of Diablo using his body as a host, the second chapter began, following in the wake of destruc on that the robed ﬁgure wreaked as he walked through the West.

“THE IMAGE OF THE LORD OF TERROR STARING OUT AT YOU BALEFULLY WITH RED EVERYWHERE REALLY CAUGHT MY EYE.” Which brings us to my favourite game cover. Diablo II has been a big part of my gaming life, and there are lots of memories I will remember for a long me that are associated with the Lord of Terror. From banding with 7 others on Ba le.net in order to take out the dreaded Duriel in Act 2 (he was tough, frost aura + charge) to the insane Secret Cow Level with massive herds of two-legged bovines armed with halberds and pikes... And it all began when the Lord of Terror caught my eye among a myriad assortment of games of all kinds, in the racks at my local GAME store. Paul Park

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FEATURES REVIEWS

Powermonger Publisher: Electronic Arts Developer: Bullfrog Productions Format: PC, Amiga, SNES, Megadrive, Sega CD Released: 1990 A game cover should always be drama c, and explode the imagina on of the poten al buyer. The gamer with the hot-potato cash should look at a cover, get a glimpse into what the game will involve, and think “I want a slice of that ac on!” With Powermonger, this was absolutely the case.

“I LOVE THE POWERMONGER COVER BECAUSE IT HARKS BACK TO A TIME WHEN GAMING COVERS HAD TO EARN THEIR MONEY” To quickly sum Powermonger, it was a highly advanced and supremely developed real- me strategy game, which allowed the player to build-up areas of a medieval kingdom. Powermonger’s party piece was its 3D landscape, which could be rotated to give a be er view of your kingdom and its inhabitants. It was all very clever, and for the me it was extremely advanced, with ‘free-thinking’ ar ﬁcial life that would live their lives as they saw ﬁt. Powermonger was a huge hit with both fans and cri ques, and went on to win Computer Gaming World’s 1991 Strategy Game of the Year award.

But enough of that, we’re not here to talk about the game, we’re here to gasp at the cover, and what a gasp-snatching cover it is. A perfect representa on of the game (apart from the graphics, but it’s 1990 to be fair), with everything the game was about. It shows the proposed gamer’s hands, tearing the landscape in two like an angry God. If you look closely, you can see mere mortals falling to their death as the ground rips apart below them. Now that’s the type of game I want to play! The cover also shows some of the characters that you would be facing-off against, and doing strategy altering deals with. These other Gods look down on the mortals below with contempt and arrogance, and the angry fella in the background is so fierce he’s rammed his gigan c knife into a farmer’s barn (I imagine…). To be honest I love the Powermonger cover because it harks back to a me when game covers had to earn their money, and tradi onal methods such as watercolour pain ng, airbrushing and sketching were s ll the only viable method for producing such work. There’s no computer trickery in this image, with easy-fix Photoshop gloss of CPU sketching, it’s all done by hand by a massively skilled ar st. Sadly we don’t see much of this these days, and although (as a Graphic Designer myself) I s ll appreciate the excellent work that is produced today, a good old fashioned cover like that of Powermonger gives me a warm feeling inside. Ah, happy days… Sco Tierney

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FEATURES REVIEWS

MOUSEBREAKER.COM I THOUGHT I’D NEVER SEE THE DAY WHERE FOOTBALL GAMES WOULD BE SIDE-BY-SIDE WITH A GAME THAT INVOLVED THROWING A RUBBER GUY AT AN ARCHERY TARGET BOARD ON A WALL. So guess how gobsmacked I was when I took a look at the massive list (and I mean MASSIVE with a capital M and the gangsta’ pose) and saw stuff like 5 Minutes to Kill (Yourself), Jumpers for Goalposts and this eerie click ‘n’ point adventure game, Being One. Mousebreaker.com is probably one of the most popular websites for flash gaming at the moment, with a huge array of games to cater for every desire. One of my personal desires is football, meaning I took my me to browse through the Sports sec on, se ling on Jumpers for Goalposts 2, an RPG football game where you take a rookie footballer and hone your clicking skills in order to progress up the leagues to the top, combining a number of clicking games that I had seen previously. Passing, shoo ng, volleys, corners, penal es... it really takes some ge ng used to the ming of some of the events but when you slowly become accustomed to a few like I managed to – volleying and passing king, thank you very much – you’ll soon start racking up the goals and scouts from across the country come to watch you play. At the end of the season, if you’ve played well, you’ll get offers from bigger and be er clubs and you progress up slowly.

It’s a game that takes some ge ng used to, as well as a fair bit of me spent, but with some prac ce you’ll ﬁnd yourself playing for a top team bagging 30-odd goals a season.

“A FANTASTIC PLACE TO TRAWL THROUGH WHEN YOU HAVE THE SPARE TIME.” The second game I managed to enthral myself in was Synopsis. Now, I’m a fairly big fan of escape click ‘n’ point games but this really took the cherry. I’ll admit, I can get freaked-out pre y easily and this game had shivers running up and down my spine like kids on an escalator. With brain imagery, the examina on of the subconscious and some of the most mysterious and frankly bizarre scenes I’ve seen for a while in one of these games, by the end I was really regre ng playing it at night. To be quite honest Mousebreaker.com is one of those websites that aren’t quite mainstream yet have enough appeal and an incredible assortment of games to really set a great stall out. A fantas c place to trawl through when you have the spare me. Paul Park

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FEATURES FORGOTTEN GEMS:

GUNMAN CHRONICLES FAN BASED CLASSIC OR SHAMELESS CASH-IN?

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FEATURES PUBLISHER: SIERRA STUDIOS DEVELOPER: REWOLF SOFTWARE FORMAT: PC RELEASED: 2000 These days, thanks to the wonderful worldwide link that is the internet, a lot of crea ve projects are produced by groups of people who have never met. It’s a strange way of working, and even today it’s s ll a bit weird to have a working rela onship with nothing more than an email address. But thanks to emails, webcams, Skype and forums, face to face mee ngs aren’t a necessity. But back in 2000, this form of working was very peculiar, especially when such a large and complex project such as a game was involved. One game that was produced this way was the brilliant yet panned, Gunman Chronicles. Gunman Chronicles was originally a fan based project that was created and developed with the original Quake engine. During development, this was replaced with the far superior Quake 2 engine, and then later on the genre defining Half-Life engine. This move proved to be the making of the game, as it was then spo ed by Half-Life developer Valve, who decided it was worthy of a full commercial release (or to just squeeze more cash out of the red Half-Life franchise, if you believe the cynics). Set in a futuris c world that was a mix of Western, Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Gunman Chronicles told the rather quirky tale of Major Archer, a Gunman who goes on the trail of a missing General. Using a very clever mix of weapons and ammo, Archer must use all his ability as he gets into scuffles with dinosaurs, massive robots, assassins and some immensely strange monsters. To be honest, it was all very odd, and although it was great to see such a strange mix of genres and themes sharing the same working space, it didn’t quite work. It was like mixing The Magnificent Seven with Jurassic Park, Aliens, Jason and the Argonauts, and Halo together. A cool mix, but a bit peculiar.

As for the gameplay, it was hit and miss. As said, the clever use of weapons and ammo (you had three different ammo types for your main gun) added a great deal of strategy to Gunman Chronicles. Also, it was obvious that Gunman Chronicles also borrowed a lot of ‘tricks’ from Half-Life, as well as its engine. The opening for instance, as you ride a tramcar to your des na on, is laughably similar to the original HalfLife opening, as well as the later expansion, Blue Shi . Other li le tricks such as the story playing out during gameplay as you progress, the brilliant set pieces (the dinosaur’s head crashing through the roof is s ll a gripping segment) as well as the similar alien worlds, le some with the feeling that Gunman Chronicles was just a Half-Life rip-off. Looking back on the reviews Gunman Chronicles received upon release, it’s surprising to see such a large quan ty of harsh comments. A lot of this was due to the fact that Gunman Chronicles was released as a stand alone game, at a stand alone game’s price. Gunman Chronicles was always considered as just a fan’s conversion using the Half-Life engine, and that a full price wasn’t deserving of the quality. Some said that it wasn’t up to the standards of the other FPS’s of the me, and to a certain extent they were right. But, Gunman Chronicles was s ll a fantas c game, and not as flawed as some made out. And was it worth the price? Well, at the me it was only about £20-30, which by today’s standards is a bargin! Gunman Chronicles is one of those games that’s loved by fans but disliked by cri cs. While the fans saw a game that was packed with adventure, pace, excitement and diversity, the cri cs saw a game that was flawed in every department, and not fit for a full price release. Which side you see Gunman Chronicles from is up to you, but personally I love it, and consider it one of the most underrated games of the 90s. A Half-Life cash-in, it most certainly was not. Sco Tierney

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REVIEWS NOKIA N8 A LITTLE LATE TO THE PARTY, OR THE LIFE AND SOUL?

Nokia phones in the past, although perfectly pleasant to use and reassuringly friendly, have always felt slightly outdated. Their interfaces, when compared to the iPhone and the HTCs, with their snazzy swipes and punchy mo ons, could never quite live up to what we’ve seen and fondled elsewhere, and although they were perfectly good phones, in this world governed by forward-thinking and break-neck trends, who wants an outdated piece of technology? Well by the looks of things, Nokia may have just about caught up, with the Nokia N8 shaping up as a major leap forward for Nokia.

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The Nokia N8 is a feisty li le phone, which features some truly stupendous technology. We’ll come back to the interface later, but for now, let’s have a look at some of the other goodies on offer. Firstly the N8 has a 12MP camera, which has an aperture of F2.8, a focal length of 5.4mm, and a blindingly bright Xenon flash. The camera can also film movies at 720p high-defini on, and thanks to a HDMI adaptor, these home-videos can be quickly displayed on your TV. Connec on to a TV is also very handy when it comes to watching other videos, as the N8 can output full HD, as well as make a good job of lesser formats. The ba ery (non-removable, frustra ngly) can reportedly pump HD for about 6 hours, but in reality we’re not so sure, and we’ll have to properly test this at a later date.

REVIEWS

“WE COULD PRAISE THE N8 ALL DAY, BUT SADLY THIS ISN’T NEW TECHNOLOGY NOKIA ARE DISCOVERING, AND IF ANYTHING IT’S SOON TO BE OBSOLETE.” But now we get to the standout point of the N8; the interface. The N8 is the ﬁrst Nokia smartphone to use Symbian 3, or to give it its far more glamorous and marke ng name, Symbian^3 (wow!). With Symbian^3, using the N8 becomes a much smoother experience, with its mix of glides, snaps, gestures and taps. It’s s ll the same sort of interface we’ve seen from previous Nokia phones, most notably the N97, but this is a much richer and easier interface to manage, and although there’s nothing new or exci ng that could upstage the big boys, it’s s ll a step in the right direc on. But, that single step that Nokia have taken, could be a problem. The basics are included, with Ovi Maps as standard, a solid 16GB memory (which can be upped via a Micro SD), good playback for your tunes and a merry FM radio. It’s also worth no ng that the N8 has 2D and 3D graphic accelera on, so gaming should/could be migh ly impressive on the graphics front. Design-wise, well it all depends on the colour. If you fancy a clean and subdued look, go for the silver or grey, but if you want a bit of colour there are three to choose from. Personally, although it looks extremely elegant in either metallic shade of grey, the N8 looks quietly drab, so I’d spice it up and go for the zesty orange. Might as well stand out!

We could praise the N8 all day, and high-ﬁve Nokia for their fantas c use of the Symbian^3 so ware, but sadly this isn’t new technology Nokia are discovering, and if anything it’s soon to be obsolete. OK, obsolete is probably too strong a word, but as we all know, Symbian 4 isn’t too far away, and by the me the N8 hits the shelves in the Autumn, it’s worth a bet that the other major phones will be donning their new interface suits, and preparing to upstage anyone who dares a end their party. The Nokia N8 is a great phone, but we just get the feeling that it’s a bit too late in arriving for the party, and no quite up to the pace that’s bound to be upped in the coming future. Nice zesty dress, though… Sco Tierney

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REVIEWS

NOKIA X2 & X3 IS IT WORTH SACRIFICING STYLE OVER SUBSTANCE? So here’s your dilemma, as you go through the annual ritual of buying a new phone. Do you go for a good looking, trendy and glamorous phone, which although struggles with some average features and falters with reliability, will look good on every occasion? Or do you go for the solid and steady phone, that although looks as exci ng and en cing as burnt toast, is guaranteed to work all the me and come with a sack of features? It’s a tough one; style or substance? Well in the case of these two Nokia’s, the X2 and X3, we have that very ques on, and we need answers. The Nokia X2 is due to be released in July, and from what has been touted, it looks like a very impressive low-end candybar phone. Features-wise there’s a 5MP camera with built-in ﬂash, that can take s lls at a resolu on of 2592 x 1544 pixels and record footage at 20fps. If you like your games, there are eight to choose from, including Rally Champ 3 and the always worthy of ‘just another go’, Snake III. If tunes are your gas, then the X2 supports MP3, WMA, AAC, eAAC, eAAC+, and as always there’s the op on of the FM radio. Add to this a 16GB memory, a solid OS system and plenty of other features, and the X2 is a highly impressive piece of kit, especially when you consider that’s it’s expected to be available for under £100. But despite all of that, just take a look at its face. I don’t know about you, but when I look at the X2, I can’t help but release a depressed and lifeless sigh. It’s not an ugly phone, and to be fair it’s not the ugliest phone we’ve ever seen, but there’s nothing to get excited about. It’s just excrucia ngly plain. Sigh…

The X3 on the other hand, is far more en cing. Firstly it’s a slider, which features a crisp, elegant and eye catching black and red body. Encased in its sexy li le figure is a nice screen, and running down the sides are bright red bu ons for controlling your music playback. It’s a really pre y, classy phone, and put side-by-side with the X2, the X3 easily wins this contest of glamour. But sadly, the X3 isn’t a par cularly good phone, despite its a rac veness. We men oned the screen earlier, and it’s easy to miss it when it’s surrounded by that gorgeous body. It fact, surprisingly, it’s rather poor. The colours look drained, the contrast isn’t strong enough, and even at a ny 2.2 inches, the quality is very patchy. And the flaws don’t stop there. The call quality is rough, you don’t get 3G or WiFi (not a major problem, as this is a cheap phone), the X3 has bu er fingers when it comes to ge ng a signal, and overall it doesn’t feel like a quality piece of kit. You do get excellent music playback, but compared to its rivals, there’s nothing that would blow your ears off in amazement. So there we have it, two phones that are chalk and cheese, ice and fire, soup and concrete, figs and...you get the idea. The X2 is by far the be er phone, but it’s as dull as an empty shoebox, but the X3 is a rac ve and dashing, but it’s just a bit rubbish. So which do you plumb for? Well I can only offer my opinion, so if I had to make the choice, I’d go for the X3 every me. Yes, I’d hate it for constantly losing signals, and a er 30mins I’d have probably throw it in the sea because of the slack features and interface. But every me I’d see it’s glamorous face, I’d let it off and forgive it, juts because it’s so darn pre y. For me, it’s style over substance every single me. Sco Tierney

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REVIEWS

HTC HD MINI NOT ALL THAT MINI When you think of the word mini, you’ll probably think of something really small. There’s the Mini Cooper, a ny li le car that was an icon as both a road car and sports car; there’s Mini Me, Dr. Evil’s pocket-sized clone; and then there’s Mini Magnums, the ny ice cream that can be downed in one. All very small en ty’s that at the end of the day are... mini. So it comes as a bit of a surprise that the new HTC HD Mini is, well… quite big.

One gripe we do have with the Mini though, is the Windows Mobile system. Even in it’s hayday it wasn’t par cularly advanced, useable or appreciated, and now it’s drawing towards the end of its life, it’s not much be er. It’s a bit glitchy, apps are o en diﬃcult to use and maintain, the menus look ugly and overall it’s not up to the standard of the iPhone’s excellent interface. That said, the guys at HTC have done a fantas c job in making it work, and like the geniuses they are, they’ve squeezed ever last drop of juice out oﬀ Microso ’s waning system.

If you’re wondering what the HTC HD Mini is like, and slightly concerned, then don’t be, as there is absolutely no reason for such desperate emo on. This at the end of day is a HTC phone, and as we’ve seen over the past few years with the Hero, Touch and HD2, HTC don’t make bad products. The Mini is superb, but as I can’t stop the review with that, let’s read on. And besides, there are a few niggles that are worth no ng.

One li le surprise that may go unno ced on the HTC HD Mini, are its blinding innards. If you pop the rear cover off the Mini, instead of finding a bleak and weary mix of cheap metals and warning s ckers, you’ll find a startling slice of yellow goodness. It’ll like someone’s filled the innards of the Mini with custard, just for a bit of fun. Not massively important in the overall context of the phone, but a nice surprise nonetheless.

The HTC HD Mini comes with a wide selec on of features, which includes pre y much everything under the sun and beyond. There’s a slightly smaller than expected but s ll perfectly usable 5MP camera, which can shoot both s lls and video. These self-captured images can be viewed via the beau ful screen, which it has to be said is one of HTC’s ﬁnest. There’s also the standard connec vity to WiFi and 3G, and there’s even an op on to turn your Mini into a WiFi hotspot, which is very handy indeed. Another feature that stands out is that the Mini is now more polite. If you have your phone on a desk, and it starts ringing at full pelt, causing a disturbance to your workmates. When picked up the ring volume will drop immediately, so you don’t cause anymore of a racket. I’ve got a feature like this on my phone, which I o en use when at work; it’s called an oﬀ bu on.

As expected, the HTC HD Mini is a brilliant phone that although maybe slightly handicapped by the Windows interface, is s ll right up there with the rest of the HTC crowd. But as I said at the beginning, it’s quite big for something that’s supposed to be mini. This is only a (no pun intended) small point, but surely if you’re going to make a small phone, make it really small, or at least half the size of the current Desire. OK, so it’s a bit smaller, but it’s not nearly as small as it should be, and to me a few grams and millimetres shaved oﬀ here and there doesn’t cons tute ‘mini’. They should have called it the HTC HD Marginally Smaller, of the HTC HD Lost A Bit of Weight For The Beach; at least that would have been more accurate. Sco Tierney

phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

GOD OF WAR 3 PUBLISHER: SONY DEVELOPER: SANTA MONICA STUDIO FORMAT: PS3 AVAILABLE: NOW

WE’RE ALL CUT UP God of War is a divisive series. For the PS3 aﬃcionados, it’s a glorious romp through an excellently researched mythological world with lashings of gore and the most an of heroes, Kratos the Spartan, fron ng the show. For everyone else it’s a pla orm exclusive that’s probably rubbish, I hate those bu on-mashing slash ‘em ups, where’s my copy of Gears of War, and so on.

To ﬁll you in quickly, Kratos is a Spartan warrior. Tricked by Ares, God of War, into murdering his own family, he pursues his tormentor and ﬁnally kills him to take his place as the new God of War. Betrayed again in GOW2, this me by Zeus, he comes to realise that he is in fact the king of the Gods’ bastard son. Clearly, Dad must die. And somehow you suspect there will be no Skywalker moment of mercy and salva on. In the pub round of video game vengeance, Kratos drinks patricider.

When we went to the Eurogamer Expo last year, Kratos was by far the star of the show, although he had to ﬁght for the a en on against a certain Italian plumber. With several playable sec ons it gave us a good taste of what to expect (although if you’ve played any of the other GOW games, you’ll have a fair idea). More to the point, it was by far the most visually arres ng thing at the Expo, rivalling Uncharted 2 for sheer unadulterated beauty.

It’s not a long game. I ﬁnished Hard mode in 10 hours or so, although I’m s ll steeling myself for a run at the brutal Titan mode. You climb Olympus, carried by the mountainous Titans, with the aim of giving Zeus a thunderbolt where Helios don’t shine. As you do, you encounter one God a er another - arrogant Poseidon, irrita ngly perky Hermes - and as you despatch them, you take their powers away with you. There’s no mys cal pouring in of glowing energy to mark this power up, though. You get your shinies by tearing them bloodily from the dei es in ques on. Watch out for the Poseidon takedown... I found it more than a li le hard to watch.

It’s lost nothing in the transit from demo to package.

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REVIEWS

In between, there’s plenty of rank and file to carve a bloody swathe through, with enough QTE finishing moves to sa sfy even the biggest bloodlust. The combat, as before, is mixed in with traps, some pedestrian and some rather ingenious. One of the final sec ons, as you nego ate Daedalus’ labyrinth, brings an en rely new (to me) take on the idea and layout of a maze, and is as impressive a construct as anything I’ve seen in gaming. Tough cri cs will complain that it’s more of the same, but did we ever expect anything else? Perhaps GOW4 will shi to over-the-shoulder and handguns, but Kratos’ raison d’etre is acroba c ultra-violence in a cinema c landscape. We should men on that there’s no camera control here: the game shows you what it wants to, which can be both a strength and a weakness.

Shi ing from room and corridor (as in the previous two games) to the massive environments of mountain, Hades and so on is absolutely the right thing to do. This is a movie spectacle (with a $44m movie budget, apparently) and it works tremendously well. Kratos blazes oﬀ the screen, even when he’s a rela vely small speck in a massive wide-angle shot. Clearly Sony Santa Monica, like Naughty Dog, understand how to make the Cell processor sing. For PS3 owners with a penchant for casual carnage, this is a must-buy. For everyone else, console yourselves (sorry) with the knowledge that another Gears of War game can’t be that far away. Rob Hobson

PRESENTATION: 19/20 STORY: 19/20 CONTROLS: 19/20 GAMEPLAY: 19/20 DURABILITY: 15/20

OVERALL

91/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

FINAL FANTASY XIII GLORIOUS VISUALS, BUT HAS THE GAMEPLAY TAKEN A BACK SEAT?

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REVIEWS PUBLISHER: SQUARE ENIX DEVELOPER: SQUARE ENIX FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3 AVAILABLE: NOW Although I respect and admire the Final Fantasy series, I have never truly loved any of the games. To me, the pace has always been too slow, and the tac cal ba les just seemed to lack any tension or pace. Don’t get me wrong, I s ll recognize the FF games as the excep onal tles they are, and their worldwide cri cal and commercial success only goes to show this, but s ll, they’re not for me. So, let’s have a look at the latest episode in the series, and see if it’s up to the usual high standards we’ve come to expect. Luckily, thanks to an excellent in-depth preview we ran in issue 10 of Phonica, I can skip past a lot of Final Fantasy XIII’s immensely detailed plot. To sum it up briefly, it all starts with Lightning taking the fight to a local squad of unfriendly fellows, the fal’Cie, as she goes on her journey to hunt down the rather sinister sounding, Maker. Also, we see a group of rebels as they fight against the fal’Cie, lead by the tough but charming Snow. It’s arguably not the best plot that’s ever come out of the Final Fantasy realm, and to be honest it’s not played out that well either, but it s ll remains lovably charming. The two big plus-points that have shone bright from FFXIII are the visuals, and the new and improved ba le system. Star ng with the visuals, from the moment you fire up FFXIII, you’ll know you’re in for a treat. Without doubt, the graphics demonstrated are by far the best we’ve seen this year, and we include Heavy Rain in that assessment. From the drama c cut-scenes (of which there are many) to the in-game ac on itself, the standard of the visuals never drop below excep onal.

As for the ba le system, in FFXIII it has been injected with a much needed pace that improves the ac on no end. Again, this has all been covered in our recent preview, but to quickly sum it up, the fights now playout at a much faster and ghter pace. You have the op on to throw in a quick single a ack, or if you wait a li le longer you can let rip with a devasta ng combo. This coupled with the addi on to a ack mul ple targets, and change characters during fights makes for a highly rewarding and intricate system. I’d s ll prefer to just get stuck in with some bu on mashing violence, but that’s just me. So, on the outside at least, FFXIII looks to have hit the mark of excellence perfectly, but there is a major flaw that runs through the whole game. Although there are some blinding visuals to witness, and some stunning environments to pass through, you never really get a sense that you are exploring the game. Instead, you feel that you’re being led down a series of corridors, going through the mo on of fight a er fight while looking at the visuals in the distance. One review said that it was “li le more than wallpaper thrown over a tunnel that players walk through”, and they’re absolutely spot-on. This may sound harsh, but if you were to compare the Final Fantasy series to the Star Wars series, the FFXIII would be Revenge of the Sith. Despite a coa ng of eye-catching gloss, and some wonderful technical achievements, FFXIII doesn’t quite have the charm, depth or wonder of the originals. It’s s ll a superb tle, and a cracking adventure to undertake, but we can’t help but feel a li le under whelmed. S ll, I never really liked it anyway. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 20/20 STORY: 14/20 CONTROLS: 17/20 GAMEPLAY: 15/20 DURABILITY: 17/20

OVERALL

83/100 phonica magazine uk

JUST CAUSE 2 PUBLISHER: SQUARE ENIX DEVELOPER: AVALANCHE STUDIOS, EIDOS INTERACTIVE FORMAT: PS3, XBOX 360, PC AVAILABLE: NOW

JUNGLE JUNGLE EVERYWHERE, BUT NOT A LOT TO DO. phonica magazine magazine uk uk 48 phonica

REVIEWS I was a huge fan of the original Just Cause, the da and dazzling sandbox shooter. Sure it had more flaws than its many Acers of landscape, but it also showed a lot of promise. So, when a sequel was announced a few years ago, I was ecsta c, and was sure that it would be a success. All the developers had to do was fix a few of the bugs, fine tune the controls, make the vehicles handle within the realms of reality and introduce a bit of varia on into the missions, and Just Cause 2 could push the tanic GTA IV all the way. So has it? Just Cause 2 has been adver sed as a ‘grown up’ sequel, with even the central character, Rico Rodriguez, doing away with his luscious locks and skimpy leather ou it in favour of some proper army gear. Sadly, it looks like Rico has not only aged into manhood, he’s also aged into his twilight years, with a face that looks as if he’s been in a fire or has fallen face-first into the rusty gears of a tractor. To be honest, he looks like a totally different character, who wouldn’t find a fart at a funeral amusing, but thankfully he’s s ll the same old Rico, has he’s got some new toys to play with.

“JUST CAUSE 2 SHOULD BE RIGHT UP THERE WITH GTA IV, BUT IT’S NOT EVEN CLOSE TO ROCKSTAR’S MASTERPIECE.” The new grappling hook Just Cause boasts has to be one of the most hyped weapons in video gaming history. Almost every ounce of development strength that …could muster has been thrown at it, and to be fair they’ve done a good job. In the ﬁrst game you could only grapple onto vehicles, but now you can a ach it to walls, vehicles, trees, oil drums, even people. And you can also ﬁre it twice to hook things together, such as dragging an enemy soldier along behind your car, or tearing down a poli cal statue. But sadly, you get the feeling that too much a en on has been focused on this li le gimmick, and the main aspects that should have been addressed have been neglected.

As soon as you pick up and get stuck into Just Cause 2, you’ll no ce that something isn’t quite right. The first mission – that acts as a tutorial – features a lot of tricks and controls that’ll come in handy as the game progress, such as shoo ng, using the parachute, employing the grappling hook and driving vehicles. But every one of these tasks is a menace to tackle. Thanks to some torrid controls and sloppy camerawork, even shoo ng an enemy is tricky, and at the same me dull. There’s no skill involved, whereas in GTA IV you can pick an area (preferably the face) to hit. Instead you just shoot in the rough area of your target un l they die, or you run out of ammo. I could go on and explain in detail every flaw that Just Cause 2 has developed, but instead it’ll be quicker to list them. The cars handle like they are drunk (my single biggest gripe with the game), the physics are a joke, the map is s ll li ered with areas of blank nothingness, the roads are o en devoid of anyone, making finding a car impossible at mes, you now have to pay for your weapons and agency vehicles, you have to tap in a code to steal enemy vehicles, the controls are numb, the visuals are o en patchy, the missions are repara ve and fiddly, you run out of ammo every five seconds (gone has the unlimited ammo from the first game) and overall Just Cause 2 just feels slack. Phew… The reason for so much passion in this review is because I love Just Cause to bits, and I desperately wanted this sequel to succeed. It had so much going for it and it’s so frustra ng to see such a massive opportunity squandered due to a few simple errors. Just Cause 2 is s ll an OK game, and overall it’s arguably be er than the first, but that’s not good enough. Just Cause 2 should be right up there with GTA IV, but it’s not even close to Rockstar’s masterpiece. Overall, Just Cause 2 is a massive disappointment. To be frank, I’m gu ed. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 17/20 STORY: 12/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 14/20 DURABILITY: 16/20

OVERALL

72/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS

RED STEEL 2 PUBLISHER: UBISOFT DEVELOPER: UBISOFT FORMAT: WII AVAILABLE: NOW

TEX-JAP? JAP-TEX? WHATEVER, THERE’S SWORDS AND GUNS AND EVERYTHING! The original Red Steel, released onto a fresh faced Wii in 2006, was technically ﬂawed in nearly every department, and almost immediately outdated. For a brief moment, it was a shining beacon of what the new and radical Wii could achieve, and a glimpse into what lay ahead for Nintendo’s latest crea on. But a er no more than a few weeks, Red Steel was already visibly outdated compared to the tles that followed. On replay today, it’s laughably basic, horrid to look at, and at mes, a cringe-worthy reminder of how far gaming has come in a short few years. But now we have a sequel, which seems to have built upon the best aspects of the ﬁrst while giving a fresh and exhilara ng twist to the series. Can this one last longer in the limelight?

50 phonica magazine uk

Red Steel 2’s plot centers on an unnamed hero, as he takes vengeance on his enemies and slowly unravels the truth behind his past. A er a fran c tow from an unfriendly bandit on a motorbike (a terrific opening), nameless hero meets up with his old master/sensei, who teaches him some new skills and updates him on the local events. As the plot moves forward, he who is devoid of a name badge takes the hunt to the local bandits, with his trusty sword and cocked and loaded shooter. It’s a weird mix of the Old West and Japanese underground, but it works well, despite some lazy voice work and seaming. While Red Steel was bland, flat and as lifeless as the skyscrapers of its backdrop, Red Steel 2 is on the opposite end of the excitable spectrum. With a cartoon-comic style that resembles both XIII and Borderlands, Red Steel 2 bristles with crea ve flair and ar s c style. And this trend also con nues into the plot and se ng. Gone are the tepid confronta ons of the first game, set in a dour city devoid of charm. In Red Steel 2, the se ng is a sun-soaked desert, inhabi ng a strange mix of retro cowboys, Japanese architecture and Mexican ninjas. It’s very odd, but it works perfectly. Both the style and se ng are spot on, and a fantas c sight to experience, but are the controls and gameplay equal to the challenge?

REVIEWS

Well, both the controls and gameplay are patchy, with neither maintaining a consistent level of excellence for a long enough me. Although the gameplay plays host to some impressive set pieces and fran c moments, it never truly takes off, and at mes it feels both trudging and methodical, as you rumble along from one scrap to another, baddie to baddie, boss to boss etc. It’s not bad, as chopping a baddie into Salami and then shoo ng him in the face is good fun, but it’s not quite as exhilara ng as it should be. The controls are also a s cking point, despite them making full use of the capabili es the Mo on Plus has to offer (you will need a Mo on Plus controller, as the game won’t work without it, as I found out to my expense!). You can pull-off a decent selec on of a acks, as you slash and swipe your Remote to simulate a sword, and switching grips will allow you to unload some hot lead via the B bu on. In fact, the far simpler shoo ng is actually more fun, and in turn works far be er alongside the Old West se ng. The sword a acks are OK, but ba les against mul ple enemies are fiddly and frustra ng, with the targe ng system not matching the speed of the ac on.

Overall, Red Steel 2 is hugely likable, and incomparable to the original game. The se ng and overall tone of the piece is wonderful, the ac on can at mes impress, and for a Wii game, the graphics are first class. It’s just a shame that behind the gloss, Red Steel 2 lacks that precision and sharpness that the top games have. The controls are o en frustra ng, the gameplay doesn’t flow with any real vigor, and the ac on is o en repe ve and ungainly. Red Steel 2 is far be er than the first, but that wasn’t a par cularly tough feat, as Red Steel was a flawed flash in the pan that briefly showcased the Wii’s possibili es. Regardless, Red Steel 2 is a great li le tle, a flawed masterpiece possibly, and if you can suffer the controls, gimmicks and simple gameplay, you’ll have a great me shoo ng and slashing your way around one of the most ar s c se ngs in modern mes. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 18/20 STORY: 14/20 CONTROLS: 14/20 GAMEPLAY: 15/20 DURABILITY: 16/20

OVERALL

77/100 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS YAKUZA 3 PUBLISHER: SEGA DEVELOPER: CS1 TEAM FORMAT: PS3 AVAILABLE: NOW

WE NEVER KNEW A KICK TO THE FACE COULD BE SO MOVING. If there’s one thing I dislike in gaming, more than sloppy controls, bugs, bad voice ac ng or lazy development, it’s a long cut-scene. A quick 90 second video is ﬁne, as is one that goes on for longer but acts as a reward as well as a plot aid, but anything that lasts longer than 3 minutes drives me into a pit of weary despair. I may just be impa ent (highly likely), but drawn out and boring cut-scenes just ruin otherwise excellent games for me, Bayone a being a prime example. Well, on that note, here’s Yakuza 3, that’s made up almost en rely of cut-scenes. Joy.

It would be easy to slam Yakuza 3 as being boring, and at mes the leaking dam of dialogue and cutscenes can become resome. But if you dig beyond this, and discover the world beyond the main plot, then you’ll find a terrific adventure packed with charm and wit. The main story is gripping, with plenty to do and many a face to kick, and the funny li le side games and bonus missions are good fun. It’s just a shame that those cut-scenes can’t be skipped, as they really do drag the pace down. Also, the camera could do with a fix, as it seems to wander off at mes, and the fight sequences lack a li le precision. But overall there’s plenty to do and see, so a lot of the flaws get held back.

Yakuza 3 is a quirky yet dark adventure, which tells the tale of a former gang leader as he deals with the problems of his past and the difficul es he faces in the future. Set a year a er the events of the second game (if you need an update, there are short videos from the first games included at the start of Yakuza 3), we find our tough-guy buddy, Kazuma Kiryu, running an orphanage. Not very tough-guy sounding, and to be honest the early parts of the game deal with the rather trivial problems facing the children under his wing. But a er that the ac on picks up, and Kazuma is able to let rip with his mighty fists of vengeful pain. A er teaching his kids the correct way to greet their elders, obviously.

Overall, Yakuza 3 is arguably the best Yakuza tle to date, with some lovely visuals, impressive and joyous sec ons of gameplay and a ﬁne story that builds upon the original games. If you like Japanese adventures, with the usual quirky yet bleak charm and playful sense of fun, then you’ll enjoy Yakuza 3 immensely. But, those cut-scenes suck the life out of the pace, and at mes the dialogue feels overworked and overfed. In a way, I wish Yakuza 3 had been dumbed-down a li le more, with a li le less story and a bit more face kicking. It’s a massively deep and compelling piece, but at mes you just want to let loose and have a laugh, rather than ge ng sucked into a dour conversa on. Sadly, the pacing and cut-scenes stop this from happening and because of this, Yakuza 3 doesn’t quite achieve as much as it should.

Visually, Yakuza 3 is pleasant without being impressive. The se ngs such as the beach-side orphanage and the inner city sec ons are nicely worked, and the character anima ons host a he y quan ty of impressive detail. As I say, it’s all very nice, but it lacks a certain sparkle, and at mes the visuals veer oﬀ into the cozy se ng of the arcade coin swallower, i.e. pre y, but ﬂat and overpoweringly bright.

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Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 16/20 STORY: 16/20 CONTROLS: 15/20 GAMEPLAY: 15/20 DURABILITY: 17/20

OVERALL

79/100

REVIEWS

phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS SONIC & SEGA ALL-STARS RACING PUBLISHER: SEGA DEVELOPER: SUMO DIGITAL, GAMELOFT (MOBILE VERSION) FORMAT: XBOX 360, PC, PS3, WII, DS, MOBILE AVAILABLE: NOW

SEGA UNVEIL THEIR MARIO KART CHALLENGER, OR SHOULD THAT BE ‘COPY’?

54 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS It’s a rare occurrence that a copy of a winning product, be it for instance a game, ﬁlm or plane, is be er than the original. Even if the copy does everything that made the original successful, and maybe even adds a few new features of its own, it rarely matches up to the original ‘perfect’ piece. So, has Sega’s copy of Mario Kart - Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing - fallen into the same category? Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a fun and funky, family friendly racing game, that features a wide host of all your favorite Sega characters. To name but a mere few, there’s Sonic, Tails, Dr. Eggman, Alex Kidd, Amigo, and even that weird Monkey from Super Monkey Ball, AiAi (on the Xbox 360 and Wii versions, you can use your avatar as a playable character, which is unspeakably brilliant!). As well as being playable characters, Sega’s resident chums also lend the levels from their games to the design of the tracks. Thrashing through the zombieinfested castle from House of the Dead is a real thrill, as is power-sliding around the roads of Crazy Taxi. It’s basically like racing around a giant Sega amusement park, minus the horrendous food and extor onate prices. And vomit. And crying children. Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing copies its en re template from Nintendo’s hugely successful Mario Kart series. For starters, the weapons are roughly the same, with a mix of rockets and mines (Sega’s versions of shells and banana skins) as well as some other clever addi ons taking the place of the Nintendo’s original incarna ons. As well as that there’s the fact that the events are held over four races, there are three categories, you can powerslide to gain extra boosts (although powersliding plays a much bigger part in All-Star Racing), the tracks are roughly the same, the mul player games are almost iden cal and even the 3-2-1 start procedure is the same. The balancing of the compe on is also similar, as the racers at the back get all the best weapons, and have the magical ability to speed-up when being well and truly thrashed. What I’m basically saying is that Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a clone of Mario Kart.

But, it would be extremely unfair to brand Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing as just a Mario Kart ‘rip-off ’. Behind the blatant photocopy job Sega have done, there’s actually a fantas c game wai ng to be discovered. As soon as you get into the racing, you forget about all the copy-pas ng and just concentrate on the job at hand; having fun. The vehicles feel ght and snappy, and even when pulling-off the most daring and insane of slides, you remain in total control (something that can’t be said about Mario Kart Wii). The tracks also look fantas c, with every effort going into capturing the feel of the games they represent. The frame rate occasionally lags on the console versions, but apart from that, it’s fantas c fun, either as a group or alone. So is Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing nothing more than a copy of Mario Kart, that’s doomed to fall below the mark set by Nintendo’s all me classic? Well obviously Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing was never going to beat Mario Kart (I’d put the N64 version easily in the top five racing games of all me), and despite pulling out all the stops, at the end of the day it’s essen ally a copy of another product, and nothing more. But, that doesn’t deter from the fact that Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is a great racer, and a great game. It’s magical, charming, fran c, vibrant and most importantly, fun. In a way (and I’ll probably get sent to gaming prison for saying this) I prefer it to Mario Kart Wii. It’s faster, more exci ng, and although it may not be as easy to pick up and play (a feature that makes Mario Kart Wii perfect for all the family) due to its aggressive gameplay and more fiendish controls, All-Star Racing is just a touch more exci ng than Mario’s Wii racer. Sure, Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing is no Mario Kart, but there’s more than enough room for both of them is this town. Give it a go, trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 17/20 STORY: 16/20 CONTROLS: 18/20 GAMEPLAY: 18/20 DURABILITY: 18/20

OVERALL

87/100 phonica magazine uk

DYNASTY WARRIORS: STRIKEFORCE PUBLISHER: KOEI DEVELOPER: OMEGA FORCE FORMAT: XBOX 360, PS3 AVAILABLE: NOW

A LOT OF SLASHING FUN, BUT IT’S ALL TOO SLACK FOR OUR LIKING.

56 phonica magazine uk

REVIEWS The Dynasty series (not the popular 80s soap, but the game series; there are no shoulder pads in this game…actually, there might be?) is one that isn’t par cularly well known outside of Japan. Sure, it’s got its fans in the UK, but unless you’ve been up-close and personal to one of the many Dynasty tles, you’ll probably be unaware of it. So, is this a bad thing, and are you missing out on one of gaming’s hidden treasures? Well, judging by the new Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, probably not. Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce, and the Dynasty series in general, is a strange mix of War Cra , Lord of the Rings and Manga. At the start you can select from several diﬀerent groups/sides, and then pick a warrior from that group. From there you partake in many quests around the fantasy landscape, defea ng rival groups and kicking the overall bo om of each fac on. As you’d expect, from a series of nearly 20 games, there’s a lot of story to be crammed in, but to be honest it’s not all that compelling, and at mes irrelevant to the proceeding ac on.

“DYNASTY WARRIORS: STRIKEFORCE IS A VERY AVERAGE MIX OF ACTION AND STRATEGY, WITH NETHER BEING GOOD ENOUGH TO TAKE THE LEAD AND PROPEL THE GAME INTO GREATNESS.” Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce is a mix of RPG and hack-and-slash ac on. Although there’s a lot of scrapping, with almost limitless swarms of enemies cueing up to get their heads kicked-in, underneath this vulgarity there’s a lot of strategy and stock management involved. Players can upgrade all their weapons, spells and abili es, and a er each ﬁght/ mission they’ll be rewarded with a sack of gold pieces and a slice of experience pie. Think of it as Gears of War, but Marcus is an accountant on a budget, and you’re halfway there.

Visually, Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce is very average, and to be fair not worthy of the power both the PS3 and Xbox 360 are capable of. The scenery is unremarkable and flat, the character anima ons are robo c and unnatural, and overall it doesn’t look much be er than its earlier PSP incarna on. Also, when the ac on becomes heated and an effect or two are thrown in, the frame rate all but grinds to a halt, causing havoc with the gameplay. Not what you want when you’re in the middle of a Royal Rumble style punch-up. The single player campaign is OK at best, as you take on quest a er quest, defea ng bosses and retaking land. It’s fun for a period no longer than a few hours, but a er that the constant bu on mashing and crippling flaws do grow weary. But Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce is be er when played with a friend, and to be honest it’s a lot fairer as well. Although going solo against an army of 100 is great fun, and a massive ego-boos ng experience, it is unfairly tough. Coupled with the fact that the controls aren’t that great, the camera is always facing the wrong way and the block bu on is as useful as sunglasses in a mine, ba les will become immensely irrita ng. So, with a buddy along side, the odds are evened up a li le, and the game improves. Overall, Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce is a very average mix of ac on and strategy, with nether being good enough to take the lead and propel the game into greatness. Regardless of the bugs, frame rate, silly controls and repe ve nature, Dynasty Warriors: Strikeforce just doesn’t feel like a quality product, and not really worthy of a large percentage of your me and money. It’s OK, and the figh ng is a lot of fun when joined by a friend, but overall it’s not really going to make waves. Ah well, it looks like the Dynasty series isn’t going to reach the limelight this me around. Sco Tierney

PRESENTATION: 13/20 STORY: 14/20 CONTROLS: 13/20 GAMEPLAY: 14/20 DURABILITY: 14/20

OVERALL

68/100 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

PHONICA’S 20 RECOMMENDED VEHICLES MICRO MACHINES 2: TURBO TOURNAMENT

GTA: VICE CITY

F ZERO X

HALO

GRAN TURISMO 2

(Megadrive)

(Xbox, PS2, PC)

(N64)

(Xbox, PC)

(PS2)

DRAGSTERS “A diﬃcult beast to master, but racing around a toilet seat with your best buddies in tow was memorable fun.”

WASHINGTON “Not the fastest car in the world, but it would powerslide forever.”

WHITE CAT “S ll faster than the speed of light (almost), but the grip and control was something special.”

WARTHOG “The Master Chief was nothing without his li le green buggy. Fiddly to handle, but an absolute riot.”

GT40 “Arguably the best handling vehicle we’ve ever come across in a racing game. Simply perfect.”

SONIC 2

MODERN WARFARE 2

RED DEAD: REDEMPTION

PILOT WINGS

CRIMSON SKIES

(Megadrive)

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

(N64)

(PC, Xbox)

TALES’S PLANE “More of a moving pla orm than a vehicle, but s ll, we had fun, so who cares?”

SNOWMOBILE “A white-knuckle ride down a slope that’s far too steep for our liking. A fantas c slice of gaming.”

HORSE “More than just a vehicle. Your best friend in those lonely western plains, and a reliable partner in crime when those around you can’t be trusted.”

GYROCOPTER “If you enjoy exploring, then this is the perfect device. And for some reason it had rockets…probably for shoo ng at that evil rock giant…what?”

DEVASTATOR “It was fast, agile, cool, red…but it always looked like it was ﬂying backwards?”

58 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

FULL THROTTLE

GEARS OF WAR 2

GTA IV

HALF LIFE 2

MOTORSTORM: PACIFIC RIFT

(PC)

(Xbox 360, PC)

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

(PS3)

BEN’S BIKE “A tough bike for a tough Ben. A classic vehicle that s ll looks impressive today.”

BRUMAK “What a spectacular way to end a spectacular game. Stomping along, unleashing rocket-based Armageddon on all those that get in the way. Tee hee…BOOM!”

BLISTA COMPACT “Rubbish and unassuming from the outside, but goes like a rocket and handles like a heat-seeking ﬂy.”

BUGGY “A nightmare of never-ending frustra on at mes, but mowingdown an angry Antlion was hilarious!”

MONSTER TRUCK “Great to drive, but a nightmare to drive against. Try racing against 11 while on a bike to see what we mean...right of way does not apply”

CARMAGEDDON 2

JUST CAUSE 2

BURNOUT PARADISE

GOLDENEYE

SUPER MARIO BROS

(PC)

(PC, PS3, Xbox 360)

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

(N64)

(NES)

DUMP TRUCK “Comically big, and almost impossible to guide, but as they say, bigger is always be er!”

CARGO PLANE “How low can you go? In this beast, it’s probably best to keep your distance from the ground.”

CARSON GRAND MARAIS “It handled like a greasy boat, but just look at it. Stupidity is bliss.”

TANK “A li le segment (or two in fact) that o en gets forgo en. Nothing beats exploding a bunch of baddies.”

YOSHI “Whether your riding him like a manic green horse, or powersliding his kart, Yoshi knows how to please a gamer.”

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Size weight Frequency Screen Pixels camera resolu on memory/compa bility bluetooth GPRS WLAN Browser Java Messaging Radio Music downloadable games downloadable ringtones Ba ery talk me - mins (max) Ba ery standy - hours (up to) bluetooth carKit compa ble

Nokia 6730

Nokia 5530

Nokia E75

Nokia 6210

Nokia E63

112 x 46 x 12.6 mm 83 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 3.15 MP 48 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 No Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

104 x 49 x 13 mm 107 g Quad-band/3G 640 x 360 3.2 MP 70 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/AMS Yes

111.8 x 50 x 14.4 mm 139 g Quad-band/3G 320 x 240 3.2 MP 50 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

103 x 49 x 14.9 mm 117 g Tri-band 320 x 240 3.2 MP 120 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32/HSDPA No Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

113 x 59 x 13 mm 126 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2 MP 110 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Yes Wap/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/WAV/WMA MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/WAV/WMA MP3/AAC/WAV/WMA

MP3/WAV/AAC/WMA

Yes Poly/MP3 600 500 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 222 244 Yes

Yes Polyphonic & MP3 660 432 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 294 351 Yes

Yes MP3 340 264 Yes

Sony Ericsson Naite

Sony Ericsson C901

Sony Ericsson C510

HTC Magic

HTC Hero

108 x 47 x 12.6 mm 84 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP

105 x 45 x 13 mm 107 g Quad-band 240 x 320 5 MP

107 x 47 x 12.5 mm 92 g Quad-band 240 x 320 3.15 MP

113 x 55 x 13.7 mm 118.5 g Quad-band 320 x 480 3.15 MP

112 x 56.2 x 14.35 mm 135 g Quad-band/3G 320 x 480 5 MP

100 MB/microSD

120 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

100 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

288 MB/microSD

288 MB/microSD ™

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No Wap/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes No Wap/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No Wap/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

Yes/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Wi-Fi HTML Yes,via 3rd party SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

Yes/A2DP/miniUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Wi-Fi HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAC/MP4

MP3/MP4

MP3/AAC+/WAV/WMA 9

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 564 380 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 570 430 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/Aac 420 400 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 450 420 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 420 750 Yes

60 phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

Nokia N97

Nokia 3720 classic

Nokia 5800 Xpress Music Sony Ericsson Aino

Sony Ericsson Yari

117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 mm 150 g Quad-band/3G 640 x 360 5 MP 32 GB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Wi-Fi WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

115 x 47 x 15.3 mm 94 g Tri-band 320 x 240 2 MP 20 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 11 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

111 x 51.7 x 15.5 mm 109 g Quad-band 640 x 360 3.2 MP 81 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 32 Yes WAp/xHTML/HTML/WML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

100 x 48 x 15.7 mm 115 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 320 5 MP 60 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No Wap/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

104 x 50 x 15.5 mm 134 g Quad-band/3G 240 x 420 8.1 MP 60 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM Yes

MP3/AAC/eAAC/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAc/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/AAC

MP3/eAAC+/WMA

Yes MP3 570 430 Yes

Yes Poly/MIDI/Real Tone/MP3 420 450 Yes

Yes Polyphonic & MP3 528 406 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 270 360 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/AAC 600 450 Yes

Apple iPhone 3G S

Apple iPhone 3G

INQ Chat 3G

BlackBerry 8520

BlackBerry Bold 9000

11.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm 135 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 3.15 MP

11.5 x 62.1 x 12.3 mm 133 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 2 MP

114.5 x 61 x 12.8 mm 93 g Tri-band/3G 176 x 220 3.2 MP

109 x 60 x 13.9 mm 106 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2 MP

114 x 66 x 14 mm 133 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 320 2MP

16/32 GB (internal)

8/16 GB (internal)

120 MB/Memory S ck Micro ™

256 MB/MicroSD

1GB/microSD

Yes/USB Yes/EDGE Wi-Fi HTML (Safari) No SMS/MMS/Email No

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Yes HTML (Safari) No SMS/Email No

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes Yes Net Front Yes SMS/MMS/Email No

Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 Yes HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

MP3/MP3 VBR/AAC/WAV

AMR/AAC/AAC+/eAAC

MP3/AAC/WMA/AAC+/MP4/WMV MP3/WMA/AAC+

Yes Poly & MP3 720 300 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 600 300 Yes

Yes Poly/MIDI/MP3 270 408 Yes

AMR/AAC/AAC+/eAAC/MIDI/MP3/WAV

480 170 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 300 310 Yes

phonica magazine uk

THE GUIDE

BlackBerry 8300 Curve Samsung Pixon 12

Samsung S5600V Blade

Samsung Genio Touch

Samsung B3310

107 x 60 x 15.5 mm 111 g Quad-band 320 x 240 2MP 64MB/microSD Yes/USB Yes/EDGE No HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email/IM No

108 x 53 x 13.8 mm 120 g 480 x 800 pixels 240 x 320 12 MP 150 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

102.8 x 54.8 x 12.9 mm 92 g 240 x 320 pixels 240 x 320 3.15 MP 50 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 12 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

103 x 56.5 x 12 mm 90 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP 40 MB/microSD Yes/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

91 x 54 x 17 mm 101 g Quad-band 240 x 320 2 MP 40 MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes SMS/MMS/Email Yes

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/WMA/eAAC+

MP3/WMA/AAC

MP3/MP4/eAAC+/WMV/WMA

MP3/MP4

Yes Poly & MP3 240 408 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3 180 250 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 120 250 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 480 730 Yes

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 300 380 Yes

Samsung Jet

Samsung U900

LG GD510 Pop

LG GM750

LG BL40 New Chocolate

108 x 53.5 x 11.9 mm 110 g Quad-band/3G 480 x 800 5 MP 2/8 GB (internal)/microSD Yes/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 12/HSDPA Wi-Fi WAP/Dolphin Yes

103.2 x 49.3 x 10.9 mm 81.5 g Quad-band 240 x 320 3.2 MP 80MB/microSD Yes/A2DP/USB Yes/EDGE Class 10 No WAP/xHTML Yes

97.8 x 49.5 x 11.2 mm 87g Quad-band 240 x 400 3.15 MP 42 MB RAM/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 12 No WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes

109.8 x 53.5 x 12.9 mm 120 g Quad-band 240 x 400 5 MP

128 x 51 x 10.9 mm 129 g Quad-band 345 x 800 5 MP 1.1 GB/microSD Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes/EDGE Class 10/HSDPA Yes WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes

SMS/MMS/Email/Vidoe/MS Exchange

SMS/MMS/EMS/Email

SMS/MMS/Email

SMS/MMS/Email/IM

SMS/MMS/EMS/Email/IM

Yes

128 MB RAM/256 MB ROM/microSD

Yes/A2DP/microUSB Yes Yes WAP/xHTML/HTML Yes

MP3/AAC/AAC+/eAAC+/WMA/AMR

MP3/MPEG4/AAC/eAAC/WMA

MP3/MP4/WMA

MP3/MPEG4/WAV/eAAC+/WMA

MP3/MP4/WAV/DivX/eAAC

Yes Poly/MP3/WAV 492 422 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 210 220 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 200 360 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 380 450 Yes

Yes Poly & MP3 240 400 Yes

62 phonica magazine uk

phonica magazine uk