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Review: Rayman Origins

2012-02-18T15:00:00.001Z

Rayman Origins

Developer

Ubisoft Montpellier

Publisher

Ubisoft

Platforms

PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360, Vita (Feb '12), 3DS (Mar '12), Windows PC (Mar '12)

Reviewed on

Xbox 360

Genre

Platformer

Certificate

PEGI 7, ESRB E10+

Best price we found in GBP:

£15.00

for Wii, from Amazon.co.uk

It’s funny to think that, perhaps three or four years ago, the 2D platforming genre was all but dead in the water, written off by the mainstream as, at best, throwaway fodder for Xbox Live Arcade or PSN.

Over the last few years, though, running from left to right has found its way back into modern gaming lexicon, with no less than five major platformers released for home consoles since 2009. Joining this new 2D renaissance comes Rayman Origins, a quirky throwback to the limbless wonder’s first release on the original PlayStation. Whilst not my favorite platforming game since the genre came back into vogue, Rayman Origins has more than enough item-collecting, wall-jumping appeal for gamers craving more from the second dimension.

Like many of the best platforming games, Rayman Origins features barely any story at all. A brief cutscene at the beginning weaves a tale of undead grannies, brutish creatures and missing fairies, but the plot never becomes heavy-handed; in fact, it barely even registers, unless you’re really paying attention (like the talented wordsmiths who managed to eke five paragraphs out of the game’s story on its Wikipedia page). Rayman Origins foregoes plot in lieu of gameplay, and the results feel as light, breezy and carefree as can be.

Rayman’s journeys take him across sixty different levels and five different worlds, each boasting numerous gameplay hooks to tinker with, like Gourmand Land's ice patches, or the Desert of Didgeridoos' gusts of wind. In each level, players strive to collect small golden lums, which free kidnapped Electoons, who unlock new stages and help advance Rayman’s progress. Rayman also meets and frees several Nymphs along the way, granting him additional powers, such as running on walls or floating through the air.

I’ve you’ve spent more than ten minutes with a 2D platforming game since the SNES, there’s a good chance you'll be able to pick up Rayman Origins with little difficulty. The mechanics of running, jumping and using Rayman's special abilities are smooth and responsive, and Origins plays similarly to other strong platforming games recently released. In fact, I thought it played a bit too similarly; though Origins is mechanically solid, and quite fun in its own right, its gameplay never quite clicked for me, and left me feeling as though I had done similar things before in other games, and had a better time doing it then.

Perhaps it's Origins' over-emphasis on lum-collection, which I found unexciting and overly-simplistic in design. I also grew frustrated with the game grading my level performance and progression based on how many lums I had collected, which makes about as much sense to me as grading how many coins I collected in a Mario game, or how many bananas I scoffed down in Donkey Kong Country. I'm sure many platforming fans will enjoy perfecting their timing to snag that last lum before it disappears, but for me, Rayman Origins' single-minded focus on collecting them felt tedious. With little to offer besides combing every level for every last lum, I kept wondering, like Peggy Lee, "is that all there is?"

Where Origins really comes into its own, though, is during its treasure chest levels. Hidden in every zone, and unlocked only by collecting enough Electoons, the treasure chest levels are ten stages of the most sadistically-difficult, re-try-heavy gameplay this side of Dark Souls. During each stage, Rayman must chase a sentient treasure chest through a series of obstacle course-like areas, staying close to the fleeing chest as platforms collapse, doorways close and the entire zone becomes hellbent on stopping Rayman from getting his disembodied mitts on the escaping trunk. Treasure chest levels require route memorisation to simply progress, as well as a heaped helping of patience in order to finally succeed. These sections stand much taller than any other part of the game, and are easily Rayman Origins' high point; tricky though they are to complete, mastering the timing of each one becomes addictive, and the gratification brought by success is incredible.

Despite its stratospheric level of difficulty, Rayman Origins expertly treads the fine line between 'manageable challenge' and 'totally unfair.' Origins’ levels are rife with mid-level checkpoints, often saving after each new room or major bout of platforming. Rayman is also given infinite lives to progress through the game, the game tipping its hat to experimentation whilst still remaining a steadfast challenge.

Rayman Origins positively drips with personality, best expressed through its vibrant, eccentric art style. Every asset in the game (or darn near close to it) is hand-drawn, as well as stylised to an extreme bent, giving each area and stage a unique, untethered vibe. The art direction is particularly gonzo, leaning heavily on grotesque (though often charming) caricatures; broadly speaking, Origins' look is about as French as French can be, and it’s hard not to appreciate the care and love put into the game's appearance. Its music is pleasing, with jaunty tunes and various bouncy melodies, though none of the tunes stuck with me for longer than the time I spent playing it.

Similarly to other platforming games released since the genre’s new wave, Rayman Origins supports up to four-player drop-in/drop-out co-op. Gameplay as precise as Rayman Origins isn’t necessarily conducive to having multiple people, and Origins gets, if anything, even harder when played with a group. Still, co-op is a blast to play, mostly because Rayman Origins offers one of the most comprehensive player-griefing systems in all of gaming, practically encouraging gamers to take advantage of Origins’ infinite lives by slapping one another around or throwing other characters headlong into obstacles. It isn't the best option for making progress in the game, but co-op in Rayman Origins is still a whole lot of fun.

Really, apart from a few small gameplay design decisions, I have almost nothing negative to say about Rayman Origins, except that I found it fun, but ultimately unexciting. I feel almost perturbed; many in the industry have been crowing from the rooftops about Origins since as early as last September, with several listing it as one of their favourites of 2011. I wonder if I’m missing something, if the game mechanics possess an appeal I can’t understand, or if I’m simply expecting too much. As it stands, Rayman Origins is a great game, and one I would encourage folks to experience, but also one I simply can’t get into it as much as other, similar titles.

8/10 [?]

Review: Goldeneye 007: Reloaded

2012-02-13T15:35:00.003Z

GoldenEye 007: Reloaded

Developer

Eurocom

Publisher

Activision

Platforms

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

Reviewed on

Xbox 360

Genre

First-person shooter

Certificate

PEGI 16+, ESRB T

Best price we found in GBP:

£17.99

from Play.com (UK)

Goldeneye. The name alone conjures images of four (often more) warm bodies crowded around a single television set, thrilled by the concept of gunning down their friends for the fifth hour running.

Perhaps this isn’t your experience with the game, and you enjoyed it more as a counterpart to one of Bond’s strongest cinematic offerings, engaging in espionage action as only Ian Fleming’s famous gentleman spy could. Regardless of how you enjoyed Goldeneye back when it was released in 1997 (and Activision is betting that you enjoyed the hell out of it), Eurocom’s new reinvention of the Goldeneye name lives up to the spirit of Rare’s revolutionary console shooter, even if the execution sometimes falls short.

Goldeneye 007: Reloaded is a high-def port of 2010’s Goldeneye 007 for the Wii, which updated the game’s story and gameplay while staying true to what makes Bond different from other action heroes. Eurocom also overhauled the multiplayer, adding online competition to the first game’s fabled split-screen, bringing new modes into the mix while retaining other established classics. It was a highly praised bit of software when it was released, and Reloaded is a great opportunity for non-Wii owners to experience one the best Bond games in recent years.

Penned by Bruce Feirstein, co-writer of the original 1995 film, Reloaded’s story is an updated take on Bond’s attempts to stop terrorists from acquiring and using a weaponised satellite, the titular Goldeneye. Much of the narrative remains true to the movie, though changes have been made; the plot no longer involves the Soviet Union, for example, and there are many more references to today’s political landscape. It’s a clever remix of the fresh and familiar, and remains a satisfying tale with only a few small holes (Reloaded ditches the 9-year gap present in the original movie, making some character motivations a bit murky).

Gameplay is better in line with modern shooting conventions; Bond uses ironsights to aim his weapons, and only carries two armaments at once, though he also keeps his signature Walther PPK on him at all times. Where Goldeneye 007: Reloaded diverges from contemporary shooters is in its mission structure. Throughout the game, Bond is given objectives to complete, with additional tasks added on higher difficulty levels, ranging from photographing evidence to destroying arms caches. The emphasis on accomplishing more than simple survival helps Reloaded to feel less like a corridor-shooting simulator, and more like an actual secret mission.

Another way Goldeneye 007: Reloaded stands out from the modern FPS pack is in its emphasis on stealth. Bond is a covert agent, after all, and the game gives him many opportunities to use sneakiness over brute force, taking out enemies using silenced weaponry and avoiding detection where he can. It’s a fun way to mix up the bog standard shoot-all-the-baddies scenario, and several achievements and trophies are awarded for completing levels without being detected. In many cases, stealth can be the preferable option; if detected, enemy soldiers call in about half a regiment's worth of reinforcements, all exhibiting much higher levels of AI than regular guards, and more than happy to flush you out with grenades or flank your position. In this way, Reloaded strikes a favourable balance between action and stealth, allowing stealth aficionados a chance to sneak around to their heart’s content, while always offering an option to go balls-out if the player so chooses.

Bond’s mission takes him from Dubai, to St. Petersburg, to the infamous dam from the first game, and most of the areas are pleasing to the eye, though not the best-looking of 2011. Reloaded is never quite successful at hiding its Wii origins, and many levels lack the polish found in today’s graphically heavy blockbusters, like Uncharted or Battlefield. Still, the game's environments often show several nice artistic flourishes, like the constant snowfall in Severnaya, or the mountain overlooks in Nigeria. Goldeneye 007: Reloaded also updates the original game's cast, replacing Pierce Brosnan with Daniel Craig, and Sean Bean’s Trevelyan with, oddly, Ptolemy from Alexander. It seems like somewhat of a step down for me, but the cast is fairly on-point throughout, especially Craig and the ever-reliable Dame Judi Dench, who provides the voice work for M during mission briefings.

The single-player mode is quite good, but the multiplayer is truly what made the first game shine, and while Goldeneye 007: Reloaded doesn’t do anything to dethrone the reigning champions of the genre, it’s still a hell of a lot of fun. Four-player split-screen is as addictive as ever, and online has expanded to sixteen-player skirmishes, making every match frantic and intense. Reloaded’s multiplayer eschews weapon pick-ups for customisable loadouts, giving players an incentive to unlock weapons and add-ons, but taking away from the strategy of finding placements for the best guns. Reloaded also brings back old favourite modes, like 'Man With the Golden Gun' or 'You Only Live Twice', placing them alongside game types found in other shooters (King of the Hill, Conquest, etc.). Good luck finding anyone who wants to play anything besides Team Deathmatch online, though.

Reloaded could easily have been a nostalgic cash-grab, using the Goldeneye name to prop up a flimsy game for easy money. Not so; Goldeneye 007: Reloaded is a fun, modern take on the Nintendo 64 classic, and while it's unlikely that this new version will become as infamous as its forebearer, it’s a fun throwback, and a reminder of how satisfying a game protagonist Bond can be.

8/10 [?]

Review: Batman Arkham City

2011-12-14T15:48:00.001Z

Batman: Arkham City

Developer

Rocksteady Studios

Publisher

Warner Bros. Interactive
Square Enix (Japan)

Platforms

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, OnLive, WiiU (2012)

Reviewed on

PlayStation 3

Genre

Action-adventure, beat 'em up, stealth

Certificate

PEGI 16+, ESRB T

Best price we found in GBP:

£24.99

on PC, from Amazon.co.uk

As comic book characters go, few have proven to be as captivating as the Caped Crusader, Batman. Be it his tragic origin story, his unparalleled fighting and detective skills or the sheer amount of kickassness that exudes from a man with no superpowers that can take on Superman, there’s just something about this character that has made him a staple of the comic book community for decades.

As tends to happen, the extreme popularity of the comic character has led to movies, animated series, tonnes of merchandise and - of course - videogames. In 2009, Rocksteady broke the licensed game curse, and created a Batman videogame unlike anything anyone had ever seen before. The boys and girls at Rocksteady care for the character, and poured attention and love into every single detail of the project, crafting more than just a game, but rather an experience. Batman: Arkham Asylum was more than just the best Batman game ever, or the best comic book game ever; it was one of the best games of 2009, full stop. This left this year’s sequel, Batman: Arkham City, with a rather unprecedented predicament: it ended up a licensed game with a large quantity of valid expectation for greatness weighing it down. Comic geeks and gamers the world over were wondering if Rocksteady would be able to strike gold twice.

The answer? Yes. God, yes.

You know the way that every sequel promises to be bigger and better, and then hardly ever is? That, luckily, didn't happen this time. Rocksteady hit the bullseye, and somehow managed to make the already pefect Batman experience even better, delivering a massive follow up to Arkham Asylum that is truly bigger and better in every way, giving you more of what you loved from the original and doing away with anything you hated. Fan expectations were more than met; they were surpassed entirely. This was clearly Rocksteady’s objective.

So how does a developer go about beating itself at its own game? Well, Rocksteady’s first order of business was giving players a larger playground to play in. Enter Arkham City, the mega-prison after which the game is named. If you’ve somehow managed to avoid spoiling the story for yourself already, I won’t spoil it for you here. All you need to know is that Quincy Sharp, former warden of Arkham Asylum, is now mayor of Gotham City, and he has somehow convinced the bigwigs of Gotham to let him wall off a complete section of the city and turn it into a prison. The result: a literal city prison, populated by every low-life thug, criminal and super-criminal in Gotham City. With appearances from almost every major nemesis in Batman’s rogue gallery (and a few not so major ones), veteran comic book writer Paul Dini has written a meaty, intense and suspenseful story that evokes a true sense of urgency in the player as the plot develops. The pacing of the narrative is pitch-perfect, and the game is filled with unexpected twists and reveals that will have you nerdgasming well into the night.

The game’s narrative is made that much greater by the excellent gameplay through which you experience it. Gameplay is divided into three basic elements: exploration, combat and stealth. Playing as the Dark Knight himself, Arkham City is yours to explore. As a gamer, jumping, gliding and grappling from rooftop to rooftop in an environment as vibrant and layered as Arkham City is a treat. As a Batman fan, the experience is just indescribable, and must be experienced to be understood. When you’re not mindlessly gliding around the city skies and freaking out at just how awesome Batman’s cape looks billowing in the wind, you’ll probably be meticulously scouring the environments for secrets or clues related to your current mission. Rocksteady has not forgotten that Batman is first and foremost a detective, and has made sure to feature Batman’s crime solving deductive skills prominently in the game, both in the main story missions and side missions, which I’ll get on to later.

As you can probably imagine, based on the fact that the whole game takes place in a megaprison filled to the brim with people that want our hero dead, you will get into a fair amount of scuffles. You will deal with your opponents either via direct mêlée combat or stealth. For the mêlée combat, Rocksteady has refined the amazing combat system they created for Arkham Asylum, the Freeflow Combat System. Freeflow combat sounds simple on paper: attack enemies with one button, stun them with another, dodge with a third and press a fourth button at the right time to counter. The truth of the matter, though, is that although the system is simple enough that a beginner can pull off some nice moves, this by no makes the game a button masher. If you’re going to call the Freeflow combat button-mashing, you might as well call Guitar Hero a button masher, and no, that is not an exaggeration. The key to successful combat in Arkham City is timing; you have to time each move to perfectly follow your previous move, counter just at the right moment, dodge exactly when required, all in an effort to boost your combo count and, consequently, the experience you gain from a fight. Perfecting Freeflow combat requires real skill. Add in enemies which require specific attack approaches, special moves and quickfire gadget moves – which allow you to incorporate Batman’s nifty arsenal into his combos – and you’ve got yourself an extremely robust combat system which will probably provide you with some of the most rewarding combat in any action title, ever.

Once you perfect the freeflow combat I guarantee you will feel like a ninja. But, alas, Batman - like all heroes - has a lethal weakness. For Superman, it's kryptonite; for Batman, it's guns - guns will kill the guy. Charge into a room filled with gun-toting goons, and you'll find yourself walking into the light faster than you can say "holy fatal wound, Batman". Armed henchmen require a more tactical approach; namely, stealth. Stealth (or predator) sections will require you to patiently wait in the shadows and use your wits and your gadgets to take out your opponents. Fear not, though, because the game arms you to the teeth, with everything from the must-have batarangs to explosive gel, freeze bombs, smoke grenades and zip lines. These stealth situations are also where you’ll make use Batman’s 'Detective Vision', which allows you to see through walls, in order to identify enemies and the weapons they're carrying. Each predator room is basically a puzzle that needs solving, with the answer always ending up as you doing a triumphant Batoosie dance over a heap of unconscious bodies.

Once you’ve explored, fought and ninja’d your way through the main story there’s still loads - and I mean loads - of things to do in Arkham City. The side missions prepared are just awe-inspiring, with most side quests featuring deep plots and their own villains. These optional quests will have you scouring the city solving The Riddler’s riddles, as lives hang in the balance; investigating a series of grisly murders; chasing down ringing phones in an effort to track down a psychopathic murderer, and so much more. With no hint of a joke, the side missions in Arkham City could be their own stand-alone game, they are that good. You also have the challenge rooms to occupy your time; these are Riddler Challenges, that either see you taking out waves of enemies with Freeflow combat, or clearing rooms of armed thugs in stealth missions. All missions are ranked online, with leaderboards and such, so you always have incentive to come back to these challenges and increase your scores. Add to the mix the addition of the newly re-vogued 'New Game Plus', which lets you play through the main story with all your experience and gadgets whilst considerably ramping up the difficulty, and it's easy to see that replay value is the name of the game. Oh, and I haven’t even mentioned Catwoman yet, have I?

Every new copy of Arkham City includes a download code, which will let you access the Catwoman missions. These missions are interwoven with the game's main narrative, so they seamlessly integrate with the main story. It’s true that you could play the entire game without experiencing the Catwoman missions and not feel like you’re missing out on anything, but trust me, you would be. Catwoman moves and fights completely differently to Batman, and playing as the famed femme fatale was probably one of my favourite experiences of Arkham City. Not only will these missions reveal more about what’s going on in Arkham City, but they will also reward you with some of the best gameplay the title has to offer. Long story short, download, and play now.

Rocksteady has also been generous with its offering of DLC. Already the company has released two DLC character packs, featuring Nightwing and Robin respectively. These packs allow you to play as these two members of the Batman family in all of the game's challenge rooms, as well as in additional challenge rooms included in the DLC. These characters can’t be used in the main game, which has disappointed more than a few fans; however, I can guarantee that each character is worth trying out. Both have a very distinct feel to them, in combat and in stealth missions, and they are more than just palette swaps, with distinct moves, gadgets and combat styles. At the end of the day, though, I’d say that you should only really get these packs if you have the cash to spare, or if you’re a huge fan of the characters, like me. Either way, you won’t be disappointed.

Lastly, I just have to mention how spectacular this game looks. The art style is spot on, and the game is brought to life with stunning graphics and vibrant music, every bit as epic as anything you’d expect to hear in Christopher Nolan’s Batman flicks. It’s the gaming equivalent of awesome sauce, and you know just how awesome awesome sauce is.

I read somewhere that Arkham City was more of a Batman simulator than a game, and I couldn’t agree more. Rocksteady has successfully, and fully, recreated the 'Batman experience' in gaming form, and if you know anything about Batman then you'll know just how much of an impressive feat this is. Batman: Arkham City is easily my favourite game of 2011, and a solid contender for Game of the Year. You owe it to yourself to play this game.

10/10 [?]

Review: X-Men: Destiny

2011-11-29T07:02:00.008Z

X-Men: Destiny

Developer

Silicon Knights

Publisher

Activision

Platforms

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii

Reviewed on

PlayStation 3

Genre

Action RPG/Brawler

Certificate

PEGI 16+, ESRB T

Best price we found in GBP:

£25.99

from Amazon.co.uk

I think the first time I tried to move the TV remote solely using the power of my mind was when I was about eight years old.

I’ve been dreaming of becoming one of Marvel Comics’ ‘mutants’ ever since. I would join the X-Men and become a hero, and be utterly and unapologetically awesome. Alas, it turns out that telekinesis is not one of my god-given talents; at least, not yet. In the meantime, I am left to live out my super-heroic dreams through comics, movies, and games. X-Men Destiny promised to be a cause for celebration for me and my inner eight-year-old, but, regrettably, the celebration consisted of a couple of awkward high-fives instead of the tribal comic geek dance that we had been anticipating.

X-Men: Destiny seems promising enough, as it sets out to tread the ground so many X-Men games before it have surprisingly ignored. Instead of letting you play as an established mutant hero or villain, the game casts you as a new mutant in the Marvel Universe, and allows you to choose your alliances, siding either with the X-Men or the Brotherhood of Mutants. This is a seriously great idea; what better way is there to get the wannabe mutants of the world to identify with a game character, than to let us play through our very own origin story? Sadly, although the premise is full of promise, the execution is a strictly mediocre affair.

The game starts off at a San Francisco peace rally, hosted by the government’s Mutant Response Division, the X-Men and the Mayor. All of the involved parties are hoping to quell the rising tensions between mutants and humans, as relations have hit an all-time low following a series of natural disasters, for which mutants have been scapegoated. Add to that the death of Professor Charles Xavier, and the disbandment of the X-Men, and things look pretty grim. As you can expect, the rally does not go as planned, as an apparent mutant attack sends the masses running for the hills. You stand somewhere in that panicking crowd and, as all hell breaks loose around you, your mutant powers manifest themselves for the very first time. The story offers several predictable twists and turns, but, for the most part, it isn’t half bad. X-Men Destiny offers up a true comic book yarn, which could have been pulled straight out of one of Marvel’s books. So what’s the problem? Well, the problem is the way the game wants you to believe the choices you make have some kind of effect on the story, when, in fact, they don’t.

See, at the beginning of the game, you’re prompted to choose between one of three characters: Aimi Yoshida, a young and spunky Japanese refugee; Grant Alexander, a football jock with a college scholarship (and, if you’re wondering, he is indeed a total douche); and Adrian Luca, who, as the son of a human supremacist, is arguably the most interesting of the three characters. Choosing who you play as is the first 'false' choice that the game presents you with, because the characters are so poorly developed that, regardless of who you choose, your experience with the game will be largely unchanged. Sure, Grant hits on any female character he can find, and Adrian has some serious daddy issues which pop up occasionally, but other than that, the game doesn’t really make you feel like you’re having substantially different experiences.

The same can be said of your choices of alignment with either the X-Men or the Brotherhood. Throughout the game you’ll encounter several well-known Brotherhood and X-Men members, many of whom will ask you for help with various missions and attempt to sway you towards their cause. As a fan of the comics, fighting beside Emma Frost was very different from fighting alongside Mystique, but for the casual gamer, I’m not quite sure the difference will register, largely because the game fails to make the missions offered by both sides feel any different. Most missions task you with taking out a given number of enemies, and regardless of who you fight alongside, you’ll smash through the same faceless lackeys and ultimately head towards the same goal. Having played through the campaign aligned with both the X-Men and the Brotherhood, it was utterly disappointing to choose differently only to find that I ended up taking on exactly the same mission that I had completed before. Talk about lazy game design.

As for the gameplay, X-Men Destiny promises to make me feel like a powerhouse of a mutant, and for the most part, I’m going to go ahead and confirm that this is achieved. Although the game is mostly a button masher, I must admit I did enjoy mashing said buttons, mainly due to the different ways that the game allows you to customise your mutant and his or her powers. At the start of the game, you’ll be asked to choose between three different power sets: density control, which will turn you into a brawler with the ability to encase yourself in obsidian stone; shadow matter, which will allow you to pull off some very acrobatic and quick moves (think a badass Nightcrawler); or energy projection, which will have you shooting shiny lights from your hands that blow stuff up real good. Each power set comes with a branching skill tree, which allows you to upgrade your powers with new combos and abilities, all pretty standard stuff. The real treats, though, are offered up by the X-Genes.

X-Genes are power-ups and upgrades you are awarded with upon completing missions. Think of them as genetic material belonging to your favourite X-Men characters, which you can equip to your character. There are three different types of X-Genes: offensive, which grant special attributes to your attacks; defensive, which ramp up your evasion skills and defensive capabilities; and utility, mostly passive abilities or movement upgrades, which grant you the power of flight or super-speed. If you’re playing with density control powers, you might equip the Iceman offensive X-Gene, the Emma Frost defensive X-Gene, and the Quicksilver utility X-Gene; this will cause your character’s hits to freeze your opponents, and allow you to run around the screen at super-speed with your body encased in diamond. Just that idea is pretty freaking awesome, especially for a fan of the comics.

One last bit of customisation comes in the form of the special suits you find. These suits are also inspired by the most famous mutants in the comics, so each of the three main characters end up with their own version of classic costumes, such as Wolverine’s yellow-and-blue costume, or Psylocke’s purple threads. These suits aren’t just for show, though. If you equip all of the X-Genes related to a specific character and also wear that character's suit, you’ll be able to activate X-Mode, which grants you a considerable power boost for a short period of time, allowing you access to the abilities and powers of the mutant whose genes you have equipped.

So gameplay is completely epic, right? Well, no: sadly, it isn’t. Although goofing about with your mutant powers is fun, the enemies that the game pits you against are just too darn repetitive and, frankly, dumb. The AI is a mess, and enemy variation is slim. You end up feeling like an Omega-level mutant taking on a bunch of Danger Room bots. Can this be fun? Certainly. Is it ultimately forgettable? Absolutely and undeniably.

Lastly, the game has caught a good deal of flak for its presentation, and it’s time that the record were set straight: it isn’t as horrible as certain internet folks would have you believe. The voice work is actually pretty darn good, and all the major players act and sound like you would expect them to, which is something I greatly appreciate. As for the visuals, there are two things to consider: the art style and the graphics. The art style wants to be great; a very cool animation sequence at the beginning of the game just oozes with comic book coolness. Likewise, the character's suits all look good and are faithful to the comic design – with the exception of the newly hippie Nightcrawler – and the main characters’ customised suit designs are pretty authentic as well. The problem is that the graphics just don’t do the designs justice. Character models are seriously lacking in detail and animation fluidity, and the hair, oh-do-not-even-get-me-started on the hair. Mutant powers look okay, with some decent particle effects here and there, but the environments you let your powers loose in are mostly drab and lifeless. All in all, the game is not hideous, but neither is it pretty by any stretch of the imagination. On the heels of Batman: Arkham City, a visually-uninspired comic book game is simply unacceptable.

If you are a fan of the comics, I say you should definitely give X-Men: Destiny a try. There is a certain rush to fighting as a new mutant alongside the likes of Cyclops, Colossus, and Emma Frost, which only an X-Men fan can entirely appreciate. I'd be lying if I said that I didn’t have fun with this game, though whilst X-Men: Destiny is a fun distraction, it doesn't achieve much more than that. If you’re looking for the next great action RPG or comic book game, your attention should be centred elsewhere.

6/10 [?]

Review: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

2011-11-16T20:20:00.000Z

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Developer

Infinity Ward

Publisher

Activision

Platforms

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC

Reviewed on

Xbox 360

Genre

First-person shooter

Certificate

PEGI 18+, ESRB M

Best price we found in GBP:

£38.91

from Amazon.co.uk

My vision blurs, and myriad shouts and explosions fill my ears as I come to. I’m sitting in an overturned Humvee, trying to come to grips with the chaos going on around me.

“We gotta move, now!” calls my squadmate, cutting himself free of his seatbelt. I open the door and hoist myself out, as outside light blinds me. My eyes adjust, and I watch a cruise missile collide with a skyscraper, sending debris cascading down to the street around me. The report of gunfire, grenade concussion and screams of terror and pain wells in my ears. Not far up the street, invading troops are bearing down on my position, barking orders and sending a hail of bullets in our direction. My squadmate tosses me a magazine, and I load my weapon, ready to meet the enemy head-on. This is Modern Warfare 3, and this is only the first level.

Many, including myself, wondered if Infinity Ward - now sans numerous key members of its creative team - could pull off the sort of bombastic, thrilling campaign that the Modern Warfare name is known for, whilst retaining the tight, finely-honed gameplay that brought the series popularity in the first place. Fortunately for gamers everywhere (which numbers at least 6.5 million, based on first-day sales alone), Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 meets Infinity Ward’s high standards, with perhaps the best campaign since Call of Duty 4, and even manages to surpass that hallowed game in several respects. Add the series’ already-exceptional multiplayer and several well-designed cooperative modes, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 easily ranks among the year’s top titles.

Modern Warfare 3 picks up immediately after the end of the second game, with Russia invading the United States over a misdirected terrorist attack, orchestrated by Russian ultranationalist, Makarov. Players take control of several characters over the course of the game, but primarily occupy the boots of Sargeant Derek 'Frost' Westbrook of the US Army, and ex-Spetsnaz soldier Yuri. The game largely expects gamers to remember events from the story in the previous two titles, doing little to re-explain who Makarov is, or why Russia is waging war with the United States, except in brief flashbacks. For those willing to pay attention, as well as dig through the rat-a-tat delivery of military speech voiced by nearly every character, the game does a great job of driving the action forward and providing context for each mission. I’ve seen many folk on Twitter crowing about how difficult the story is to follow, but I thought Modern Warfare 3 does very little to deliberately obfuscate its narrative.

The game trots players around the globe, from Sierra Leone, Africa; to a shelled-out Hamburg, Germany; to a frozen diamond mine buried in Siberia. Variety is the order of the day, and in addition to its many explosive setpieces, Modern Warfare 3 does a good job of changing up gameplay styles and including slower, more deliberate moments, such as navigating a mine-strewn harbour to board a submarine, or using stealth to evade guards on the dark, rainy streets of Prague. Modern Warfare 3’s pacing is outstanding, using the calmer sections to build up the heavy ones, sometimes within the course of the same mission. Admittedly, the game does play it a little safe; none of the scenarios push expectations of what the series can do with shooting. Still, each mission is pitch-perfect and wound tight as a drum, with none of the tricks used by similar games to pad the difficulty or create frustration for its own sake (read: no enemy spawn-closets, and no ‘fend off endless enemies until the data downloads’ missions).

I find Modern Warfare 3’s story to be as good as that of any action movie, and was surprised how - for an ostensibly shallow single player game - the campaign drew me in, and even provided a few emotional moments. The title does an excellent job of building on characters (within the context of a military shooter; this isn’t Mass Effect, after all), and I found myself building an attachment to members of my squad in ways that I hadn’t felt during many recent shooters' campaigns. There was also one moment before the end of the first half that elicited an emotional response from me in a way I hadn’t felt since the infamous Aftermath scene from the first Modern Warfare. The narrative is pure action movie fare, but it’s the very best action movie fare, and is a must-play for shooter fans.

Of course, Call of Duty hasn’t achieved its legend status in the gaming industry solely because of its single player mode. Modern Warfare 3 brings back the series’ much-loved multiplayer, letting players battle it out locally or online via Xbox Live and PlayStation Network, with the option to bring one additional guest via split-screen. Changes are light, but not insignificant. Modern Warfare 3 ditches CoD Points from last year’s Black Ops in favour of level-specific unlocks. Perks have been further rebalanced, feeling more like strategic add-ons rather than nearly-mandatory requirements, and gun-specific perks like Iron Lungs or Deep Impact have been reincorporated as weapon bonuses. Weapons also level up in Modern Warfare 3, unlocking goodies like silencers or personalised scopes through general use. Lastly, Infinity Ward has added two new types of killstreaks (called Strike Packages) that differ from the usual 'kill X players without dying for bonus Y'. Support packages summon team-boosting effects, and allow gamers to retain their kills after dying, whilst the Specialist package gives players additional perks for as long as they can keep their kill streak going. Most will stick with the traditional streaks, called Assault in this game, but the added options are definitely appreciated.

New modes are light in Modern Warfare 3, but fortunately, they’re all keepers. The first is Team Defender, an odd mix of Capture the Flag and Team Deathmatch, with players earning double points whilst they possess a flag. The other (and better) mode is Kill Confirmed, a variation on Team Deathmatch that requires players to collect the dogtags of their fallen victims in order for their kill to count, effectively reducing the effectiveness of camping. Both new modes add a small semblance of strategy to the usual Team Deathmatch fare, and stand proudly alongside staples like Domination, Sabotage and Demolition.

Maps in Modern Warfare 3 are fun, though they merely feel ‘pretty good’ rather than ‘great.’ Maps are much more conducive to tight, close-quarters action, though many have enough open spaces to make sniping a valid strategy. As always, learning a map’s chokepoints and alternate routes will help determine players’ success, a problem that Activision’s new social tool , Call of Duty Elite, is supposed to help address. However, at the time of writing, the service was still largely out of commission, and I was unable to dive into the its finer points. Whilst each map is more than sufficient for team play, Modern Warfare 3 lacks any standout maps, like Afghan or Nuke Town. Still; deeper, more rewarding multiplayer games are hard to come by, and Modern Warfare 3’s online modes should be more than enough to satiate those with an itchy trigger finger.

For players uninterested in competitive play, Modern Warfare 3 also includes two flavours of co-operative gaming with the return of Spec Ops. New to Spec Ops is the Horde-esque Survival mode, which pitches increasingly-difficult waves of enemies against players, forcing them to group up, purchase weapons and revive one another in an effort see how long they can last. The Missions mode is similar to Spec Ops’ iteration in Modern Warfare 2, pitting teams of two players against a variety of objective-based situations, from rescuing hostages in an African village to collecting samples of biological weapons in a hulking Juggernaut suit. Best are the scenarios that place gamers in specific roles, such as a mission where one player must utilise a base’s security system to clear the way for another player, who must reach the endpoint before time runs out. Mission mode features sixteen different operations to work through, and finishing each one requires teamwork and constant communication, leading to an incredible sense of satisfaction upon completion. Spec Ops also features a progression system similar to the one found in multiplayer, adding an extra incentive for return sessions.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is absolutely crammed to the gills with worthy content, from its harrowing and thrilling single player campaign, to its deep and addicting multiplayer, to its varied and rewarding co-operative play. It is incredible that a brand like Call of Duty can operate at such a high level, year in and year out, and Modern Warfare 3 toes the line, providing the best franchise experience in years. Perhaps next time, Activision could try to innovate a bit further and push gamers’ expectations with the series. Still, what’s here is absolutely stellar, and shooter fans owe Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 a spot on their shelf this holiday season.

10/10 [?]

Review: Gears of War 3

2011-11-16T05:32:00.000Z

Gears of War 3

Developer

Epic Games

Publisher

Microsoft Studios

Platforms

Xbox 360

Reviewed on

Xbox 360

Genre

Third-person shooter

Certificate

PEGI 18+, ESRB M

Best price we found in GBP:

£35.99

from Amazon.co.uk

Depending on who you are, Gears of War 3's release may feel either as exciting as a roller-coaster, or as tired as Rip Van Winkle.

Whilst Gears still retains the gritty, post-apocalyptic shooter attributes many have grown to love (or hate), Gears 3 manages to overcome its previous obstructions with surprising tenacity. Gears 3 contains nearly every element that has brought the series fame thus far: cover-mongering, macho one-liners, bizarre story elements and an unyielding multiplayer component. However, the way they come together is enjoyable nonetheless, providing satisfying closure for both the game and the Gears trilogy as a whole.

Nearly a year and a half after the events of the previous game, Gears 3 opens with Marcus and company roaming the open seas. Now that the Lambent have established themselves as a true threat to both humanity and the Locust, Marcus and crew are trying desperately to simply survive. However, Marcus soon receives notice that his father is alive, and could hold the key to ending the perpetual conflict of planet Sera, once and for all.

The narrative behind the Gears of War saga is one of conflict, drawing sharp contrast from gamers of all suits, and it's easy to see why. Unless you've played all the games in their entirety, you're going to have a hard time figuring out what's going on. The Lambent, whilst having a presence in the second title, aren't formally introduced until this game, and, to be honest, it's somewhat of a contrived entry. When the first Gears game was released back in 2006, it was all about Emergence Day, the Locust, and their undying animosity towards the human race. Gears 2 made everything much more convoluted with the introduction of the Locust/Lambent civil war, and the hint that the Locust might actually be mutated humans. Both games seemed indecisive in the direction they wanted to go, but thankfully, Gears 3 touches on both of its predecessors by actually explaining some of these queries.

This narrative clarity is one of the greatest strengths of Gears 3, giving answers without some improvised workaround. There still are questions, mind you, but instead of leaving the mysteries of the Locust and even some of the human characters ambiguous, Gears 3 offers enough explanation and exposition to keep you informed, ending with a mostly satisfying conclusion. I say 'mostly' because the story has really lost control, and you can thank the writers of the second game for that. Not everyone will agree, but there was a lot of missed opportunity to expand upon the enigmatic Locust, and it's disappointing that the apparent 'best idea' was a civil war. At least this time around you'll see more realistic emotion and reflection within each character, rather than the exaggerated and cavalier royal-douchebaggery that we've seen in the past. Regardless, Gears 3 actually comes to a definite and interesting end, and for that I must give credit to Karen Traviss, the writer brought onboard by Epic to help guide the narrative along and save the story from itself.

Like Gears 2, the third entry has a bad habit of throwing new characters into the mix simply because it can. You'll be introduced to several new faces who, previously, have only been mentioned in books and other out-of-game lore or DLC. For me, making it almost a necessity to read other forms of media to understand what's going on in the game is lethargic and counterproductive. Who the hell is this Sam chick? Bernie? Jace? Anya's got a gun now? What? If you've followed Gears 3 since its initial announcement, almost everything I've listed makes perfect sense, but the game never fully explains what's been going on. Sometimes thrusting you into the thick of it works, but in this case, it raises more questions than it answers.

One of the biggest changes to the campaign is the inclusion of four player co-op. This is a tremendous addition, as it allows anybody to jump into the game via Xbox Live. It certainly prospers from such a great cooperative boost, but it almost makes the game feel like it's a necessity to play with two or more people. You see, regardless of where you go, there will always be three people with you at all times, and the environments are enormous. Sure, there are sections where you get split up for a few moments, but overall, the game is far too easy when playing alone. Having finished the campaign on the Hardcore setting once by myself, I never once had to worry about whether I was going to die, since the AI was always right there to get me back on feet. They also shoot at everything, sometimes from impossible angles, and have four times the health you do, making your success all the easier. You'll certainly have to do most of the heavy lifting, but if you're going to play this campaign and get the full experience, grab a few of your friends and dive in.

After the campaign lies defeated by your righteous hand, there are several multiplayer components to choose from. Besides the standard competitive modes, Horde makes a triumphant return, and is indisputably better than its predecessor. This time, you earn cash for killing foes, which you can use to erect fortifications, pick up weapons and ammo, or even buy yourself back into a round if you've suffered an early death. It's more tower-defence-esque in style, and every ten waves there are newly-introduced boss battles, which can range from a slog against a nasty Lambent Berserker to a toe-to-toe scuffle with a murderous Brumak. Horde is a whole heap of fun, but it's more of a distraction than anything.

New to Gears 3 is Beast, a brand-spankin' new mode that allows you and four others to play as various Locust against thirteen waves of AI-controlled humans. Think of it as a reversed Horde mode, but subject to a strict time limit that can be boosted by either killing the humans or destroying their fortifications. As you progress, you'll receive cash, along with stronger tiers of Locust to choose from; you can't start out as the Berserker but you can definitely play as her eventually. Once again, it's more distraction material, but Beast is still entertaining for what it is.

Beast and Horde might both be a healthy dose of fun, but the competitive multiplayer is where the real meat of the experience lies. Practically all of the previous modes return, including Execution, Warzone and Wingman, but the new kid on the block is Team Deathmatch. Unlike the typical Gears setup, Team Deathmatch gives each team a pool of lives. Each time someone gets vapourised, it'll subtract one from the overall pool until one team runs out of guys. I'm not a big fan of this mode, as it detracts from the strategic value of a single life, and allows the typically-balanced maps to become camping grounds. At least it gives restless folks and the uninitiated a chance to come back for more punishment at a quicker pace.

You'll also notice there are achievements, medals and new ribbons for practically every little thing you do. Died first in a round? Ribbon! Most kills in a round? Ribbon! Most time in cover? Ribbon! Most time downed? Ribbon! I'm not sure how I feel about it, but at least the menus help keep track of everything in an organised fashion. Oh, and remember those "seriously?" achievements? Well, "Seriously 3.0" is still serious, and practically impossible to unlock — as it should be.

Gears 3 fully repairs the broken elements of the series and expands upon them to a shockingly wonderful degree. The four-player cooperative campaign is a great touch, and the pure variety found in the multiplayer cannot be denied. This game is the definitive Gears experience, and while it may be the last of the trilogy and the final entry for Delta Squad, you can bet it's not the last we'll see of this notable franchise.

8/10 [?]

Review: Dead Island

2011-11-14T19:23:00.000Z

Dead Island

Developer

Naughty Dog

Publisher

Deep Silver

Platforms

Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3

Reviewed on

PlayStation 3

Genre

Horror, action-adventure, open-world

Certificate

PEGI 18+, ESRB M

Best price we found in GBP:

£34.90

from Amazon.co.uk

Very few games come to prominence like Dead Island did. Those AAA titles with millions behind them get lavish reveal trailers and huge advertising contracts, which all come together to build a never-ceasing hype train.

On the flip side of things, you do occasionally get the rare indie game that can engender communal childish commotion over a charming idea or unique style. But with Dead Island? A single trailer was enough to propel it into stardom.

A Polish developer with a chequered past. A publisher that juggles the superb S.T.A.K.E.R. with the likes of Russell Grant's Astrology. A setting and plot reeking of cliché and originality. Yet, once that announcement trailer hit, everyone looked past all those details. That single trailer was able to cause such a massive fuss because it promised us a mature game; a game with strong emotional connections and heartbreaking violence, not just the usual blood and guts which make up countless shoddy copycats. Dead Island was so, so exciting.

The actual game is a totally different beast. It is a mature game, yes. But only because you can slice off zombie limbs in glistening HD.

Dead Island puts you in the shoes of one of four survivors, and tasks you with finding some escape from a beautiful paradise which has turned into a baneful bloodbath. Sounds familiar? That's because it is familiar. Truth be told, there is nothing in Dead Island's set-up that is remotely new or fresh; much like the zombies it portrays, Dead Island is simply a rotting, abhorrent husk of the original material it feeds off. There's nothing wrong with being unoriginal - after all, Left 4 Dead is still one of the finest zombie experiences out there - but Dead Island seems determined to shoot itself in the foot. The four survivors have surprisingly complex and sympathetic back-stories - it was exceptionally difficult to choose between a fallen football idol and an ambitious policewoman. Of course, in the end, it doesn't matter; you'll never get anything more, in terms of characterisation, than an 'eat that!' remark as you crack skulls. It's sourly disappointing to see Dead Island squander its potential.

However, once you jump into the game, you might just be able to forget about all that. The opening scene, where you wake up to an abandoned hotel, is startlingly well done, especially having to charge down corridors to escape a hungry horde; and once you get used to the slightly bulky controls - think the heaviness of Killzone 2 bumped up to eleven, and you have Dead Island's lumbering sensitivity - it's really all a bit fun. Stupid, needlessly violent, cliché and vapid, but fun nonetheless.

The zombies all have excellent physics, meaning that swipes with a baseball bat and slashes of a machete will provoke different and appropriate reactions from your enemies, making combat that much more fulfilling. Likewise (and regardless of your weapon of choice), there is an undeniable and honourific guilty pleasure in maiming a bikini-clad member of the rich and famous, whilst the appearance of a special infected swings the doors of strategies tactics wide open for you. You'll find your favourite weapons, upgrade them, possibly even modify them, all for the glorious and goreious (I made that word up, kids) buckets of red that stream from leg stumps. Dead Island is built on a foundation of smacking around the undead, and it's a brilliant foundation.

Of course, one can only aimlessly set fire to parasitic prisoners for so long; it's the game's job to make you feel like you're actually accomplishing something with all that maiming and decapitation, and for a while the missions in the game seem quite promising. Finding tired and aimless camps of survivors is initially thrilling, with a strong and logical string of main quests. Whether it's fixing up cars to drive over zombies with ease, or picking up the last scraps of food from beach bars, it really keeps you going through all the killing. In particular, you're told of a monsoon coming, and thunderous roars from the clear-blue heavens above make you feel under incredible pressure. Unfortunately, after a while it all goes downhill. Missions that start out with clear initial objectives soon becomes tarnished, with characters saying, "hang on, just get me a bit more petrol", or "before we get going, I just need an extra stick of chewing gum". At this rate, missions quickly become tedious, and as you venture into the city, the sewers, and later the jungle, everything becomes more linear and corridoric. Oh, and that monsoon? It's nothing more than a light bit of rain that clouds the game from time to time, and messes up the graphics. Speaking of graphics, the Chrome Engine which the game runs on boasts an odd mix of delightfully angelic and downright disfigured graphics, with more bugs and glitches than you can shake a hundred day-one patches at. What begins with promise quickly becomes a game stalling for time as it realises it needs to deliver fifteen hours worth of gameplay.

The problems don't end with bugs. There are scandalous difficulty spikes; particularly gruesome zombies known as Floaters, in particular, can spit furious venom at you, yet take a good dozen blows to finally surrender their crimson insides. The 'Infected', zombies who can sprint at you, seem to have a nasty habit of getting into unbreakable animations - despite endless kicking and even some slicing, they'll continue to pick away at your health with all disregard, until ending their little attack animation and suddenly dropping dead. It really isn't as fun as it sounds. And don't expect to find the emotional depth the game promised in other characters, as there seem to be only a handful of NPCs; one of the only emotional points in the game comes when a daughter is forced away by her slowly dying father, but two minutes later I'm talking to survivors with exactly the same beard and hat as him. Unless criminals are reduced to stealing facial hair in the zombie apocalypse, the only thing to blame is lazy design.

What isn't as lazy is the online co-op. Four friends can take the role of each survivor and have some good, old-fashioned fun. It really changes the mood of the game - in single-player, Dead Island can often be quite tense and thrilling, bordering on terrifying, yet with three mates it just becomes an unholy massacre. It's far too easy and distracts from any mood the developers were trying to create, but in its place comes the simple joy of friends having fun - not even Left 4 Dead can match the joy of having each player cut a limb off a lumbering Thug all at once. Personally, I much preferred the lonely, solitary experience, but it's nice to know that when that gets boring, you can turn Dead Island into Light-hearted Trigger Happy Island.

All in all, Dead Island is brainless. Sluggish, obtuse, dazed and ludicrous, it shuffles along half-heartedly, trampling all the potential it once commanded. But, when you take up arms and start sawing arms off, Dead Island is mindless merriment. It's big and dumb, but for all its faults and squandered potential, there's nothing quite as satisfying as a no-holds-barred zombie massacre.

9/10 [?]

Review: Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

2011-11-07T16:58:00.004Z

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Developer

Naughty Dog

Publisher

Sony Computer Entertainment

Platforms

PlayStation 3

Genre

Action-adventure, third-person shooter

Certificate

PEGI 16+, ESRB T

Best price we found in GBP:

£37.91

from Amazon.co.uk

One of the PlayStation 3’s first killer apps, the Uncharted series has wowed players with its deft blend of platforming, shooting, and some of the most enthralling cinematic moments in gaming.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception shows developer Naughty Dog knocking it out of the park once again, with perhaps the best entry in the series yet. Though it sports a few legacy weaknesses that gave previous entries trouble, Uncharted 3 still delivers an expertly-paced and ultimately satisfying adventure that ranks it amongst the cream of 2011's gaming crop.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception reintroduces players to protagonist Nathan Drake, adventure capitalist (read: treasure hunter) who claims to be the long-lost descendant of Sir Francis Drake, famed British explorer. Drake’s Deception sees Drake chasing after the fabled Atlantis of the Sands, a city of immeasurable wealth hidden somewhere in the Arabian Desert. Joining him are Victor 'Sully' Sullivan, Drake’s long-time partner in crime; Chloe Frazer, an Australian thief who has history with Drake, and newcomer Charlie Cutter, a muscle-man whose bald head and dialect make him powerfully reminiscent of actor Jason Statham. Opposing him is Katherine Marlowe, an elderly woman chasing after the same treasure, and whose cropped, blonde hair and restrained, dignified manner is to Helen Mirren what Charlie’s Cockney-isms are to Statham.

Story has constantly been the best aspect of the Uncharted series, and Drake's Deception is arguably the strongest yet, taking Nathan from Northern France, to merry old England, to the Rub’ al Khali desert, with many other locations waiting in the wings. In addition to following Drake in his pursuit of the lost city, players are also invited to explore Nathan’s history with Sully, detailing their past, and delving slightly into their relationship together. The adventure is impeccably well-voiced and acted, with returning performers Nolan North, Richard McGonagle and Claudia Black sounding comfortable in their established roles, whilst newcomers Graham McTavish and Rosalind Ayres easily keep pace with the veterans. Additionally, the writing is solid, the motion capture work and facial animations in the cutscenes have never looked better, and Naughty Dog has taken every possible step to ensure that Uncharted 3 stands toe-to-toe with the best adventure stories in cinema.

The Uncharted series has always sported great heroes, but lacked a great villain. That is, until Katherine Marlowe.

Previous Uncharted titles have boasted a wealth of memorable set piece moments, from discovering a German U-Boat in the first game to fighting one's way to the front of a moving train in the second. Uncharted 3 has perhaps more and better set pieces than either of the previous entries, including a harrowing escape from a burning manor and a heated pursuit of a convoy travelling through the desert, with the highlight being a combination platforming/shooting trek through a massive ship graveyard. Not only are the explosive, exciting parts well-worth remembering, but the game’s slower, more deliberate moments consistently feel engaging as well, with one scene near the end vying for the standout sequence of the entire game. The puzzles are greatly improved as well, with much greater variety, and are far more deft when it comes to making the player feel smart for solving them.

In terms of presentation, Uncharted 3 is outstanding. Character models look and move in more convincing, realistic ways, and some of the lighting effects need to be seen to be believed. But the game undoubtedly shines brightest in its art direction. Every location feels distinct and immaculately detailed, from the general look of the area to the minute details of each nook and cranny. Uncharted’s musical score is once again provided by Firefly composer Greg Edmondson, who effortlessly combines Middle Eastern themes with the series’ already-established motifs, creating perhaps his finest work to date.

Uncharted 3 is the best-looking game in the series, making it one of the best-looking games on the PlayStation 3.

Of course, at the end of the day, games are meant to be played, and Uncharted 3 retains its jack-of-all-trades approach to gameplay, incorporating many different mechanics that, whilst reasonably satisfying on their own, are rarely better than those found in other, more-focussed titles. Case in point: the shooting. Uncharted 3’s gunplay has been tweaked from the previous two iterations, feeling slightly tighter and more refined, but it still merely feels 'pretty good', and doesn’t crackle like other top-tier third-person shooting games (such as Gears of War 3, for instance). Similarly, its platforming elements, whilst solid and well-executed, still feel slightly autopilot-esque, and don’t measure up to titles like Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time or Batman: Arkham City. Still, rare is a game that allows players to experience such a breadth of different gameplay styles, and Uncharted 3 is still a blast to play, in spite of being no greater than it has to be (which is still pretty good).

Sadly, there are a few flies in this title’s ointment, though they’re far from dealbreakers. Perhaps the biggest quibble is with the game’s platforming; owing to the quality of Uncharted 3’s graphics, it can often be difficult to distinguish a portion of wall that can be gripped from one that can’t, potentially resulting in several unintended deaths. At other times, the game has difficulty recognising which handhold the player wants to grab on to; there will be times when a gripping point will be right there, but Nathan will refuse to jump until the control stick is placed in exactly the correct position. Uncharted 3 also has a bad habit of throwing entirely too many enemies into an area at once; cover-based shooters work best when the player can actually find cover, but more than a few instances find the player surrounded by bad guys, with no adequate way to hide from oncoming gunfire. Lastly, some gamers may find Uncharted 3’s ultra-scripted nature off-putting; the game directs players along a very specific path with little room for deviation, though this is obviously a feature, and not a bug.

Firefights can get a little heated, but can be overcome with a little lateral thinking.

For players who don’t want to go it alone, Uncharted 3 also includes a fairly robust multiplayer mode. Like many top-tier multiplayer titles, Uncharted 3 features customisable weapon loadouts, perks, and a levelling system that lets players accrue experience points, rank up, and unlock new weapons and appearances. Game modes include standard Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag (called 'Plunder' here), and a grab-bag, best-of-five objective mode similar to Killzone 3’s Warzone. What separates Uncharted 3’s multiplayer from its contemporaries is its verticality; match flow can feel drastically different from something like Gears of War when players are able to scramble over buildings and take cover whilst hanging from ledges. Who knows if the community will continue to be robust in the coming months, but multiplayer is certainly fun enough for those who want to put the time in.

Even with its set of small gaffes, Uncharted 3 is a must-play. Its thrilling set pieces, engaging character moments and epic scope make it the best story in the series, and its gameplay still feels polished. For fans of adventure properties like Indiana Jones or Duck Tales, Uncharted 3 is an experience that can’t be missed.

9/10 [?]

Review: Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad

2011-09-14T20:43:00.001+01:00

Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad has the best pistols of any game I've ever played. And for me, that's a big thing. When you're stuck with a bolt-action rifle, and a swarm of Nazis are bearing down, you need a Plan B. Usually, in games, pistols are next to useless; peashooters that dribble pellets of soft cheese at your enemies. They're weak, boring and might as well not be there. But in Red Orchestra 2? Sidearms are king.

Whipping out a Luger P08 never felt so good, nor contained so much sexual innuendo. You bring the iron sights up to your eyes, able to see the whole battlefield at a glance; as you slowly tread around a corner, some feckless Russian storms right into your line of fire. You plug three sharp, curt, quick bullets into his stomach. But one would have been enough. He slumps to the floor, draped in a fitting shade of red.

And that's just the pistol.

Red Orchestra 2 is the fully-fledged sequel to Tripwire's Unreal Engine 2.5-powered Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45, which came out in 2006. With the limited resources it had, the game was wildly ambitious, pitting 64 plays in the most authentic Second World War action around. Despite the shoddy graphics and clumsy UI, it was a powerfully realistic, immersive experience, but only for those PC gamers willing to put in a great deal of time. This time round, Tripwire have taken unprecedented care with Heroes of Stalingrad. And it shows.

The graphics are nothing short of stunning. Textures are as crisp as they are hauntingly brutal, character models so close to the uncanny valley that they almost fall in, and it boasts all the extra trimmings, like light shafts and excellent bloom and blur effects. I'm happy to go on record and say that the sun-kissed Grain Elevator map is more beautiful than anything Modern Warfare 3 will be able to muster, and it at times borders on Battlefield 3 levels of beauty. Static screenshots simply don't do it justice. When in motion, Red Orchestra 2 is something else; words cannot describe in enough detail. It'll push your PC a bit, so be willing to drop down if you get a choppy framerate, but even on the more conservative settings, you'll be in awe.

Of course, the graphics mean nothing. Why? Because there is no game so thrilling passionate about putting you in the boots of a solider. 'Immersive' and 'realistic' are words I'm bound to throw around a great deal, but they have never carried more gravitas than with Red Orchestra 2. There is no HUD to speak of - a tiny mini-map to help you find you way is all that will occasionally lure your attention away, and even that can be switched off in certain servers. When you shoot a player, there is no hit marker; you have to hold your breath for a few seconds, watch to see if they're dead, and - if you're lucky - a message will pop up only a few moments later to give you confirmation of a kill. This is such a small detail, but one that has a huge effect; you have to take care with your shots, and the extra delay gives rise to exhilarating seconds of watching, waiting for any movement. There is no red 'Shoot Me!' text over enemies, as it's up to you to discern between the grey-brown uniforms of the Nazis and the brown-grey coats of the Soviets. This is not a game that holds you by the hand; you're out on your own, and it's up to you to win or lose. It's a hugely liberating feeling, if a tad daunting, but with a bit a perseverance and a few team-kills, you'll get used to it.

This creativity and uniqueness stretches even into the game modes and maps you'll be playing. Each map I've played have all been well-crafted, from the close quarters of Barracks, to the epic war of attrition in Red October Factory. There are natural choke points, deadly sniper holes and, in the larger maps, wide open plains in which you'll cower at the might of opposition storming your positions. There's a choice of three modes, but the mode that's all the rage, Territory, has the Nazis and Allies competing to capture as many of the five or so 'control points' as possible. Every twenty seconds, dead players respawn, which gives the impression of enemy reinforcements. It really does make a difference - instead of players constantly drip-feeding in, you can experience game-altering surges of Soviets in a sudden swell of success, and there's nothing more terrifying than twenty Nazis streaming past your sniper nest.

Each class only has a limited number of people in them; only two marksmen are allowed, only six Assault Riflemen, only six squad leaders, and so on until the remaining few have to plump for a bog-standard rifle. It speaks volumes about where Red Orchestra 2's true passions lie: not in getting you the pink MP40 you've always wanted and letting you raising hell, but rather focussing on teamwork and tactical play. If you find yourself with a machine gun, you have to take it upon yourself to find a good hiding spot and mow enemies down, whilst as a sniper you'll have to hold back and pick people off at distance. Amazingly, it works; people really do adapt to their roles, and on a good server with good players it all fits together so perfectly.

The game also has a single-player campaign, but since I sprang straight in to the multiplayer element of the game, it gives you a good idea as to where Tripwire's attention was focussed. The campaign is split into 'Axis' and 'Allies', yet - whilst having a commander in the Reich rouse you to Lebensraum is a surprisingly fresh and novel experience - Tripwire hardly pull any heartstrings or shock you with twists and turns. In fact, it could be argued that the single player is totally devoid of emotion. You learn the ropes easily, but then you're thrown into all the multiplayer maps successively, with objectives for you and your AI buddies to storm towards. There are cutscenes which tie these objectives together with some very appreciated editing and war footage, but there's little to no story to speak of, and no emotional connection with the characters. Some might be disappointed with this, and whilst it certainly means you should look towards other games for your plot-heavy single-player, Red Orchestra 2 knows that it's more fun when shared. The AI is just about capable, and there's a very neat little feature where you can respawn directly into another class upon death. It means you can hone skills for multiplayer, while also giving you a different feel to the gameplay; one minute you're rushing ahead as an elite rifleman, while other times you'll hang back with a sniper rifle. Certainly, when you and a friend take on the computer in co-op, it provides a playground of sorts to test skills and create strategies. Single-player simply acts as respite between online bouts; a quicker-to-complete, more simple experience that allows you some alone time.

The game is not without fault. Occasionally, you'll spawn without a weapon in your hand, or character animation will freeze during a reload animation, rendering you useless. These are but waves in a small ocean of clipping issues, broken physics, and being-able-to-see-through-walls-if-you-look-at-them-at-the-right-angle. There was a very real chance that these could be horrible smears on otherwise polished and shining game, but honestly, you'll forgive and forget quickly. There's just too much to like for those small things to get in the way.

There's so much to love in Red Orchestra 2. Weapons are not fixed to the centreof the screen, and are fully 3D models which exist and react organically within the world: you can take cover, push your rifle to the edges of a window frame and easily pepper an enemy location, all whilst the camera remains static. Not only is it massively advantageous in gameplay, it also looks incredibly cinematic. On every weapon, you can adjust the sights to help hit targets at distance, whilst on sniper rifles, you can switch between a scope and iron sights, making it a viable close-quaters option too. Nowhere else can you stumble across two players discussing the historical authenticities of a PPSh-41. Red Orchestra 2 is simply one of a kind.

Battlfield 3 will bring us shooting. Beautiful shooting on an epic scale, yes, but shooting none the less. Modern Warfare 3 will bring us chaos on a disc. Both those titles are distinctly different, yet still go through the same old routines. But Red Orchestra 2 is unexpected; it's unpredictable and totally unique, taking a refreshingly mature approach to game design. If you're getting tired of the same old FPSs, Tripwire's latest is a masterpiece and nothing less. And whilst everybody places their bets on Battlefield 3 to trump Call of Duty, spare a thought for Red Orchestra 2. It just might surprise you.

9/10 [?]

Review: Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet

2011-08-14T16:56:00.000+01:00

Xbox Live’s Summer of Arcade continues with Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet, a 2D Metroidvania game from developer Fuel Cell Games, and animator Michel Gagné. The Xbox Live Arcade has no shortage of quality platformers, but Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet sets itself apart with a heavily-stylised art direction and an impressive atmosphere. The game has a few technical issues holding it back from greatness, but its offbeat, edgy charm and mostly-solid mechanics make for a well-playing and a highly-unique experience.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet opens with an unknown darkness enveloping the star of a small solar system, spreading its corruptive influence to the nearby planets. Players take control of a nameless spaceship pilot, as he attempts to thwart the planet’s darkness and restore his home. The story is told sans dialogue, through a small series of short cutscenes, letting gamers focus on the gameplay with little interruption from the plot.

Gameplay consists of exploring the eponymous planet, defeating bosses and discovering new tools for further exploration. Players will chart their way through six different areas, and, in true Metroidvania fashion, revisit them several times with new abilities. Hidden throughout the map are upgrades to the ship’s weapons and armour, with additional cinematics or pieces of concept art lying even further off the beaten path.

Play mechanics in Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet are fairly sound. Controlling a spaceship allows for greater mobility than other platforming titles, letting gamers zip about to their heart’s content. As a result, much of the game is built around solving equipment-related puzzles to get to the next area, rather than tricky jumps or intense combat. The tools collected throughout the game are varied, from object-destroying missiles to block-moving tractor beams. Many of the items collected can also be used in battle, such as the laser’s crowd-control abilities, or the barrier’s ability to block oncoming enemy fire.

Part of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet’s draw is its imaginative art direction, by Michel Gagné. Gagné, an effects animator who has worked on films such as An American Tail, The Land Before Time and The Iron Giant, gives every environment an off-kilter, malevolent edge, with stark and sharply-contrasting colours and harsh-looking landscapes. With its borderless designs and intensely-saturated aesthetic, the overall look of the game is reminiscent of the TV series Samurai Jack.

The art lends itself to the atmosphere as well. The backgrounds often have different activities visible in the distance, from flying birds to flowing liquid, whilst the sound design is filled with ambient noises of the planet functioning. The game uses progressively darker colours, as players delve further and further into the planet, making the excursion feel akin to Journey to the Centre of the Earth or, combined with the free range of movement, deep sea exploration.

Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is not without its faults, though. Many puzzles rely on the grappling tool for their solution, but unlike other items in the game, there’s never a clear ‘tell’ of what can be grappled and what can’t, leaving players to blind grab at various objects in the environment, usually with negative results. The map system also doesn’t do as good a job as other, similar titles at hinting at potentially-hidden items in the environment; completists looking to collect every hidden trinket are going to face an uphill battle.

At its best, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet flaunts several brilliant puzzle scenarios, making creative use of previously-gained equipment and making the player feel clever for solving them. At its worst, however, it creates many overly-vague and arbitrary situations, leaving the player to literally grope around the environment for a solution that will lead them to the next area. This wide split between the fun and the frustrating makes Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet a somewhat schizophrenic experience.

Ultimately, though, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet is a fine game, with addictive exploration elements and a look that is a welcome antidote to modern next-gen visual stylings (read: bronze-and-dirt-coloured). It’s the least of the three Metroidvania titles on the Xbox Live Arcade (behind Shadow Complex and Outland), but Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet’s solid hook, fun play mechanics and inventive art direction still make it well-worth invading.

8/10 [?]

Retrospective Review: Dead Space 2 (including video review)

2011-08-13T14:29:00.000+01:00

Sleeper hits like the original Dead Space are proof that the horror genre, inadvisably, is undead. Complete with satisfying shooting, space curb-stomps and legitimate scary moments, Dead Space 2 is more of the same with some augmentations. It isn't a reinvention of the wheel, but the original Dead Space formula was already a sound enough one, which didn't require many tweaks to its already commendable horror/shooter setup. Throw in some new competitive online action, and there's something for just about everyone in Visceral's little monster.

It's been about three years since the game's protagonist, Isaac Clark, last combated the parasitic Necromorphs that riddled the dark corridors of the first game. Having been out of commission for unknown reasons, Isaac awakens on a moon orbiting Saturn, just as the Necromorphs begin their rampage of terror... again. Fortunately, he'll have some new toys and friends to help him along the way.

Admittedly, the story behind Dead Space 2 isn't a strong one. Waking aboard a mysterious space station, only to see the Necromorph threat already in full swing, was a bit disappointing. The first game built up the unveiling of the infection, making the threat feel that much more terrifying, along with some pretty astonishing moments. In its defense, the threat was already identified in the original game, so it'd be hard to control those emotions so fluidly this time around. That's not to say that the narrative behind the game is bad, but it isn't until you get well beyond the halfway mark that you begin to understand the issues behind-the-scenes. Even then, it's a very predictable and contrived string of events that didn't leave me surprised in the least.

Despite the lack of ingenuity in the story, I found the characters this time around to be much more personable. I'd say 'likeable', but who can you like in deep space when you're surrounded by necrotic aliens who want your brains? Exactly. The normally-mute Isaac actually debuts with fully-fledged dialogue and stand-alone personality; this one manoeuvre is mostly responsible for my positive reaction to characters, since Isaac can now interact with the people around him by engaging in actual conversation. Before, Isaac was basically in the backseat as other characters ran the show with their dialogue, commanding you to do what they willed. No longer.

Just as all sequels do, Dead Space 2 spices up the combat with some nifty new gadgets and techniques. If you played the first game, you'd know that the shooting/combat was fun and responsive, but Visceral wanted you to feel at a disadvantage, being an engineer and all. That focus has changed with the sequel, or so they wanted you to think. Saying that, Visceral was touting Dead Space 2 as being more centred around offense and 'badass' weaponry, when really it plays identically to the first game. The only actual military-grade 'weapons' you have is the Pulse Rifle and the brand-new Seeker Rifle, a normal rifle with a zoom feature that I found largely useless. Other than that, all of your previous weapons from the first game make a return here, including my favorite, the Force Gun.

Being able to wield four weapons certainly throws some unnatural variety into your dismembering ways, but don't get stuck using only the old-school guns. If I could give out a recommendation, try some of the new stuff out, such as the Detonator and Javelin. Just as it sounds, the new Javelin gun is actually quite fun to use. Obviously, stapling a crazed creature with several razor-sharp limbs to the wall is great enough, but when it doesn't quite work like that, you can always hit the alt-fire and watch as your target gets crispy from concentrated electrification. The Detonator is also nice because the mines you fire explode on contact, or can be set tactically to prevent those nasty beasts from creeping up on you. I can't tell you how many times I'd be fighting one creature, only to see seemingly random limbs go flying past me, from another trying to be stealthy. It's a pretty awesome feeling.

Visually, Dead Space 2 is excellent; its clean-cut interface returns unscathed from the original, and the space environments are simply breathtaking. Beautiful as some of the scenery is, Visceral never loses sight of the fact that Dead Space 2 requires a mostly solitary and violent atmosphere in order to remain relevant. Rooms are stricken with bodies and excess blood, and the plethora of blinking and fading lights certainly aids in that claustrophobic feeling. Speaking of claustrophobic, Isaac can now enter grates in walls to get to and from certain areas; it isn't the innovation of the century, but it does make sense for a game like this.

One of my favorite parts of the original game centred around the Zero-G space events. Unlike the first game, which required you to jump from place to place, Dead Space 2 gives you full control of how you move. This decision aids in the creative nature of certain puzzles, and navigating them is a fun, but often tense, endeavour. For obvious reasons, combat is also much more fun this way.

Fun as it is, Dead Space 2 is not without its quirks and deficiencies. It didn't happen very often, but sometimes whatever device I was lifting using Kinesis would just up-and-vanish for no reason. There were also a few rooms where one or more of the Necromorphs would be running in place perpetually, even when I blew their limbs off; don't ask me how. But perhaps the worst issue is something Visceral put into the game on purpose. Due to a bug that happened around the time of the game's launch, Visceral unlocked all of the bonus suits and weapons right out of the gate, also making them free to purchase. This provides a problem; you could start the game with some souped-up weapons and armour that would otherwise be inaccessible to you, making currency almost irrelevant and the game infinitely more easy. Unfortunately, there's no possible way to disable this 'feature'.

Once your romp through the Sprawl comes to a close, there's always the 'New Game+' option. Diving into 'New Game+' will let you carry over everything you've built up in the previous campaign into a new playthrough. There's also a new Hardcore game mode, which features the toughest enemies, minimal health pickups and - get ready - it'll only allow you to save three times throughout the whole game. The entire game. If that doesn't do it for you, and playing through the game again doesn't get you excited, then you could always jump into the brand new competitive multiplayer. Except, you actually really shouldn't.

Dead Space 2 is a single player game, and that is a known fact. Implementation of a multiplayer mode was only a selling point to try and get more sales: "you can shoot 'dudes' online now!" Terse as this statement is, Dead Space 2's multiplayer is a welfare version of Left 4 Dead, where you play either the humans or the Necromorphs. Unless you have nothing better to do, I'd suggest staying very far away from this forced component.

Visceral has successfully brought Dead Space into the much-coveted position of solid, noteworthy games of 2011. Whilst its horror atmosphere and premise may not appeal to everyone, its solid shooting mechanics, outstanding visuals and brilliantly-paced design should. Here's to Dead Space, a horror series that the industry should be looking forward to seeing more of.

8/10 [?]

Review: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

2011-07-21T19:02:00.000+01:00

For me, every aspect of the Harry Potter franchise has been incredibly inconsistent in terms of quality. Whether it's the books, films or games, every time you think "yes, they've nailed this", a subsequent entry will probably leave you wondering what on earth went wrong. The books became somewhat convoluted with nonsense towards the end; the films have struggled more and more to turn the books into some sort of engaging or interesting spectacle; and the games have bizarrely got progressively worse as the technology has improved. The first few games on the PlayStation were charming, somewhat open-ended platform/puzzle games. The move to the PlayStation 2 era saw them take a disappointing step towards third-person action, and despite briefly flirting with a surprisingly well done open-world formula in Order of the Phoenix, the current generation of Potter games have become dull, tedious third-person shooters.

It shouldn't really be too much for Potter fans to expect a decent game from EA Bright Light, to send the series out with a bang. As it turns out, the developers have barely managed to send it out with a whimper with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

It's hard to imagine that someone who hasn't either read the book or seen the film will play this game, and that's clearly what the developer thought as well when it came to telling the story. There is practically no narrative development at all. Characters will talk and chat about things that were - even as someone who had just seen the film that morning - leaving me scratching my head somewhat. The story-telling is practically non-existent, and doesn't really provide you with the basic gist of what's going on. The opening level sees you fighting your way through the caverns underneath Gringotts Bank, but unless you've seen the film, you'll have absolutely no idea how or why Harry, Ron and Hermione have ended up in such a place. It's as if someone threw the movie script into a bonfire, and any bits of paper that survived were used to craft the story for the game. The film's most memorable storytelling moments, such as Snape's memories, are not even referenced in the game. It's an absolutely botched attempt at telling a story, and for EA Bright Light to treat such dearly loved source material with so little care and attention will no doubt anger long-standing fans of the wizarding world.

The script is also littered with some absolutely woeful dialogue, and equally poor voice acting. Whoever takes on the role of Harry in this game makes the wooden Daniel Radcliffe seem like an Oscar-winning acting legend; that's how poor it is. The memorable moments from the film that were supposed to represent real drama are included in the game as stiff and boring cutscenes, with awful dialogue and laughable voice acting. They aren't helped by the fact that the character models just look plain creepy, almost like Madame Tussauds replicas of the actors having just begun to melt. Facial animation is distressing, to the point that it almost looks funny. The character likenesses are actually passable but, on the whole, they definitely fall on the wrong side of uncanny valley.

Unfortunately, the gameplay and level design lives up to the lacklustre presentation of the story and visuals, with derivative combat mechanics and repetitive level layouts coming together to create something that really doesn't feel like the magical world so many people have come to love. Rather than the the creative and imaginative environments of Hogwarts and other locations from past games, you'll be fighting through dank caverns, boring towns and the castle itself has been relegated to empty corridors and rubble. The environments are just plain dull, and the way in which the levels themselves are designed is incredibly repetitive. Predictable and boring use of cover is a key issue of the landscape, whether they're columns, walls or rocks, and the whole game simply ushers you through in a linear direction, as you move from boring combat encounter to yet another boring combat encounter.

Throughout the majority of the game, you'll be controlling Harry, with Ron and Hermione at your side, but the game tries to freshen things up by letting you play as other characters such as Neville Longbottom and Professor McGonagall at set points during the story. However, there is no difference in playing as these characters other than their appearance, which just makes it feel like a cheap attempt at fan service. There are no unique spells or combat moves, so each character is effectively just a skin. There's also no co-op play, which seems like an obvious element to include since you have other characters with you at all times. It probably wouldn't have made the game much more fun, but it would at least have made it quicker to complete; a good thing when the game is so bad that you just want it to end as quickly as possible. I completed the whole thing in just short of four hours, even shorter than Modern Warfare 2 took me, and the end simply couldn't come quickly enough.

All you do in Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is fight and run, and perhaps occasionally stop to collect an utterly pointless collectable. The collectables simply distracts from the main path, and the running only gets you to the next mind-numbingly dull battle. The combat is just plain boring, even though the developers have clearly been inspired by the likes of Gears of War, so much so that each spell is basically the equivalent of a widely-recognised weapon from such a game. You have a spell that acts much like a grenade launcher and one that seems to resemble a colourful machine gun; it really is the most uncreative use of the Potter license I can remember experiencing. Remember levitating objects with 'Wingadium Leviosa', or stunning enemies with 'Petrificus Totalus'? There's none of that here; each spell is just a slightly different way of killing someone. The only variation between the spells is that some can be more effective when dealing with certain situations that others; for example, there's a spell for dealing with enemies at long range. Honestly, though, it's basically just a colourful sniper rifle.

Combat is just incredibly unfulfilling, and not at all satisfying. Spells feel weak, as your Death Eater enemies will simply go up in a puff of smoke. The enemy AI is almost non-existent, as they will often just stand still waiting for you to kill them. Cover means you're basically indestructible, and I ran through the entire game whilst dying only once. And that was only when I was trying to shove Hermione out of cover to get her killed, because - quite frankly - the game itself was boring me to tears by that point. All the combat scenarios come straight out of the 'generic gaming clichés' box, with most of them taking the form of cover-based shooting. Occasionally, though, you'll run towards the camera whilst shooting behind you, as the game struggles to feel 'cinematic'. It fails miserably.

There's nothing to break the monotony, and none of the film's more creative set pieces are used. You don't get to ride the dragon out of Gringotts, nor are you able to fly a broom through the Room of Requirement. You do get to experience the flooding of the Chamber of Secrets, but it's been handled as if EA have no respect for the source material, akin to the rest of the game. Even the battle with Voldemort is painfully dull, as you just shoot puffy little spells at him until he falls over. And, then, you fist pump the air. Because it means the game is over and you can throw it away.

Just because I'm not completely heartless, I'll say something slightly positive: the game does make use of some of the music from the films, which is just about the only good thing I can say about it. There is also a relatively nice montage of every prior Potter game in the series just before the credits roll, but this just served to make me ask "What on Earth have you done to this series?" Because it used to be quite enjoyable.

Quite frankly, I cannot think of one person on this planet who'll find even one ounce of enjoyment in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. For gamers, this is an absolutely shoddy attempt at a third-person shooter, with boring combat and repetitive level design, that make it an absolute waste of your time when you consider the other games available in the genre. Even for Potter fans, though, this game is simply a waste of your money; the game treats the original stimulus with no sense of respect, with a botched script, poor visuals, awful voice acting and a measly four-hour runtime. The best thing you can glean from this game is the fact that it represents the end of the series. For those of you who are desperate for some Potter videogame fun, stick to the LEGO games.

2/10 [?]

Review: Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D

2011-07-16T19:03:00.003+01:00

The Resident Evil series is, first and foremost, part of the survival horror genre. It has terrified gamers for over a decade now, with shambling zombies and creepy Spanish villagers, giving many a player plenty of nightmares as a result. The more recent entries in the series - most notably Resident Evil 5 - have taken the controversial route of being far more action-orientated. Capcom's decision to do this has left many hardcore fans baffled, as the well-recognised clunky controls and somewhat awkward gunplay have never been strong points of the series, so for Capcom to dedicate an entire game to this awkward gunplay would seem like a bizarre choice.

Well, with Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, that's just what they've done.

As the title suggests, this 3DS release is solely based on the Mercenaries 'mini-game' found in both Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 5. It's a basic score-attack mode, in which you take on the role of a famous character in a range of locations, and try and kill as many zombies as possible in the time limit given. Even in the aforementioned prior games, it didn't have the depth of similar modes such as Gears of War's Horde mode, or the Terrorist Hunt of Rainbow Six: Vegas, but as a little extra it could provide at least a couple hours of light entertainment once the main story was over. Making it the focus of its own game and then charging full price for it, however, seems completely absurd.

Make no mistake about it, this is literally the same mode ripped straight out of the prior games, right down to the characters and locations. Enemy types are copied from Resident Evil 4 and RE5, there are no new weapons or maps, and very few new gameplay mechanics to push it beyond what fans already expect from Mercenaries 3D. Killing enemies scores you points, smashing crystals earns you more time and you just keep doing the same thing until the time is up. There are no objectives, not much in the way of enemy variety and the whole design just seems lazy. The overriding feeling I have towards the design of Mercenaries 3D is that, even as an extra in prior games, it wasn't all that engaging or fleshed out, and it has not been improved or enhanced at all for transition into a fully-fledged release.

Initially at least, there are just eight maps to choose from, across only five different locations. Capcom has hinted that there might be some DLC further down the road, but at the moment, everything is recycled. In terms of characters, there are a decent number to choose from and unlock, but they do little other than providing lip service to existing fans. Medals can be earned and weapons are unlocked, but none of these unlocks are reason enough to plough through the same generic and same-y missions over and over again.

Resident Evil 5 was a very action-heavy experience, and the somewhat dated gunplay struggled to keep up with the design of the missions and levels. Whereas in Resident Evil 4 the clunky combat was offset by the slow pace at which the enemies attacked and the chilling atmosphere created, the fifth entry just felt a bit like a laboured version of Gears of War. In Mercenaries 3D, the combat is not particularly exciting either. The way in which Capcom seems to try and get round the fact that the gunplay is slow and clunky is by making the enemy AI completely shambolic. Enemies will walk at you at a snail's pace, stand in front of you for a good few seconds before even thinking about hitting you, and are basically lambs for the slaughter. This type of gunplay can be excused in a careful, methodical environment, but in a fast-paced score-attack setting, it just doesn't work.

Capcom has tried to modernise the setup slightly by offering perk-style abilities, such as being able to use healing items more effectively or allowing players to execute instant kills at certain points during a mission. Overall, though, it just feels like a cheap and tacky attempt at trying to introduce something worthwhile into what is still essentially a mini-game.

The game becomes slightly more enjoyable when played in co-op, either locally or online. The process of hooking up with friends or strangers is quick and easy, and the ability to heal each other and link together kills for score bonuses is a nice touch that makes having a second player there feel worthwhile. What's most baffling about the online functionality of Mercenaries 3D, however, is the lack of leaderboards; this is a game entirely about trying to achieve high scores, and yet you can't even compare them with friends and the rest of the world. It really is strange, especially when you consider how brilliant the online component of Capcom's last 3DS title was in Super Street Fighter IV 3D. The lack of leaderboards is just one more reason why players will find very little incentive to keep coming back for more after they've played through each mission; that is, assuming they can stomach the clunky combat.

Mercenaries 3D's strongest card is probably its visuals, with character models that honestly don't look much worse off than the stunning ones offered in the recent console games. The environments look decent enough, but effects such as explosions and bullet damage look incredibly poor when compared to the rest of the visual presentation overall. Animation is very impressive for the player characters, but enemies move stiffly with rather jarring animation routines. The audio is laughable, with poor audio quality rendering weapon sounds and character voices obsolete. The music is just as corny as you'd expect from the series, too, so you might want to play this game on mute.

There is no getting away from the fact that Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D lacks the content and longevity required for it to be a full priced release. Not only that, but the clunky gunplay and baffling lack of online leaderboards represent areas in which the series desperately needs some renovation. As it stands, Resident Evil's gameplay simply does not fit in well in a fast-paced score-attack format, and asking consumers to spend £40 on an experience like this just seems like daylight robbery. I would say a weekend rental might give you some light entertainment, but Capcom's braindead decision on the save-game front has practically killed that option as well. If you're finished with the brilliant Ocarina of Time, and are looking for the next big thing to keep your 3DS from gathering dust, then I'm afraid you're just going to have to keep on looking.

3/10 [?]

Review: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

2011-07-15T14:56:00.002+01:00

Reviewing a game like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in 2011 is a difficult task. Whilst the original game from the Nintendo 64 deservedly holds classic status in the gaming industry, it is now approaching its 13th birthday. Gaming has advanced monumentally since its release, and Ocarina's cause isn't helped much by the fact that remakes and revivals of old classics rarely do well in the videogames market. Often regarded as nothing more than cheap cash-ins, if a remake of an old title is going to have any relevance in the modern gaming landscape then it has to retain a sense of wonder and excitement, no matter how many times you've played it. It has to make use of the new technology and advancements whilst still maintaining the roots of what made it so well-loved in the first place.

Thankfully, Nintendo has achieved all of these things with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D for the Nintendo 3DS. The core game holds up remarkably well, and the benefit of the touchscreen, the added horsepower of the console and, of course, the nifty 3D all come together to make a game that is simply a must-buy for owners of Nintendo's latest handheld.

Since most gamers are familiar with Ocarina of Time and its fantastic design and gameplay, the majority of potential customers are going to be more interested in what exactly Nintendo has done to make you care about this remake. The primary selling point is, of course, the visual makeover that the game has received. Whilst it's difficult to tell how far the 3DS is being pushed graphically, seeing as the system is still taking its baby steps into the gaming world, I'd be inclined to say that it's probably the most visually impressive 3DS title released thus far. Having said that, the colourful art-style is so timeless anyway that you might look at screenshots and think that it hasn't really advanced a whole lot since the N64 original. It's only when you look at the two side-by-side, and see the 3DS version in action, that you can really appreciate the graphical improvements made. Character models have seen the most love, with Link in particular being very impressively detailed. The world of Hyrule as a whole is certainly crisper and cleaner, with better textures and water effects.

As well as seeing the core graphical look of the game given an overhaul, the 3D itself is obviously the marquee feature of any 3DS title, and Nintendo doesn't disappoint in this regard with its first big first-party release for their new handheld. Hyrule's wide open landscapes look fantastic in 3D; riding around the endless fields on the back of Epona is an even more thrilling experience as you look off into the distance, where the sense of depth provided by the 3D really comes into its own. The interiors also look nice, and some of the platforming and aiming of weapons - such as using the boomerang while exploring the many dungeons in the game - are all made easier through the 3D.

Speaking of the boomerang, using projectile-based weapons like this can now be controlled using the gyroscope within the 3DS. Aiming is operated simply by moving the 3DS around, and it works surprisingly well, although you may get some odd looks if you try this on a bus or a plane. The other 3DS-based enhancements include the obvious addition of the touchscreen, which is used to conveniently select and switch items and weapons on the fly. It might sound like a fairly obvious design choice that wouldn't have much bearing on how you play the game, but anyone who's experienced the original N64 title will appreciate the ability to select items without having to delve into the menu screens, which was an exercise in tedium back in 1998. The two other main additions made to the 3DS version are fairly neat as well; for one, a hint system has been introduced for those of you who may become stumped during a dungeon puzzle. The other is the addition of Master Quest, which basically is just a much harder version of the original game, so I can imagine it being rather appealing to hardcore fans looking to extend the already long lifespan of the game.

Apart from these changes, Nintendo has pretty much faithfully reproduced every aspect of the original game. This is mostly a good thing, as - even thirteen years later - the dungeons found in Ocarina of Time are still the cream of the crop. No subsequent Zelda title, or wannabes such as Darksiders, came close to the dungeon design in Ocarina of Time. That's not to say that other Zelda games or similar titles are bad in any way; it's just that Ocarina of Time is an absolutely masterfully-designed game. Puzzles are devilish, bosses can be unforgiving and each and every dungeon is fantastically varied and fun simply to explore. Veterans will get a kick out of experiencing them again, whilst newcomers will experience a profound sense of satisfaction and pride when they complete one. The Water Temple and The Forest Temple are the highlights, but each and every dungeon will require plenty of brain power in addition to quick reflexes and genuine skill for you to complete. The fact that this is still the case here in 2011 just goes to show how ahead of its time Ocarina was back in 1998.

There's no doubt that the dungeons are the highlight of every single Zelda game, but there's still plenty to do out in the world of Hyrule. Exploring the land on your trusty steed, Epona, is fantastic; visiting towns and outposts brings a great deal of personality to the world; and the moment when Link makes the transition from child to adult still holds strong as one of gaming's most memorable moments even in 2011.

The only aspect of Ocarina of Time that feels somewhat dated is the lack of a fully controllable camera. Dual-analogue camera control is a modern day staple of action adventure titles like this, and it's difficult not to miss it. However, the control scheme here is excellent on the whole. The analogue slider works incredibly well for controlling Link, and the lock on targeting in combat works just as well as you would want it to. As mentioned before, the touchscreen controls for using and swapping items and weapons are an absolute godsend.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D is probably going to appeal most to nostalgic fans of the N64 classic, those who want to experience again one of the greatest games of all time with a lovely makeover and intuitive new control features, that bring it up to speed in modern day gaming. For those who have never experienced the original, this 3D remake is the perfect time for you to jump into Hyrule. Not only does the makeover bring it in line with the expectations of a 2011 gamer, but the overall gameplay and design is still absolutely fantastic. This could be the game that brings in a whole new generation of Zelda fans, and whilst it's often easy to be cynical about remakes, there's no denying that this is an improved and renovated version of one of the best games of all time. I wouldn't go as far to say that this is the game to make you buy a 3DS, but if you happen to have one then there's no excuse not to pick up this absolute legend.

9/10 [?]

Review: F.E.A.R. 3

2011-07-09T13:04:00.000+01:00

Will Day 1 Studio's new release in the F.E.A.R series be able to replicate the same scares and bump-in-the-night moments as the first two games in the series? Andrew Testerman finds out. Reviewed on PlayStation 3.

Warner Bros. Interactive are back to give gamers a third helping of FPS-horror action with F.E.A.R. 3. Developed by Day 1 Studios, creators of the Mech Assault series for the original Xbox, F.E.A.R. 3 attempts to carve a niche for itself in today’s crowded market through a focus on slow motion gunplay, non-traditional multiplayer, and things that go bump in the night. It’s far from perfect, but F.E.A.R. 3’s unique blend of tense atmosphere and solid shooting mechanics make it worth a look for FPS fans craving new experiences.

F.E.A.R. 3 casts the player as Point Man, protagonist from the first game. Following on nine months after the conclusion of F.E.A.R. 2, Point Man is charged with rescuing his squad mate, Jin, from the wreckage of Fairport City, as well as finding and destroying creepy franchise poster girl, Alma. Joining him is his brother, Paxton Fettel, the primary antagonist from the first game. Together, the two shoot their way through a variety of locations, escaping from a Mexican prison, traversing an abandoned airport and negotiating a ruined Sam's Club-esque store. F.E.A.R. 3’s story hinges on the theme of family, giving it a personal touch and helping it stick out from other, more boilerplate action titles.

For a game sold on the basis of its horror trappings, F.E.A.R. 3 is surprisingly, and unfortunately, not all that scary. Whilst the first two games subtly crafted their horror through slow build-ups and near-perfect pacing, F.E.A.R. 3 is content to hit gamers full in the face with its scare attempts. "There’s blood on the wall!" the game says. "Isn’t that so very occult and strange?" Yes, for the first few rooms, it is. When nearly every wall is caked in more red than a Target store, however, the shock factor wears out significantly. Fortunately, the game’s sound design manages to provide a few good scares, filling the environment with small, unsettling noises, and rattling players with a tense musical score.

While the scare factor in F.E.A.R. 3 is lacking, the gunplay is not. As Point Man, players are given the ability to slow down time in a Max Payne fashion, making for easier headshots and greater tactical awareness. Gamers will need this advantage, too, because the enemy AI in F.E.A.R. 3 is brutal. Even on the Normal difficulty setting, enemies will flank, throw grenades and take cover behind objects, making even the most average firefight potentially harrowing. Weapons feel uniformly satisfying, especially in close quarters, when a point-blank shotgun blast can turn most enemies into a large, steaming pile of goo. F.E.A.R. 3 also lets players pilot a mech at several points during the campaign, effectively relieving the tension by making the player feel like an invincible killing machine.

Once a level is beaten as Point Man, players can go back through it as Paxton Fettel, effectively turning the game on its head. Rather than slow down time for a firefight advantage, Fettel has the ability to possess enemies, letting gamers body-snatch any guard of their choice and wreak havoc on its comrades. Playing as Fettel is markedly different to playing as Point Man, and gives gamers an incentive to replay F.E.A.R. 3 once they’ve finished the main story. F.E.A.R. 3 can also be played co-op either as split-screen or online, with each player taking control of a different brother; the game is significantly easier when played this way, but it is also stonking great fun.

Differentiating F.E.A.R. 3 further from its modern shooter counterparts is its multiplayer. In today’s world of "Call of Duty this" and "Battlefield that", games with multiplayer need to provide more than just the standard Team Deathmatch and Capture the Flag modes, and Day 1 absolutely knocks it out of the park in this regard. The two primary modes are Contractions and Soul King. Contractions is a variant of Call of Duty: World At War's Nazi Zombie mode, with players battling through waves of increasingly-difficult enemies, rebuilding defensive fortifications, and stocking up on weapons between rounds. In Soul King, four players face off against one another, possessing the bodies of NPCs laden throughout the map, earning points for killing other NPCs and stealing points by killing other players. Whether or not the game will be able to garner an active community is unsure, but F.E.A.R. 3’s online component is a breath of fresh air for anyone looking for unique multiplayer action.

Unfortunately, a few problems do rear their ugly heads. As mentioned above, F.E.A.R. 3 is surprisingly tepid on scares, especially compared to the last two entries; most of the scares come from a monster jumping out of a closet and yelling "boo", making the so-called 'terror' aspect feel rather cheap, and nowhere near on the level as, for example, the school from F.E.A.R. 2 (a level available as a demo on Xbox Live and PSN, and containing more scares than the entirety of F.E.A.R. 3). There are also a few technical hiccups, including some audio sync issues, as well as the inability to manually reload weapons; it is likely this is an issue specific to my review copy, but is disappointing nonetheless. Lastly, F.E.A.R. 3’s remaining two multiplayer modes - Soul Survivor, a possession-heavy mode similar to Infection from Halo 3; and Fucking Run, a wave-based survival mode, with the added twist of evading a moving cloud of death - are only available with F.E.A.R. 3’s Online Pass, giving a disadvantage to second-hand gamers and those who rent their games.

Though not on the level of excellence that its previous two entries enjoyed, F.E.A.R. 3 still provides solid shooting action and several unique play mechanics, making it a good choice for gamers looking for a quality summer shooter.

8/10 [?]

Review: Mirror's Edge for iOS

2011-07-08T16:40:00.001+01:00

Mirror’s Edge is one of my most favourite games of all time. It’s a game of simplicity; a sublime experience where all excess between you and the the game environment is thrown out the window. It’s defenestration of the superfluous in favour of immersion, and that’s a wholly unique concept for video games.

Mirror’s Edge for iPhone is not this, but it is worthwhile in its own right. While the console iteration of Mirror’s Edge was a first-person experience, the iPhone iteration is a side-scrolling platformer among the lines of Canabalt. As a game about fluid momentum, Mirror’s Edge translates extremely well to this type of gameplay, and the iPhone is a great place to execute it.

On consoles, Mirror’s Edge was somewhat difficult to control, but Mirror’s Edge on iPhone - we'll refer to it from now on as 'ME iOS', for simplicity's sake - is smooth and intuitive. To make Faith run in a given direction you swipe either left or right, to make her jump you swipe up, and swiping down makes her slide. It’s a pretty simple set of commands, but the game achieves that desirable zen-like sensation of fluidity by churning these variables together, and adding a handful of micro-gestures that increase how quickly Faith can traverse. It’s a little more complicated than Canabalt, for instance, where your only control is when and how long to jump, but ME iOS not so complex that it’s frustrating.

ME iOS is a short experience, and no single level is completely satisfying either, as each is short and typically littered with a few enemy encounters. Similarly to the console version, the enemy encounters are the game’s weakest aspect: combat in ME iOS is frustrating, a nasty road-bump on an otherwise calming experience. Faith can slide, jump kick and disarm enemies she meets by swiping either down, up, or left and right, but each option will either follow lethal gunfire, slow Faith down, or eventually kill her and end a run if failed. None of these consequences enhance the game experience; rather, they detract from it. Like the Mirror’s Edge on consoles, ME iOS would benefit from either retooling the role of combat or doing away with it altogether, especially as it interrupts the more satisfying fluidity of the gameplay.

Since this mobile version of Mirror’s Edge succeeds so well in delivering a calming, zen-like experience, I would have appreciated some longer levels, or perhaps a mode of infinite level generation where I could just keep running and navigating. As it is, I probably won’t return to ME iOS, simply because the levels aren’t worth returning to once you’ve mastered them. There are collectible runner bags, akin to Mirror’s Edge on consoles, but they are frustrating to reach and don’t really exemplify the game’s controls and what kind of gameplay they can achieve. Still, if you liked Mirror’s Edge and can find enjoyment in spurts of fluid platforming, Mirror’s Edge on iPhone is definitely worth checking out.

7/10 [?]

DLC Review: From the Ashes for Killzone 3

2011-07-01T20:00:00.000+01:00

I wish I could be writing this review with tears of joy in my eyes. Yet, alas, that is not the case. When I first heard of From the Ashes, the latest downloadable expansion for the company's flagship Killzone 3, I thought this would be the best DLC offering that Guerilla Games has created. I was completely wrong, however; any of the positive features the DLC offers are overshadowed by huge and abysmal oversights on Guerilla Games' part.

From the Ashes introduces four new maps to Killzone 3: Tharsis Depot, Radec Academy, Mobile Factory and Lente Missile Base. Tharsis Depot and Mobile Factory are only used in the Guerilla Warfare mode, whilst Radec Academy and Lente Missile Base are likewise only used in a single mode, Warzone. Unfortunately this division of maps is one of the huge faults of the DLC pack: it quickly becomes apparent that more imagination was used in the creation of the Guerilla Warfare maps, leaving the Warzone maps far less than desirable.

Tharis Depot, a remastering of the original map from Killzone 2.

Visually, Lente Missile base and Radec Academy are both boring brown-and-orange maps of the brand that have come to plague most modern first-person shooters. Radec Academy, a remake of the original Killzone 2 map, is the biggest culprit for this; it's somewhat of a shame as Radec Academy was one of the most visually appealing maps in Killzone 2. It seems the developers have forgotten what made the original such a masterpiece, instead painting it over with a dirty brown palette. Lente is no better, full of browns and sun-bleached stone and, to me, lacks totally in imagination.

Things change drastically with the Guerilla Warfare maps, however: Tharsis Depot and Mobile Factory are, visually, worlds apart from the two Warzone maps. I would even go as far as to say that the new Tharsis Depot is a visual masterpiece, and one of the best-looking maps that Guerilla Games has ever created. Mobile Factory - despite seeming like a boring factory reminiscent of the Train level in Killzone 2 - has an ever-moving landscape, which brings a sense of urgency to the locale and offers an insight into the Helghan wastes.

Radec Academy, another recreated map originally from Killzone 2.

Radec Academy is a medium-sized map and a fan-favourite from Killzone 2. However, fans of Killzone 3's forebearer will be deeply disappointed by this remastered version. The original Radec Academy was known for its claustrophobic corridors mixed with wide open spaces. The new Radec Academy no longer has the claustrophobic corridors, and is dominated by wide open spaces that remove the fun and somewhat hectic nature of the original Radec; the changes remove much of the gameplay dynamic that the original map boasted.

Lente Missile Base is a quite a large map with a nice mixture of open and enclosed spaces. The enclosed spaces are the corridors beneath the map that lead to the Missile Silo, and it's in these corridors that the deadly feature of the map becomes apparent. The corridors act as vents to the huge nuclear rockets in the Silo and, every so often, the tunnels will be used to vent the flames from the rocket in the process burning everyone left inside. This is a nice touch, extending on the map's overall theme, but is a somewhat annoying feature. It's unfortunate that you very rarely get to experience this feature, due to poor map design; the high points overlooking the Bases mean that one team can base camp the other team and prevent anyone from leaving their base. This isn't an isolated incident, either, and the constancy with which this base camping occurs makes Lente Missile Base a map quite devoid of enjoyment for the team on the receiving end of this issue.

The Mobile Factory map, a multiplayer version of the level from Killzone 3's campaign mode.

Fans of Tharsis Depot from Killzone 2 will quickly get used to the changes made during remastering for this DLC pack. The map is largely the same as it was originally, save for the inclusion of jet packs in this iteration. This new addition also means that the map seems bigger and full of more depth compared to its Killzone 2 counterpart. This also gives way to a more enjoyable, more strategic approach, as players take advantage of the extra height to the level.

Mobile Factory is based upon the vehicle from Killzone 3's campaign. The map is quite small but makes up for it somewhat with its sense of scale, created through several staggered floors which make the map seem rather large. This map is wonderful, with excitement rife due to its hectic and, at times, confusing layout.

Lente Missile Base's subterranean tunnels.

As a big fan of Killzone, I've found it hard to play and review the From the Ashes DLC, something that has ultimately impacted on the score I've given. The two Guerilla Warfare maps seem to be the best features of From the Ashes, but unfortunately this is one of the reasons for the DLC's low score; the two best maps in the pack are only available for the Guerilla Warfare game mode, a terrible shame as many people will not get to enjoy the beauty and excitement of the maps. Personally, I cannot see any reason why the maps are only available for Guerilla Warfare; yes, the two maps are small, but Killzone proved that some of the best games can be played on tiny maps, even with up to thirty-two players. The Warzone maps, however, have nothing that makes me want to play them and, ultimately, was what led to the downfall of the From the Ashes DLC.

2/10 [?]

Review: Dynasty Warriors 7

2011-06-29T20:17:00.004+01:00

Is the latest in a series known for it's lack of advancement anything to get excited about, or the last nail in the series' coffin? Andrew Whipple finds out. Reviewed on Xbox 360.

If there were ever a series of games that epitomise the lack of ingenuity and hard saturation that steer gamers away, it'd undoubtedly trace back to Dynasty Warriors. Infamous for constantly releasing title upon title of the same game, along with multiple expansions and sometimes crazy spinoffs, it's no wonder that the series is largely either ignored or frowned upon. Something surprising has happened though. Maybe it's because there hasn't been a good Dynasty Warriors game for over half a decade, or maybe it's because the majority of gamers have given up on the formula Koei has been following. Whatever the case, Koei has dipped its hand in the contemporary magic developer pot and (I'm being honest when I say this) Dynasty Warriors 7 has emerged as, quite possibly, one of the most underrated titles of the year.

I have no shame when I tell you that I'm a Dynasty Warriors fan. Having been introduced to the god-like, seminal Dynasty Warriors 3 when I was very young, I was taken aback by how simplistic yet utterly deep and addicting the gameplay was. Nothing about the title screamed difficulty; it was all about having a plethora of officers to choose from and a seemingly infinite amount of braindead enemies to crush under the weight of your dancing, flame-encrusted, demon dragon sword of truth. You could also bring a friend along for the ride. The time I spent maxing out statistics and locating legendary weapons is borderline embarrassing, but like the esteemed Ma Chao, "I have no regrets."

These dudes are about to catch a wave of some nice fire.

Saying all this, every title beyond Dynasty Warriors 3 was severely lacking. The only title I found some sort of solace in was Dynasty Warriors 5. We'll just ride right past the absolute atrocity Dynasty Warriors 6 was, which brings us to mid-2011, when Dynasty Warriors 7 jumped out of the bushes and stole my unwavering attention.

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it". The old proverb holds complete truth when discussing this game. Dynasty Warriors 7 is based entirely around you slashing up no-name soldiers and beating down the higher-ups for loot and stat increases, just as it always was. There's actually some deep narrative involved in the game but, unless you're a history junkie actually interested in the actual history of what happened in ancient China, or a Warriors fan, there's no Mass Effect-esque storyline here for you. Stop looking.

Unlike its predecessors, Dynasty Warriors 7 brings an entirely new story mode system that will shock long-time fans and moderately please newcomers. Instead of picking an officer and running through the standard maps and scenarios that every faction would always do, Koei has crafted an elaborate campaign that spans hours. Each of the four factions - Wu, Wei, Shu and the new Jin - have a story campaign, and each one is riddled with cinematics, interesting dialogue (shocking, I know), and unique stages. As you progress through the story, the game will actually make you switch officers on-the-fly, in order to compensate for what's happening in the world. Officers will die, kingdoms will crumble, and most of the events are all fairly accurate to what actually happened in ancient China.

Split-screen is still present, along with new online functionality. That means someone can actually join your game.

At first I wasn't too sure about the story approach, as playing freely on whatever level on wanted was what I was always used to. Right out of the gate, when I bore witness to a cutscene without horrendous dialogue and watched as it seamlessly threw me into the scenario, I was sold. During your adventure with each kingdom, you'll also be running around towns talking to the people and purchasing weapons for your officers. The spaces you can move around within are small, and the things people say are mostly useless, but I still found this much more personable than simply jumping into a scenario without any knowledge of what's going on. However, you can still do this if you wish, by talking to the officer who initiates the fight.

If the story mode doesn't do it for you, then there's the brand new Conquest mode. It's a hexagon-like board that has you moving around from space to space completing scenarios that involve special events. This is also the mode of the game that Koei has finally optimised for online play. That's right: Conquest mode is fully playable with another person locally or over the internet. As far as the events go, sometimes you'll just be completing a standard battle, but if you do then your stats will increase in a specific field. There are also weapon scenarios that will net you an ultra-powerful piece of equipment if you can beat the general at the end. Officers have their very own legendary battle scenarios, too, that are a complete blast to play through. Complete these and you'll unlock the corresponding officer. There are 46 playable officers in the game; that's a lot of unlocking.

Did I mention the game actually looks very nice? Seriously.

Speaking of weapons, Dynasty Warriors 7 boasts a completely revamped gameplay system. Instead of being stuck with the same weapon for a specific officer, you can now hold two types of weapons at any time. Within your stats, though, it indicates whether you're proficient with a weapon or not. Having maximum proficiency means you're faster with your weapon and can perform a special function with it. There are also special EX moves that can only be performed with an officer's innate weapon; these EX attacks are pretty flashy and give you reason to hang onto that type of weapon. There's also a bonus attack for switching weapons on-the-fly in battle.

As you rack up the kills per officer in each and every scenario, you'll actually be achieving skill points. You can use these points to unlock special abilities like longer combo chains, special charge attacks and my personal favorite, the new second musou. Musou is your special attack and, typically, the Dynasty Warriors games only had one per officer. In this game, though, each and every officer has two unique musou attacks that are as over-the-top as they are awesome to behold. Would you say watching a small man hop on his cane, turn it into a blazing phoenix of fire, and shoot off into the distance, melting away the skin of every surrounding soldier is a waste of time? I didn't think so.

Lu Bu, the bastard child of Hu Lao Gate, is ever present and damn, will his musou rock your world.

A.I. is still a problem in the game, granted, but it's a lot smarter than it ever used to be. Enemies might attack you one minute and then take off in another direction the next. Hundreds of enemies can fit on the screen at one time, at least, but sometimes with another player you'll get some slowing down. Usually it's not a big deal, but it's still present, which is somewhat annoying. Also, the voice acting is superb compared to what we've witnessed before, but some characters still sound completely stupid. All that aside, these are mere minor complaints.

Dynasty Warriors 7 is by no means a perfect game, but what it commits to is what it does best, and that's vintage hack-and-slash goodness. The story mode is incredibly engaging, and Conquest has finally thrown much-needed online play into the mix. The game certainly isn't for everyone, but if you're looking for some simplistic, addictive action, then Dynasty Warriors 7 will do you proud.

8/10 [?]

Second Opinion Review: Mortal Kombat

2011-06-28T20:18:00.001+01:00

Does this year's Mortal Kombat reboot live up to its expectations? Andrew Whipple III takes a second look at the game in this follow-up to Tom's original review, and finds it to be an anomaly in the fighting genre. Reviewed on PlayStation 3.

The extraordinary history that encompasses the universe of Mortal Kombat is a thrilling - albeit abhorrent - experience. Having essentially created the rating system for the video games of today, Mortal Kombat was a striking, mature, showpiece of a fighter that wasn't afraid to get imaginative. That was true of the games of old; cut to its 3D-centric brethren and that philosophy existed beneath pillars of filth no-one dared spring free. Suffice to say, Mortal Kombat has been through quite a bit. Fortunately, this experience has given the franchise another chance. Under the banner of new studio NetherRealm, Ed Boon and company have turned back time on the famed fighter, finding a winning formula in the days of the past.

Fighters are a fickle thing. Whether it's delay-timing, button-mashing or standard memorisation, there's always a quirk to the fighter that throws an audience off. Few fighters are easily accessible to the targeted gamer, and even fewer to a wide audience. Whilst I haven't played every single fighter out there, I can safely say that Mortal Kombat is the end-all standard that every fighter should aim to be. Accessible to the hardcore or casual gamer without a hitch, all you need to do is pick up a controller and the game will guide you toward your first digital beheading in minutes. That isn't to say that there's nothing for the avid fighter junkie - because there totally is - but it's so easy to become involved in the mechanics of the game. It's refreshing.

Most fighters throw you right into the thick of it by letting you select whoever you want and allowing you to begin a sort of ladder climb. As you progress this ladder, enemies usually become more difficult and eventually it ends with a boss fight which gives you some kind of cinematic story short that absolutely never makes any damn sense. Ladder climbing is still in Mortal Kombat, as it should be, but NetherRealm has gone the extra mile and incorporated a story mode that functions as the real core to the narrative.

I know what you're thinking. Narrative, in a fighter? You'd better believe it. The story mode is essentially an amalgamation of the first three Mortal Kombat games, crafted into one interweaving story that has you progressing with different characters. This is single-handedly one of the best features Mortal Kombat has brought to the forefront of the modern day fighter. Not only does it wean you into the glorious arenas and mechanics of the game, it also serves as a purpose to play if you're not always wanting to fight online. The best part is that it isn't a cobbled together mess and - get this - the story actually makes you want to continue forwards just to see what happens.

When was the last time a fighter did that?

Story mode alone will take you upwards of ten hours to complete and, once that's finished, there's a plethora of additional content you can sift through. Primarily, the Challenge Tower will be your after-story focus. This beast is a 300-scenario tower you crawl up as events are completed. These events can range from a standard fight, to shooting zombies, to battling whilst headless and on fire. Some challenges are rather difficult, but after each one you complete you'll be rewarded with currency called 'koins' which can be used to unlock bonuses. Story mode, normal fights, performing fatalities; almost everything in Mortal Kombat will net you some amount of koins. Like Deadly Alliance and Deception before it, the Krypt returns, where your koins can be spent. Fatalities, skins, music, artwork; practically everything can be unlocked in the Krypt. At least this time you don't have to worry about coloured koins.

All these extras sure are great, but the central combat is what you should really be caring about. Sporting a cast of over twenty six characters, Mortal Kombat has cut out the fluff and focussed on the characters that matter. Practically all the classic characters - including Sektor, Kabal, Jade and Stryker - return fully-equipped with an arsenal of special moves and combos that are, quite honestly, spectacular to behold. Every single selectable fighter has special attacks, two fatalities, a stage fatality, and a myriad of combo strings available. Everyone also takes real-time damage that persists until the match has been completed. There's something about finishing off your opponent with half your face missing that just screams awesome.

Perhaps the most noticeable change to Mortal Kombat rests within the special bars at the bottom of the screen. Upon performing a move or taking a hit, this bar increases to a maximum of three bars. The significance of these bars is that they allow you to perform an enhanced special attack by using one of the bars to power-up your move. Let's say Reptile normally just shoots a small glob of acid; if he uses a bar of his meter to enhance the move it'll now become a full stream of acid. The best comes, though, when you can manage to build up your meter to its capacity, three bars. Once this is achieved you can unleash a devastating X-Ray attack that's as grotesque as it is crushing to your opponent's health bar. Don't miss it, though, otherwise you just saved up all that energy for nothing.

The online component works, but it's been struggling since launch. There was a patch that fixed many of the connectivity issues but it still isn't picture-perfect. The only other complaint I have is what the conventional fighter always has: cheap-ass bosses. You'll find, over the course of the game, that several bosses have insane combos and 'armour' that allows them to stay standing when they otherwise should be sprawled on the floor. It can certainly get frustrating, but this is all trivial when looking at the overall package NetherRealm has crafted.

Mortal Kombat is an anomaly within the fighting genre. Whilst easily accessible to the casual gamer, it also caters to the hardcore in terms of how deep the combat can become. Even if you don't care for playing online - or maybe don't even care about fighters - the story mode is worth going through at least once. There's no fighting game like this out right now. With that said, welcome back, Mortal Kombat. Welcome back.

9/10 [?]

Review: Transformers: Dark of the Moon

2011-06-24T22:07:00.004+01:00

Following on from last year's Transformers: War for Cybertron, High Moon Studios' latest Transformers-licensed title - Dark of the Moon - gives players the opportunity to transform once again into the legendary machines. Andrew Testerman sees whether it lives up to expectation. Reviewed on Xbox 360.

Last year, High Moon Studios gave gamers something they thought they’d never see: a legitimately fun Transformers game that stayed true to the fiction of the original 80’s series. With Transformers: Dark of the Moon, High Moon took the play mechanics that made Transformers: War for Cybertron so enjoyable, and implemented them into a new game, based on the upcoming movie. On paper, it seems like a recipe for success, but Dark of the Moon falls short in several of the areas its predecessor excelled in, and ultimately doesn’t manage to be much more than an above-average licensed game.

Dark of the Moon presents players with a two-act campaign, playing during the first half as Autobots and the second half as Decepticons, with a small Autobot epilogue. The narrative deals with the two sides fighting to control technology known as 'MechTech', though exactly what MechTech actually does is a little dubious, as the uses are never really mentioned in the game itself. The game’s story is a prequel to the upcoming movie, but - apart from ominously showing the moon in a few cutscenes - the connections with the film seem pretty tenuous. Unless Nolan North is actually featured alongside Shia LaBeouf and Tyrese Gibson?

The heart of a Transformers game is, of course, the transforming mechanics, and this is where Dark of the Moon is at its best. Players click the left analogue stick to change from robot to vehicular form, and vice versa, with each form having its own distinct advantage; vehicles are slightly more unwieldy in combat, but have heavier armour. New to Dark of the Moon is the Stealth Force mode, a hybrid of the robot and vehicle form with heavy weapons and the ability to strafe. The range of movement afforded by this system greatly shines in multiplayer, where a hasty retreat is sometimes necessary to avoid death.

The shooting mechanics that make up the brunt of Dark of the Moon are fairly solid, with each weapon having a nice sense of heftiness to it, in particular the heavy weapons like Megatron’s Fusion Cannon. A few issues hold it back from greatness, though; it’s pretty tough to gauge whether or not a shot connected with an enemy, especially since some of the guns can be wildly inaccurate. Also, the Transformers’ movements make the Cogs from Gears of War look positively graceful, and it’s all-too-easy to accidentally galumph into a wall and die from repeated shots to the back. Most annoying are the flying controls, an awkward mix of hovering, strafing, and ever-changing altitudes that never quite does what the player wants.

Presentation-wise, the game is a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, Dark of the Moon ditches the monotonous metallic greys of War for Cybertron in favour of a variety of locations, like a dusty, remote South American village, a bombed-out incarnation of Detroit, and a lush tropical island complete with lava-strewn volcano interior. There are even a few nice atmospheric touches, such as small flocks of birds, or brilliant morning sunrises. However, the game is filled with technical glitches, ranging from the annoying (getting stuck in the environment) to the cringe-inducing (reloading a checkpoint because a scripted moment didn’t trigger).

Multiplayer is solid, if unspectacular. Players can customise their character loadout, choosing from different weapons and abilities, as well as assigning perks. Similarly to Battlefield: Bad Company 2, each of the game’s four classes level up separately, encouraging players to experiment but also rewarding those who stick with and specialise in one class. Unlike last year’s game, players are allowed to choose from licensed Transformers in matches, though the design of Michael Bay’s Transformers can make it hard to tell Bumblebee from Enforcer without first looking at the colour. Sadly, the multiplayer has its fair share of glitches as well, often acting laggy and occasionally dropping players from matches entirely.

Much of the content in Dark of the Moon is good enough, but seems downright lacking when compared to War for Cybertron. Dark of the Moon's single player is woefully short, clocking in at about six hours on Normal difficulty — in the face of War for Cybertron’s two-part, ten hour campaign, it’s a bit of a disappointment. Also, War for Cybertron’s robust set of multiplayer modes have been significantly cut down in translation to this iteration, from seven in last year’s game to three in Dark of the Moon. Perhaps High Moon was rushed in getting Dark of the Moon out in time for its film counterpart to hit theaters, but the shortened campaign and dearth of multiplayer modes give the game a small, slightly unsatisfying feeling, especially for a title that costs sixty dollars at retail.

Dark of the Moon is good fun while it lasts, but its brief playtime, lack of multiplayer options and host of technical glitches make it worth only a rental, for everyone but the most stalwart Transformers fans.

7/10 [?]

Review: LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game

2011-06-24T17:34:00.000+01:00

Since 2005, Traveller's Tales' LEGO-themes games have tackled various high-profile film and book series, and have captured the hearts of both casual, young gamers and the gaming-obsessed alike. Can their latest installment stand up to that reputation, though? Tom Acres wonders that question. Reviewed on PlayStation 3.

Since its inception in 2005, with the original LEGO Star Wars game, Traveller's Tales' family-friendly, LEGO-themed action games have gone from strength to strength. Rather than fall into the all-too-predictable trap of resting on one's laurels and simply churning out the same game with the same flaws and no improvements, each subsequent LEGO game has offered far more than simply a new skin to entice gamers back. The UK-based studio have been averaging a game a year thus far, but many feel they may finally be pushing their luck. After the March release of a fourth game based on the Star Wars franchise, Traveller's Tales shipped a new game just two months later: LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean.

Thankfully, there are just enough innovations and advancements made in this latest installment to draw you back in, except if you're perhaps one of those suffering from serious LEGO fatigue.

LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean is structured in just the same way as any LEGO game before it: a hub allows you to run about and unlock characters or just explore, as well as providing access to all the available levels. In the case of Pirates, there are twenty levels spanning all four of the films: Curse of the Black Pearl, Dead Man's Chest, At World's End and On Stranger Tides. Whilst it could easily be argued that the films get progressively worse, the crazier and grander set-pieces from the latter films do make for some enjoyable gaming situations. Duelling atop a giant rolling cage in Dead Man's Chest is commendably well done, as is the Maelstrom set piece from At World's End, and some large scale battles from the latest adventure that I won't spoil here. Of course, all these grandiose moments are interconnected by the same old platforming, puzzle-solving and simple combat that the series has become known for. Nothing is drastically different, but it's difficult to envisage exactly how the structure of these games would be changed. All the elements come together nicely, and fans wouldn't have it any other way.

The twenty levels on offer will probably be enough for around ten hours of enjoyment on your first playthrough, but one of the big draws of the LEGO series has always been replaying levels with different characters to collect studs, unlock new bonuses and - of course - scurry after those delicious Xbox 360 achievements and PlayStation 3 trophies. The formula of playing through the levels, collecting studs, buying characters, unlocking cheat codes and then replaying levels again still works. Smashing everything in sight to hoard more of the game's currency has a strangely addictive quality to it, as all the prior games also have. Everything that has made these games enjoyable, and stopped them from becoming stale despite their recycled mechanics, are here. There aren't many surprises to be had in that sense.

Recycled structures and predictable design might become a problem if the gameplay wasn't being continuously improved and refined. Whilst the mix of platforming, puzzles and combat is still here, each aspect has been markedly improved in each game, and the same holds true here. Platforming still feels a little loose, but the way the levels are designed means that the consequences of this aren't felt quite so dramatically as in prior games. Platforms are easier to jump to, swinging on poles is a breeze, and climbing and shimmying along ledges is also handled well.

The puzzles are probably some of the best in the series so far; there's a fair amount of standing on buttons and pulling levers, as you'd expect, but there are also some more creative sections on offer, such as rearranging and directing mirrors to direct beams of sunlight. Any potential frustration caused by these puzzles has been removed with the addition of handy hints and prompts to give you an idea of what you ought to be focussing on and where exactly you need to be. Plenty of 'what do I do now?' moments have plagued the LEGO videogame franchise for a number of years now, so it's nice to see Traveller's Tales take steps towards addressing that issue. Experience breeds quality, and that's certainly the case here.

What surprised me the most about the refinements to the overall gameplay was the combat, which is now genuinely quite thrilling. Sword duelling is fun to execute, with blocks now a possibility, and the fights seem far better choreographed than in prior games, in which random pushing of the attack button without any real brain power was the one and only route to success. Other items can also be incorporated into the mêlée combat, with sidearms like spades and rum bottles being used to turn the tide of a battle in your favour. As with all the past LEGO games, different characters make use of different weapons, so whilst many of the characters will be taking on the enemy with swords, there's also a fair opportunity to wield firearms and bombs to take down foes.

As always, there is a ridiculous number of characters to unlock, and the rich lore and wide variety of the wacky individuals from the film series lends itself very well to the LEGO treatment. The films themselves are already pretty ridiculous by their nature, so Jack Sparrow and his motley crew fit right into the ridiculous cinematic style that Traveller's Tales have polished to near-perfection since 2005. As ever, there is a tonne of lovely little touches spread throughout the game, like LEGO Sparrow's fantastic walk animation, and the way the cursed crew of the Black Pearl seamlessly turn into skeletons when they step into moonlight. The game does a great job of recreating the feel of the movies, all whilst providing plenty of laughs along the way, thanks to the brilliant pantomime style that the series is famous for.

The LEGO games have always been better enjoyed with a friend, and whilst that still holds true with LEGO Pirates, this is one area where Traveller's Tales' attempts to improve the system haven't quite hit the mark. The dynamic split-screen element that was introduced in last year's LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 is still here, and whilst it looks great on paper, in practice it can cause some frustrations. When you and your buddy are a fair distance apart and trying to accomplish different sections of a level, it works fantastically well, but when you're still relatively close together and trying to attempt a tricky platforming section, it can all go pear-shaped rather quickly. For me, the split-screen simply comes into effect far too quickly, resulting in situations where the screen splits even when two players are still quite close together. The way this occurs is quite jarring and more than a little off-putting. It's commendable to see the developers try to improve the system - and, as I said, it seems like a great idea in theory - so we'll see how the system can be improved further in future titles.

One aspect that I'm not sure can be improved much more are the visuals. I promise you that I don't exaggerate when I say that this is a simply stunning game. It's always been great to see LEGO Jedi or wizards running around, and the look-and-feel of the movies is captured just as well in LEGO Pirates as it was in LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Harry Potter and every other LEGO-franchise game before. But even on a technical level, this new title is fantastic to look at. Graphical elements like high-contrast lighting, reflections, motion blur and depth of field are all used to fantastic effect. Animation on the characters is superb, the LEGO bricks are terrifically modelled and the realistic environments not only do a great job of contrasting with the LEGO theme, but also look beautiful in their own right. This is not just a great-looking game by LEGO standards: this is a great looking game by any standards.

As you'd expect, the visual presentation is supplemented by an excellent audio presentation. Hans Zimmer's terrific musical score is present and accounted for, with plenty of other sound effects ripped straight from the films. Grumbles and other audio exclamations from the characters are fantastically well done, working brilliantly in conjunction with the animations to help deliver the hilarious cutscenes.

Like I said at the start, it could be easy for Traveller's Tales to rest on their laurels: these games are guaranteed to make money and there's little motivation for Traveller's Tales to really make effort to improve them each time, but the way in which LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean is so much better than March's LEGO Star Wars III shows just how much work goes into each of these games. From the visuals right down to the level design, every aspect of these games improve with each subsequent entry in the series, and that trend isn't likely to end with LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean. It may well be a kids' game at its core, and there's still room for improvement in terms of gameplay and variety of tasks, but it's a damn good kids' game. And it's still one that any gamer who has ever enjoyed the LEGO series will be able to play through, with a huge grin on their face.

8/10 [?]

Review: World of Tanks

2011-06-23T19:57:00.000+01:00

With the market for free, massively-multiplayer online games booming, competition is huge and the market becoming increasingly saturated. Jacques Hulme reviews just one of the MMOs taking a stab at success in the difficult industry. Reviewed on Microsoft Windows PC.

Grabbing a bargain is great. Getting a freebie is even better, and the free-to-play games market is constantly expanding, with new titles entering the fray on a regular basis. Many incorporate themselves into the highly successful MMO genre, with fluctuating success. As the selection of titles has grown, competition has become more and more fierce, and for newcomers to the market it can be difficult to grab the attention of gamers, partly due to the oversaturated market and partly thanks to the increased quality in both graphics and game writing displayed by such titles.

World of Tanks, from Wargaming.net, offers a fresh experience to players, one which focusses on something slightly different than the usual offering of swords and shields. The game allows players to face enemy heavy armour, armed to the teeth with one of a selection of World War tanks. It's a new idea, pitting two teams of tanks against each other over a surprisingly large selection of maps. At the moment, tanks from the Russian, German and American armies are offered right from the outset, where you are given a light tank from each country to earn experience point with. As you gain XP, you are able to buy tank upgrades or entirely new tanks altogether. The amount of variety offered, considering World of Tanks is a free game, is tremendous; each country has a 'tech tree' of tanks, with all shapes and sizes of vehicles, and you even have the ability to select tanks which are suited to specific battle situations, be that wide and open terrain (best-suited to artillery and heavy tanks) or smaller maps in built-up areas (where light and medium armour tends to work best).

The level of detail boasted by World of Tanks is extremely impressive. From the design of the tanks to the damage system, it's clear that the title has every ability to compete with 'proper' retail games. Damage dealt to your tanks comes in a variety of areas, you can lose crew members, you can experience damage to you armour or even be unable to drive altogether, if a shot is lucky enough to land on your engine or tracks. Not only is the damage mechanic substantial, but you are also able to control where, and at what angle, a shell strikes its target, allowing you to become more and more adept with your vehicle as you move through the game. Of course, it's also important to utilise the cover spots offered by each map, as most boulders are able to withstand the impact force of an enemy shell much more adeptly than a tank can.

Of course, there are elements of World of Tanks which are exclusive only to premium members. For example, it is impossible to join friends in the same game unless you have the party feature, which is unlocked through the premium subscription. This also gives you the chance to earn more experience and cash from each battle than you normally would, meaning progression can be made much faster through the usage of a premium account. There are even a few premium tanks that one can purchase, which are unavailable to free players and can offer a big advantage to any battle. Perhaps these enhancements can be seen as unfair in some situations, but if you're willing to pay out hard-earnt cash, surely you should get something extra?

It is extremely difficult to find any reason why you shouldn't give World of Tanks a go. It's free, for a start, and offers a wide variety of options to players without asking for anything but your time. Whether you prefer sitting at the back of a map to shell foes using longer range vehicles, or move through small streets taking short, sharp shots, World of Tanks covers all the different avenues and caters for every sort of player type. There are more planned features which seem to be very interesting, such as the European clan battles, for example, which take place over many countries and aim to see hundreds of different clans playing against one another. If you're bored of war games focussed solely on action between footsoldiers, and want to get behind the wheel of something a little more meaty, World of Tanks would be a perfect place to start.

7/10 [?]

Review: Hunted: The Demon's Forge

2011-06-20T17:18:00.001+01:00

We like to treat our readers occassionally, and this is one such time, as Andrew Whipple III reviews Hunted: The Demon's Forge in both written and, in a Gamer's Guide to Life.com first, video format. Reviewed on Microsoft Windows PC.

As cooperative-based action-RPGs go, Hunted: The Demon's Forge treads a careful path. So careful, mind you, that it barely tries to do anything imaginative to grab your undivided attention. Whether it be the story, combat, or core mechanics of the game, Hunted is a supercharged mothball of lost potential. From the mind of Brian Fargo, this is something rather hard to believe.

Hunted spins a tale straight from the cloth of the typical anti-hero. Its protagonists, E'lara and Caddoc, are hardened mercenaries bent on amassing a fortune in gold, regardless of who - or what - hires them. After accidentally stumbling upon an item called the Deathstone, which allows clairvoyance into the past of the dead, both mercs begin dealing with an albino, busty goth lady named Seraphine. Seraphine promises augmented power beyond mortal reckoning, if they do what they are told. Somehow, this leads to the discovery that an angry demon is ravaging the land by using his followers, all of whom are addicted to a substance known as 'sleg.' Caddoc and E'lara must find out what's going on before it's too late, yadda, yadda, yadda.

At least the view is nice. ...I didn't mean that.

If you couldn't tell, I'm terribly unimpressed by this game's narrative. It's one thing to be safe and standard, and something completely different when you're nothing but derivative. Surprisingly, that also just so happens to be the theme of Hunted; being unoriginal and boring. You see, with the founder of Interplay at the helm of the studio (whose work included such classics as Baldur's Gate), it's tough to accept the fact that there's no compelling story to follow. The game tries to think its plot is intelligent, but never ventures beyond its very limited imagination.

Since the story is rotten, the combat must be somewhat decent, right? You'd think so, especially for a self-proclaimed 'dungeon crawler', but it definitely isn't. The problem stems from the game being far too simplistic. With a single four-hit combo and a heavy attack button to throw in, the manoeuvres you pull off in the thick of combat are extremely underdeveloped, right from the very beginning. You do gain three unique abilities along with three magical spells, but even these special powers are hardly impressive. E'lara ends up being the more useful of the two characters since she can sit back and take out hundreds of encroaching enemies with her bow. Both characters have mêlée and ranged functionality, but I'll give you one guess as to who's better in mêlée combat and who's better at range. The predictability is just a testament to the lack of imagination in Hunted.

In case you couldn't tell, this game can often be pretty dark.

Depending on the game's mood at a particular moment, you may also have the occassional opportunity to execute an injured opponent. The first few times this happens are cool, but the animations never change and you can only watch someone take a slow-motion arrow to the face so many times. The spell effects from weapons and special abilities do sound excellent and are visually appealing, but that positive fact is sent to the depths by the mechanics behind the weapons. Remember how I said that Hunted was a 'dungeon crawler'? Well, there's zero inventory in this game. That's right; the only difference, besides certain increases in damage, is the speed at which a weapon attacks. Enchanted weapons deal a tonne more damage, but their special ammo is limited in quantity, usually making you toss your weapon away soon after you pick it up. What kind of dungeon-based game disallows an inventory and wide array of weapons to select?

Weapons aren't the only thing the game is stingy about, either; you can only switch your playable character at specific places throughout the game, called Obelisks. Why you can't dynamically switch on-the-fly, I'll never know, as it leaves much more to be desired when it comes to combos and other special attacks. You can play with a friend over the internet to lessen the pain, but even that won't save you from the dim-witted AI enemy.

Weapons that glow in the dark. Pretty cool right?

I've never played a game where I've felt bored wailing on a Minotaur. How does that happen? Even worse, the game is riddled with awful, overly-extended encounters with AI who, sometimes, will run in wild circles and perform other aneurism-inducing feats. I can't tell you how many times I was thwacking a skeletal soldier in the back without having him retaliate. There are about twenty other ludicrous encounters I could share, but I think, by this point, you get the idea.

Hunted's enemies are ankle-biter spiders, Wargar gremlin... things, skeletons, and Minotaur. That's the extent of the lavish selection of beasts you can slay. But, wait: once you travel to a new area, you can fight the same exact creatures, with a different skin! This is incredibly lazy game design, and it's only accentuated when there's a door every twelve feet that transfers you to the next area. Caddoc and E'lara even joke about the amount of doors in the game when they're opening them.

...hilarious.

After you give up on the monotonous adventure mode, you can always jump into the Crucible mode. The Crucible is a map-maker of sorts, but one that doesn't allow you to create actual levels; instead, you can only select from presets. The gold you amass in the adventure mode unlocks these presets and, regardless of what you choose, it'll always be a wave-based, room-to-room map. In other words, it's a complete waste of time. The potential here was huge yet, because of lazy design, the Crucible turned into random used space on your hard-drive.

What. A. Tramp.

With all the bad, the only decent things I can compliment about Hunted are the new library of sounds InXile have freshly recorded, and the occasional scenic view. The banter, combat, enemies, and doors are all part of a considerably heinous package that you must steer clear from.

Hunted: The Demon's Forge is laughable at best. It isn't the worst game in the world, but it certainly isn't anywhere near above-average. Perhaps the mindless nature of the game could save you from untold hours of boredom, but by my experiences that's a stretch. Save your money and save your time, because The Demon's Forge will only make you cry.

4/10 [?]

Review: Mortal Kombat

2011-06-02T15:49:00.002+01:00

When a fighting game comes along that makes me stop and take notice, it's usually a sign that it's a damn good fighter. Street Fighter IV was possibly the first fighting game I'd enjoyed playing since Tekken 3 on the original PlayStation, but after hearing of the hardcore-centric arcade past enjoyed by the Mortal Kombat series, I have to say I felt a rather large degree of trepidation going into this game. I'd had a good time with the demo for sure, but delving into the larger overall single player and multiplayer experiences offered in the full game would surely be an entirely different story.

Don't get me wrong, this rebooted Mortal Kombat is just about as classic and hardcore as you're likely to get in this generation of console fighters, but even for a relatively inexperienced fighting game player like myself, this is still a damn enjoyable, blood-drenched good time.

Mortal Kombat's reboot undoubtedly stems from the 'easy to learn, difficult to master' template of approachability, and in the eyes of most people this is probably the ideal way to design the gameplay system of a fighting game. Mortal Kombat is set on a traditional 2D plane, a departure from the 3D plane of Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe; as a result, the action is far more immediate and intense. The style of fighting encourages an offensive strategy, with techniques such as projectile attacks and air combos far more dangerous and effective than they were in the more recent entries to the series. Indeed, this new Mortal Kombat has its feet firmly planted in the arcades. Learning defensive moves like blocking, jumping and teleporting are obviously important if you're to have any success on the harder difficulties, or when taking the fight online, but the way in which you are encouraged to play with an open and offensive style certainly caters itself to newcomers looking for a bloody good time.

Fighting is ultimately thrilling, as it should be, and the formula is given even more flash by the special moves. As you take damage or land hits, a combo bar fills up at the bottom of the screen. As it fills, you're able to perform special moves simply by landing a combo on an enemy whilst holding down the right trigger button. Alternatively, you can wait until the entire combo bar is filled up and subsequently unleash a devastating 'X-Ray' move, by simply holding down both triggers. These bone-crunching moves not only do ridiculous damage that can change the direction of a fight immediately, but they also look completely insane. Fighters are subjected to acts of complete brutality and, as the name suggests, players are given an X-Ray view of their opponent, as their spines are snapped, skulls are stamped on and crotches are kicked. Whilst obviously looking insanely brutal - and also rather cool, in a sick kind of way - these special moves ensure that the game isn't just a nineties arcade title with modern day graphics. Whilst the basic fighting is still fantastic despite the age of its core mechanics, the special and X-Ray moves keep the gameplay feeling fresh and unpredictable, even for veterans of the series.

Fatalities also make a return. These finishing moves are more for visual punch than anything gameplay-related, but it's undeniably more fun to finish a fight by ripping your opponent in half - or, eating their face playing as a scantily-clad, busty, deranged woman - than it is to simply kick them over. They look ridiculously violent, and you haven't lived before you've seen Johnny Cage rip someone's torso off in 3D.

The classic one-on-one fighting is what most people will get their kicks out of, but Mortal Kombat has also introduced a new tag-team approach to fighting. The game lets up to four humans play at once, if you're interested in tag-teaming with a real person; but you can also play alongside an AI partner against two other AI-controlled fighters, or can control both of the fighters on your team and swap between them as the fight plays out. The tag battles add some extra moves to the game as well, such as allowing you to call in your partner to perform quick special moves, or tagging out in the middle of a combo for additional brutality. Personally, I prefer the classic one-on-one style, but tagging in and out makes for a fun variant which may be even more enjoyable for some.

What surprised me the most about Mortal Kombat was the sheer amount of content on the disc, ensuring that there are plenty of ways for you to kick arse across a multitude of modes. The multiplayer modes are obviously worth considering, but what really impressed me was the breadth of single-player options available. In fact, the game probably has the widest and best selection of single-player modes that I've ever seen in a fighting game. The flagship mode is the story mode, which simply connects the traditional fighting with a decent story told through very well-produced cutscenes. To be honest, the story flew right over my head, but it will probably appeal to long-time fans of the series tenfold more. In fairness, a clear amount of effort and resources have gone into the story mode, and that fact alone impressed me, even though I really didn't have a great idea of what was going on half the time. From what I've gathered from friends who are somewhat more familiar with the Mortal Kombat lore than myself, the story mode here retells the events of the first three games of the series as if they had taken place in an alternate timeline. As a result, some characters end up in totally different states than they had done in the prior games, and so loyal followers of the lore will find some interest in seeing what happens to their favourite characters. For me personally (and for other newcomers as well, I'm sure) the story mode is just a well-presented excuse to rip people's heads off.

The eight-hour story mode isn't the only single-player mode here, though. The traditional arcade mode is present and accounted for, and plays out in a ladder-based tournament style. Playing through this mode with different characters will give you slightly different endings depending on who you choose.

The final single-player mode, the Challenge Tower, is a collection of 300 tasks, from traditional fights to some seriously crazy twists and variants to keep you guessing. Some of these variants are simple enough, such as requiring you to use a certain move or to perform a fatality, but some of them are much crazier - launching one of your limbs at your enemy, for example. Your limbs grow back over time, giving you a steady stream of heads, arms and legs to launch instead of traditional punches and kicks. Other twists include having the stage tilt from side-to-side as hits land, or even fighting upside-down. Some of the tasks come with silly bits of dialogue, such as one that has Mileena trying to give a teddy bear as a gift, or another that has Shang Tsung and Shao Kahn fighting over a baby that sits in the background as you battle. A crying baby sitting there as two guys tear each other limb-from-limb? It's at times like that when you wonder about the state of Ed Boon's mental health.

These single-player modes are worth playing before you dive into the online competition, mainly because you'll want to master at least a few of the twenty-seven characters on offer. Old favourites like Scorpion are available, and all the fighters have at least two fatalities and two costumes. These extras are unlocked in the Krypt by spending your MK Points, which are earned simply by fighting, completing challenges and advancing in the story. As well as costumes and fatalities, you can also unlock music, concept art and other goodies that can be viewed later in the Nekropolis. PlayStation 3 owners can also enjoy playing as God of War frontman, Kratos, which might be worth considering if you have the choice between the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions.

The aforementioned online experience is a key cornerstone of this new Mortal Kombat. Ranked and unranked options are both available in order to quickly dive into a fight, but lobbies make a welcome return and are a fun way of experiencing the online component of the game. As well as fighting, other members of the lobby can watch ongoing fights and perform gestures, as their Xbox Live avatar watches the fight on a cinema screen. PlayStation 3 gamers instead use cartoon doll versions of Mortal Kombat fighters (don't expect to see your much-loved PlayStation Home avatar jumping around anytime soon). In terms of online modes, regular fights as well as tag-team battles are available, and there are also some unique modes to the online experience such as King of the Hill. The concept is simple: the winner stays on, the loser goes to the back of the queue and is forced to watch the next few fights from the lobby as the next contender gets a chance to fight. None of the interesting mini-games from the Challenge Tower are available to play online, but with DLC promised further down the road, that may eventually become a reality for players to enjoy.

Clearly, there is a hell of a lot to Mortal Kombat, and it's all brought together in a very impressive visual package. Characters and backgrounds are exceptionally detailed, with a disturbingly impressive range of animations for the X-Ray moves and Fatalities. Fighters get battered and bruised throughout the course of a fight and their costumes become ripped and bloodied, which is another really nice touch. Of course, a further bonus for PlayStation 3 owners is the ability to play in 3D and - whilst I only have my experience with the PlayStation 3 demo's 3D capabilities to go on - it's a very impressive visual element which adds a nice layer of depth to the proceedings. In terms of mere graphical detail and performance, however, there are no noticeable differences between the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game.

There isn't much that's in any way negative about Mortal Kombat. It's a fantastic fighting game with a ridiculous number of modes for both single-player games and online competition, a terrifically approachable but fiendishly difficult to master fighting system, and it's incredibly good-looking as well. Whether you're a hardcore fighting game fan or someone who just wants to kick some arse and rip some heads off in a ridiculously violent game, Mortal Kombat is absolutely worth playing. Absolutely.

9/10 [?]

Second Opinion Review: Brink

2011-05-27T20:08:00.001+01:00

Our first review of the PC version of Brink can be found here.

"Move more than you shoot" is an interesting premise, not least in a first-person shooter, a genre of gaming that intrinsically lends itself to combat-heavy bulletfests. Counting them on one hand, there aren't many FPS games that I can think of in which more movement than combat would be logical, let alone effective. Yet, it's key advice in Brink; a focus on movement, rather than the discharging of one's weapon, is supposed to be the core mechanic of the game, the key component around which the rest of the game is built. Goodness knows that the S.M.A.R.T. system - the mechanic which facilitates the movement aspect of Brink, and is surprisingly reminiscent of EA's Mirror's Edge - has been lauded enough. Yet, Brink is also simultaneously trying to play the 'meaty, manly, gritty FPS' card, one which we know lends itself to mindless explosive shooting and not alot besides. Being frank, Brink steers dangerously close to being an incomprehensible, hazily-defined mess of nearly-incompatible ideas, but Splash Damage's latest creation manages to hold steadfast by rewarding players with a rare, intelligent tactical experience that, when all the aspects come together, can sometimes create the perfect storm.

That only happens in very specific circumstances, however. At the outset, Brink can feel bloated, laggy, inaccessible and generally unpolished, as though the foundations are there but are barely built upon. This is, perhaps, the main criticism of Brink cited by games journalists; though the original creative interpretation, the 'vision', is there, most of what Brink does and is feels underdeveloped, with seemingly important aspects proving, in truth, the most irrelevant. The first question Brink asks you, for example, is whether you choose to save or escape the Ark, the floating city in which the game's action plays out. Two simple options on a serious monocrome screen, that - whether through the minimalism or the build-up that the choice is given through an 'all-that-happened-up-to-now' video preluding the choice - suggests some level of importance leading into the rest of the game. It should have been a choice that massively shapes how you experience Brink but, in fact, it has no effect whatsoever; it seems a superflous addition that appears to act solely to give some underdefined sense of context to the story. The story itself is really given little attention; there is the vague suggestion of a relatively generic civil-war-esque struggle, but the narrative is limited to the extreme, delivered within the tight boundaries of incredibly short cut-scenes at the beginning and end of each mission, and a slightly longer but still restricted cut-scene at the outset and resolution of the overarching campaign.

Brink's campaign mode is played out in what is, essentially, a series of faux-multiplayer arenas. This, combined with the minimal narrative, is a real shame. Brink's basis is there, but stylistically it is poorly executed offline; I found myself craving a much more linear, character- and narrative-based storyline, instead of the arena-based multiplayer-with-AI that Brink's offline component is made up of. Such a storyline, as seen in other first-person shooters, would have provided opportunities to develop the sense of plotline and character progression, giving much more of a feeling of being part of a larger struggle and allowing some aspect of emotional involvement with the characters' plight, and therefore increasing the player's immersion in the world of Brink. Unfortunately, the style of offline gameplay that the developers chose - whilst admittedly increasing the players familiarity with an online style of gameplay, even before jumping into the internet-based world of Brink's online component - simply didn't leave any space for a rewarding narrative and plot, a major oversight which leaves the player feeling, at the end of each campaign, no more affected or involved than they felt at the outset.

On a lighter note, the combat in Brink is solid, and - whilst occassionally suffering from slight lag issues, and despite needing some concerted effort to even out the damage balancing - can admittedly be enjoyable to play. There is a wide range of weaponry, all of which is available from the beginning of the game, and which can be tweaked and customised with additional unlocks (such as scopes, special magazines or muzzle breakers) earned through completing the game's 'challenges'. Customisation is a major aspect of Brink which is developed and polished: the sheer number of possible options for customising your character or weaponry (from headwear to clothing, and much more besides) is incredible, and ensures that a player can be relatively sure that their character, warts and all, is unique. The shooting itself is fine, but nothing particularly special, and major improvement to the damage balancing (in addition to increasing the level of force feedback through the Dualshock 3) would serve well to increase the level of satisfaction gleaned from the shooting mechanic itself, something which is currently lacking. Brink's class-based structure can work well, but is really only fully effective online; offline, the only useful aspect is the medic's ability to revive fallen teammates, although the class roles can remain entirely untouched without much impact on the outcome of the mission.

Brink's 'S.M.A.R.T.' system - which stands for 'Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain', a sort of parkour-based free movement mechanic which essentially enables the player to move freely over obstacles and climb objects, in Mirror's Edge-esque style - is a strange beast. The idea is interesting and innovative, introducing something rare and unusual to a first-person shooter; a component which reduces the relatively monotonous, unvarying nature of a shooter's mechanic by adding something that removes the restrictions posed by the game environment, allowing a more free-flowing, organic-feeling battle through much more liberated movement. Whilst, the majority of the time, S.M.A.R.T. does its job, it can be rather hit-and-miss at times, and though it's meant to be one of the most core aspects of Brink, it is incredibly easy to largely ignore or grossly underuse during play. There just isn't enough in the way of signposting or involvement in the game's situations; where S.M.A.R.T. could have been the central entity, key to success, S.M.A.R.T. feels, honestly, like merely a late addition. We all know it isn't, as it has been heralded throughout Brink's extended marketing campaign as the game's unique selling point, but it just doesn't feel as key or as central as it should have done; it can be easily sidelined or even forgotten entirely by the player, particularly in the face of the multitude of different objectives and enemies that one has to deal with simultaneously. Moreover - and Andrew touched on this in our first review of Brink - the mere concept of the player moving instead of trying to despatch enemies is illogical, considering the fact that the enemy can merely shoot players down, mid-freerun.

S.M.A.R.T. an intelligent, inspired concept that has real potential, but needed to be more focussed and more integral to the core functions of Brink; in other words, the implementation needed to lead players down a more linear route in order to make the S.M.A.R.T. system key to solving challenges posed by the environment that the player encounters - the freedom of movement would be better obtained not by giving the player entire freedom to traverse the map as they wish, but instead by leading them more directly into challenges where the S.M.A.R.T. system would have to have been utilised, increasing player familiarity with the function and also making it tenfold more relevant.

To be frank, I've thus far been relatively scathing of Brink. The truth is, it isn't bad. It's just that all the technical aspects of the game are just... well, passable, but flawed. They're nothing special, they aren't polished and some aspects are underdeveloped, but they do function at least somewhat well, allowing the player to meander through the storyline and have some fun in places. Yet, as a whole of its technical parts, Brink solely does what it has to do to work, and not a whole lot else. Each idea behind it is interesting and, potentially, could have been groundbreaking, but they're many ideas which have come together to make an indistinct mess of different influences, rather than the carefully shaped composition it should have been, and which would have ensured success.

And then you go online, and things change drastically.

This is the 'perfect storm' I mentioned earlier, and it only happens online and when some key constituents come together. Playing with people you know, utilising voice comms, and particularly if your online compatriots are familiar with the game's mechanics and environments, Brink becomes an entirely different beast altogether. When playing with real people, all those individual aspects that, offline, create a mulch of goodness-knows-what, become clearer, more defined, and infinitely more relevant. Instead of gameplay where the class-based team structure has little or no pertinency, due to the patchy use of buffs by AI, each online player has a real sense of responsibility to support their teammates within the power of their class - each person becomes important, even essential, to the overall performance during a mission. Furthermore - and this applies to most FPS games online, but particularly to Brink, due to the objective-centric gameplay - the online encourages a gameplay style which is boundlessly more tactical than offline, due to the fact that - playing alongside real human beings - one can predict and anticipate their teammates' movements and offensives, and so can then compensate in their own playstyle for their teammates tactics and plan accordingly, leading to an overall more tactical, more intelligent experience that's likely to be much more successful and rewarding to the player, due to each player's individual feeling of involvement and influence. True, there are still slight issues with lag (and all the other technical shortcomings that plague the offline function), but online play on Brink is truly an experience, which somewhat evens out the problems and pulls Brink further towards what it should have been in the first place - an intelligent, tactical, rewarding shooter.

Brink has been a particularly interesting game to review. It poses questions about the inherent nature of videogames reviewing, ones that have seriously made me reassess the way I analyse and judge a game, and the way games journalism tackles reviewing in general. Should a reviewer consider the game based solely on what is there in front of them, the sum of its technical parts and nothing more; or should one review a game based on the emotional response it inspires, the abstract concept of an 'experience' which isn't included on the disc, but which the game serves as the trigger for? It's a question with particular gravity when it comes to Brink, as the two different approaches to reviewing would warrant two entirely different review scores, two strikingly dissimilar responses. Technically, I think it's fair to say that Brink is sub-par and, in many ways, a disappointment, particularly considering the extensive marketing campaign that painted the picture of a game of the year candidate. However, when the right things come together - that is, when online - Brink can be tense, exciting, tactical, and - dare I say it - groundbreaking, a first-person shooter that disinclines the typical run-and-gun fray and, by the nature of its objective- and role-based mechanics, creates an FPS in which pre-emptive thought is not merely a sideline, but is entirely instrumental in the success of the team.

When it comes down to it, however, Brink exhibits many key technical issues which show less than the highest level of polish. Those looking for a deep storyline or developed narrative won't find a home here, and whilst the art style is original, texture popping and other such graphical issues can often prove irritating, entirely ruining player immersion in whichever cut-scene they're watching. The gun roster is relatively widely spread, but the effort spent on it would have been better employed in ensuring the damage was balanced between player and enemy. The S.M.A.R.T. system is an intelligent idea but, sadly, underdeveloped and largely sidelined. Brink, online, can be intelligent and rewarding, but the mere fact that it takes certain independent components to come together before Brink is rendered entirely enjoyable (in this case, other people) is a testament to the fact that more work was needed in every aspect - further development of the core game mechanics, and a larger focus on appropriating them to be essential in the way a mission plays out, rather than the somewhat ignorable implementation of those mechanics in Brink currently. Brink has potential and can be an excellent experience, but it just doesn't deliver on what it could have been. It's an intelligent, even groundbreaking, idea - but it could have been so much more.