calinks' GameSpot Friend's Reviews calinks' GameSpot Friend's Reviews calinks' GameSpot Friend's Reviews en-us Copyright (c)1995-2013 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved. http://www.gamespot.com 20 Sun, 19 May 2013 01:23:57 -0700 GameSpot calinks' GameSpot Friend's Reviews http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/shared/promos/misc/gs_logo.gif http://www.gamespot.com 135 40 Mon, 05 Nov 2007 13:33:35 -0800 phantomtech85 reviewed Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/peter-jacksons-king-kong-the-official-game-of-th/user-reviews/513136/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 7.0.

Based on the remake of the 1933 classic, Peter Jackson’s King Kong: Official Game of the Movie has you as one of the main characters, starring Jack, (Adrien Brody) along with Carl Denham (Jack Black), Ann Darrow (An actress who has previously lost her acting gig and looking for work) Played by Naomi Watts. Carl is a film maker and desperate for his next big film so he and crew aboard a ship to pursue a secret Island called skull Island to shoot their movie. Still on the shaky seas and getting close to the island, that’s when you as jack open your eyes as in a first person perspective. Once you and the others set foot on the beach, you’ll spend time traveling around the island to find your way. Suddenly, you’re forced to pick up a weapon as there are nasty creatures coming from the water.

Automatic weapons are limited, a shotgun, sniper rifle and a Tommy machine gun (as used in that time period), are all at your disposal in the form of small crates found throughout the levels. As Peter Jackson wanted it for a more realistic feel, there is no on screen HUD to begin with so you have no sight of ammo, or health. But instead Jack will utter the number of ammo he has left. You can also pick up spears as throwing projectiles that are laying around bones and other left over parts of the environment, which can be very helpful in sticky situations if you’re without a gun. These weapons are fairly easy to used with seemingly a semi-auto aim function, which does make up for the lack of a aiming reticule.

The storyline really kicks off when you’re with Ann and then ambushed by the local tribes people that inhabit the island. You end up knocked out, kidnapped and tied up witnessing Ann being taken away by the gigantic Kong who appears from the thick jungle. Of course Ann being Jacks love interest as the film suggests, he will do anything to find her. So Carl stumbles upon Jack at that point, unties him and their search Ann begins. This Jingle is not a safe place to be, the creatures here are no joke. You’ll more then likely encounter a good variety of weird looking monsters. Giant bats and millipedes, are one of the frequent monsters you’ll face in the early sections of the jungle.

The puzzles in the game are pretty simplistic, repetitive, and offers no challenge or anything new to the table. Most of the time, you’re searching for wooden levers to open doors or finding fire for burning down shrubbery to get pass certain areas. One of the bright spots of King Kong is, actually getting to play as Kong. About more than half way through, you’ll transition from Jack to Kong in third person plat forming and/or chase sequences. It’s rather easy to traverse the linear jungle as Kong moves swiftly and strongly. As big as Kong is, he will ultimately have larger enemies to deal with, like in the film, he will take on V and T-Rexes as well as giant bats. The fighting controls feel natural, but can be a bit to button mashy at times. Still, it doesn’t try to push the limits of what you can do with Kong.

Graphically, theirs nothing special here, though the environments are solid, and accurate to it’s movie counterpart. The character and creature models have decent textures to them, Kong himself especially looks detailed. I did experience brief slow down on some occasions, but it doesn’t ruin the overall playability. The ambient sounds of skull island does have a sometimes eerie yet, immersive tone. It’s makes you aware of the many critters and monsters surrounding you. The intense musical score brings urgency to the situation, as you fight, shoot your way through all the areas, it’s certainly what the film and game did well.

After jungle hopping, the last stop of your journey ends in New York City after Kong is captured and put on display in a Broadway auditorium. Once you break out you must find your way up the empire state building holding Ann and from there on you battle a gang of biplanes. If you’ve seen the film, then you’ll know what happens next. This short sequence was disappointing as it ends rather abruptly without further gameplay like the chasing of Jack’s car through the New York streets. Ubisoft certain could’ve done a better job with that. All 1000 achievement points can be unlocked quite easily, just by completing the game, it’s that simple. Overall with everything accounted for Peter Jackson’s King Kong: Official Game of the Movie serves as a satisfying movie adaptation certainly compared to how most movie based games are these days. With that in mind, King Kong is at least worth a rental.

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/peter-jacksons-king-kong-the-official-game-of-th/user-reviews/513136/platform/xbox360/ Sun, 04 Nov 2007 22:20:33 -0800 phantomtech85 reviewed Viva Pinata for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/viva-pinata/user-reviews/512905/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

Pinata Island is where you reside, taking care of cute pinatas, vegetation, and making an overall healthy environment that previously belonged to a great gardener named Jardiniero. Surprisingly their is somewhat of a storyline involving Jardiniero and the other characters. Once you arrive, you’ll meet Leafos, a seemingly lonely girl that helps you with the essentials on how to operate things in your newly acquired garden, as well as giving you advice about things you might need. She will also give you a journal that keeps track of all the events occurring in the garden as well as her own comments described as Leafos log or gossip. After that, you are provided with tools such as a shovel , watering can, and grass seed. These things are your basic necessities you need to get your garden up and running.

When you’ve started planting seeds or grass, which naturally turn into plants, they eventually attract the first of many pinatas, and then those will attract larger ones. All of the pinatas that surround your garden have requirements needed in order to appear, visit, have residence, and romance in your garden. Romancing (which is basically reproducing) a pinata can be a bit more complex depending on their species, especially if the requirements are more demanding. The actual romancing itself is played out as a mini-game/dance with each pinata having their own unique romance dance. At first non-residents are black and white, but when the residential requirement are fulfilled, the pinata will turn brightly colored.

The currency in the game consists of chocolate bronze, silver and gold coins that can be used to purchase products from specific items to seeds and so on. Most of your money will come from the ability to sell virtually anything inside your garden. Each object including pinatas has a price tag. It’s pretty convenient considering you may be force to sell something to afford items necessary for further garden development. With over 50 species on pinata Island, theirs lots of diversity there, and each one has a agenda or routine to follow. For example, much like Animal Crossings, theirs a night and day pattern, and certain species will be attracted to your garden only at night, while most come in the day time. Occasionally you will have to direct your pinatas to move around if not moving on their own. With progression, a number of unlockable store owners and helpers will be on call for you, as you’ll find yourself using their services quite often. Helpers help carry some of the load when things get real busy, like watering plants, pulling weeds and gathering food.

As different pinatas are eventually introduced, comes change along with it. Your garden will in fact increase in size to help make room for some of the more larger pinatas. The only downside of this is having to rearrange things all over again, which is somewhat frustrating knowing you may already have a nice looking garden. Another frustrating aspect are the Sour Pinatas and Ruffians, these alternate versions usually sneak in when specific conditions are met and instead of trying to make peace will in fact disrupt your garden by destroying plants, items and/or other pinatas.

On the upside, these pests can be contained using your trusty shovel to either smash them into bits or by offering the Ruffians a certain amount of chocolate coins to temporarily leave, in which sometimes they can become greedy and not always leave right away. Ruffians and Sour Pinatas aren’t the only ones that cause trouble from time to time. Those so called cute harmless pinatas will in turn start fights in your garden. Some species start more fights than others, and becomes a real hassle trying to control them, so be prepared, just a simple whack of your shovel should put them in check as well.

Rare have done a fantastic job on the visuals, the vivid colorfulness of the resident pinatas and a paper mache look that real toy pinatas have make for nice detail. Sound wise it's a delight mostly, listening to slow, calm music with background wildlife sounds of birds chirping, other creature noises, and the ever so annoying sounds of ’the Sour ones’ entering you garden. The game does experience some lag seemingly when hooked up to Xbox Live, or when moving through menus, but for the most part it’s smooth. Speaking up Xbox Live, Viva Pinata does support the ability to trade pinatas, gifts or accessories with friends online. It would’ve been nice to actually invite a friend into your garden to cooperatively play the game which could add further enjoyment to the already addictive nature of this game. What makes Viva Pinata addicting is the change and diversity that takes places throughout your time playing, and making the constant adjustments needed to maintain a manageable garden. Certainly a game that shouldn’t be missed by the young and older alike.

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"phantomtech85 reviewed Viva Pinata for the Xbox 360..." was posted by phantomtech85 on Sun, 04 Nov 2007 22:20:33 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/viva-pinata/user-reviews/512905/platform/xbox360/ Wed, 18 Apr 2007 15:33:06 -0700 phantomtech85 reviewed Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/ratchet-and-clank-going-commando/user-reviews/445932/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

Insomniac Games is indeed heading in the right direction. The first Ratchet & Clank was a critically acclaimed hit, and started a new trend in platform games with it’s fun, unique weapons and gadgets, along with it’s wise humor. Now a year after it’s release, comes Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando. It still maintains it’s quirky sense of humor and fun gameplay mechanics, and also adds a wider variety of new features and adventuring that long time fans and newcomers will enjoy.

The game starts out after the ending of the first Ratchet. While Ratchet and Clank are sitting back and relaxing in their home galaxy, a creature used for experiments has been lifted from MegaCorp, and it’s president/CEO, Fizzwidget employs them to find the creature unharmed. But something isn’t right, and you end up discovering throughout the game, that these so called fuzzy little experiments seem to be going somewhat crazy, and then the rest of the story turns upside down from there. Just in case you’re wondering, you don’t necessarily have to play the original Ratchet & Clank in order to get the storyline since it doesn’t relate.

Gameplay is very similar to the first game in that you are still collecting bolts to spend on weapons, ammo and gadgets. The mission structure has also remained the same, as you go from planet to planet completing objectives. The weapon system however, has changed a bit since you are constantly upgrading and earning experience the more you use them. The sniper, energy shotgun, Lava gun and a device that regenerates robotic teammates to fight by your side are just some of the newer weapons introduced. Now in the previous Ratchet, weapon swapping didn’t allow you to pause the action while in combat, but this version does. Sure is a relief for when enemies are being shoved down your throat one after another.

One of the things I like most about Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando is the fact that you can use certain weapons and gadgets from the last game as long as you still have that game save. It gives you more options as to what weapons you prefer to use like The Visibomb or the Teslaclaw. And besides weapons, Ratchet also gains experience as well by adding circular segments to his life meter. This occurs when a second meter fills up as you’re laying waste to enemies. Of course you still have your trusty wrench which also doubles as a boomerang and becomes stronger when you find some of the better upgrades for it. Their are also body suit armor that can be found at little stations throughout the game. They reduce damage and looks good on Ratchet if I might add. The gadgets have been revamped as well for more creative use. Offering different ways to solve puzzles, unlock doors and could also serve as small stand alone mini games depending how you look at it.

The enemies A.I seems tougher this time around, and from level to level the difficulty is being ramped up. I found the early levels pretty easy, but as soon as you get to the later ones, It might become harder to maintain the onslaught of the different enemies in your path. If you think you’re always on foot, you’re wrong. Yes, the hovercraft racing and space combat return. Giving the player upgrades for their ship, as well as acting as a fun deterrent to the on-foot gameplay.

Graphically, Going Commando is not all that different from it’s predecessor. Each environment is vividly colorful, with a very similar yet different design from the next. The level that impressed me was the Spiracle World, which is literally a huge ball of a planet that you must traverse and destroy these satellite towers. Now the frame rate is steady for the most part with occasionally slowdown in some spots where their is a lot of action. As for the audio, it’s very well done. Musically, the game is a mirror image of Ratchet 1 with an upbeat techno sound, as well as the voice acting which obviously brings back all of the cast members along with a few new ones in the mix.

Overall, the game hasn’t changed much so don’t expect a great deal of originality here, but what it does bring to the table is more of what you loved about the first game. Good platforming elements, insane amount of weapons & gadgets, and excellent level design. So if you’re remotely a fan of action platformers, then I highly recommend Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando.

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/ratchet-and-clank-going-commando/user-reviews/445932/platform/ps2/ Thu, 05 Apr 2007 20:14:52 -0700 phantomtech85 reviewed Crackdown for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/crackdown/user-reviews/441292/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.1.

What do you call a game that combines near future technology, a GTA style of play, and Supercops? Well, Real Time Worlds and Microsoft introduces to you a different open world way of playing with Crackdown. It’s no secret that this type of game has been done to death, but it's good to see something fresh in the genre.

Now I know you’re wondering about the storyline. Sorry to announce, but their isn’t much of one, this is a sandbox type of game. Meaning the city is your personal playground of destruction so you do whatever you desire.

At the start of the game, you pick for an assortment of super agents. All have somewhat of a different look in terms of facial appearance. With these agents come abilities that level up over time. 5 to be exact. Agility, Driving, Firearms, Explosives and Strength. Agility can be earned by simply collecting orbs around the city which enhances your ability to leap certain distances and run faster, while the others can be obtain by using that specific skill constantly on enemies or finding many of the hidden orbs which can little by little help you in all of your skill areas.

To increase your driving (which is pretty bad from the beginning) you can run over enemies and do stunts. This enhances speed and handling. Once you hit a 4-star rating, the super car, SUV, and cab truck you get from agency headquarters can also transform making it look and feel like a beast on the road. For firearms skills, you can use the auto-targeting system and gun down enemies. For explosive skills, same as firearms, but you’ll have to use grenades and rocket launchers. By leveling up that skill you increase your blast radius and for more damage. Increasing strength gives you the ability to lift up heavier objects such as cars and trucks as well as more health which you’ll need against the tougher enemies. Using close combat a lot is the easiest way to gain more strength. Although killing innocent civilians in any fashion can slightly slow down your progress in skill.

I guess there is somewhat of storyline, and it has to do with defeating 3 gang organizations. All 3 gangs have 7 leaders each held in different territories. Los Muertos, Volk and the Shai-Gen territories. Before encountering a boss, their is a debriefing that explains the whereabouts and criminal motives of that individual. It doesn’t really matter what order you take on these leaders, just defeat all 7 leaders in one city then go right to the next to face the others and so on. The problem is that these ’leaders’ don’t bring much challenge to the table so you’ll find yourself beating this bosses quicker than you think. Once you’ve erased the gang bosses in each/all the territories, all you have to do is finish off the remaining criminals and their will be no more crime on the streets. Doing all this will result in a ending cutscene.

The biggest part of the gameplay is how vertically these cities get. For example, the Agency Tower in Los Muertos, it’s clearly one of the tallest buildings in the game. As your agility increases, you will be able to scale many of the buildings, some really high like the Agency Tower and some not so high. Each city has it’s own type of architexture. Los Muertos looks like more of urban/suburban city reminiscent of California. Volk seems to be a industrial inspired city, with oil tankers, ship docks and shorter buildings. The Shai-Gen is basically a metropolis like Tokyo or New York city and looks the cleaner of the three. As for climbing, each city gets harder then the next and becomes more difficult as the environments become varied.

Through out each city are supply points that you find for replenishing ammo, and serves well for checkpoints. So if you happen to get yourself killed by a boss or a bunch of enemies, you can go to the closest supply point to where the boss is located. This will save you some heart ache from traveling a long distance to get back to where you started. Their are also races to participate in, rooftop and standard racing. The rooftop races have you on foot going through checkpoints to finish a specific time, same goes for driving races. Who says you have to tackle the streets alone? Online co-op is here to save the day. Even though it’s fun to go through the campaign with a friend. It’s not as seamless as it should be for an Xbox Live game. For example, you have the option of playing a solo game or co-op, both allowing friends or random people to join. You also can deny people for joining if you wish to do so. The problem occurs when the other player quits or joins the current game your in and if you accept, the game kicks you out, and then forced to restart. The developers could of done a much better job with this part seeing how some games like Gears of War does it so well. On the plus side, taking on missions, climbing buildings and driving with another person is one of the most enjoyable aspects of Crackdown and adds a little more replay valve as well.

Graphically, it’s not the greatest in the world, but it’s not to bad either. Just think of it as a open world comic book, with it’s cel-shaded design and detail. It’s something different that we have yet to see on the Xbox360 until now. The sound is well done. The explosions and gunfire especially. The music is decent, which can only be played when in a car, nothing special though. It would have been nice to listen to the music while doing missions or just exploring the city.

Overall, Crackdown could of offered more then it did. But instead gives you simple and fun gameplay mechanics to build on for potential future iterations.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"phantomtech85 reviewed Crackdown for the Xbox 360..." was posted by phantomtech85 on Thu, 05 Apr 2007 20:14:52 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/crackdown/user-reviews/441292/platform/xbox360/ Sat, 10 Mar 2007 14:38:56 -0800 phantomtech85 reviewed Gears of War for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/gears-of-war/user-reviews/431732/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Epic studios has delivered a fun next-gen gaming experience into the world of shooters. And while Gears of War is not the most innovative in the genre, it does excels in capturing the essence of an amazing fast paced action/horror flick that you can actually play in the comfort of home.

Marcus Fenix is your name and shooting is your game. He was formerly known as a soldier of the Coalition of Organized Governments (COG) but thrown into jail for treason. After a while, he breaks out from the help of your soon to be partner in crime, Dominic Santiago to aide you in the battle against the Locust. In the very beginning of the game, after Dom breaks Marcus out of prison, you are put through a tutorial/test like stage where you fight your way out to a chopper where you are soon met by other fellow squad members and the game moves on from there. The story really doesn’t give you a lot of background information on the origins of these characters which could’ve been fleshed out more.

When it comes to gameplay, Gears of War is based much around the cover system. The A button on your controller will do all this for you as well as other maneuvers such as rolls and back flips. Blind fire can be used as well as a tactical advantage to shoot and not become exposed at the same time. Early on this can be a bit troubling to some, but may work well for others as you become accustom to the controls. After the adjustment to the controls of course, you have enemies to combat, the Locust. They’re different types of Locust, some are almost human like and some are very reminiscent of the Grunts from Halo. Epic has done a nice job with the designs of these creatures even though their not a whole lot of them. The enemy AI is especially good as it will test your skills. For example, the Locust will try to flank you and your squad of teammates so you’ll have to be aware of your surroundings. Weapons are obviously essential in the fight against the Locust, so Gears of War gives you some. One of the more popular and satisfying weapons to use is the Chainsaw bayonet, which is basically a chainsaw attached to an assault machine gun. Get close enough, and press X to chainsaw the Locust through the chest and watch him dismantle into a million pieces, but unfortunately you won’t receive that gun right away. Their are also some unique weapons throughout the game, like the one they call The Hammer of Dawn which uses a satellite from space in order rain down a huge laser to destroy the more bigger bosses and enemies, but can only be used outside. Of course you have your typical shotgun, grenades and a sniper rifle.

The game has 3 settings of difficulty, Casual, Hardcore and Insane. The Casual setting is what the game automatically defaults to, but it may seem too easy for most. Hardcore is just right, offering the right amount of challenge you’re looking for. Insane’ well it’s hard to say the least, take cover a lot more often or you’ll die a lot quicker. With all that said, the game’s length may be longer or shorter, between 10-15 hours depending on your skill level of a specific difficulty setting.

Now one of the coolest aspects of Gears of War is it’s co-op campaign over Xbox Live or offline split-screen. The way this works is simple, the player that’s hosting the co-op game will play as Marcus Fenix and the other will take control of Dominic Santiago or Dom. And if you start the campaign by yourself, you can invite a friend via Xbox Live to continue the fight from where you left off. Also, you are able to revive your teammate when he is downed by an enemy’trust me, it will happen. For the most part their is really not much of a difference in the graphical or technical presentation between co-op and single player, and everything seems to run fine.

In addition to co-op, Gears of War introduces a 4 on 4 team based multiplayer with COGs against Locusts. Surprisingly, there are only 3 game types to choose from with no option to respawn. One of these is called Warzone, your basic team deathmatch. The second is Execution, this mode allows you to revive yourself if downed by rapidly tapping the A button before the opposition can finish you off. The last game type, Assassination, has you or one of your teammates as the leader in which the opposing team must kill to win the round. The game offers fewer then a dozen maps which makes perfect for small yet open skirmishes.

Nothing really negative you can say about this game graphically, as it most likely tops every one's list as one of the best, if not the best looking game on the XBOX360. Each level is diverse in it’s dark and gritty setting, and the character models consist of big muscular guys with detailed shiny war torn armor. So you can definitely tell these soldiers have been in some serious battles in one point or another. The music and cinematics are what makes the single player adventure truly immersive aside from the sharp graphics. Using in-game cut scenes to drive the story, which tends to bog down a bit when things get fast on screen, the musical score also adds great intensity to the already frantic action that’s happening around you. At times I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what was going to occur next as the music starts ramping up. The voice performances themselves were decent, nothing too special, mainly one liners and mission briefings from Marcus, Dom and some others. Sound effects are particularly well done, hearing explosions, weapons firing and the splattering of blood & guts in 5.1 makes it more fun to kill everything in sight.

When it’s all said and done, Epic’s vision was to make the best shooter it could possibly make in the form of Gears of War. Having great graphics, fun gameplay, replay value, addicting online play and excellent production quality overall, it doesn’t fall short of any body's expectations.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"phantomtech85 reviewed Gears of War for the Xbox 360..." was posted by phantomtech85 on Sat, 10 Mar 2007 14:38:56 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/gears-of-war/user-reviews/431732/platform/xbox360/ Tue, 09 Jan 2007 16:14:30 -0800 phantomtech85 reviewed God of War for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/god-of-war/user-reviews/410784/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 9.4!

You are Kratos, a Spartan warrior in the backdrop of Ancient Greece. He’s one anti-hero you certainly don’t want to mess with or you’ll have hell to pay...literally. One of the coolest things about this character is that he’s a man on a mission and he will stop at nothing until he accomplishes his goal.

The storyline consists of completing life threatening quests for the higher authorities in Olympus to stop a mad man named Ares (’The infamous God of War’) from decimating the city of Athens. It just so happens that in order to defeat Ares, Kratos must retrieve a widely feared, Pandora’s Box. You’d be surprised at how much power this box possesses when the time comes’even the Gods themselves are afraid of it. In the beginning, the story doesn’t give you any reference on why Kratos is the way he is. But towards the end of your quest you’ll come to understand the mental as well as physical struggles he went through.

God of War’s gameplay is better than your standard, run of the mill hack ’n slash game, with a variety of weapons and powers to obtain. The primary killing device you will use are called the Blades of Chaos which were burned into his flesh by a pair of chain attached to the blades around his arms. Although the Blades of Chaos is a useful tool for combat, they’re more where that came from. Along the progression of the game, you will once in a while come across some of the gods and goddesses of Olympus that will provide help to you in the form of magical abilities. For example, Poseidon gives a power called Poseidon’s Rage that gives you the ability to attack multiple enemies at once using a circle of electricity, Hades provides you with the Army of Hades which summons the souls of the dead to fight with you.

Now wouldn’t it be nice to upgrade this abilities, and yes you can. By capturing magical red orbs from your fallen foes, you can upgrade whatever you want from your arsenal. Each weapon can be upgraded a certain amount of times for better attack range and power until you are unable to go any further.

The abundance of fierce and creative enemies that you encounter in God of War are no joke, they range from simple undead evil soldiers to giant Cyclops. Some of these creatures are rather easy to lay waste to, but others can be a difficult chore to handle. The regular and mini boss fights are on a much bigger scale’obviously. These bosses are indeed monstrous, like the Three Headed Hydra you face in the first stage. Also, specific enemies can be disposed of faster with quick time button combinations Ala Shenmue and makes for a fun way of breaking them down to size.

The graphics are top-notch, the approach of the level, creature and puzzle design were very well conceived. Some of the best the PS2 has to offer, in terms of detail and technicality. Lighting, animations and textures were a bit sketchy in some areas, but still does a great job of convincing you that the world of ancient Greece looks real. What would a superb action adventure game be without it’s excellent puzzles? Not much in the way of a brain teaser, but God of War definitely has that. These puzzles are smartly conceived as well, challenging yet rewarding after you figure them out. I had my fair share of difficult ones, frustrating to the point where I almost decided to give up for a while, but I stuck with it and finished it. One aspect of this game that I did NOT enjoy, was the camera. At times I wanted to move the camera to an angle that I was more comfortable with, but I just couldn’t, especially in sticky navigating and combat situations.

Sound and Music of a game can certainly be taken for granted, but in this game it’s hard to miss the extraordinary orchestral score God of War delivers. Depending on what’s happening, the music will either speed up in dramatic form or stay calm like in most games of this genre. Voice acting too is exceptionally well done, bringing the characters to life and a realness to the atmosphere and storyline.

Overall, God of war is exciting at heart, and you will come from this experience wanting more.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"phantomtech85 reviewed God of War for the PlayStation 2..." was posted by phantomtech85 on Tue, 09 Jan 2007 16:14:30 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/god-of-war/user-reviews/410784/platform/ps2/ Sat, 15 Jul 2006 19:18:30 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed RollerCoaster Tycoon for the Xbox... http://www.gamespot.com/rollercoaster-tycoon/user-reviews/338456/platform/xbox/ ...and gave it a 8.1.

The Roller Coaster Tycoon games were always some of the most fun you could have on a low-end PC. Despite the fact this game looks like a Playstation title...its one of the most fun games on the Xbox

Graphics: Not this games strong point. This game was released in 1999 before the launch of the Xbox. The graphics are poor, but not really the main point of this game...

Sound: Its ok, nothing special. The rides sound nice and the music is ok, but again this is not the main point of this game...

Gameplay: This is the strongpoint of this game. The game allows you to build and design your own amusement park from the ground up. You can build your own roller coasters from scrap and name them too. The game is just fun and still stands up to the advanced titles of today.

Overall: This title may not look and sound the best.........buts it is one fun and addicting little title.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"GameCubeN24 reviewed RollerCoaster Tycoon for the Xbox..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sat, 15 Jul 2006 19:18:30 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/rollercoaster-tycoon/user-reviews/338456/platform/xbox/ Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:57:01 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed Resident Evil 4 for the GameCube... http://www.gamespot.com/resident-evil-4/user-reviews/338450/platform/gamecube/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

There is really not much I can say about Resident Evil Four except that it is perfect.............There is no flaws in this package. The Gameplay, the sound, the graphics, the value is all here...in spades.

Graphics: The graphics in this game are so good they are scary (GET IT!!!) The graphics hold haunting visions of destroyed villages and haunting castles in which you will guide Leon though. The character models are perfect and hold today as some of the best in any videogame...Though they are truly horrifying. The monsters that you will face are all detailed in their own horrid way and will haunt your dreams for weeks.

Sound: The sound is a sure joy in this game. From the haunting scores to the horrid groans of the haunting Las Plagas...this games sound is something to enjoy.

Gameplay: Fun, perfect, and addicting is the three best words to describe this game. The Gameplay is just perfect with a new over the shoulder camera, which makes you feel right in the game. The controls are tight and smooth and will rarely mess you up. Aside the games main story, this package comes with many other surprises that will keep you playing this game for years to come.

Overall: This game is perfect...............buy it................now..............really............buy it.........

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Resident Evil 4 for the GameCube..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:57:01 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/resident-evil-4/user-reviews/338450/platform/gamecube/ Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:39:42 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. for the DS... http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/338447/platform/ds/ ...and gave it a 8.9.

Take a take back in time in New Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo DS. The game is a throw back to the golden days of the NES Mario side scrolers. The point of the game is simple...Peach has been kidnapped and its up to Mario (or Luigi if you have the code :P) to save her...again.

Graphics: This really has to be one of the best-looking Nintendo DS games out there. From the characters to the backgrounds, the whole package looks great.

Sound: Meh is the best way to describe this part of the game. Its nothing shocking but it does the trick...I recommend putting on a pair of headphones while playing.

Gameplay: This is the games strong point. The game is a picture perfect representation of the NES version of this game. The point is simple, take Mario to the end of the level and hop on the flag poll. Its pure blitz and is fun in every sense. It also has great multiplayer, which will have you staying up late nights with a friend having the time of your life.

Overall: You got 30 bucks...............BUY THIS GAME!!!!

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed New Super Mario Bros. for the DS..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:39:42 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/new-super-mario-bros/user-reviews/338447/platform/ds/ Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:25:15 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed Dead or Alive 4 for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/dead-or-alive-4/user-reviews/338440/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.9.

Dead or Alive four continues Team Ninja's fighting franchise on the Xbox 360. The Dead or Alive series has always been on of the biggest fighting games on any system and this new next gen version does not fail to impress me and is well worth the price of addition...but you may wanna take anger management classes before you pick up the controller.

Graphics: One of the games best points. The colors are bright, the textures are smooth and they all flow together in perfect harmony. The characters have so much detail its like watches live TV. The only thing keeping this form getting a 10 is the clipping issues this game faces when the action heats up.........and not to mention the "physics" on the female models :P

Sound: Its a typical fighting sound track...generic techno and bland rock. It’s not bad but you will mostly be playing your custom soundtrack. The character voices are very well done and are very convincing.

Game play: Fun and frustrating at the same time. The game can be a pain in the butt at times and the learning curve is very steep, but when you get good at the game.... you will never put it down. Not to mention fun addicting online play.

Overall: This is a must own for anyone with an Xbox 360.... but small flaws keep it from keeping it from perfection.

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Dead or Alive 4 for the Xbox 360..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sat, 15 Jul 2006 18:25:15 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/dead-or-alive-4/user-reviews/338440/platform/xbox360/ Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:01:43 -0700 razman55 reviewed Command & Conquer: The First Decade for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/command-and-conquer-the-first-decade/user-reviews/336201/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 9.3!

Command & Conquer: The First Decade is an awesome game with a major value, but comes with a cheap price.

In this great package, you get 12 games in 1, yes...12 games for $40.
These are all the old Command & Conquer games that we used to play and loved very much.

This game has to be revolutionary by bringing you all the classics you have played before into a nice little package and brings you joy and happiness to see these games again and it feels great.

These games are based off of RTS as you play multiplayer skirmishes where you build up your base and get more people (Vehicles & Infantry) and destroy the opposing force, or do single player missions which follow the same way, but have certain objectives to accomplish.

The exception in the series is Renegade as its a 1st/3rd Person shooter where you command a person to destroy others, but has the same overall feel for the series.

If you have ever played any of these games before then this game is for you, or if you are new to the series, then you should check this game out since it has 12 games and is worth every penny.

If you like RTS games, then go get this right now...you won't regret it.

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"razman55 reviewed Command & Conquer: The First Decade for the PC..." was posted by razman55 on Mon, 10 Jul 2006 21:01:43 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/command-and-conquer-the-first-decade/user-reviews/336201/platform/pc/ Tue, 04 Jul 2006 14:35:26 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/big-rigs-over-the-road-racing/user-reviews/333600/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 1.0.

I have played ALLOT of games in my life....some good and some bad. But no game ever compares to the shear train wreck Big Rigs is. Its imposable to describe how bad this game is with words. Its a racing game with little to no sound, no AI in your fellow drivers, no physics and no graphics. This game is soo bad its almost laughable. There are better racing games on Candystand.con and they are free. The fact this game has a 5$ price tag cannot save this sin gaming....There are so many other better ways to spend five dollars like, buying five things off the dollar menu at McDonald's, buying an Xbox live arcade game, buying a......ok, anything is better then buying this game. And please, don't buy this game to see just how bad it is because it will just give more money to Stellar Stone and give them the impression that making half hearted games is ok................

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing for the PC..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Tue, 04 Jul 2006 14:35:26 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/big-rigs-over-the-road-racing/user-reviews/333600/platform/pc/ Mon, 12 Jun 2006 14:33:07 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed Perfect Dark Zero for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/perfect-dark-zero/user-reviews/324547/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.8.

Perfect dark Zero is not a perfect game by any means,, but its really worth picking up for your shiny new 360. Perfect Dark Zero is your standard FPS with some slight tweaks and add-ons to give the game a fresh feel. Like other FPS, you control Joanna from a first person view and shot the bad-guys...standard fair; but in PDZ, you can do special third person actions such as rolling away from bullets and taking cover similar to kill.switch. The gameplay is perfect and fun, and it is extremely easy to pick up and play seeing as it is almost the same as Halo. The sound is amazing as the game includes some of the coolest tecno you will hear in a video game. What keeps this game from getting a better score is it frustrating difficulty. Your foes are far too powerful and can hit you from crazy distances. If you can forget these small flaws, PDZ is a fun game that will keep you busy for quite some time................not to mention give you some Gamerpoints.

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Perfect Dark Zero for the Xbox 360..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Mon, 12 Jun 2006 14:33:07 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/perfect-dark-zero/user-reviews/324547/platform/xbox360/ Thu, 25 May 2006 02:21:52 -0700 DEATH775 reviewed Starship Troopers (2000) for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/starship-troopers/user-reviews/316339/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

I like the movie. So when I heard that their gonna make a Starship Trooper game. I though to myself that is gonna be awesome. The first time I played it I had a blast. I really had agood time. I need more. The story was great and so was the graphic. What I don't like is the sound is a bit weak. But still I like it. The gameplay was really fun and amazing. I wanted a sequel then Starship Trooper came. The graphic is way better than this one but the gameplay totally sucks. Yes I must say this one is way better than the new Starship Trooper. So if anyone of is a fan of the movie and likes FPS game they should try this one. It won't let you down.

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"DEATH775 reviewed Starship Troopers (2000) for the PC..." was posted by DEATH775 on Thu, 25 May 2006 02:21:52 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/starship-troopers/user-reviews/316339/platform/pc/ Thu, 25 May 2006 01:15:27 -0700 DEATH775 reviewed The Suffering for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/the-suffering/user-reviews/316329/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

My friend is the one that told me about this game. At first I don't know what the hell he was talking about. Then when I bought this game and play wow I had fallen in love. This game is so brutal and so damn bloody that it just can't stop. There's a lot of swearing in the game. I just love it when the character's swore at each other. The surrounding's in the game is totally awesome. I love the dark and gloomy surrounding. Graphic hmm it looks great to me. The story line is a bit misunderstood sometimes but I finally understand it. I've played the second one. Still this is the best. The best part is the creatures in the game. They look so deadly and amazing. How did they come up with them. I had fun at this game from the start and to the finish. For me there is no mistake at all in this game except for some glitches. Who ever likes game like DOOM, HALF-LIFE and RESIDENT EVIL. Then they should give a try at this game. Its just too good to be true.

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"DEATH775 reviewed The Suffering for the PC..." was posted by DEATH775 on Thu, 25 May 2006 01:15:27 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-suffering/user-reviews/316329/platform/pc/ Thu, 25 May 2006 00:40:36 -0700 DEATH775 reviewed Onimusha: Warlords for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/onimusha-warlords/user-reviews/316326/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

I love Resident Evil and Silent Hill. The first time I played this game was at my friend's house. I had a blast. So I decided to pick this game up for myself. The price was fine. What I like about this game is that it grows on you. The more you play it the more you want to find out, on what's gonna happen next. The story line was awesome. The graphic is just great. I like the colour of blood when you kill the demons. My favorite part is the BOSS battle. I don't know why but I really had a great time on every single BOSS battle. Especially the part where you get a new weapon when you kill a BOSS. The only thing that I don't like about this game is that some of the demons are really a push over. But hey, still that's not gonna keep me from giving this game a 10. My first playtime on this game was 4 hours and 25 minutes. Well isn't that short. Yeah it is short. Because its short I beat it for 6 times already. Now I've stop playing it. Now I'm playing Onimusha 4. Who ever wants to play Onimusha 3 they should really play this one first!

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"DEATH775 reviewed Onimusha: Warlords for the PlayStation 2..." was posted by DEATH775 on Thu, 25 May 2006 00:40:36 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/onimusha-warlords/user-reviews/316326/platform/ps2/ Sun, 16 Apr 2006 19:15:21 -0700 GameCubeN24 reviewed Call of Duty 2 for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-2/user-reviews/299732/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 9.7!

Call of Duty has to be the most thrilling game ever made. The game has you playing all all the forces that fought against the German forces in WW2. The game play is perfect and is so perfect, you will often think you are fighting the Nazis yourself. The graphics are ok, but did not relay shock me; but the gameplay and tilt make this go away. The sound is the stongest element to the game. The sounds of war is aw inspiring and they will make you feel as if the war moved from the 360 to your room. This is easily one of the best FPS on the 360, if not, the best FPS ever made........

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Call of Duty 2 for the Xbox 360..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sun, 16 Apr 2006 19:15:21 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-2/user-reviews/299732/platform/xbox360/ Sun, 19 Mar 2006 12:16:43 -0800 GameCubeN24 reviewed Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 for the Game Boy Advance... http://www.gamespot.com/yoshis-island-super-mario-advance-3/user-reviews/280264/platform/gba/ ...and gave it a 9.3!

Yoshi's Island has to be one of the best games ever to come out on the SNES, and when I heard it was comming out on the GBA I nearly died. The game is a candy coated fun filled roamp though a game in which someone could get lost for hours in its crazy zany ways. The graphics look like something out of a story book and the sound is not any different. The game truly shines when it comes to its boss fights, some of which you will never forget "What game has you being expeld out of a frogs......... backside". The game is just pure clasic fun, and it is a must have for anyone with a GBA or a DS. And its only $18, so go take the money from your parents wallet and buy it today.........

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/yoshis-island-super-mario-advance-3/user-reviews/280264/platform/gba/ Sun, 19 Mar 2006 12:06:09 -0800 GameCubeN24 reviewed Mario Kart DS for the DS... http://www.gamespot.com/mario-kart-ds/user-reviews/280253/platform/ds/ ...and gave it a 9.6!

Mario Kart DS does not reinvent the wheel, it perfects it. Mario Kart DS has to be the most fun you will ever have with a hand held game ever. The graphics are good for a DS game and show off the DS's horse power with surprising flair. The sound is exactly what you expect, Mario sounds like a cheep Italian stereotype and Yoshi sounds like he needs some laxatives quickly. The game play is where this game shines. The kart racing is just perfect with plenty of karts and drivers to keep this game from getting old fast. The only real problem with this game is that the games difficulty can range from soo easily you can sleep half the race to pulling your hair out and hitting your Grandma in the face hard. Overall if you have a DS, buy Mario Kart DS; and if you don't have a DS, buy one and buy the game now!

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"GameCubeN24 reviewed Mario Kart DS for the DS..." was posted by GameCubeN24 on Sun, 19 Mar 2006 12:06:09 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/mario-kart-ds/user-reviews/280253/platform/ds/ Fri, 17 Mar 2006 02:28:25 -0800 DEATH775 reviewed Zork I for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/zork-i-1986/user-reviews/278756/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

So this game is really old it came out in the 80's. So you guys must be thinking of the graphic. For me the graphic is not a factor. Yes the graphic isn't that good if you compare it to new games like Doom 3. If this game came out in the 90's then I would give the graphic score a zero. But it came out in 1980 so I don't really care about the graphic. Ok back to the topic, the gameplay here is great . You do stuff like pick up weapons you know those simple kind of things. The sounds well to tell you the truth there's no sounds but wait. You know what I did I put a CD in my PC so I just listen to my favourite music when I'm playing this game. Or you can just use an I-POD. So what do you think. Why don't you just give it a try. But there's a problem this game is really hard to find so don't expect to go to the game store and just pick this game up. I got mine from my uncle.

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"DEATH775 reviewed Zork I for the PC..." was posted by DEATH775 on Fri, 17 Mar 2006 02:28:25 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/zork-i-1986/user-reviews/278756/platform/pc/