selbie's GameSpot Friend's Reviews selbie's GameSpot Friend's Reviews selbie's GameSpot Friend's Reviews en-us Copyright (c)1995-2013 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved. http://www.gamespot.com 20 Sat, 25 May 2013 22:13:35 -0700 GameSpot selbie's GameSpot Friend's Reviews http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/shared/promos/misc/gs_logo.gif http://www.gamespot.com 135 40 Thu, 16 May 2013 20:23:03 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Metal Slug 3 for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/metal-slug-3/user-reviews/811398/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

Metal Slug, a series best known for it's frantic gameplay and challenging difficulty. SNK's third outing in the franchise, Metal Slug 3 is critically acclaimed and loved by many fans of the series and it's deemed to be the best game in the franchise. While I personally never played a Metal Slug game before this one, I can't deny that MS3 is incredible. Metal Slug 3 was originally released in the arcades on the NEO-GEO MVS hardware which was a dominant force in the days of the arcades. Along the years it has been ported to many different systems, including the Xbox, PC and PS2. The one I'll be reviewing is the PS2 version.

Metal Slug is a series that has always thrived on ridiculously frantic gameplay and Metal Slug 3 doesn't fail to deliver. It's as frantic as ever. It does have a few new additions since Metal Slug 2/X. While no new weapons were added, SNK brought in a couple of new vehicles. One of these vehicles is an ostrich with a machine gun mounted on it. That's why I love this game. It's just goofy, the whole series has a great sense of humour. Apart from a few changes, Metal Slug 3's gameplay is still classic Metal Slug. That's not a problem at all. Metal Slug is one of those games were it is easy to pickup but hard to master. It can really get overwhelming sometimes and death can become unavoidable. Metal Slug 3 has four playable characters, which all play and feel the same. Their's also some backstory, which I wasn't bothered to read because personally I come to Metal Slug for one thing, gameplay. But it might interest some die hard fans of the series.

Gameplay wise, MS3 is very similar to previous entries in the franchise. Almost identical actually, except for a few new mechanics. Levels can actually branch out and can be played differently each time. This adds a lot to replay value. Metal Slug is all about non stop action. I love how it keeps at it all the time and rarely let's down. Most of the time, the screen will be filled with gunfire, soldiers and gigantic bosses. Speaking of gigantic bosses, these are probably the craziest bosses you'll ever see in a 2D run and gunner. They take a lot of hits too and most of the time there are standard soldiers running with them. The bosses don't require much strategy but they are still challenging none the less. A few gimmicks are present in some levels. In a particular level if the player dies, he'll be transformed into a zombie were he is immune to gunfire but still can die if other zombies attack him. I feel like they are a worthy addition and can help break up the gameplay at times. Weapons remain unchanged but I don't feel like that's a problem because they are all fun to use. SNK compensated for that and brought in a couple new Metal Slugs.

Metal Slugs resemble tanks but way wackier. Most of them have machine guns mounted on them, but some might have some special secondary weapons. They'll offer extra protection too. There is one metal slug available for each level. Their isn't much to say about the controls, they work great for the most part but I have a small gripe with them. In one level in particular I found myself on a platform with enemy soldiers underneath me. But for some reason it doesn't allow me to shoot below me which was a real pain as I had to restart the level and take them out first before proceeding upwards. It's nothing to cry about but it did manage to bother me for a while. Graphically it looks very close to the MVS version, I personally see no difference and it's a well done port. Metal Slug features that iconic announcer, you know the one.

The soundtrack rocks too, perfectly fitting. The console versions feature two bonus modes that can be played after finishing the main game. They are fun to play for a while but I didn't find myself going back to them nearly as much as I did with the main game. I would definitely recommend this version for anyone who hasn't played Metal Slug 3 but for those who did play it, I'd see no reason to buy this version except for the bonus modes which aren't that special to begin with. Overall I found Metal Slug 3 to be fun as all hell, fans of 2D games must check this one out.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Metal Slug 3 for the PlayStation 2..." was posted by naju890_963 on Thu, 16 May 2013 20:23:03 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/metal-slug-3/user-reviews/811398/platform/ps2/ Fri, 03 May 2013 04:19:30 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis... http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-the-hedgehog/user-reviews/810955/platform/genesis/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

The Sonic the Hedgehog series has been running since 1991 when the first game debuted on the Sega Genesis. This was Sega's idea of a mascot. A blue hedgehog, with spikes on its back and red shoes. Sega created a platformer with this character, made him run very fast in colorful levels with lots of enemies, power-ups and bosses. This was a winning formula. It was the game that got the Sega Genesis up on its feet. Nowadays Sonic is on par with Mario when it comes to popularity but in the last 10 years we have seen a decrease in quality when it came to Sonic games. None the less, Sonic is still loved by many and his old games will always be cherished by Sega fans everywhere.

Sonic The Hedgehog was the first 2D platformer to feature a character so fast. At the time, Genesis owners were amazed at the speed that Sonic ran. He still runs fast nowadays but it won't blow your mind like it did back in the 90s. This contributed to fast platforming and an incredible flow that made Mario and other platformers seem sluggish. The main antagonist is Doctor Ivo Robotnik who was snatching animals and transforming them into evil robots. It's up to Sonic to defeat Robotnik and save the day. Sonic 1 features 6 zones with 3 acts each. This means that it has 18 playable levels with a special stage that can only be accessed in the first two acts of every zone. While most of the levels are pretty solid, I found the pacing to be poor. Let's see. The game starts of with the infamous Green Hill Zone. It's a fast and short level just like it should be. The second level is called Marble Zone. This is a platform heavy zone, so it's naturally quite slow. I personally find it fun but Sonic is not about slow platforming. All of the levels after Green Hill except Starlight Zone don't capture the feel of speed the first zone manages to achieve. Even so the platforming in these levels still managed to keep my attention and are pretty challenging.

Every zone has a boss of its own. The boss is always Robotnik with a new machine wreaking havoc upon Sonic. Once you get the patterns down, the boss fights are laughably easy, they're still fun to go through though. The levels are packed with rings, enemies and power-ups. Rings are very important. Sonic doesn't have the usual health system found in most platformers. If Sonic doesn't have any rings and gets hit by an enemy he will die. But if Sonic has one or more rings on him and gets hit, Sonic will simply drop all his rings. It's a great system and it helps keep the action fast. There are other things that the rings can do. If Sonic collects a 100 rings in one act than he gets an extra life. Rings are also necessary if the player wants to access the special zone. If Sonic collect fifty rings, a giant ring will appear at the end of the level. When Sonic jumps through it he'll be teleported to the special stage. Sonic will need to traverse a maze with multi-colored blocks while collecting rings. Collecting another hundred rings here will grant the player an extra life and a continue. But the main reason why the special stages exist is the Chaos Emeralds. If Sonic collects all the emeralds in all the special stages, a different ending will play instead of the normal one. These special stages get annoying sometimes, although the background and the music are kinda trippy. Keep in mind that special zones are not available at the end of act 3 of every zone, as a boss is present.

A bevy of power-ups are available, they can usually be found in computer monitors. There is the Super ring, which rewards Sonic with 10 rings, the Speed shoes, which make Sonic run even faster, a shield which grants Sonic an extra layer of protection against enemies, Invincibility, speaks for itself and a 1-up, extra life basically. Also keep in mind that invincibility won't help if Sonic falls on spikes or a pit. Sonic has a few attacks up his sleeve. He can jump on enemies or use the spin attack in which Sonic rolls up into a ball and charges his enemy. Speaking of enemies, theirs a plethora of enemies which are all Robotnik's robots. Theirs a couple of annoying enemies here and their but I think they look cool and most of the time they're fun to stomp on. Sonic has very simple controls, D-pad for movement and the A button for jumping. Simplicity at it's finest. The 16-bit sonic games are all beautiful to look at, and this is no exception. The colors are simply amazing, everything just pops out of the screen. It's ironic that a game this old can still wow gamers with its colorful graphics while newer games like Battlefield 3 can bore me to death with its various shades of brown. Also the infamous soundtrack for Sonic, unbelievably catchy and just a joy to listen too, truly a gem.

What can I say more? The original Sonic the Hedgehog is something that everyone must play, most of you must have already played it. It's available on tons of platforms but if you want to be a purist and buy it on the original console then it's not a problem at all. The Sega Genesis or Megadrive, depending on where you live is very easy to find, the sonic games are quite easy to find aswell, they were best sellers on the console after all.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis..." was posted by naju890_963 on Fri, 03 May 2013 04:19:30 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/sonic-the-hedgehog/user-reviews/810955/platform/genesis/ Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:44:00 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Duke Nukem 3D: Atomic Edition for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/duke-nukem-3d-atomic-edition/user-reviews/810705/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

It's time to go back to Duke's glory days. As you may know, Duke's latest game, Duke Nukem Forever was a flop. It was an outdated mess that made Duke look pathetic. DNF went through countless development cycles and it was basically a big old mess. But let's forget about that for now and go back to the time when Duke was still a force to be reckoned with in the gaming industry.

Duke Nukem 3D originally came out on MS-DOS back in 1996. This was back when games were harder to boot up than launching a rocket in space. But thankfully nowadays we have procedures that are much easier. There are numerous versions and ports of this game. The one I'll be reviewing is the Atomic edition. This contains another episode with eleven levels. You can try being a purist and buying the original DOS version but that would be a big pain in the ass. The easy way is to buy it off gog.com or get the Megaton edition from Steam. Let's dig in.

Duke Nukem 3D is an old-school FPS, were you control the always charming Duke Nukem. There are four episodes in total with eleven levels each, except for the first episode that only has seven levels. A multiplayer mode was also available but that is long gone. After the events of Duke Nukem 2, Duke finds himself back on earth. He finds out that an unknown force has taken over earth and it's up to Duke Nukem to save the day. It's a very simplistic storyline, although it doesn't really show itself throughout the game except at the occasional cutscene peppered throughout the episodes. But I believe that a simplistic, cliché storyline like this goes perfectly with Duke's outrageous character. Speaking about Duke, he's one hell of a character. Firing one liners at every opportunity he gets and blasting aliens without remorse, that's Duke alright. Duke is as two-dimensional as it gets. Nowadays characters in video games are more realistic and most of today's games have abandoned these macho one man army's with no soul, like we used to find in games like Doom or Wolfenstein 3D. I can't imagine what kind of controversy this game sparked up back in 1996. Why you ask. Well Duke 3D features strippers, (probably the first game to do it) and countless more nods to pornography.

Now that we have covered the setting and story, it's time talk about the gameplay. First of all, this game runs on the 2.5D build engine which is similar to the engine that Doom uses. Moving and shooting feels a lot like other 2.5D FPS's. It can be pretty weird to control Duke for players that never played a 2.5D game before. Unlike 3D shooters, the player is only allowed to look left or right. Eliminating enemies that are standing above or under the player can be done by shooting in the direction that the enemy is situated in. Unlike shooters of today, Duke 3D doesn't try to be realistic by giving the player only two weapons to use at a time, no it lets the player use the full arsenal once you unlocked them all obviously. Speaking about weapons, theirs a bevy of fun weapons to choose from like the chaingun, shrink-ray, microwave expander and others. It's so refreshing to play a shooter that doesn't have the usual military weapons like the M4, AK-47 and so on. Not to mention that all these weapons feel very different from each other. Theirs also an inventory system which is used to store items like Holodukes, health packs and steroids. To be honest the inventory is a bit of a pain to use and flip through items. I really like the levels in Duke 3D. I think that the level design is very clever at times. There are multiple routes to take to get to the objective and tons of secrets and easter eggs to find. The levels look awesome and the environments are very interesting to explore. These levels are filled with fun things to do like, tipping strippers, pissing in toilets and lots of other things to interact with.

Graphically it looks dated by today's standards, but it's totally playable. Even though graphically it looks dated it has this charm to it that makes everything all the better. As far as sound goes, everything sounds retro and awesome. To be honest some sounds from the alien enemies really creeped but I guess it's just me. I almost forgot to mention that the main theme is incredible. It's so awesome in fact that Megadeth actually made a cover for it. Duke Nukem 3D manages to still retain its charm after all these years and clearly stood the test of time. I doubt that you'll find an FPS as fun and creative as Duke 3D.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Duke Nukem 3D: Atomic Edition for the PC..." was posted by naju890_963 on Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:44:00 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/duke-nukem-3d-atomic-edition/user-reviews/810705/platform/pc/ Sun, 14 Apr 2013 00:04:46 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Killzone for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/killzone/user-reviews/810217/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 6.0.

Killzone is your typical Sci-fi FPS series, nowadays the 2nd and 3rd game in the franchise are very popular on the PS3. But let's take a look at the first game in the franchise, Killzone. Killzone is set during a Helghast invasion on earth. Helghast are basically the main baddies of the franchise. They wear their signature helmet which makes their eyes glow red. Basically Helghast are invading earth and the ISA, earth's defense force must save the day. I can't say much about the plot as it's pretty generic and uninspired.

Killzone takes itself very seriously and that's one of the things that I personally dislike about it. The setting and story are too boring to be taken seriously and therefore isn't fun to experience. Comparing KZ1 to shooters of this era is a bit unfair so I'll be going a little bit soft on it, so to speak. KZ is pretty standard when it comes to content. It packs a single player campaign that lasts around 10-12 hours which is pretty average for shooters these days. It also features a Multiplayer mode which is quite barebones when compared to today's robust multiplayer shooters.

Now let's talk about the campaign. First you'll be greeted by a character select screen. For now you'll be only able to choose one character but the others will be unlocked throughout the campaign. The only thing that differentiates these characters from each other are the weapons that they use. There are also a lot of cutscenes scattered throughout the campaign missions backed up by some solid voice acting. But as I said before, Killzone takes it self too seriously and personally I found these cutscenes to be quite boring. The controls are very problematic, they feel heavy and trying to aim can be annoying. This could be intentional. Lots of "realistic" military shooters like to incorporate these type of controls which feel a bit more realistic. While these type of controls work on games like battlefield, sadly they feel like crap on Killzone. Now let's talk about another important factor in an FPS game, the levels. KZ tries it's best to be a gritty realistic shooter and it definitely shows. While I would normally be against visuals like these, I have to honestly say that these type of visuals fit KZ perfectly. As I said before as a game that wants to be taken seriously, gritty visuals are a no brainier. But sadly everything looks drab and boring, level's aren't any fun to explore as everything looks the same.

Oddly enough, even with all these problems, I can't deny that KZ can be very fun at times. I don't know if it's the way that the Helghast collapse when shot or how the weapons feel but there is something very satisfying. Speaking about the weapons, they are standard fare and fun to use most of the time. Both factions (ISA and Helghast) have their own set of weapons. Most of the time I found myself sticking to one assault rifle because most of them feel similar. Level design isn't bad for the most part but in some levels I found myself lost because I couldn't tell which way I should be going. It could be better but the basic design gets the job done. The AI could use some tuning for both friendly and enemy. They both suffer from the typical AI problems, like getting stuck or being dumb in general. From time to time my squad AI would actually do some work.

This one thing annoyed me throughout the course of my playthrough, the frame rate. It's plan awful. It's choppy as hell and frame drops are very common. Now I'm not saying that Killzone is unplayable, no. It normally holds up but in moments when a lot of things are going on the frame rate just drops very low. I understand that the PS2 isn't the most advanced system of all time but they still could have done better. Also I already talked about the artistic style and how drab it looks but I haven't touched on the technical side of things. I guess it looks quite good for a PS2 game, character models look decent, same for the gun models.

What about the multiplayer. Well unfortunately the official servers were closed down long ago so Online play is cut off. Their's still offline multiplayer though. You can either play on your own with bots or with a friend. It's very barebones and it's what you expect out of a 2004 FPS. If you enjoyed the core gameplay in the singleplayer than you will most likely enjoy the multiplayer aswell. All in all Killzone is a decent at best shooter, I won't recommend this for anyone who's looking for your average FPS, there are much better offerings on the market today. But for those who are fans of the series, I'd give it a shot.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Killzone for the PlayStation 2..." was posted by naju890_963 on Sun, 14 Apr 2013 00:04:46 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/killzone/user-reviews/810217/platform/ps2/ Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:30:46 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Crysis 2 for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/crysis-2/user-reviews/809444/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 7.5.

Games made by Crytek are infamous for their jaw dropping graphics and Crysis 2 doesn't disappoint in that regard. But Crytek games are not all about graphics, Crysis 2 has a fun but short singleplayer campaign which tells the story of Alcatraz were he fights the CELL corporation and the Ceph. A race of aliens which was explored in the other entry in the series, Crysis. Crysis 2 also features a multiplayer mode, which left me a bit disappointed but more on that later.

Crysis 2 picks up were Crysis left off. This time the suit is given to Alcatraz a soldier that has been reduced to a bloody pulp. He's kept alive thanks to the suit. Later in the story, more characters are introduced and more enemies roll out. It's interesting enough to keep you going along. It's recommended that you play the original Crysis if you want to get the full backstory that is. The nanosuit is a very important gameplay element. It allows Alcatraz to survive ridiculous amounts of damage and gives him the key to several abilities. The two main abilities the suit houses are the "Armor" and "Cloak" abilities. The armor ability gives the player an extra layer of protection against damage and can help in desperate situations or for straight up rushing, while the cloak ability makes the player invisible which helps a lot for stealth gameplay. While using this cloak ability, the player will be exposed if he chooses to attack. Keep in mind that when using these abilities they will be draining from the suit energy. This is necessary to balance out gameplay. You can really feel that Alcatraz is helpless without his suit because when he is out of suit energy, he can barely run and can die easily.

Apart from those two major suit abilities there are also a variety of more passive abilities that can be unlocked with currency dropped by the ceph. These abilities aren't essential but they do help at times. The AI is surprisingly good. Enemies are often hard to hit and can often outsmart the player. There is also a weapon customization system which works well but I often forgot about it during gameplay. Weapons are fairly standard and nothing special but they do get the job done. A big change from the original is the level design. Crysis used to have more open world levels, were you could formulate your own path to the objective. On the other hand Crysis 2 is a much more linear game. I personally find the linear level design to be better as it shows the player what the developer really wanted out of the level. Like most FPS campaigns these days, Crysis 2 has a lot of set-pieces. These set-pieces love to show what the Cry Engine can do. But that's really what set pieces are all about, they look really cool though. There are also a couple of collectables scattered about in the game's levels, they're fairly standard and their sole purpose for being there is probably for the achievements.

Graphically Crysis 2 looks amazing. I didn't really have to say that, it speaks for itself really. I was surprised that the console versions looked pretty good and played at a decent framerate. As for sound design the same can be said. As I said before Crysis 2 also features a multiplayer mode. Basically it plays it safe by incorporating the CoD formula into it's multiplayer. It has the usual class system, challenges, prestige modes and the usual multiplayer modes. I hate how every FPS has to do this. I played atleast 5 hours of the multiplayer and I got bored out of my mind because I experienced the same type of multiplayer on plenty of other shooters. The only thing that Crysis implements In it's multiplayer to try and differentiate itself from the other countless CoD knockoffs is the power system. But this barely changes anything. At the end of the day you're still gaining XP to unlock new weapons, perks and other multiplayer stuff.

I had my share of fun playing Crysis 2, the campaign while short had it's moments and the good pacing made it even more enjoyable. While the multiplayer is a shameless CoD ripoff, it is fun for those who still enjoy multiplayer shooters but it's nothing to write home about.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Crysis 2 for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by naju890_963 on Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:30:46 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/crysis-2/user-reviews/809444/platform/ps3/ Fri, 22 Mar 2013 18:14:16 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Altered Beast for the Genesis... http://www.gamespot.com/altered-beast/user-reviews/809218/platform/genesis/ ...and gave it a 6.5.

Altered Beast was originally an arcade game which was ported over to several home consoles including the Sega Master System, Famicom, ZX Spectrum and obviously the Sega Genesis. By far the best home console version was for the Genesis. This was one of the many reasons why gamers loved Altered Beast at first because it had shown the potential that lies in the Genesis. It was also a pack in with early Genesis models so it's rather easy to find and cheap to purchase in cart form nowadays.

You're basically controlling a warrior that has been resurrected by Zeus and commands him to save his daughter and defeat the evil Neff. It's a pretty barebones plot but what do you expect from an arcade game. The story is not the only thing that's barebones in this game. The gameplay is very shallow offering no depth at all and can get very tedious after playing for a few hours. The gimmick that Altered Beast boasts is the beast transformations. By collecting orbs from dead wolves, your character will get stronger and stronger until he eventually transforms into the designated beast for the level. As I said each level has it's own beast.

Their are five beasts to transform into. A werewolf, dragon, bear, tiger and a golden wolf. They don't differ from each other that much but they are great fun
when experienced for the first time. Although these transformations help the flow of the gameplay it still feels weary after a while and the light platforming doesn't help either. The bosses aren't very challenging especially the final boss which is a complete joke. Graphically it looks the best out of the console versions and it looks quite good for a game this old. The soundtrack is decent aswell and some tunes match the style of the game greatly.

It's a worthy pickup for any Sega fan or collector but don't expect any complex level designs or anything like that. At it's core, Altered Beast is a drony side scrolling beat em up with a gimmicky transformation system that makes the game worth a try. This can be easily found in most Sega compilations and it's also very easy to find for the original system too.

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"naju890_963 reviewed Altered Beast for the Genesis..." was posted by naju890_963 on Fri, 22 Mar 2013 18:14:16 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/altered-beast/user-reviews/809218/platform/genesis/ Wed, 22 Aug 2012 10:24:37 -0700 Sagacious_Tien reviewed The Walking Dead: Episode 2 - Starved for Help for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-episode-2-starved-for-help/user-reviews/798907/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

The Walking Dead Episode Two: Starved for Help follows in the footsteps of Episode One: A New Day, but in terms of quality is leaps and bounds ahead.

With A New Day, Telltale introduced Lee Everett, a heretofore unknown character from the comics, and once again you will fill his boots in rural Georgia, skipping over areas and characters from the original source material.

The story is inter-woven with the canon already shown in the stories, but with Starved for Help, Telltale have bravely moved away from the somewhat cheesy inclusion of series comic relief Glenn and has become it's own beast - and it's all the better for it.

Although A New Day was quite open with it's violence and horror, Starved for Help takes it one step further, with the opening moments forcing the player to choose between amputating a guy to save his life (forcing you to repeatedly axe away at his bloody stump), and fighting for survival not just against the undead, but outside forces that may seek to do your ragtag group harm.

The story takes place three months after the events of A New Day, with the story tailored to choices made in the first episode. The characters have become somewhat contemptible, there is an undercurrent of cabin fever, and the addition of outsiders initially seems to bring welcome relief to our survivors. Of course, nothing is what it seems on the surface.

The player will be guided along a few minor puzzles, such as unlocking a certain room and putting together a swing set for their little urchin Clementine, but it is the dialogue and the tension of Starved for Help which lifts the game above its simple premise. A chance encounter will uncover some utter horror, and the disquieting and ocassionally disturbing gameplay will definitely keep you hooked.

With character conflicts being carried over from the first title (and the promise of this affecting future titles as well), this showcases some branching design and dialogue decisions that can promote some character morals and their relation to the player.

A smattering of fast paced events keep the action ocassionally frantic, and force the player to make tough choices on the lives of those around them - and even if they are involved in the deaths of other characters. Your actions, or non-actions, are sure to have lasting impacts.

The graphics are again an interesting use of comic style cel-shading and expressive emotional characters. Starved for Help goes better in it's depiction of larger areas and more variety, and there is heaps of the red stuff going around as well. Some minor audio quirks aside, the sound will definitely keep you on edge, with the music inducing some chills while you appreciate the superb delivery of the cast.

It's not all good news however. There are some technical issues with the game, some lip-synching and graphical hitching, but it is overall minor, and it doesn't take away too much from this otherwise well paced and designed game.

With whole heapings of atmospheric horror and despair, Starved For Help is a step up from A New Day, and a disturbing look into how society may just function when it breaks down completely.

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]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-walking-dead-episode-2-starved-for-help/user-reviews/798907/platform/xbox360/ Tue, 07 Aug 2012 12:45:43 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Zone of the Enders for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/zone-of-the-enders/user-reviews/798341/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

Zone Of The Enders is a mech action game directed by Hideo Kojima, who made the Metal Gear series. ZOE features a short 6-8 hour campaign mode and a bonus mode after beating the main story. You take the role of Leo Starbuck, a young boy wandering about in the city. When the BAHRAM forces attack, Leo stumbles on an inactive mech named Jehuty. Leo pilots Jehuty, and so the adventure begins. The plot is pretty generic, but it still keeps you going throughout the game. You'll meet several characters along the way; some are quite interesting while some are forgettable. ZOE features a deep backstory covering the migration to Jupiter and the orbital frames. Now ZOE is pretty straight forward when it comes to gameplay. The combat may be fairly simple but it is very fun, the blade attacks are very fluid and flying around is a joy. The camera is also pretty stable; normally it operates well giving you a nice view of the battlefield. You also have a ton of subweapons at your disposal like the geyser, javelin and others. These can be fun to mess around with but in the heat of battle they won't be of much use. Sadly combat will get repetitive, their is only one blade combo and the blaster isn't much either. Some of the boss fights are incredibly fun. Especially the one on one mech fights, those are really cool. Graphically ZOE is superb. This game was released in 2001 and looks amazing, even by today's standards. Grant it the cutscenes might look a bit crappy but the mechs and environments look very vibrant. In my whole playthrough of ZOE, I didn't encounter any frame rate issues or crashes. Their is also a bonus mode awarded to the player after beating the main story. This versus mode is quite simple, basically the player battles another mech in a 1on1 fight. It gets old real quick, but it's still pretty fun from time to time. Their isn't much to say really, ZOE is a short burst of Kojima goodness with great gameplay and really awesome looking mechs.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"naju890_963 reviewed Zone of the Enders for the PlayStation 2..." was posted by naju890_963 on Tue, 07 Aug 2012 12:45:43 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/zone-of-the-enders/user-reviews/798341/platform/ps2/ Wed, 11 Jul 2012 01:47:54 -0700 biggest_loser reviewed Max Payne 3 for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/max-payne-3/user-reviews/797162/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 7.0.

"When you're looking down the barrel of a gun, time slows down," Max Payne once said. But time has not stopped for the Max Payne series. In the nine year ceasefire between the second Max Payne game (2003) and this latest entry, many changes in the gaming industry and this iconic franchise have taken place. With the departure of the original creators Remedy, who chose to develop Alan Wake instead, Grand Theft Auto developer Rockstar took over this much anticipated and equally troubled project. Rockstar was originally a publisher on the first two games and share a basic understanding of the series. Max's poetic language is more overwrought and colourful than ever before and the slow-motion gunplay, complete with violence amped up to sickening levels, is intense over the game's minor duration.

However, despite the efficiency of the combat model, this is the weakest entry in the series. The game is lacking the moral complexity of its predecessor's narrative and bizarrely omits any pop or literary references, integral to strengthening the themes of the narrative. Instead, someone at Rockstar decided that Max Payne needed a sunny, overtly military-themed setting in Brazil, some speedboat chases, car chases, rail sequences and a lot more gore. The idiosyncratic feeling of the original games is missing, along with the series' unique stylistic identity. The old bloke is inches away from calling in a UAV but a long way from New York City.

From the start, the game's narrative attains a visceral charge and some interesting formal choices, but it gradually deteriorates under its own convoluted labyrinth. Maturely, the previous titles are fixated on the failure of the American Dream. Max is a symbol of American accomplishment, a person so dogged and determined in the face of overwhelming odds. Yet for all the bloodshed and any scarce resolutions he finds, Max remains a tragic figure, tortured and isolated by his past. His bravery to fight the underworld, like an unstoppable winter blizzard over a city, is more of a symptom of madness and revenge, than righteous justice. He is like a classic Noir detective, modernised as man who is pushed one step too far. However, this compelling internal conflict is largely resolved at the end of the second game, The Fall of Max Payne. The follow-up offers little means of adjoining or reference the second game and its resolutions in any detail. Did Max not say that his dreams no longer haunted him?

Neglecting Max's development means that his sudden reliance on booze and pills again offers the game a convenient dark edge, rather than a plausible sense of continuity between the games and the protagonist. Additionally, this is the first game in the series not to use a graphic novel to tell its story. There are now frequent cutscenes to tell the story, seamlessly interwoven between the game play, but it also means that Max is detached from his roots in pulp fiction. It's strange how a developer like Rockstar, so attuned to pop culture and satire, would fail to address either Max's Film Noir or comic book symmetry, refusing to include in-jokes, film references, or just the graphic novel itself, favouring a supposed gritty realism, with speedboat chases.

The game's visceral nature is at times overcharged but often quite affecting too. The story opens gratuitously in Brazil, with a dismembered torso on the ground, not a sight I ever want to relive, but more intense is the raid on the party. Having left America and the police force, Max is now a bodyguard for a private company, protecting a spoilt family. The reasons for this are revealed in scarce flashbacks to New York. While Max is boozing at a party he is meant to be overseeing, the place is raided scarily by armed thugs who kidnap one of the girls in the family. What is problematic about this opening is that little time is taken to establish the side characters beyond caricatures of spoilt brats, before the bullets start to fly. There is also little identification with the villains, even when they are revealed late in the game, which means that their inevitable demise at the hands of Max is far less powerful and meaningful than it was in the other games.

A part of this anonymity in Brazil is deliberate. One of the most successful ideas of the game is Max's sense of disorientation and isolation. The game uses a number of clever techniques, smartly including native Brazilian dialect with no subtitles (a beautiful touch), copious amounts of screen blurring and superimposing key words, so that Max's senses are diluted. There is a fantastic scene early in the game where Max enters a club to protect the family. The amplification of the music and the blurring is tremendously effective in sharing Max's dislocation with the player. Yet true to the lack of development in Max's story, these techniques eventually feel overused. Right up to the final moments in the game, the blurring is still in effect, which weakens its stylistic meaning. Rockstar has not reigned in Max's narration either. The amount of voice-over, self-loathing, swearing and poetic language ("I'd killed more cops than cholesterol") seem to be working in overdrive but not with any purpose. Sometimes Max's quips are achingly blunt and funny but by the end it's forced so heavily and frequently onto the player, trying to convince you of Max's damaged soul, that it feels like he's become a parody of his own cynicism, rather than someone who is selectively witty.

What is also integral to a crime story, painfully missing here, is a plausible motive. If Max is so dispirited, what drives him to keep pursuing these baddies when things become really messy? If it is guilt, I think some dream sequences could have neatly asserted that emotion but they have also been removed too, which means that Max's actions of mowing down cops (or are they?) seems baseless. The overall trajectory of the plot is also a shambles. With two mysterious gangs to fight, an unnecessary subplot about selling organs, characters randomly showing up to explain plot points and scarcely defined personalities, I could not make any sense of the story. This is coupled with awkward jumps in the narrative's timeframe. Max and the family decide to put together money for a ransom payout and in the next scene they've already got the bag in the middle of a stadium. Similarly, a flashback to New York is abruptly dumped right in the middle of an important transition period in Brazil and feels unresolved.

For many of the weaknesses in the narrative though, Max Payne 3 is most successful and fun as a pure shooter. It retains the original bullet time game play but now Max is more fragile than ever: he can die in just a few shots and you must rely strictly on a checkpoint system. As with many modern games now, you also have a cover system to protect yourself from bullets. To play the game at exciting levels though it is best to forget the cover and dive into the action, using shootdodging and bullet time collectively. You can spectacularly dodge bullets and move in slow motion, watch individual rounds wiz straight past you as you return fire. I found this was the game at its most thrilling, with many intense and incredibly exciting gun battles. The downside is your fragility because it removes a lot of the elegance and the transcendent beauty from the original games. The previous games allowed you choreograph your own Matrix-like gunfights, as you waded across environments in slow motion, with superhuman grace. Now you can only sporadically use bullet time, which does force you to be more strategic, but some of the fun is lost.

There are a few handy touches, including being able to stay prone on the ground and keep firing and also a final kill move, which gives you a brief period of time to make a last ditch effort to kill an attacker before you die, restoring some of your health too. This removes a lot of the frustration from your limited pain threshold. There's also a wide variety of locations, such as warehouses, factories, rooftops, apartment blocks, city streets and glimpses of New York. All of these levels rely on a checkpoint system: you can't save your game individually anymore, which is challenging but not overly so. Only in the final stages of an airport, including a ridiculous boss battle, does it become very frustrating. Many of these environments are well detailed, with appropriate levels of graffiti, debris and ample panes of glass to shoot through, but the atmosphere and the feel of the game seems remote for this series.

Setting the game anywhere but America, especially sunburnt Brazil, away from the ice and snow of New York, was always going to be problematic. Brazil is colourful, vibrant, noisy and alive. As a series, Max Payne is not. Where is the sense of cold dread, the slums of an icy city, alit through short bursts of gunfire? This sequel offers a different sense of isolation, successful in its own right, but not as haunting as the brooding Noir universe we once knew. Returning briefly to New York, I rejoiced in seeing the dark shadows, the thick layers of snow and the deliciously morbid gothic architecture, all hallmarks of the series. Also deterring from the Noir atmosphere is the reliance on gimmicks like rail sequences. There are moments Max will attach himself to a cable line, or flying fox, and drift across the top of a room in slow-motion, firing bullets on baddies below. These aren't very challenging but provide a harmless diversion.

That is also where I draw the line. But Max is required to man turrets on the back of a speedboat, gunning down baddies along a river, or lean out of a train window to blast gangsters parallel to him. Even more ridiculous is a late sequence where he leans out of a bus to take aim, followed most stupidly by an end chase where he fires a grenade launcher off at various speeding jeeps. It detracts sharply from the classic Noir feel of the original games, if only so that Max Payne can now resemble recent military shooters.

Max Payne 3 features solid and sometimes exhilarating bullet time game play but it is not a true sequel to The Fall of Max Payne. The convoluted story lacks the same ambition and creativity as its predecessors, failing to assert Max as a character who is more than just a killing machine. Also, in spite of the quality of the gunplay, there are too many moments and design choices that feel misplaced. Brazil is a miscalculated setting, too far removed from 'Noir York City', and the games reliance on big set pieces, is detached from the contained mood and isolation of the rest of the series. This game had plenty of fun action moments for me but it feels like Rockstar was preparing for Grand Theft Auto V, instead of making a true Max Payne game. I felt this was a missed opportunity to build on the foundations of an outstanding series and I worry that Max's time might have finally run out.

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"biggest_loser reviewed Max Payne 3 for the PC..." was posted by biggest_loser on Wed, 11 Jul 2012 01:47:54 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/max-payne-3/user-reviews/797162/platform/pc/ Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:28:35 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 for the PlayStation 2... http://www.gamespot.com/dragon-ball-z-budokai-tenkaichi-3/user-reviews/792098/platform/ps2/ ...and gave it a 8.5.

The Budokai Tenkaichi series is very different to the Budokai series. Its gameplay is set in 3D arenas were everything is destructible and can lead to very fun immense battles. Since the first in the series the Tenkaichi series continued to impress the fans with more improving and refinement. Even with the new releases on the newer generation of consoles BT3 still is fun and highly recommended to any Dragonball Z fan.

Not a lot of things have changed since BT2. You can say that the developers went for a more refined game rather than introducing new features and such. BT2 made a lot of great changes to the series and I am more than happy that BT3 did not change the formula. As usual BT3 has the same modes from before Duels, Tournaments, Ultimate battle and story. Duel mode has stayed the same in all of the games in the series. Simply put, pick your character and your opponent and battle it out. Tournaments have introduced a time system. For example, if it's 2:00Pm in the game this certain tournament will open.

When it's 4:00Pm the other certain tournament will open and so forth. Apart from that nothing vital has changed in the tournament mode. Story mode is trying to be better than the other story modes from the past games in the series but still it feels strange and skips a few battles here and there. It's more dynamic but for a newcomer he will have absolutely no idea what's going on between battles. Also disc fusion has been introduced in the ultimate battle section. What basically disc fusion is, it lets you use ultimate battle modes from the other two games in the series, combines them and gives you two new modes, only if you have the other games. These are a nice addition and can help the longevity of the title.

Gameplay wise the fighting feels much better. It's more complex in a way and feels much more rewarding when punching an opponent into a giant rock followed by a well-executed KAMEHAMHA!!! It feels much more like the epic fighting in the anime and that's a step forward for the series. Also a boost has been introduced. When you execute a signature or finishing move you get a little prompt on the bottom of the screen to press square and a certain direction on the directional pad. This gives the attack a little boost to further damage your enemy. The clashes between rushes or energy attacks now look even more amazing and lead to bigger explosions. All around the combat is very fun and it is still hard to learn for newcomers of the series.

The cell-shaded graphics look even better now. They are more crisp , vibrant and look much more lively in general. In the graphics department BT3 excels at delivering anime like feel. The voice track are just like the anime and also includes the Japanese voice which sound excellent as well. Dragonball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3 is a great game that refines on the series and makes it accessible for newcomers while still maintaining enough challenge to please the fans.

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/dragon-ball-z-budokai-tenkaichi-3/user-reviews/792098/platform/ps2/ Wed, 11 Apr 2012 22:11:09 -0700 DarkManiaN_1979 reviewed Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-3/user-reviews/791840/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 5.0.

The tried and true formula that the CoD:MW series follow seems to be aged beyond its use by date when it comes to this installment. The single player campaign shines and the multi-player, as usual, is where the game stands out, but is it unique enough to warrant a purchase? The answer is not really.

Modern Warfare 3 follows the same first person shooter formula that the other games in the series has, to the extreme. The graphics are the same, the guns are the same and most of the maps seem like slightly tweaked maps from MW & MW2.

A serious gripe with the PC version is that it is NOT moderated for cheats on a regular basis, and in turn has spawned the birth of 100,000's of hacker in their community.

Although it's most likely going to please hardcore CoD/MW fans with it's newer maps and yet another prestige mode, this is truly only for fans of the series. If you're after the same experience with a cheaper price tag, I suggest you dig up a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 from a bargain bin. Same thing different cover.

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-3/user-reviews/791840/platform/pc/ Sat, 31 Mar 2012 02:56:01 -0700 naju890_963 reviewed The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim/user-reviews/791101/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

The Elder Scrolls series has been around for a long time. It has been expanding its vast lore and gameplay mechanics over the years. Skyrim shows the fruits of Bethesda's labour. This 5th instalment in the elder scrolls series is based on the snowy land of skyrim. It's a region full of nature's beauties, including forests and lots of real animals and some fantasised ones. It's populated by region's leading race the Nords. These barbaric Viking like race are very strong physically and are accustomed to skyrim's harsh weather which grants them an advantage over the other races. Also the usual other races are available in skyrim's deep character creator.

The plot bases on two main wars going on in skyrim. First of all the Stormcloaks are rebelling against the empire because they are feeling that their culture is being destroyed by the empire. But what the civilians of skyrim are really worried about is the return of the dragons. Also other factions return like The Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild, The Companions and The College of Winterhold. These are all very unique and have immensely deep storylines.

There are some notable gameplay improvements like dual wielding spells and weapons and a refined levelling up system. The levelling system has made the game much more different and satisfies the player more. It works like this. You have a set of skills like Archery, Alchemy and such. In order to level up you need to use these skills to individually level up these skills while at the same time levelling your character. You also have a skill tree in each of these skills. These perks are fairly useful in your journey and will surely boost your character's strength.

The menus have also been refined, they are given a more polished look but they can get tedious at time because of the lack of a sort option for your inventory. The game looks superb, even though character models look a bit stiff and the animations are a bit stupid at times, you have to keep in mind that it is a very big land with lots of things to render. The skybox looks amazing and the environment is believable and beautiful at the same time. It runs at a stable FPS but frame rate dips are very common usually at large battles. Also after a certain amount of time played on one save file skyrim will suffer some lag issues as reported by many players.

Skyrim packs hundreds of hours of content. There are tons of quests to do, lots of weapons to collect and so much more. First of all the main quest. This quest follows the return of the dragons. It's interesting enough to continue through but lots of players forget about it because of all the interesting other side quests. The main quest can take you about 20 hours or so to play through and offer a satisfying ending. Faction quests return and they are still fun as hell. These are all very story driven and pack lots of hours of entertainment. There are ton of side quests to do ranging from a simple delivery mission or a strange encounter with a daedra.

New to the franchise are miscellaneous quests. These are all filed under the misc tab in the quest log. These can be little things like fetch an item or kill a dragon but can lead to something important that will have its own quest.
The AI is still pretty mediocre as it always has been in the franchise. Followers may get stuck in random things or don't move out of your way. The Enemy AI can be bugged at times at just do random things or not move at all. Skyrim has it's fair share of bugs to complain about. Quests can be bugged and unable to progress further. These glitches can really hurt the player's progress but Bethesda are patching up the game bit by bit. The NPC's also are a bit clunky and can get glitched up at times, but still they work pretty good.

Skyrim is a gigantic game that has so much to offer, you will be playing for days on end and probably crush your social life all together. It has it's fair share of shortcomings but these are few and with all the fun you'd be having you won't notice them at all.

The Good :
-Gigantic world with tons of content.
-Dual wield system makes combat more fun.
-Side quests are very interesting.
-Swords and equipment look very detailed.
-Great voice acting.

The Bad :
-Can get buggy at times.
-NPC's can get clunky at times.
-Combat is still a bit shallow.

Get the full article at GameSpot

]]> http://www.gamespot.com/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim/user-reviews/791101/platform/ps3/ Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:39:36 -0800 naju890_963 reviewed Dark Souls for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/dark-souls/user-reviews/786642/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 9.5!

Dark Souls the RPG that makes you suffer every time you make a mistake. It just kicks you in the back when you are not looking and making plea for help. But that's only if you want it to. If just don't jump into the lion's den without strategy death is sure to follow. This is a big environment that is filled with traps and dangerous enemies lurking around every corner waiting for your turn to move.


The Good:
é Intensely unforgettable atmosphere.
é Gory and satisfying combat.
é Gigantic boss fights.
é Clever level design.
é Stellar Presentation.
é Seamlessly integrated online features.
The Bad:
é Frame rate can get choppy.
é Controls can lag at times.
é Can be a grind at times.

Presentation é When you start playing Dark Souls you get the feeling that this is a grim world and that you have no expectation to live. You start off in a cell amongst the dead in an asylum. The Whole feel of the game makes you feel so helpless but that does not detract from the fun of the game, it helps the atmosphere feel scary and unpleasant. I really love how the menus are so well integrated to the game itself. They work great and don't disrupt the feel of the game at all. The graphical style of the game is amazing; it looks great and gory while scary and gloomy enough to make an enthralling atmosphere. The sound is also incredible along with the music and immerses you even further in this dark world.

Gameplay é Dark Souls is shown in a third person perspective which is excellent for this type of game. This is an open world were you basically fight every monster, loot every chest and kill every boss. It's a pretty simple concept to follow on but the game is far from simple. Since it is open world you expect it to tell you were to go, but no. You are clueless when you first step in this world. The game never tells you what to do although sometimes it gives you some mere objectives but most of the time you are on your own.

Combat is very solid here but gets kind of irritating when you are in a narrow corridor with no space to swing you sword. Even the lock on can get tedious at time, not locking on the right enemies can destroy you. But apart from that the combat is great fun. When you use light armor your character feels very light and roll fast to dodge enemies. Controlling the character is great and pretty much remained like Demon Souls but including falling attacks which you can do when you are on top of someone. A new addition to the dark souls formula is the bonfires. Bonfires are used to rest the player, attune magic, access unique items and refill your estus flasks. Unlike Demon souls you don't have a fixed hub like the nexus since dark souls is an open world game not level based.

Dark Souls also adds covenants to the mix. Covenants are somewhat guild like and offer you free equipment or spells. You can also rank up in these guilds by sacrificing a vital item for each separate covenant. Every time you hit a milestone in these rank up you get a special item from the guild that makes you more powerful the way you use it. In total there are nine different covenants which are all very different.

Multiplayer - Multiplayer in Dark Souls is very unique. It is not the usual PVP stuff, there is much more to dark soul's multiplayer than that. By default you are always online depending if you are signed in PSN. While traversing this world players will encounter traces that other players leave. These are the three traces.

1. Messages: These are left behind by players that are willing to help or even misdirect players. These messages can be only constructed by fixed messages so that it eliminates any hardcore trolling that some of the players would love to. Players can also rate up or down the selected message so it can be easily trusted or ignored.

2. Bloodstains: Bloodstains are left behind by players that recently died, when interacted it will show a ghost replay of the last 5 seconds of that players life. This helps the player to directly learn from others mistakes.

3. Apparitions: A ghost of a player can appear randomly around the world showing you what that player is doing in real-time.

Other players can directly impact another player's world by either Invading as a dark spirit or being summoned as a phantom. Cooperative modes requires both the summoned and the summoner must voluntarily be initiated the partnership. To summon a player to help you first you need to be human. To be human you need humanity and after all that you need to check if you have beaten the area boss. If you haven't beaten the area boss then you can finally summon a player. Up to 3 players can be summoned at the same time. After the boss is beaten the other phantoms are vanished and return to their respective worlds. The invading feature on the other hands works much simpler. When you invade you are pretty limited on the items you use, which makes PVP even more difficult but even more satisfying when you defeat someone.

Overall: Dark Souls is a very worthy sequel to Demon souls, blending all the dark elements from the other game and making an intense dark world with solid combat, amazing soundtrack and stellar online features. This is a game for the gamers that are willing to devote time and sweat in this terrifying RPG.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"naju890_963 reviewed Dark Souls for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by naju890_963 on Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:39:36 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/dark-souls/user-reviews/786642/platform/ps3/ Wed, 28 Dec 2011 05:23:33 -0800 naju890_963 reviewed Gran Turismo 5 for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/gran-turismo-5/user-reviews/784409/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

Gran Turismo 5 boasts a huge number of cars and tracks that look stunnning and play just as well.
GT5 is overshadowed by graphical inconsisties and lack of events, even with these problems the racing
just stands out as unbeateable. The Online portion is well executed and is still going strong to this day.
PD Keeps adding more events and updates that ensures that the game will not die soon even though it released a year ago.

First of all GT5 follows the same formula of the other GT games. You buy, collect and race cars in specific events like,
FR Events which need a a FR Car. Their is nothing to get confused here its your simple GT formula. That's one of the things
i liked about GT5 unlike GTPSP it dosen't change the forumula completly and make it boring it still has that " I can't wait till i drive that Prius"
The Annoying thing about it is the presentation. When you boot for the first time you will get assaulted by updates and jerky menu design. Every important
thing that you need to do in GT5 are hidden in this labyrinth of menus. In The Main Menu you will find GT Mode , Arcade mode ,Course Maker and Gran Turismo TV.
Now the course maker is not something very important in the game because it does not really count as a mode, so why put it right their
on the main menu were everybody can see that it is not as important as GT Mode. Speaking of GT Mode this is the pinncacle of GT5.
You Start off with 20,000 Cr and some cheap Honda's and Mazda's are availble to buy first which is a good deal. The A-Spec Events are catageorized into 5 Classes.
These are your Standard GT5 events the begginer levels which involves 3 races with 2 laps and a poor amount of exp and money. The Problem with these A-Spec events is that their is few of them
and the prize cars that you get from their are not what you call "YEAH I FINNALY GOT THAT CAR" rather " OH THATS OK". In the other GT
Games Prize cars used to be like a real treat you would be dying to know what car you got. Same thing with the B-spec events. Before i touch on the events i need to talk about
the actual B-Spec. So you create a driver , give him a name and and outfit and youre off. The B-spec events are structred like the A-spec ones so their is no confusion their.
When racing a b-spec you can leave him alone or try to calm him down or tell him to become more aggresive. This will probably get a little boring so people usually give their bob(b-spec driver)
a very good car and leave him alone to complete the events. Now let's move on to the Special Events.

Each of these events cover a specific racing class. Their is karting, rallying , nascar and some other. These are all pretty fun but the problem their is'nt much. You will probably bronze them
in two hours. When you complete specific events helmets , outfits or horns are unlock. Helmets and outfits are a really cool addition. Their is a huge variety of helmets and outfits to wear and trade.
Moving on to the dealerships. Their are two main dealerships in the game, the Dealership (yes..) and the used car dealership. the normal dealership contains 300 premuim cars while
the used car dealership contains the other 800 cars. The normal dealership is very simple. You choose your brand , car , color than buy it. On the other hand the UCD refreshes every day in-game
and introduces more cars every day. That means their are common cars like a Mazda MX5 that would be pretty easy to stumble upon unlike a Mclearn F1 GTR which is a very rare car. In which case you will have
a hard time finding it. Their is another annoying thing. When you buy one of the used cars that have a milometer which calcuates how many miles the car has done. If the car has done many miles
it will need a overhaul so that it can smoothly. And the final annoying thing is they are all standard. These standard cars don't look as stunning , lets face it some standard cars
look terrible while other look pretty good. It's these graphical inconsitiens that GT5 is failing at. The licence tests return , only this time you don't need to beat every one of them
to take part in certain races like past GT's did, now you can just beat them at your on leisure. This is a very well made feature in the game now that they are much less frustating then before.
GT Auto also returns bringing more in the customization scene. You can oil change , paintjobs rims and repairs. These overhauls are very important, for example. You just bought a Ferrari 458. You used it alot
so you need to overhaul the engine so that the engine gets back its HP that it lost while racing. And if you crash alot you have to buy the ridgity repair which repairs your body/chassis so that you have your handling
back. These imply a tad bit more realism in GT5 but they also get annoying. Now the tune shop is great. You have lots of upgrades for your car like engine tuning, lightweight reductions and more. These open up the gates
for ton of car modders which can alter the car and make it worth it's value.

Their are somethings that PD added over time like Seasonal events , Online Car Dealerships , Performance Points and some minor updates. The seasonal events are an incredible addition.
Lots of gamers were sad that GT5 did'nt have much events. Seasonal Events bring more events to the table almost weekly which incredible , their is a wide range of events to choose now and the prize payout is much better than before.
Seasonal Events also contain Drif and time trial events. These events are another good way to get money and test your skills. Now moving on to the OCD. The Online Car Dealership contains of rare cars that most people would be searching for
like a lancia stratos etc but the great thing is that they dont have any mileage which is great for a standard car. But one problem is that if a very rare car appears everybofy will get it and it won't be that rare anymore.
Lots of cars will lose their rarity. Recently they have also added a new Spec 2.0 Update. This update makes standard cars have generic interiors, introduces new nascars and a new GT-R ,Tuning Sheets, improved loading speeds and much more.
Now lets move on to the meat of the game. The Racing.

As i said before all the cars feel incredible and they are very fun to drive on any track. The handling of the cars is very realistic. A LFA will grip and grip while an F1 Car with No TCS Will just spin around. You get the
sense of speed that you are traveling at 200Mph and thats awesome. When you are racing a gaining lots of speed you wont wowed with Motion blurs and such to increase the experience like other racing games do, but thats the great
thing about that it is raw racing. It Really cant be described in text how solid the driving is. Their is one problem the crashes. This has always been on of the series's letdowns and it still is. If you crash into a wall you wont
get bumpers flying , tires flying no you will just get a little dent on the bumper. How hard can it be for PD to make a good crash system like other games. But thats my major gripe with the racing. But to really enjoy the racing you need a good racing wheel
, which cost a lot of money. The Experience with a good Wheel And Playseat would be incredible but it's not something anyone can buy.

If You really love cars you will buy this game just to collect and race. A serious petrolhead won't really be annoyed with the lack of events and graphical problems. This is the game for the True PetrolHead.

Get the full article at GameSpot

"naju890_963 reviewed Gran Turismo 5 for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by naju890_963 on Wed, 28 Dec 2011 05:23:33 -0800
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/gran-turismo-5/user-reviews/784409/platform/ps3/ Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:18:33 -0700 Mar044 reviewed Deus Ex: Human Revolution for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/deus-ex-human-revolution/user-reviews/773122/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 10.0!!!

I have been a fan of Deus Ex since the first game came out in 2001, and the third installment doesn't disappoint, Square Enix and Eidos bring you something slick, modern and totally amazing we break it down for you.

Packaging: I purchased the Augmented edition of the game, the game comes in a boxed paper at design with a smooth gloss finish with black and gold , i found its one up from the metal great solid 4 box and one of the most beautiful game collection boxes I have to date. The game comes in a fold out DVD style booklet also mat finish, the art book is hardcover with great artwork.

Graphics: The art style and graphics in the game are amazing, places seem lived in, and you feel right at home , graphics are crisp and clean, and shadows, lighting feel right for all the right places.

Sound: Also amazing. music score is techno dark, just like the other games in the series but feel right at place, gun and voices are great.

Gameplay: Everything you want in a stealth game with multiple choices, keyboard and game pads for the pc feel right and well formulated for the game style. There are plenty of missions, people to talk to and things to shoot. objectives and routes can be completed in more then one way.

I can't say this enough that you have to play the game to live a great story, and a great game, I do not share Gamespots score of 8.5 as I give it a 10, although most will give it a 9 or above, im a die hard fan and can't help but give it a 10 for everything it has to offer.

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"Mar044 reviewed Deus Ex: Human Revolution for the PC..." was posted by Mar044 on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 12:18:33 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/deus-ex-human-revolution/user-reviews/773122/platform/pc/ Fri, 19 Aug 2011 01:22:23 -0700 Mar044 reviewed ArmA II: Reinforcements for the PC... http://www.gamespot.com/arma-ii-reinforcements/user-reviews/772785/platform/pc/ ...and gave it a 7.0.

Arma II Reinforcements packages British armed forces campaign and the Pmc campaign into one package, it adds new British helicopters, land base tanks, jeeps, aircraft and guns related to its respected faction.

I found both campaigns extremely short and rely more on multi player and build your own missions then what they offer in the box, i found it highly disappointing as the original operation flashpoint game by the same maker had tons of new missions for its expansions.

I enjoyed the British campaign and trying out the weapons it had to offer and did add alot of new toys to play with, if you are a die hard arma fan then picking this up adds to what you already own, sadly its more of a booster pack then a game.
I would have loved to say that it added more to the game but it has not, other then help you build up the virtual warg ame lego set

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"Mar044 reviewed ArmA II: Reinforcements for the PC..." was posted by Mar044 on Fri, 19 Aug 2011 01:22:23 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/arma-ii-reinforcements/user-reviews/772785/platform/pc/ Wed, 25 May 2011 00:55:11 -0700 Mar044 reviewed L.A. Noire for the PlayStation 3... http://www.gamespot.com/l-a-noire/user-reviews/765655/platform/ps3/ ...and gave it a 9.0!

LA Noire takes a different approach to the sandbox world that many know and love by Rockstar Games. The game mixes Heavy Rain And Grand Theft Auto teacher and throws you into the corrupt LA Noire story of the 40;s and it doesn;t let you down.

Graphics are great, the engine has been overhauled and facial and street level details are top notch. Shadow casting is top notch and even the shadow of your hat as your looking at your case notbook displays a sense of surrounding.

Sound in the game is top notch, music scores fit the period, although i found some of the songs alittle short, i loved the mood that they chose. My complaint with the sound department is the repetitive nature of third person conversations. people say the same thing over and over again, and i cought people talking about how famous i was at the start of the game when i should have been someone what unknown. I miss the detail of grand theft auto 4 where you never felt like people said the same thing. other then that weapons and cards sound great, and the police radio does a good job.

games play is mostly positive, i found it a little disappointing that with all the clues you get you cant somehow integrate them into proving your case. i also want to happy with the fact that if you screwed up you still won the case, there should be repercussions to mistakes. taking criminology int he real world, no interrogation is the same for each person and you should be able to pick other evidence to prove your case and not a one answer correct answer system.

Cases are great and allow you to feel like your really a detective, and radio missions break up the repetitive nature of what you are doing, although i did have a complaint with the fact that you get dispatched to a radio call, that may be all away across town for no reason.

they also should have had a option to disable suspects that are shooting at you, i shoot a suspect in the leg and he ends up in a bag...didnt like that, although the shots fired into the air was something.

all and all the game shows how Rockstar can risk making something new that original and hoping that a new game will be on the way with the lessons they learned from this game.

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"Mar044 reviewed L.A. Noire for the PlayStation 3..." was posted by Mar044 on Wed, 25 May 2011 00:55:11 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/l-a-noire/user-reviews/765655/platform/ps3/ Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:52:53 -0700 DarkManiaN_1979 reviewed Fight Night Champion for the Xbox 360... http://www.gamespot.com/fight-night-champion/user-reviews/762355/platform/xbox360/ ...and gave it a 8.0.

Story mode is pretty challenging and has a good narrative. The controls are similar to the other fight nights games. The character and environments are stunningly beautiful. The option for online is a very welcomed addition and add most if not all of this games replay value.
Online is fun and addictive while keeping your boxers stats to compare with your friends and other competitors.


The cons with FN Champion are few but are impacting. Online lag sees your opponent freezing in place and then jumping about the screen potentially knocking you out while you struggle to regain control of your strategy and their whereabouts.
The story mode in some difficulty settings is a little too over the top hard to complete. The camera has a nasty way of placing your character on the right side of your opponent/screen occasionally during online bouts, which isn't native as you've studied and played through all modes on the left side of your opponent/screen.
Finally, the controls aren't as responsive or clearly mapped with the right analog stick as they were in some previous Fight Night rounds.
Getting your body shot & head shots in combos together seems lethargic in this Fight Night, as they don't always work 100% of the time, and timing possibly plays too much of a part while online lag cripples players at the same time.
The stick has a very large margin for error because all punches only require a simple flick of the stick now, and all punches are mapped fairly close to each other.
There is no option to remap the face buttons or any other controls.
You cannot gain XP for your boxer in legacy mode, and then move that into online. Online being the only way you can level your boxers skills.

Overall the excitement with this game wore off fairly quickly after completing the veteran story mode to begin with, moving to online. Most matches online are good match ups, and the latency is fine, but every now and then your experience is ruined by a lagging opponent and/or poor match ups. I question this games intentions with the XP character building and skill point character growth when online has a community of around 3000 active members globally (at a time), and online being the only way to level up your boxer.

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"DarkManiaN_1979 reviewed Fight Night Champion for the Xbox 360..." was posted by DarkManiaN_1979 on Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:52:53 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/fight-night-champion/user-reviews/762355/platform/xbox360/ Mon, 04 Apr 2011 05:35:31 -0700 Foolz3h reviewed Klonoa for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/klonoa/user-reviews/761108/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 7.5.

Klonoa is a "Dream Traveller". What this means is he's sort of like a cat with long ears which he uses to fly short distances. Which means he's something like a chicken. A cute, cartoon chicken that looks nothing like a chicken. He has a Pac-Man baseball cap and is really quite adorable.

His companion is a floating water balloon called Hewpoe who talks like a desperately adorable Macaulay Culkin when he still had some innocence about him, and plays with Klonoa when you stand around doing nothing. It's only a few hours into the game before Klonoa's grandfather is killed in brutal fashion by Joker (not from Batman) in a violent terrorist bombing. He should surely have been vaporised, but luckily he's still alive.

In great pain; slowly dying, but alive. He survives just long enough for the clichéd last words. Klonoa is in tears. Adorable, GameCubey tears. Hewpoe apologises in his childish voice, and then it's back on the road again, and it won't be long before the story becomes even more insane. It's a wonderful mixture of cutesy graphics and absurd, hilarious and totally out of place darkness. All set to upbeat electronic tunes that set the mood nicely; or do the opposite! Either way, really. It works.

This is lucky because the game starts off slow. The level design is very by the numbers, though it's always engaging due to the pseudo-3D which later on in the game leads to large, expansive levels where in the background you can see where you have been, or where you are going. It works wonderfully as an aesthetic, but as a gameplay mechanic it is never fully explored.

In fact the best designed levels towards the end of the game feature it the least, instead focusing on accurate and tense jumping puzzles where you might find yourself jumping to and from platforms just small enough for Klonoa to stand on, while several enemies are converging on you-but that can be used to your advantage for another way that Klonoa sets itself apart is that Hewpoe (or Klonoa's ring depending on your perspective) sucks up enemies and fills them with air. He can then use the puffy enemy as a jumping pad to execute a double jump which can of course be followed by Klonoa flying with his ears.

It's a simple three step program that'll have you drunk with fun when it's taken advantage of, but this is far too infrequent. The game's difficulty curve is so lethargic that by the time you do reach the challenge of the last few levels you may well not be prepared! Okay, that's something of an exaggeration, but the rest of the game does almost feel like a tutorial for the climax of events. If there were another five hours of gameplay on the level of the last few levels then Klonoa would probably be regarded as a classic rather than a cult classic.

However all is forgiven when one plays the bonus level. It takes the excellent mechanic of sucking in enemies and uses it every way it possibly can. You'll be jumping from formation of flying enemy to formation of flying enemy and all done in a life or death situation above pits of seething lava. One missed jump, or one missed enemies and you'll be restarting from the previous checkpoint. It's head and shoulders above everything else in the game, and does in a way rub in the lack of ambition present elsewhere.

Sometimes the controls don't feel entirely responsive; but it's somewhat hard to tell whether that's the fault of the game or the Wii-remote. When executing a jump, sucking in an enemy then jumping again and gliding you're pressing a, b, a, then holding a and it just doesn't feel fantastic on the Wii-remote if you're playing with the Nunchuk. This is probably somewhat due to the fault of the controller; if these were on face buttons it'd probably be a lot harder to mess up, but now and again you do feel as if you're not getting the timing you should.
Of course you can play with a classic or GameCube controller, or with the Wii-remote held SNES style. But because I'm cheap the classic controller is out of the question, plus the length of GameCube controllers make them rather impractical, especially now that everything is cordless so you may well not have your Wii set up close to the TV, and I don't want to develop arthritis so I'm afraid I was stuck with the Wii-remote/Nunchuk combo.

Oh, and the voice actingéif you've got a sense of humour you'll love it. Its ridiculousness fits perfectly with the story, but if you're one of those cold hearted bastards who hates everything corny and over the top then you'll probably want to cut off your ears. I, on the other hand turned the volume up.

My condolences to Balue. Lephise is cold.

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"Foolz3h reviewed Klonoa for the Wii..." was posted by Foolz3h on Mon, 04 Apr 2011 05:35:31 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/klonoa/user-reviews/761108/platform/wii/ Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:52:50 -0700 Chickan_117 reviewed Peppa Pig: Fun and Games for the Wii... http://www.gamespot.com/peppa-pig-fun-and-games/user-reviews/760273/platform/wii/ ...and gave it a 6.5.

Peppa Pig : Fun and Games does a great job of creating an interactive experience true to the series. It is voiced by the original cast and each mini game is introduced like an episode of the series.

The controls are very easy for my pre-schoolers to learn and, whilst the mini games seem plain and repetetive to me, the kids enjoy the simplicity. For example, there's a mini game where you pick a hat, shirt and shoes for Peppa's fancy dress. That's it. Sounds boring but my daughter spent 45 minutes dressing Peppa up and laughing at her concoctions.

The only negatives with this game are that the interface is average (getting into games is fine, learning how to back out and find other games is poor) and that there are only 12 basic games.

That said it's still a great title. It's great to have a game that is actually simple enough for a pre schooler to play. Whilst games like Dog Island and Dora aren't overly complex they tend not to hold the interest of younger kids.

I wouldn't recommend paying more than $20AU for it but it should be a definite purchsae for any under 5s you have who like the show.

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"Chickan_117 reviewed Peppa Pig: Fun and Games for the Wii..." was posted by Chickan_117 on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 15:52:50 -0700
]]> http://www.gamespot.com/peppa-pig-fun-and-games/user-reviews/760273/platform/wii/