A nice face lift to an under appreciated series.
World Series of Poker: Battle of the Bracelets has taken this stepping stone and has improved upon it greatly in most areas of the game. Although the title is still searching from the looks of things for the perfect balance to make it an outstanding poker game the improvements from the previous year's version make it a title worth at least renting, if not outright buying.
Graphics - 8/10: 2008's graphics have been improved over what 2007 had to offer. Although 2007's graphics could be considered next gen they were very blocky and didn't seem natural. As well in the previous version it was hard to tell who the pro players were unless they had a very unique style to their dress or face. 2008 has taken this and abolished it almost completely. The Pro Players featured in 2008 are almost real to life and the notable players can be picked out even from top down view. As well for those who prefer custom players they as well have received a face lift. The only item that still suffers is the digimask from the 07 version. Although a pioneering idea it suffers from using the actual picture taken from the XBox Live Vision camera. With such a low resolution picture and the fact it 'wraps' the face around a 3-D Model using the original picture this feature has a long way to go.
Sound - 8/10:
The Sounds heard in the game have seen some improvement from the 2007 version. For those of you who had the 2007 version you'd find that the players seemed to be contracting the Common Cold about once an orbit (one revolution of the dealer button around the table). This was Left Field's way of giving off tells back in the 07 version and honestly was ineffective. This has thankfully been removed in 2008. Along with some annoyances being removed many of the Pro players featured in 2008 have scripted their own voices for their digital portrayals. It offers a sense of really being there in the game with them and makes re-playability of single player mode that much more enjoyable. Aside from the improvements most of the sounds you heard in 07 make a return in the 08 version. As well there is now some variety in filler music in the menu section. Other than that, not much you can do to spice up the sounds in a poker game.
Gameplay - 8/10:
The gameplay for 2008 has been improved upon in many areas. Although the learning curve for those who don't necessarily understand the mechanics of Texas Hold'em or the other games you might find in the WSOP events is still a large hurdle. They have made some effort to help new players to the world of Poker with the addition of a poker school. This feature while useful to a degree will need to see some improvement before it becomes a selling point to the poker neophyte. As well, some mini-games have been added to test your prowess in Texas Hold'em such as the 'Same Hand Jam' where players are challenged to take a hand they pick and earn more money than they started with through nine hands. Career Mode has been gutted and renovated all together. You are still known as 'The Rookie' but your goal now is to run through the 6 Week 43 event World Series of Poker events. As you earn cash and [hopefully] bracelets you will earn points to the Player of the Year contest. Along the way as well you will unlock several private events to play Cash Games with the pros to earn yourself some money on the side. The AI in the Career Mode has seen a major improvement over the 2007 edition. They actually have their own playing styles and 'pay attention' to things like pot odds and how you play your game. This allows you to play poker with the AI on a more real to life feel fleshing the game out a lot more over its predecessor. As well they have revamped the poker tools a bit making them easier to look at and adding a new 'Play Style' feature. Note: It is this reviewers opinion that the poker tools although a great tool to learn with should not be relied upon as knowing that information from memory will benefit you tenfold if you wish to pursue poker outside of the XBox 360.
Last but not least a new addition to the gameplay is a new Blackjack/Video poker mini game you can access while waiting on you turn to make an action. It's nice to have when playing the AI but in multiplayer it could hurt you depending on your skill as a poker player. Ultimately, it's an extra that didn't need to be added but hey, I'm always welcome to more fish in the fish tank.
Multiplayer - 9/10:
If your seeking a good challenge and some heart-pounding poker action then multiplayer is where to go. Not much is different from the 07 version although there are some slight improvements. In tournament play the screen changes over to a loading screen when new players enter the table so you can be more aware of additions to the table. As well a nice addition to multiplayer is the microphone indicators next to everyone's name. Now when someone is speaking you don't have to be psychic or know their voice to know when they are speaking.
Aside from that playing a human is ten times more beneficial than playing any AI. The only qualms I have for multiplayer is some of the players you might encounter while playing in ranked matches. Just like in real life sometimes you have to take the good in with the bad. You'll find that many of the newer players know only one action in hold'em aside from folding occasionally and that's jamming the pot. Although a patient poker player might be able to survive the torrent of all-ins it can be very frustrating to outlast or when you have a hand that could statistically hold it's own in a heads-up match. My recommendation if you don't like encountering those situations is to find a poker league within the game. There are a few that are available.
Extras/Tutorial Videos - 7/10:
The only area that 2008 has degraded really is in the extras and tutorial videos you can get. 2007 Featured Chris 'Jesus' Ferguson giving useful information towards playing Texas Hold'em poker both in the tutorial videos and in the cut scenes between events. In 2008 this is not the case. Although I have not unlocked all the videos yet many of them are very shameful plugs for Phil Hellmuth's Black Belt Poker course. The videos are very self-centered around the poker brat and honestly provide very little information for bettering your play.
Note: It is this reviewers opinion that if you wish to learn how to play poker that you invest in the myriad of books available at your local bookstore or online.
Overall - 8/10:
WSOP: 2008 is a great improvement over it's predecessor and definitely best in series. If you enjoy playing poker this game is a must have and if you are curious about learning to play Texas Hold'em or one of the other WSOP events games then this title coupled with some good books on the subject will give you a very cost effective learning environment.