April 1st eh…

Remember, you might as well take any news posted on April 1st with a pinch of salt… guaranteed the majority of websites will be trying something.

GTA IV trailer opinions.

If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, check it out on Gametrailers.

So naturally, it all looks very pretty. I love the diverse environments, from the rolloercoaster to the residential area, to the main streets, to the train station. It’s obvious that this game will have a number of distinct areas to visit.

I love the fact there are a number of interior areas being displayed already, such as the interior of what I could assume is a museum of sorts (the large glass dome) as well as the train station, and they look lovely. As for the pedestrians, they look good enough that you can look at one individual and not be put out, while a crowd will look very good, in much the same way it was in Dead Rising.

The buildings look as though they have loads of detail to them, and there are adverts everywhere (The Sprunk ad particularly caught my eye as a past referance).

and the main character, he’s Russian which is a pretty cool change and sounds like a new upstart to the city of GTA IV (typical stuff then).

So, the location, I would say it’s Liberty city with the bells and whistles from the new generation of consoles, which enables such monuments as the statue of Liberty and the Empire States Building to be included. Other hints are the number of times Liberty is shown on building (and on the back of the boat) during the trailer. While this may seem cheap, I welcome the move back to a dense city after San Andreas, in which I found the hills and desert to be pretty barren.

My few last coments: It looks far more vibrant and alive than Saint’s Row (it’s closest rival) and there are birds! Hunting season is open.

So yea… Roll on October.

Mario and Sonic… At the Olympic Games?

It’s true, Mario and Sonic are set to square off on the running track, wielding javelin and jumping long distances in Nintendo’s winter release as can be seen here.

My first thoughts? Why not Wii Olympics. Why isn’t this game a pseudo Wii Sports sequel where we incorporate our Mii’s into Olympic events, it would suit the ‘new gamer’ generation better than pitching gamings greatest mascots against each other. But in all honesty this could be fun, as long as the games are fun with the wii mote and not simple affairs that will be boring after one or two tries. Of course, by saying the game could be fun I’m sidestepping the whole point that is at argument here, it’s Mario and Sonic competing at sports! And that isn’t really fair is it…

Sonic can run fast (at least over long distances, his accelaration isn’t what it once was) but Mario is the superior jumper and thrower. If we look at basic facts, the competitions will be clear cut. And as such, if the game is going to be fair, the characters will merely be avatars which will allow fan boys to cease the arguments.

But what is the more interesting angle on this announcement? Simply that SEGA are no longer abashed at the thought of Sonic appearing alongside Mario, and as such a Smash Bros appearance seems more likely than ever…

Oh well, with the ‘Mario and Sonic’ title alongside official status with the ‘Beijing 2008′ olympics logo emblazoned above the title, it is sure to be well advertised throughout the Olympics and as such I believe the game will do well… Here’s hoping the next Mario and Sonic announcement allows them to truly settle the score…

PSP: Exit.

This is a real gem in the rough that are the PSP releases.

You play an escape artist, who spends his time rescuing people from dangerous situations. The game is a 2D platformer with puzzle elements, such as sending survivors to switches to open doors or pushing crates to create safe passages. The game runs smoothly with a great sense of accomplishment when you solve a particularly tricky puzzle stage, while the game also rewards higher ranks for quicker performances.

The visuals are lovely, in a cel shaded minimalistic style that runs really well on the PSP screen. The game also, alarmingly, has no load times whatso ever.

With 100 levels on the UMD with over 100 more up for download, the game will last a long time and test your brain with some real tricky situations.

While not perfect,the game never tells you if you have failed and the game is sometimes a little too slow (emphasizing the puzzle element) it is a highly recommended title for the PSP.

Line Rider.

Ok, did I somehow miss out on this? Well, thanks to the NGamer DVD, I now know about it and it’s great fun.

Found here, it’s bassically a simple tool in which you create paths for the dude on a sled to follow, it can be really simplistic fun.

I say simplistic, but pop over to the movies page and be dumbfounded. My personal favourites are these two.

So yea, have fun!

Wii: Excitetruck opinion.

I have to say that I think Excite truck has been severly under appreciated.

The game just oozes fun, while your playing the game you get a real sense of speed and spectacle as you whip around the crazy courses, and the trucks feel really heavy as you drift turns and smash other trucks, the feel of the game is spot on. While, yes, the game is simple and it’s lacking any real challenge, it’s genuinly a lot of fun to turn it on and play a race simply because of how well the game handles with the remote, steering the trucks is made all the more amusing via Wii mote control.

So yea, Excite truck is a really fun game and I would recommend it at around £15/£20. It is lacking in the features department but a sequel with a proper race mode alongside the current star mode and online play as well as four player split screen (rather than two) and the Wii would have a superb title, the feel of the trucks is already perfect.

So yes, Excite truck, very fun. Highly recommended.

Live Arcade: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

I’ve heard people saying this game is rubbish, saying that it has ruined their memories by playing it again, saying that it is overly simple. But have to say that, at 400 points (a paltry couple of pounds) is it really that bad?

Sure, it s insanely simple (one attack button, one jump button and moving) but is that bad? I see Live arcade as secondary to main 360 games, and having a simple brawler on the list is a perfect way to spend ten minutes in my opinion. At first I thought the game was overly unfair but after extended play there is an element of strategy to boss encounters and levels can be learned.

All this and you can blast through the game with four players over live or locally, which is a good bit of fun.

In my opinion, while Turtles may be a bit… Well, very shallow, it is ultimetly a worthy bit of fun for the money it costs and as a live arcade game it sits nicely as a time waster on your hard drive, there’s no reason to be saying that you feel cheated or that your childhood is detroyed.

Live arcade: Worms and Alien Hominid.

I’ve had these two Live Arcade titles at my disposal for a while now and I have to say, the bar for Live Arcade has been raised considerably.

Alien Hominid HD – This is, potentially, the best value title you can find on Live Arcade at the moment. I purchased the original game on the Xbox over a year ago for £15, and to find out that this version managed to cram all the content from that version (plus more comprehensive leaderboards) into an 800 point game (around £7) found me very impressed. The game plays just as well as it did in previous console versions, and while the omission of live multiplayer is irritating the experience is still a brilliant old school run and gun shooter. The achievements are good and encourage you to play various modes, however it is shocking to learn that the game has been released with a glitch preventing players from obtaining all the hats (and with them an achievement). But be warned, the ‘perform 50 head chomps without touching the ground’ achievement will drive you insane. All in all, a good purchas, but you may be advised to keep your ear to the ground about a patch…

Worms – What can I say apart from the fact that it is Worms. To me it appears to be acomfortable middle ground between Worms one and two. Featuring the visual style and humour of Worms 2 with a more subtle weapon set more aligned to Worms 1, the game never seems unfair (unless played with the full wormage weapon set). The twenty challenges give a little meat for a single player to chew on, but the true triumph of this version is the live play. Worms will be able to sit alongside Uno as a Live Arcade keeper, the ability to jump into a laid back, but very strategic, game of worms with anybody (you get tired of the computers precision grenades after a while) keeps the game fresh, and playing with friends is fantastic. The achievements are made so that they are unlocked primerily through continued play, which is no bad thing. Worms is easy to recommend and it is one of Live Arcade’s finest.

300

Well, just got back in from seeing 300 and so I consider it relevant to post my impressions.

I enjoyed the film, to an extent. I have to say that the combat was superb, it was pleasingly gory and stylised brilliantly, the method of using slow down and fast forward gave it a very comic esque feel, as if you were looking from one pane to the next. Couple this with the very comic styled blood, s well as some severed limbs, and the combat felt good and was brilliant to watch. Not only this, but it all felt fairly large, and some of the coreography was brilliant.

So, while the combat was ace, my main gripe with the film was with King Leonidas… At times he was the Spartan leader (wreaking annoyingly of Russel Crowe in Gladiator) and then at other times he would slip into a jokey feel, which was quite jarring for me as a viewer. Not only that, but his jokey language was very removed from the proper gusto of Sparta.

The film did get the feel of the comic very well, the overly glossy feel of the film pronounced features, giving across the feeling of a comic, but also giving the Spartans a very clean feel. The wierd and wonderful creations of Frank Miller were brought to the screen successfully, and give the film a very fantastical feel.

So, I enjoyed the film, but not everything seemed to gel. If you can see it, then sure go ahead. But I wouldn’ttell you to go out of your way to do so.

Mini Reviews: Diddy Kong Racing (DS), Metal Slug Anthology (PSP), Sonic and the Secret Rings (Wii).

Diddy Kong Racing (DS):

 

Diddy has never had the charm of Mario, he didn’t in 1997 and he certainly doesn’t now. But whereas in 1997 Mario Kart 64 was a fairly shallow game, offering very minimal options but a hilarious multiplayer (while still being considered the superior game), with the DS hosting arguably the best Mario Kart ever, it makes this port of a ten-year-old N64 game seem very outdated.

The core game remains the same as it was in 1997, navigate car, plane or hovercraft through a variety of relatively bland levels utilising stackable balloon power-ups (and new super power-ups) to jostle your way into first. New to the table are the, relatively entertaining balloon popping stages (think something like a light gun shooter). Other DS ‘improvements’ include spinning/rubbing or blowing to activate start line boosts and ill contrived minigames. The 1997 versions rock hard difficulty has also been given a sharp decrease, making the single player feel more distinctively like practise for the multiplayer.

And this is one area in which Diddy manages to teach its peers a lesson, with all tracks playable (including battle arenas) by six players (eight offline) across a few modes, the online portion of the game is fairly substantial, but Diddy ultimately favours the expert player, rewarding superior driving, rather than mid race, super weapon hilarity.

Diddy is an enjoyable attempt at the kart formula, but ultimately lacks the finesse or sheer multiplayer laughs of Mario Kart.

7

 

Metal Slug Anthology (PSP):

SNK have never been particularly generous with the Metal Slug games, while simple arcade games; all past home releases have been of each singular game with a few minigames thrown in for good measure. Not so with Anthology, this is a full Metal Slug blow out featuring Metal Slugs one through to six (with X in the middle). So, with seven full Metal Slug games, there is a lot to shoot…

For the uninitiated, Metal Slug is a scrolling shooter, not too dissimilar to Contra or the more recent Alien Hominid (which itself was based on Metal Slug). The aim is to travel from left to right, exterminating all that lay in your path. The series has no restraints, filling the screen with men, tanks, helicopters and towering.

Anthology does not contain the console version’s minigames, but simply having all seven Slug titles more than compensates for this. To entice repetitive plays, the game offers art galleries, music and wallpapers for your efforts. While lacking a level select, the unlimited lives allow a new player to enjoy the games, with limited lives offering the required challenge for veterans. All seven games also offer two-player support, but both players will need a copy.

If you are looking for a fun arcade blast on the PSP, Metal Slug is a worthy choice. The game is also available on the Wii, but without a Gamecube pad you will be lumbered with awkward motion controls. However, it will be easier to recruit a second player.

8

Sonic and the Secret Rings(Wii):

Sonic has not had an easy time in recent years, with games ranging from all right (Sonic Adventure/2) to downright awful (Sonic 360/PS3). Secret Rings falls somewhere around the higher end of the spectrum, considerably better than the recent travesty, but still not meeting the heights of polish and gaming brilliance that the fastest hedgehog in the world should be receiving.

The entire game is on rails, as such Sonic is always moving while you tilt the Wii mote to dodge hazards. Hold 2 to make Sonic jump and flick forward to attack enemies, the only move that doesn’t work fully is tilting back to reverse, occasionally failing to register and being awkward to use. By placing Sonic on rails, it has allowed developers to create impressive set pieces, meaning you will sometimes let out an impressed gasp as Sonic follows a Gryphon through the air, or runs from rampaging Triceratops.

The single player is punctuated by too many superfluous missions, which tend to annoy, thankfully the main missions are enjoyable enough to compensate for them. By playing well you can earns medals, which unlock various media from and about the game as well as Sonic’s skills (which allow you to customise his performance to suit specific levels better).

The game also features a throwaway minigames based multiplayer, but ultimately rounds off a fairly substantial package. Not without niggles, Sonic is an enjoyable game and certainly a step in the correct direction for Sega’s once loved mascot.

8