Thanks one and all

Hey guys and girls.

I'm just here to say that I hope you all had a fantastic holiday and I hope you've got something going on for you for New Year's Eve.

Happy New Year. 2011!

Thanks.

Al

Review: GTA San Andreas

Hey folks; I hope you had a great break, but for me, its back to the grindstone. I could choose not to do this, but I want to. I really do. Its nice reviewing all the games of my past.

So, yes. I pulled out my old copy and started the game all over again and relived the moments of my childhood. Arguably one of the greatest games of the decade, Grand Theft Auto San Andreas.


So while playing the game, the first thing I must immediately comment on is the soundtrack. A marvelous account of music from the sixties onwards to the beginning of the game in 1992.
(Side fact; same year I was born)
One song of mention would be "A Horse With No Name" by America. This song actually got me onto the band. And they say games don't stimulate children to the outside world!
Not only was the soundtrack amazing, but the gameplay was very smooth. GTA was known for their smooth AI's and also how easily the game ran. But what this game really runs off is the fantastic gameplay. Rich, full, enticing and brilliant. Samuel L Jackson as Officer Tenpenny was a fantastic addition to the game and made the most fantastic bad guy to face your Protagonist, Carl "CJ" Johnston.
The storyline, the brilliant acting and even the Sound FX everywhere you went, was utterly brilliant. There's really not any more words in the English language to describe this game. 


Now, sadly, onto the bad points.
The game, while utterly brilliant, lacked just that small spark and that small spark was the graphics. While perfectly fine for its time, they were not as perfect as they possibly could have been. While looking back of its previous title, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, the graphics looked as though they were only slightly enhanced and changed, when barely a year later came the release of Mass Effect.
Sure the game was over a year later after the release, and a lot can change in a year, so I would agree with your statement.
While the large majority of the voice acting was just brilliant, some of the voices were on the borderline for racism and stereotypical. But one (other) could argue that if one could not be made fun of, no one can be. So in fairness, I am only disgruntled by some voices of characters such as Sean "Sweet" Johnson (The Protagonist's brother), Ryder and OC Log.


These simple annoyances can be overlooked and GTA San Andreas is a fantastic addiction to any player's list and is best to divulge into your love for gameplay, carnage, or the use of cheats for weird and wacky moments, such as parachuting off the modeled mountain of Mount Diablo. 


Out of 10, I gave Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas an 8.5/10

Thanks Everyone.

Firstly I want to say that over 150 views? Thanks very much for reading everything I post, I really appreciate it. 

Secondly, I want to wish you all a merry Christmas, a happy Quanza and a delightful Hanukkah. I hope you all have a brilliant holiday and a better year ahead of you.

Thanks all so much.
Much love
Al Russell

Review: Gears Of War 2

G'day folks.

Today, I'm here to review one of my most precious games. A game I have bought three times: This game has brought me much joy over the years, and as I type these words, I am listening to the music for the trailer to the sequel. Ladies and gentlemen, Gears of War 2.

As many people know, sequel to games are most developers chance of "Make Or Break", a chance for the game to be solely improved beyond belief or fail and fail the series all together, even kill the company. Fable II and Call of Duty 3 are perfect examples; both received bad reviews and thus were not as great as the developers hoped. But if only a few hiccups, Gears of War 2 rode the right wave and became an instant success. 
Gears of War was to become a classic and nearly every gamer (at least I know) has a copy of this game. As Gears of War 2 was released in November 2008, the game skyrocket and was an instant success. The gameplay was a brilliant addiction for the series and the voice recording suited the world fantastically. 

However, the small bugs did bother the majority of the gamers in this arena. Their biggest problem being the Multiplayer.
Not only did the multiplayer have bugs, it was also frustrating for a match to be found. Players were used to the COD4 type of Multiplayer matchmaking; quick, simple and gives the ability of choice to the player. However, Gears of War 2 wasn't as decisive as the games of its recent time. Finding a match could take a long time, sometimes an hour or so, and when it did, if the game wasn't stable, it was possible the player may be rejected to join. However, if the player could join, they would be free to no lag, a friendly community and the ability to kill fairly and decisively. The Gear team did release several map packs to try to fix this problem, but in the eyes of the gaming community, and for the gamers outside America, it only made the problem worse.

However, in this man's eyes, this could be overlooked. The actors gave it their all for the characters in this game and it paid off fairly well. The graphics were well designed for its time, the product itself brilliant and I for one cannot wait for the sequel. If the gameplay release at E3 can make me call out in excitement like a 9 YO child, to miss the game release would be foolish. 

Out of 10, I gave Gears of War II a 9.5/10

Upcoming Games

Hey folks

Recently I've been boosted up to 45 games. Me thinking that's a decent number, I thought hopefully in the coming year I could take it up to 60. Now my list for my upcoming games, as listed to the right, just below my profile picture  ===>
These games listed are mostly older titles, some being with the Original Xbox Console. But hopefully as soon as I buy some more recent games.
The first on the list is IGM's (Inside Gaming) Game Of The Year, Red Dead Redemption, which I bought barely 5 hours ago. I wasn't attracted to it at first, but after reading many reviews and many of my friends suggesting this game, I finally bought it. I've only just started doing a few of the missions and I'm starting to get into it. 
As you may have read earlier, I'm also looking forward to many upcoming games for next year and early 2012, such as Mass Effect 3, Prototype 2 and even the whisperings of the new Assassin's Creed coming in late next year  also....but this is only a rumour after all. 

So I've planned out the next few months of the reviews and such, when new games come in, so shall their reviews. I'm hoping to finish Red Dead Redemption by at least mid January. Also, I have recently purchased the Rising Dead DLC for RDR and the new DLC for The Force Unleashed II. If I have enough Gamerpoints left over, I shall buy Super Meat Boy....for out of interest....and a nagging best friend. 


Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah and a delightful Quanza.
Allan

Review: Metal Of Honour

Out of the many past games in this area, this has possibly got to be the greatest in the entire series. For a game I did no research, no in-look and a spontaneous buy, I am glad to add this to my collection. Metal Of Honour.

As I started on the Campaign, I was slightly confused with the HUD but it took me little time to finally figure it out. As well as the simple  logic. Headshots can kill. More than four in the body and you are done for.

This added dramatically to the realism of the game, suiting its predecessors and while my own lack of realising this early in the game caught a few swears muttered under my breath, I was instantly in the world of Metal of Honour.

To me, as a gamer, the three things I find most important in a game is the storyline, the voice acting and the music score. I first noticed how improved the storyline was. A lot of the Gaming Industry are interested with games that involve the battles that take place overseas today, and so Metal of Honour brought this greatly with the current battle of the Democratic powers and The Taliban. The voice acting, while great in some parts, were a small disappointment, as I don't believe a person who is mere centimeters away from an enemy would talk as if he was trying to talk to a person across a small room. The musical score, while rare, was beautifully done and was a delightful addition to both the more serious moods and the firefight for, literally, your life. 

This is the beauty of the game. The realism is fantastic and its very hard to resist its beautiful charms.

Metal of Honour, while some disregard it lesser than Black Ops or call it a copy, the gameplay itself is something rarely seen in the Gaming Industry today, its Multiplayer fairly unique and a game I suggest to anyone who likes the Campaign that takes them into a world unlike our own.

Out of 10, I gave Metal Of Honour an 8.5/10 

Review: Gaming List for 2011.

Hey there you!

Well, two games have been recently announced for release in 2011 and I could not be more excited for them. Of course, to begin, Gears of War 3. This game is the ending for the fantastic series. I love this game and the gameplay that you can immediately dive right into as you place it into the 360 drive.

I was slightly frustrated as the developers pushed the release date from April 8th to November 14th for "polishing" (or the more logical reason that the other two games were released in November) but I still cannot wait.

A game that was only announced for 2011 yesterday, is Prototype 2. In the game, the infection is still contained in New York and follows a former Sergeant in the military, who hated Alex Mercer (Your previous Protagonist, now enemy) who is your cause for the death, in Shakespearean terms, your wife and babe. 

The gameplay looks fantastic, the AI upgraded and the graphics improved, the blood and gore of killing everything in your path so much more detailed and looks so much more real. Lesser minds may have nightmares about this. (For example, when I was a child, I was terrified of GoldenEye 64, it freaked me out. These days, it still slightly bugs me)

This game looks like a brilliant addition to any collection.

Finally, the last announcement of the day being a game that I will think will be a instant classic and a game that will push the envelope even further. Mass Effect 3!

The game graphics look....absolutely real. While watching the trailer and the short introduction of the gameplay....I was certain it was real. Until I saw the enemies Shepard fought and the Reapers causing havok, I knew then it was all animated.

More on this, and the others as time progresses.

Of course, I look forward to these games and more, such as Bioshock Infinate but wer still just have to wait for time to take its place.

And so begins the waiting game....... 

Review: Saints Row 2

Hey guys and girls.

Finally, a game that shows the weird, wacky and crazy side of satisfying the bloodlust that inflicts all gamers. Saints Row 2 is just what the people asked for, and this game delivers exactly what it promised.

Firstly, this game was a complete overhaul of the previous title. Graphics were highly intensified. Gameplay itself was also made even more heightened with a large amount of weaponry, vehicles and even more voice work on civilians than I have ever seen on any game  before.

Giving the character (SPOILER!) a voice after his/her near death was a wise move. Choosing between three voices, you can choose between a British, normal or latino accent. (By normal, it reverts through different races, mostly stereotypical African American and White)
The customisation of the character itself was also extended to so much of a high point that I have never seen before in a game where a character's customisation could be extended to make it in near infinite ways. Everything from large noses and feet to the size of your waist and hairline!
The gameplay itself was brilliant, some points being excellent, others weird and funny and some that just brings tears to your eyes (SPOILER!) for example, depending on your choice of gang to focus on, in one of the ending scenes, your character is split between the decision to save your Lieutenant or end his pain and kill him.

There are only a few faults that I have found with the game. The multiplayer, while fun, can be quite annoying...and very similar to Just Cause. This was a great try at a Multiplayer, and was great to run around with a friend killing anything that moves. but try to play with anyone who lives overseas and the game and freezes the Xbox itself. 


This game is a definite buy for a person who doesn't mind running around with a pimp cane, hitting them over the head or opening the top and unloading a buckshot onto a crowd. Some of the cheats (Yeah, I used them once, just to muck around with a buddy) are actually quite fun, especially Drunk Civilians, is a great way to add a sequel to a great game. I look forward to Saints Row 3.


Out of 10, I gave Saints Row 2 an 7/10

Saints Row 2 Review: Complications

Hey folks.

Due to family issues and problems with my own timing, my review of Saints Row 2 will be one day late with posting my review. I apologise to people who read these reviews. 

Sorry, once again.

Keep well. 

Allan

Review: [Prototype]

Hey there folks.

This is posted a little late, sorry for that, but one of my most enjoyable games cannot wait until morning light (Its currently 1am, despite what blogspot says) [Prototype] is a game of both satisfying bloodlust and compelling gameplay, to which was a very decent transition of comic to video game.

Making a start, the first thing I noticed was the exceptional acting skills of Alex Mercer, our protagonist who, waking up on an operating table, believed to be dead, is revived by an unknown force as the biopsy was about to begin. Confused and unsure, he finds himself fleeing through the streets of Manhattan, able to morph his body to weapons of unbelievable quality. I was slightly dissapointed with the lack of dialogue and short cut scenes, but these made the game ever more seductive. While the game came to great graphics and a world that was the real New York (The game designers taking over 10'000 photo's of the city to produce this game) I discovered, while picking up a car to fling at an enemy, that the people inside the cars are blockish and not particularly well done, as much as I liked. I am no game designer, but sometimes these small details can make or break a game.

Fortunately, it made the game. The rich gameplay was a welcome change to other games competing at the time. Alex Mercer (Played perfectly by Barry Pepper) was an excellent protagonist and made the game ever more believable. The ending was just....utterly perfect and I am extremely glad for DC Comics to have thought of this.
But honestly, why does everything always happen in New York? Spiderman, Alex Mercer, Superman (For a brief moment), Flash, the list goes on.
Why not some Australian super hero's!?

Anyhoo, one of the things I found a slight annoyance was a few of the Campaign missions. Without a particular power, you could not advance to that level. You had a choice of doing a challenge, or destroying a Military Base/Infection Base.

Overall, this game was a great way to kill thousands, upon hundreds of thousands of Infectionous monsters while thrashing around to a Disturbed album (Seriously, try it with one of their songs playing) or become one of the people and make your way through the city, slowly, and silently killing the enemies that you harbor.
A brilliant game and I hope for a sequel.

Out of 10, I gave [Prototype] an 8/10

Review: Grand Theft Auto IV

Hey guys.

100 views on my blog in just a month, thanks for viewing. Its really appreciated.

As my current decision to view older games as  my list grows short, I decided to review an old favourite of mine, the last in the Grand Theft Auto series.

As a huge fan of the last two games before this, I was highly interested to play the final game in the series, hoping that Rockstar may have another hidden up its sleeve (To which, they have been currently hinting to for the past few months.)

With the mysterious Niko Bellic making his way to America, I was already impressed with the amount of acting and originally that Rockstar is highly known to bring, especially when a woman who barely missed with your car screams "This is a sign! I'm gonna go back to Alaska!" or "How 'bout it baby? You, me and a jar of peanut butter?"

The graphic level for a free roam world was high and very beautiful, especially the water and sun/moon graphics. 

The weaponry was ranged as it was in the past, and was only slightly larger than San Andreas. But this did not make it any less more fun for a classic pistol dual with the Russian Mafia (This making me really wish I had Mafia 1 or 2....)

However I saw only a few faults with the game. While I loved the Campaign, the Multiplayer was a large letdown. Due to the large landscape, if I did not play with anyone in my local area, it was tended to have large lag and usually end up with me being lagged out of the game. Unfortunate, but a pattern that tends to repeat.

The Campaign was a fantastic addiction to Liberty City and seeing its "Heart" was a extreme nice touch. While some glitches to the game have been removed with the new DLC's, I have been unable to purchase them as of yet, hoping to do so in the near future.

Out of 10, I gave Grand Theft Auto IV a 7/10

Review: Assassin's Creed Brotherhood

Hey folks.

Now for a review that I have been waiting a long time to play. We return to the 16th Century as Ezio Auditore Da Firenze in the epic series, Assassin's Creed Brotherhood.

The very first thing I noticed was the complete overhaul of graphics. Assassin's Creed 2 had brilliant graphics but Brotherhood almost seemed real as I started once again in the Animus. 

Once again, I loved the voice acting and a return to Kristen Bell making snappy comebacks and flirting with Desmond. Even though they are not really together, the actors obviously have some kind of relationship to be able to act with some emotion.

I also want to mention the musical score. For what my musical ear can tell, for Brotherhood Ubisoft have taken both the musical scores from AC 1 and 2, including a few new scores and taken some of the older versions and making a new version (For example, from Assassin's Creed, they have taken the score for Acre and made it just for an acoustic guitar and violin)

To be perfectly honest, there were so little small annoyances that I can't even think of how to voice them. For one, while the horse has been upgraded to be able to ride it within city limits (thus making travel much more simple) unfortunately they have taken out the Gallop feature except for specific missions. This was slightly annoying, but Ubisoft made up for this for the Jump feature (enabling the AI to jump via horse back onto ledges being unreachable.) as well as making the AI able to kill a soldier on horse back either from ground, air or from another horse.

One of the other small annoyances was the Leonardo "Store". I was a little disappointed with the lack of Leonardo in the game, yet I was slightly annoyed with the purchasable items, in particular the "Climbing Leap" glove. Seeing as this feature was learnt by Ezio from Rosa, I find it a little hard for this to be a purchase. However, I was satisfied with the other purchases, especially the parachute feature.

The game is brilliantly designed from head to foot. I particularly love the Crossbow (A weapon originally featured in Assassin's Creed but taken out for unknown reasons), making it much more satisfying to wait for a guard to move from his patrol, climbing up and waiting for him to turn to shoot him in the throat and watch the horror in his eyes as the blood pours. I don't know if this makes me sadistic or not, but I like it.

Out of 10, I gave Assassin's Creed Brotherhood a 10/10!

A first that will be a very select group

PS: To my knowledge, Gears of War 3 has been pushed back to "polish" the game. This has ticked me off slightly but I still cannot wait!

Review: Mass Effect 2

G'day my friends

One of my most beloved games, I'm proud to even speak (or type) about a game that has written the line of adequate and brilliance. Mass Effect 2.

It's predecessor (Mass Effect - 2007) was portrayed to have the highest level of graphics a video game had ever seen. And they brought the money. Even by today's standards, Mass Effect is still held as a highly graphic game and is better than a select few that were recently released.....Mass Effect 2 was to follow the same protagonist, Shepard (Or in my case, Allan Shepard) still aboard the Normandy a month after your assault against the rogue Spectre, Saren.

My first delight at the game was the ability to follow your storyline of the previous game. As I was a highly good Shepard, my choices held very little effect on the world, but in different ways, a lot of major changes. For example, I let the Council live and made Captain Anderson a councilor (at this time of my life, a lot of Matrix jokes were made....)

The graphics in the sequel were phenomenal! As this game was released in January 2010, the hype of plasma TV's and Blu-ray was high, and this 2-disc game put both of these to shame, as the game itself is an average disc on my normal tv and looks stunning. The second item that I noticed was voice acting. An all Star Cast is always a show for concern within the company and the public too, but the voice acting was brilliant. Seth Green playing Joker once more was a fantastic touch and Yvonne Strahovski (voicing and giving her likeness, body and all to Miranda) may have been the only Australian in the cast, but she is a perfect example to all the world. That's what Aussie girls look like fellas!

While the Campaign was utterly brilliant (it taking me 4 tries to win the "No One Left Behind" achievement.....thanks Jack....) there was only one fault that I have seen, through the last year of re-playing the entire game. The DLC's. 

While "Search For The Shadow Broker's Lair" is a brilliant addiction to the game, as well as the "Kasumi" and "Zaheed" DLC's as well, the only one that I found to be a let down, was the "Overlord" pack.

This DLC was a complete let down. It was a return to the standard missions of Mass Effect and, while some parts challenging, others were not as great as they could. For example, in one part you are forced to cross a river of Lava and the developers have not given any direction as to how to use the car that you are in. Until I discovered the Jump ability, I was beginning to become frustrated at the DLC and how nothing was making much sense. The acting was fantastic, don't get me wrong, but this was a entire let down.

Mass Effect 2 is a marvel of today's gaming industry. The graphics, gameplay, storyline and many more are fantastic, but in the eyes of this gamer, this game was one dollar too short.

Out of 10, I gave Mass Effect 2 a 9/10

Review: LIMBO

Hey folks

I have been waiting to play this arcade game for a long time and finally, after only 3 hours, I have completed the game of LIMBO: A boys quest to find his sister......

...In the words of Drawn Together: "I'm on a never-ending quest to save my girlfriend!"

Not that I making fun of Zelda or anything though.

As I played the demo, I immediately wanted the full version to complete a young man's hope to get through all sorts of challenges to get back home...and as made my way, I could obviously see why!

My first obstacle was a giant spider (available in demo) and which I was accustomed to. And progressing through, the same spider continued to hunt the boy down. I found myself screaming at the TV as I watched the giant spider moving its way towards my coming death.

Buzzing blades, rooms tipping over, water levels rising, bugs that latch to your head and control you. Each and every corner brings a new and interesting challenge to the player's way, crates, boxes and ladders soon becoming your best friend.

While there is no dialogue or music to review, there is a feature that is so beautiful, you would be idiotic not to become enticed and become one with the world that is LIMBO. Each movement, each action causes sound. The trudge of feet through water, the gloop of spider blood, cracking of eggs, gushing water, only to name a few.

The only one fault I found was some of the challenges that faced the player. Some of them were utterly brilliant and stumped me for quite some time, and after a while, I knew I wasn't going to get the "No Point In Dying" Achievement (awarding 10 Gamerscore points for completing the game with 5 deaths or less)

This, however, was my own fault  and I couldn't mark the game so harshly on my own foolishness not to open my eyes. LIMBO is a brilliant game and a good way to kill a few hours solving the puzzles that await you. So, behold, LIMBO and find your way home!

Out of 10, I gave LIMBO an 7.5/10

Review: Assassin's Creed 2

Bon giorno mi amichi!

In anticipation to my review of AC Brotherhood (And hardly stopping to play it over and over) today I thought I would review the game that has been on the top of my list for so long as my personal favourite: Assassin's Creed 2

The predecessor of this game (Assassin's Creed - Original release 2006) I thought had a brilliant storyline, a fair control system, beautiful music to match, great acting for the characters, yet its only fault, but a large one at that, was the way the game was set out. The roaming through to other cities was, yes, great, but it became rather dull and annoying over time and so I was not looking forward to the release of the sequel.

However, the promotional tools sucked me in and soon I couldn't wait to play the game, and my anticipation was well rewarded. The games control was upgraded and was much easier to use, the graphics were hauled out and improved, making the game much more susceptible to the look of Florence or Vienna at day, dusk or night yet still made it gorgeous. The voice acting in particular the protagonist Ezio, (played by Roger Craig Smith), Desmond Miles and Lucy Stillman (played by Nolan North and Kristen Bell) was perfect for the setting and their now better knowledge in the gaming universe.

While the game is brilliant in a lot of ways, there are some points to make about small errors. 

For one account, this includes "The Truth" Video search (And just to make sure, I will not reveal any information about the complete video) While some of the glitches can be easy to find, a fair few are quite difficult and, in all honesty, would not have found them unless I downloaded both the "Battle of Flori" and "Burning of the Vanities" DLC's. Some of the puzzles, I also noticed, were highly linked to historic events. Past the 10th video, I believe, some people will struggle, as I did. (I thank my history teacher for helping me pass year 12 History!)

One other small annoyance was the lack of changing voices. While AC 2 had many, many voices, over time, you can recognize who is who and how many times they appear in one district.

The game itself is brilliant. The DLC's are a MUST BUY and I loved the game and all the missions. Musical score, acting and map location was all improved and I sincerely offer any person reading this to go out and buy this game.

Out of 10, I gave Assassin's Creed Two a 9.5/10

Review: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2

G'day guys.

For Masashi Kishimoto, he longed to create an Amine that was as popular as Dragon Ball Z and to spread his belief that bonds with people should be most protected. And with his tale of Naruto Uzumaki, he is finally seeing this dream come true.

First point to address in this game is the level of the graphics. In previous Anime-to-Video Games, it has always been a large challenge to traverse 2-D objects into a 3-D state. And in Ninja Storm 2, they nail this quite well. The AI controls were great and the use of the "buyable" objects were interesting. I particularly liked the Ninja tools and the Info Cards. 
Another mention is the Multiplayer section of the game. The Info cards added a great customisation to each person. And of course, seeing as my nickname and Gamertag being Fatman, I was overly enjoyed by the customisation for my card to read; "The Chubby - FatmanXVIII" with a picture of a crying Sasuke with his eyes as the new Mongekyo Sharingan. Finding a match was quick and simple and an added feature being able to see who had the best connection with you before joining their game to battle out with your favourite characters, and anyone using Tenten was a fool to face the awesomeness of Killer Bee, yo!

This brings me to the unfortunate setbacks.

While I do not mind for either the English or Japanese version, I found it a little annoying that the game designers would go to the trouble to sync the Japanese voice acting but not the English. I am fluent (Or at least decent) at the language but its either play in Japanese or in an un-synced English.
Also, while I know the actors try hard and are brilliant in some places, some overlook into the game design might be necessary. For example, in the Naruto Vs Pain Arch (Or the opening video) Sakura is pleading for Naruto to come home. In the Japanese version, she screams for his arrival and the AI applies appropriately. The English version of this (played by the gorgeous Kate Higgins) was not quite suiiting, Sakura moaning Naruto while the AI screamed. This is understandable with the English voice as the English version Anime is not even halfway through the so far 186 episodes of Shippuden. One small annoyance is the map layout. In previous 360 Naruto games (Such as Naruto: The Broken Bond) the player had free-roam of the entire Konoha village. In this, it limits you to specific areas; this was a small disappointment but otherwise can be overlooked.



The game itself was great. As an man who grew up watching Naruto and Dragonball Z, I can appreciate Ban Dai and Dolby Digital making a game of this type of class. While the game is not the greatest in graphics, it is in still in great quality. I highly recommend any lover of a TPF to buy this wonderful addiction to my collection

Out of 10, I gave Ninja Storm 2 an 8.5/10

Review: Sonic 4 Episode 1 Demo

Hi there folks.

Before I begin to sum up my review of Ninja Storm 2, I downloaded the demo of the new Sonic game and, much to my disappointment, found the experience to be an utter letdown.

The first thing I noticed was the return of the classic arcade music of Sonic, yet made new through what I guessed to be a different variety of beats. As I played my way in the first level I also noticed the new targeting system. This, I found to be slightly more easier way to kill enemies high above me, but after a short time found it much too easy to defeat enemies with a simple tap of A. Using this, you may kill multiple enemies in a matter of seconds, instead of the classic way of actually using some skill to achieve the points.

The AI was also upgraded but much to my distaste. Apparently, Newton's law of physics does not apply. As you use the dash, unless you hold the the joystick in the direction you wish to go, the dash will last around three seconds.. I was also annoyed with the new jumping system. The AI can no longer jump to reach specific levels and in order to get to higher ground, you must backtrack slightly to reach the speed boost.

And Sonic himself was characterized improperly. When I first saw the new Sonic, to me he looked like Goku had suddenly gone Super Saiyan 3 and turned blue. I laughed at his looks but then became slightly annoyed with the game itself.

All previous Sonic games have lived up to the name it has created within the boundaries Sega has set. Each Sonic has had a large portion of time in my life and holds great memories of me and my grandfather. To me, Sonic 4 is just a giant middle finger to all its fans, the old gamers who grew up with the blue Hedgehog and spits on every single one of them. Sonic 3 was a great way to finish the franchise and this new attempt by Sega is nothing less than a way to exploit the fans of their hard earnt cash for a game that deserves to be left alone in our memories.

Out of 10, I gave Sonic 4 Episode One a 3/10

Review: Halo Combat Evolved

Hey guys

I have no idea how I felt inspired to review this, but suddenly today I just picked it up and started playing. So here, for a nearly 10 year old game, the review of Halo: Combat Evolved.

Firstly, one the things I was most impressed about this game, was the level of graphics. When I first played this game and my only experience with games being all the Sonic games, a weird Batman game and Amplified Beast, my mind was blown from was I was viewing.
The voice acting was sublime throughout the gameplay. Cortana (Played by the beautiful Jennifer Taylor) is particular beautiful within this game and the others in the series (which I will eventually review)

The multiplayer was great for its time and could be spent on for hours on end. The extra's in the disc (Including the Xbox Live video which I particularly enjoyed as a child) was a great in look to a long, fantastic journey with Microsoft's Xbox, one that is still going strong.

In the early days, I was impressed by nearly everything, and going over the game once more, I have found only a few faults.
Firstly, some of the background characters' voices were of not a great quality. Some even being indescribable (For example, in the first level as Master Chief climbs into the pod and the pilot tells the men that they are landing on "The Ring", I have never understood what he was saying. My first two guesses being "She's been hit!" or "Holy sh*t"
Secondly, I noticed that the enemies in the game, while some are particularly unpredictable, the Elites (especially the blue Elites) are not so tactical. It is always Shoot, Jump To Side, Melee, Repeat.

The game, however, is a brilliant and instant classic. The storyline was rich and unpredictable and as many games over the years such as Sonic, Mario Kart and so on, this shall be remembered for generations to come.


Out of 10, I gave Halo: Combat Evolved 9/10

Review: Bioshock 2

Hey there folks!

Out of sheer lack of sleep, I thought I'd review one of the games that I have placed onto my list of reviews. The great sequel, Bioshock 2.

For those who do not know, Bioshock was an instant classic when it was released with a rich storyline and Bioshock 2 followed that beautifully. From the first few minutes I was already caught in the underwater world as the Prototype Big Daddy (Subject Delta) and his ventures through the city not to save his own life, not only to save his little sister, but to save the one woman who could set him free from the shackles of the suit. 

Instantly I was impressed with the level of graphics within in the game. Not only could you see what I had mistaken a human body for a lump of rubble but the effects on the player's AI, such as water running over the screen, blood splatters, walking through seaweed and so on.

I was also impressed  with two of the main characters, both Elenor Lamb (Perfectly voiced by Sarah Bolge) and her mother Sofia (Voiced by the lovely Fenella Woolgar) and how they both attached emotions to their voices while their characters were rarely seen until the end. I also give much kudos to Alex The Great AKA Gil Alexander (Voiced by John Hilner) for his perfect performance, totally selling the ideal of crazy.

While I absolutely love the Campaign, there are only a few points that I wish to address. Unfortunately, while I was looking forward to it, I was highly disappointed by the multiplayer. While the customisation was a good idea, the ways of getting them was set a little too high. By today's standards, a multiplayer uses 840 hxp connection to get a player as quickly as possible to the best game with an open slot and a player may customise this search by choosing such things as connectivity, speech dialect and so on. Unfortunately, there were no options such as these and the first game I played was horrible. I continued my search for a decent game and unfortunately could not find one. A person may argue that because I live in a rural area, this may effect my online status, but seeing as I live only an hour away from my state capital, I'd like to disagree.

While the next game in the series looks, sounds and feels fantastic, I am not excited to see the release of Bioshock Infinite. But for now, I feel a great satisfaction to play against a Big Sister and have never died once. Bioshock 2 lives up to its glory and any FPS lover would certainly enjoy this game.

Out of 10, I gave Bioshock 2 an 8.5/10

Review: Halo Reach

'Morning folks.

  Halo Reach, the game that is meant to satisfy every Halo fanatic across the globe. Question is, has one of the greatest selling titles left its franchise on the highest note possible to achieve?

The game, itself, is brilliant. The promotional tools used greatly attracted both the fans of the Halo Universe and all lovers of an FPS (First Person Shooter)
While being a Special Task Group, it seems that they (Noble Team) are the best of the best, of all the Spartans. (Warning: SPOILER AHEAD) However, I find it a little odd that only one of them survive the assault of the Covenant and it is not your character (Which, I suspected to be John-117) 
The Campaign was fantastic and one of my favourite features of this game is the Customisation of your Multiplayer character. For those who do not know, Reach allows Customisation for your Multiplayer character and whatever changes you make to him/her, will be changed to your Campaign character. From the helmet to what happens when you die, my personal favourite being the confetti with children yelling "Yay!" when you die.


This, unfortunately, brings me to the bad points.

While I highly enjoyed the acting done by the Noble Team, there were some fantastic points while others were not too great. For example, the opening mission as Jorge (played brilliantly by Hakeem Kae Kazim) finds a young woman hiding behind the stairs. While the last mission, as Carter flies the Pelican, was not good at all. The Multiplayer, while great, has only one fault that I can see. A lot of the gamers, understandably, are children around the age of 11-14 (The youngest I've met so far being 7) and if I, getting a little annoyed at them camping behind corners with shotguns, let out a swear, my reps are instantly placed down. I don't care, I just find it annoying that if I even say "Heck" or "Bloody", the kids parents instantly place a complaint. Yes, one may argue that there is  an option to choose either a Quiet team or Rowdy team, but its either kids screaming in my ear or tweens telling me that I'm their bitch. Pick your poison.

One may choose to say that this is just the players, not the games fault, but this has put me off the multiplayer for a small time. Don't get me wrong, I love the game and I'm happy to see more versions of Infection.

I am glad to say that the final Halo chapter lived up to all its expectations. The small annoyances can not take away what such a brilliant game this is. I'm sad to see the series come to an end (for now...?) but this game will delight for some time.

Out of 10, I gave Halo Reach a 9/10

Review Topics

A small update on the situation.

As the list of games available to me slowly shinks, I offer a solution. If you are looking into a game but not quite sure if to buy it, or you just have a game in mind for me to review, send me a comment and I'll put it into my review list. 

Secondly, as I find the techknowlogy fasinating, I may also review the accesessories of the 360 and/or consols. This meaning, of course the new 360 Slim and the Kinect. This will also include new controllers, new T-Pads, headsets, charging kits and more!

Again, if you have any suggestions, feel free to let me know.

(This weeks list will continue on as planned)

Thanks!
Allan AKA FatmanXVIII

Review: Call of Duty Black Ops

G'day everyone.

Now to review probably one of the most refined games in the short history of gaming: Call of Duty Black Ops.

Firstly, I will make comment on one of the first observations as I played through the Campaign: The voice acting was better than ever. The introduction of Ice Cube (Acting as the character Bowman) and James Burns (Acting as the character Woods) were a terrific choice as they brought a depth of emotional conflict with what they do, the unnamed comradeship between soldiers at war and also an experience to the field (Ice Cube has been in a variety of labels, currently working on Gears of War 3) I also noticed the fantastic choice of Sam Worthington as the protagonist Alex Mason. The name of the character, however, is a small disappointment, as a couple of recent games have their protagonist to the same/similar name (Prototype and Red Faction Gorilla for example)

The in-game graphics have been taken to the next level and are extremely satisfying to see a player covered in sweat and their bodies heaving as they draw in air, a customisation we do not see often in games. The gameplay was highly enjoyable and, in some words, a complete Mind "F" to not give away the storyline. The return of Viktor Reznov, voiced by the great actor Gary Oldman (A particular favourite of mine) was a welcomed return and reassuring to hear him scream "URA!" as you charged into battle.

The multiplayer, as all its previous titles, was satisfying for my growing cyber blood lust, with a Disturbed album blaring as I fire at a camping twelve year old who, as Reznov, screams into my ear. 

This also brings up the good points and the unfortunate bad points of the game.

For some who do not know, Treyarch is hanging by a thread as their last few titles have been a complete failure profit wise, satisfying their customers and disappointing their loyal fans once again. Black Ops is meant to turn this around and in some parts, yes, it has. In others, it has not. Black Ops director David Anthony has already seen speculation from Cuba and critics for the in-game content. This time around, Black Ops (more often than not called BlOps) has broken records Modern Warfare 2 had made, making 650 million within 5 days of the release date. 
First the positives; the Customisation of character was in wide depth and I found fantastic, and the new killstreaks (especially the RC and attack dogs) was a brilliant touch. 
But this is also the bad point. It has taken years for Treyarch to realise that customisation of character is what most gamers would like. Also the theatre mode is nearly completely useless. Machinima have used a "Cameraman" for their videos and in such brings Live players together. Isn't this what Xbox Live is about? Meeting new people, making friends and killing time? Look at the first three games the original Xbox released; Halo, Blinx and Jet Set Radio Future. All three of these games have customisation within their character(s) and Machinima's have been made of these games without a theatre mode. 


I quite enjoyed the Campaign and the multiplayer is great with customisation. The faults of this game can be overlooked and while David Anthony hoped that this game would discourage camping, it only helped it more. There can be nothing said about the Zombie mode, as there is nothing more to say than: KILL THEM ALL!


Out of 10, I gave Call of Duty Black Ops an 8/10

Review: Fable 3

Hello

Out of sheer lack of sleep, I thought I would post another review of a recently released game. Fable 3

Again, I highly enjoyed the previous games and I was looking forward for the rest of my gaming life to hear John Cleese as my butler. 

The beginning of the gameplay was filled with a Black Comedic joke from Cleese talking about your Prince/Princess sleeping with an friend, only to turn out to be your dog. But from there the game turns a dark corner and makes you choose between two options which can make you pause and think (being the indecisive guy I am, I sat there with my game on pause for about 10 minutes)

The near all British star cast of the game was, as speculation claimed, creater Peter Molyneux's "pathetic attempt to win back fans" that he had lost with the release of Fable 2 (to be honest was a great game)

The cast, however, were perfectly adequate for the roles they took. Sir Walter Beck (voiced by Bernard Hill) was perfect for the role, giving the character a thunderous voice, a very sarcastic humor and great emotion to the more tense areas of the game.

The gameplay is pretty much the exact same as previous games and yet different with the new styles (My particular favourite is when fighting Balverines, you can stab them in the chest as they lunge at you)
Once again, a lot of negativity came toward the gameplay's way as word reached that manipulation of the Magic was coming, yet to mold the different styles, a gauntlet must be worn, which completely gets rid of the previous games' style of casting magic directly from the AI's palms. While this, I agree, is a bit of a bad idea, there is a logical reason for this. The Hero race is a dying breed and the gauntlets help the Prince/Princess bring forth the magic. 

A few faults did nearly ruin the game for me. (Warning: SPOILER AHEAD!) As you obtain the throne, you must amass a large amount of gold. 6.5 Mil to be precise. And if you choose to be a good Hero (As I did) you will find it extremely challenging to obtain the gold, and I don't think any player would want to spend hours playing the Lute to get about a mil, only to have it gone the next day, as I did. If you'd like to do this, you can use the Money glitch in the game, to which the money can be obtained easily. (I won't put it up here, as its pretty easy to find it somewhere else) If you really want to save Albion, you can always be an evil king. 
The other small things that are slightly annoying are: One, in order to get the black dye, you must download it. I, for one, was ticked! Two, if you play online with a friend, it is possible for them to take your key from the top of your money pile in your Sanctuary! Again, I was ticked, I blitzed my friend for about 10 minutes (For he had already unlocked his chest) and lastly, a small annoyance that Molyneux said that Fable 2 accounts could be transferred over to Fable 3, which turned out to be false, as you cannot see your father's portrait in the castle, there is no mention of your mother (who could have been of your choosing) nor what was happening to the other characters (Such as Hammer for one) and finally, if an online friend has downloaded anything from Xbox Live and you have not, you cannot join their world until you do, which caused a lot of frustration.



Overall, the gameplay was great and the actors (especially Shaun of the Dead's Simon Pegg as Ben Finn) were enjoyable and the ending was a fair surprise. I look forward to Fable 4, announced a day after Fable 3's release.


Out of 10, I gave Fable 3 an 8.5/10

The first review: The Force Unleashed 2

G'day folks!

Since this is my first review and post, I thought I would start off with a newly released game, to which has me buzzing. Star Wars The Force Unleashed 2.

As a great fan of the previous game, I was looking forward to the release of the sequel and lucky enough, I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. The opening credits, simular to its predecessor, was welcoming as I familiarised myself with the controls. The great acting of Sam Witwer (voice and looks of Darth Vader's Secret Apprentice, Starkiller) enforced even more by his growing vocal abilities, adding both depth and emotion to the character.

The controls were a little more flidly than they were in the previous game, yet with the new challenges to overcome, makes it hardly noticible as you slash your way through waves of enemies. My particular favourite feature was the new customisation of the lightsabres, and I was finally enthralled to have a double purple sabre, thrashing around at everyone. I also loved the theatre mode in the previous game and was glad to see its return, as I could rewatch the extent of the cinematic. The graphics in game were astounding and surprising for Lucasarts, who usually save their cash for sound effects and the actors.

Two things that did become frustrating were both the Fury mode and some of the enemies you face. When you first hear of Fury Mode, you would generally expect it to be aggressive and out of control. I did enjoy the perks of power it gave me, but a flourishing of sabres and crackling lighting did not seem as furious as I had expected. (Warning: SPOILER AHEAD!) At the end of the campaign, Starkiller becomes fueled by anger and turns on the Fury Mode automatically, this scene was a little dissapointing but overall saved by once again, the fantastic acting of Sam Witwer. One enemy in particular, the Spider Droid, I found tough to deal with until I unlocked the Force Repulse. But in a later level (Which will go on nameless) you are forced to battle a large enemy with the Spider Droids around you. I found my Force abilities drained and pretty much smashing the X button and occaisonally adding in the lighting sweep.

But, even with it's small flaws, I found both the Challenges and campaign to rival such great games that I will review in later days. 


Out of 10, I gave The Force Unleashed 2 an 9/10