MEMBER PROFILE FOR Young_Fledgling
Average Overall Score Given: 7.73171 / 10
Total Forum Posts: 2365
Reviews
AMF Bowling 2004
Overall: There are just so many things that could have been done to this game to make it great, or at least good. They should have upped the detail on the player models. They should have had some kind of career mode, where you could earn points or maybe your character would get better as you progress. They should have had other people in the bowling alley bowling on different lane?s, instead of just an empty alley and you on two lanes. This way the game wouldn?t seem so stale when you?re playing. They should have had an entire song playing in the background, instead of cheesy music playing each time you go up to bowl. One thing that really bugs me is that you have to press a button to see the scoreboard. It should show you the scoreboard after every throw, but instead it won?t show it to you till the end of the match, or if you press a button and wait for it. If it would have shown the scoreboard after every throw, you would know where you stand, and it would have made the game feel more like a sports game. Xbox live support would have been nice, although I bet no one would play it online.The people making all these bowling games need to realize that people don?t go bowling in real life just to go bowling; they go for the atmosphere as well.
Gameplay: I've played many bowling video games, some are fun, some are not. This one can be fun if you have another person in the room to crack jokes about the cheesy music, or how cheesy the players look. If not, this turns out to be rather boring.
You can basically do either a single game, or a tournament. Tournament mode isn't that fun though. You don't get anything from winning a tournament, and even when you are in a tournament, it still feels like you're playing with yourself.
Single games can be fun if you have another person(s) in the room to play with. Another person who is willing to play this game, and is willing to take the time to figure out how to play the game.
If you've bowled before, and had an instructor show you how to bowl, then figuring out how to do it in this game isn't too hard. You line you're player up on the dots, and you line up where you want the ball to go over the arrows. Then there?s a little meter in the bottom right. You press the button to activate the meter, then stop it around the top for power, then the meter drops down for accuracy. You want to stop it on the bottom in the center for this. Then the meter starts again where you get to choose how much spin you want to put on the ball. This sounds complicated, and it is somewhat. I couldn't figure it out on my own till I read the instruction manual, and I haven't seen anyone else that was able to figure out how the meter worked on their own. You can also look at how wet and dry the lane is.
The game and instructions never tell you how much power, or spin you should put on the ball, or where you should line up your player. So it usually takes about 2 games before you figure out where to set everything and the timing of the meter.
Graphics: The menu system looks plain, but it doesn't bother me. A menu is a menu.
There?s only a limited selection of bowling alleys, and they all look nearly identical except for the backdrop above the pins. The alleys, lanes, and pins are detailed and look nice. However, the player models and animations aren?t that great. The player models should have been a lot more detailed. Why? Because the Xbox could have easily supported 2-4 highly detailed player models. The only other thing rendering on the screen are the lanes, and two sets of pins. The players stand in awkward position, the animations are somewhat jerky, and the lower detail in the players makes everything else look not as good.
When you actually bowl, it shows the ball rolling down the lane and then shows the ball hitting the pins. The lane is detailed. It shines with oil like in a real bowling alley. The pins are detailed too. The physics on the pins act like real pins in a real bowling alley.
Audio: They did the same thing with the sound that they did with the graphics. Half of it is great, and the other half is horrible, which in turn brings down the overall quality. When the ball?s rolling down the lane and hitting the pins, the sound is excellent. Sound?s just like bowling all by yourself in a bowling alley.
However, each time someone steps up to bowl, there is some cheesy music that gets played. Let me describe this music to you. If any of you were in elementary or middle school anytime in the 90?s then you?ll know what kind of music I?m talking about. Remember those puberty, aids, and the just say no videos? Remember the music? The same songs get played each time you go up to bowl, except for the cheesy rap songs.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
American Chopper
Overall: Well I rented the game because I like the show. Well after playing it now for a while, I must say I like it. It is a blast to play with challenging levels that keep you hoping. The graphics are not in par with other games. They are a little choppy and not smooth. The people models are rough but easily identifiable.
Sound is lacking in my opinion but it isn't horrible. The dialogue could have been better handled. Engine sounds and ambient sounds are nothling like the real thing.
Overall the game is still fun to play even though it seems to be push out to sell.
Gameplay: Easy to play in terms of controls but still challenging. Just not a whole lot of depth to the game at all.
Graphics: Average Graphics not really showing the true power of the xbox. Seems like a pretty rushed game in terms of graphics.
Audio: Lacking in voice overs and Engines and ambient sound could use an overhaul.. these bikes are supposed to be powerful... they sound weak.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
America's Army: Rise of a Soldier
Overall: I gave this a 4 because I think it passes for really realistic but this game doesn't have enough in it for weapons and missions for each class but there is alot here but not as much as I want. I am however very demanding when it comes to dropping $50 on a game. This game does however rate alot more realistic than alot of the other army games except for Socom 3 maybe but even this game has some things in it that all other games could use.Gameplay: This game is sort of like an RPG in that you level your guy up by earning experience for doing good in missions and in training and you get your rank up so you can become different classes. You also get skill points in which you can use to add to around 8 skills. Now the skills are actually unique to this game since there isn't strength or nothing like that it's all military related so expect to see leadership, honor, condition, etc. Now in this game you actually have to train for every class you want to be. That is after you qualify for them. You start out as rifleman and work your way up to Grenadier than auto rifleman than sniper and so on. You have to go through at least 1 training mission for each class and there are a total of 7 classes and 5 missions for each class but note that some classes the missions are training. There isn't no 20 weapons or nothing like that. There are not alot of weapons but hey the weapons they give you are good. They all really need to use their sighting system to aim accurately since no crosshairs in this game bud. I found that all the guns I have fired are easy to aim. Even the M203 is easy to aim but it takes a little while to get used to. The grenades I find a little harder to get used to but they do work good once you're used to them. To sum up the gameplay I have to say that I give it an awesome rating but it could be better by adding more modifications and weapons but hey still a good set to pick from.
Graphics: This game looks realistic and the explosions look really real. The sights on the weapons are great to aim since they look realistic and work like real life. The one thing I do not like about the graphics is the mouth of the people who talk doesn't move. The buildings and tree and vehicles all look highly detailed. I have yet to find any flaws besides the talking in the graphics.
Audio: Now the sounds I notice are awesome since when you are fighting you here comments about what is going on and even better the guns actually sound realistic in my opinion. Now what I think is neat is how when you crawl around for sniper training you can hear the guys talk to themselves and it's actually realistic because who doesn't talk to themselves when they are trying to find someone who you know is trying to sneak around? Overall I didn't noticed any music because this game pulls you in.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Alter Echo
Overall: Probably a weekend rental. It didn't take long for me to clear this game, and for those of you who enjoy having a quick pick-up game of kill everything, a steal for eight to ten dollars.Gameplay: Here's where the game does shine at times. The ability to instantly morph into one of three forms allows for a lot of cool customization of battle combos. For instance, juggling your enemy into the air in sword form, then morphing into Gun form with the Seeker bullets and rapidly firing is kind of neat. Thankfully, enemies adapt to your patterns, so you dont get bored using the same moves over and over again. The combat system alone is what, for me, brings this game to its shiniest peak.
The Sync nodes and time dilation, however, are where this game falls flat on its face. An annoying minigame wherein you have to time d-pad presses in order to connect the dots, essentially, it serves only to frustrate the player and distract them from what could have been a really good spot for a mini boss or something of the like.
Graphics: The game presents you with a nice sci-fi feeling from the get go, from Nevin's cool looking Echoplast suit to the unique enemies that are thrown at you. This feeling of graphical awe lasts about ten minutes, which is my personal recommended game time for one sitting. After more than that, you begin to notice the collision errors (read; in Stealth form, Nevin's head can go through walls), the lack of any real variety in the drones, and the down-right plainness of the backgrounds. The environments, while incorporating cool form-specific elements, are still lackluster half-way through the game.
Audio: I have come to expect better music and sound effects from this console. While I'm not entirely aware of how old this game is, I can say with confidence that there are plenty of games with better sound quality and voice acting (though, this surely wasn't any 'Don't open that door!')
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
All-Star Baseball 2005
Overall: This is a great game for HardCore Fans. Casual gamers will probably tell you that MVP is the best or ESPN, but if you want a real challenge at the plate you better avoid those games and get this one. I would score this over all an 8.8 or 8.9 but since you can't use fractions I'll have to enter on 9 on this review. PS. The only big glitch I have encountered in this game is occasionaley the cpu lets a ball get away when fielding and then doesn't attempt to pick it up allowing you to score all or any of your baserunners. This happens sometimes when the computer makes an error. Hopefully one year Acclaim will get a glitchless game, but I'll still probably be playing this game regardless.
Gameplay: I have to say this is where this game stands out. It's all about the dynamics of pitching and hitting which I find realistic about ASB. Baseball is a pitcher's game and this game recognizes that. The pitch speed on the harder difficulties is about the right speed which it should be. You will get burned on hard thrown fastballs if you are not guessing the right pitch. That's the way it should be. You have to be guessing allot to get the pitch you want otherwise you'll get struck out. It's not like ESPN or MVP where you can pretty much wait on any pitch and then swing away.
Also as far as strike outs and pitch counts, I think this game is closest to the real thing. When I play this game I can get around 12 ks with the best pitchers whereas when I play ESPN or MVP I can pitch 7 innings with Pedro and wind up with 0 ks. That's ridiculous. Also I found in ESPN I can get through most games throwing under 65 pitches after 6 or 7. This game usually you have to throw around 80 or more.
So far this is the only game that makes you feel dominant when you have a great pitcher on the mound. In the other games I routinely get pummled even when pitching with the top studs.
*note there are slowed down versions of pitch speed in ASB for the timid. But I liked this game a whole lot better in 2003 when there was only one Pitch speed, and that was EXTRA ****ing FAST
Graphics: Well Graphics are the one area that this game is overshadowd by the competition. They are really nice by their own standards but they are not quite on par with the rest. There is allot of improvment this year over last year's game but the players still seem a little robotic in their movement. The sky changes from day to night during afternoon games and the Stadiums look very realistic, and there are a host of new animations like when the bat flies out of your hand, etc.. Overall everything is allot smoother than the previous version . There are many new camera angles for homeruns and foul balls, etc. There is also the fielder cam and the broadcast camera during pitching. Both of these are great features and can be turned off if necessary. However this game does look a little antiquated when you play the other baseball games.
Audio: Tom Brenaman and Steve Lyons are back for another season of indepth commentary. I like these guys and find them pretty entertianing. Although I do prefer ESPN's commentary by John Miller but I can live with what ASB has. Stadium sounds are all great as usual.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
All-Star Baseball 2003
Overall: This game won't appeal to some people, particularly those people who don't have a lot of free time, want more customization, or are easily annoyed by some of ASB's minor gameplay problems. However, despite those problems the game IS quite fun. Plus, with all the different modes, it's a game that will hook you in if you let it. Gameplay: The biggest problem that people have with ASB games are the fact that they are HR happy. This means that you could take pretty much any player and smack 40-50 HRs with them. I'm happy to announce that is no longer true in ASB2K3. Through 6 games in my Expansion Franchise mode (as the New Jersey Admirals), I have hit only 2 HRs (Russel Branyan has 1 and Robin Ventura has 1) on All-Star difficulty (the highest difficulty level). The pitcherbatter interface is fine, and the cursors aren't as annoying as you might think. Pitchers do have a lot more control with the cursor, but they can get wild as they tire. The hits produced by the game are also very realistic. I've gotten plenty of ground ball hits and there aren't so many bloop singles like in HH. So why a 7 you ask? Well, it's because ASB still has its share of gameplay problems. The main problem I have with ASB is the fielding aspect. If a ball is hit on the ground, it moves so fast that you practically have no time to react with your infielders. The game has the CPU assist you a little, giving your fielder the initial direction that he needs to go to get to the ball, but this takes away from the feeling of you playing. Sometimes, the play happens so fast that the CPU does most of the work, leaving you with the simple job of tossing the ball to the correct base. Also, as I mentioned in the graphics section, the outfield seems too small. Often times you'll smack a ball straight into the gap that looks like it'll be a double at least, and the CPU outfielder will get on his magical horse and track it down easily. The baserunning in the game also has problems simply because sometimes the baserunners won't react to your instructions. Lord knows this has cost me at least 10 runs in my season and was often the difference between me winning and losing. Still, despite these faults, this years version of ASB is a big step up from last years. It's actually playable and enjoyable.
Graphics: The ASB baseball series has always had good graphics, even back on the N64. This year, Acclaim really outdid themselves. Thanks to the 3-D Cyberscan technology, Acclaim has the best, most realistic looking faces. While the face doesn't always match the body perfectly, you can easily tell who's who just by looks alone. The animations for the players are astounding. The players move with slick, super realistic motion and the transitions between animations are very well done. The stadiums are all very well done as well, although I can't help but feel that the outfield is too small. I don't know if it's because the players move too fast or throw too fast or the fact that the outfield is just plain small, but it is noticeable. If it weren't for this, I'd give the graphics a 10.
Audio: What can I say... the sound in ASB is fantastic. I know a 10 might be surprising, but ASB's sound department deserves it. The menu music isn't the greatest (in fact, it sounds A LOT like the NBC Olympic music), but it doesn't make you grind your teeth. The in-game sound is where ASB gets a 10. The crack of the bat is very distinct and you'll know right away whether you hit the ball on the sweet spot or not. Also, when a bat breaks you can tell INSTANTLY by the sound. The commentary is great as well. Tom Brennaman does a nice job as the play-by-play man and Steve Lyons is excellent as the color commentator. He provides so much information for you that you'd think he's actually there. Bob Brenly doesn't really say much. He actually just comments on the stadium or players at the start of the game, and then doesn't say much afterwards. I just love the detail that Acclaim put into the sound. One of the best details I noticed is that if the home team is winning and it's the bottom of the 9th, 2 outs, and the pitcher on the mound has 2 strikes on the batter, the fans start cheering loudly for the strikeout to end the game. How cool is that? Living in NJ and watching a lot of Yankee baseball on MSG (the cable network), I've seen the crowd do this numerous times especially when Mariano Rivera is trying for the save. It's stuff like this that justifies why I gave ASB a 10 in this department.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction
Overall: Rent or Buy If your a die-hard Alien/Predator fan, buy it. If you haven't seen the movies or read any books, rent it.
Gameplay: This is where the all the action happens! The gameplay is great. With a couple of flaws like marines always running from battle and stuff like that. But I always loved the queen. She ran the show. In the game, you control her. Lay your eggs. Hatch them. Breed. Pure joy. On the Predator's side, you can turn invisible and rip off people's heads. Last and least: The (boring old stinking) marines. They are good, but there is always the one group that doesn't understand anything. Go here. No, here. Right there. NO! Can't you guys do anything without screwing up?!?!?! That happens. The gameplay was great. The difficulty can be changed. So if it's easy you can change to medium if you beat that you can change to hard. The gameplay was absolutely gorgeous. Besides the marines of course.
Graphics: The graphics weren't that bad. The background was real nice. The aliens color and skin were great. The Predators were awesome. The marines lacked a little bit. They were real bland. They weren't horrible, but marines messed up the graphics.
Audio: I love it! The sound in this game came straight out of the movies. The predators click and they roar when they rip off heads off prey. The aliens screech and scream. The marine's motion detectors and their guns firing all sound the same as the movies. The music. I can't really hear the music. If I do I don't really think much of it. But great sound.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Aeon Flux
Overall: an amazingly well lograted game, with only one problem, the control, it is a little confusing and unprecisly but this game realy rocks, it is like a mixture between, tomb raider, perfect dark and splinter cell, definitly a game thet should be in your xbox or ps2 game collection, of course the best adaptation is for the xbox it is an amazing adaptation on the movie based on the series by peter chung, if you had never seen this, it may be a little excentric, but really it has an amazing interfas an it stays loyal to the series.Gameplay: this is the biggest problem, an amazing story and levels but a poor control. Really holds back the game... could have been really amazing.
Graphics: very good graphics, sometimes it looks like a new generation game, but sometimes they are a little ugly.
Audio: amazing music and voices, but some times they talk like politicians, as in they are annoying. haha.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
187: Ride or Die
Overall: Ride or Die is a game that should have focused less on exuding street cred and more on gameplay. Larger, more varied race courses and greater differentiation between the weapons would have gone a long way towards making this game more enjoyable. Midway Arcade Treasures 3 comes out in September and includes a full version of San Francisco Rush 2049. Twenty minutes with that classic game is all it takes to realize that the concept behind 187 has been done better many times over. Don't be blinded by the bling, 187's poor track design and loose controls will at best provide a weekend's worth of entertainment. Gameplay: Both driving and shooting feel loose and unresponsive, the track design doesn't help. Very boring to play.
Graphics: Everything in 187 is shiny or glowing. The game glistens like a freshly waxed, chromed-out escalade.
Audio: A good soundtrack, a terrible script, decent sound effects, repetitive blurbs of profanity make this both ad passable and an awful game in terms of audio.
Overall Score: 5.0 / 10
Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes The Neighborhood
Overall: Well, not really a lot for me to say. If you like death match wrestling, then you might like this. If you don't like death match wrestling but might be interested in it, rent it. If not, then don't buy thisGameplay: The CAW is way better than the first game's CAW, but this one is kind of generic. Even though there are about 20 independent wrestlers littered throughout the game, you can't really make any good one. The best CAW I could make was the Wifebeater from CZW, but he's not really that hard to make.The actual game-play is repetitive but fun. There are a large variety of weapons to use in your matches. The new grappling system is good and also includes submission moves. The Enviro-Mental system is a good idea, but there isn't a lot of things to do with it. The A.I. is not the best. The opponents will either just stand there and block (which gets annoying quick), or counter your grapples a lot, which makes it seem unfair. The finishers are back and they are kind of disappointing. I mean, they are good, but the wrestlers who do them in the game don't use them in real life.
Graphics: The graphics are a much better than the last game's, but that doesn't mean that they are good. The character models are very "meh". The blood on the characters doesn't look good either. It looks like someone just threw some paint onto them and it just dried. The girls all have big boobies, so people with sick minds will enjoy that. The venues are actually pretty good looking. From the fast-food place to the construction site, the venues are probably have the best graphics. Attendants to matches don't look good at all; they look very 2-D.
Audio: Beginning at the soundtrack, I think it is very good. From either kicking someone's !&%$@#* to Sick Of It All or chopping up someone with a weed whacker with Channel 3 playing, it's an absolutely huge soundtrack. Unfortunately, it will skip during play and the menu music (Kjell Vistad) is very irritating. The weapon shots and punches sound very generic. The voice work is good. Only 2 people couldn't provide work for the voices, but they still sounded good anyway.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
New Legends
Overall: Avoid purchasing this game, instead it relegate to a weekend rental. The general sloppiness of the game has me questioning Microsoft's Standards. I was hoping for more excellent Titles after I purchased Halo. Oddworld. and Doa 3, instead a mound of crap has flooded the X-box. Next time be more skeptical of the term ''Only on X-Box''. New legends could have been another Halo, if the developer didn't execute such a shoddy and undermined game. In addition to the developer, it is a shock that THQ would release such garbage in the wake of their hit title Red Faction for Playstation 2. To release such an inferior product is truly unacceptable.Gameplay: I give props to the fighting system, yet with the horrible camera angles and horrible fighting animations the system is never truly utilized. Simply running around and killing things is fun but it would be be better on a non-glitchy fully polished game like Baldur's Gate. To top that off it's not even a multiplayer game
Graphics: Am I even playing a game on the X-box? The graphics have a general look of the first generation N64 launch titles. The textures and colors are as bland and plain as an unfurnished apartment, and the trees and buildings look like they were drawn by a five year old. The framerate stutters consistently in addition to some horrid slowdown that hurts gameplay and the overall fun factor. There is not even one graphical piece that impressed me, and this game is probably using about 5% of the X-boxes graphical capability. Clearly an eye sore
Audio: The sound gets extremely repetitive and the sounds of your own footsteps will annoy the living hell out of you. The voice acting is average and the general presentation remind of another crappy beat em up Fighting Force 2.
Overall Score: 4.0 / 10
Commandos 2: Men of Courage
Overall: Oh my god, what were the developers smokin' when they made this up? Commandos is a strategy/ combat game originally launched for the Pc, well ladies and gentlemen, that was not just because the pc just looks nice if you get my point here....... Rent or buy? Neither, period! Go pick up the Pc version, it's a lot better then this piece of crap.
Gameplay: Okay, this is what REALLY destroys this game. Commandos is a very complex and involving game. The Pc version used a keyboard configuration where just about every key was used for a specific action. Well.....how do you convert that to a 8 button controller? Answer: you shouldn't!
The whole thing is to take a team of specialized soldiers, each with it's own unique abilities, and complete a bunch of missions which will demand some extreme brains and strategies in order to complete them.
Sometimes you have to press 10 buttons before you finally have the thing you want, but by the time you have it, you have already been killed by the enemy 10 minutes ago.
Besides that, the characters sometimes seem to ignore orders (?????) and enemies seem to blend into the background way too easy, but they ALWAYS see YOU! And it is very easy to loose track of your men, sometimes they stick into lampposts, crates, buildings, and when one of your teammembers is being shot at, the controller seems to refuse to let you switch to that man end run away, so if one of your men get's shot at, he's dead for sure.
There is a tutorial in the game which takes you about 3 hours to complete if you do everything right from beginning to end without failing, but the button configuration is just so unbelievably illogical and fiddly you'll be returning this game the minute you got it should you be foolish enough to buy it in the first place.
Graphics: Okay, just about the only category this game impresses in. The graphics are really top of the bill and although some environments look very dark and some others tend to make enemy soldiers completely disappear, they look absolutely breathtaking. Even from so far away, the characters look very detailed and so do even the smallest things like tiny packs of cigarettes and footprints.
Audio: The background music is really good, but some of the sfx sounds sound like complete rubbish, and even others sound like they were used for the wrong thing, footsteps sound like you're walking through water, guns sounding like peashooters, my god!
Suggestions: keep it on pc
Overall Score: 4.0 / 10
James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing
Overall: Overall Everything or Nothing is no slouch in the Bond series. It is fun to play and will be a great title for any Bond fan. They put the money into getting professional casting from authentic Bond actors and it pays with the cutscenes. This is a fun and immersive Bond game which I personally found to have some control and camera issues with. I still would highly recommend this game for any avid action fan or Bond fan.Gameplay: This is a shame because the game provides such a thrilling Bond experience. Some of the most enjoyable levels are the vehicle levels and these are just a blast to play because there fast and get your adrenaline pumping. The regular Bond levels left something to be desired. Many of them for me simply became frustrating to play in a stealthy manner. Most of the time id just run aim shoot because killing guys that way was much easier. The aiming is too good however, the controls and camera caused some major havoc on me. Locking on sometimes would not work and id be left with a much closer battle than i wanted. Movement wasn't as smooth after playing games like splinter cell Bond seemed really awkward to play with in a stealth like manner. Bond moments were fun to try but most of the time I just couldn't be bothered to try to discover them. In the end i still have lots of fun with the vehicle chases but to complete the rest to grab gold or platinum will be a test of my will. I have not yet played multi player however with the controls taking a while to get used to this could be a frustrating endeavour.
Graphics: The graphics are some of the best Bond has seen for a long time. The cinematics are very impressive with lifelike personalities and CG. They put the time and money into getting the character models right and it makes the experience that much better. The explosions are great looking and the vehicles are sharp. The only real drawbacks are the gun models are not that great and some of the terrain and building modeling can be quite blocky.
Audio: Bond i must say has never sounded so good. The voices are true to the actors and are done remarkably well. You have Bond's witty puns and this turns the game into feeling like the movies. In game sounds are well done, rockets flying, voices are loud and gun shots sound very authentic. This is some great audio and even the theme song is produced at a high quality with professional singers.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction
Overall: Ultimate Destruction is a work of art. Destruction at it's finest. It should easily keep you occupied if you try to do everything, like get all moves, beat all challenges, get all skins, etc. Even better if you are a fan of the Hulk. But if you are not, then rent it first. Rent or Buy, get this game today!Gameplay: If you have played Spider Man 2, you know the drill. Ultimate Destruction Puts you in the shoes of the Hulk, and drops you in a large area to explore at your own pace. But the similarities stop there. In Hulk, the name of the game is breaking things, and you get a LOT of ways to do it. Some are obvious, like punching it into scrap, but later on you can earn many interesting and powerful ways to deal with foes and the environment. The best of which consist of weaponizing vehicles and debris. An example of this is crushing a car, breaking it over your knee, and slamming the halves on your hands to make steel boxing gloves.
You also get many ways to move across the playing field, like running, or the Hulks trademark jumps, which involve jumping between pre-designated markers. Need to get somewhere? Why not jump there? Need to get on a building? Why not run up the wall?
Then there are missions. They are set up as way points on the map, allowing you to start them any time you wish. Some are essential, and some, called challenges, are completely optional. The missions are very fun, usually versing you against the U.S. Army.
Graphics: Not the best in the world, but still good. In a game named Hulk, I am not looking for RE4/Ninja Gaiden graphics. Besides, you will barely notice it while beating your enemies to mush. The only time the graphics got to me was during a particular fight that involved a HUBE explosion. It was a freaking SPHERE! I mean come on. I was expecting lots of fire there. Other than that, explosions were good, and actually DID have lots of fire involved.
Audio: All the sound effects rock, like blowing things up, the Hulk after various actions, the scraping against the ground after hitting it at an angle, it's all good. The voice acting is also good, from cutscenes to the soldiers talking to each other to people screaming, it all sounds realistic. The music, however, is not too breath taking at all, unlike many games.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
Overall: The best game I have played in a long time. Also easily the best game on the Xbox as of now. Excellent game. EXCELLENT. Thank you Ubisoft. Rent or buy?
Are you stupid? Why are you even reading this review? You should already be out purchasing the game. If you haven't yet, then do yourself a favor and drive out and pick this game up, you wont regret it.
Gameplay: The meat of the game. In Splinter Cell you're main objectives are to complete given objectives while staying as stealthy as possible. That means, not being seen. Though you can go through and knife everyone you see. But thats kind of tacky in my point of view. Anyways, a new addition to the game is the knife. Which really is a great tool. It also brings to life the whole, stealthy quick assassin kill. Unlike the first two games this time you can just walk up to a guard and slash his throat quietly. Or just jab him with your palm. Which ever way is good. This definitely beats walking up to someone and elbowing them a few time while getting shot at to take them out. Another great addition is the fact that the game is now more open ended and takes away the whole trial and error system you got in the first two games. You now have multiple pathways toward your objectives that really help you become more stealthy and avoid enemies at all cost. Which by the way the guards are a lot smarter this time around due to the great AI in the game. Guards sometimes will light a flare to check around if they hear noises. They hide behind cover while in a fire fight. And even lay on the stomachs when the fights last awhile. The game lasts about 9-10 hrs and spreads out through 10 great levels. You have the option of difficulty at the beginning ranging from normal, hard, to expert. The game is probably the easiest of the series but that doesnt make it a bad thing. Gameplay also gets a perfect 5.
Graphics: These are literally some of the best graphics I have ever seen. There is so much detail in the environments and the characters that it sometimes looks too good. The lighting and shadow effects really bring this game to life. Sometimes it's even worth walking directly under a light just to see the sheer beauty of the graphics. Only to get shot afterward. Anyways, graphics are top notch and push the Xbox to it's limits. An easy 5.
Audio: First I just have to say that the music in this game is freaking awesome. Some of the best I have ever heard. Amon Tomin (sp?) did an excellent job. Furthermore the voice acting is superb, from all of the main characters to even the guards. They all sound believable and lifelike. Now for the sound, which is also really good. The nice clickedy clack of Sam's equipment as he uses them, the loud bursts of fire from the weapons, the great friction sound of Sam as he moves through vents. It's all just excellent.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
Outlaw Golf 2
Overall: If you're looking for a game that will make you want to throw your controller through the TV, then I highly suggest this game. But, in all seriousness, if you like golf games and a lot of them seem too easy to you, then this just might be worth a look. I'd say rent it, but it's so cheap now for practically a few dollars more you could just buy as opposed to renting it. Gameplay: Why they chose to make this game so difficult, I'll never know. It's to the point of being so ridiculously hard that it fails to be fun and only causes frustration. I am 0% through the tour. It's that difficult. Now, you're probably thinking I just suck at golf game?s and phail at life, well, you're half right. Not to sound conceited, but I kicked Links 2004's ass. I didn't have to retry a single challenge. But, this game of pure frustration, I can't even beat the first challenge.
Even when I just screwed around in Exhibition mode and set the difficulty to easiest I couldn't win. When I first started the round I see that the computer is aiming nowhere near the ball. "Thank God, I might actually have a chance." I think. Oh how wrong I was... I see that the computer aims for the wall and that makes the ball bounce and land right next to the hole. Doing this the normal way would have required 3 shots. And once again, I see the computer has kicked my ass. Now, I ask you, how am I supposed to have a chance against that? I tried to replicate their shot, but since I didn't know how hard they hit the ball or where they aimed it exactly, mine goes flying into the water.
Now the one almost redeeming factor is the mini-games. Which aren't ridiculously difficult and pretty fun. There's the Beat Your Caddy mini-game which just requires you to hit A as the boxing glove nears your caddy's face and my personal favorite, the Golf Cart Challenges. Where you drive through rings and go off ramps and fly through hoops. You can even run over people, which is always a plus in my book.
Graphics: The graphics in this game are kind of a mixed bag. The character's each look very different and they're pretty well animated, a lot of the girl's look and move pretty realistically. But, a lot of the courses are just plain thrown-together looking. Some actually look pretty cool and the graphics are better on some courses than others for some reason, but the spectators don't even look human. It looks like they put about 1 minute of time into creating them.
Audio: The voice acting is actually very good in this game. Nothing sounds over-done, it's just right. Even the background noises like birds and the sound of the waterfall sound great. But the music...oh my dear God, the music. I haven't heard 99.9% of this music before in my life and it's some of the worst I've ever heard. There isn't even a real category of music that they used, they just threw in the worst music from any genre imaginable. Thank God the Xbox has custom soundtracks.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Spider-Man 2
Overall: I really enjoyed this game. It is a great distraction from some of the ?heaver? titles this season (Riddic, Manhunt, etc), and provides excellent bang-for-your-buck potential. You can play this game for well over 30 hours, or you can beat it in 10. It?s your choice. Too many games don?t let you make that game. Spider-Man 2 tried to give you the freedom to just play the game, and do what you want, and it succeeded at that. Sure the graphics could have been better, but the gameplay was so good that you didn?t notice that there was some fuzziness around some of the textures here and there. This game is like your first college girlfriend, it may not what you want to spend the rest of your semester with, but it?s great fun for a couple of months. Gameplay: The gameplay in this title is outstanding. Those of you who played the first title will remember the fun that slinging around New York was. Well take that fun, multiply it by 10, and you have Spider-Man 2. One of the most brilliant things that this game accomplished was that the whole city of New York is open, with no load times, and no hiccups between areas. You can literally sling from one end of the Big Apple to the other. It?s truly fun. I spent several hours simply slinging all over the place. Not really accomplishing anything, but that?s the fun of this game. You?re not forced into completing any missions, or doing anything. Obviously you should if you want to progress in the game, but you don?t have to?and that freedom is awesome. You can?t do anything per se, since you cannot be a villain, but you can do just about everything else.
You are able to go on missions by speaking to people, or activating hovering markers throughout the city. Occasionally, you?ll be swooping through Manhattan and you?ll hear people below you screaming ?help? or some other cry for assistance, and you?ll know that there?s something going on below you. Also Peter Parker will sometimes interrupt you with a phrase like ?Oh great! I?m going to be late for class!? and you?ll be encouraged to go somewhere and meet someone, which also advances the plot.
The combat is pretty good. It?s limiting, at first, but as you continue to purchase upgrades for Spider-man you are able to do a lot more. It is a fairly solid aspect to this game, as any action game should have. Where the game bogs down is during the boss battles. They are tedious at best, and can be so ridiculously irritating that it makes you pull tufts of hair out of your head. But this does not ruin the game, thankfully. I don?t know when it became acceptable to make bosses impossibly difficult, or ultra easy to beat but with an annoying manner of defeat, but it seems that we?ve had a slew of games in recent memory that have adopted this strategy (Ninja Gaiden, Devil May Cry, Metal Slug 3, etc). Thankfully, the major portions of this game are consumed with web-slinging from building to building, completing various challenges and tasks?being that superhero that you were always meant to be.
Graphics: Overall the graphics are okay. They don?t look as good as Ninja Gaiden, and don?t look as bad as Drake and the 99 Dragons. But I?m not sure they could have provided Ninja Gaiden quality graphics and still allow for the whole of New York to be rendered simultaneously. The full motion video looks a bit awkward, especially when the camera is zoomed in on any of the characters, and the models move like they?re doing ?The Robot? anytime they move. The in game experience is pretty fun, you move seamlessly through the Big Apple, and Spidie looks pretty good doing it. You won?t be dazzled, but you won?t be disappointed either.
Audio: Pretty decent voice acting. Not all the real voices from the movie but pretty decent overall. Some of spideys one liners get old FAST.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Soul Calibur 2
Overall: Soul Calibur II will not disappoint you and will last you a long time, considering you have the patience to master some of the harder characters and combo. This game is one of the highlights of the 2003 gaming year. Gameplay: Soul Calibur II, easy to learn, difficult to master. What I mean by this is that someone can pick up the controller and learn the basics of the fighting system (eight way run, horizontal, vertical attacks, etc.) in about an hour or less. But these basics are the bases of much more complex actions which are the bases of ever more complex actions! Someone can pick up this game and have a good time and then they can have an even better time trying to master the system. The only complaint I have is that some characters might seem to overpowered and ring-out are easy to get and rather annoying. Other than those complaints, Soul Calibur II has a gem of a fighting system.
Graphics: The graphics in this game are wonderful. If you thought Soul Calibur?s graphics were good, Soul Calibur II?s graphics will grab you by your eyes and burn them, but in a good way. The characters and stages are very detailed and nice to look at. The character combos look awesome and whether you are on the receiving end of the combo or not, you will enjoy watching them. The only complaint with the graphics is that there are minor clipping problems (hair going and weapons going right through characters? clothing when the characters pose, etc) but that is minor complain. Namco did a wonderful job in this department.
Audio: The sounds in this game are great and, most of the time, sound authentic. The characters? voices are for the most part, well done. But sometimes it sounds like the American voice actors were trying too hard with some of the voices which makes the voices sound a little fake, but that isn?t so bad. The music in this game also stands out. The tunes flow along well and fit each level for the most part. Even though it wouldn?t have hurt adding a little more fast-paced tunes to the game. The sound in this game gets the job done well, even though you might get tired of hearing some characters say the same thing over and over.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Madden NFL 06
Overall: Overall, I think this is a great buy and worth $50. If you enjoyed the previous Madden Games, or if your new to football games, it is fun to everyone. I recommend it.Gameplay: This is what the whole idea of football games come down too. Whether you like it or not. If you like realistic football games, then you will LOVE this. The game play is a little like Madden 05, but it has been improved drastically. They have plenty of new features also in this years game. NFL Madden 2005 was about defense, but this year...The O is what it is about. The tag line for this game is...The Year of The Quarterback. That statement is true in two new features. The first feature is the new QB Vision. It is a cone shaped vision, and you can look down field for your open receiver, or look for him in the flat. Either way, it will get some getting used to. It will take you a good 2-3 hours before you will get the hang of it, and I'm not sure if anyone will be able to prefect it. Another new feature would be precision passing. You can pinpoint wear you wanna pass, and you can pick apart the D. If you have a defender in front of you, throw it behind the receiver, and if he is trailing you, throw it in front of him. This year isn't just about the quarterback, it is also about the running back. Another new addition to this game would be the "Truck Stick" and it is similar to the "Hit Stick" With the new Truck Stick, you can knock oncoming defenders on there backsides, and continue on your way down to the end zone.
Graphics: The graphics for Madden 06 on the XBOX are phenomenal. They have improved drastically over the past year, and look like they will continue to get better. The presentation is also great. This year, they also have new facial features in this game. They have also re-added the infamous coming off of the helmet after a huge hit. There, you will see how real the faces look.
Audio: The sound in this game is spectacular. If you are a fan of rock music, or rap music...you will love the soundtrack. It has many new faces on the soundtrack, and it alternates between rap and rock song, so you can get the best of both. Also, the sounds during the game sound realistic. Whether you hear the grunt of a linebacker when trying to hit a quarterback, or the yell of a running back after trucking a corner back, it all sounds authentic and its like you are in the game.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
Amped 2
Overall: A great sequel to a bad prequel. What I suggest you do? Rent it first obviously. I mean... I don't want you buying the game and finding out that it wasn't the game for you. Rent it first and then if you really like it, buy the game. This is actually a great game so I just advise you to buy it. :)Gameplay: The gameplay was very, very good. The controls were simple, but not as simple that it gets boring very, very fast. It was easy to do a flip and what I thought, is now way, way easier to do a grab as in Amped 2 than in Amped 1. In Amped 1, you had to tap the A,B,X, or Y button and that is pretty difficult to do was A,B,X and Y also have other controls as well. I thought the accelerate for A was kind of annoying because when you let go of A, he automatically jumps. Also, when you try to jump when you accelerate, they go way, way to far. Way to far to actually be reachable in real life. The one option I like that most is custom soundtracks. I mean... most game music really, really sucks. Amped 2 actually has custom soundtracks and I really appreciated that about this game. Keep up the great work!
Graphics: Indeed, the graphics have gotten way better than in Amped 1. The snowboarding action is twice as good in Amped 1 and you have more extra details in there as well. When you stop, the snow actually spreads... far. It also doesn't have those ugly loading screens from Amped 1.
Audio: Everything was fluent and was totally great. The snow spread when you stopped was great and the crashed were okay at sometimes. This was also a very,very good improvement from the last Amped.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
NHL 2K6
Overall: The 2K series wins again. This game is definitely still the hockey champ on the xbox. The gameplay is stellar and much better for people looking for less of an arcade hockey experience. For only 20 bux american and 30 canadian you can't go wrong with this one.Gameplay: They brang back all the old goodies-- slapper, wristshot, snap shot, fake slapshot, poke check, diving poke check, checking, pinning, etc. That's all the same, for teh most part. However, they've added some new quot; type features:
Pro-Control Passing: In the years before this hockey game, dating back to the very first one, whatever it was, how many of you found passing a game of luck, if you will? Ah... fear no more, my friends! This has been fixed in a big way! Basically, this is the best new feature by far. What it does, is it allows you to bring up player icons, with the click of the right analog stick, and allows you to pass to that respective person with relative ease. Yep, no more guessing or awkwardly adjusting your body, just one click of the button and it's there, barring any interceptions. To remove the icons, simply press down the R analog again. Shuffling the puck just got a WHOLE lot easier!
Skating Backwards: Although you could do this on defense in last years game, you couldn't do it on offense. Now, you can by pressing and holding the R trigger (Xbox). This allows you to make better moves on the puck or keep yourself out of danger, depending on the situation.
Maximum Goaltending: By far the worst idea in the game. Good concept and unique idea, but it just falls short due to many other aspects of the game. Perhaps, if KUSH/2KSports could come up with a better view so you could play the puck better it would be a better idea, but until then, this one's better off in the trash.
Graphics: Obviously not the best in a sports game, but still enough to keep one satisfied. Even though the graphics on a whole probably aren't as good as NHL 06, the player models and body shape seem to fit the bill. Player movements seem as fluid as ever, and now with the enhanced gameplay it shows.
Audio: Although many a folk prefer the ESPN tandem, this year's announcers are famous in Canada. They are the CBC announcers and in my opinion sound much more realistic than the espn announcers. MAJORLY good move by the 2K team. So, you ask "Why such a high score?" Well because the in-game sounds are incredible. The ice sounds nice, especially when players stop on a dime and the ice shoots up. The grunts and impact sounds during checks are the best I've heard, and pad sounds are authentic sounding, also.
Suggestions: Doing awesome. Maybe a bit deeper franchise with more of a storyline or something and it will be STELLAR
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
NHL 06
Overall: Can it get any worse than nhl 2005? I dont think so. This game is definitely better than 2005 but still not all that it could be. Many areas are improved but much is not up to par with the competing NHL 2K6.Gameplay: The gameplay is decent. A definite drawback is the completely non aggresive AI defense. We went from a hit fest last year to defense that stand back and watch as you do whatever you please. You just cant win. Also the scoring in the game is ridiciously high on the medium setting which lots of people play at. Then if you put it to difficult it turns into a cpu one time frenzy.
Graphics: The visuals are very well done. The ice reflections and markings after players skate on it is very well done. The player models are very good as well.
Audio: The sound is getting better year by year in my opinion. The goofy commentary is starting to get a bit more serious and doesnt make you want to mute it after just 3 games. The on ice sound is great as well.
Headed in the right direction so far.
Suggestions: Please revamp the gameplay totally. Lets have some decent shot counts instead of 63 to 16. And lets make the goalies a bit better by having them play more positinal instead of flopping around like fish.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Blitz: The League
Overall: Football fans most own this, it is a jewel in need of shining but it is completely fun and enjoyable for the time it is out. Buy this if you need a sports game with a fun twist and a couple of F bombs on the side.Gameplay: Blitz has the same 30 yard first downs, but don?t worry if anything it should be more. You should expect huge plays as you will be relying on a special gauge called the Clash Meter. Each time you use this meter the gameplay will slow down alloying you some time to think while almost doubling your chances for a successful play, Unless you are on defense then you will have to expect no slow down but major hits (Fumbles and Injuries should be expected!). This concept is fun to play with and really does not get old. In story mode it is fun to create a team from city to stadium while choosing 2 beginning stars to actually lead your team to victory. Live is fun and you will find yourself yelling in annoyance two player quick match.
Graphics: Could be better, but I only found real complaints in the game models in the story cinematic, they are too bland for a game revolved around a compelling story. You will not be disappointed in-game however so don?t worry.
Audio: The voice acting will leave your ears happy as there is not much to complain about, but it would be nice to have a bit more variation in the music soundtrack even though it is all pretty much good.
Suggestions: good work. some more extreme non-unleash tackles would be good.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
FIFA Soccer 2005
Overall: I have some clear problems with the game but overall due to Xbox Live support this is definetly a game worth picking up and is well worth the numerous hours you will spend trying to get shooting down and figuring out the online stuff.Gameplay: A slight slip from last years despite the whole game was ultimatly the same I did have some issues. First off the control works quite well and this year instead of having to do the through balls manually you can now do it automatically with a touch of the Y button. You can still do it the old way if you want but the new way is easier. The AI has been improved, the computer will now change formations on the fly and knows better then to run down the center of the field. It is now a little harder to score off freekicks and corners which make for more believable scores even against easier difficulties. The shooting system in this game is impossible from long range because of the camera angle and it is very difficult to get in close because of the AI. This can lead to some frustrating moments in the game but once you get used to it the game is very fun.
Graphics: Similar to last years, improved but not by much. The faces look decent at best and the croud is clearly a cardboard cutout but the player models and animations all look fantastic. This is not to say I disliked the visuals the were fantastic all I'm saying is that they could have been a little bit better.
Audio: Same as last year as well. The sounds put you right in the middle of the game and the commentaters although they sound good are still using the same phrases as they were when FIFA was first introduced. This didn't bother me personally but some people might be bummed by those tiny little details. The soundtrack contains a nice variety of foreign music which is suiting for the game because football is mostly popular in the rest of the world as opposed to the US.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Overall: This game is really one that can truly stand out of a space cluttered with clones (Mercenaries, maybe Twisted Metal). It's a fine game that will go down to be a classic.Gameplay: There are a ton of things to do in this game. You can drive around, you can kill people, you can go on missions, you can go on missions with friends for co-op (FINALLY!). The basic things like climbing and swimming have finally been added to make the game a lot easier. Oh and I forgot to mention, you can pick up hookers. Yeah. Shoulda saw that coming. Anyway, they also added a new RPG-esque system of game-play, where you have to actually manage your character like you would manage yourself in real life (per say). You have to eat right, you have to work out, or else you become a fat slob who can't do have of the missions he's sent on. Also, if you eat too much fast food, you throw up (Super Size Me anyone?). This adds a pretty deep element to playing this game as to where you don't have to always go around and shoot people or do missions. This game lasts a good long time, not only because it takes a while to make it through the main story, but because it's so dang hard! It took me 60 hours to finish the whole thing! It's all very fun and rewarding to do, because it defines true video games. Being very realistic but yet crazy enough to know not to imitate (I don't know what you parents are talking about). I really had a fun time with this game. A true game to stand the test of time.
Graphics: This is the only area where there are some true faults. The graphics, especially now on the Xbox version, are not up to par with other games. You'd think that now that you're putting this game on the Xbox, you could change some stuff. But alas, they haven't changed a thing. You don't see many of the characters move their lips when they're talking during cut-scenes! How does that work? Are they all master ventriloquists? The animations of the actual characters are well done, and so are the explosions. And for a game like this, that's a very good thing! I don't blame them for not updating because there's a ton of things for this game, but still, after so long of a change, they've gotta do something! They're still okay, but nothing outstanding.
Audio: This is keeping the trend that Vice City set. I mean the whole decade specific music. This game features a lot of music from the '90s, when rap was in it's infancy, and Guns 'N Roses reigned on top of the rock world. I loved all of the songs you heard on the radios while driving, so I give them big props for that. There are a ton of celeb voice-overs in this game, from James Woods to Samuel L. Jackson (THE MAN!). All of these are pretty well-done and pretty funny at times. The sound effects sound incredible! The explosions sound real, the gunfire sounds real, the cars thumping...well you get the idea. The sound is very very well done and is probably the best overall sound area I've ever reviewed. Again, not much change from the PS2, but that's definitely not a bad thing.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
NHL 2005
Overall: This game just seems to continue to keep getting worse ever since 2002. The gameplay is slowly sliding down but at least the franchise mode is getting a bit more interesting.Gameplay: This is what has killed this game this year. It seems all the defence knows how to do is body check and that just ruins the game.
Graphics: Not bad... not great. Ea sports will never really have a 5/5 for graphics on xbox but its not bad considering its a port.
Audio: I guess it would have to be the best part of the game.. the commentarry isnt too annoying and its not as whacky as previous years.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
Madden NFL 2005
Overall: The best game so far in the Madden series, and the best football game this year, overtaking both ESPN and EA Sport?s own NCAA Football from last year.Gameplay: As in past years where the gameplay enhancements added little to the overall play of the game, like last years playmaker, this year it changes the entire complexion of the game. The offense remains pretty much the same with just a few upgrades. Option routes, where your WR chooses which route to run based on the coverage he is looking at. An increased pocket, boy do I enjoy this, actual protection from the offensive lineman, getting rid of speed blitzing by the D-Lineman for good. Playmaker is back, and is pretty much the same, though they claim the ?point? where you can re-route your wide receivers in different directions to be improved, I see no real difference.
The real upgrade occurs on defense, finally, Tiburon getting around to addressing the issues of absurdly high scoring games in Madden, and the major issue of cheeseers in online games. The number one improvement, legitimate containment of the QB on Hail Mary type plays where people like to be the Falcons and run all day with Mike Vick. Unlike the last two years, you can actually stop that now, with containment plays. The number two addition, the hit stick, is a really cool feature, which at first sounds a bit arcadey, but is a well-implemented feature. The hit stick is a powerful hit that is very risky. In essence, you tap the right analog stick in the direction of the player you want to hit, if you hit him, he gets lambasted with a real pretty animation, if you miss, oops, you just gave up a huge play. It works really well on punt returns I?ve found, I have already created two fumbles with the hit stick, and given up a TD or two or three. Another innovation is improved DB logic, and it really shows, they have gotten rid of what I dubbed, ?The Madden Catch,? where one could catch balls in quadruple coverage routinely. While it still is possible, usually if you double team a WR you can stop him from being a major factor in the game. Defensive Assignments allow you to assign a certain player to always cover another, real helpful if your opponent likes to run their best receiver in the slot, you can just throw your best CB on him and keep them together the entire game. And because I don?t know where else to put it, the new create-a-fan feature flat out sucks, the signs in NCAA 05 were so much better. Xbox Live is great as well, no hiccups at release like there were with NCAA, and a roster is already waiting for you to download, with the newest singing and cuttings, up to about the Tim Brown release. And there are plenty of tools to cut down on cheesing, like the inability to go for a 4th down in the first 3 quarters unless it is very short.
Graphics: The graphics are great, but this game was designed for the PS2 and it really shows in comparison to ESPN NFL, which has much better graphics. But the graphics are fine and just work; graphics have never been stealer, Doom 3-type in any football game, so these are fine. I just wish Tiburon would utilize the Xbox?s superior hardware.
Audio: The on field sound is fine, the booms, the hits, the snaps, its all there, but its old, it needs a boost, but I imagine this won?t happen until next-gen, and I am fine with that. But the commentary, god, get some new lines. Madden makes the same comments he has made since 2000, it?s really getting out of hand. But Al Micheals does fine play-by-play, so I guess its okay
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
Dead to Rights II: Hell to Pay
Overall: The first Dead To Rights was an unabashedly ambitious game. With its stylish presentation and visceral gameplay, it became a sleeper hit. DTR2, in essence, strips most of the trappings away from the original, supplying a short, extremely violent game that will either leave you satisfied with the experience or wishing you had that part of your life back.DTR2 will make an enjoyable rental to anyone who is a fan of early arcade shooters, or anyone who just wants a quick, bloody, explode-y romp through a moral vacuum. Otherwise, there are plenty of better ways to spend your time.
Gameplay: The original Dead To Rights was a fairly straightforward game to play. You were put in a level, given a weapon, and given a goal to accomplish, which was usually done by killing everyone that tried to stop you. This gameplay would occasionally be interrupted by a mini-game, which took the player out of Jack?s shoes. DTR2 abandons all of the diversionary mini-game from the original, instead focusing on the process of killing everything that moves. While this portion was the strength of the first game, it suffers without the breaks and sporadically interesting diversions that that game featured.
The controls, thankfully, are very good, and feel natural on the XBox controller. The left analog stick moves Jack through the game?s environments. You?ll enemies with the right trigger, and mash or hold down the A button to fire your weapon at your target. The right analog stick cycles through targets, and the D-pad allows you to cycle through your armaments. Pressing the X near an enemy causes Jack to grab that enemy, for use as a human shield. The Y button, pressed in conjunction with a direction on the left analog stick, has Jack do a dive in the chosen direction; if the button is held down for a second, rather than tapped, Jack?s dive will be in slow motion. Jack also has two special moves that he can use to murder bad guys with: pressing the white button will sic Jack?s dog, Shadow, on any targeted enemy, while the pressing the circle button near an enemy causes Jack to execute an excessively stylized slow-motion disarm. Both of these special moves will net Jack some ammo, as both the dog and the disarms give you the dead enemy?s weapon. The X and Y buttons also have Jack climb short obstacles, while the circle button interacts with switches and doors. For the curious hand-to-hand levels, A and X are your punch and kick, respectively, and Y blocks. The solid control scheme makes DTR2 an easy game to pick up and play.
DTR2?s guns are, really, the stars of the show. There?s plenty of variety in the weaponry you?ll use; pistols (wielded either one or two at a time), assault rifles, submachine guns, shotguns, and rocket launchers all make an appearance. Just like in the original, Jack does not keep any guns for which he has run out of bullets, so whenever he runs out of ammo, he will drop the empty weapon. Luckily, with the tons of enemies you?ll be dispatching, as well as the above mentioned special moves, ammo is not going to be scarce. The game governs the use of the special moves (the slow-mo dives, disarms, and somewhat oddly the use of Shadow) via an adrenaline meter, which recharges over time after it has been depleted.
As a whole, the gameplay is repetitive, but its over-the-top violence and straightforward design are appealing simply because of their echoes of previous generations of shooters ? games where killing the bad guys was the only reason to play. Much like these older games, the pacing of the game is frantic, as you?ll constantly be charging ahead, blasting baddies at every turn. Without any mini-games, the only breaks in the action come in the frequent (and excruciatingly long) load times, as well as some hand-to-hand combat levels. These levels are poorly implemented, as Jack will go from a level of shooting straight into one where he can?t use any guns. The melee combat is terrible compared to the shooting, as even the addition of melee weapons to the game can?t make the button presses interesting. Thankfully, these levels are few and far between. The whole game is rather short, although on the default difficulty it can be challenging at times.
Enemy AI is run-of-the-mill. Most bad guys are content just standing in one spot, blasting away at Jack. If Jack stays in one spot, your foes will toss grenades and Molotovs your way, which is good at keeping you moving most of the time. Still, if you should so desire, you can hide behind a corner, taking potshots and using your dog to kill everyone, while the enemies simply stand there and allow themselves to die.
Boss fights in DTR2 are bland and unmemorable. Bosses are essentially regular enemies with lots more health, as well as the annoying ability to make themselves invincible for intermittent periods of time. Disappointing is a word that comes to mind when describing these, as the first game had several enjoyable and original fights.
For a shooter, DTR2 doesn?t do much in the way of extras to make it stand out from the pack, and that ultimately is what makes it stand out. This game is a throwback to a time when videogames were simple, mindless tests of reflexes, and that fact will definitely define its appeal to the game market.
Graphics: Much like the first game, DTR2?s menus utilize a simple, to-the-point style. All your options are clearly presented, and everything has a clean, neat visual look. Pause menus are easy to navigate, and there is even a pause that allows you to review your goals for the given level, unnecessary as it may be. DTR2 keeps the original?s simple menu style, and ultimately this is a good thing.
There are several cutscenes in DTR2, and they are all pre-rendered; unfortunately, none of these look very impressive, save for the introductory video (which, incidentally, does not play any role in the story whatsoever). Chunky character models and bland textures are the norm, and after seeing the in-game visuals, you?ll come to understand why this is.
From a graphical standpoint, DTR2 could have well been an XBox launch title. Everything is low-polygon and low-resolution. Environments are repetitive and mundane, save for a small level of destructibility. Character models look blocky, and animate stiffly to boot. The enemies you will face are the same 20 or so models repeated ad nauseum, and since the whole point of the game is to mow through hundreds of them, you will grow tired of them in a hurry. Effects are done in a similarly unspectacular manner; everything looks good enough, but nowhere near great ? although, in the game?s defense, it does Molotov Cocktail and grenade explosions well. In another visual leftover from the first game, the color palette is consistently darker than most games, although in DTR2 there are several outdoor environments. There are also plenty of graphical bugs, such as enemies clipping through corners and problems with pathing on AI-controlled characters. The frame rate, for the most part, does a good job of remaining constant.
While the original game?s average visuals could be construed as a sign of developmental focus elsewhere, it is clear in DTR2 that the visual aspects of the game were constructed to be purposefully middling.
Audio: There are more than 20 weapons to play around with in DTR2, and they all sound how you would expect: overstated and cheesy. The sound effects are about as bland as the visuals, although there are no terribly egregious problems. Synching for the guns and explosions are solid.
The voice acting in DTR2 is significantly worse than that of its forerunner, which is very disappointing, due to the middling quality of the voiceovers in that game. Most of the speech you will hear comes in the form of profanity-saturated one-liners by Jack and the clone army he murders his way through, and none of it is any better than corny. Worse yet, you?ll hear every line from the enemies dozens of times, and Jack?s own lines hundreds of times! The little bits of voiceover work during the cutscenes are bland and, at times, ridiculous. Overall, the severe lack of quality voice work hurts the game?s cr music is low-key and, luckily, merely average. It plays constantly in the background, never changing pitch or key along with the action. The tunes themselves are generic rock or techno, and are nothing if easily forgettable.
As with the visuals, DTR2?s audio features a significant drop off in quality from the previous game in the series. Where the previous game had been merely average, DTR2 is just plain bad.
Overall Score: 5.0 / 10
Hulk
Overall: This game has to be the best super hero game out there right now. The Hulk has always gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to video games, and I thought it would happen again when I saw that Universal Interactive was working on the game (especially after flops like the Lord of the Rings Fellowship games). After an hour of play all of my doubts were long gone and I was having the most fun that I had ever had with a super hero game. If you are a Hulk fan you don't need to read this review, hurry and buy this game, everyone else read the review and then rent the game. I will admit that the game isn't perfect and people will disagree with my score, but for a Hulk fan it couldn't get any better. Gameplay: If you can't control this game, you can't play video games. This is the easiest game to pick up and play from the get go. All of the battle controls are easy to learn and there is enough variation in attack so the game never gets boring. The only problem I ever encountered was the camera, but the camera isn't so bad that the game isn't playable.
Graphics: Wow... The graphics are simply astounding. The form of cell shading used makes this game look like a comic book come to life. Everything was made with vivid colors and plenty of detail. The character models are simply astounding to look at because of the amount of detail each one has. Another great thing about the graphics is if you see something hanging from a wall, more likely than not you will be able to knock it down and use it as a weapon. I have never seen that much environment interaction in a game before. The only thing that keeps the graphics from a perfect score is the fact that many of the environments look the same. The only level that doesn't look like another level is the introduction level in the desert. If it weren't for the reuse of so many backgrounds, the graphics would've been perfect.
Audio: This is the weakest aspect of the game and it still isn't too bad. The problem with the sound is the fact that everything sounds alike and the background music never changes. It really starts to annoy you after about 2 hours of play and I had to turn off the sound during gameplay parts. The reason the sound got a score higher than a 4 is because of the voice acting. Eric Bana, the actor who plays Bruce Banner in the movie, reprises his role and does a fairly good job. All of the other voice actors did a fairly decent job, aside from the soldier banter that wears thin through out the game.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
X2: Wolverine's Revenge
Overall: The reviews for this game have been all over the place, which I think is unfair. You can't compare this game to Splinter Cell or Halo because it's simply an entirely different type of game. If you want a ''perfect'' game, this may not be for you. However, despite its flaws, Wolverine's Revenge is the answer to many X-fans prayers because it really does deliver an adventure that takes full advantage of Ol' Canuk's special abilities. A definate buy for fans and most definately a rental to everyone. You won't be dissappointed. Gameplay: Now THIS is where the game really hits a homerun outta the park! When most average people hear the name Wolverine they think '' OH YEAH that's the guy with the claws!'' and it would've been very easy to make the game based on just that. Activision took the next 3 steps and incorporated his healing factor (in a suprisingly balanced way) as well as his heightened senses and combat prowess. You actually FEEL like Logan as he searches for his past, using your senses and taking on outrageous missions...with the occasional SNIKT! of course, heh. In addition to stealth kills (which earn you Bonuses and new moves), you have a very interesting combo system that will allow you to take out as many as 3 foes at once! This level of immersion is no small feat and it shows how much effort Activision has put into this game. I could go on about this category for a few pages but then you'd all fall asleep so.....
Graphics: While the character models are well done (especially in the FMV's), they are a little on the choppy side in terms of animation. Anyone who has played Spiderman on the Box will know what to expect. Also, the indoor environments look a little muddled, but whether or not that was intentional is up for debate. I've always felt that the Activision teams had trouble making a living, breathing world in their games...and this one is no exception. With that said, there are some very good lighting effects as well as ''weather effects'' (snow, raindrops, etc.). The coolest graphical feat in the game would have to be the Heightened Sense mode. The screen goes blood-red and you can actually see the heat emissions of your enemy's as well as ''sniff'' their scent. Very cool stuff.
Audio: Everything sounds as it should. Metal clanging, wood breaking, yadda, yadda. The voice acting is VERY well done. Mark Hamill had me worried, but he pulled Logan off really well. Patrick Stewert voices Prof X with the same passion that he brought to the movie, and it adds a lot to the experience. The in-game score is passable, but you'll probably want to create your own custom soundtrack.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Yager
Overall: Yager will perhaps go unnoticed by the gaming public by and large (thanks mainly to its non-appearance in the US), but those that have a means to grab a copy should do so. Yager represents an apotheosis of console shooters dating back to the 16 bit era. Currently, it is by far the best 3D space shooter available on a console (leaving aside Smilebit?s efforts) and one of the best games available for the Xbox. Gameplay: You can see elements of other games in the main gameplay dating back as far as the Strike games on the Megadrive (Genesis) and Super Nintendo systems. More recently, Yager shares many similarities with Gunmetal and Battle Engine Aquila. You take the role of Magnus Tide pilot of the Sagittarius, a hybrid craft capable of sustained flight (Jet mode) and a Hover mode that allows you to fire from a stationary position. Yager is set in the world of the near future where there are no longer any nation states. Rather, allegiances are defined by which Trade Zone you belong to. Two of the more powerful Zones are Proteus (a conglomerate of old Western ideologies i.e. the good guys) and the DST (a fascist, militaristic organisation hell bent on total domination), both of which are at each other?s throats. Into the mix comes Tide, an ex-Proteus marine turned freelancer (mercenary) who has come crawling back to Proteus for one last score. The story has a black comedy tinge to it as it unfolds over the 20 or so missions. You?ll encounter a raft of humourous support characters (the Spanner Brothers being the best, they have interesting uses for furniture) and you?ll have a front row seat to Tide?s attempts to get back into Sarah McDavid?s (his superior and former lover) good graces (long story). Needless to say, while the back-story can be cheesy sometimes, it manages to remain interesting throughout.
Each mission takes place within a Zone, a large patch of terrain littered with power-ups, repair points and ammunition caches. At the beginning of each mission you are given a brief overview of what the coming objectives may be, however, these usually change dramatically as you?re forced to run off to defend an encampment or destroy a DST Carrier. Mission objectives vary from level to level, with a healthy mix of offensive and defensive stages. The Zones themselves are quite massive. While most of the action is confined to one section, there are instances where you?ll be able to go off and do a little exploring between objectives. The control of the craft in both modes is very intuitive. I was initially surprised to find how similar it felt to a first person shooter. In this regard Yager Development have successfully nailed the divide between the two modes on offer unlike previous attempts (read Gunmetal). One must note that Yager isn?t entirely a conventional space shooter. Some missions require you to keep you distance from your target in Hover mode while others require the full frontal approach in Jet mode. Yager balances between the modes of play admirably. There are a number of ways you can approach a mission and dogfighting that lends to Yager to a style of non-linear combat. My only gripe is that the craft in Jet mode is quite slow. While speed isn?t an issue when you?re dogfighting with DST cruisers or pirates, it becomes evident when you have to traverse large areas of terrain on your way to the next check point. Overall though, while it may take time to get used to the controls, once mastered you won?t be struggling with them throughout the entire game. Yager Development has successfully produced a title that is better because of the sum of its different parts
Graphics: It?s no secret that the Xbox is a graphical powerhouse, and Yager Development has made full use of its capabilities. Yager may very well be the best looking game on the Xbox to date. Everything is extremely detailed and crisp. The Sagittarius is fully animated and articulated in the chase views and you can even see your ship taking damage from all angles. In the cockpit view, your visor will crack and spider as you take hits from enemy fire. Special note must be made of the sky. It looks incredible, especially at dusk. Every hue in the rainbow is on display, sometimes I found myself distracted from the action I?d fly off just to look at the horizon. When you do remember to do battle, you?ll witness wonderful lighting effects as ships explode and laser fire reflects off the ocean?s surface. The Zones themselves look fantastic, the best being the Free Trade Zone. Throughout the FTZ you can see freighters hauling cargo along trade routes. Commercial craft zipping around the ocean. There are evening reporters buzzing about who will take your picture if you?re not careful. About the only fault with the graphics is that there is no landscape deforming, no matter how much you shoot that hill it will remain unmarked. That said, most of the action takes place in the sky, you?ll hardly notice what you have destroyed on the ground. Overall, you?d be hard pressed to find a better looking game on any system available.
Audio: Like the graphics, the sound is very well done. The voice-overs in particular show what a little effort in a game can do to the overall package. All of the major characters are extremely well done (Sarah in particular is the modern definition of the confident woman) but the NPC?s for change are also well voiced. You?ll hear all manner of different accents and when you manage to !&%$@#* someone off, they let you know in no uncertain terms. The music is sometimes incidental to the gameplay, but it is a stirring orchestral score nonetheless. Craft engine noises are also superbly done so much so you can distinguish the whine of DST fighter from the hum of a pirate one. Well done overall.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Yu-Gi-Oh! Dawn of Destiny
Overall: This game could have been a lot better than it was, had it not been rushed. This game is perfect for Xbox Live, and it's therefore a real letdown that this feature wasn't included. As far as renting or buying, I would suggest renting, unless of course you're a huge Yu-Gi-Oh fan, in which case I don't even need to tell you to buy it.Gameplay: In this game, you are a duelist who's sole purpose is to beat a slew of other duelists, which are, of course, spawned from the TV and manga series. It plays the exact same way as the other games, so if you've played those before, the learning curve isn't exactly steep. The game follows the rules of the actual card game, requiring you to basically knock out your opponents life points before they knock out yours. A point that makes this game slightly better than the others is that the AI "cheats" significantly less, leading to a richer gaming experience.
Graphics: This is the part where the game really falters. The card setup looks exactly like it did in the GBA version. The background is bland, Egyptian landscape, except when you summon a field spell card, which results in a psychedelic swirling of colors in the background. The fights between the monsters are horrible, as the models are poorly rendered, and look worse than many N64 games. Truly, Konami did not at all take advantage of the Xbox's superior gaming engine.
Audio: The music in this game is just kinda there. You don't really notice it unless you're paying attention, and if you are, it's nothing spectacular.
Overall Score: 5.0 / 10
Alias
Overall: Alias is just another poorly made game, riding on the fanbase of the TV series. I really can?t recommend Alias to anyone other then big fans of the show, but even then, I?d be weary of a purchase. If you really want the opportunity to play as the Alias cast yourself, then be my guest and get the game. Don?t come crying to me when you?re disappointed with it. Just keep it at a rental at best. Gameplay: Alias is part action-adventure and part stealth, a combination of genres mixed many times before. The adventure part has you wandering around the area, often completing an objective. Pretty standard for an adventure game. The main sections of Alias are stealth based. You may think that since it focuses mainly on stealth, that it would be a good stealth game. Well, sadly, this game is merely a simplistic stealth game filled with decent A.I. enemies. The game also tells you how to get through your obstacles every step of the way. The game points you in the right direction and tells you what to do multiple times throughout the game, making the game overly simplistic. Also, the clunky controls and awkward camera cause the game to become a chore at times. While the controls are manageable, there are times when you?ll find it difficult to perform even some of the simplest of moves, such as putting your back against the wall. Splinter Cell, this is not.
Occasionally, the game uses a unique cinematic split-screen view, showing you when a enemy or guard is doing something. This alerts you of incoming danger. Much like other spy games, you are equipped with a variety of gadgets. Each level varies in which devices you have depending on what the mission calls for. However, you are usually told when and what gadgets you need to use when you do, so you really never have to experiment. While there are a variety of firearms you can use to slay your foes, you?re often forced to use hand-to-hand combat. Fighting consists of pressing either A or X. Pressing them multiple times results in executing combos. The fighting, however, feels very clunky. By pressing B next to certain objects, you can grab and use assorted items as objects, such as pots, pans, wine bottles, and many other things. You pretty much need to use weapons in order to knock out your enemies, because hand-to-hand takes forever, especially if you?re ganged up on. However, you?re never really presented with any challenge in this game. This is mainly thanks to the dim-witted A.I. There were times that I was standing in a light room, with a guard facing right towards me, and he didn?t even notice me. I guess villains will hire anybody these days. Even when holding high-powered weaponry, they seem to hesitate to attack you. And, for some strange reason, Sydney seems to have the ability to regenerate her health, Wolverine style. Alias has moments when you need to hack computers, but since the hacking is a simple bout of ?process of elimination,? it proves practically no challenge.
Graphics: At first glance, the graphics in the game look very nice. The character models and detail found in the beginning cutscene are remarkably life-like, as each of the characters resemble the ones found in the show, although they don?t perfectly resemble their TV counterparts. However, once you get into the game, it begins to look more average. Sydney and the other main characters have the best looking character models in Alias. The other characters and enemies in it don?t look anything spectacular. The textures found throughout the levels aren?t breathtaking either.
Audio: The game does have almost every character from the show doing their character?s voice acting, so that's a big plus. There is one thing you?ll notice during the talking segments in-game. When talking, the character?s mouth doesn?t move. On top of that, you?ll find little variation in the guards dialog. During the missions, you?re accompanied by normal Alias theme music that you?d find in the show. You?ll find a few licensed songs playing during some of the brawling scenes, so you get some variation there.
Overall Score: 5.0 / 10
Airforce Delta Storm
Overall: That pretty much sums it up if you are a Xbox owner I would recommend picking up this game it is very good, Especially if you like flight-Sims. You should not have my problem finding it anymore because I see it in a bunch of different place now. If you are specifically looking for this game I would suggest looking at eb first. I hope you enjoyed my review and found it useful. It is my first review so please don?t be to harsh. Thanks for Reading. Gameplay: The gameplay is unbelievable. I Just love it. I love how you have to buy your planes. I also like how you planes are not kept if you are shot down. This is realistic but it makes the game extremely challenging, and the only plane you get to keep is the corsair and that plane just sucks it is so heavy and it is very slow. it doesn't even have an afterburner. Another hard part is the some of the missions. Some are set up so if you don't go the exact right speed and direction you will fail the mission. This brings up another good fact there is no plane in the game that can just go and kill hundreds of planes and not get a scratch. Even with the most powerful plane the missions are still difficult. The rest of the missions are really fun they are long but they are not drawn out you get to fly though canyons, over the ocean, through snowy mountains and many more. I also like all the different enemies you fight you get to fight tanks, boats stationary guns full bases, and of course there are tons of airborne crafts to shoot down. Well that?s it for the gameplay.
Graphics: The graphics in my opinion use all of the Xbox?s potential. In my opinion they are perfect they could not have made them any better than they are. The graphics are also smooth and crisp. I?ve yet to see a fault or a skip or a scratch in the graphics. The planes look like they should. The game uses mostly imagined planes but they are not unbelievable designs. They look like planes we might see maybe in the next ten years. That?s just about all I can say about the graphics except restate that they are perfect.
Audio: That sound is the only other thing that nicked the score. I?m not says the sound is bad. The sound is fine. The problem is the music. The music is not horrible it is just sometimes a little slow. Like if you are flying in the open air with no enemies near by there is only quite kind of a tune playing in the background. This lead me to another problem the music is not really a song it is like a tune and on top of that you can?t you the custom soundtrack that is a big bust especially with the lack of actual music. One thing I do like is when you die it plays a little bit of final fantasy seven music? da da da dea, dea dea dna, dae dae dau. Hah hah hi hi hoh. Ok sorry enough of that. Thanks to my friend for noticing that. Personally I crash just to here that little clip sometimes. Another part of the music I like is when you are in a dog fight (Close quarter fight between 2 or more planes) the tunes get to be really good.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Advent Rising
Overall: All in all, I would give Advent Rising a 4/5. It's a nice, unique presentation that the developers give you, but frame rate problems and a few minor problems might turn some people off to it. Though the game isn't as long as some people, including myself, would like it to be, it is still an average length for its genre. The movie-style presentation, average graphics, superb music, fluid controls, character(strength-wise) development, and various other unique tidbits will make this game remembered. However, the frame rate problems, minor flaws, length, and main character may turn some off. If you're worried about your hard earned money going to waste, rent this game at a local rental shop or from GameFly. If, like me, you've been anticipating the game for a while and will be happy with what it does do well, then go out and purchase it. It's something both the casual and hardcore gamers should like and any patient action fan should enjoy, but it is a hate it or love it type of game. I, obviously, unbiasly love it for what it is, but play it yourself before jumping to conclusions about it. Gameplay: Ahh, the most important part of any game. First off, the controls of the game have been well done. The flick targeting system ranges from alright to downright annoying at times and is sort of hard to adjust to at first. Luckily, there's a kind of auto-targeting that occurs when you fire and aren't locked on to anything, so if you can't pick up and get a hang on the controls at first, you'll be fine. But, sometimes the game will automatically lock on to enemies and you'll have to hold down the right joystick to stay locked off of them. It's kind of annoying, until you realize holding down the joystick keeps the target free. The rest of the controls are easy to get used to and are decently done. Even though some buttons are used for different things (for instance, Y is used to pick up a right-hand weapon and to reload), the two rarely clash. The only time they do is when you're trying to pick up a weapon for your left hand. Since X is both Dodge and the button to pick up the left hand weapon, if you don't completely stop, your character will dodge instead of picking up the weapon. It only takes a second to stop and pick up the weapon, so unless you're at the very end of your life, you won't be harmed much from doing this. And finally, the vehicle controls are done averagely. The vehicles and how you drive them are just like in Halo; you move the camera to help you steer where you want to go, along with moving the stick, and the right trigger hits the boost for the vehicle. It's not perfect and it's not horrible.
Graphics: As for the graphics, they aren't anything too spectacular or unique. They're on par with most 2005 Xbox games, if not a little worse. The stages are nicely done and are, later on, special. In the beginning, though, they're your normal "in a space ship" stages. And, for the characters, they're definitely different. The humans aren't really unique. The main characters look very generic, the people in normal battle armor are also kind of generic, and then there's some type of elites that remind me of something out of Ghost in the Shell. The aliens, on the other hand, are mostly nice and unique. There are a few plain ones, but, for the most part, they're all pretty unique and badass looking.
Audio: If you appreciate classical music or enjoy the type that plays during the game, I do believe you'll have an eargasm. It goes well with the story; it's nothing like Devil May Cry's, respectively, because they're two different types of stories - one about desperation and hope (Advent Rising), and one about, simply, revenge and killing (Devil May Cry). And, surprisingly enough, it was all done by Tommy Tallarico - yes, the often hated short man that co-hosts G4's Judgment Day. Another part of the audio, the voice acting, is done alright. It's not perfect and it's not terrible. Thankfully, Gideon doesn't have any one-liners he repeats countless times when he kills enemies, but his voice or his(and his brother's, for that matter) attitude may turn some off and some on to him. But, there are some other voices you should recognize, too! For instance, the voice actor who did the voices of such characters as Spike from Cowboy Bebop? is in the game as the voice of random NPC's. It just goes to show that they at least tried to make the audio well, and it didn't come out half bad, if you ask me. And, on top of this, the mouths even move with the lips, but not perfectly. It's just a nice little thing I picked up on that's noticeable.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
4x4 Evo 2
Overall: Ok, firstly, if you played the first game, 4x4 Evolution then you know what to expect. If you didn't, it's like this. You drive off road vehicles over diverse terrain in off-roaders/SUV's and such made by companies such as Chevy, Dodge etc. There's racing around set tracks over a certain amount of laps or there's the free roaming stuff in which you can go all over the place either just exploring or going from point A to B etc. This game does a hell of a lot right, but there's this one thing which makes me not want to play it. It makes me want to kill the developers and I'll come to that in a bit.
Gameplay: Ok, so you get to choose a truck from Dodge, Jeep, Nissan, Infiniti, Lexus, Toyota, Mitsubishi, Chevrolet, and GMC. You can either take them for a spin over one of the huge 30 courses in a race or free roam or you can go into the career mode which is where the real meat of the game is. You start off with buying a truck (which will be crap because you start with only 30000) and then you race it. Basically you race it to win races, earn cash, buy upgrades for it to win more races to buy more trucks etc. There are missions where you need to carry out objectives such as delivering a package to get cash and then there's your standard racing against opponents where you need to win the race to get the cash.
The trucks handle decently enough and the design of the courses are great. There are more than enough huge slopes to test the power of any off-roader. Don't expect to get up some mountains if you're in a bog standard Chevy Blazer. Upgrade, upgrade, upgrade. It makes great gameplay, upgrading your truck to get more power/grip/better handling outta it etc.You can upgrade your truck from over 120 upgrades ranging from tyres/suspension/roll bars/exhausts/ engine tuning etc. It's satisfying to get more kit for your truck and then be able to climb a hill you couldn't previously. It's an off-roaders dream in this respect. The environments are massive and each one challenging. They range from arctic wasteland to desert to forest to bayous etc. You get the idea. All this would be awesome if it weren't for what I'm about to say.
Graphics: Firstly, the vehicles themselves. They look great, terrific even and upgrading them radically changes their appearance also. You'll end up with a !&%$@#* monster truck with the biggest wheels and suspension kits added. Roll bars, mud flaps all appear once you've bought them. I really do love the way the vehicles look. Superbly modeled.
The courses themselves also look pretty good. Some of the textures are a little poor and blurry up close but I can forgive that. The draw distance is also good and it gives you a great sense of scale when atop one of the mountains. You can see lots around you. Some of the courses are absolutely covered in vegetation and the like with loads of trees and such to navigate through. It's pretty impressive. The cars also reflect the surroundings with real time reflections which dull over time as the dirt begins to mount up on your vehicle taking of the shine. Once again, it's all good.
Now to the bad part. While the frame rate is ok if your alone in free roam mode, it seems to take a hit here and there on courses with lots of vegetation on. It also takes a hit when your up against opponents which is annoying. I'd rather have a better more stable framerate over real time reflections on the vehicles anyday. But no, it's not the framerate that's forced me to HATE the developers of this game. It's the horrendous tearing effect. Couple the tearing effect along with the framerate drops and you think to yourself, WHY? There's no need for it. It's just sloppy programming. I don't know the exact term for this tearing effect. I'm not sure if it's to do with V-sync but it's there and it's bad enough to make me not want to play the game. And as if to add insult to injury, this damned tearing effect is even present on the map screen. You scroll around the map to take a look where you are/should be going etc and BOOM, the horrendous tearing effect kicks in. It kicks in on a FLAT 2D map. This, I tell ya, is completely unacceptable.
Its a damned shame.
Audio: So on to the sound. The sound is average at best. The engine noises are certainly under whelming. Nowhere near up to the quality of games like Sega GT 2002 or Colin Mcrae 3. Not even in same league. The suspension doesn't particularly sound creaky considering the beating it takes. Yes, overall the sound is very ho-hum.
Suggestions: ummm fix glitches... they ruin this game.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
Burnout 3: Takedown
Overall: How ironic: my least favorite genre of video gaming happens to churn out my favorite game this year so far: Burnout 3.Criterion games deserve a big pat on the bag here for this game is absolutely incredible. Heck, even EA deserve a pat on the back, but that's only because there is an option to switch the 'DJ' off (more on that later).
Take this scenario: I went into EB on one Friday night because I required a brand new game before GTA: SA comes out. I saw Burnout 3 in all its glory on the shelf labelled as brand new. Hesitantly I picked it up and flipped it over...
I first noticed how the words stood out - 'take a trip down Adrenaline lane, SLAM the competition into oncoming traffic and risk all to win, in the fastest, most intense racer ever...'
Don't ask what made me purchase it. But I did and I took it home, put it into my faithful Xbox (brushed the dust off it too) and began to play.
Gameplay: OK, Burnout 3 is a racing game, right? Wrong. Burnout 3 is not only racing, but total mayhem on the road. There are multiple modes, each mostly different to the other.
OK, this is similar to another racing game. There are all sorts of different modes, but they all include the same features as ordinary racing games. You choose your car, change its colour if desired, and begin the race (I like to call it match). But there one a twist involved - the boost bar. This fills up on numerous occasions, such as driving into oncoming traffic or drifting around corners perfectly. But the best way to get your boost gauge up is to do what the game is best at: destroying rivals. To do this, just ram them heavily off the road and watch the sparks fly. There will be all kinds of crashes, and every time you destroy a rival, the game goes into slow motion and shows the car you just destroyed in all its glory spinning through the air. This is both extremely satisfying and fun, especially the more diverse takedowns. By taking down one car, you are awarded with a full boost meter. When you take down another, your boost meter will double and so on until you have 4X boost (4 takedowns). And you use that boost to win the race. And when you are taken down? You lose a bit of your boost meter (i.e you have the full 4X boost bar and you will go down to the 3X).
There is a specific mode that is really, really appealing and that is the Road Rage events. Road Rage means this: take down as many of your opponents as possible as long as your car survives. A hilarious and exhilarating experience, Road Rage is by far the best mode the game has to offer. You destroy opponent's vehicles and try to crop up high scores by amounting takedowns. You do this by ramming opponents into walls, cutting them off, or my favourite - ramming them into oncoming traffic. Another neat touch is aftertouch. This is when you are taken down, but everything is in slow-mo and you can direct your car as it crashes. This makes way for new takedowns - direct your car into another rival and they will be taken down. The game puts a lot of emphasis on aftertouch.
The final event worth mentioning is the Crash mode - a simulation similar to the concept of crash dummies but you race your car into a junction of oncoming traffic. The goal here is to amount the most carnage as possible to crop up points. Collect boost to increase your speed and the 2X or 4X meters to double or quadruple your total score. The crashes are always entertaining to watch, especially when enough crashes are amounted and you can detonate your car. When you do this you can direct your car in the direction of something (as well as creating more carnage) but you may be able to collect a 2X or 4X meter. Overall there are a whopping 100 junctions to select from, but that's nothing compared to the main single player event mode.
The world tour mode runs through 3 areas (USA, Far East and Europe) in a colossal amount of events (something like over 170) which indicates that this game will last for a long time. One other thing worth noting is that the World Tour mode is required to unlock the majority of the game (including most cars) and there is a hell of a lot to unlock. Most of the time you'll be constantly pushing A to skip the unlocking cinematics. Also none of the cars are officially licenced, but that's still no big deal, because it makes up for that in the fun factor.
Graphics: The second most important part of a game, the visuals are astoundingly beautiful. Yes, beautiful. Not awe inspiring like Final Fantasy, Burnout 3 obviously concentrates on the sensation of extreme speed. And it delivers by the truckload. The frame-rate runs at a constant 60 FPS without ever slowing down. Sparks fly like crazy when you crash into someone and make the crashes look so !&%$@#* real. What's more the unfortunate car will often lose parts such as tyres and create real mayhem on the road. The weather effects are nicely done but mostly the speed is absolutely incredible. One other thing I have to mention about the visuals is something on EA's part - advertising. EA have gone to the effort to put billboards in certain courses to advertise other products. In my opinion this is cheap and just paving the way for in-game advertising. It really, really spoils the experience, although they are pretty neat when you first see them because no-one's really done it before.
Audio: This includes all the sound effects in the game, including the 'DJ.' God bless EA for allowing us the option for turning him off because he has to be the worst thing in video-games since licenced music came into the fray. He is constantly on your nerves - interrupting songs during mid-race to say something you've probably heard twice before, but even worse is that he may spoil a decent song! Damn EA for putting him in - he spoilt such a great game. Other effects, however, are astoundingly wonderful, whether it be the numerous crash sounds or wheels coming off cars or horns of oncoming cars and trucks, the sound effects are great.
Suggestions: Absolutely wicked. Can't wait for number 4.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
Need For Speed Underground 2
Overall: When I had first played Need for Speed: Underground (the original), I loved it. I loved the way it immersed you in an exciting street racing frenzy and didn't let you go. Not only was the racing some of the most entertaining and fast-paced racing I had ever experienced (I loved the Gran Turismo games), but the amount of customization was awesome.With the release of Need for Speed: Underground 2 (NFSU2), I was somewhat reluctant to buy it. A few questions were going through my head, mainly because I hadn't really followed the game to release (matter of fact, I didn't even know it was released, I had discovered it one day while visiting Wal-Mart). However, I decided to go through with it, and boy was it worth it; NFSU2 is the first one and a whole lot more.
Gameplay: The gameplay is just as fast and fun as the first one. However, due to some of the random crashes, walls, and spinouts that happen periodically, I am forced to lower the score by .5. Other than those few minor problems, the gameplay is great, and even includes a few new racing modes, including Street X (think small drift courses without the slick), Downhill Drift (a bit more tough, but fun), and the Underground Racing League (URL; it has a few Gran Turismo elements to it).
Graphics: Okay, I'm sure you've seen screenshots and said "well, they aren't the best graphics," and I realize this. However, they are some of the best graphics I've seen in a racing game, and the car models are very awesome.
Audio: Sound is beautiful in terms of car sounds and the like, but sometimes the taunts of outrun drivers gets annoying. Not only that, but the "EA Trax" aren't so hot this time around, either. Custom soundtracks, where art thou?
Suggestions: Very well done. Online would be sweet.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Forza Motorsport
Overall: Sim racing is something the Xbox has been missing in its library of games, so Microsoft releases Forza Motorsports to fill in this huge gap and boy does the phrase better late than never come to mind. Forza hits on all cylinders, it is definately a must buy for every single Xbox owner no matter if you have Live or not. If you want intense realistic action with the best career mode in a race. And a gaming experiance with a fun factor that cannot be matched by anyone...Then go to your local store and pick up Forza Motorsports. You will not be disapointed. Gameplay: The reality factor in this game is amazing. While your racing at 100 MPH if you get your tires of the track, your not going to be able to just steer the car right back on the track easy. This along with many other features make the realistic factor even with even the most realsitic racer you can buy. You have 3 difficulty levels you can use as well as a whole lot off assists. Depending how you have all these set determines ho wmuch money you will make in the race to use to buy more cars. And there is a RPG factor in it to. You gain levels as you gain money in the game. As you gain a level you will unlock something. Either it be a discount on a car upgrade to a new car for you to ride. The car upgrades are also just completely sweet. Its not as in depth as NFS but still holds its own and gives you plenty of options to trick your car out good. To be honest no racer has the gameplay Forxa delivers.
Graphics: The graphics in Forza are beautifully done. Everything is very colorful, but not to colorful where it would be bad. The cars are identical to there real life counterparts. The world you race in is also gorgeously done. No racing game on the market has better looking tracks than Forza motorsports. And if you have a HDTV your in for a good treat, becouse this game is on the cutting edge of make gaming look exactly like reality. The menus are well done, easy to read and understand. The only thing that keeps this category from getting a perfect 10 is that it is only 30 FPS, and it could still be better.
Audio: The sounds in Forza can only be appreciated with 5.1 dolby surround sound. With the surround sound cranked you wont find a better and more realisticly sounding racer on the market today. The sounds of the big V-8's to the turbo charged Eclipse sound just as they should. The screeching tires as you take a corner is right on. Even if you dont have surround sound and you listen through your TV, its still pretty darn good. The soundtrack that comes with the game is what keeps it from getting a perfect 10 becouse it is pretty limited and repetitive. But behold one reason we all have Xbox's is for custom soundtracks which this game fully supports. The custom soundtracks play in the race, menu screens, even the loading screens, and you can switch soundtracks with just a easy push of the button..
Suggestions: Absolutely awesome. Thank you thank you thank you.
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
WWE WrestleMania 21
Overall: Well, after reading so many negative reviews I was unsure whether to buy this or not but after deciding to buy it it was a lot better than i thought.Gameplay: The gameplay is a lot slower than SVR but is better due to this. It makes it much more realistic. The controls are fairly similar to SVR and there are more weapons than SVR which is great. Wrestlemania also features more blood. Bust up your opponent enough and it will stain clothes and flow down their body not just their face again making it more realistic.
Graphics: Lush. Obviously this is something that the game boasts about. Everything looks great, the arena, entrances, and wrestlers. There isn't much need to say anymore - the graphics are just brilliant.
Audio: The superstar voices are awesome. During the cutscenes the voice acting is quite good. Much better than that in smackdown vs. raw. The menu music is all the same as SVR and the entrance songs... well they cant really be done bad or good.
Suggestions: fix a few glitches... speed up gameplay a little bit maybe. MUCH BETTER than raw 1 or 2 though.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
NHL 2004
Overall: This game keeps the franchise pretty strong... but it is NOT that good. Good new franchise options and better control over players but there are lots of little things that just !&%$@#* me off.Gameplay: The gameplay is good. But i think that the goalie having the puck go over his shoulder is just lame... it like trickles over. BOO!
Graphics: nice visuals. Everything looks really good and th eplayers look just like there real life others. GOOD STUFF
Audio: WELL! if i had 5.1 i am sure it would rule. BUT WHATEVER! its a hockey game so it'll do. Good job here i guess.
Suggestions: BETTER GOALIES! AND GET ONLINE!
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Aggressive Inline
Overall: If you love the extreme sports genre, this game is an absolute must. It's a ton of fun and will suck away so many hours all your friends will think you've died. Unless you don't have friends and then no one will notice except your dog who really needs to go walkies. Though the gameplay in is a little bit better than Hawk the little things AI is missing keep it from getting a higher mark. There's no skate shop to buy better skates, no way to customize the characters at all and not create-a-skater. And, even though the levels are quite large, it would have been nice for their to be more than seven levels available in career mode. Still, this game will require a hefty chunk of double-digit hours to dominate. I've logged in over twenty so far and have no desire to stop playing. Stop wasting time and order now.Gameplay: Fantasique. Easy controls, some great additions to the genre, and a heck of a lot of fun all make for an appealing package.
Graphics: Silky smooth on Xbox with some inventine levels, cool special effects, and a bizarre sea horse balloon.
Audio: Great soundtrack that is fully customizable so you can really do whatever you want with it. But how could you pass up the POD?
Suggestions: better AI, more levels.... and some way to upgrade skater and buy new stuff.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
All-Star Baseball 2004
Overall: ASB04 has nearly everything you could want from a baseball game except a good baseball engine. We didn't even mention all of the great old school players from the Dead Ball era, Negro Leagues and post WWII legends featured in the game since it would probably just frustrate everybody even more. The game improved the feature set from ASB 03, but that's it. The baseball engine isn't strong enough for Acclaim Austin to get away with a few extremely cool cosmetic upgrades wrapped around the same subpar baseball game. We were dazzled in 1998 by the N64 game but we're baffled today by the limited evolution of the gameplay.
The initial promise of online gameplay through Xbox Live fell through for whatever reasons, but we still have to hold Acclaim accountable for that promise. The downloadable rosters will be nice but it's nowhere near what we were expecting.
Gameplay: If a player batted .600 he'd be a legend. Unfortunately six out of 10 here means somebody's just not trying to make this baseball fun.
Graphics: There are too many things that just don't look right and they're all right next to things that look really impressive. Just not a good mix.... i would rather it all look sub-par almost.
Audio: Ahora en Espanol! Spanish announcing, walk-up music and crowd sound effects are all topnotch. Custom soundtracks and even more audio samples would be nice.
Suggestions: fix the gameplay... it is just blech.
and PLEEEAAAAAASEEE put as much effort as u did in the good things graphically wise to the whole game.... if that makes any sense to you.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Apex
Overall: My biggest problem with Apex is that there isn't anything this racing game does that hasn't been done better somewhere else. Once I got over the fact that it's main gimmick (the auto empire building) didn't add any emotion to the races, I was left with a very basic, competent but still basic, racing title. The development community seems to have an infinite amount of enthusiasm for the racing genre even if they've long since run out of effective gimmicks to make individual games stand out. I would recommend Apex for the absolute diehard racing fan who's already had enough of Sega GT 2002 but who can't wait for Pro Race Driver or Project Gotham Racing 2 and needs something to drive in the meantime. Otherwise, casual fans would be better served sticking with the the established racing franchises.
Gameplay: The racing itself is fine and always competitive but don't expect too many thrills out of the automaker elements.
Graphics: Very impressive looking game and seems at home on the Xbox. Reflections are top-notch while damage system needs improvement
Audio: With music and sound effects this poor you really don't need surround sound. I hate racing games that dont have surround sound! I love hearing that engine roar and cars flying by.
Suggestions: somehow, i dont know how.... make the driving more fun. ALSO pleaes get some better sound in there.... this is just plain lame.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Arctic Thunder
Overall: Right off the bat, Arctic Thunder is a fun, easy to pick up and play, pure arcade videogame. It's accessible to gamers of all skill levels and ages. If you're over the age of nine and have played any other videogame at any point in your life, however, you will be bored with Arctic Thunder within hours. If you pick it up on Friday after school or work, you can squeeze all of the fun out of it before you have to go meet your girlfriend, wife or drinking buddies and you'll even be on time. Everything falls apart with Arctic Thunder when you realize that the sense of speed, variety of weapons and the personality of the course offer very little depth. What you see is what you get and there's nothing coming except more of the same. There's nothing about Arctic Thunder that simulates real snowmobile racing, which is why it could 've just as easily been done with boats and titled "Hydro Thunder II."
Gameplay: So easy even a child could dominate it during his or her lunch break. Easy to pick up and play but hard to continue playing once you realize there's no real challenge.
Graphics: Good enough to evoke a certain feeling, but with such simple gameplay and the Xbox behind it, Arctic Thunder should've tried to do more graphically.
Audio: You'll get more noise and stimulation out of your controller rumbling than you will from anything in the game.
Suggestions: cant really think of anything.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
ATV: Quad Power Racing 2
Overall: ATV: Quad Power Racing 2 is to the PS2's ATV Offroad Fury 2, as peas and carrots are to filet of Wild Virginia Bass with melted Savoy cabbage and Spanish caper emulsion. They're both foods that will feed and nourish you, but one is obviously more refined and sophisticated, offering up a more diverse palette of flavors and textures. If you're looking for an ATV game for your Xbox, you're out of luck. If you've got a PS2, go with ATV Offroad Fury 2. Quad Power Racing 2 offers some decent racing fun and can be enjoyed in short spurts, especially with a friend, but really isn't worth a buy.Gameplay: Been here done that gameplay and an unresponsive trick system bring this one down. It reminds me of a certain ps2 game that is overrated.... ;)
Graphics: Better than run-of-the mill graphics. Nothing more and nothing less. Just plain boring... compare it to that ps2 game i talked about above ;)
Audio: Licensed music is a pretty safe bet when you do this type of game. Some more defined ambient sounds would have helped, as well as a larger selection of bands
Suggestions: ... make it seem like something totally new. It just seems this has been done before WHICH IT HAS
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
Azurik: Rise of Perathia
Overall: dig games based on elemental powers like Nightcaster, but Azurik just couldn't bring all of the action adventure elements together that it needed to. The story is good enough, the gameplay mechanic of utilizing the right combo of elemental powers is definitely good enough but the camera control isn't tight enough and the levels aren't solid enough to compel any but the most dedicated Azurik fan to stay involved in this game. It's okay for Microsoft to put out niche titles that aren't everybody's cup of tea, but there can't be too many more first party games that have basic gameplay flaws like an uncooperative camera or illogical level design. Sega, Nintendo and Sony have always made sure that their games for their systems were well executed, even if the concept was way off. With Azurik, the concept may not be very original but it's certainly strong enough to warrant a game but it should've been a game that looks and works because its on the Xbox.
Gameplay: Evil camera system and random level design lead to a lot of frustration and tedium. Elemental power system is clever but poorly executed.
Graphics: Framerate is steady but the animations on the enemies and environmental textures betray the capabilities of the Xbox.
Audio: The music does its job of setting the mood but the sound effects on the bad guys and main character do not. Nice audio channel separation.
Suggestions: blech... that is all i have to say.
Overall Score: 6.0 / 10
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance
Overall: Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance is a fantastic game. There is a sense of overall refinement and polish that makes it hard not to like anything about it. It looks and sounds excellent, and plays even better. A true gem. What hurts this game's score is the fact that it is almost exactly the same game that was released last year, not that that's a bad thing. The game is a fine example of exceptional game-making. But an extra level or character, or really any added extras would've been great. But, like the old saying goes, if it aint broke, don't fix it.
If you've never played the PS2 version, I couldn't recommend this game enough. It's a rich, artistic game, full of nuance. For those of you who already own the PS2 version, dust off the cover and play it again. NOW.
Gameplay: What is not to love? Pick-up and play controls housed in an addictive shell set in the D&D unvierse. Awesome
Graphics: Exceptional in every aspect. The only thing lacking are next-gen Xbox effects. Now about that sequel...
Audio: Sometimes less is more. May not be for everyone but definitely sets the mood. Great voices too.
Suggestions: not bad... for a ps2 port.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Batman Vengeance
Overall: Batman Vengeance doesn't break any new ground on the Xbox nor doesn't try anything new. It's a good game that truly engrosses the player into the role of Batman while demonstrating simple, but well-designed gameplay mechanics. Though there's little to explore in this game and the length is a bit short (eight hours to finish), Batman Vengeance is a solid effort that fans of both action games and of the Dark Knight needn't wait for the signal to get.Gameplay: Mixing first and third person perspectives sounds cool, but it's not executed quite as cool. Still, nothing beats pummleing punks and driving the Batmobile.
Graphics: It keeps to the look and feel of the animated series and that's good. Unfortunately, the style is rather simple and a bit dull for a video game. Frame rate is super smooth and animation is well-done
Audio: A good mix of excellent voices and moody music. Sound effects are decent. not bad... but not that amazing.
Suggestions: SOMEONE MAKE AN OUTSTANDING BATMAN GAME... plz plz plz
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Kabuki Warriors
Overall: ok... wow i played this game at wal-mart or something and i left that store laughing.. it was the worst thing i had ever seen in my life.. i seriously think people on the forums here could make models better then that hahaha what a joke... i feel sorry for anyone that had to buy this.Gameplay: gameplay??? what gameply? oh u mean the button smashing... hoping u pull a retarded lame move??? ya i forgot all about that while laughing at how stupid the game looked.
Graphics: ummm visuals... if u wanna call it that... ok... i wonder if the maker was drunk out of his mind or if he was just putting some crap out to see how many retards would buy it.
Audio: i remember pong and pacman... they sounded just like this... no different really i mean this sound is just.... OLD AND CRAPPY!
Suggestions: .you
Overall Score: 2.0 / 10
TimeSplitters 2
Overall: Timesplitters 2 is definitely one of my favorite games ever. The stroyline is unique the graphics are unique and every part of this game is just something interesting and new. Some of the single players levels are a bit boring but it is pretty good altogether. There also is not that much of a storyline, just a bunch of events all trhough time and you go to that time and solve a problem. The controls also handle very well. Overall a well put together game and i am very happy with my purchase. Gameplay: The game is amazing. There is all sorts of different environments and tasks so really you get a taste of everything in this game. There are nine worlds and some are definitely better then others but in the end it makes for a pretty good single player experience. There are also like challengle levels where u have to kill like 500 guys to pass or break 20 windows with breaks in 30 seconds so there is lots to do single player. The multiplayer is where this game gets pretty fun. Lots of neat guns and the levels are great also you can put bots into the game and paly along with them so you will never be alone. NOW the biggest thing about this game in my opinion is the map maker. I have been waiting for a game to do this forever. It is not the easiet thing to control but once you get the hang of it it's REALLY neat and you can make single and multiplayer maps. VERY COOL!
Graphics: OK i am no graphic expert for this game but to me it seems they went away from the more realistic approach to a game and made the characters with more character and a little cartoon looking. I THINK IT LOOKS GREAT. Also the textures look really good in this game. I think they did a great job on the graphics in this title. It is something new and i think it would look good on lots of other games as well.
Audio: the music tracks in this game are great! They are catchy and they totally fit the mood depending on the level your on i think they are wicked! The sound effects of bullet blazing by your head, explosions, and yelling are GREAT i really think the sound effects are really well done. The voice acting is also VERY well done and the whole game is in surround sound so that just adds bonus marks.
Suggestions: Just makes the visuals a bit better.. more xbox standards and not ps2 or gcn.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Rallisport Challenge
Overall: wow! this is a great game! I am a bigger fan of the ralisport type racing then street racing or f1 or nascar. I think this game is by far the best ralisport out there and it just feels so realistic.Gameplay: The handling and everything is perfect. Depending on what type of road you are on the traction will be different and you will slide if it is slick. I really like the track where it is all ice and snow it makes u really handle your car with a lot of control and if you gun it to fast you will slide right off the road. The entire game just feels well put together. It is realistic but not to a point where it is just plain frustrating.
Graphics: The graphics in this game are truly amazing. It is amazing.. if u crash into a tree the leaves will fall. If you drive by an animal it will turn its head and watch you drive by. Every single detail was taken into acccount in this game. The ground looks amazing the textures are wicked. The cars look really good! they have all the decals and they have damage at the end of the race it just shows every single detail you could look for.
Audio: The soundtrack in this game is about the one thing that i did not like very much. It was pretty technoish but pretty bad overall. Putting in your own music would be better then listening to the main soundtrack. All the sounds are in 5.1 so that helps immerse you in the game much better. The one thing i would like to see is more noise from the cars and more road noise. That would make the sound effects that much more realistic.
Suggestions: Just make more road noise like rocks hitting cars and sand flying everywhere just better sound.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
NFL Blitz 2002
Overall: I used to play this game for countless hours back on N64... i was so happy to hear it was coming to the xbox with a whole new look and attitude! It is a great game for the box but not too much has changed. There is amazing new graphics and that is about it... except for the many new tackle animations. Great new look but almost the exact same game.Gameplay: Blitz is super-addictive, and that's primarily due to its wide-open, action-oriented gameplay. It's a blend of real football and all-star wrestling. Playing it feels a little like attending a monster truck rally. It's football on both steroids and speed. It's what would happen if we genetically enhanced football players. The great thing about Blitz is that it lives in a world on the boundary of real sport. It doesn't have to pretend to be the most realistic experience in the world, and that's refreshing. It doesn't have to brag about its AI or talk about its franchise mode. But it does have to be fun. The one thing that really lacks is the running game... you still cannot hand it off and watch ur RB bust through the line! all of them are tosses out to the side and the guy runs.
Graphics: The player models look exceptionally good and set the tempo for the rest of the graphics. Like NFL Fever, a ton of detail went into every inch of every player. Arms have veins and the mesh on the jerseys look almost real. Musclulature is exagerrated but not offensively so. And where the original Blitz sported only a couple different sizes of players, this one has a lot of variation. The stadiums also look amazing which is really a shock for an arcade game. The only real problem is clipping. You cannot tell very well in the normal game but when you go to see your replays you can see hands going right through each other and two helmets becoming one... but hey you can not notice it during normal gameplay so no biggy.
Audio: Well there is the new announcing team! We have our usual guy and a new guy accompanying him... i do not remember their names lol. The sound is typcial blitz style... lots of noise in crowds player talking smack and those poor players that get crushed saying their final words :).
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee
Overall: This game is pretty interesing. The tasks you must do are unique and are not like a typcial game of this genre where u collect coins or rings and free people. It is more complex and makes for a more interesting game. It is a unique idea and even though it is not a stunning or really amazing game it is still a strong title that many can enjoy. Gameplay: The gameplay is where this game lacks the most to me. The jumping is just annoying! Something that would take you like two seconds normally will take you a lot longer just because the jumping is so wierd because it is so fast and u jump VERY high. Also some of the earlier stages are just plain boring... they are too easy and that just does not help to get someone into a game. It has got to be great off the bat.. something addictive. Also for the first bit the storyline is kind of all over the place... you get to these lovely cut scenes and you wonder how the heck you go to where you are! It just does not make sense a lot of the time.
Graphics: The little differences are what make the graphics in this game good a level may not look dense, but watch the lighting as it plays over characters and structures. Clouds leave shadows on the ground, the water reflects when under the direct glare of the sun, and tons of characters appear onscreen without a single notice in the frame rate. But it is hard to notice with the camera so far out when you are playing... they do many things right but the worlds are just kind of boring as well as the character models.
Audio: The voices in this game are very well done. Most of the sound effects are well done as well and help add to the cartoony dark world type of game you are in. The music is like none exsistent really... only during really tense times will you hear music start up that is quite bad and you get really sick of later.
Suggestions: Make the game more exciting... the tasks are kind of boring and the game gets repitive... there is almost no replay value.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Outlaw Golf
Overall: This game is so much fun i have rented it like 3 times now and if i had money i would buy it! This is the best golf game i have ever played. The game is so much fun with the great characters and funny announcer. The composure meter is a great idea but i find it does not effect the game too much. The only real complaint i have is that there should be more courses.Gameplay: Controls are relatively straightforward. You can zoom in to the location where a ball will land, change clubs easily, and see a gridline of the grass to judge putts. Prior to swinging the club, you can choose how the ball will be hit. Move the aiming cursor to draw the ball or lob a shot with spin. Club swing doesn't require any timing as far as button pressing goes. Instead, you pull back on the right thumbstick for power and then push forward to let the club fly. Shanking occurs when you don't push the thumbstick straight up. A little to one side or the other will keep you from getting good club on the ball. Putting is handled in an interesting way as well. When you've lined up a putt to your satisfaction, press the X button to see the path of the ball. Then adjust your shot as necessary. You can press the X button three times for a putt, allowing you several chances to best align your putt. You still have to get the power right and not miss-hit the ball, so it's not an automatic assurance you'll make a shot that's lined up properly.
Graphics: There's some nice character designs in OG and each character has plenty of costumes to choose from. The grass looks very good and the scenery is great too. The water looks nice and the animation on the characters when they hit the ball looks very nice as well... overall very well done.
Audio: The characters voices and the announcer in this game are very good. The announcer is pretty funny but after a while i guess he could get kind of annoying... haha and sometimes what the characters say do make me laugh. Just about everything they say is funny. And the ambient sound is pretty good as well with the trains and planes overheard!
Suggestions: DEFINITELY MORE COURSES!
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Hunter: The Reckoning
Overall: MANY GAMES focus on a great single player experience but do not concentrate on making games that are fun and challenging for four players. Hunter is one of those exceptions as it makes single player a wicked game and then allows you to add 3 more buddies to make an awesome gaming experience. The story is great and the game is quite addictive. You will be hooked after beating the first boss it truly is quite an amazing game.Gameplay: Very easy game to get into and man is it addictive! Each of the four characters has their own melee and long range weapon... they are pretty weak but are great little weapons... you gotta play the game a little more different with each character while racking up experience points to make ur character a better fighter. And the special powers called "Edges" are also an amazing part of this game. The weapons in this game are also very very good!
Graphics: Hunter has a variety of different environments, from subways to a church to sewers to a haunted prison. Each environment is unique and has its own feel. Some of the monsters vary between environments, but not to too great of a degree. There are some destructible objects, including cars and gas tanks that can be blown up to kill a good number of nearby enemies. Deaths are sweet, with zombies taking head and gut shots, getting decapitated, quartered, and disintegrated. It is hard to see the greap graphics from such a far away view but when it gets in close u can see the amazing detail in the game. And the environments are pretty wicked as well.
Audio: The music reflects the action aspect of the game, with some great, pumping tracks that do a fine job of kicking up the adrenaline.
A lot of the sounds in the game are done very well, such as the rap of gunfire and the boom of explosions. The tap of footsteps is clean and realistic, and you can hear the Hunter pulling out a weapon, reloading, and grunting as they're damaged. But the soundtrack and zombie noises are so loud that they drown out the smaller touches (like the footsteps). Of course, the report of a gun should be loud, so I can't really fault the game for making it overpower some of the other sounds. Still, a little more atmospheric sound would have been nice.
Suggestions: Make the game a little longer... a bit to short and also maybe deathmatch for multiplayer????
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Enclave
Overall: A pretty strong game ... much more than i expected when i was reading about it. A solid storyline guides you through a game that is set wayyyy back in time... the way they made these environments is amazing it really sucks u right into the game and gets u in the mood! The fighting is fun but does get a bit repetitive and annoying at times... but really it is quite a solid product!Gameplay: The gameplay if done right could have made this a killer game but unfortunately it is kind of sloppy in many places... two things that really bug me are the jumping controls and climbing ladders. Some ladders are high enough to hurt you if you fall, but it seems there is no way possible to climb down those annoying ladders. This could have been avoided with a little more love and tender care. For the jumping I for one am not a fan of the right thumb stick button as a jumping mechanism. It is often too difficult to jump and move at the same time. There is an option to change it so the A button is the jump button, but even this doesn't feel right. They should have kept the A button as the toggle through weapons activation and used the vacant B button as the jump button. Instead, they mix things up two much and with only two controller options to choose from, you'll have to spend some extra time in order to learn these somewhat sloppy controls.
Graphics: This is by far the strongest part of the game. The details and models are quite nice The walls are very finely detailed, where every wall and design seems to be unique. While this is not true, the game does have very well designed castles, where moss and stones on the castle walls seem to capture the true feeling of a medieval kingdom. The characters are also very well done, with scars, cuts in clothing, and blood marks found all over the characters skin. Not only is the detail high, but also the player models are nice and smooth, giving them a very realistic look to them, rather than the box look so commonly found in past generation machines. This game truly brings out the feeling of medieval times through its lush and finely crafted maps and objects.
Despite the games beauty, the animations are well below par. The hack and slash animations are very repetitive, where the characters seemed to be limited to one motion of attack for their strikes.
Audio: Enclave have some pretty bad music sadly... it just sounds like some no talent loser hitting keys on a keyboard. Nothing special at all really. The score sounds over-the-top at times, getting increasingly climatic, only to disappoint when it starts to sound too much like a videogame again. The compositions are complex and the different instrument sounds are almost limitless, but the music does not seem to fit this game that well.
Mind you the fighint sounds of swords and bow and arrows are not bad at all... really gets u feeling right in there!
Suggestions: Definitely work on the controls they are quite annoying... and plz put in a multiplayer and also get some good music in their like halo :)
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Fifa World Cup 2002
Overall: This is a pretty strong soccer game but there is just something lacking. First thing missing is that there is only the international teams and no club teams. YES I KNOW it is a fifa WORLD CUP game but that really takes away a lot of the fun... not being able to do leagues and stuff. Also there is like no modes... so that really does not help the replay value a whole lot. It is a pretty strong and fun soccer game but it just gets old to quick... A typical soccer game that we have seen many years before! they really need to change things up more.Gameplay: The gameplay is pretty solid. It is good but COME ON ! There is really hardly any differences compared to past years. There is nothing wrong with it but i think it is about time that we saw something new! Like a new way of doing corner kicks and throw ins! i mean it is has been that way since like fifa 96 on sega!
Graphics: The graphics are pretty good... i mean really they just look identical to the pc version and do not look that impressive... Pretty good player models and stadiums but nothing that will wow you here.
Audio: The sound is pretty good. The commentating IMO is somewhat annoying... i mean the guys are just too annoying. THE CROWD AND STADIUM AMBIENCE IS GREAT sounds like a world cup match! the crowd reacts very well to the action on the pitch.
Suggestions: Lets get a big overhaul in the gameplay and try to wow us with some high detail graphics... and don't forget online is coming in ;)
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
James Bond 007: Agent Under Fire
Overall: This game is pretty well done, but i am pretty disappointed. Compared to the legend goldeneye, it is pretty medicore... for the xbox this game should be a lot better then goldeneye but it is not. It is pretty good in single player but i think that the multiplayer was extremely lacking.Gameplay: The gameplay is pretty good. I suggest change your controls to the 2nd type so that it is like Halo, the deafault controls are HORRIBLE! The gameplay is ok but i think that there is too many gaps between action.. it just seems to lack a lot. Not bad though it is pretty creative. ALSO the bullets going so slow that you could dodge them is VERY ANNOYING!
Graphics: The grapchics are good in some places and bad in others... i think when you are outdoors they look really well done and usually indoors they are pretty well done as well. But in some of the buildings they look pretty draggy. Also a lot of the character models look very bad... the face of the main character looks horrible. Overall not that bad i guess.
Audio: This is the best part of the game. The sounds are really good and i enjoyed the music and sound effects a lot. They are really well done and i love hearing the james bond theme :) This is very well done. A bit more and better voice acting is the only thing that needs improvement.
Suggestions: Fix up the gameplay... make the bullets normal and just make it more exciting... it is kind of boring .. ALSO make the multiplayer maps bigger and more snipe spots.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Amped: Freestyle Snowboarding
Overall: This game is a VERY GOOD snowboarding game. I have played every other snowboarding game on the xbox and i think this one may be the best. The ultimate goal of becoming the first in the world is very hard to achieve and you will spend many hours perfecting your boarding skills trying to get to the top of the ladder of success. I love all the challenges that they supply you with, getting a high score, getting media points, beating a pro, and getting sponsored. There is TONS to do in this game and it will definitely take a while for you to completely beat the game. The game is almost glitch free, the only problem i saw was sometimes my boarder would be almost upside down and he would still land it, i am sure that it is impossible. The whole game run really smooth and the grinds in the game are very well done. Gameplay: The gameplay is very well done in this title. The grinding system as i said above is very well done and it gives you a good sense of control when ur sliding on logs or ramps, it does not just slide you down it leaving you praying that you land it. I have to admit that it does take quite a while for you to get used to the controls and the way all the tricks are pulled, but once you get the hang of it this game can become a blast. The mountains are HUGE so you can go anywhere u would like on the mountain and almost never feel like you are restricted to where you are going. The game just fits together well and you will spend lots of time having fun with this one. Also there is tons of ways to customize your boarder with different brands of equipment and logos everywhere, all of which you have to earn, this makes the game longer and that much better.
Graphics: The graphics are VERY well done in this game. The models of all the boarders are really solid and when they are going down the hill you can see their belts fly with the wind and the snow fly up into the camera. It looks just like a snowboarding event on t.v. THE BEST part of the game is the mountains... You look at those mountains and think you are actually out on a hill, THEY LOOK AMAZING! I have always wanted to have a good game with a good looking background set and this game definitely has done just that. The only complaint i really have in the graphics department is that the media on the hill watching you does not look as detailed as the boarders to me, but that just may be me.
Audio: The sounds here is exactly what you could ask for. There is very good music on the cd itself and they are very good tunes that can go along with your snowboarding experience. But what obviously makes the sound in this game is that you can put your own music into the game!!!! That is enough to keep anyone satisfied.
Suggestions: Some better multiplayer modes would be a good addition, also making a few more challenges for each hill would be good.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Spider-Man
Overall: OK this is the best game i have seen based on a movie/ cartoon. It is VERY well done and you get a good feeling of being just like spidey! The cut scenes help to complete the feel of the game and it is very entertaining. The training modes are very well done and help you to get used to the controls very quickly. The whole game is just very entertaining.Gameplay: The gameplay is very good. It is a very exciting game and very few parts of the game are tedious or boring. I found that all the controls and everything were layed out very well. The one thing that annoyed me was that the camera was very bad on certain parts... it would show behind you and not was in front of you... that was annoying. But overall for such complex moves and so many of them the gameplay moves along very well and I think makes the game what it is. Many past games like this have major flaws in the gameplay that take away from the games quality, this is the one major thing that made this game what it was!
Graphics: The graphics are also very well done. They are not AMAZING but they are very well done. When you are fighting out in the skies of new york the buildings and streets below just look awesome. The character models are also very well done. Textures also add to the whole visual look. I think that the models could be improved a little but I think they are definitely done very well. AND the cutscenes look gorgeous... you would think you are watching the real movie (WHICH btw i will be seeing tommorrow for a special sneak preview) The graphics in this game are absolutely superb.
Audio: The sounds in this game are also very well done. The trash talking between characters is great. Although sometimes it does get a little repetitive but it is pretty well done. All the sound in the game are done by the actors in the real movie which is an added bonus. Also bad guys yelling commands to each other are also very good "Web slinger's here!" HAHAHA! The sounds just make this game all the more realistic!
Suggestions: Make the game a little longer and some sort of multiplater would be good...OTHER THEN THAT a very well done game, i am very impressed!
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
SSX Tricky
Overall: This game is soooo !&%$@#* fun! all the sweet tricks look amazing and the variety is huge!!! The characters are all unique and the voice acting and trash talk is pretty good as well! This game is great!!Gameplay: The gameplay is sweet.... do tricks to boost ur turbo and then blast off past ur opponents, or u can push em down and pull off one of your super sweet uber tricks!!!! HAHA the moves and the whole game system works wonderful!
Graphics: The graphics are good.... i must say i saw this game being played on xbox and game cube at the same time and the xbox seriously did look better. The graphics are good but they could be better.... better looking people... more vivid environments But the graphics do suit the game.
Audio: The sound is amazing! The voice acting is the best and the music is quite good too!!!! I LOVE WHEN U GET FULL BOOST!!! the tricky song rules!!! "it's tricky, it's
Suggestions: More levels.. huger jumps and better graphics!
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Fuzion Frenzy
Overall: This is a pretty good game! yet i think that the good ol' mario party series is much better! I think the games in mario party were much better and it also had the gameboard so that made the mini games kind of a side thing... this game needs like a base.Gameplay: The games are pretty fun but some of them when you have to use the tanks the game is just boring becuase the tanks move so slow... pretty good games in there too but not as fun or hilarious as the ones in mario party. Pretty fun with friends.
Graphics: ummm well it is a party game so i would not expect much, but the games look good and the models look good, nothing wrong but nothing amazing.
Audio: The sounds are ok... putting in ur own music is sweet! But the stupid characters voices are pretty annoying like zack!!! overall pretty good though!
Suggestions: we need more games and maybe a base like u have to travel around a board like in mario party... i just don't think relying on the mini games is a good idea.
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Wreckless: The Yakuza Mission
Overall: This game is pretty !&%$@#* interesting... it is like a whole new concept and i think they made some good choices when they made this game. The missions are hard, but interesting. The graphics are very well done and the game just gets you interested very quickly. I find the learning curve to be a little high but once you get the hang of it, it's a ball.Gameplay: As i said the missions and then fun you can have with this game is amazing. You can complete the mission or just go all out and try to make an amazing looking replay!!
The game is fun as hell and even though the missions are hard i think that the game is fun!
Graphics: Ok this is hard to say... the graphics are good... but it is hard to tell since it seems as though alot of the environments are so dark. I also think they could have made some of the buildings look a little better... but pretty !&%$@#* good overall.
Audio: The sounds are.... ok. I find the voices in the cut scenes sound like people who really did not want to do this but were just doing it because they were paid to do it... also the car sounds are not amazing.
Suggestions: There is not enough missions we definitely need more... and maybe make the game a bit brighter.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
NFL Fever 2002
Overall: This game is pretty !&%$@#* cool and it is my favorite football game of all time! It plays really well and it actually involves some skill and thinking, were as previous ones just looked like ur defence just ran wherever. I love the feel of the game and i just think it is more realistic then other games.Gameplay: The gameplay is wicked! There are tons of special moves u can do! the juke, spin, stiff arm, EVERYTHING and my fave, the shoulder tackle! also the thing that really got me to like the gameplay is THIS GAME IS THE FIRST I HAVE PLAYED that has realistic interceptions! often in other games *cough* madden *cough* where they just sit there and let the ball hit their chest or look like butterfingers! this is great.... haah my friend had the ball bounce of 2 guys helmets and then he dove and caught it!!! haha great gameplay!
Graphics: The graphics are pretty !&%$@#* good! During stoppage in play the models look amazing! they could look a little better during play but i think they are very well done.
Audio: The sound is were this falls.... i mean the big lineman talking trash to the others team qb is great and the crunches are good but the commentary is brutal... for ex: "that ball was caught by... *dead air* RICE!!!" yeah that is bad.. but other then that pretty good.
Suggestions: Better training mode.... and MUCH better commentary.. i bet u could make graphics even more amazing too!
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
Jet Set Radio Future
Overall: OK FIRST OFF DO NOT LISTEN TO PSYCHO DUDE'S REVIEW i played it with him... he cannot appreciate a wicked game :) THIS GAME IS FUN! It is just plain great, the missions are fun and i got hooked pretty easily. You can have a ton of fun with this one.If you have the money then buy this game... i would if i had $$$$
Gameplay: The gameplay moves along super fast and you can have a lot fun sliding rails and doing spins in the air, it is a ball! I do not understand why there was points for tricks but i did not get that far in the game.
Graphics: This is like a revolution in graphics, it is cartoony cel shading but it looks so !&%$@#* good! Even though it is cartoon you do not even realize it once you get really into the game! Also making your own grafitti can be a blast!
Audio: The sound is wicked! PSYCHO DUDE said the music sucked, he is wrong! this music is amazing and i was dancing while playing! WOOOOOOOO!
The sound rocks and i love it!
Suggestions: Make them fall.... landing everything is kind of bad... but i love the way the grind system works.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
WWF Raw
Overall: This game is pretty good if you are a fan of wrestling. This is like a simulation, NOT AN ARCADE GAME!!!! The game is very realistic in my view. I enjoy the game very much and I think it is a good buy if you love wrestling games.Gameplay: The gameplay moves along very well. The game is fun mulitplayer and i think the grappling and the reversal system work very well. Sometimes the reverse system can be annoying, when u grapple u can either do and x move or an A move, Say u press up and A, if ur friend just presses A your move does not happen, that can be very annoying.
Graphics: THE GRRAPHICS ARE AMAZING!!! I really cannot think of anything wrong with the graphics at all. The entrances look amazing and the characters look just like they do in real life.
Audio: The sounds are pretty !&%$@#* good, Everything is good but the only things wrong are that all the wrestlers grunts and moans are pretty similar or sound horrible, also it was very disapointing that you could not put your own music into the game for your created wrestlers entrance.
Suggestions: Just add in more types of matches AND LET US USE OUR OWN MUSIC! This could be a wicked series.
Overall Score: 8.0 / 10
Halo: Combat Evolved
Overall: This game RULES! i have played all those other shooters like goldeneye and perfect dark and metal gear solid. I LIKE THIS ONE BEST! The single player although short can be VERY hard if u crank the difficulty up. The multiplayer is WICKED! there are pre-set modes and then you can create ur own multiplayer mode THIS CAN LAST FOREVER!!!! The game is just fun i bought it with my x-box and i still play it, even more then my newer games.ALSO internet play on gamespy arcade IS ABSOLUTELY WICKED! sometimes it is a bit laggy but if you find the right room you will have a frickin blast!
Gameplay: The game is wicked, the weapons are awesome the mood is great and they just make u feel like you are in the game. There is a new control system in it which i LOVE, the left joystick is ur movement and the right one is your look. The game is fun and fast paced and the controls are perfect.
Graphics: The graphics are AMAZING! The models of the people look great, i remember seeing the captain in the game for the first time and my jaw dropped. Everything looks great, try looking at the grass and you will be shocked at how real even the GRASS looks. The only negative on the graphics is some of the monsters could look a little better, some of the smaller ones just look like little kiddies... More scary would be better.
Audio: THE SOUNDS ARE AMAZING! The monster's sceaming and grunting, your weapons firing, your footsteps, EVERYTHING IS DEAD ON! I highly suggest playing this with surround sound... it is just amazing!
Suggestions: A few more weapons would be nice and i would enjoy some more vehicles... other then that just make the monster's more detailed and scary and you will have yourself a legend!
Overall Score: 10.0 / 10
NHL Hitz 2002
Overall: The game is pretty well done for an arcade game. Although i think the best arcade sports game would have to be nfl blitz. This game is a big improvement in arcade hockey games and is actually quite fun.Gameplay: The game runs smooth and there is no awkward glitches or wierd movements. The game has interesting things in it such as fire and team fire. The goals are often more realistic then most arcade games, unlike past ones the game is not set to let u score goals every 5 shots or something, the shot is taken and what happens, happens it is not preset.
Graphics: The graphics are pretty well done, for an arcade sports game. I personally find nhl 2002's better. The players look very good but they all seem a bit to similar to me. The fans look great and that is an added bonus. Although i am disapointed that the arenas are so small and not very detailed.
Audio: The sounds are very well done, all of the hitz sound realistic and the sound of your player hitting the puck for a slapshot sounds great. There is the ability to put ur music in the game, BUT IT IS ONLY FOR THE MENUS which i find is a rip off. The announcer is ok but i find is very annoying, it is just like the one in wayne gretzky's hockey on n64.
Suggestions: Let's see some better graphics because i know they can get better, and also let's get some better looking arenas AND PLZ LET US PUT OUR MUSIC IN THE GAME NOT JUST THE MENUS!
Overall Score: 7.0 / 10
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3
Overall: OK even though i have not bought the game i rented it 2 times and my friend once... so i have played it ALOT! Ok as far as the graphics go... i did not think they were spectacular... the skaters looked about the same as 2x and the same as thps3 on ps2. The area where I noticed the improvement was the environments, the textures were MUCH better looking in this version and the effects were good... like fog and lava and stuff. Although i did notice SLIGHT fps drops when u see these amazing effects.
Single Player - OK if u r HARDCORE on tony hawk.. this is a wicked single player game! I found it awfully hard, getting some of the sick scores was like impossible, BUT alot of he goals are actually quite fun to do and i loved it. Add in ur own music and ur own skater and u can have a blast!
multiplayer - This is where i am disapointed, i mean i don't know maybe it is just me, but i find multiplayer VERY BORING, mind u over the net it may be ok using gamespy. But as for at home with buds, i found it kind of boring... but hey my friends sucked :)
Create a park - OK THIS IS AMAZING!!! this is very well done they have tons of stuff in it and u can make some wicked stuff... i only wish u could change the look of the level.. like not have the background pre-set but hell.. that would be tough. OVERALL the create a park rules!
OVERALL - Ok this game is VERY well done... if u like skating alot and like tony hawk... BUY IT! if u r unsure i would rent first but trust me u will have a good time!
Gameplay: So as i said... The gameplay is great. The new tricks are wicked and i just feel that the whole trick system is improved in the way that u can link ur moves together... very interesting way to make the game seem fresh again!
Graphics: skaters look same old same old... but the environments and textures look much much better! The skaters looking quite similar is the only thing that really disapoints me here!
Audio: SOUNDS ARE GREAT! the way ur board hits the pavement and the sound of u ollie'ing also the thing that makes the sound in this game... U CAN PUT UR OWN MUSIC IN! i love that!
Suggestions: Make the Skater models a little better looking... they look tired in such a great looking environment.
Overall Score: 9.0 / 10
