SonicMTD game reviews.

[SonicMTD]

Title: The Suffering Prison is hell
Platform: XBOX, PS2 (Version Tested)
Genre: Survival/Action Horror, FPS/3rdPS, Puzzle.
ESRB:M (+17)
Release: 03/09/2004
Developer: Surreal Software
Multiplayer: No
Online Play: No

The Suffering is part one of a two part series. It takes place on a small island called Carnate located in Maryland, USA. When you start the game you are briefly given back story to the events that have happened to your character, Torque. Torque is a man who was just sentenced to death row for the murder of his wife and his two sons, Torque claims he blacked out. At first, Torque is just sitting in his cell listening to the other death row cell mates argue amongst themselves. After a few minutes Carnate Penitentiary starts shaking almost as though the appearance of our Anti Hero has caused this, and one by one some sort of monster kills the death row inmates, which in the end sets you free from your cell. Will Torque be saved? Will he find out what happened to his family? Strap yourselves in because, your about to find out.

The Graphics in The Suffering are pulled off quite well, as a great detail of light and shadow are used to convey the darkness surrounding you, and give you the feeling that the enemy can jump out from where ever. As well, the blood splatter is done terrifically, You will often find yourself in love with engaging the enemy only to find your character coming out of that battle covered from head to toe in the enemies blood. however the character rendering isn't very advanced and seems like the same old crap we have seen before. The Sound is also a crucial part of the gaming experience, the music and sound used in The Suffering adds even more to the already scary atmosphere, which will cause many to be shaking in there shoes.

One of The Sufferings most unique features is it gives the player the ability to decide the ending for themselves. As Torque explores Carnate he comes across survivors who he can decide to either help them get off the island, do nothing and let them die, or kill them himself. All of which will lead to one out of three endings. Torque is also haunted throughout the game by his dead family who although dead, will not rest in peace in Torques mind which once again gives the player an ?Oh my f***in god. What the F*** is that!!!? moment. As Torque progresses through a quarter of the game he is introduced to Dr. Killjoy, who was originally an estranged doctor that inhabited Carnate many years ago using humans for his experiments. Although he has passed on, Dr. Killjoy speaks to Torque through film projectors, guiding him through this ordeal. When Torque meets Killjoy for the first time, Killjoy teaches him to lose control of his sanity causing him to transform into a terrible creature capable of taking down most enemies and survivors with one hit. Although the concept of Transforming to a terrible creature seems interesting it?s just better just to gun your whole way through the game, as it is easier to take out monsters with shotguns and Tommy guns, plus while you are transformed you will not be able to use health which will come in the form of prescription drugs (don?t do drugs kids).

Contributing to Carnates deep dark past, the enemies in The Suffering are manifestations for all the tragedies that have happened, for example the Mainliner is a character with hundreds of syringes in its body which of course represents lethal injection. Torque will be up against many creatures and will have to come up with individual strategies on how to take each one down.

Although The Suffering has a decent story, game play is a whole other story. From time to time your character will have to do certain things like operate a crane in order to make a bridge to cross the other side of a pit. Although this sounds good on paper pulling it off is like Ben Roethlisberger on a motorcycle, messy. One of the problems of The Suffering, is it?s a jack-of-all-trades master of none, it has a good, story, decent characters, and solid environments but unfortunately that?s all the game has. Puzzle solving is more of a hassle than it is fun, it can be very lagy, you will backtrack a lot (move from prison to asylum then back to prison, rinse lather repeat), and you will find yourself constantly checking the map in order to find out where you need to go next. Weapons in the game range from your standard melee weapon (bedpost used as a knife), to machine turrets which is good because you have a wide range of killing tools, however believability is not the case when it comes to the weapon selection seeing as your character is only wearing a shirt and pants but has over fifteen weapons stored on him. The game has no Auto save feature which means players will constantly have to save when they can or they have to continue from the checkpoints.

Verdict
Pros: Great story, creepy as hell, good repayability, fantastic audio, nice environments, and you decide the story.
Cons: La?g, transforming not worth it, lots of backtracking, puzzles are annoying, no Auto save.

I give The Suffering Prison is hell 8.1/10

 

[SonicMTD]

Title: Tom Clancys Splinter Cell: Double Agent
Platform: XBOX360, XBOX, PS2 ( Version Tested), GC, Wii, PC
Genre: Action, Stealth, 3rdPS, Tactical.
ESRB:M (+17)
Release: Oct 27, 2006
Developer: Ubisoft
Multiplayer: Yes (Varies with console)
Online Play: Yes (Varies with console)

Good god! I finally finished. Anyway I hope you enjoy this review

Normally when it comes to video games I tend to steer clear of the Splinter Cell Franchise not because I don?t like the series but more along the lines of having a weird record of beating every single game in less than a day. Will this be the same? Who knows, but you?re about to find out in my review in Tom Clancy?s Splinter Cell: Double Agent for the PS2.

In this game our hero, Sam Fisher?s life really starts to take a turn for the worse. I mean sure being a spy for the NSA is difficult where you have to deal with armed terrorists, defusing bombs, making sure no one sees you, and hanging off ledges for an absurd amount of time, but in this one, Sam?s family life is the problem?. After getting back from a mission in Iceland, Sam?s personal friend and leader of third echelon, Colonel Irving Lambert tells Sam that his daughter Sarah Fisher was killed by a drunk driver. Sam obviously distraught about what has happened to Sarah becomes a living wreck. Lambert thinking it?s the only way to make Sam get over Sarah?s death, decided to give Sam one of the toughest missions of his career?.. Infiltrate a terrorist group known as the JBA (John Browns Army) and destroy it from the inside.

The first level, Sam starts off in Iceland fulfilling the mission that will take him down a dark and lonely road. Here the player learns the basics of playing the game: Hiding in the shadows, moving quietly, disabling lights/motion sensors, climbing, using equipment, taking out enemies? lethally/non lethally and interrogation. But new to most players who don?t play Multiplayer are the team aspects in the game, in certain parts Sam will need to rely on someone?s help (and vise versa) to do things like climb a ledge that would normally be difficult for one person. Just like opening a door, Sam will have to either stand under the object or wait for your partner to and chose to pull off actions which are pretty cool considering Sam will rely on other people now. Sam also learns that a special weapon that can make a thermonuclear bomb the size of a baseball known as Red Mercury was bought by a man named Emile Dufraisne who is the leader of the JBA.

After Sam extracts and hears of the horrible news, Lambert sends him to prison were he is given the task of befriending a psychopathic member of the JBA called Jamie Washington. During the second mission, Sam is introduced to a new feature in the Splinter cell franchises ?the trust meter? in other words, during missions Sam?s actions determine how the game plays out. If he?s in favor of the NSA he will get more non lethal equipment like the traditional SC 20K attachments sticky shocker, ring air foil round and sticky camera, were as if he?s in favor of the JBA he will receive more lethal weapons like the sniper and shotgun attachments to the SC 20K and frag grenades.

Players new to the franchise will have a hard time at first by doing things like accidentally setting off motion sensors or running into a room you think is clear only to find two or three guards with semi automatic weapons pointed at you, etc.

Even though Double Agent has a great story and good game play, it?s pretty clear this game was intended for next gen consoles rather than the PS2, Xbox and Gamecube seeing as the PS2, Xbox and Gamecube versions are just a rushed attempt to cash in on a Splinter Cell game!. First of all graphics are pretty bad I mean I know the next gen stuff is good but come on Ubisoft! At least make an attempt for us gamers who want to wait till the next gen consoles come down in price! I mean my god Sam can at least look a little bit better then he does in this game. Secondly the older (PS2, Xbox and Gamecube) versions don?t even have the same missions and same characters as the next gen ones!. Why do the next gen games have different characters! Stanly Dayton (next gen) for BJ Sykes (current gen), Cole Yeager is a bad guy plotting to overthrow Emile (current gen) Now he?s a helicopter pilot who gets his chopper stolen by Sam and Jamie while escaping prison! (Next gen) dude WTF. Plus the next gen version comes with???wait for it??..Three Multiple Ending based on morality (a common theme I have with my reviews). You also get game over if you slant to far to one side(JBA, NSA). The current gen version has only one ending! Making it not matter how evil or good you are you just have to back track to a computer so can show your mission progress to Emile or your superior (director Williams) if you slant too far to one side.

Verdict

Pros
Same great game play we all know and love, Story is as great as usual, you get to be evil and co-op play is as fun as allways.

Cons
Weak graphics, one ending making being bad not worth it, no spy vs mercs online, characters and the story are not the same as the next gen ?.. just shoot me!

Final Word
A rushed game from Ubisoft, so just buy the next gen console if you want to have a great "Double Agent" experience. Now where did I put MGS3?.....

I give Tom Clancy?s Splinter Cell: Double Agent for the PS2 a 7.1/10

 

[SonicMTD]

Title: Black
Platform: XBOX, PS2 (Version Tested)
Genre: Action, FPS
ESRB: M (+17)
Release: Feb 28, 2006
Developer: Electronic Arts, Criterion Games
Multiplayer: None
Online Play: None

When I originally heard Electronic Arts was making a major FPS I was a bit skeptical. I know they were responsible for the James Bond game franchises, but I was still not taken in to major hype surrounding the game itself. Is Black as good as they say? Or am I just wasting my time with another review? Who knows honestly but anyway here?s my review of Black for the PS2.

Well as the old saying goes: ?Whenever you have a problem it?s always best to stick to your guns?. Well if that?s the case strap yourself in because you?re going to have a shit load of problems! Black puts you in the role of Sergeant Jack Keller. Keller starts the game being in shackles while being interrogated by some hot shot CIA guy who looks like Dick Cheney. Basically each and every mission in Black is a flashback of all the stuff Keller had to do in order to get to where he is now, which is kind of weird if you die during the missions because your having a flashback, if you die does it cause some sort of rift in the time space continuum?

Right off from the get go you will discover Black is beautiful, (I mean it! It actually looks like a next gen game) everything the guns, the explosions, the destruction, it?s so beautifully rendered you will just love to play this game Oh and did I forget to mention nearly everything is destructible. The Audio is also every bit as entertaining, you will love the sounds of everything from the RPG to the common pistol, my god do I love the sound of explosions in the morning, it sounds like freedom.

The first level of the game is your common tutorial level located in some bombed out, terrorists occupied city where you will learn the basics of everything from aiming, firing, zooming in, grenades, melee attacks, using health packs, and blowing up doors with a shotgun (that?s right no more opening doors kids it?s hip to shoot them open) etc. Most people are probably wondering if Black has something different than most FPS games, something that makes it truly unique, well kids the answer is simple. The enemies are F**king impossible! No I don?t mean the A.I. is really advanced I mean it?s impossible to kill them. I consider this a good thing after all you get harder enemies causing you to empty more bullets than those wimpy three hit kill games. I personally had to empty two clips (M16 2 clips = 190 bullets) to defeat a shotgun enemy no headshots. Black does a really good job at setting tension and atmosphere if you?re low on health you will hear you characters heart beat and if you?re one shot away from dying the screen goes black and white and the audio becomes quieter. It?s a pretty cool feature however all your have to do to become normal is hide for a few seconds and things go back to normal unless you get hit again then it goes black and white again.

Throughout the missions you basically have to become Americas clean up man by completing secondary objectives (That?s right your Americas *****). Some of the secondary objectives are pretty funny though for example since Criterion (sound familiar?.... Burnout!) Had a part in the making of this game, in one of the missions you will destroy a blackmail objective that contains Burnout rendering secrets.

Although this is a pretty good game it does have minor problems, first of all the enemies with shields are near impossible to kill even hurling a grenade doesn?t kill them, don?t you think the force of a grenade would be enough to take down a guy with body armor? I think so but some enemies guard themselves completely from damage because they have a shield. Secondly the ending is kind of a let down, you spend hours trying to beat the game and when you finally do you get treated to an ending that?s basically a to be continued message because you don?t know what happens to Keller (you know what could happen but it doesn?t show it) after the interrogation. Did I forget to mention Black doesn?t have good replay ability? Sure you can unlock silver weapons (Unlimited Ammo) and Black ops mode (Same as Hard but you collect everything from the missions). But honestly you will get very bored seeing as the only difference in the difficulties are the number of health packs that are around, the number of them you can carry and the number of secondary objectives you must complete.

Verdict

Pros:
Fantastic audio and graphics, visual effects are well done, funny secondary objectives, lots and lots of pulse pounding firefights, lots of weapons to choose from.

Cons:
Same old FPS experience, no ending, not a lot of replay ability, A.I. is the same regardless of difficulty.

Final Word:
EA made a pretty decent FPS. Black doesn?t really live up to the hype but its good enough for FPS fans. Black 2 is currently underdevelopment as I speak.

I give Black for the PS2 a 7.8/10

 

[SonicMTD]

Title: Indigo Prophecy (a.k.a. Fahrenheit).
Platform: XBOX, PS2 (Version Tested), PC
Genre: Adventure, Action, Puzzle
ESRB: M (+17)
Release: Sep 26, 2005
Developer: Quantic Dream, Atari
Multiplayer: None
Online Play: None

There are very few games out there that try to have a cinematic vibe for example Viewtiful Joe, True Crime: Streets of LA pull these off nicely however what if you had control over everything? Not just the main characters actions but what they say, the way they react to people around them, and the future that awaits them. Ladies and Gentlemen sit back grab the popcorn and relax because even though movies based on games are pretty lousy, games that play like movies are? hmm? what?s the word? Aww F**k it here?s my review of Indigo Prophecy for the PS2.

Indigo Prophecy puts you mainly in the role of Lucas Kane, a man who has just stabbed a man to death in a restaurant bathroom while in a trance. Now what Indigo prophecy wants you to do right from the get go is decide on how you would like to escape the restaurant but how you do it is completely up to you. That?s right you heard me you got 100% control on what you want to do from then on. You want to just run out covered in blood go ahead. You want to clean up the scene and silently escape before the body is found? Knock yourself out but remember the golden rule, do what ever it takes to survive.

Indigo Prophecy has a great story and plays just like a movie which is very good in my books, however one thing that confuses me is not only are you playing the Killer but your also playing the cops. You will be basically trying to track yourself down as Detective Carla Valenti and her partner Tyler Miles of the New York police department. It?s a weird concept but you are in complete control of how they react remember just as long as Lucas doesn?t personally try to show he?s the killer you can try your best to bust him or screw up the investigation. The game is basically composed of two parts: the standard walk around and perform actions using get this, the right analogue stick that?s right kids simply move the stick in the direction specified and you can do things. The second part comes in the form of interactive cut scenes in which you must move the analog sticks in the direction that is specified by a lit up Simon says game and for parts where your character physically exerts themselves you tap the L1 R1 buttons repeatedly.

Health in Indigo Prophecy is rather different than most games, rather than having a bar that shows your characters physical health, yours is a mental health meter and for the interactive cut scenes crucifixes. Let me explain, while talking to people and doing things in the game your mental health will be affected for example if Lucas picks up a newspaper showing the murder he will lose points because it stresses him out. Just because Indigo Prophecy doesn?t have an actual health meter doesn?t mean your character can?t die, as you lose points your character will fall into a deep state of depression, forcing them to act irrationally and say things without worrying about the consequences and eventually commit suicide. During interactive cut scenes there will be five notches in the upper left portion of the screen these are for those times you screw up and hurt yourself. If you have a crucifix you can go back to the part you messed up and redo it. Oh and did I forget to mention this game has multiple endings?

Now here comes the bad news. First off this game handles like a drunk person driving a Lamborguini Gallardo it?s pretty bad. You will often walk into a hallway when the camera changes causing you to go back in the direction from which you came. The graphics look like that of a early PC game, I know it doesn?t look entirely bad but when your game ends up on the PS2 you better make it look good It?s basically has the feel of an old game. But I really can?t complain everything else is pulled off quite well that I don?t see any major downsides to this game.

Verdict:

Pros:Fantastic story, great action cut scenes, you control everything, a game where you must think before you act, solid replay ability, MULTIPLE ENDINGS!!!!

Cons:
Difficult controls, terrible camera, graphics don?t suit the PS2 or Xbox for that matter.

Final word:
Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, some find it confusing but those who like it like it a lot, a true gem in the gaming world, and it feels like a movie.

I give Indigo Prophecy 8.5/10

 

[SonicMTD]

Title: Devil May Cry 3 Special Edition
Platform: PS2 (Version Tested), PC
Genre: Adventure, Action, Puzzle, Plat former
ESRB: M (+17)
Release: Jan 24, 2006
Developer: Capcom
Multiplayer: None
Online Play: None

First of all it?s good to be writing game reviews again after a brief hiatus. Secondly it?s good to see that there are some new reviewers using this thread????

In 2001 Capcom released a game by the name Devil May Cry, in which players played the role of Dante a young demon hunter who is also a half demon. The game was considered a smash success and got players everywhere addicted however in 2003 many fans became disappointed when they picked up the sequel to DMC, Devil May Cry 2. So the question on everyone mind during the time that DMC3 was said to be in production was quite simple: Is this going to be as bad as DMC2? Well if you haven?t already played the game already, you?re about to find out in my review of Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition for the PS2.

In this game, Dante is just about to start up his shop which still has yet to be named, when he gets an invitation from a strange man who apparently is connected with Dante?s brother Vergil. After defeating some enemies from trashing his shop Dante, heads out to confront his brother??

Now if you?re new to the Devil May Cry universe let me say one thing: This thing is F**king hard, no not hard sorry, I mean F**king near Impossible! This games difficulty level is so intense you will die a half dozen times at least before beating the first main boss. Now I?m new to the DMC series and let me just say my thumbs have never and I mean never hurt so much playing a game before. Players will find themselves button mashing like crazy to pull off combos and collect orbs which are used to upgrade your character. Luckily you can save at any time and the game will allow you to carry over the orbs/items/experience over to the restart of the level if you die.

The graphics of the game are done quite well and really capture the overall feel of the game which is all out Armageddon on the world we know and abuse from the forces of hell. Although the graphics aren?t as sleek as other PS2 titles, but it still looks pretty good. There are also many settings for you to fight in from ruined city streets, to the inside of a demon whale (I?m serious you fight inside a whale) there are enough setting here to stop you from being bored.

The audio of Devil May Cry 3 is fairly well put together. The weapons sound semi realistic which isn?t that bad, but the real masterpiece is the music in the game, players will be walking around doing nothing and as soon as an enemy comes into view the game kicks into some hardcore scream rock which definitely pumps you up. Mind you it would have been better if there was some how you say variation in the amount of songs since they all basically all sound the same.

Also from time to time the game gives you puzzles to solve which is a good change from the mindless demon killing at least gamers have a chance to think in order to advance to the next level, mind you the puzzles aren?t that advanced but to be honest I wasn?t expecting much.

The good news: There are plenty of levels, weapons and combos to keep you busy for a long, long time. The bad news: not a lot of special features. Since it is called ?Special Edition? you would think that Capcom would give us something more worth while. Sure you get to play as ?Vergil? but the missions are the exact same as Dante, it also would be nice if we got to see this through Vergil?s perspective but unfortunately we don?t. You also get extra costumes, bloody palace (fight 9999 long battles) and of course HARDER DIFFICULTY LEVELS!!!! Good God. Some people who were fans of Devil May Cry 3 say that this version was actually easier and that there were less cut scenes than there was in the previous version, this is probably because A: Capcom wants the game to be easier to appeal to new players in the DMC universe and B: they needed to have more space for the special features.

What sets this game apart from others is the rating system that it has. When your playing the game and killing demons left and right there will be a meter above the screen this is your basic combo meter when it runs out your combo goes and so does the amount of extra orbs you get for vanquishing an enemy. What?s different about this system is when you finish an attack and you decide to retry the exact same combo, the combo meter doesn?t count it so therefore you?re going to have to be creative if you wish to upgrade your character before the big boss fights.



Verdict:

Pros: A solid action game with an interesting story, decent graphics/sound, decent replay ability, many weapons and moves to keep you busy, combo system causes you to be creative, hard difficulty for people into that sort of thing.

Cons:
Very heavy on button mashing, difficult for players new to the franchise, Special features aren?t as good as they should be, Vergil missions are the same as Dante?s, very repetitive and grows stale fast.

Final word:
Fans will like the fact they find out what happened to Vergil, new comers will struggle with the difficulty, and the special features will leave everyone disappointed, I recommend renting this one if you?re not a DMC fan. All in all pretty decent

I give Devil May Cry 3 Special Edition for the PS2 7.5/10

 

[SonicMTD]

Title: Red Dead Revolver
Platform: PS2 (Version Tested), Xbox
Genre: Adventure, Action, 3rd person shooter, Western
ESRB: M (+17)
Release: May 3, 2004
Developer: Rockstar
Multiplayer: Yes
Online Play: None

Rant (just ignore this): First of all let me be first to say this ahem? WHAT THE F**K HAPPENED TO MY PRECIOUS GAME REVIEW THREAD!!!! Jeez, luckily I?m going to keep my baby alive with another review.

History: Long before Rockstar had started making western games like Gun and Darkwatch, they decided to take a risk at a game premise that Capcom dropped. Little did the folks down at the San Diego branch of Rockstar know that what they would eventually create, would soon popularize the Western genre of games as more people wanted to travel back to the time where men were men, and women who had no education or money to live a prosperous life, took up being a whore at the Saloon. Hey no one said life back then was easy, but anyway it?s time to turn back the clock and travel to the days were Six gun Justice wasn?t something that was part of an SCTV sketch it was a way of life, with my review of Red Dead Revolver for the PS2.

Story: When you first kick off the games story mode, you play as a young Red Harlow. A young boy who lives on a secluded house far away from town on the account of his Father Nathan, falling in love with his mother Falling Star, which pissed of the Black Elk Indian tribe, since they?re not fans of someone of their tribe marrying a white man. Red?s father returns home and tells his family that he and his partner Griff struck gold on Bear mountain and soon all their problems will be over, unfortunately before there?s even time for Red to celebrate that his father gave him his old gun the settlement gets raided and the bandits kill Red?s folks. Red in a vengeful fury grabs his dads? new gun (which is burning in a small fire) and uses it to blow the arm off one of the bandits however since it?s burning the metal burns Reds hand leaving a scorpion shaped scar. Years later Red returns with one thing left on his mind, revenge?. And thus our game begins.

Audio/Video: R.D.R. although it was released some time ago, it does a good job at the A/V department. Guns, horses, explosions, reloading, death, and punching all sound real in that Hollywood kind of way. The music in the game also fits this bill; it?s pretty much the type of thing you would hear in a Clint Eastwood flick. Graphics are pretty decent although not as well as some current games out there, (i.e: Gun) but it gets the job done. While you?re playing the game you?ll find some of the characters can look kind of blocky, but this primarily is depending on your television (basically the better the television the worse the graphics will be). Mind you not everything graphically is bad; environments are very well done. Not just are they pretty graphically but there?s variation in the environments. From ranches, ghost towns, mountains the whole nine yards, if it?s a location that?s in a western these guys will have it in there. When you?re playing the game, the screen, will have lines and dots on the screen during cut scenes just like you?re watching it in a movie theatre which is pretty cool if you like small things like that.

Gameplay: Red Dead Revolver, in a nutshell, is a standard third person shooter. Sure, it mixes in some plat forming aspects but not enough to be qualified as one. You?ll be doing things like taking out bad guys, rolling out of the way of incoming fire, taking cover and reloading (etc., etc., etc.). One of the problems some people have with this game is the fact there?s no free roaming. The game plays by missions and when you reach the end of a certain mission, you teleport to the fictional town of Brimstone in which you can spend the money from the mission on things like new weapons, health bonuses and characters. Some people might be asking ?but wait surely there?s some fun aspects of this game?? There are. I just haven?t said it yet. One thing this game does well isn?t taking itself too seriously like Gun did, which makes the game much more of a fun experience. While playing Red Dead Revolver, you?ll not only be playing as Red but also secondary characters that impact the story (I.E. British trick shooter Jack Swift.) which will be cool especially trying out there special abilities. Also there are plenty of weapons to try out; revolvers, rifles, shotguns, thrown many different types to fulfill your western fantasies. One of the things this game does to stand out is it?s high noon style gun duels (in which the player uses the right analog stick to grab his gun then push it forward to get it out and then fire.). If there is one thing that I had a problem with was this games feeble attempt at trying to have stealthy missions in which you have to sneak by guards or head shot them in order to not give away your presence. If you fuck up your shot your pretty much have to restart that part as enemies will be on your ass like steak on rice.

Replayability: As soon as you beat the main storyline there are a bunch of things you can do: first of all there?s bounty hunter mode (beat levels with an extra hard objective), which of course unlocks Bonus Characters and Cheats. There are also extra difficulties
(In case you want an extra challenge or want to unlock more things or novelty items.) which include the ever so weird ?Red Wood Revolver?; in which you play as the wooden ?Manny Quinn?. One of the most enjoyable experiences out of this game is the 4 player multiplayer ?Showdown? mode. Showdown mode consists of 3 multiplayer games: Bounty Hunter, Sundown, and High Noon, as well as 2 upgrade styles: Stud and Hold? Em. Bounty Hunter is your typical first one who reaches the score limit wins; sundown is your standard person with highest score after the time limit wins; and High Noon (just like it is in the single player game) is a duelling style of game in which players can pick each other off until only one player survives. The 2 styles of upgrades come in form of popular card games. Stud: first player to collect the 5th card gets the bonus and Hold?Em: player with best hand wins the pot/bonus. Whenever a character dies he/she leaves behind a card that contains weapons, health, special abilities (etc.) this gets added to the top of the screen and depending on your hand you?re awarded a bonus upgrade. The games multiplayer is a pretty fun ordeal there are plenty of characters, settings and weapons to tickle your fancy for quite a long while.

Verdict:

Pros: An interesting 3rd person shooter that doesn?t take itself too seriously unlike most games of this now exhausted genre. It has a good story, great audio, and a great amount of replay value. High Noon is fun and a very unique part of game play. Plays just like a spaghetti western. Much cheaper then most of the other games

Cons: Graphics are kind of blocky and outdated and can glitch from time to time. Stealth missions have no use in this game and just infuriate the player. For a western game, horses weren?t important and were just a nuisance.

Final Word: What can I say I liked it, it?s a hidden gem with a price tag that?s really cheap, and I can?t wait to see if Rockstar intends to release the sequel which they?re secretly working on (don?t tell anyone. ).

I give Red Dead Revolver for the Playstation 2 an 8 out of 10.

 

[SonicMTD]

Name: Echo Night Beyond
Platform: PS2
ESRB: T
Release: July 27, 2004
Genre: First Person, Puzzle, Sci Fi, Horror
Developer: From Software

Foreward: My god I say it?s about time I finished this one up after procrastinating for four long arduous months. Time to breath back some life in this thread.

Introduction: Space?. it?s dark, cold, barren and no one really knows what is out there. It both amazes, and scares us at the same time. Ever since the Space Race, people have been wondering about the possibility of colonizing planets. From Software decided to take that basic idea, and merge it with the story of its previous playstation compatriot from 1999, Echo Night. So is this rendition of a game made in ?99 worthy of appraisal or ridicule? Dust off your moon boots, cause we?re about to find out with my review of Echo Night Beyond for the PS2.

Story: In the games adventure you start off inside a wrecked space shuttle, docked in a lunar space colony, with no clue where your fiancée Claudia, is or what the fuck is going on. It?s the strangest thing it?s a huge station; there should be at least some signs of life on here. All of a sudden you hear it. Moaning echoes the halls, and you make out the faint outlines of humans. But wait these aren?t humans they?re G-G-G-Ghosts! In order to figure out what has happened, you have to find clues scattered throughout the abandoned space station, while dealing with your stuck in limbo brethren? Our game begins.

Gameplay: If you picked up this game hoping for some intense Resident evil/ghost busting action, you have unfortunately grabbed the wrong game, as you will never have that type of action the entire game. This game in its pure essence (pun intended) is a mash up of The Sixth Sense, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, with standard puzzle solving gameplay mechanics. Some ?intense gameplay? includes talking, fetching items needed to help save spirits, changing your flashlight, and running away? (Remember kids; it is always okay to run away from your life?s problems). Speaking of running, this games controls are about as clunky as trying to Tokyo Drift a tank, it?s really that bad. Players when running away from spirits, will often accidentally, screw up the camera controls by hitting L2 or R2, causing themselves to take a wrong turn, which results in their untimely demise. Now you might be thinking, well there surely must be something good about the gameplay? There is. Savepoints are actually littered everywhere throughout the game, preventing any worry of losing data that was worked up only to have to restart and do the whole ordeal all over again.


Audio/Video: Now I?ve played a lot of games, however when dealing with a game that comes from the PS2 you?d expect some bang for your buck. This isn?t really happening here, the character models are not horrible but clearly show age. Level designs are fairly done well, though. Audio on the other hand was quite good; footsteps, doors, heartbeats, and music do a good job at raising tension, however it still lacks some content needed for a truly terrifying experience. In other words, it?s a game that does a decent job but won?t totally amaze you in either department.

Replay ability: After completing the game you might be wondering what else does Echo Night Beyond have to offer. After beating it I can honestly say, next to nothing. If you manage to solve the puzzles and get to the end, you have up to four endings to choose from. Normally multiple endings are what gets me going in a game however Echo Night Beyond lacks what most games with multiple endings have; variety. The endings are interesting to see, however they are practically the same ending with only subtle differences, which depend on how many spirits, you?ve freed and what final choice you make.

All in all this game is in fact a remake of Echo Night for the original Playstation. If compared side by side this game is the exact same as its predecessor with only minor differences to the story, audio/video, and soundtrack. Normally when remakes are made they should try to blow any doubts out of the water, since it was released on the PS2 it has to be better then what I have seen. That being said it's not that bad a game if you can get around some of it's flaws.

BREAKDOWN:

Pros: A pretty good puzzle solving game with a decent storyline, and some thrills and chills thrown in.

Cons: Clunky controls, not much replay ability, dated graphics, if you?re not into games that are heavily slanted on puzzles KEEP AWAY!

Final Word:
Fans of the original would be content with this remake; most likely everyone else will just wonder what they could have been put into this to make it better. All in all it should make for a decent rental for puzzle fans. I give Echo Night Beyond for the PS2 a 6.5 out of 10

 

[SonicMTD]

Name: Arcana Heart
Platform: PS2 EXCLUSIVE!
Genre: Arcade, 2D, Fighting
ESRB: T
Release Date: Apr 10, 2008
Developer: Atlus
Multiplayer: Yes
Online Play: None


Foreword: well needless to say it?s been a while, but I thought hell if I got time on my hands I might as well go and write something for CAD. I like reviewing this stuff but it?s a royal pain when I start something then don?t have the time needed to finish it.

Introduction: Now I know what a lot of you guys are thinking, I?m probably a creepy guy who?s into the concept of MOE girls in skimpy outfits, beating the holy hell out of each other. Well I have something to say to those allegations? I am, and I?m proud of it to. After Dragonball Z and WWE it is long overdue, do to these types of games. Atlus is a company that is currently known for importing a variety of popular Japanese games, overseas to North America. Leading off this Asian invasion; Persona, Trauma Center, and Guilty Gear are some of the more successful batch of games, which were brewed up in the kitchen of Japan and shipped to an unsuspecting white population. With the fighting genre being slowly turned stale, is this going to at least be worth the price of admission? Learn more in my review of Arcana Heart for the Playstation 2.

Story: Tokyo, the present day. People are happily going about their business when all of a sudden the skies turn black blotting out the sun (despite the fact it?s still F**king sunny). Normally I don?t really like to comment on the story aspect of my reviews, I prefer to leave this aspect out and just paint a portrait for the gamer, in the hopes they at least get the goddamn premise. But honestly after playing this game for a ridiculous amount of time, it has become clear that even I don?t know or at least don?t care what the hell is going on. So for the sake of my mental sanity since I am way behind on this review (approximately 4 months behind, which I thank god I didn?t ask [name censored] to be his game reviewer on his blog, since how long it took me to at least finish the story aspect, is sure enough to get me fired even from being a reviewer for Jumbo Video? which is the equivalent of a chef getting the sack from McDonald?s) I will look at the Prologue in the instruction manual... In the Arcana universe, there are two worlds. The normal one (I.E. Where we live in now) and the spirit world, which are home to powerful spirits called Arcanna (duh). If both worlds collide then the universe is fucked. Young grade school girls have the ability to wield the Arcanna spirits and use them to fight against those who stand in there way, and a secret shady organization, is behind the scenes pulling the strings to make sure both worlds don?t meet. Basically it?s up to eight girls (who are so young it?d be jailbait to borrow lunch from) to save the whole damn world while beating the shit out of each other to learn absolutely nothing?

Audio/Visuals:
Now if you picked this game up, expecting some form of, I dunno artistic flare, Arcanna Heart is an overall meh. It?s done in a standard 2-D fighting style, which if you ever played a 2-D fighter from Japan, is pretty much the same plan for almost all fighting franchises. I know that probably some people who care more about it than I do disagree with me, and to those people I say, I?m not reading you?re f**king review now am I? (sorry I?m just cranky) Anyway, the backgrounds and characters are well done, and when executing special attacks it does a good job at producing visuals that will get me easily distracted. The only problem I have with this game in terms of the graphic department is the cut scenes in the game, which are basically still shots of the scene with a text screen going by, and the occasional character changing facial features to go with the dialogue. I don?t know about most people but I prefer something a little more animated in the cut scenes of an animated fighting game since after all, this is an anime fighting game. Audio on the other hand is incredibly average. Average meaning it has some good qualities, however it doesn?t go out and try to attempt something else which is what Arcanna Heart needs to be doing in order to make me think it is more than an average fighter. The in game battle music is very well put together and characters shout out phrases while in the midst of combat. All in all this section of the review gives Arcanna Heart bordering on okay and average.

Gameplay:
If it?s one thing that I could say about the gameplay of Arcanna Heart is that it is actually a decent fighter. Each character has their own personal attack list with different combos and supers, for example Ryu?s attacks are a little different than Ken?s?. I mean Heart?s attacks are a little different than Saki?s where Heart?s hadoken attack involves her fist while Saki?s relies on her feet. The 11 characters to choose from range from a variety of anime girl sterotypes for example, the android trying to find her master, the school girl with a heart of gold, a shrine maiden and more so at least it?s got variety.
Other than variety in terms of character models and attacks it was quite clear this game is an arcade game and as such should be treated as one, respect the nostalgia but don?t start worshipping it because there are so many out there that do the same thing in this exhausted genre.

Long Story Short: Arcanna Heart is a decent game for those who are either into nostalgia or at least are casual gamers?.. (you know the type, the ones who rarely play games cause of all the sex they have) It doesn?t do anything to impress me but at the same time I can?t condemn it because it does what it was made to do, and that is waste time.

BREAKDOWN:

The Good: Combat is done very well, I enjoyed it?s drawing style, I found it somehow interesting it was an all girl fighter.

The Bad: Story borders on bad to meh, No spoken dialogue except in mid fight, lack of game modes, extra content wasn?t worth my time, end boss was ridiculously hard, choosing Arcanna Heart Full mode brought absolutely nothing new to the table and as such made the game more disappointing.

Verdict:
Arcanna Heart is a particularly average fighter, not really bringing anything new to the gamer and the lack of gameplay modes to fight in isn?t helping the game any better. If you were in the mood for an arcade game that?s pretty much all Arcanna Heart is nothing more nothing less. I give Arcanna Heart for the Playstation 2, 6.5 out of 10.

 

[Dommyboy]

*Heart attack* So.. many... reviews. One thing though, they need a few pictures.

 

[SonicMTD]

Whoa! Slow down! You don't have to put all of your reviews into one thread, just.... post reviews occasionally. Or regularly, but this is just a massive wall o' text.

*Heart attack* So.. many... reviews. One thing though, they need a few pictures.

Heh sorry I have done so many in one thread. I like to keep everything I do in one little thread I didn't know it was too much, I never use pics when I review.... dunno why...