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GTA 4: The Ballad of Gay Tony review

The second and final episode of Grand Theft Auto 4, The Ballad of Gay Tony, has been released, and with it, Rockstar closes the curtain for GTA 4 with a bang. The episode is being released exclusive on the Xbox 360, either as a standalone download, or as a part of the “Episodes of Liberty City” retail expansion pack, which also includes the previous episode, The Lost and Damned.

In The Ballad Of Gay Tony, you play as Luis Lopez, a nightclub manager and Tony Prince’s — aka. Gay Tony — business partner. Gay Tony, who’s gay in the most extravagant fashion, owns a few nightclubs and the biggest gay club in town, and when a deal goes bad, he sends you to recover some stolen diamonds — the same diamonds that were mentioned in GTA 4 and Lost and Damned — making you progress through mission by mission, GTA 4 style, on a hunt. More »

Scribblenauts review

Scribblenauts for the Nintendo DS is a kind of adventure game that you don’t see often — actually, there hasn’t ever been a game like Scribblenauts; an adventure game where your character progresses through the levels by you typing the name of an object, pretty much any object you can think of, from dinosaurs to cars, to monkey to trees, as long as it isn’t vulgar or trademarked, it’s probably in Scribblenauts. The core concept of the game is highly original and extremely entertaining, and if it wasn’t for a few issues, it would’ve been the ultimate must-have game for any DS owner.

The gameplay is simple and follows the standard 2D side scrolling fashion, but to solve puzzles in Scribblenauts, you need to use an object that might fit and help you move forwards. You “scribble” the object (say, a “meteor”) and poof! it appears on the screen. The goal of each level is to secure a Starlite at the end, and accumulate them. On top of that, you have dedicated puzzle levels, which don’t feature as much action but pack plenty of challenge for your imagination. Once you’ve settled in the gameplay and figured out how advance through the levels (maybe you need a club or a crowbar to break something, maybe you need a walking robot), you’ll be troubled by the rather frustrating controls the game has to offer. You control your hero (named Maxwell) via the stylus, where you point to an area on the screen, and he’ll run to it. But it’s far too easy to point a few pixels too far, and see yourself walk into certain death. More »

Machinarium review

Developer Amanita Design have previously distinguished themselves with artful point-and-click adventures with Samorost and Samorost 2. This time, the point-and-click adventure continues, in another Flash-based game called Samorost, which is easily the most artistically pleasing game of this holiday lineup.

You play as a little robot who has been evicted from his city, and finds himself on the junkyard, and it’s now your job to find his way home, by guiding him through the puzzle adventure. The game is dominated by its art style, which takes Steampunk to a whole new level. The meticulously hand painted levels and backdrops are just gorgeous, and will instantly draw you in (coupled with an amazing soundtrack). The gameplay on the other hand, consisting of a lot of pointing and clicking, meaning the action is very slow. If you’re into fast paced FPS games, you’ll feel the drag, as you have to carefully check everything, solve the puzzles and move on, where one screen can take hours to complete if you’re not paying attention.

Sometimes this kind of gameplay tends to get tedious, and even with the beauty of a game like Machinarium, it still might not appeal to everyone, as you spend five minutes hovering your mouse over every object, hoping to get a reaction. At times, this will frustrate the hell out of you — and rightfully so — but the end result, the pay off is very rewarding in return. There is one hint per level, but usually it’s vague, although there is a small 2D shooter game you can play in order to get a full walkthrough, but the mini-game is far too long and almost just as frustrating, which will encourage you to stay away from it, and instead try and solve the puzzle yourself.

Machinarium, while not going head to head against blockbusters like Modern Warfare 2, showcases just what kind of game can be created with some love and a great sense of style by the creators. The soundtrack is equally stunning, a mix of ambient and electronic music that suits the game perfectly. It’s a point-and-click gamer’s dream, and is definitely worth the $20, even if $10 would have been more suitable for a game of this length and features. For everyone else, it’s a good idea to check out the demo, which gives you a sample level.

The Good:
Absolutely gorgeous
Very original
Wonderful soundtrack
Oozes of style
Cutest protagonist ever

The Bad:
A bit overpriced
Can be frustrating

Overall score: 9/10

Brutal Legend review

Legendary game maker Tim Schafer, who’s known for taking some wild chances and coming out on top in terms of game design, brings his latest endeavor, Brutal Legend, and alongside it, a piece of Jack Black as well.

Brutal Legend can best be described as an adventure game with a lot of rock elements with the humor from Jack Black, who’s not only known as an actor, but also a rock enthusiast. The game is a third person adventure game where you control Eddie Riggs, a roadie who’s on a mission to save the heaven of heavy metal from an evil lord who’s holding the whole thing hostage. It even includes a great cameo from one of the best known heavy metal characters, Ozzy Osbourne. The feeling of heavy metal is present in every fiber of this game. And even if you’re not into heavy metal, the great story, the funny dialogue and the gameplay will draw you in. More »

Borderlands review

Borderlands has been a highly anticipated title since it was re-announced earlier this year, with an all new look. And the stylish, sell-shaded look might look like the main attraction for this sci-fi shooter, but there’s a lot more to be had in addition to that; lots of action, aliens, and especially, lots of guns.

The story of Borderlands is somewhat weak, but it’s more than made up for by the slick presentation and the four playable main characters, each with their own style and personality. The game takes place on the planet Pandora, where human have flocked to in order to mine and cash in on large mineral deposits. However, the settlers discover that the planet is actually not that wealthy, and instead of minerals, aliens are the real treat. That’s where you come in… More »

Order Of War review

It’s been a while since we’ve seen a WW2 real time strategy game, so Order Of War is a highly welcomed addition to the RTS base. While most RTS games are either focused on the ancient times (Age of Empires) or the future (Command & Conquer, Supreme Commander), WW2 RTS titles are few and far between. While Order of War brings some decent and fun WW2 action, a few bugs and a lacking multiplayer prevent it from becoming a great game.

Order Of War lets players control either the US Army during the invasion of Normandy (and onwards. towards Berlin), or the German Army during the Russian campaign into Nazi Germany — yep, you can play as the Nazis and defend the “Fatherland” from zhe Russians. The game will instantly immerse you into the action, from the brief and snappy mission descriptions, to the polished action itself. You will control anywhere from a few troops going into a covert battle, to hundreds of soldiers and several divisions, when landing on the beaches of Normandy, for instance. More »

Zombie Apocalypse review

Zombie Games are nothing new — they offer tons of fun usually involving slaying masses of zombies, not known to be the smartest enemies out there. A new downloadable-only title on Xbox 360 and PS3, Zombie Apocalypse, sets out to give players bite sized nuggets of zombie action, while remaining fun. Sad to say, the game fails to meet those goals. But it does a few things well.

Clearly inspired by Left 4 Dead and similar survival horror/zombie games, Zombie Apocalypse is set in a world where a disease has turned pretty much everyone but yourself into a zombie, and it’s your job to clear the mess, slaying thousands of brainless zombies throughout the campaign. It’s a third person/isometric perspective action game where you move with the left analog stick and fire your weapons with the right, and they’re basically the only two controls you’ll need, as you massacre your way through hordes of enemies. You’ll start off with a basic assault rifle, and then find more powerful weapons as you progress throughout the game. More »

Mini Ninjas review

Since Team Fortress 2 popularized the cartoonish look, many games have followed suit, most noticeably Battlefield Heroes and a few indie titles. Another game has joined the club, the not-so-serious Mini Ninjas, which, for a developer like IO Interactive, is certainly new grounds. IO is mostly known for the Hitman franchise, so few might be skeptical in how the developer handles a title meant for a far younger audience. Rest assured, the young audience will probably love Mini Ninjas, while the mature one will find aspects of the game enjoyable as well.

The story of Mini Ninjas is set in ancient Japan, where a Ninja Master sends out his students to investigate an Evil Samurai Overlord, but the students get captured. The Master sends his last two students, Hiro and Futo, who set off after the Evil Samurai Lord, who has used his powers to turn ordinary animals into his henchmen. The story is very similar to classic Samurai and Ninja movies, and especially Samurai Jack, if you ever crossed the cartoon series. More »

NBA Live 2010 review

The last few season, the NBA Live series has been in serious decline, and EA has worked hard towards getting out of that slump with NBA Live 2010, finally giving some competition for the rival NBA 2K10, which we reviewed yesterday.

You’ll notice right away that NBA Live 2010 does improve on a few things quite drastically, like the presentation. The visuals have received an overhaul, everything from the animations to the crowd and the stadiums look great, the player models however, while improved over last year’s edition, still lack behind in detail and realism compared to NBA 2K10, but overall, it’s still a pretty game. Gameplay wise, the action is definitely more fluid, and while some animations can seem out of place, it’s still better than last year. However, it’s not about being better than last year, where NBA Live 09 was virtually the low point of the series the past few years. Instead, it’s about how the gameplay compares to the rival NBA 2K10. The Live counterpart does have a more fluid play, but the 2K version seems far more immersive, mainly due to the realistic look and feel of it. However, NBA Live 2010 does feature a lot simpler gameplay, a lot easier to get a hold of, and you’re only using one button to shoot, regardless whether it’s a dunk or layout, jump shot or hook shot. However, this too has its flaws, as your player will often do something else than you intended. If you’re looking for a short jumper, the player on screen might take a hook shot if the defender is too close to him, and thereby take a much tougher shot when a simple one would have done the job. More »

NBA 2K10 review

The NBA 2K series have pretty much been kicking NBA Live’s behind for the last few seasons, and rightfully so. The gameplay has always been better on the 2K series, the presentation and depth have likewise left NBA Live in the dust. But for the 2010 versions of the respective games, the stakes are higher, with both NBA 2K10 and NBA Live 10 having upped the ante. Today, we look at one of those, NBA 2K10, and without spoiling too much of the review, we can safely say that fans of the series will not be disappointed.

When booting up a game of 2K10, you’ll immediately notice that the gameplay has received a notch upwards, and that there are now a slew of new animations, all contributing to life-like, realistic players on the court. The player models themselves are the best the series has ever seen, as everything from clothes to skin, to facial animations have been rendered almost perfectly, besides one thing; the jerseys the players are wearing. Usually, they seem to “pop up”, as if resting on an invisible cushion on the player, giving them a very odd look. But overall, those are minor details. More »

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising Review

The original Operation Flashpoint was hailed for its realistic combat in an age of almost arcade shooter dominance, and the true sequel, not considering ArmA and ArmA 2, continues down that path.  If you’re into pick-up-and-play shooters, you’ll need to look elsewhere, because Dragon Rising is gonna take a while to learn; lots of time and dying before you complete it.

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising takes place in a fictional Russian island that has been invaded by the Chinese, and the single-player campaign follows you and your squad as you fight your way through the island, re-taking it. The 11 missions are well made and thought out, but they’re fairly tough, so don’t expect to beat every level on the first try, even on the lowest difficulty setting. The missions are also rather lengthy, and will take you anywhere between 30 mins to a whole hour to complete, depending on your skills. More »

Forza Motorsport 3 review

Forza 2 has been the go-to racing game for the Xbox 360, and a serious contender to Gran Turismo for the title as best racing sim. With Forza 3, developer Turn 10 does everything Forza 2 did, and makes it even better. It’s not only the best racing game on the Xbox 360, it’s the best racing game currently available, and possibly the best ever made.

Forza 3 offers 400 cars and 100 tracks, all built from scratch with a brand new game engine. Remember Forza 2, how the cars all had “jagged edges” because of no anti aliasing? Well that’s gone, as the cars are beautifully rendered (Turn 10 claims 10 times more polygons than Forza 2 per car, with full damage modeling as well) and the game runs at a constant 60 frames per second. technically, things are certainly looking good. The gameplay however, is where Forza 3 really shines. More »

FIFA 10 review

EA has dominated the soccer game scene for almost two decades now, and considering that FIFA 10 has already become the fastest selling sports game, according to EA, at least, one has great anticipation for a series that has seen little evolution over the past few years. Is FIFA 10 the one that’s gonna make the difference? That’s gonna reinvent the series? Short answer: yes. Longer answer, yes, definitely. Basically, it’s FIFA, and for once, it’s noticeably better than it’s predecessor.

FIFA 10 brings a slew of additions to the series, including a brand new “360 degree” player control feature, which means you can move your player in any direction, not just 8 as before, which astonishingly stuck with the franchise from before the analog sticks were introduced, which is now more than ten years ago. Finally, you can use the analog stick to move the player in any 360-degree direction. This means that the actions and movements of players are a lot more fluid and realistic, a huge leap over FIFA 09 (imagine how players used to zig-zag across the scree before?). Coupled with updated and increased amount of animations, it looks even better, almost as if you were watching a real match, if it wasn’t for the commentators and a few other nitpicks. More »

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves 2 review

The original Uncharted game was one of the best PS3 games ever released — still is — both gameplay wise and technically, leaving the sequel with some very high expectations to meet. Luckily, fans and PS3 owners will not be disappointed: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves does most of what the original did great and does it better, fancier and faster.

Uncharted 2 picks up where the first one ended, or rather, a year after the story in the first game ended. All the original characters are back, including, of course, the main protagonist, Nathan Drake. This time though, the story is set in several different locations instead of just one island, as Drake and his crew are sent all around the world (usually exotic locations), to hunt treasures, baddies and so on; basically everything you’d expect from an Uncharted sequel. And just like in the first game, the story is well told and the cut scene in particular are well done — the voice acting and facial animations are some of the best ever seen. More »

Dead Space Extraction review

Dead Space was a decent horror shooter that was released last year on all platforms except the Wii, which, like so many other times, was simply underpowered to run a port of the game. However, EA has been working on a Wii version that is substantially different, not just with toned-down graphics, but a game build up from scratch. Now, Wii owners get to experience some space shooter horror.

Dead Space Extraction is an on-rails shooter, and while that doesn’t sound intriguing at first, it’s done in such way that it works rather well, the horror elements are still there, and the feel of the original Dead Space is very much present. Extraction uses a lot more storytelling and narration than the original game, acting as its prequel, and tells the story of what really happened before help arrived and the original Dead Space began.

The game is an on-rails FPS the entire time during the 10 missions, and the action (and horror) is frequently interrupted by cut scenes, which are done formidably and move the story forward — even though you know how it’s all going to end (if you played the original Dead Space, that is). However, being an on-rails shooter, it means that you cannot explore nor even look around during the missions (or the cut scenes, for that matter), and you can’t decide when to run or walk, how to approach a corner etc. All this removes a lot of the horror elements found in the original Dead Space, however, the game’s storytelling does make up for some of it. More »