The gameplay can mostly be described as Grand Theft Auto in ancient Japan — at least to the extent that you play a character and have a number of possibilities, can pick and chose your fights. Way of the Samurai features a truly open ended gameplay, where the choices you take will lead you in different paths — in all, there are a possible 15 endings to the game. While the game is open ended, the game world is not large by any means. There are only half a dozen or so locations and towns, which can all be explored in a few hours. The sandbox style is a great feature, but when the sandbox is very small, it really becomes pointless. Which is very much the case with Samurai 3.

You can start off anywhere you want, and your possibilities are open from the get go. You can talk to people, and chose to kill them immediately, which, of course will affect your game. The people you kill won’t be respawed for the remainder of the game, so chose your friends and enemies wisely. However, there are some flaws to the system, some will simply be replaced by another character, doing the same job, and unaware that the guy he replaced was cut in half by your sword. You can also kill the head of a clan, his bodyguards, and then rule the clan. However, that’s easier said that done (obviously). You can also do simpler tasks than killing, for instance, doing side gigs for people, delivering messages, finding items etc. This quickly gets boring, as your rewards are rarely worth the effort.

Combat wise, the game is somewhat awkward. It’s not a straight sword slashing game like Assassin’s Creed. Instead, it’s a ratings based combat, and the one who has better skill ratings, will usually win, no matter how good you are with the controller. It’s a strange mix with the worst from turn-based action and the worst from button mashing, and the result is really disappointing. As a game that’s based on sword fighting and Samurais, this is quite a big let down. Technically, the game looks dated, even though it’s the first time the series is featured on the Xbox 360 and PS3, and looks something that would pass as “gorgeous” on the Xbox, half a decade ago. Likewise, there are serious camera issues, which pop up at the worst times; during combat. While the game has a great premise and story, its execution is too poor to recommend to anyone, especially since there are so many great RPGs out there these days.

The Good:
Interesting concept
Good story

The Bad:
Bad execution
Horrendous visuals
Camera issues
Combat isn’t really skill based

Overall score: 4/10

The original Mario and Sonic at the Summer Olympic Games featured some known characters and a ton of mini games, some of which were quite fun, despite rather retarded controls at times. However, it was still fun and offered decent multiplayer gameplay for some folks in a living room, wiggling their remotes, and, as they’ll be happy to hear, the new game continues down the same path. This time though, it’s the Winter Olympics and it’s set in Vancouver in 2010. The range of mini games is impressive, a dozen of them, from skiing and showboarding, to hockey and bobsled. There’s even a curling game — which is quite a bit more fun that it seems (and definitely more fun that it appears in real life).

The gameplay involves a lot of wiggling with your Wii remote, but one overall factor plays in almost throughout all games; the feeling that it could have been better. The hockey game could have been great, but instead it’s simplistic and very easy, as with downhill skiing. The only mini game that seems to rise above the others, and quite surprisingly so, is Curling, which blends a perfect combination of controls and aiming, and can even get quite addictive. We don’t really feel any of that in the other mini games, which, sadly enough, seem like the developer didn’t put in enough effort, as the controls are pretty much the same: keep wriggling your remote and you’ll win. Or get across the finish line. As you play through the games, you earn coins which you can spend in a shot to improve your gear, get outfits and some custom icons for your gear, in case you need to pimp your snowboard.

Visually, the game resembles Wii Sports a lot, and most of other offerings by Nintendo. Not bad by any means, but certainly something that’s easy on the eye and geared towards the casual audience. This runs throughout the whole game — “casual” — every sense of it is too simplistic and seems to be intended for mom and pops and their little 4 year-old. Hardcore gamers will naturally be disappointed, as there isn’t enough challenge, and the controls are basically “waggle-waggle-waggle-pause-waggle-waggle-waggle”. Etc. It’s a great game if you have some casual gamer friends and looking for something to play with, besides chainsawing through the Gears of War campaign. But even then, the game could have been better, and could have offered something more than just cute characters and lots of snow.

The Good:
Easy to pick up and play
Casual audience will love it

The Bad:
Too easy
Controls are repetitive

Overall score: 6/10

The story continues where the previous ended; Desmond, in today’s time, escapes from the complex that kidnapped him and captured his mind. This time he teams up with the good guys, and gets back in the seat in the machine that sends him back a few hundred years to Italy, during Leonardo da Vinci’s time, where he’ll play an assassin, in order to train himself the skills. We won’t go into detail of the story, but rest assured that it’s pretty well told and written, although the cut scenes and dialogue aren’t exactly top notch.

The gameplay is smoother than in the original game, feels more fluid and faster, especially the free-running, jumping and climbing around buildings. This is essential, since it’s a big part of Assassin’s Creed. Also, this time there are clear indicators that point you in the right direction, so you’re never lost on one of your missions. The missions in AC2 are certainly more varied than before, but the progress of how to approach and execute them remains largely the same. We wold have loved to see more variety there, taking cue from other assassin games, like Hitman.

Weapons are a plenty of, you can collect money and buy swords, hammers, knives, and lots of other gadgets (like clothes) at shops around town. However, the combat seems a bit slow and, dare we say, almost turn based at times, where a pack of enemies will attack you, but only one after another will actually fight you. Instead of surrounding and flanking — the obvious choices. The AI isn’t that great actually, your enemies are quite dumb and will remain frozen, swords drawn, and simply wait. To be killed. This doesn’t happen all the times, but too often for it to be noticed. Another thing that most might not consider a drawback, is that the game is very easy. Even on the most difficult setting, if you’ve played AC1, and if you’re just a bit good, you can complete Assassin’s Creed 2 without dying a single time. Or even being close to dying.

Visually the game still looks amazing, the city is beautifully rendered, the animations are top notch and there’s a great sense of good production quality throughout all aspects of the game. The missions can get too repetitive and there isn’t much new in terms of gameplay, but fans of Assassin’s Creed won’t be disappointed. However, if you didn’t like the previous game, there’s little chance that you’ll find what you’re looking for here. Still, it might serve as an interesting rental game.

The Good:
Beautiful visuals
Great animations
Great story
Lots of side quests

The Bad:
Enemy AI is dumb
Combat gets repetitive

Overall score: 8/10

The story in Left 4 Dead 2 (L4D 2) followed the same type of story and gameplay as its predecessor, the main campaign follows four survivors, played via online co-op with three other players, where the point is to escape through a maze and myriad of zombies of all kinds. It’s a style of gameplay where teamwork absolutely counts, in L4D 2, it counts even more. Don’t even think about going solo — you’ll be picked to your bones very quickly. The new campaign follows four new survivors, this time they seem to be more varied with better personality, however the AI is still lacking a bit behind, where they’ll often run in front of you, despite that it’s very clear that you’re shooting a very big gun right next to them. But this, of course, is gone when you play co-op — which you should, that’s the whole point, anyways.

The campaign spans around 5 diverse maps, which are are now part of the same overall story, in style of classic survivor zombie movies, music and games, this time, set in the South. Good stuff, really. On top of that, there’s a 2 player split screen mode, which also works online, so you can team up with a friend in your living room, and join two other players online.

The new game modes include Realism, which, as the name suggests, offer a lot more pain-in-the-ass-tense action that the regular mode, something L4D junkies will certainly enjoy. There’s a ton of new weapons too, which include melee weapons as well, but with the exception of melee weapons, the guns available don’t have a good feeling to them, often come across as toy guns, both in looks, sound and feels. Valve has made Half Life, Counter Strike Source and Day of Defeat; all of which had weapons that were pretty solid. But not Left 4 Dead and L4d 2, unfortunately. It also brings us to another area where the game lacks: visuals. The Source Engine, while doing great in Episode 2 (over two years ago), seems to be far less advanced in L4D 2, the textures are bland, the visuals treats are rarely there and the effects have also taken a step back. This might have something to do with the fact that it’s a co-op multiplayer game and the maps are large, but still, it feels very 2004-ish.

The new content in L4D 2 is good enough to justify a $50 purchase for the die hard fans, but for everyone else, there’s isn’t much new in addition to the original game. If you haven’t tried to survival horror co-op shooter, you might as well pick up the first game, which is sold at around half the price. The gameplay is 99% the same, actually 100% but I’m sure Valve has changed one bit somewhere. Probably.

The Good:
Still fun gameplay
Interesting campaign
Nice audio and soundtrack

The Bad:
Looks dated
Some AI issues
No gameplay improvements

Overall score: 8/10

DJ Hero comes with a DJ mixing board controller, and the gameplay process is very similar to that of other “Hero” games from Activision, you punch the correct keys as best as possible, scoring the best score you can. While listening to the songs, of course. There’s a huge assortment of songs, which span almost every genre, meaning you’ll probably find something you like in there. The songs are mixed by well known DJs, and you won’t find them anywhere else — they’re exclusive to DJ Hero. While you can’t create your own DJ, you can play as some fairly decent ones, and if you’re good, you can unlock superstar DJs like Daft Punk (complete with their outfits).

The gameplay is not difficult to learn, especially if you’re familiar with music games. The new controller is easy to learn, which features a turntable with a platter and a mixer, with three buttons on the turn table which you have to press (and turn at the same time). While it sounds complicated, the learning curve is fairly easy and you’ll master it within an hour of playing. A good addition is that you can separate the two and switch them around, in case you’re left handed. A great touch. The gameplay is quite basic, as mentioned before, you try to hit as many notes as possible, but if you aren’t good, you won’t fail the level, you’ll simply earn less points, meaning it’s going to take you longer to progress and unlock new items.

You can also use the “party play” function, and just sit back and enjoy the music, and you can study the keys of the song in detail if you wish. There is multiplayer, which will need two turntables where you compete against each other, or you can hook up a guitar from Guitar Hero, where one can mix while the other rocks on the guitar. Visually, the game looks great, the venues are very colorful and wild, just like a normal club (albeit a popular club). It’s even more impressive that it’s on the Wii, since the system isn’t exactly known for its power under the hood.

The music, as expected, is top notch, the collection of tracks and remixes is great, and it easily rivals Guitar Hero in terms of fun. Despite the rather disappointing multiplayer and a few technical glitches, DJ Hero is definitely a game that fans of music (and plastic instruments) will enjoy.

The Good:
Gameplay
Lots of tracks
Lots of unlocks
Solid controller

The Bad:
Disappointing multiplayer
A few technical glitches

Overall score: 8/10

Modern Warfare 2 is the Transformers 2 of the video games. A huge blockbuster with plenty of thrills and action, but a confused to no plot, and, for the PC version which we’re reviewing, a crippled multiplayer part. It feels like a genuine overhyped piece of entertainment, which will be swallowed up by fans no matter what, still with all the great ingredients of Modern Warfare 1, but with not much new, not chances are taken by the developer, in fact, it’s far too much like its predecessor, in almost every aspect.

Modern Warfare features the same style campaign as the previous game: short, confused and on steroids. In the campaign, you’re more or less thrown in the action — there’s no act 1 here — and the levels are short, and likewise, feature no formal introduction or ending, and are extremely linear in design and gameplay. If you’ve played Crysis, or Far Cry 2 or Battlefield Bad Company, where you had a ton of options and could take on a level the way you wanted, Modern Warfare is nothing like that, and keeps the strict linear gameplay, forcing you through a set route, with planted enemies every few yards. You reach the end, you win. Big deal. There is little to no new things in the campaign, it feels the same way, plays the same way, looks and sounds the same — the changes are microscopic. The visuals are lacking as well, as the engine is showing its age, no matter how high they can crank up the textures and lighting effects, while better than Modern warfare 1, it’s still years behind the likes of Crysis and Battlefield Bad Company. Destructive environments should be standard now, especially for a game of this caliber.

The campaign is not only short — you’ll be done with it in less than 5 hours — it’s also filled with cliches and seems like an interactive Micheal Bay movie. There is no connection between the levels and it feels like the designers merely had a few great idea for some levels which were completely disconnected, then wrote a show-string hack story to somehow hold it together. It doesn’t hold it together, there is no decent narrative, no structure, just a bunch of action filled levels. We’re not buying it, Infinity Ward. Having said that, the campaign and overall single player experience is great fun and feels polished, but the strict linear gameplay takes away a lot of said fun. There’s also the Special Ops mode, which consists of 23 small missions which you can play alone or in co-op, which is great fun, especially if you’re playing with a friend.

Multiplayer wise, the gameplay feels a bit more varied and fair than previously, and there are a ton of upgrades and perks available. Sadly, there are no dedicated servers on the PC, and if you feared that it was going to be an issue, you were right, it is. In addition, matches are limited to 18 players only, which is another great disappointment, as 32 players have been standard for years, and even Modern Warfare 1 supported 32 players, with some dedicated servers running 64 player modes. While the multiplayer is more balanced and fast pace than before, it feels like a port from the console version, and when it comes to ports from consoles to PCs, they’re always worse on the PC. This is the case with Modern Warfare 2 as well.

Overall, fans of Modern Warfare will have no issues with the sequel — they probably already have the game. And general FPS games will enjoy the short single player campaign and deep multiplayer, but with so much hype surrounding the game, it leaves us wanting something more, a decent campaign for one.

The Good:
Fun gameplay
Polished
Deep multiplayer

The Bad:
Campaign story narrative is non-existent
Very linear gameplay
Aging visuals are beginning to show
PC multiplayer is severely crippled

Overall score: 7/10

The story of Tekken 6 is slim to non existent to laughable — but that’s expected, it’s not a novel, it’s a fighting game, and the story that’s there basically moves your from fight to fight. Nothing special, and it gets the job done. The single player campaign lets you battle all of the available enemies, which means you’ll be fighting a lot of them — the roster is one of the largest in any Tekken game, with all the classic fighters back, including Lei, Paul, Jin and Kazuya. It also includes characters included in Tekken Dark Resurrection, further increasing the roster to a total of 40. However, not many new members have been introduced, not that it makes any difference, since the roster already feels crowded and it’s gonna take you a long time to identify with all of the characters.

The gameplay is very similar to other Tekken games, although it has been somewhat refined, making it just as intricate for the veterans, while being a lot more welcoming to Tekken newbies, and as they say, it’s easy to learn, hard to master. It still features very complex combos for those who are willing to learn them, but the gameplay overall now appeals to a much broader audience. Each arm and leg has a button assigned to them, which means you’ll have to think what arm to throw the punch with, or what leg to kick with, even if you’re a button masher. When two buttons are combined, the result is a more powerful blow, and the more you combine, the better combos you can pull off.

The single player campaign follows the only two new characters, and two of the most boring ones, to be host, where you can fight through side scrolling missions where you can earn quick points, but the mode is quite boring and very badly put together. Besides that, there’s a ton of fun to be had, as you’ll be fighting away enemy after enemy, and you can even earn points to unlock costumes to each character — and each character has quite a few of them.

Besides the single player campaign, Tekken 6 features an Arcade mode, Ghost battles, Survival mode and most importantly, online multiplayer. The online component is great, provided that you have a stable and fast connection, as connections tend to drop. On top of that, load times tend to go on foreeeever. Technically, the game looks as good as it has to look. It’s by no means an Uncharted 2 rival, but it does a decent job at rendering the characters and environments. The rendered cut scenes are great in particular, but we wished that the whole game would look as good. Tekken 6 will most definitely satisfy the fans, and the new refinements will make it more welcoming to new players as well.

The Good:
Great gameplay
Deep roster
Solid multiplayer

The Bad:
Bad story
Long load times
Fighting can get repetitive

Overall score: 8/10

Wii Fit Plus isn’t really a sequel — it’s sold separately without the Balance Board for those that already own it — it’s actually an expansion pack which includes the original games and workouts, and even transfers your data from the old game. This is pretty slick, meaning that you won’t have to swap the new and old Wii Fit disc. Wii Fit Plus features 15 new work out mini games and six strength training and Yoga workouts, and this time, you can mix and match your workouts as you see fit.

If you’re familiar with Wii Fit, you’ll feel right at home, the same slick, colorful user interface is present in Plus, and the “gameplay” is virtually the same, meaning it also includes some of the few drawbacks that the original had, most noticeably, sluggish response from the Balance Board. But this doesn’t happen too often, it it won’t affect your game too much. Multiplayer wise, there’s the same offline, turn based multiplayer where you compete on who can do the exercise the fastest way or get the best score. However, there is no online multiplayer, which again, is disappointing from Nintendo. Someone needs to go to Kyoto and check if those guys know about this thing called “The Internet”. Wii Fit with online multiplayer and leaderboards would make the game so much better, but again, as noted, Nintendo disappoints on that level.

The 15 new balance games and six new exercises are very well put together and will make sure you end up using your entire body after going through them. From Kung-Fu, where you have to sync your movements to a group of fighters on the screen, to Skateboarding, where you turn the Balance Board sideways and steer a skateboarder through an arena. But the best mini game by far is Golf, which not only uses the Balance Board, but also the Wiimote, and gives some of the most accurate golfing experiences ever — you’ll definitely improve your swing here.

Wii Fit Plus will satisfy fans of Wii Fit, with the new mini games and exercises will bring enough to do for a while, and the expanded abilities to manage and plan your workouts are quite detailed and pretty deep for a “casual” game. However, there is still no online multiplayer, which is a shame.

The Good:
Plenty of new games
Cheap
More depth than before
Includes the original Wii Fit games

The Bad:
Balance Board can get sluggish
No online multiplayer or leaderboards

Overall score: 8/10

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.

The missions in The Ballad Of Gay Tony are far more over the top than in GTA 4 and the previous episode, you’ll be shooting down helicopters from moving trains, blowing up a group of crooked cops and even helicopter dog fights — where your helicopter is made of gold. Yep, quite over the top. You’ll actually be blowing up plenty of stuff in the game, there’s far more action and large set pieces than in previous games, you’ll even get to drive an armored personnel carrier this time, with a sweet 20mm chain gun that obliterates everything in your path. On top of that, you gotta do your regular job, which is to manage clubs, and there’s even a mini-game where you can shake it on the dance floor, which, as you might expect, is pretty darn boring compared to the real missions.

However, there seems to be a lack of consistency with the missions, you’ll go from a few awesome high-octane missions to some that can be categorized as the most boring of both episodes. There are some good additions to the gameplay though, for instance, every time you complete a mission, you get a score, and when you’ve completed the game, you can go back and try to beat that score, which adds some replayability to the game — more than the previous editions. It’s also worth mentioning that the game includes a ton of content, missions and side missions, far more than one might expect from a DLC.

Technically, the game is up to par with the other GTA 4 games, and that means the visuals are beginning to showing their age. The character animations look dated and the visuals still feature low res textures and some popping here and there. The music and voice acting are top notch, GTA 4 quality as you might expect, and the game runs pretty smooth throughout. On the multiplayer side, there isn’t much addition, unfortunately, as this looks to be a very single-player focused episode. In conclusion, GTA 4: The Ballad of Gay Tony will most definitely satisfy GTA 4 fans, and you won’t be disappointed with the last installment in the series. Also, we finally get to know what happened to those darn diamonds.

The Good:
Lots of content
Great gameplay
Lots of action
Top notch voice acting and characters

The Bad:
Visuals are beginning to look dated
Some missions are very bad

Overall score: 8/10

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.

The vocabulary of the game, which is its greatest asset — and the entire concept — is staggering. There are over 30,000 items you can call up to help you, anything from a fruit to a black hole. Yep, black holes. It’s one of those games where your own imagination (not the developer’s) is the limit. Hell, you can even summon a Man-Bear-Pig to fight your enemies. However, despite the vast opportunities, they’re rarely used to their full potential. Out of the 3,000 items, you can complete the game with a few dozen, and the levels don’t challenge you to come up with something new. You can always strap wings to yourself and easily fly to where you need to be, and summon someone to kill your enemies for you. While you can get a special bonus for completing levels without using weapons or stuff like that, it’s not exactly the best use of a game with such a high concept.

Having said that, there are still over 200 levels, most of which will give you a great time, and some of which are really amazing. On top of that, the game features a level editor as well, and you can share the levels with other players online. The visuals are fairly decent considering it’s a DS game, while the music seems bland and a bit out of place. Overall, Scribblenauts is a game you should try if you own a DS, despite its issues, its originality and concept far outweigh the quirks with the game.

The Good:
Wonderful concept
Huge amount of items
Original
Tons of levels

The Bad:
Concept isn’t used to its full potential
A few control issues
Mission objects aren’t always clear
Bland soundtrack

Overall score: 8/10

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 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.

The gameplay is a fusion between 3rd person adventure hack ‘n slash, and RTS, where you command troops (or fans as they’re called) during the main battle. In addition to that, there are sections where you’ll be shooting and racing (and mowing down enemies) as well. The levels are huge and well designed, and the art style is consistent throughout — meaning it looks great. You can use different combos to take down your enemies, from playing a particular tune of music — guitar solos — that destroys nearby enemies, to simply slashing your way through with your trusty battle axe. However, quite stunningly, you cannot jump in the game. Seriously. It’s a third person adventure game, where you cannot jump. Last time something like this happened was… GoldenEye… 12 years ago? And that was an FPS. The single player campaign is short and sweet, but the side-missions are rather dull and repetitive, but however, they’re quite easy and will reward you points in the game that you can use to buy upgrades.

The multiplayer aspect of the game includes the RTS aspect of the main campaign, where up to 8 players can play against each other, controlling the monsters and beasts from the main quest. The multiplayer is fun, but it’s not something that’s gonna keep you playing for a long time, as it’s not that varied. You’ll find more replay value in the tons of collectibles and in-game achievements that Brutal Legend offers, where you can unlock new music, concept art, upgrades to your car and so on.

Technically, the game looks great and features a cartoony art style that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The soundtrack on the other hand, is top notch, and comprises of classic songs from artists like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest and Motorhead. The voice acting, and especially the dialogue writing is top notch as well, and Jack Black not only fits perfectly in the role, he also does an outstanding job as a voice actor. Brutal Legend is mostly an homage to Heavy Metal as it once was, and fans of the music genre should definitely get the game. For non-heavy metal fans, there’s still a lot of fun to be had, especially if you’re a Jack Black fan.

The Good:
Lots of originality
Great soundtrack
Wonderful if you’re into heavy metal
Great voice acting

The Bad:
Short single-player campaign
Side missions are bland
Can’t jump
A few frame rate issues

Overall score: 8/10

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…

It’s no secret that when you boot up Borderlands for the first time, you’ll definitely notice the new art style, and you’ll be spending quite some time in the beginning indulging yourself into it. While it’s an FPS, Borderlands also feature lots of RPG elements, and can best be described as an FPS/Diablo/Dungeon Siege fusion — with the eccentric art style. The RPG elements include, but are not limited to; picking up cash and loot whenever downing an enemy, inventory management and a whopping assortment of weapons — the developer claims millions of possibilities, while the reality it’s less than that and basically different modifications of the same guns, there are still a heck of a lot of weapons in the game, all categorized in their respective classes.

Another RPG aspect of the game is the different character classes and skill trees available. You can chose from being a Hunter, A Beserker, A Siren or a Soldier, each class with on distinct “action” skill, and the ability to upgrade skill trees. While it’s a great addition to the game, this feature is somewhat underused, and most of the skills you upgrade can go unnoticed — they tend to be to vague. However, if you find out that you chose the wrong character after hours of gameplay, you can simply reset to a new one, and use your earned up skill points again, without having to do all the fragging and collecting again.

One of the few nagging issues with the game, is that you have to travel on foot (or in vehicles) across long distances without much action, when you’re going from quest to quest. Another issue might be that the action tends to be repetitive at times, but given that you have so many guns and that the AI is somewhat competent, it’s not something that ruins the overall experience. The boss fights also tend to be a bit underwhelming, and it’s actually much tougher (and more interesting) to fight your way to the boss than to fight the actual boss.

The multiplayer aspect of Borderlands is clearly where the game shines. While you can go through the whole ordeal alone, up to three others can join your quest and fight with you, and the more players present, the tougher the enemy, and the bigger the rewards. In addition to that, there’s also an arena mode, where you can take on other players in a player vs player environment, although this is quite limited and is not a part of the overall story of the game. Technically, the game shines with its impressive visuals and art style, the sound and music are well done, and even the cut scenes are memorable and stand out. The few issues are of technical nature, like frame rate drops and jaggy animations. Overall, it’s definitely a game to check out this holiday season.

The Good:
Beautiful art style
Great gameplay
Great multiplayer

The Bad:
RPG elements are limited
A few technical issues

Overall score: 9/10

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.

The micromanaging in the game has been simplified somewhat — you don’t control a single unit, but rather, a company, which holds anywhere from 30 to 50 soldiers, and likewise, you can’t control individual tanks and artillery units, they are grouped together in units of 5. This makes for a more simplified control scheme, but the hardcore RTS  crown might find it lacking in certain aspects. The overall controls are very suited for the casual gamers, you won’t find the realism of Company of Heroes, nor the micromanagement of Age of Empires. Although you will be able to win cash during the battles, and “buy” certain power-up and abilities, like calling in an artillery strikes and air plane attacks. The single player campaign will last you a good 15 hours, and when you’re done (or before), there’s a great skirmish mode as well. The multiplayer, while fun, only has 6 maps, which tend to get boring really quickly and the game doesn’t come with any map tools for the map builders out there.

However, the game isn’t without flaws, most of which are caused by a buggy gameplay mechanic. For instance, your tanks will run over a lot of your soldiers, and the soldiers themselves aren’t the cleverest on the field — they rarely look for cover when under attack, and are basically mowed down most of the time.

Technically, the game looks gorgeous, the animations are great (unless you get really close), the sounds and effects are top notch as well, and the whole game feature a good cinematic feel. In all, Order Of War is a fun game, while it doesn’t break new grounds or offer any real new additions to the genre, RTS fans will enjoy it, especially if you’re into simplified game style like Dawn Of War 2 (but with a WW2 feel, after all).

The Good:
Fun gameplay
Great visuals
Simplified controls

The Bad:
A few glitches here and there
Only 6 multiplayer maps
Vague soundtrack

Overall score: 7/10

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.

The campaign consists of 55 missions, and while that sounds like a lot, it only amounts to around 3-4 hours. You can play the campaign alone or with up to three buddies, online or on the same console. Because the 55 missions are set on only 6 or 7 maps, the running and gunning can get extremely tedious, constantly running on the same type of environments. You’ll encounter a variety of enemies and power-ups to fight the more powerful ones, but the gameplay always remains virtually the same. While you can select one from four characters, neither has any advantage over the other, besides looks, which is a shame, cause it seems the obvious way to add some more variety to the game.

Needless to say, both the gameplay and the action gets tiring an hour, and by completing the campaign you’ll mow-down at  least 15,000 zombies, in fact, it’s impossible to complete the game without killing at least 15,000 of them. All that killing, as you might expect, gets extremely boring. However, grinding through the game with a friend or two in the co-op mode is quite fun for a few hours.

Technically, the game features a decent next-gen look (or current-gen, actually); the effects and weapons are well displayed and the sounds of the action and the zombies fit the game well. However, the tedious gameplay and sheer onslaught of mindless enemies doesn’t offer much besides mindless grinding zombies away for hours. If you have a few friends who are Zombie fanatics, you might enjoy the game with them in co-op, but as a single-player experience, it’s rather shallow and will bore most very quickly.

The Good:
Fun co-op.
Good gameplay (for a while).

The Bad:
Quickly gets tedious.
No very smart.

Overall score: 6/10

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.

The gameplay in Mini Ninjas is straight forward; you control Hiro, a ninja, in a third person view. The combat consists of mostly hack and slash, and resembles a lot like Zelda: The Wind Waker, however, it’s a lot less simple when you get down to it. As you progress and free your fellow ninja students, you unlock the ability to play as them, and each have their own strengths and weaknesses, but you’re always best of playing as Hiro, as he seems the strongest of them all (doh!). You’ll jug through the levels basically mashing one button (your primary attack) and taking out your enemies — there’s isn’t any blood in Mini Ninjas, as your slain enemies will simply disappear in a cloud of smoke, again, just like in Wind Waker — perfect for the younger audience.

The other ninjas have other types of attacks, but when you can simply slash your enemies easily, there’s no point in trying the other ninjas. The developer could have offered a bigger incentive by making the other ninjas the prime ones for attacking certain enemies, thereby adding more variety to the gameplay. But as it stands, the gameplay is quite repetitive, fun at first, but still repetitive in the long run. While the levels are large and open, and offer plenty of stuff to collect, these items (like fruits), aren’t necessary to the game, but they do offer a bit of variety, where you can mix potions from different fruits and plants. Again, there’s no real point unless they can really help you through the campaign.

The visuals of the game are cute and well done that they’ll satisfy even the most hardcore gamers, whose used to gushing blood in Gears of War. The soundtrack is particularly wonderful (as with all soundtracks in IO Interactive games), and contributes to the theme of ancient Japan. Difficulty wise, experienced players won’t have any issues striding through the game, as it’s clearly intended for a younger audience. A few issues bog down the game, mostly related to the camera, but it’s not too frustrating to ruin the gameplay. While the game can be considered shallow, it’s still enjoyable and fun for the most part, and young gamers will definitely be pleased.

The Good:
Charming visuals
Easy gameplay
Wonderful soundtrack

The Bad:
Repetitive gameplay
Not enough content
Camera issues

Overall score: 7/10

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.

NBA Live 2010 once again features Dynamic DNA, which updates players stats and rating every day, based on their real life performance. This is also added to the dynamic season mode, where you can play any of the real world games on that particular day, while the rest of the games will receive the stats according to the real game results. However, as cool as that is, you can’t manage a team, you can’t control any aspects of it, nor can you use your own created player. You’re basically thrown into the game, as if it was a random exhibition. We would have loved for EA to fuse his with the regular franchise mode, which would make for a compelling experience.

Multiplayer wise, the game has the same features as last year, with the addition of “Live Run”, actually, it’s called “Adidas Live Run” (dammed be product placement), where you’re put together with 9 other players online for a match in a training gym, where each player wears slightly different clothes, just as it would be if you got together with 9 buddies at the local basketball court. While this feature is great, however, most of the time it’s utter chaos, as everyone is looking to shoot the ball and no one is passing, and everyone is rushing after the ball and rebounds. It’s like a group of unorganized 7 year-olds playing for the first time, but it’s still a lot of fun, especially if you can find a few teammates that pass the ball once in a while.

Overall, NBA Live 2010 is a noticeable improvement over last year, however, it’s still comes short in certain aspects. The gameplay, presentation and features are a little notch lower than on NBA 2K10, so if you’re in for basketball this holiday season (and the upcoming NBA season), we recommend 2K10.

The Good:
Noticeable improvement over last year
Dynamic DNA is great
Live Run mode is a lot of fun
Good multiplayer

The Bad:
Too much product placement
Occasional AI issues
Not much depth
Lacking commentary

Overall score: 7/10

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.

The gameplay is smooth for the most part, but once a lot of players clog together, like in the paint, for instance; going for a rebound, the game features some serious slowdowns at times, chugging along in a single-digit frame rate. 2K Sports has promised a patch regarding this issue, so we’ll see how that turns out later on. A few other issues plague the game as well, from player animations that bring the ball back over half-court (resulting in a back-court violation) for no reason, to doing the wrong kind of pass or shoot. The low post play can be frustrating in particular, especially when playing with your back to the basket. However, one thing that has been greatly improved over last year’s edition, is the commentary, which now seems a lot more fluid and conversational, and the commentators will factor in the latest real life games in order to give a more natural commentary. It’s definitely a welcomed feature, and works great.

The new career mode, called “my player mode”, let’s you create a player, but this time, you go from a complete unknown, fighting your way through training camps, to development leagues, to the draft and finally, to the NBA. Fans of this kind of feature won’t get disappointed, as it’s very comprehensive and offers plenty of gameplay value. However, it’s not without its fault, as your player will often get penalized on his ratings and progress for no reason at all.

Technically, the game looks great, everything from player animations to the crowd and the bench all seem to fit perfectly, with the exception of the occasional frame rate issues. The soundtrack and commentary are great as well, the commentary in particular is the best the series has seen so far. The multiplayer is just as solid as the last few years, with online matchmaking and lobbies that will fit everyone from the newbies to the pros. Fans of the series won’t be disappointed, especially if 2K Sports fulfills its promise of fixing the issues.

The Good:
Great gameplay
Best commentary yet
Solid multiplayer

The Bad:
Occasional frame-rate issues
Some AI issues
Annoying product placement

Overall score: 8/10

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.

The missions take place out doors, spanning over a large area, and objectives will be thrown at you as you advance. There are vehicles in the game, but some are close to impossible to control, like helicopters. It seems completely illogical to take “realism” to that level, and flat out make certain aspects of the game impossible, like controlling a helicopter. This frustration pop up in different aspects of the game as well, all related to it being too “realistic”, as in too “unplayable”. The enemy AI is good, and will give you enough of a challenge, the friendly AI however, is rather dumb, as your teammates will often ruin your stealthy approach. And even worse, they’ll often get in the line of fire.

The multiplayer portion of the game consists of co-op, where you can play the campaign with three friends, and a dedicated versus multiplayer feature, with classic modes such as Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and so on. It’s also possible to have a squad of 3 AI teammates in multiplayer, however, the AI issues from the single player campaign carry over, so you’re not any better of. On the whole though, the multiplayer part seems polished and is quite entertaining.

Technically, the game looks great, and is very similar to Battlefield Bad Company, sans the destruction. The outdoor environment is rendered well, and everything seems to be realistic, again, sans destruction. The audio is great as well, and the mission briefings are short and to the point. However, we did experience a few bugs and hiccups with the game, including frame rate issues. In all, the game can be recommended to hard core shooter fans who crave for realism, but for everyone else, it’s a notch too realistic, often resulting in sheer frustration. The single player campaign is well made and the quality of the story and structure is welcomed, the multiplayer likewise is decent, but again, if you’re not into realistic combat sims like Arma, you’re in for a lot of frustration.

The Good:
Good campaign
Realistic

The Bad:
Some realistic aspects ruin the gameplay
Occasional bugs and glitches
Some vehicles are downright unplayable
AI has issues at times

Overall score: 6/10

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.

The gameplay was already top notch in the previous game, and Turn 10 did a good job at recognizing what was good and what needed more help. Forza 3 can be approached by racing newcomers to veterans of the genre, and each will find the game satisfying, thanks to its detailed customization features. It’s very easy to drive, and the sense of speed is really good. The AI isn’t as challenging on the first two settings, especially in the beginning of your career, but it’ll give you a good fight most of the time. The career mode is lengthy and takes place over several seasons. As with Forza 2, after each tournament (and there are plenty of those) you get awarded a car — in addition to credits — that you can use for the next tournament and so on. And just like in recent racing games, there’s a rewind feature that lets you rewind a few moments in case you crash at the last turn, which, with this being a racing game, will inevitably happen. However, Forza 3 offers and unlimited amount of rewinds, which means some of the tension that always accompanies high-speed, high-stake races is gone. All things considered, if you played and are familiar with Forza 2’s gameplay, you’ll feel right at home in Forza 3.

In Forza 2, you could paint your car not just whatever color you wanted, but you could create custom designs and even trade and sell your car in the online marketplace. Forza 3 features all of that and some more, including now, for the first time, you can sell and buy custom designs instead of the whole car. So if you want that cool custom logo, you can just spend a few in-game credits (not real money, mind you, this isn’t EA) and get it on your favorite car. The multiplayer portion is as solid as it always was in Forza, and coupled with the new cars, tracks and new customization features, it’s even better to race against real-life opponents online.

Overall, Forza Motorsport 3 is a must have for any racing fan, whether you’re into arcade or simulation, you’ll find plenty to do in Forza 3. And until Gran Turismo 5 comes out, Forza 3 will solidly sit on the throne of racing games.

The Good:
Great selection of cars and tracks
Solid gameplay
Great customization features

The Bad:
Rewind feature prone to abuse
Career mode can get repetitive

Overall score: 9/10