PSP, Puzzle, Reviews

Deflector (PSP Minis Review)

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Deflector is a basically designed yet challenging puzzle game, similar to some mini-games you may have played in bigger titles before. The aim is to deflect a laser beam into a receiver on a complex grid with you looking at it from above.

This is done by placing mirrors on the grid and rotating them to bounce the laser off in a new direction. Before setting the mirror in place you must make sure -via a dotted line that indicates the resulting path of the laser- that it will not hit any environmental objects that will end the game. These objects include apartments, trees, bombs and explosive barrels. Take a quick look at this video for an example of the early levels. Continue reading Deflector (PSP Minis Review) →

PSP, Puzzle, Reviews

Route 66 (PSP Minis Review)

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Forget all thoughts of motorbikes and possible cheap Road Rash thrills right now. This is a game that has more in common with the Where’s Waldo books that everyone had in the 1990s, albeit considerably less congested. It’s actually pretty damn good too.

Instead of looking for people, you use a cursor to find eight objects cleverly hidden onscreen in a scene picture from one of the many locations along the eponymous Route 66. You scroll around the picture with the analogue stick and move a cursor with the d-pad, selecting items with X. The items can range from broccoli to Buddha’s, hazelnuts to harmonicas and pinecones to peace signs. They’re very specific too, so don’t go thinking boot means shoe or anything like that. Continue reading Route 66 (PSP Minis Review) →

PlayStation 3, Reviews, RPG, Xbox 360

Resonance of Fate (PS3 Review)

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If the likes of Final Fantasy XIII and White Knight Chronicles haven’t been hardcore enough for you as JRPGs, then this game from Tri-Ace would love to dominate you in a cruel way that your sick mind will love.

The cutscenes are nice to look at despite large amounts of foppishly designed miserable emo teens and them not really explaining anything well at all. The towns of the game world make a decent effort of cramming in a lot of detail too. The dungeon or linked arena levels are very sparse and repetitive though. Continue reading Resonance of Fate (PS3 Review) →

Action, PlayStation 3, Reviews

God of War III (Review)

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Kratos and God of War III have patiently sat atop Mount Olympus watching the likes of Bayonetta, Darksiders and Dante’s Inferno clamber their way upwards in their efforts to usurp him. He’s let them get tantalisingly close, before stirring and smiting them from the mountain in amused rage at their audacity.

The end of the trilogy begins where GOWII ended, with Kratos clambering up Mount Olympus with his new Titan buddies for the climactic war to kill Zeus and any gods that cross his path. There’s seemingly nowhere for the Olympians to hide anymore seeing as he’s dispatched pretty much every mythological monster they’ve thrown at him already. Continue reading God of War III (Review) →

Action, Beat 'em up, PlayStation 3, Reviews, RPG

Yakuza 3 (Review)

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How to describe Yakuza 3? Well it’s an RPG beat ‘em up stuffed with a huge variety of mini-games to distract you from the games story that involve multiple Yakuza gangs and government conspiracies in Tokyo and Okinawa. Oh and you look after an orphanage too.

Players new to the series are welcomed by detailed compilations of cutscenes from the first two games that make a decent effort of bringing you up to speed. Long story short, Kazuma (that’s you) climbed the ranks to become the 4th Chairman of the Tojo Clan of the Yakuza, didn’t fancy it and went to start an orphanage on the Japanese island of Okinawa. Continue reading Yakuza 3 (Review) →

DS, Platformer, Retro, Reviews

Sonic Classic Collection (Review)

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This should get your retro skills up to scratch before the release of Sonic 4 which is making a return to Sonic’s 2D roots. Put simply this compilation collects the best four Sonic games out there. Pure, 2D, Sonic gold.

These are the best Sonic games to be released on the Mega-drive System in the ‘90s, before it all went wrong with his steps into third dimension adventure platforming. This package contains Sonic 1-3 and Sonic & Knuckles. Unlike past Sonic compilations we’ve seen over the years, this one allows you to play through Sonic 2 and 3 as Knuckles. Which, as anyone that owned the original Mega Drive cartridge of Sonic & Knuckles knows, makes this an unmissable purchase. Continue reading Sonic Classic Collection (Review) →

Action, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Way of the Samurai 3 (Review)

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Set in Feudal Japan you star as an injured Samurai, regaining consciousness on a battlefield surrounded by corpses of other warriors after a bloody battle. From here on in you get to decide how to shape the story in this sedately paced Samurai-sim.

The series, which started on PS2, has always prided itself on the amount of choice it provided to gamers with multiple endings being a key selling point. This time there are over twenty of them.  Players are allowed a degree of freedom in shaping their adventure by selecting from multiple dialogue options, usually based around being nice or nasty. Continue reading Way of the Samurai 3 (Review) →

PlayStation 3, Previews, Regular previews, Xbox 360

Super Street Fighter IV (Preview)

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Yes the original game is barely a year old, but countless editions of Street Fighter games are something we’ve come to expect from Capcom over the years. Some offer minor tweaks of gameplay and other subtle changes that only the hardcore or most avid completist may care for while others may throw some extra content into the mix.

This first addition to the Street Fighter IV universe may well be worth a look to all types of fan though. Almost definitely an essential purchase if you haven’t got around to picking up the first one yet. Continue reading Super Street Fighter IV (Preview) →

PC, PlayStation 3, PSN (PlayStation Store), Puzzle, Reviews, XBLA, Xbox 360

Peggle (Review)

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Old news for PC and 360 gamers, but Peggle has finally made its way to PS3 via the PSN service. If you enjoyed PopCap’s other games like Bejeweled 2 and Zuma then there’s every chance you’ll love this too.

The aim is to rid the screen of all the orange Pegs. You do this by shooting a ball at an angle from the top the screen, then simply sitting back and letting gravity take care of the rest as the ball bounces of walls and blue and orange Pegs. Pegs light up when touched and disappear a few seconds later, longer if the ball is still pinging around lots.  Eventually the ball falls to the bottom of the screen, either into a hole or into a moving bucket which lets you use the ball again. You get ten balls to clear all the orange Pegs out, but more balls can be earned by saving them at the bottom or racking up a large combo by bouncing off lots of pegs. Once the last orange Peg has been hit the ball lands in one of five pits for an extra score bonus. Continue reading Peggle (Review) →

PlayStation 3, Racers, Reviews, Xbox 360

Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing (Review)

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Considering kart racers are supposed to be a heavily populated genre, it’s surprising that there aren’t really any on the PS3 and Xbox 360. There’s a few film spin-offs like Pixar’s Cars and PSN titles like Gripshift and Smash Cars but it’s almost like nobody’s got the guts to take on Nintendo and Mario Kart.

No longer though. Sonic’s star may have fallen in all manner of horrific ways over the years, with him even having to hop into bed with the porky plumber to pay the bills, but make no mistake Sonic and pals are back in contention with this top racing title. Continue reading Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing (Review) →

PlayStation 3, Reviews, RPG

White Knight Chronicles (Review)

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I don’t want to say JRPGs are like buses but come on! In little over a month around now starved console gamers are getting Star Ocean: The Last Hope, Final Fantasy XIII and now the very late in translation PS3 exclusive, White Knight Chronicles. The Wii even got a Final Fantasy game too!

Well enough complaining just book the whole of March off and get stuck-in. RPG fans may be interested to know that this game is from Level 5, the well respected developers of the critically acclaimed Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, Dark Cloud and Rogue Galaxy. Continue reading White Knight Chronicles (Review) →

First Person Shooters, PC, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Bioshock 2 (Multiplayer Review)

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Bioshock multiplayer probably wasn’t too high up on the list of things we wanted to see included in Bioshock 2 given that it was everything apart from the guns that really made the game (and its sequel) really stand out. Turns out that maybe we should have wanted it all along as it’s turned out very well indeed.

If you’ve heard that the multiplayer takes place before the events of the first game, then you heard correct. However, don’t expect to gain any more particular insight into the fall of Rapture as all it really means is you’ll revisit some familiar locations that have less rubble and destruction than you’ve previously seen. This time though you’re one of the psychotic Splicers. Continue reading Bioshock 2 (Multiplayer Review) →

First Person Shooters, PC, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Aliens Vs Predator (Review)

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Cinema’s favourite monsters haven’t exactly flourished on consoles. The Alien franchise hasn’t had a good game since Alien Trilogy on the PS1 and Predator is still waiting. PC gamers have enjoyed the clash of these mighty beasts for many a year though, and finally, so can the rest of us.

The plot is pretty basic and shares a few small similarities to the first AVP movie; thankfully the awful Dawson’s Creek-esque sequel has largely been ignored. The Marine plot is filled in better if you pick up audio diaries, similar in nature to those in Bioshock. Just as all three stories begin to get interesting though, they finish, leaving you disappointed but tellingly, wanting more. Continue reading Aliens Vs Predator (Review) →

First Person Shooters, PlayStation 3, Reviews, Xbox 360

Bioshock 2 (Review)

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First off all we’ll just say you can read this review without worrying about plot spoilers for this game and its predecessor because we’re not cruel / stupid and can’t encourage you enough to go and play through the first classic game to fully enjoy this one. So there’s no need to read with one eye open from behind the sofa.

All you really need to know is that in the first game the player found themselves at the hidden underwater city of Rapture after a plane crash. Unfortunately everything had gone completely mental as all the citizens had been busy messing around with Plasmids that altered them genetically, giving them superhuman abilities.

After taking it overboard, the Utopia fell before coming into fruition leaving its citizens wrecked of body and mind as they became known as the Splicers. Horrifically the city’s little girls, later dubbed the Little Sisters, were put into a trance and forced to collect Adam (Plasmid currency) from corpses. Players could choose to liberate them from this haunting nightmare or murder them to get extra Adam supplies. Well, after you disposed of their guardian first, the ominous Big Daddies. Continue reading Bioshock 2 (Review) →

Arcade Shooter, PlayStation 3, PSN (PlayStation Store), Retro, Reviews

Gravity Crash (Review)

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This is another retro-style 2D shooter for the PSN and probably the harshest one yet. Your space-ship handles similarly to games of yesteryear like Thrust and Gravitar. If this means nothing to you, it’s like a hockey puck slowly sliding across the ice, with little thrusts to control changes in direction. The game’s enjoyable to look at in a minimalist way, with its simple yet striking visualstyle of solid lines making up the maps and lighting them up with a neon glow. Continue reading Gravity Crash (Review) →

Interactive Drama, PlayStation 3, Reviews

Heavy Rain (Review)

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This PS3 exclusive is the long-awaited ‘interactive drama’ from Quantic Dream. For months we’ve been wowed by the stunning character models and promises of a unique experience. Of course we’ve also been worried that the whole thing may descend into a never-ending line of Quick-Time-Events (QTEs). Read on for the full verdict. Continue reading Heavy Rain (Review) →

Hands-on previews, PlayStation 3, Previews

ModNation Racers (Hands-On Preview)

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Coming up fast behind Mario Kart is ModNation Racers from Sony and United Front Games. Rather than just another kart-racer you’ll have your chance to create your own tracks and characters. It’s the next game in Sony’s ‘Play, Create, Share’ push started by Little Big Planet. Continue reading ModNation Racers (Hands-On Preview) →

First Person Shooters, PlayStation 3, Reviews

MAG (Review)

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256 players online. What was the biggest before that? Resistance 2 with 60? That’s one hell of a step up. We’d have been impressed with a 100. It’s perhaps fitting then that MAG stands for Massive Action Game. So how does it measure up against the likes of Modern Warfare 2 and developer Zipper Interactive’s Socom games? You might want to upgrade your broadband for this one. Continue reading MAG (Review) →

Gaming reviews, previews and features by Brendan Griffiths