In the distant future, the United States will once again split into two sides. This time, it’s the east and west instead of north and south. Genetic human modification has become a huge controversy: the west coast is almost totally in favour of it while the east is against. The President of the United States has passed a bill stating that genetically modifying a human is a federal offence, causing the west coast to secede. At least, that’s the story of Fracture. You play as Jet Brody, a soldier for the Atlantic Alliance (the east coast). Your job is to capture the president of Pacifica (the west coast) at all costs.

The first thing I noticed with this game, almost immediately, is that it strongly resembles Halo. And I mean strongly. From the weapons, the settings, even Jet’s armor, the game feels a lot like a Halo knock-off. And not even a good one at that. The game-play is different though in the fact that it relies heavily on altering the ground with a weapon called the Entrencher. With it, you can raise or lower the ground to create cover, burrow under walls, or even raise debris out of your way. This is pretty neat at first, but it quickly looses it’s fun after the game makes you do it for almost every small task. It begins to feel very repetitive, especially since it doesn’t work perfectly and is very awkward to use.

That being said, I should tell you that a lot of the game is this way: repetitive and awkward. The combat is very difficult, not because of enemies, but because of the controls. There were many times where I’d die simply because I couldn’t get a good combination of cover and aiming abilities. Most of the time it is impossible to shoot anyone while behind cover. If your crouched, instead of shooting over the cover, you simply shoot whatever your hiding behind, forcing you to stand up and get hit by enemy fire while trying to aim. Even when you are aiming, the weapons have terrible accuracy and take a lot of ammo to take down one Pacifica soldier. Throwing grenades doesn’t work to well either. When attempting to throw a grenade through a window, no matter where you aim, the grenade will almost always land in the same exact spot. So if you miss the first time, you must move to a new location to try again. Grenades also seem to have little effect on enemies, typically just knocking them down instead of killing them.

Aside from the awkward controls and pathetic weapons, the game feels very over-done. While the story is unique, the game play feels a lot like a mix of past games. While sometimes a mix can be good, this game didn’t offer anything good to help it out. I felt like I had played it before, although I could never figure out what other game it reminded me of specifically. The graphics, most notably the suit or armor you wear, reminded me a lot of Halo or Gears of War, or some offspring of the two put together. While Gears of War is one of my favourite games and Halo wasn’t bad, this game managed to not have any of the joy of playing that those two games did.

Fracture attempted to be groundbreaking, literally, with it’s focus on ground altering, but it simply didn’t do it right. This game was hard to force myself to keep playing, especially when my hope of it redeeming itself was lost after the first several hours of playing.

Sound: 4

Graphics: 3

Story: 3

Gameplay Mechanics: 2

Replayability: 1

Written by: Nikolas Mason

Downloadable games have a knack for being small and relatively simple. They tend to not match the scale of disc-based games. Most titles available on the Playstation Store are like this. Simple puzzle or shooter games. This isn’t the case, however, with Ratchet and Clank Future: Quest For Booty, the fully downloadable game from Insomniac.

The game is a direct sequel to the disc-based game released with the launch of the Playstation 3, Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. While not near as long, Quest For Booty is by no means just a side game. The game takes place after the events of Tools of Destruction, following Ratchet on his search for Clank. His search takes him to a fleet of pirates, the fight against which is what most of this game is based around.
Graphics wise, Quest For Booty is beautiful. All of the environments are rendered in full high-definition and look just as good, if not better, than that of Tools of Destruction.  The animation is really smooth, the loading times are relatively short, and the colors are very vivid, and the locations all have a unique tropical feel to them to match the pirate theme.

The story of the game isn’t too deep by any means, but it is quite enjoyable. The acting and comical script are superb, even making me laugh a few times. The game features a decent sized cast of intriguing characters whom you interact with through dialogue trees. These give you several options of what to say to the characters you talk to, but ultimately only one of the options is ever important while the rest tend to only add more details or just funny one-liners for entertainment.

The main enemies of the game are pirates, but not your ordinary pirates, but robot space ghost pirates. Yes, a very odd combination, but the game pulls it off quite well. Although the combat with these pirates is my biggest gripe with this game. At times you’ll face one enemy and have a lot of health near by that you can easily avoid needing, while at other times the game will throw a ton of enemies at you and give you very little health pick ups. There were many times where I’d die because of this overwhelming amount of enemies and have to go way back and start over. While it’s fun the first time, it can get quite tiresome, especially with how far the game will sometimes make you backtrack.

The controls are relatively simple to learn, just like most third person shooters. You have a decent sized arsenal, most of which are the basic weapons from the disc-based game. There is, however, no stores or upgrades that I saw, a major feature in the first game. This isn’t too surprising given that this game is basically just episodic content. Available for $14.99 on the Playstation Store, this game is worth a purchase if you were a fan of the series, but if you didn’t like Tools of Destruction, I wouldn’t recommend this game for you.
Sound: 4
Graphics: 5
Story: 3
Replayability: 1
Gameplay Mechanics: 3

View more screenshots at IGN.

Posted by: Travis Brantner

Sometimes mixing and matching things can work out really well.  Disney and Final Fantasy.  Chocolate and peanut butter.  Women in skimpy bathing suits and jello.  The list could go on and on.  But there are times when things can turn ugly.  Disney stars and internet technology.  Fox and superhero movies (yeah I’m looking at you Daredevil, Elektra, and X-Men movies that should have been called ‘watered down Wolverine and those other guys.’)

So when Lego Star Wars was released in 2005, people were skeptical.  To be honest, they had every reason to be since previous Lego games weren’t really that great.  Sure the racing game on Nintendo 64 was ok.  But let’s face it; none of them were anything to write home about.  However, Lego Star Wars surprised a lot of people and it was enjoyable, although a little over rated.  The trend continued with Lego Star Wars: The Original Trilogy, which kept a lot of the same, and then Lego Indiana Jones (which I haven’t had the pleasure of playing yet).  Nothing surprised me more though when Traveller’s Tales announced Lego Batman: The Videogame.

I personally wasn’t that thrilled with Lego Star Wars.  It was fun, but in my opinion, it got old very fast.  To say that I was terrified was an understatement.  I mean hasn’t Batman had enough terrible to mediocre videogames?  It also didn’t help when Traveller’s Tales released only a little bit of information at a time.  A press release here, a small teaser video that wasn’t gameplay related there.  Needless to say, I was ready to call this game a mediocre clone of the other Lego Games.

Things changed though as the release date got nearer and nearer.  Gameplay videos and explanations of the features were released and I found myself actually excited for the game, asking for it for my birthday.  I received the DS version and found one of, if not, the best super hero games ever.

Let’s begin with the basics.  The inmates of Arkham Asylum break free and align into three groups, each focused on a different goal.  You control Batman and Robin (in Animated Series garb) to take down these villains and save Gotham City.  This is really nothing new in the terms of story, but to be honest, it really didn’t matter.  What did matter was the humor and cute little jokes told through comic like panels (instead of the low budget animation from Lego Star Wars).  There were honestly quite a few times that I chuckled.

The graphics were also really great for a DS game.  No blocky edges, no clipping issues, and no blurring.  The graphics also retained a cartoon look that reminded me of the Animated Series, but with Legos and a comic flavor, which I loved.  However, one problem is that being on the DS (a lower powered handheld), the graphics weren’t as polished as other versions.  There were no shadows (making depth and jumping platform to platform a chore sometimes), no reflections (which always adds to the mood), and no real source of light, leaving everything to have the same lighting conditions.  The only major issue though was the lack of shadows.  I died quite a few times when I would try to jump across a pit, only to discover I was too far to the side when I jumped.

The game also added something new in the form of close combat moves, which added to the realism and depth of the license.  A few thugs come running in with guns?  Disarm them with bat-a-rangs, then punch their lights out.  Or stand back and destroy them with more bat-a-rangs.  Once I got the hang of the controls, I was navigating the stages like an expert, using the touch screen for bat grappling and opening doors to using the buttons to leap and swing.  It became second nature.

With everything good though, there’s always a bad.  Sometimes the bat-a-rangs didn’t work right, and I really got tired of having to switch between Batman and Robin consistently to get through a stage.  Go a few yards, switch to Robin, hit a switch, switch to Batman, go a few feet, hit a switch, change back to Robin.  I also wanted to play as Batman and Robin in their normal suits!  I hated having to be one of the super-suits once you found one.

Flaws aside, Lego Batman: The Videogame was a really fun (and addicting) game that added a few new things to the Lego games.  The pros greatly outweigh the cons, and there’s a lot of replayability since there are so many unlockables and hidden areas to access, it’s not even funny.  I’d happily recommend it to anyone, whether they’re a superhero fan or not.

Graphics: 4

Sound: 5

Control: 4

Story: 4 (would have been a 3, but the little jokes put it up a point)

Replayability: 5

View more screenshots at IGN.

Posted by: Nikolas Mason

It’s not very often that you see a game in the style of classic point and click adventures. I still remember my early video game years, playing games like Sam and Max or Day of the Tentacle. They combined mystery with a very unique art direction and talented voice work and music. Over the years, this style of game has been long forgotten by many, but not BugFactory, a small game developing company originating in Finland. They put these ingredients together almost perfectly with their PC point-and-click adventure game The Tales of Bingwood.

You play as Tom, the fisherman’s son, who has been chosen by the town’s people to rescue the Royal Princess who has been kidnapped by the Evil Wizard. The game’s main plot is definitely nothing new to the gaming world, but Bingwood manages to pull it off quite nicely. Featuring many intriguing characters, great voice acting and plenty of comical lines, Bingwood delivers its story well.

The graphics are nothing groundbreaking by far, but that isn’t a problem in this case. The art direction is refreshing and very reminiscent of early computer games. The locations are all very creative and done in a pixilated but very artistic manor.  At times it can be kind of hard to tell what objects can be interacted with, but never is it too big of a problem.

The game features a large cast of fully voiced characters, all of which have unique personalities and very good voice acting, especially for the main character, Tom. Tom is a laid back young man who seems indifferent about the fact that it is up to him to save the Princess. His only fear is that he has to marry her. Besides the conversations, the game features dialog for almost every action and item, making it more entertaining than if you had to read everything like most games make you do. Along with the voice acting, the game features a great musical score that really fits the style and art direction. The story, while not terribly deep, is fun to follow thanks to the sound work.

The controls are very simple point-and-click. If you see an item that you think is important, you can use the eye tool to have Tom explain what it is, and in some cases, you can use the hand tool to pick up the item and put it in your inventory. Other tools include a foot tool (to allow you to walk to wherever you click), and a mouth tool, which you use to talk to other characters. The game also features dialogue trees, allowing you to select what you want to say next out of a short list of options. There are times, when the game changes what tool you have selected without you realizing, causing in slight annoyances, especially if it reactivates a long line of dialogue that you just sat through. This doesn’t happen very often though.

The game is simple, but very well done. At times it can seem a little slow, but that’s to be expected from a mystery game, especially one of point-and-click nature. Although I could still just be suffering from the side effects of the action packed carnage of Motorstorm. At only ten dollars, The Tales of Bingwood is a great game for fans of the genre and is sure to bring back plenty of nostalgic memories.

Sound: 5

Graphics: 4

Story: 3

Replayability: 3

Gameplay Mechanics: 4

Visit the game’s official site.

Posted by: Tyson Moffitt

First PixelJunk Racers came out, and then PixelJunk Monsters, and finally PixelJunk Eden, the newest installment to the series. You play as a small creature that jumps and swings around from plant to plant trying to find the little objects called ‘spectra’ which are located throughout the stages.  As you are jumping about looking for the spectra you also have a little meter at the bottom of the screen that is full at the beginning of the game, but gradually lowers unless you find ‘crystals’, or the spectra.

First level of PixelJunk Eden from Nikolas Mason on Vimeo.

The game looks and feels delightful, but the controls are at times difficult, and stubborn to jump and maneuver. The game has a fantastic soundtrack, and a great look and concept. But I just wasn’t feeling it.

The game was fun sometimes, but mostly annoying. In my opinion, I could usually over look the annoying, but I just couldn’t find myself doing that with this game. It took longer than I liked trying to get used to the controls. I could only play this game for about 30 to 40 minutes before getting bored. The game seemed to have the potential to be really fun, but it just didn’t deliver. For only $4.99, you can try this game yourself from the Playstation Store.

Sound: 5

Graphics: 5

Replayability: 2

Controls: 1

Concept: 2

Posted by: Travis Brantner

When the Nintendo Revolution was first announced, a lot of people figured it’d be in the vain of the Nintendo 64 and GameCube.  A system with a lot of kiddy and family games, a few really stellar games, and then a ton of games that either sucked or fell through the cracks.  People laughed and said that only fan boys would buy it.  As the launch grew near, Nintendo changed the name to ‘Wii,’ emphasizing their goal to bring people together to play games as a group and to bring families together, something not really thought of.  Not too long after, a lot of jokes came about involving the name and people just laughed.  It was then that Nintendo revealed its secret weapon.  The Wii’s control scheme.

At first, a lot of people missed the bigger picture.  They felt that the Wii was going to be filled with point and click games.  Some even criticized the wireless controls, yet applauded the PS3 for the same thing.  However, as time went on, people got the bigger picture and began dreaming of the possibilities.  Though most of which went unnoticed because party games took over the Wii with various mini-game collections or games for other systems ported with half-arsed motion controls.

Enter No More Heroes.  One of the most original game ideas in the past decade with an off the wall sense of humor to match from Suda51.

Long story short, you play as Travis Touchdown, an otaku who’s down on his luck, training in pro-wrestling, and addicted to weird porno movies.  Before the game starts off, Travis wins a beam katana on an internet auction (what else would a nerdy guy bid on?) and takes a job to kill a guy called Helter Skelter so he can make some money.  Except after he kills the guy, he finds out that he’s been pulled into the UAA (United Assassins Association) at the rank of 11, and if he doesn’t kill his way to number one, he’s probably going to get killed by some other wannabe.  Things aren’t exactly clear cut though, as Travis faces a world of confusion, romance, and the completely insane.

One of the first things to notice about NMH is the graphics.  They’re not realistic at all.  Instead, they’re in the style of Suda51’s previous game Killer7 and seem to opt for a comic or anime feel with cell shading.  At first this can be a little daunting, but once you play the game, it works out really nice.  In fact, given the over the top nature of the game, I couldn’t see any other style working out.  There were instances though that I felt the graphics suffered, which were in the form of jagged edges in the open world setting.  Considering that Resident Evil 4 had more realistic graphics and had more detail with little to no readily apparent jaggedness, I’d expect the same for a game with anime/cartoony graphics on a more stylized world.

Despite the graphical flaws and oddness, the gameplay knocks this game out of the park.  To quote a cliché, the controls are simple to learn, hard to master.  And I mean that.  You press Z to lock on to enemies, A to attack, B to initiate a grapple, left or right on the D-pad to roll, left or right when locked on to slide around your enemy, and various onscreen directions to execute other moves such as wrestling, finishing, or weapons clashing moves.  It sounds really simple, except quite a few times the game will throw a lot of guys at you at once.  And just when you master killing them all without getting yourself killed, the game ups the ante by giving the enemies more powerful weapons.

One such stage makes you go through a level against a ton of enemies with guns while avoiding landmines.  While it might sound easy, blocking gunfire depletes your katana’s energy (requiring you to hit the 1 button and shake the Wii-mote, resulting in a dirty looking motion on screen to recharge it) and renders you motionless.  Other stages include having to go through a baseball stadium (with a baseball styled minigame thrown in occasionally), dodging laser blasts, and fighting your way through train cars.  And if that’s not enough, each boss battle requires a different strategy or attack plan.  While wrestling moves might work on one boss, another might counter them easily into moves of their own.

Despite the amazing feel of the game, there were some drawbacks.  The open ended world you roam around in between jobs was emptier than one would expect in a post-GTA world.  The jobs you have to undertake to earn money to advance towards your next ranking fight got old after awhile too.  And sometimes, it’s just too damn hard.  I can understand wanting to challenge gamers a little bit, but when you die 20 times in a stage, things are a little overboard.  Not too mention there were a few times I had problems getting the motion controls to register for the wrestling moves.

All that aside, No More Heroes is probably one of the best games on the Wii right now.  It’s challenging, has a great story (with some of the most memorable quotes from a video game yet), and will keep you interested in it for a long time.  It’s also got some great replayability that isn’t seen in a lot of games today.  And let’s face it. There’s just something satisfying about busting out a powerbomb or hurricanrana in the middle of a fight to the death.

Sound: 5

Graphics: 4

Gameplay: 4

Controls: 4

Story: 5

See more screenshots at IGN.

Posted by: Nikolas Mason

With the launch of the Playstation 3 came the launch of a new racing series known only as Motorstorm. The game gave you a varied selection of cars, anything from dirt bikes to rally cars, racing trucks to old semis. With a brutal style of racing, very detailed desert setting, and great vehicle physics, Motorstorm quickly made a name for itself as one of the best racing games available for the PS3. Everything wasn’t perfect, however, as the game seemed to be lacking in several areas. For starters, and my biggest complaint, it had no local multiplayer. If you’ve read my past reviews, you should know by now this is a major pet peeve with me. Along with that, the game also featured very long load times and very little variety in the maps.

Motorstorm Pacific Rift fixes all three of those problems. The load times are much faster, notably when selecting your vehicle, there are now twice as many maps to race on, all of them very distinct and varied, and best of all: split screen multiplayer. Pacific Rift throws the same violent racing style from the first game onto a tropical, volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean, along with a lot of new vehicle styles and game play modes.
Pacific Rift is beautiful. The island is extremely detailed and every course has a very distinct style. From forests to beaches and volcanoes, and even an abandoned sugar plantation and mountain top observatory, Pacific Rift is far from lacking in the location department. All of the different locations feature unique game-play modifications, such as if you’re driving in a wet area with a lot of water, you’re able to cool your engine off and boost for much longer periods of time. But if you’re near volcanic lava, your engine heats up very fast, allowing for much shorter boost periods. These of course also have their opposite sides. Some vehicles can’t make it through deep water, so in an attempt to cool your engine down, you could drown yourself completely. Also many of the courses with lava feature showers that you can drive your car through to cool the engine down.

Along with water and fire, the game features a lot of vegetation. At times the course can seem completely overgrown in some areas. Smaller vehicles can have a lot of trouble making it through, getting caught and stuck on plants, where as larger vehicles, such as the new monster trucks, can plow right though. Along with the course obstacles are also the course paths. Every course has multiple paths, all made up of different styles. The road could fork into three paths, one path going into deep mud that only larger vehicles can drive through, another path going up to a narrow ledge that only smaller vehicles would be safe driving along, and the other course could have water or lead to a big jump. Finding which course is right for your vehicle mostly involves a lot of trial and error, as there is no perfect route.

Along with the new locations and vehicles, Pacific Rift features several different modes of play. The first and most basic mode is just your standard race mode. You are up against 15 other drivers all fighting for the first place spot, usually in two laps. Besides this mode, there is also the Eliminator challenges in which every few seconds, whoever is in last place blows up, slowly narrowing the race down to one driver, and your job is to make sure that driver is you. This can be rather hard at times, especially when stressing that you’re in last place and the screen flashes at you warning of your impending death. But still, it’s a lot of fun. The third and least fun of the game styles is the Speed challenges. In this mode, you must race against the clock to hit checkpoints. In standard arcade style, each checkpoint earns you a few more seconds and you must hit them all without running out of time. This can be quite challenging however as the game only shows you one checkpoint at a time. With all of the different paths you can take on the course, it is very easy to miss a checkpoint, causing you to loose the challenge.

Besides the gorgeous locations and great selection of vehicles, possibly the best thing Pacific Rift has to offer is local multiplayer. Noticably missing from the first game, split screen multiplayer adds a lot of replay value to this game. You can play with up to four of your friends locally against 11 computer racers in either standard race or eliminator modes. Along with local split-screen, Pacific Rift also features online play, which much like the first game’s very basic race against up to 16 other players.

Pacific Rift presents itself very well. All of the locations are extremely detailed and varied, the colors are all very vivid and the lighting is almost always perfect. The sound effects really make the game feel more intense, along with the loud, rowdy music that plays, fitting the style of the game perfectly. On the downside, however, the controls seem to sometimes be inconsistent. At times the controls are too sensitive, making a small mistake turn into a large crash, or the complete opposite, and they aren’t sensitive enough, making you miss a turn that could have gotten you ahead in the race.
Over all, Motorstorm Pacific Rift surpassed my expectations. Fans of the first game will love this one, and fans of racing games in general would surely enjoy the fun and different style of racing Motorstorm provides.

Sound: 4

Graphics: 5

Fun: 5

Replayability: 5

Gameplay Mechanics: 4

Verdict:

Posted by: Nikolas Mason

Very rarely are military shooters innovative. But in 2006, Resistance: Fall of Man was just that. Set in a post World War II Europe, Resistance followed the story of the human species fight to survive an invading alien species known as the Chimera. You played as Nathan Hale, a Sergeant of the United States Army, sent to Europe to help contain the invasion. The human’s resistance was a failure, however, and the Chimera made it to the last remaining uninfected continents. That’s where Resistance 2 picks up.

Europe has been lost and the Chimera have invaded the United States. Taking place immediately after the events of the first game, Resistance 2 has a lot to live up to, and it definitely does. Resistance 2 manages to improve on virtually everything good about the first game, everything from graphics to weapons. Let’s start with the latter.

Fans of the first game will quickly recognize most of the weapons featured in Resistance 2, which also features a handful of new weapons to choose from. The Bullseye is my favourite gun from the first game, and in this one it seems much more powerful, as do all of the weapons. Only being able to hold two guns at once can be kind of annoying, especially with the very low maximum ammo you’re allowed to carry. Choosing what weapon to take with you can be difficult, but it usually depends on what the situation calls for.

Along with the weapons, the enemies in which you fight have also gained more in number. There are now a lot more types of Chimera to fight during the game, ranging from weak to almost impossibly strong. All of the enemies feature a great and horrifying design, and the shear numbers they attack is sometimes amazing. The bosses of the game, and there are a lot of them, are also very well made, and very big.  You get your first taste of just how big the bosses are almost immediately also.

As I already mentioned above, Resistance 2 takes place in the United States, far from the World War II battlegrounds of Europe. The locations in Resistance 2 are breathtakingly realistic and beautiful. At times I was distracted from the task just to gaze in awe at some of the areas, namely the games rendition of San Francisco. The level of detail put into each and every level is a great sign of Insomniac’s attention to detail. The colors are more vivid, the buildings are more structured, and the draw distance features a very good view in most cases. The colors of each level seem to differ greatly from the overall grayish tone the first game had, which is quite refreshing.

The story of Resistance 2 isn’t too spectacular, but it’s good enough to keep you playing for the 9 or 10 hours it takes to complete. The battles are very intense and very large, and at some points they can be almost impossible. There were times where I would get aggravated at how easily I would get killed, and at many times, how many times I’d die trying to get through one small part of the game. Overall though, the single player campaign was very fun, and to make it even better, you can run through the whole campaign in co-op if you wish.

Where the game really shines, however, is in it’s multiplayer. Resistance 2 features a very Call of Duty 4-esque online multiplayer, allowing you to earn XP points and unlockables the more you play. Some of the modes also allow for up to 60 players at once, which is very intense. The game has several different modes to choose from, all of which are divided up into two teams, obviously either human or Chimera. You also have your own customized player of each species. Earning XP points earns you unlockables, which you can use to customize your player’s appearance and weapons. The game would almost be worth the $60 just for the multiplayer alone.

In the end, Resistance 2 managed to completely surpass my expectations. This game is a definite buy for fans of the first game. Almost every aspect of the game has improved, and other than the times where it’s a little overly hard, this game was a lot of fun. Do not resist this game if you own a PS3. I give it a five out of five.

See more screenshots at IGN.

Posted by: Nikolas Mason

Game players are no strangers to World War II. In fact, the war has long overstayed it’s welcome. Last year, one of the most famous game series to take place in that time period finally moved on, creating what many consider to be one of the best war games ever, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Naturally it came as a surprise to hear the game was going back to it’s roots with it’s newest addition: Call of Duty World at War.

Luckily, World at War retains the same aspects that made Modern Warfare so great. The story tells a different side of the war than previous games. Instead of being mainly in Europe, the game uses the same story telling technique as Modern Warfare to follow two separate stories in both Russia and Japan. The settings are varied enough to not get boring and the tropical settings and jungles look stunning.

The cinematic elements in the game make you feel like you’re part of a very epic war, even though the part you play is actually very linear. Most of the action is shown to you or happening around you, and very rarely do you actually cause a major event. Much like Modern Warfare however, these events are shown in very impressive ways, and even though you aren’t controlling them, they are still amazing to see happen.

The graphics of World at War are very good, almost photorealistic at times. The enviornments are very well crafted, especially some of the Russian locations. The sound is also very good, with both the music and sound effects working together to make the game feel like a much larger and frantic war.

While the game presents itself very well, it does have some flaws. At times the enemies seem to keep coming and coming until you physically pass a certain point. I tend to like to find a good spot to fight from and take out all of the enemies, but this time around it seems as though they will keep coming until I walk past a certain area. This can be rather annoying as sometimes it’s impossible to make it to that area without first clearing some of the enemies, who then are just replaced once you kill them.

Also at points in the game, you seem to die for no reason at all. Sometimes the bonsai attackers run up and surprise you too fast to react, killing you instantly, and other times no matter how far you run, grenades still seem to be close enough to kill you. While those two examples are reasonable, there were several moments in the game where there’d be no health warning, no grenade warnings, nothing, and I’d just drop dead. I might’ve been sniped, but at the moments, that didn’t seem very plausible.

The game also introduces a new weapon to the series, the flamethrower. This is a very fun weapon to use, allowing you to torch your enemies really quickly, ending brief struggles instantly. This makes up for my biggest complaint. The weapons of World War II games just simply aren’t as fun to use as modern weapons. Heavy automatic fire is a rare thing, making the battles seem a little slower and less intense as oppose to Modern Warfare.

Multiplayer is much the same as Call of Duty 4, allowing you to earn perks and upgrades, many of which are the exact same as before, but there are several new ones. The main game also allows for a co-op playthrough, a first for the Call of Duty series, letting you and up to three friends play through the campaign together.

Additionally to the main game and to multiplayer is a brand new mode, putting you and several friends into an old house, which you must defend from oncoming Nazi zombies. Yes, that’s right, zombies. You fight against wave after wave of them, and the longer you go, the more perks you can unlock, such as barricading windows more.

In the end, Call of Duty World at War impressed me more than I thought it would. I was never a fan of World War II games, but this one keeps enough of the aspects I liked from Modern Warfare to keep me happy, and while the story mode was short, the multiplayer and zombie mode will certainly keep me busy for some time.

Sound: 5

Graphics: 5

Story: 4

Replayability: 4

Gameplay Mechanics: 4

Additional screenshots:

Posted by: Nikolas Mason

Survival horror has long been a favourite genre of mine, from Silent Hill to Resident Evil, and several lesser-known games in between. So naturally Dead Space from EA caught my attention. The game puts you in the shoes of Isaac Clarke, an engineer in the distant future for a space mining ship. Communications with the ship USG Ishimura have been lost, and it’s up to Isaac and his ship’s crew to fix the problem. However, once on board, things turn out to be much worse than just a technical malfunction.

With your ship destroyed and most of your crew dead, it’s up to you to restore power to the Ishimura and escape. In order to do so, however, you must fight your way through the massive ship, fighting what’s left of the crew, who have been transformed by an alien life form into Necromophs – nightmarish monsters whom the only way to kill is to dismember them.

Doing so is by no means easy, but Dead Space is, to put it simply: awesome. The controls are easy to get used to, the battles aren’t overly frustrating, but definitely not overly easy either, and the story takes roughly ten to twelve hours to complete. Throughout the course of the game, more of the story develops, and it is quite interesting.

Graphics wise, Dead Space is beautiful. All of the locations are unique from one another, and the ships architecture is really well designed. Running with all specs maxed out on my MacBook Pro, the game looked great. Not only was the lighting almost perfect, but also the level of detail put into everything was outstanding. The monsters were disturbing, and most of the levels were grotesque and gave me a sense of unease, which after the let down that was Silent Hill Homecoming, was a very welcome feeling.

One thing I really liked about Dead Space was its heads up display. Gone are the days where health and ammo count are static on your screen, but rather they are built into your suit and weapons. Your health bar runs down Isaac’s back, an oxygen counter is on the back of your helmet, and your ammo is displayed on your gun as you aim. It gives the game a much more immersive feeling.

Ammo and health are not overly abundant, but there is no shortage, making this game rather easy to get through without dying very often, if at all. Even experienced gamers should find it challenging to survive some parts, but replaying them was never something I would complain about.

To be honest, there was hardly anything I didn’t like about this game. At times I’d get lost, but it wouldn’t be long before I’d make it back on track, and there were a few moments where the enemies seemed to completely overwhelm me, but again, playing back through those parts wasn’t too bad, especially once I had a strategy planned out.
The best part about Dead Space isn’t the zero gravity moments, the suit upgrades, or the architecture, but the simple fact that this game actually had a lot of good scares. Some parts were really intense, while others were just extremely startling. All in all, I give Dead Space a 5 out of 5.

Additional Screenshots: