Category: Game Reviews

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We Review: Test Drive Unlimited 2

It’s been four years since Eden Games essentially pioneered the M.O.O.R. (Massively Open Online Racing) genre with Test Drive Unlimited. The Test Drive series, which has been with us since the 8-bit era, has become all kinds of irrelevant and was in dire need of a massive engine overhaul and a shiny new paintjob. To an extent they succeeded. The game was moderately successful, and perhaps benefited from being launched when the Xbox 360 was still swaddled in diapers, and there simply weren’t many racers available in the “next-gen” market at the time. It certainly was a unique arcade-racer, with over 1,000 square kilometers to explore on the Oahu Island , jump-in competitive multiplayer racing, and a dollop of Sims-like management thrown in for good measure.

Fast forward to 2011, and TDU2 has finally been allowed to leave the starting grid after spending a sizeable amount of time in development hell. Will it pull away from the pack in a haze of burning rubber and receding tail-lights, or will it choke to a stuttering halt on the first straight?  Find out after the jump.

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Featured Game Reviews

We Review: Killzone 3

I should probably tell you something. It may repulse you and you may give no credence to this review after knowing it, but you should know. I’m not the biggest fan of the FPS genre. I’ve played Mirror’s Edge, Bioshock, and Singularity but never got the whole obsession with COD or Battlefield. It may or may not shock you then that I have never teabagged anyone. Considering that action is so synonymous with FPS, I may as well be considered a noob, perhaps even a nublet to some. The over-the-shoulder adventure titles and third-person shooters are what I’m used to but recently I’ve had the opportunity to step out of my comfort zone and into the killzone. My experience continues after the jump.

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Game Reviews

We Review: Red Dead Redemption – Undead Nightmare

For as long as I can remember, the ideology behind cowboys and the Wild West has enthralled me. So too has the phenomenon known as the undead. Imagine then how surprised I was when Rockstar Game Studios announced the culmination of two of the greatest (and most successful) storytelling experiences. Red Dead Redemption on its own was a blockbuster of epic proportions, and even I didn’t expect it to do as well as it did. Now imagine throwing zombies and other supernatural creatures into the mix. You wouldn’t be wrong if you assumed that it would lead to an even greater gaming experience. Let us embark upon a journey. A journey of awe and wonder. A journey of shock and horror. A journey of the undead. [Please note: If you haven’t finished Red Dead Redemption, you may encounter spoilers in this review.]

Read more after the jump.

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Game Reviews

We Review: LittleBigPlanet 2

He’s baaack! He may be engineered from nothing more than a couple of buttons and a ball of yarn but the disturbingly cute (well, at least for a grown man) little Sony mascot returns to flop, flail, and flounder to the adoring squeals of fans all over the world. No, I did not personally squeal. I let loose a much more dignified “Awwww”, coupled with an ever-expanding grin and a pointed look from my wife that showed clear concern for me as an individual.

From the moment you fire up LittleBigPlanet 2, you’ll be hit with familiar waves of nostalgia as you guide your bouncy Sackboy through Media Molecule’s ingeniously designed levels. All the elements that made LBP such a fan-favourite are reassembled here for the sequel, but the assembly this time around is tighter, more polished, and generally a much more focused effort. Find out more after the jump.

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Featured Game Reviews

We Review: Sly Cooper – The Sly Collection

Sly Trilogy Orginally for ps2 features Sly Cooper

The Sly Collection has been a difficult bundle to review. I’ll not elaborate on the snowstorm of events that has hijacked the time I needed to truly get to grips with this game. And time you will need as this collection packs many many hours of game play. What with not one, not two but three games in one bundle, it’s a Ménage à trois of cel-shaded goodness and if you’re into that sort of thing it’s a steal at the price…

But every man and his goat has already reviewed these games to depths of which I cannot begin to fathom, stolen every word that remains to be said and pilfered all the good jokes. So a conundrum, if there is little left to write how should I unlock The Sly Collection? Find out how after the jump.

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Game Reviews

We Review: Dragon Ball: Raging Blast 2

Raging Blast 2 Cover
Raging Blast 2 Cover

Today we look into a game that is based on a highly popularized anime series, which has many iterations on the video game market and has followers all around the world. Dragonball: Raging Blast 2 is the sequel to the previous Dragonball: Raging Blast video game. Having not played the first installment in this series I cannot comment on how the game has advanced since, but being a DBZ fan, and having played pretty much all the other DBZ games, I feel my opinion could be taken with lot less grains of salt.

Dragonball:Raging Blast 2 is a 3D fighter based video game that focuses on customisable characters with team battles of up to 5 characters per team. It must be the biggest fighter game out with the most linear gameplay known to man. It is so jam packed with characters (96) and content that the actual fighting in the game has taken a back step. So much so that I wouldn’t be surprised if there are multiple characters with the exact same move sets with slightly changed animations.

Lets instant transmission to the rest of the review after the jump.

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Game Reviews

We Review: Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood

It seems to be my turn to review nothing but sequels, so in that vein, Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood (not Assassin’s Creed 3—this is an interim game) is the direct sequel to Assassin’s Creed 2. When I say “direct sequel”, I mean that the story resumes quite literally seconds after the action in the previous game stopped, so I guess you could say it’s the final chapters of Assassin’s Creed 2. The biggest selling point of Brotherhood is the multiplayer aspect, but surprisingly, it’s not the biggest part of the game; Brotherhood still has a fairly chunky single player campaign. Let’s take a stab at reviewing this game, shall we? More after the jump.

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Featured Game Reviews

We Review: Epic Mickey

Mickey Mouse is Walt Disney’s most recognizable and profitable cartoon character. Having starred in countless cartoon strips in the past, the once beloved Mickey Mouse isn’t making as grand an impact on this generation of young people and it is feared he may be turning into nothing more than a corporate mascot for the company that created him over 80 years ago. Change was sorely needed and that task of re-imagining Mickey Mouse was handed over to Warren Spector and the good people at Junction Point Studios.

In Spector’s new vision that is Epic Mickey, the usually cheery mouse steps out of his comfort zone and is forced to embark on a dark and dreary adventure that one will not soon forget. Ever curious, Mickey stumbles onto the creation of sorcerer Yen Sid (“Disney” spelled backwards) – a model world that is a mirror of Disneyland that serves as a home for all of Disney’s discarded cartoons and forgotten fairground attractions. Mickey fumbles around with the sorcerer’s magical brush and mistakenly unleashes a sinister Shadow Blot. The situation is made more dire when Mickey tries to erase the creature but ends up spilling thinner all over the the world. Delirious with panic, Mickey legs it from the scene while the blot invades the world. Months later with the event forgotten, Mickey’s nap is interrupted by the Shadow Blot who pulls him into the world.

Find out what happens after the cut.

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Featured Game Reviews

We Review: Fable III

It should come as very little surprise to anyone that Lionhead Studios’ Fable 3 is the sequel to the hit game, Fable 2. It should also come as very little to no surprise that, like its predecessor, the game is an action RPG set in the land of Albion, a place filled with high adventure that’s beyond compare, magic and mystery that’s part of its history, and copious quantities of gummiberry juice potions. Find out whether this game bounces here and there and everywhere after the…jump.

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Game Reviews

We Review: NBA 2K11

Cover

Before I go into the details of this NBA title I think I should dwell a bit on my personal experience on sport gaming titles. I’m not a FIFA/PES fan, I hate golf and cricket, and I absolutely cannot handle repetitiveness of sport games.

But I have not always hated sport games; there was a time on my PS2 when I played NBA JAM religiously. It was awesome fun, I loved the arcade style of playing and having played Basketball in real life I knew the rules backwards and really enjoyed the 3 pointers and slam dunks.

Now some years have passed and I cannot recall the last time I even considered playing a sports title. When the Big Prawn asked me to review NBA 2K11, I was very eager to see if this game could revive that old fire that burned rather deep. It turns out NBA 2K11 wasn’t exactly the “phoenix down” I was hoping for.

From the get go I was disappointed. Not having any knowledge of previous 2K games, I had no idea how the control system worked and NBA 2K11 threw me straight into the deep end: the 1991 finals, Bulls vs. Lakers. Needless to say I made Michael Jordan look like a paraplegic whose hands had been replaced with spoons. I’m even sure I started singing the hit song from Rick Astley, “Never Gonna Give You Up” while I was sobbing in between time-outs. Sorry MJ, it didn’t end there.

Catch more of His Airness in action after the jump.

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