By
PSM2_
posted June 30, 2005
Unlike the windswept, red shoe-wearing Dorothy, Midway probably aren't that keen on Oz. Well, not after the Aussie censors took one look at Narc and slapped an embargo on it quicker than you can say "drugs anyone?". We could, at this moment, spout all kinds of pretentious guff about how beautifully permissive our own country's censorship laws are. We won't though - because if they were more stringent, we wouldn't have to play this half-arsed street gang 'effort'. Yep, we're now officially
Racing for 'pink slips' might not sound terribly dangerous or macho, but Juiced's take on street racing offers far more thrills and spills than EA's comparatively safe Need For Speed Underground series, on which Juiced is clearly based. Great, right? Thrills and spills... that's what we want. We want a game in which we can gamble away our winnings and lose the cars we've modified and raced for hours on end... don't we?We've been mollycoddled by our games in recent years, lulled into thinking
Stronghold 2, the castle-building RTS sequel, offers you two paths: one is the path of war, the other, the path of peace. Pit the defences of the 3D fortress you've built against swarms of invaders, or just make it the heart of a well-run agrarian economy. A peaceful castle sim, in other words. Isn't that ridiculous? Well, actually, no.During my varied Kentish upbringing there was one constant: I hated Dover Castle. Strategically, historically, architecturally, it should have been very
By
PSM2_
posted June 2, 2005
The new GoldenEye' tag is something that gets bandied about too often in videogames, and it's one that's already been stuck on to Cold Winter, thanks, mainly, to the fact that one of the programmers of this worked on that particular N64 classic. It's a huge burden to carry, one that the supposed 'sequel', EA's Rogue Agent, failed to withstand and it's one that Cold Winter desperately tries to live up to, but can't quite manage it.In fact, the first couple of stages of Cold Winter are so far
Should you want a pithy summary of Imperial Glory's strengths and weaknesses, go get that copy of Halliwell's Film Guide that's gathering dust beside the TV and look up the entry for 1970 Napoleonic war epic Waterloo. See where it says "historical charade" and "looks both exciting and splendid, though confusion is not avoided"? - that's IG in a nutshell.Pyro Studios has succeeded in creating their own handsome Total War homage (historical setting, realtime battles, turn-based economics and army
When anyone mentions the word 'maniac', we invariably think of nut jobs like Friday 13th's Jason Voorhies and people who run with scissors in their hands. However, honourable mentions must go to the bike-mad loonies who descend upon the UK each June for the most notorious race on the planet - the Isle of Man TT.Gran Turismo levels of authenticity are the key to TT Superbikes' quirky brilliance, so prepare yourself for front and rear braking, individual wheel suspension and lifelike
By
PSM2_
posted April 25, 2005
A game should make you feel something. From the closing moments of Silent Hill 2 when James is forced to confront his past to Samanosuke and Jacques' final battle against Nobunaga in Onimusha 3, these are moments so perfectly designed, so memorable, so steeped in atmosphere, that they've become the benchmark towards which all games must endeavour.Now, what Kessen III lacks in technical prowess it more than makes up for in content and execution. Watching swathes of troops pile into each other as
By
Edge_
posted April 21, 2005
Despite their exposed flesh and frail dispositions, survival horror heroines have traditionally kept a stiff upper lip when faced with dreadful scenes, as if they've seen it all as many times before as you have. But direct Haunting Ground's Fiona Belli to examine a blood-slicked pillar and she starts in fright, heart rate quickening and vision blurring. It's an early indication that while the game's events may never truly scare you - it's magnificently bizarre, but not as harrowing as a Silent
By
PSM2_
posted April 19, 2005
Heihachi Mishima is dead. No, not really. Yes, it says that in the intro. Yes, it's true that the scrotal-necked megalomaniac starts Tekken 5 being cuddled by exploding-faced death-borgs. But nobody really thought that was enough to take him down, did they? He's crawling from the wreckage by the time the opening credits roll, he's stronger than ever - and he's even ditched that ridiculous nappy.The good news is, the Tekken series is just as resilient as leathery old pops Mishima - and even more
By
NGC_
posted April 14, 2005
Here's a game to test whether your DS really can last for ten straight hours without a recharge.Meteos is the most compellingly perfect puzzler we've played in years. It blends the tactical simplicity of Puyo Pop with the high-adrenaline kick of a decent shoot-'em-up.The concept is simple, but brilliant: clear away falling, coloured blocks by launching them into space. Connecting three of the same colour creates a rocket-powered platform that lifts off, carrying with it all the blocks directly
