All PS2 Previews

What is a Dokapon Kingdom? (Dokapon Kingdom)

Jun 30, 2008

Dokapon Kingdom seems like one of Dr. Frankenstein's experiments at first - at its heart it’s a traditional, turn-based RPG, but its exterior looks more like a board game style party game. The two genres couldn't be further apart, but put them together and you get a highly competitive multiplayer experience in the guise of a party game, but with the deep structure of an RPG.

The goal of Dokapon is simple: whoever earns ...

Guitar Hero World Tour (Guitar Hero World Tour)

Jun 30, 2008

We’re going to party like it’s 1984. With Guitar Hero World Tour, the latest all-singing, all finger-tapping edition of the Guitar Hero franchise aims to deliver the party vibe. This year’s game is about the social experience of joining together to rock… so let’s jump! Why the Van Halen references? Because they’re just one of the new bands confirmed as exclusive to Guitar Hero World Tour, others include ...

Women's Volleyball Championship - hands-on (Women's Volleyball Championship)

Jun 16, 2008

The summer Olympics are coming up. Bet you didn’t know that, huh? It’s cool - ‘cause Agetec’s got you covered by spiking Women’s Volleyball Championship into your face this August on the PS2. Featuring a slew of easily digestible gameplay modes and Olympic teams, WVC is poised to be a viable alternative to the big name franchise sport sims (read: Madden) hitting late summer.

Above: Brown ...

FIFA 09 - first look (FIFA 09)

Jun 5, 2008

We’re mindful of overstating this - regular readers might be aware of previous false dawns for FIFA on PS2 - but maybe, just maybe, this is the year FIFA emerges as a legitimate alternative to Pro Evo, not only for casual fans, but hardcore gamers, too. Truth is, the process has already started. We’re at EA’s offices in Vancouver, Canada, ready for our FIFA 09 hands-on. Before play, however, we’re given a presentation ...

B-Boy - hands-on (B-Boy)

May 23, 2008

For years now, the "dancing" genre has been dominated by Dance Dance Revolution and its many knockoffs, all of which require players to hop around, rhythmically stomping along to music while a dull cascade of arrows floats by. But it wasn't always that way, and B-Boy - a breakdance sim released nearly two years ago in Europe and only now headed for a US release - is a throwback to a time when dance games were more about rhythm than legwork. It aims to do for breakdancing what Tony Hawk's Pro Skater did for skateboarding: make it accessible to people with zero fitness or leg coordination. ...

Alone in the Dark hands-on (Alone in the Dark)

May 23, 2008

Since inventing the survival-horror genre 16 years ago, the Alone in the Dark series has been defined mainly by creeping around in dimly lit corridors and hoping something didn't lurch out of the shadows to gnaw your face off. The creators of the new Alone in the Dark, however, want you to know that crawling through claustrophobic spaces won't be the focus this time around - and to hammer that point home, they'll literally tear those spaces ...

Sony Gamer's Day round-up (PlayStation 2)

May 16, 2008

We've got the goods from Sony's big Pre-E3 press blow-out. Follow the links below for the latest info on all the new stuff in store. ...

Sonic Unleashed - first look (Sonic Unleashed )

May 16, 2008

Ever since the first trailer leaked onto the net a short time ago, we’ve been clamoring to hear more about Sonic Unleashed, the supposed “re-imagining” of the Sonic series after a string of commercially successful, yet dismally received entries. It’s sad that we approach each new Sonic title with trepidation, but as luck would have it, Unleashed is poised to bring the blue freak into an entirely new direction. Hitting ...

Crash Bandicoot: Mind Over Mutant - first look (Crash Bandicoot: Mind Over Mutant)

Apr 28, 2008

Here's a mind-boggling statistic - this year's Crash Bandicoot game will mark the fifteenth installment of the series in just over a decade's time. Fifteen. What could Mind Over Mutant, the newest adventure of the marsupial omnivore (seriously, look it up), possibly do that we haven't seen... well, fifteen times before?

You might be surprised, especially if you haven't tried a Crash game in several years. Mind Over Mutant breaks free ...

SBK-08 - first look (SBK-08)

Apr 23, 2008

Regardless of whether you had any affinity for motorbike games, there was no denying SBK-07 was a bit on the hard side. There were options aplenty to mess about with so that there were umpteen degrees of slavish simulation, but there were a couple of notable problems which prevented the game from surging to the front of the two-wheeled racer pack.

Firstly, there wasn’t a whole lot of eye candy on offer - aside from the umbrella ...

TNA Impact! - updated hands on (TNA Impact!)

Apr 18, 2008

You’d be forgiven for taking one look at TNA Impact and thinking, “It’s wrestling. How different could it be from any other wrestling game?” After all, it is wrestling, and it is very similar in many ways to other grappling games - specifically THQ’s long-running WWE franchises. However, after spending some time with the latest version of the game in our hands, we discovered quite a bit more difference ...

Speed Racer (Speed Racer: The Videogame)

Apr 17, 2008

Set in a world where car culture is the culture, Speed Racer is set to blaze its psychedelic, loop-the-loop, so-fast-your-eyes-water trail this summer. Based on the Wachowski brothers’ film of the same name, you get behind the wheel of each character’s signature car, competing in the World Racing League on rollercoaster-style tracks at breakneck speeds. It aims to deliver eye-popping action in a racer that’s not just about ...

Mercenaries 2: World in Flames - hands-on (Mercenaries 2: World in Flames)

Apr 7, 2008

It rules being your own boss. Taking as much darn time off as you please, scoring a sweet BMW on lease, hiring a busty peroxide blonde as your PA, putting your hand in the till... and ordering full scale air strikes to reduce your enemies to so ashes. Ker-blammo! Yep, welcome to the dazzling world of Mercenaries, the game where Everybody Pays. (Even you lot, should you choose to part with your hard-earned to buy it later this ...

Iron Man (Iron Man)

Apr 7, 2008

If you don’t know your superheroes, you might have glanced at Iron Man and had him down as a dull robot-faced crime fighter. He’s actually one of Marvel’s coolest characters - a billionaire playboy genius with a ’70s ‘stache, an eye for the ladies and a heart of actual steel. And that’s before Tony Stark puts on his self-designed flying armour and becomes the Invincible Iron Man. Beat that Peter Parker ...

LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures (LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures)

Apr 1, 2008

The decision to immortalise the wise-cracking hero in LEGO form is clear: the Indiana Jones films are almost as iconic as Star Wars, and their cheeky humour runs parallel with the tongue-in-cheek approach of the recent LEGO games. With the building blocks already in place from the Star Wars games, it hasn’t been too difficult for Traveller’s Tales to whip the engine into shape and recreate the original three films in a style fit for ...

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian)

Mar 28, 2008

The Chronicles of Narnia books remain high on their pedestal of nostalgic childhood memories; the movies, perhaps a bit less so. Fans of either probably hanker for the ability to frolic through the Narnian fields equally, and so the games keep coming.In case you aren’t familiar with the story behind the second chapter known as Prince Caspian, or need a refresher, it begins one Earth year after the events from the first book/movie. ...

WWE SmackDown! vs RAW 2009 - first look (WWE SmackDown! vs Raw 2009)

Mar 28, 2008

Straight from WrestleMania XXIV weekend in Orlando, Fla., comes the unveiling of wrasslin’ sim WWE SmackDown! vs RAW 2009. Set for release this fall on every system under the sun, the game promises more than just an increased polygon count and expanded roster. Oh no, this year’s version brings an incredible overhaul and revision of our favorite wrestling franchise, from wrestler AI to tag-team and online modes. We had a chance to ...

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith - 10 songs revealed (Guitar Hero: Aerosmith)

Mar 28, 2008

If you need us to paint you a picture of what playing Guitar Hero: Aerosmith feels like, get up, take a step outside of your cave and ask the first person you see if they’ve ever heard of this thing called Guitar Hero. They’ll probably think you’re a freak, which would serve you right for taking us too seriously. But seriously, the title says it all. It’s Guitar Hero with lots and lots of Aerosmith songs. ...

Arcana Heart - hands-on (Arcana Heart)

Mar 11, 2008

2D sprite fighters are a dying breed and so are new games on the PS2.That’s why Arcana Heart should be exciting news for fighting fans as it just might be the last new old school 2D fighter they’ll see for a long time.Ported from the 2006 Japanese arcade game, Arcana Heart is a combo-centric fighter that puts a lot of emphasis on juggling the opponent and getting into aerial scuffles. At first glance, the game looks a lot ...

LEGO Indiana Jones - first look (LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures)

Feb 21, 2008

If you thought last week’s trailer for the fourth Indiana Jones film felt a little flat with its combo of CG locales and one very old Harrison Ford, then you’d be happy to hear that you can trust LEGO Indiana Jones as a better outlet for your nostalgia. Developed by Traveller’s Tales - the team behind LEGO Star Wars - Indy will traverse locales from each of the first three films, while embracing youngsters who aren’t ...