Xbox 360 Reviews

You’d be forgiven for thinking that R-Type consisted of just one level; one rock hard level that, with your paltry three lives, you’d never seen the end of. R-Type is a gaming Everest; you’d climb it, carve your initials on the high score table and then swagger off, content with your life.

Without doubt, Race Pro is going to test even the most enthusiastic of console racers and for a number of reasons. We’ve been raised and spoilt with high production, big budget, bells-and-whistles racing games for years. Need For Speeds, Forzas, Gothams, Gran Turismos and GRID have accustomed us to extremely high standards.

After spending just a few hours in Rage’s world, we were overcome with a feeling not just rare in videogames but in any work of fiction: We actually wanted to live there. It’s a more comfortable version of Mad Max, with all of the cobbled-together and lawless excitement but without the horrific desperation. Sure, the people have it rough – it’s the apocalypse, after all – but...

Based on the early trailers, Rango didn't seem like much more than a CG vanity project from the director and lead actor behind the painfully hit-or-miss Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, but surprisingly, it launched to strong reviews and box office success. However, as we're all aware by this point, a direct correlation between film quality and that of the videogame adaptation is never a sure thing...

The aspect of Raskulls that stands out the most is its unique combination of platforming, puzzle solving, and racing. What at first looks like a fairly simple concept quickly becomes a devious test of skill and wit as you try to beat your opponents to the finish line. With so many aspects to ponder (the fastest route, the best blocks to destroy, when to run and when to wait, frenzy, power-ups, and more) there’s always something else to take into consideration...

Europeans, pretending to be Americans, shooting South Americans. Works for Arnie, Dolph and Jean-Claude, so why not Hungarian devs Atomic Motion? They drop six mercs in the Amazon, armed with enough cliche to level a small country. It’s tacky stuff, worsened by truly abysmal vocal performances – these actors sure aren’t American. We’re not sure they’re even human...

The visuals alone are enough to lull even the most seasoned gamer into a false sense of security. Vibrant colors abound, preposterous characters gambol and cavort with giddy abandon, and vivacious animation breathes life into the already-fecund levels. But don’t be fooled by Rayman Origins. This intensely beautiful 2D platformer can easily crack open and scramble even the most hardened of hardcore gamers.

And that’s a very good thing...

There’s no point having a sprawling landscape if you can't fill it with tons of shit to do in between the regular missions. GTAIV has the occasional stranger to help out in Liberty City. Just Cause 2 has a stack of things to blow up around Panau. And Far Cry 2 has, erm? <cough>. Anyway, Red Dead Redemption and its miles of dusty land between different towns and villages could’ve wound up a joyless trek to wander across. But, holy crap, there’s so much stuff to do here that you need never be bored.