GamesRadar - Xbox 360 Features

Mafia II: The Interview (Mafia 2)

Apr 23, 2008

We've covered Mafia II extensively over the last week, unveiling all sorts of exclusive new tidbits about the swank 1950s crime drama - but the real highlight was getting to chat with 2K Czech's Daniel Vavra, the game's writer and director, via e-mail. Vavra's script for the original Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven helped win the game critical acclaim and a cult following; with the sequel poised to dwarf it in size, scope and pretty much ...

Mafia II: Meet the goons (Mafia 2)

Apr 11, 2008

As we've pointed out ad nauseam in our coverage of Mafia II this week, the first Mafia set a high bar for storytelling in GTA-style crime games. Assuming it follows through on the standards set by its predecessor, Mafia II will likely be as much about the complex relationships between its deeply flawed criminal leads as it will be about shooting mooks in the face and blowing up storefronts.

To give you an idea of what you can expect from this 1940s-'50s mob drama, here's everything we know about the game's main characters so far: ...

Mafia: the story so far (Mafia 2)

Apr 10, 2008

Mafia opens in 1938, as gangster Thomas Angelo arrives at a little diner to meet with an Irish cop named Detective Norman. Tommy's come to Norman to ask for police protection for himself and his family, but Norman - abrasive and impatient - scoffs at the idea. Tommy insists that he doesn't expect something for nothing, and that what he knows can help bring down a notorious mob boss named Salieri. Norman, still skeptical, demands to hear the ...

Box art that got it all wrong (Marvel: Ultimate Alliance)

May 22, 2008

Ah, the box art story. Ol' R'liable we like to call it, always good for a laugh and sure to inspire conversation about what makes cover art good, bad or legendarily awful. This time though, we're going a different route and focusing on covers that totally botch the simplest rule of box art - it should reflect the product cleanly and clearly. These poor examples couldn't even keep it together long enough to be regular old "bad box ...

Marvel vs. DC: the games (Marvel: Ultimate Alliance)

Oct 28, 2006

Are you a comic-book fanboy and a hardcore videogamer? Did you mark out when Zatanna chanted, "Namtab Pots!" before she wiped Batman's memory? Do you wish Zatanna erased the woeful Spider-Man clone saga from your memory? Have you ever screamed, "Hulk Smash!!!" while breaking down some cardboard boxes? If you've answered yes to any - or all - of these questions, then this is a great time to be you, because there are two superhero action RPGs vying for your time and dollars. In one corner ...

The Top 7... Failed Franchises We Know How to Fix (Mass Effect)

Feb 18, 2008

Videogames, television and movies frequently overlap. With so much cross pollination, you'd think the biggest and best film franchises would have respectable game adaptations by now, but that's just not the case, is it? Sure there are a handful of successful tie-ins, but many series flop around for years, seeing game after terrible game created with little or no regard for the source material. Well, we're sick of it. ...

Mass Effect Sex Guide (Mass Effect)

Feb 12, 2008

When Fox News anchor Martha McCallum broke the story that Mass Effect contained full graphic nudity and player-directed sexual encounters, we immediately loaded up the game and went back for another play-through. How could we have missed such an opportunity? But for some reason we could only find the same two tired, barely R-rated cutscenes. Since we had a bunch of Mass Effect footage already on hand from other projects, we decided to compile a ...

Box Art F'ups (Mass Effect)

Feb 8, 2008

Derp! Ready the eBay accounts, cause that company that prints game box art - Acme Video Game Box Art Co. Inc. Ltd., we believe they’re called - pulled a gargantuan boner and misprinted a shitload of our favorite titles. We don’t mean to call them out, but we can’t allow the public to be misled. ...

The Biggest Prick in the Galaxy (Mass Effect)

Feb 6, 2008

As anyone who bothered to play or research Mass Effect knows, you're free to make decisions that directly affect the plot, the characters and even the ultimate outcome of the game. Most of us try to stay on the nice-to-neutral side of the law, generally helping people out while occasionally dipping into the renegade pool when a particularly devious choice presents itself. But what if you play the entire game as a rootin' tootin' ...

Mass Effect galaxy guide (Mass Effect)

Nov 22, 2007

22 Nov, 2007 With Mass Effect's galaxy consisting of so many different systems and planets it's difficult to really know where to start and the sheer cosmic expansivenessness of it all can be somewhat intimidating. But there's no need to cower from the final frontier, because we've got what every intrepid space cadet needs - a galaxy guide. Over the next few pages you'll find the systems that appear on the Galaxy Map when you first take control of the SS Normandy. You'll find every planet ...

Mass Effect: Space monkeys and other galactic curiosities (Mass Effect)

Nov 20, 2007

20 Nov, 2007 So you've got your space ship and the whole galaxy is just a quick swoosh away. But besides levelling up by collecting artefacts, salvaging probes and searching for minerals, what reason is there to make like a tourist and embark on a spot of intrepid planet hopping? We'll tell you what - space monkeys. After all, everyone loves monkeys, even the spindly, dead-eyed kind. Right? After hiking from one end of Mass Effect's galaxy to the other, we've collated a rough guide to some of ...

Mass Effect: Hero of a Thousand Faces (Mass Effect)

Nov 16, 2007

Nov 16, 2007 Anyone can save the universe. No, really... You could do it. Your neighbor could do it. Your kindly old grandfather could do it. Mass Effect's character customization system is so detailed that, with a tweak here and there, you can cast whoever you like in the epic saga. Everything can be altered and scaled, from eye color to nose size to lip curl to gnarly scar ...

Mass Effect - game of the year? (Mass Effect)

Oct 10, 2007

Oct 10, 2007 1) Classy There are six different classes of character to choose from at the beginning of the game, and selecting different types change how you play the game. Engineers will be better with technology, for example; Infiltrators will be great at stealth or sniping, while Vanguard or Soldier classes will excel in raw combat. Complementing your choice with the different classes of your crew will allow you to approach situations in different ...

The Future of Mass Effect (Mass Effect)

Sep 17, 2007

Sept 17, 2007 Dr. Greg Zeschuk, co-founder and president of the mighty BioWare, is always a great interview. It immediately becomes clear as soon as he enters to room that he can't wait to sit down and have a good chat about Mass Effect and where it's going. Would you say this is BioWare's most challenging game to date in terms of ambition and what you want to achieve with it? Greg Zeschuk: Every time we do a new game we want to up the ante. Mass effect has probably covered more territory ...

Mass Effect - creator confession (Mass Effect)

Jul 27, 2007

Much has been written about Mass Effect (you can read our umpteenth excited preview here). The reason? BioWares epic intergalactic story flagged itself up as one of the cornerstones of the 360 from the moment it was announced. Stunningly ambitious, brain-meltingly large, and market-leading in voice acting and production, it took what the Canadian development team did with Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire and pushed the model on - hard. Frustratingly, though, while shots have ...

Mass Effect - BioWare Interview, Part One (Mass Effect)

Mar 16, 2007

Last week at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, we were invited to witness the first 60 minutes of sci-fi RPG Mass Effect in action. Better yet, our guides were the masters of the universe themselves - BioWare founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk. If the gorgeous visuals and innovative gameplay on display weren't enough to get us dangerously hyped, the enthusiasm of these two gentlemen sitting on either side of us certainly was. We want you to be excited too, dear reader, ...

Mass Effect - BioWare Interview, Part Two (Mass Effect)

Mar 16, 2007

Last week, we spent a jaw-dropping hour with upcoming sci-fi RPG Mass Effect. For our real-time impressions, as well as mid-demo conversation with BioWare founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk, check out part one of our interview. Before we got kicked out of the behind-doors session, however, we managed to squeeze in a few last questions about the inspirations and innovations for Mass Effect... and what the game means to the future evolution of the RPG. GamesRadar: Can you go over your ...

"You'll be faced with decisions of life and death..." (Mass Effect)

Feb 8, 2007

Okay, so we know Mass Effect is set in a massive universe. But how do you plan to make it work properly? Wont all the planets and landscapes get a bit samey? Isnt space a great void? Hudson: Its really all about creating a sense of discovery, and the idea that you dont know whats there until you arrive. Theres a full spectrum of locations, from extensive areas with deep plots and combat to barren asteroids whose mysteries are well hidden. You will be attempting locations with varying depths of ...

The guns of World War II (Medal of Honor: Airborne)

Aug 7, 2007

In adding his two cents to the videogame-violence debate, scientist Christoph Klimmt once said that "not everyone who plays a 'killer' game would be able to stand the stress of a real murder." We'd take it one step further and say that violent games don't even prepare would-be murderers for the stress of a real gun. It's something we found out firsthand when we sent two of our editors - one of whom had never shot a real gun despite being American, and one whose dad kept a "shootin' car" in the ...

Interview with Medal of Honor: Airborne's Executive Producer (Medal of Honor: Airborne)

Jun 20, 2007

The view from above always makes the most sense. With Medal of Honor: Airborne, industry veteran Patrick Gilmore has looked back over years of virtual war to figure out how, in this golden age of AI and physics, EAs troubled series can reinvent itself. He could be the ideal candidate for the job. Hes associated as much with Disney as D-Day, having produced over a dozen games starring Mickey and co, he brings a fresh perspective to a series thats long been considered stale. And despite Airbornes ...