On the Wii, I've played Mario Kart Wii, Wii Play, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. On the Xbox 360, aside from thier version of GTA IV, I've had the chance to get familar with Halo 3, and Dead Rising. Let's open up the review with Dead Rising, which is a sour note to start on, but like any tart, it gets sweeter towards the end. I love zombie games,and I love the survival horror genre in general, as I will be the first person on line to get Silent Hill Homecoming and Resident Evil 5, but this game is a sham. Not even Capcom's name on the title screen could save this train wreck, and I am not kidding, if they make a sequel, consider it a shot-down title before it hits the markets. Normally, I'll let the other reviews go, and try hard to give a fair and balanced, if not overly-too positive opinion on a game, but it in this case, the reviews held water, and this game sucks. I mean it sucks bad, so bad I rented it for a day, played it for about an hour that night, said; and I quote: "Fuck this", then promptly returned it the next day to rent something else. I could not stand this game, I mean it's got everything that would interest me, and even that did not even make me like this title anymore. In fact, it made me hate the damn game even more over the fact that it was everything I loved in video games, and that it was done in such a shitty way.
For those who have yet to play this game, even after this long of it being out, I urge you to read this, and heed this warning: All that you've read is true, for once the reviewers can be trusted, and this game is not worth your time, nor money. The premise of the game is that you are a photo journalist flown into a mall (best setting for zombies) and you have to take pictures of the nasty genocide that has happen to a little town out in Colorado (taking pictures of gory things, what's not to love?) Then, you have the ability to help others, or to chronicle their dramatic last minutes (choose your destiny style, freedom of choice in a video game gives it a thumbs up for allowing me artistic freedom to choose to be good or bad) so what's wrong? Everything!
First off, I could not stand the controls, they were weak, and the programmers made poor use of the many of the mechanics.It was so cliche, that I wanted to puke. I mean it posed no challenge, and the graphics, although the least important part of any game, could have been held in a bit higher standard. I mean there by fourth grade students that took better account of basic graphics design for a video game than these guys have during Dead Rising.
Secondly, The game reminded me too much of Destroy All Humans in its look, feel, and story. For a game that is so hellbent on being about zombies in a mall, they could have at least stolen some pages from the book of George A. Romero, at least it would have been a fun experience. I don't want to be a dead horse to life, so I'll continue onto the next game, because if you are still confused as to why this game sucks, then allow me to sum it up in one sentence: overdone, underdeveloped, bad writers, and don't forget the fact that despite using everything as weapons, you can't use anything that will actually inflict damage, this game sucks.
From gamemanx.com Master Cheif and friends scoping out the terrain, hoping to get that first frag of the day.
The next game we must talk about is Halo 3. Yes, Halo 3, the game that launched around the time of the PS3, and it was one of the highest selling games, in fact it was the most sold copies on the first day. Whether or not you're a Microsoft fan, or even an X-box fan, there's something about Halo that crosses boarders in the gaming industry, yet it is in the pockets of Microsoft via Bungie. Bungie has been developing games for so many years, and they're a great company, although I personally think the hype of any First Person Shooter hardly ever lives up to my expectations, Halo isn't that bad all-around. Halo 3 follows up where Halo 2 left everyone going: "huh? What the hell was that?!" but it's still not that great of a story. This game is going to be used by most for one thing: Online play. It seems the future in gaming is online play, but I am still very happy that two players can still duke it out on their own television. It irritates the hell out of me when some big game developer assumes I have no friends and forces me to play only online against other players. Luckily Halo 3 does not force you to do this, and even makes the experience enjoyable. The graphics for the Xbox 360 are okay, and Halo 3 looks as if it has been helped out a bit by the developers, but despite all the hype, I still think it falls flat on its gaming ass when the fans were expecting much more than what they gotten from Bungie. I felt let down like I did with MGS2 and MGS3, but as I hope with the next Halo, I was very much in love with Metal Gear Solid 4.
Metal Gear Solid 4 has opened my eyes to forgivness and allowed for me to believe in Kojima once again, bad timing, alas, for this be the last MGS game we may ever see: Hideo Kojima has decided to put the snake to rest for good.....but then again....it's Kojima. Hideo Kojima makes serious games for the sarcastic asshole. I mean his games are movies more than games, but with MGS4, there's actually some good gaming here! Metal Gear "Gekko" is definietly a contender to both Ray and Rex, following up on both look, structure, and odd-sounding cow noises....what is with that anyway? Anyhow the game follows Snake, the lead character of most of the Metal Gear titles, and starts where Sons of Liberty left off...well, a few years later, but you get the gist.
The game revieved a perfect score by many well-respected review sites, and it's not just fanboys creaming themselves over the "kool graphix" but the game really is a Triple A game in that it takes the player into the story, allows them to manipulate the camera, plot, and even the flashbacks. MGS4: Guns of the Patriots really gives you alot, and although it could've had a bit more i.e. more gameplay, more character depth, and more button commands/actions. You wont here me complain. The game is flawless in presentation, and near-perfect in execution. the storyline hits so close to home, Kojima makes you believe its happening. What I love about the Metal Gear Solid series is that it's not cheesy in dialogue, unless it's trying to be cheesy/funny with a purpose. Seeing is believing, and I believe Mr. Kojima reached deep into the hat and pulled out one helluva hare. I was not disappointed in the least, and I hope to see many more games from Konami; like Silent Hill: Homecoming, although it may turn out to be the one that silents the series.
The biggest game of the year, is another in the line of sequels with the number 4. if you haven't played it, or at the very least heard it seldom mentioned, then my dear reader, you must look at Grand Theft Auto IV. I've played both the Xbox, and the PS3 version, the PS3 version is the one I own, so I'll use that for the review. It also has more features in-game, and a crisper graphic layout.
GTA:4 takes place in Liberty City, the same place as it's prequel GTA III, and parts of GTA: San Andreas. Rockstar has created a juggernaut that you can either love or hate. Grand Theft Auto IV is a game that makes gamers play games. Sure it's violent, rough, and full of swearing, debauchary and every sin in the book. Damn, but breaking the law never felt so good! The Grand Theft Auto series is the pinnacle of what we call a sandbox game, it may at times be overrated, but this one has well surpassed my expectations, it may have even surpassed the developers' expectations, I've never seen something so beautiful summed up in a small package. The story is yours to create, and it gives you the choices I so wished were in the original games. I loved choosing whether or not to have to kill someone on a mission, and if I wanted to pick and choose jobs, rather than be assigned them. For example, you can at times steal cars, bikes, etc. for Brucie (in-game character) you can work for your cousin Roland and his taxi cab business, or you can even go apeshit and become a vigilante like the old games had. "The choices are yours, and yours alone" as Olmec from Legends of the Hidden Temple would say, and it's pretty damn true.
from Google Images: Niko Bellic running through the streets evading arrest from some LCPD officers.
Grand Theft Auto IV has a great look, real-time physics, and even some great crashes that are great, and may one day rival Burnout, but are not yet up to that level. There are so many pedestrian renders, it's hard to tell one from the other, I don't think I've heard the same cliche line twice in a whole tour of the city, event he hookers look different in areas at different times. The game has features and stops old and new including: spray n pay, burger shot, a car wash open 24/7, hailing a taxi instead of driving their yourself, and toll booths that you can choose to pay, but running them instead paying can lead to a fun cop chase.
Oh yeah, the cops, well that has changed a lot, although you still have the five stars, you have to lose them first, then hope they don't catch you, because if they do, they'll make you do the formation of laying down as they arrest you. If you evade arrest, that leads to them going crazy and opening fire on you from all directions. The police are much more brutal, and will bust you for some real-world crimes. I like that it's a more serious tone as it doesn't allow you to massacre a bunch of pedestrians with a Combine before being chased by a fat officer on foot.
Last, but most certainly not least is the Nintendo Wii's games Super Smash Brothers Brawl and Mario Kart Wii. First up: Super Smash Bros. Brawl. This is perhaps the biggest game on the console as of yet, but it is far from the last, and it is good. Newcomers include: Sonic the Hedgehog, MetaKnight and King Deedeedee *Kirby's Dreamland*, Solid Snake (famed from the Metal Gear series mentioned in the above paragraphs), Wolf from Star Fox, Olimar from Pikmin, and Lucas from Earthbound. This game is rated Teen, probably for the violence, but it really could be an E 10, or even an E to the more lenient parents, but don't let the cute characters fool you: this game is fighting. Sure, it's funny to watch Peach use Toad as a blocker against a Mario fireball, but it's also pretty bad ass to watch Ganodorf and Link go head-to-head in a fight with a Final Smash victory, but what makes this game is that the characters look good, the crossovers fit nicely, and this game outwits most crossover fighting games to boot. Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe can learn a lot from SSBs, because it gets it right. The story mode, or Subspace Emissary mode was great. the old platform style gaming that you get in the game is a walk down memory lane, especially if you play as Mario and Luigi, but it also gives you an idea about what's happening in the worlds where these characters reside. Perhaps the most interesting part of the journey are the boss battles that are based off the actual games that the characters come from, and some that are like rejects from Kingdom Hearts.
from Google Images: Link and Sonic battling it out in BrawlSadly the story, like the past games is not that great, but there is some cute slapstick comedy involved in some of the cut scenes that will make you smirk a bit, but there's no real story, sorry, get over it, and go Smash online. Well, maybe not.
Brawl online is believe it or not, not as popular as playing your four friends in the same room, which I can understand, as I have been playing this game since it came out, I understand why people like to play in groups. SSBB is all about togetherness, and it really does get the players going when you can hear nothing but the clicks of the Gamecube controllers, and the eyes all on the screen as they're screaming for a knockout. Then again, who are you suppose to play when you're by yourself? This is definitely a game that needs friends, because it gets dull fast when 1-on-1, it needs at the least 3 players, but nothing beats a true Smash game.
For my last game review, I actually want to just make it short, sweet, and memorable, just like Mario Kart Wii has been. I remember Super Mario Kart, the first in the line of Kart games created by Nintendo, which were honestly gimmick games to push the famous characters forward, sort of like Super Mario All-Stars, or Dr. Mario, a branch from the original moneymaker, Super Mario Bros. Now Mario Kart Wii, just like Super Mario Kart, and Mario Kart 64, pays homage to the fun racing game that was a big part of my youth, as I'm sure it was for many gamers and fanboys/girls that roam the world. Take what you loved of the original, what you loved of the 64 version, mix it all together, bring in mortorbikes/baby carriages, a ton of new characters, and online play with anyone in the global network, and you have Mario Kart Wii. Plus, hidden characters, and enough races to keep a new generation of young gamers loving what we older gamers loved as kids.
from ign.com a close race between Yoshi and Peach, sporting her cool new dirt bike.Yes, this is a generation clinching game, as it has brought forth the Wiimote steering wheel, which I personally loved and it got a good laugh out of me to be playing, I could imagine what a party of people doing this would be like, and saw good potential for a lot of laughs. I think the generation now has an idea of what I had when I was there age, and not that I'm old, it's just they get the grasp of what games were like when I was young, not a lot like the crud that's out today.
For more game reviews from the best in the business, Gamespot is a great resource for upcoming game titles, despite some favoritism over select games, it is very diverse due to allowing any forum member to create a review. I also hold true with Game Informer, and even IGN.com. Gamespot.com gameinformer.com, and IGN.com are my top three picks for gaming references. You can also read about it here at mcasteditorial.blogspot.com, where I do the occasional video game review update, or at least I'll promise one once in a while. I in-fact will be doing a Silent Hill: Homecoming review, as well as my review of MK VS. DCU (Mortal Kombat versus DC Universe) whether I like it or not, so please be sure to check that out, and all my other reviews on the MK series, as well as other video games of the past, present and future. If you'd like, also check out my subtle movie reviews, and my sometimes overly-detailed book reviews.
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