PS3

Grand Theft Auto IV

June 9, 2008

PS3 / Reviews / by Paul Bishop Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Rarely does a game live up to its preceding hype, but with the delivery of Grand Theft Auto IV, Rockstar succeeded in crafting a near perfect game that delivers a movie-like experience. No expense was spared in rounding out gameplay, characters, visuals and intense multiplayer action to give players a solid contender for game of the year.

Fresh off a boat from Eastern Europe is Niko Bellic, a flawed man who has seen the horrors of war and has survived with a barely-there look in his eyes. While it is nice to think he has come to Liberty City to start over, the truth is really that he has unfinished business to take care of, and he doesn’t care if it takes down the whole city with him. As he navigates the city streets he befriends the local denizens, proves his worth, and moves up the nefarious underground ladder to get closer to his target.

There is a lot of good character development going on in GTA IV. From Niko to his cousin Roman to the numerous friends he meets, Rockstar fashioned a superb storytelling backdrop for this game that is enhanced by the excellent voice acting and motion capture of actors. Graphics add to this cinematic feel and really have you loving and hating each character in turn and pulling for Niko.

This would all be for naught if the gameplay weren’t equally up to snuff. Here the developers took the already solid base of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and tweaked the formula in a logical progression to include duck-and-cover mechanics to heighten ease of play. Driving similarly has been updated to make cruising through the extremely detailed city a highlight by itself, as each ride has its own distinct feel. Button control for moving around the city or through intense gunfights are intuitive, making both intense moments of action and casual moments of travel flow smoothly.

Beyond the storyline, there is a plethora of extra adventures to seek out. Side quests include drug-deliveries, car theft and even helping the law take down the most wanted. Even the less-involving dating missions lead to mini-games such as pool, bowling, and darts; while it is fun to get lost in these diversions, they don’t quite match up to San Andreas‘s depth of extra stuff to do. Although the PS3 lacks the achievements of the 360, there are still the jumps to locate and the flying rats to exterminate which leads to the unlocking of an extra helicopter, ensuring the die-hards will have plenty to do.

The challenge level has gotten slightly easier from the previous installment. Like the addition of the duck-and-cover mechanic that makes facing enemies slightly better and the addition of GPS driving directions, there are other enhancements that might have serious gamers throw their hands up. One of these is the radius where your wanted level literally disappears; all you have to do is park just beyond this radius and wait for a good ten seconds until you are free to roam again. More like a cheat than anything, this takes a little of the reality out of the game that was striving to remove its cartoonish image it maintained from previous games.

Beyond the standard single player mode, the multiplayer goes out of its way to hit you over the head with choices. Offering almost a dozen online modes, you can take part of several mostly hit than miss games that will have multiplayer enthusiasts drooling for a while to come. Racing and Cop and Robbers were my highlights, although some other game modes didn’t work as well for me in the open world format. Deathmatch makes full use of the large map but often quickly devolves into a headache as you try to catch your teams from across town.

I can almost anticipate fans of San Andreas going to have some beefs with this game, but the fact remains that by itself GTA IV is a well-thought out and executed game that shows dedication to creating an instant classic. With intense action, driving and story, the only thing holding back a player from checking out this game should be its Mature rating.

Dark Sector

May 28, 2008

PS3 / Reviews / by Paul Bishop Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Hayden Tenno is sent into the decaying ruins of a Cold War era Eastern bloc country where his mission to destroy a harmful virus becomes a fight for his own life. When he becomes infected, only his weak vaccination stops him from succumbing to the virus and turning into something non-human, but will the powers he gained be enough to reach safety and still accomplish his mission?

Really the plot is a side note to explain the glaive; the entire game centers on the use of this bladed boomerang. From puzzles to fighting, it provides a completely new way to approach the FPS genre; with power-ups and steerable flight, tackling hordes of enemies becomes fun and challenging. Each power-up is well-spaced throughout the story’s progression, giving elemental attacks and different abilities to drive the player to the next addition. Similarly, using the glaive for puzzles was a well-placed addition to the gameplay that almost elevate this FPS to an action-adventure category.

Guns are not completely removed from the equation though; similar to Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, the third person run and gun, dodge and cover mechanics work well with the off-hand gun and glaive combination. The gun is upgraded throughout the story by finding mostly hidden briefcases and buying the associated weapon specs on the black market, making exploration worth the player’s time. Mastering the game involves balancing use of gun and glaive because of the glaive’s limited raing.

The controls adequately allow either play style, excepting two examples: the SIXAXIS control of the glaive, and close quarter fighting. Early on the glaive is enhanced to direct its path during flight, and this is primarily used to get past puzzles, but can become invaluable during fights, hitting multiple targets or enemies around corners. The problem is that the tilt control is too confined and the glaive shot distance is too short to really make it any fun to use. Similarly, using the glaive can be pretty interesting to use as a melee weapon for close conflict, but finishing moves quickly become repetetive.

One thing the game nails though is ambiance. Providing a solid nod to Resident Evil, the tension, the darkness and the uncertainty of enemies popping out of nowhere is constantly present. Add to that the cinematic grainy quality of the graphics and color palette used and you have a visual experience that is spooky and addictive. The bouncy camera will either be a love or hate addition for some. I loved it, as I thought it added to the atmosphere, giving a blurring sensation as you attempt to run for cover. Others may find it down-right nauseous, almost to the Blair-Witch-In-The-Theatre level. The sound did an adequate job filling in the game but didn’t achieve the scare factor that could be found in similar titles. Voice acting and cut scenes were decent but they didn’t really add much to the overall package. Many times they only served to emphasize the weakness of plot and dialog, and opted for the less-is-more option of trying to get back to the action as soon as possible.

Multiplayer is pretty standard for an FPS with the addition of the glaive as the major addition, and while this mostly works for the better, it doesn’t really separate it from most multiplayer online games. Worth mentioning though are two different modes of online play that use one player as the fully upgraded Hayden, while the rest try to take him out. Similarly, there is a team against team version of this that makes it slightly worth looking at for those die-hard online multiplayers out there.

Like I said earlier, the glaive deserves a game by itself, and Dark Sector delivers this in a fun and interesting forum. While it may not win any awards, it succeeds in creating an ambiance and an action mechanic that are worthy of checking out and playing for a while.

Nyko Charge Base 2

April 30, 2008

PS3 / Reviews / by Chris Rasco Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Rechargeable batteries for wireless game controllers are a god send. In some cases, 3rd party companies have stepped in to provide awesome solutions for gamers looking to streamline the recharging process. Nyko is one such company and they have a whole host of power solutions available for each of the consoles.

Nyko’s initial recharging station for the PS3 came in the form of the Charge Base PS3. It supported 4 simultaneous charge slots utilizing the SIXAXIS’ mini-usb port for connectivity. With the announcement of the Dual Shock 3’s imminent release, Nyko has released a revised version of the charging station that is compatible with the Dual Shock 3, this time named the Charge Base 2. This revised version of the initial product has cut the number of charging slots down to 2 and utilizes a special connector for charging connectivity. These charge adapters feature a mini-usb on one side and a few contact spots on the other. This change in design allows the controllers to lightly sit on the Charge Base as opposed to being firmly stuck to the Charge Base.

The Charge Base 2 features a pair of bright lights to indicate when a controller is charging or when it has reached a full charge.

I personally like the Charge Base 2 and have no issue with recommending it to friends and family, but the $30 price tag that the Charge Base 2 carries may be a deterrent for many gamers despite the added convenience. This is compounded by the fact that the only thing necessary for charging a PS3 controller is a $1 mini-usb cable that plugs in directly to one of the available USB ports on your PS3. The value that this device presents will vary widely due to that fact.

The Charge Base 2 differs from some of its other offerings since the PS3 natively supports a rechargeable controller. The device merely serves as a more convenient way to charge the devices. That said, the device’s construction is of a very high quality and the move to the USB charge adapters are evidence that Nyko is committed to improving their products.

College Hoops 2K8

March 21, 2008

PS3 / Reviews / by Paul Bishop Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Another year brings us another college basketball game, and while most developers will forgo any real enhancement to college series to work on full NBA games, Visual Concepts and 2K Sports have really added decent content to make this worthy of looking at.

The biggest change from last year is the addition of the 6th man meter. This feature attempts to show how home-court advantage really helps the team dominate. By completing successful plays in succession, you fill up a meter that represents the hype of the crowd, and by topping off that meter the A

NBA 2K8

March 21, 2008

PS3 / Reviews / by Paul Bishop Make a comment! / Tweet it!

A solid contender for the best basketball simulator out there, 2K8 improves upon last year’s game by adding content and removing fluff, while focusing on creating a smoother gameplay model. But like layups, the results are mostly there but with an occasional miss.

Once you hit the boards you will notice several different features that have been enhanced since the last outing. Player animations have been improved to incorporate signature moves, and a more realistic momentum foot-planting mechanic allows for a dramatic flow of the action. The latter may be point of contention for some casual gamers as the action has slowed down to incorporate this realism, but it ultimately works to make a more true-to-life experience. AI has been tweaked to make it a nice balance for casual gamers and hardcore alike. Offense AI still puts pressure on you to stop while the Defense AI gets watered down. Combined with the momentum changes, you just can’t barrel into the zone, you need to shift around to get into the crease, but beyond just getting in the way, the defense doesn’t do much to try to stop you. Many times you can sit there and do the same play over and over, and the AI won’t learn, or worse, won’t even attempt to intercept, and while this is a good thing for the casual folks, this may leave some hardcore fans bored.

Along the same lines there seemed to be a tendency for missed layups that should have been golden. Even the announcers seemed to mirror my bafflement as I miss undefended hoops, but regardless it sticks out as incongruent to the whole. The new Lock-on-D is another one of those love it or leave it additions to the game. By locking on and using the analog stick to adjust your position you can make it virtually impossible for opponents to get past you. This may be a good thing for people like me who like to win a lot, but for the majority of people it will just feel like a cheat after time.

Beyond the standard pick-up and play functions present, the main drive of the game is the Association mode in which you take complete managerial control of your franchise; it is too bad you have to navigate through the sub-par menu system to access this though. The plotline feature is now gone, but you start by recruiting and paying players and assigning them slots which are generally broken down in to two categories of personality and positions; players can thus be laid-back/starters or showman/star players. Managing the team becomes a feat as you balance personalities and play time to improve morale and work towards winning seasons.

The old street ball feature has been modified into the Blacktop section of the game which includes a brand new dunking contest mini-game. Street ball remains virtually the same as you can take many favorites from past or present and take them up against the CPU or against friends. The dunking contest is a nice bonus as you master the three sections of a dunk to impress the judges and your friends including online partners. Online adds a solid element to the gameplay as you create a profile which captures your playing style and is viewable by others and go head to head against others.

Graphically the game looks sharp, with little deviation between it and its 360 brother, the lighting, coloring and character animations all look smooth and crisp. The already mentioned addition of signature moves provides inspiring visuals as the players pull no-looks, and awesome dunks. Player avatars do a fair job of representing their namesakes, although there is a wide spectrum where certain players look good and others look horrendous (insert your ugly basketball player joke here), while clothing edges still have a tendency to disappear into player bodies. Crowd models are great at filling the ambiance of the court, including accurate swells in sound as the game gets heated. Announcers do an accurate job updating the play-by-play status but don’t really bring much else to the game.

NBA 2K8 is a great experience that moves past the multiple nits it has against it to vie for greatest basketball simulator out there, for casual or hardcore alike.

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