Reviews by hobbesthetiger

Crackdown (Xbox 360) review

Crackdown is in many ways your typical sandbox/open world game. Run, shoot, drive, jump and take down some criminal organisations. Typical it may be, but it's an excellent example of the genre all the same. I recently came back to the game after a while, and it has started to show it's age a little. Certainly graphically and musically it's not amazing. In terms of gameplay though, it's still great fun. For me, over the top and at times ridiculous gameplay is what provides the fun in a lot of these open world games, and there's plenty of that in Crackdown. Jumping the height of skyscrapers, blasting enemy strongholds as hundreds of villains charge at you, it's all present and correct. You increase the abilities of your character by both collecting orbs, and killing bad guys, for a touch of RPG style levelling up. It can be a little repetitive at times, and a lot of the races (both on foot and in vehicles) are annoying rather than exciting, but they are minor complaints. Overall it's a good illustration that although the 360 has come a long way, some of the earlier titles still have a lot going for them. Definitely worth a play if you've not already done so.

Batman: Arkham Asylum (Xbox 360) review

So. praise has been heaped upon Batman from every corner of the gaming world. Does it live up to the hype? Well, yes and no. It certainly is the best superhero/comic book game I've played (though in fairness, that wouldn't be too difficult). Part stealth, part beat-em-up, it's an immersive adventure with an excellent story-line. A quick summary is that the Joker tricks Batman into entering Arkham lunatic asylum, where (surprise, surprise) he has set up many traps and many enemies for 'Bats' to deal with, whilst the Joker attempts to carry out his nefarious plans for domination of Gotham City. Plenty of familiar (and many not so familiar) friends and foes make an appearance. It is a game that is difficult to put down, the gameplay is brilliantly executed and satisfying, and the graphics outstanding, keeping a comic book style whilst staying impressive. So why the doubts? I found that it was all over too quickly. The main story doesn't last long enough, and personally I just wasn't interested in going back and picking up all the collectibles. The challenge room mode felt like a tacked on extra to compensate for the short main game, and for me just wasn't entertaining. Having said that, if you are obsessed with collecting everything and beating the game 100%, you'll find at least a few hours more gameplay in the main story. And you can at least compete with your friends, and the rest of the world for the best score in the challenge rooms. For me though, this is a great game, my only complaints are with it's longevity rather than the gameplay itself. And that makes it almost the perfect rental, if not quite the perfect game.

FIFA 10 (Xbox 360) review

When reviewing FIFA 10, it's hard not to just resort to making sweeping statements like 'the greatest football game ever', or 'this game will take over your life'. The problem being, that such cliches are true. The details then, as if you didn't know, it's the latest update to the FIFA series. Having finally replaced Pro Evolution Soccer as the football game of choice last year, EA haven't rested on their laurels this time round. The biggest change is the addition of 360 degree control, which basically increases the range of direction players can move in, over the rigid 8 way direction of previous games. The difference this makes is at times subtle, but more noticeable as play goes on. Other than that, the gameplay hasn't changed a great deal. The possibility of taking quick free kicks is welcome, and crossing has been improved. FIFA 09 was a top game, so only these few tweaks are needed, the game has improved and evolved, without trying to reinvent the wheel. Being a FIFA game the presentation is polished, though (minor gripe) the menus are at times a little too comprehensive and confusing. Navigation can take slightly longer than it should. There are plenty of different game modes to keep you interested too. The usual quick match, tournaments and leagues are all present and correct. Manager mode is slightly improved from last time, though still lacks a lot in terms of actually managing the side (stick with football manager). Be a Pro makes a welcome return, as you guide a player through a career, almost akin to a football RPG as your skills increase as you play matches. Similar is virtual pro, where your skills increase via reaching accomplishments such as making a certain number of tackles or scoring a certain type of goal over a number of matches. You can then use your virtual pro to play for clubs online, competing in leagues against other clubs. This is surprisingly addictive! Of course the usual 1 on 1 online matches are available. Connection is quick, and there is little or no lag. Overall it's a top game that keeps you coming back for more. I've just got the achievement for playing it for 50hrs, and I'm nowhere near finished with it. In my opinion, cliche or not, this is the best sports game ever.

Soccer Life (PS2) review

I put this game on my rental list out of curiosity as much as anything else. I had never heard of the game before (usually, though not always, a bad sign) but the concept sounded interesting. And the game itself is indeed interesting. For about half an hour. It's strange because you seem to play the role of a coach, player and manager. The game interface is pretty clunky and slow and the micro-management of every aspect of your players lives quickly becomes tedious. It's a good idea, something like a combination of the sims and a football management game, unfortunately it's poorly executed.

Cricket 07 (PS2) review

Agree with much of the previous review. A lot of glitches/inconsistencies. Another similar example, Strauss gets a century, but they show a cut scene of Trescothick celebrating! The commentary is very repetitive. And it has the age old problem of any cricket game, you need to play for a long time to get anywhere...playing a proper test match is nigh on impossible unless you have a LOT of time on your hands. It's not absolutely awful, but the Brian Lara games are better.

We ♥ Katamari (PS2) review

A difficult game to describe - you basically do just roll stuff up using a large ball. It sounds dull but is actually really good fun and pretty addictive. Graphics and sound are nothing amazing (although the description is right - I have found myself walking around humming some of the annoyingly catchy songs!) but that's not really the point of this game. It has a fairly surreal style about it but tends to be amusing rather than annoying. Not a massive game, it's probably taken me about 10 hours to complete (though there are other things I could go back and do). Certainly one to rent if you want to try something different.

NBA Street Showdown (PSP) review

It's an average game really, entertaining in short bursts but soon becomes a bit dull if you play for too long. With the tricks part of the game they try to make it a bit more interesting and the King of the Court mode is decent. If you like basketball it's worth a rent but don't expect anything earth shattering.

Ape Academy (PSP) review

Last review a bit harsh. I thought. It's a game called ape acedemy - how 'grown up' do you expect it to be? I found no problem with the response of the controls. The basic premise is of playing a lot of fairly quick fire mini games in order to win grids in a kind of tic-tac-toe game. Some are quite fun to play, others less so. Given the game is evidently aimed at younger gamers, some of the games may be a tad too difficult as well. Overall, I wouldn't suggest you rush to buy ape academy, but it should provide a few hours amusement if you rent it.

Star Wars Battlefront (PS2) review

I think this is just about the best Star Wars game I have played. Having said that, the competition isn't up to much. I expected it to be a game in which you control an entire group of people but in actual fact you essentially just control one person. There's not too much wrong with it but you can play an entire level without actually seeing much action. There's a feeling that you often don't have much influence on the action. It's a half decent shooter and if you like Star Wars worth a look but definitely one to rent rather than buy.

BLACK (PS2) review

It's a very decent game but the combination of a lack of checkpoints and lengthy missions can get very annoying. The 'shoot everything' motif is a little misleading as well. There aren't that many instances where this can be done too much real effect and it doesn't have that much influence on the game. Overall it is one of the better FPS but 1 or 2 little things stop it from being really amazing.