Friday, April 15, 2011
Tomb Raider Trilogy
Gamers of all types recognize the name "Lara Croft." You know the drill by now: she explores dangerous ruins, finds treasure, occasionally fights dinosaurs, and does all this with a variety of flattering outfits. Lara Croft has been a video game icon for more than 10 years, and the Tomb Raider series wouldn't be the same without her.
For those of you that missed out on some of the recent Tomb Raider adventures, you're in luck. Tomb Raider Trilogy crams Tomb Raider Legend (PS2), Tomb Raider Anniversary (PS2), and Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3) all onto one Blu-ray disc. It's a convenient way to catch up on Lara Croft's dangerous affairs, especially for people like me who haven't kept up with the series since its first outings on the original PlayStation.
There's not much to find in this collection that you wouldn't find by purchasing the games individually. Both Legend and Anniversary have had minor graphical overhauls, but don't expect to see a wealth of bonus content flood your PS3 the instant you pop in the disc. There are a few developer diaries, some Home rewards, a PlayStation 3 Theme, and Trophy support for all three games. It's not a bad offering, but it felt light.
If you'd like to read detailed reviews for each of the games included in the collection, click the images below. Otherwise, read on to find out if this trilogy is worth your money in this day and age.
If you haven't played Legend, Anniversary, or Underworld, this is a pretty good deal -- especially if you enjoy games like Uncharted that combine platforming, puzzle solving and gunplay. That's what you'll be doing in all three games. Lara goes after some sort of treasure, shimmies over lethal spikes, kills a bunch of bad guys, and moves weighted crates. Not a problem for England's finest.
Legend is the oldest of the three games and was originally released in 2006. This doesn't seem like too long ago, but the game shows its age. Not only do environments lack the detail I've come to expect, but the character models look poor in comparison to the rest of what you'll see in Tomb Raider Trilogy. Anniversary, a remake of the very first Tomb Raider, is much prettier. Underworld, which continues the intriguing story told in Legend, is the most beautiful of the set and features some impressive animations.
After playing Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld in that order, it amazed me to see how the developers at Crystal Dynamics improved the gameplay with each title. All three abandon the "tank controls" of the past (the original Tomb Raider was famously clunky) and incorporate more organic platforming. Lara can quickly leap from one ledge to another, spin around poles, and flip through the air with grace. These platforming mechanics are functional in Legend, more enjoyable in Anniversary, and downright nifty in Underworld.
Similar improvements can be found in the combat. In general I'm not a tremendous fan of the "lock on and then pull a trigger to fire" gunplay because I like to aim manually and control my shooting. And the combat in Legend is embarrassing. Apparently Lara is one of the worst shots in history because she can't seem to hit anything unless it's close enough to take her gun away. Couple this inaccuracy with the fact that she can't take stick behind cover and you'll find some very awkward action sequences.
This is much better in Anniversary and Underworld. While it's still not as good as manual shooting, both games do a much better job depicting action on the screen and giving players a more rewarding experience. This is noticeable when you see how the developers reworked the adrenaline system. In Anniversary, it enables players to dodge incoming attacks easily and execute one-hit kills. In Underworld, adrenaline can be triggered at your whim and invokes all sorts of Matrix nostalgia that I'm still not sick of.
If you couldn't already tell, Legend is the worst of the three games in the collection. It's the veritable mold on this otherwise solid set. It's old, it's disappointing, and it ruins perfectly good sandwiches. If anything, it only serves to tell us more about Lara. Fortunately, both Anniversary and Underworld are strong enough to carry the weight of the rest of the package.
Read more details on how this game was reviewed.
For those of you that missed out on some of the recent Tomb Raider adventures, you're in luck. Tomb Raider Trilogy crams Tomb Raider Legend (PS2), Tomb Raider Anniversary (PS2), and Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3) all onto one Blu-ray disc. It's a convenient way to catch up on Lara Croft's dangerous affairs, especially for people like me who haven't kept up with the series since its first outings on the original PlayStation.
There's not much to find in this collection that you wouldn't find by purchasing the games individually. Both Legend and Anniversary have had minor graphical overhauls, but don't expect to see a wealth of bonus content flood your PS3 the instant you pop in the disc. There are a few developer diaries, some Home rewards, a PlayStation 3 Theme, and Trophy support for all three games. It's not a bad offering, but it felt light.
If you'd like to read detailed reviews for each of the games included in the collection, click the images below. Otherwise, read on to find out if this trilogy is worth your money in this day and age.
If you haven't played Legend, Anniversary, or Underworld, this is a pretty good deal -- especially if you enjoy games like Uncharted that combine platforming, puzzle solving and gunplay. That's what you'll be doing in all three games. Lara goes after some sort of treasure, shimmies over lethal spikes, kills a bunch of bad guys, and moves weighted crates. Not a problem for England's finest.
Legend is the oldest of the three games and was originally released in 2006. This doesn't seem like too long ago, but the game shows its age. Not only do environments lack the detail I've come to expect, but the character models look poor in comparison to the rest of what you'll see in Tomb Raider Trilogy. Anniversary, a remake of the very first Tomb Raider, is much prettier. Underworld, which continues the intriguing story told in Legend, is the most beautiful of the set and features some impressive animations.
After playing Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld in that order, it amazed me to see how the developers at Crystal Dynamics improved the gameplay with each title. All three abandon the "tank controls" of the past (the original Tomb Raider was famously clunky) and incorporate more organic platforming. Lara can quickly leap from one ledge to another, spin around poles, and flip through the air with grace. These platforming mechanics are functional in Legend, more enjoyable in Anniversary, and downright nifty in Underworld.
Similar improvements can be found in the combat. In general I'm not a tremendous fan of the "lock on and then pull a trigger to fire" gunplay because I like to aim manually and control my shooting. And the combat in Legend is embarrassing. Apparently Lara is one of the worst shots in history because she can't seem to hit anything unless it's close enough to take her gun away. Couple this inaccuracy with the fact that she can't take stick behind cover and you'll find some very awkward action sequences.
This is much better in Anniversary and Underworld. While it's still not as good as manual shooting, both games do a much better job depicting action on the screen and giving players a more rewarding experience. This is noticeable when you see how the developers reworked the adrenaline system. In Anniversary, it enables players to dodge incoming attacks easily and execute one-hit kills. In Underworld, adrenaline can be triggered at your whim and invokes all sorts of Matrix nostalgia that I'm still not sick of.
If you couldn't already tell, Legend is the worst of the three games in the collection. It's the veritable mold on this otherwise solid set. It's old, it's disappointing, and it ruins perfectly good sandwiches. If anything, it only serves to tell us more about Lara. Fortunately, both Anniversary and Underworld are strong enough to carry the weight of the rest of the package.
Read more details on how this game was reviewed.
WWE ALL STARS
No matter the wrestling video game, it seems players always want to be WWE Legends like Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior. This hunger has been satiated in the past with unlockable characters in the SmackDown vs. Raw series and the standalone (yet lackluster) WWE Legends of WrestleMania. Now, the big names of yesteryear are back alongside some of the current headliners in WWE All Stars.
An arcadey, over-the-top look at Sports Entertainment, WWE All Stars is fun but some annoyances keep it from being a main eventer.
There are 30 WWE characters in WWE All Stars, and they range from Legends such as Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat and Mr. Perfect to current Superstars such as Triple H and Randy Orton. The fact that so many of these people have already appeared in SmackDown vs. Raw might seem like a turnoff, but WWE All Stars goes out of its way to not look or feel like the simulation franchise SVR is.
Here, characters are action figure versions of themselves with gigantic torsos and booming biceps. Moves are the trademarks you'd know from watching folks like the Rock and Jake "the Snake" Roberts, but they're embellished with flips, leaps into the sky, and bone-crushing impacts that would destroy mortal men. When I heard about WWE All Stars, I was told it plays as if a little kid was describing a match he watched last night. That description rings true with the final product, and it makes for a really stunning game.
The colors are bright and beautiful, seeing stars like Rey Mysterio soar dozens of feet in the air made my friends and I scream in amazement, and I'd much rather see this revved up and ready Macho Man action figure spinning through the air than the "realistic" interpretation I've seen before. WWE All Stars has a great style.
WWE All Stars also has a great concept for gameplay, but I think the control scheme trips it up. This game is supposed to be a pick up and play, arcade experience. There are strike and grapple buttons, health bars, finishing move meters and a bunch of other stuff that's simple for a player to look at and understand. That's groovy. Being able to get in and do an awesome powerbomb or charge up a punch is rewarding and how a game designed to capture an audience lured in by Rowdy Roddy Piper should play.
That's basically the WWF No Mercy N64 control scheme at face value, but then things start getting complicated. Running at the ring doesn't let you slide into the ring; there's another button for that. One shoulder button blocks strikes and another one blocks grapples, but that's not the easiest thing to explain to someone just looking to jump into the fun. Once your finisher meter is full, you tap buttons to set off a taunt that activates it, but if you're punched during the taunt you lose it, and people rarely stay down all that long, but there's a way to hold the buttons to taunt and have the guy get up into a dazed state that automatically trig--
I'm not making this up. This is supposed to be pick up and play.
An arcadey, over-the-top look at Sports Entertainment, WWE All Stars is fun but some annoyances keep it from being a main eventer.
There are 30 WWE characters in WWE All Stars, and they range from Legends such as Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat and Mr. Perfect to current Superstars such as Triple H and Randy Orton. The fact that so many of these people have already appeared in SmackDown vs. Raw might seem like a turnoff, but WWE All Stars goes out of its way to not look or feel like the simulation franchise SVR is.
WWE Noob
WWE All Stars is designed to grab the players who aren't up on current wrestling and just want to have some arcade fun. That said, we grabbed a player like that and put the controller in her hands. What did she think? Find out.
The colors are bright and beautiful, seeing stars like Rey Mysterio soar dozens of feet in the air made my friends and I scream in amazement, and I'd much rather see this revved up and ready Macho Man action figure spinning through the air than the "realistic" interpretation I've seen before. WWE All Stars has a great style.
WWE All Stars also has a great concept for gameplay, but I think the control scheme trips it up. This game is supposed to be a pick up and play, arcade experience. There are strike and grapple buttons, health bars, finishing move meters and a bunch of other stuff that's simple for a player to look at and understand. That's groovy. Being able to get in and do an awesome powerbomb or charge up a punch is rewarding and how a game designed to capture an audience lured in by Rowdy Roddy Piper should play.
Thank you for wrestling... in the sky.
I'm not making this up. This is supposed to be pick up and play.
Dissidia Final Fantasy Review
Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy (also known as Dissidia Duodecim Final Fantasy) is a rich hybrid of role-playing and fighting games. It adds a colossal amount of content to the original Dissidia Final Fantasy, which was already a total blast to play. Like many Final Fantasy spinoffs before it, Duodecim is not without faults. There's a definite learning curve to overcome here. But for those patient enough to invest some time in learning Duodecim's ins and outs, the reward is incredible.
If you're coming to the party way past last call, I'm happy to catch you up. Duodecim is the prequel to the original PSP game that launched in 2009. In the Dissidia universe, two gods are warring with each other: Cosmos, Goddess of Harmony, and Chaos, God of Discord. These deities have summoned warriors from different worlds to wage battle in a classic clash of light and darkness.
As it turns out, this conflict has been cyclical. Duodecim describes the cycle before the cycle in the original Dissidia. In Duodecim, players are introduced to six new Final Fantasy heroes that star in this story. They're struggling to come to terms with this concept of "endless battle" and trying do something about it.
Because I froth at the mouth for melodrama, I'm a fan of the whole "light versus darkness" shtick. The story itself is weak and lacks emotional focus, but it's much better than your average fighting game plot. When certain characters are on the screen and acting awesome (I'm in love with Golbez; dude knows how to monologue), I'm content.
Most of the gameplay in Duodecim is similar to what you experienced in the original Dissidia. Combat takes place in large, open stages and two fighters battle one-on-one. The entire roster is composed of classic heroes and villains from the Final Fantasy series. When engaged in combat, each character has a bravery value and hit points. Characters use normal attacks to raise their bravery value and HP attacks to deal damage to those hit points.
At its core, Duodecim feels more like Smash Bros. than Street Fighter. Moves are much simpler to execute but you still need to worry about timing, character placement, and reading an opponent's next move. There's plenty of strategy here, but you're not required to perform 30-button combos to succeed.
But even if you have an easy time getting into the basics of battle, the rest of Duodecim is perched atop a steep learning curve. When I passed the game to IGN's Hilary Goldstein and Ryan Geddes, I believe their reactions were a mix of confusion and eye explosions. But if you stick with it through the beginning, you'll start to see how much Duodecim has to offer.
Some of those offerings are new to this prequel. There are new characters to experiment with and the returning fighters have more moves. There are also a number of new stages, including ones built in the Final Fantasy XIII universe. But one of the biggest changes to Dissidia's battle system is the inclusion of assist attacks. A game with lots of strategy just got deeper. Now, when the time is right, you can use your assist gauge to call another character into the field to provide some support.
If you're coming to the party way past last call, I'm happy to catch you up. Duodecim is the prequel to the original PSP game that launched in 2009. In the Dissidia universe, two gods are warring with each other: Cosmos, Goddess of Harmony, and Chaos, God of Discord. These deities have summoned warriors from different worlds to wage battle in a classic clash of light and darkness.
As it turns out, this conflict has been cyclical. Duodecim describes the cycle before the cycle in the original Dissidia. In Duodecim, players are introduced to six new Final Fantasy heroes that star in this story. They're struggling to come to terms with this concept of "endless battle" and trying do something about it.
Because I froth at the mouth for melodrama, I'm a fan of the whole "light versus darkness" shtick. The story itself is weak and lacks emotional focus, but it's much better than your average fighting game plot. When certain characters are on the screen and acting awesome (I'm in love with Golbez; dude knows how to monologue), I'm content.
Most of the gameplay in Duodecim is similar to what you experienced in the original Dissidia. Combat takes place in large, open stages and two fighters battle one-on-one. The entire roster is composed of classic heroes and villains from the Final Fantasy series. When engaged in combat, each character has a bravery value and hit points. Characters use normal attacks to raise their bravery value and HP attacks to deal damage to those hit points.
At its core, Duodecim feels more like Smash Bros. than Street Fighter. Moves are much simpler to execute but you still need to worry about timing, character placement, and reading an opponent's next move. There's plenty of strategy here, but you're not required to perform 30-button combos to succeed.
Our gallery has even more Dissidia 012 screenshots. Can you believe it?
But even if you have an easy time getting into the basics of battle, the rest of Duodecim is perched atop a steep learning curve. When I passed the game to IGN's Hilary Goldstein and Ryan Geddes, I believe their reactions were a mix of confusion and eye explosions. But if you stick with it through the beginning, you'll start to see how much Duodecim has to offer.
Some of those offerings are new to this prequel. There are new characters to experiment with and the returning fighters have more moves. There are also a number of new stages, including ones built in the Final Fantasy XIII universe. But one of the biggest changes to Dissidia's battle system is the inclusion of assist attacks. A game with lots of strategy just got deeper. Now, when the time is right, you can use your assist gauge to call another character into the field to provide some support.
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