[Lucien21]

Professor Layton and the Unwound Future

Weird trippy time travel story with the usual mix of oddball characters and fantastic puzzles.

Highly recommended.

[DustyShinigami]

Mafia II

Positives:

+ Great and detailed graphics, really good damage physics, which range from weapon/environmental and vehicle damage, neat weather effects (Vito’s clothes will even get covered in mud if in wet and dirty conditions), and facial animations/lip-syncing are really well done. The car models, the character’s clothes and the detail of the city – Empire Bay – really capture the 40s and 50s era nicely.
+ The music also does a great job too. This is mainly thanks to the 40s and 50s music that plays on car radios. The actual music score itself is well composed and sounds like it’s from a movie. As well as the music, the sound effects are solid and help the city feel alive.
+ Although cliché, the story is well told and is full of twists and turns. Thanks to the professional voice acting, the characters are believable and go through a lot of different emotions as the story covers all the usual themes you’ll find in a mob story.
+ Hand-to-hand combat is satisfying to do and pretty simple to get to grips with.
+ Gameplay is generally good fun. You’ll mostly be focusing on the story/storyline missions, which are nicely varied and contain some pretty cool set pieces/shootouts. Some of these include: a Chinese restaurant, a hotel, the docks, abandoned warehouses, and gang hideouts etc.

Negatives:

- Despite that there’s a huge city to explore, there’s very little to do in it. The game is very linear and as a result, there aren’t any other means of tackling a mission, nor are there any side missions. Apart from robbing stores or crushing cars for a bit of cash, the only other things to do would be to find all the hidden Playboy magazines (probably one of the best kind of collectables to hunt for in a game ) and Wanted Posters. But, I found both of these a bit tedious to find to be honest.
- The game suffers from frame rate issues and screen tearing.
- Although it’s a bit more realistic that the police chase after you for speeding or crashing into other cars (hit and run), it becomes a bit annoying when you’re trying to focus on getting a job done and the cops are constantly on your case. And if you get a ‘3 Star Wanted Level’, not only have you got to repair, modify or change your car at a garage, without the police seeing, but you’ve got to change your clothes too. So, if you spend money modifying your car and aim for a nearby clothes store, you can almost certainly guarantee the cops will be after you again – with 3 stars reinstated – as soon as they see you.
- Even though it’s slightly bittersweet, the ending is a bit disappointing and brief.
- The gunplay is a bit of a mixed bag as the controls were originally designed for PC. The guns you get/use and the shooting itself aren’t the problem; it’s the aiming system. Unlike a lot of third-person action games (Grand Theft Auto IV or Red Dead Redemption) the games will usually lock onto a nearby target for you when pressing a certain button. From there, you can move the right analog stick lightly to aim at certain body parts. Not with this game. It’s a bit unfortunate and even annoying when you’re swamped by enemies from all sides and up close. The only way you can perform a quick headshot is to align the camera just right when looking directly at an enemy. For the most part it works, but not always.
- You can’t use any other means of getting around the city. You can’t use taxis, buses, or trains etc. As a result, it makes driving from one end of the city and back again for something quite tedious.
- As said, what with the gunplay, driving around from one place to another all the time and the same kind of mission structure, gameplay is generally good fun, but nothing more. It’s nothing particularly new or 100% engaging.

Overall:

[Crunchy in milk]

Lara Croft & The Guardian of Light



[hypnotic suggestion]You Must Buy This Game [/hypnotic suggestion]

If there's one series more repetitious than Final Fantasy its Tomb Raider. If you've played one, you've played them all. You know just how frustrating they are. You've lost track of the number of times the camera & controls have sent Lara to her death.

Enter, Guardian of Light.

Guardian is a download only title that throws out the over the shoulder camera nightmare that is every iteration of Tomb Raider so far. I don't know if its a budget side project or some genuine, 'toe-in-the-water' exploration of a new direction for the series but I urge you to buy this game to encourage more of it.

Guardian of Light gets so much right. I never got upset with the camera, I just enjoyed the game from start to finish. Its a near perfect blend of platforming, puzzling and shmup gameplay. Yes, Shmup.



The game looks & plays great but the story is mere fluff. Lara has a decent enough voice artist but her nemesis' is woeful. It doesn't matter. Guardian is awesome to play solo & has co-op specific level design. Taking a friend along changes the puzzles! There's also a shed load of challenges for each level rewarding high scores (shmup), speedy completion (level mastery) and finding hidden objects (tomb raiding).

Best Tomb Raider I've ever played.

--EDIT--
I should add, I played it on PC with keyboard/mouse, and it does an excellent job of handling that input despite the gamepad origins. GoL is available for 360 (market place), PC (steam) and PS3.

[sysryn]

I started The guardian of Light several days ago and I have to agree - it is a very fun game... but - it is not a Tomb Raider game.

There's no Tomb Raider in the name either - so my guess would be the designer really did go out and test a new field of Lara.

There is a new TR game in development. Nothing much is known about it
except it will lean a bit to the "survival" type of games throwing Lara on a huge Island with little or no loading zones that you will have to explore.

Apparently the first weapon you'll get will be a bow (which is very interesting),
and the puzzles will vary on where you go first and what you do on the island.

I played all TR games and finished them and I love the series even if they are full of jumping around and monkey-swinging so I'll be glad to get the "real" Lara back.

The guardian of light is a great game to kill time untill TR9 comes out

[DustyShinigami]

Indeedy. I even read a rumour that the next Tomb Raider will be non-linear. Here's hoping.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light

Positives:

+ Nicely detailed and lush graphics, environments and effects
+ New isometric gameplay/camera makes this an interesting take on the Tomb Raider series. Camera issues from past Tomb Raider games are no longer present.
+ Gameplay is great fun. There are 14 levels to go through; loads of clever and sometimes tricky puzzles to solve that are nice and varied, plenty of enemies to deal with, loads of side quests/challenges, secrets and power-ups to do and collect in each level, which unlock new rewards and upgrades for Lara and gives the game plenty of replayability; great platforming, loads of traps to avoid/solve, enjoyable combat, and a co-operative mode.
+ As mentioned, co-operative mode is included, which is a first in a Tomb Raider game, and makes the game more interesting and fun as you can help each other solve the game’s puzzles. There are even puzzles specifically for co-op mode.
+ Has a great composed music score. The appropriate pieces play at the right time such as during certain fights or traps etc.

Negatives:

- The story is non-existent
- Voice acting is average
- Some puzzles/challenges can prove to be frustrating at times, especially the timed challenges and some of the platforming. Just when you think you’ll make a certain jump onto a platform, Lara may be slightly off course and fall down a pit.
- Online co-op is currently unavailable or was unavailable on its release. As a result, co-op can only be played offline with a friend next to you.
- Mixed feelings about that ‘comic book’ style the cinematics have at the beginning and end of the game.

Overall:

[Crunchy in milk]

Originally Posted by sysryn

It is a very fun game... but - it is not a Tomb Raider game.

Given that the engine is the same, I wonder if GoL's success might not spawn an optional perspective setting in future titles in the series.

I get that die hard fans enjoy the lush, exploration experience the traditional camera can offer. So much works here that doesn't in Tomb Raider though, that I'd hate to see it fade away as a one off experiment, or languish as a budget title series. A little more work on story (and delivery) while retaining the fun-up-the-wazoo gameplay they've nearly nailed in GoL and they've got a AAA title that could revive the platformer genre.

Metroid M gave it a shot and largely failed.

[sysryn]

Oh yea... i need to add one more "-" to the list.

The bullets you fire... Why do they look like lazor beemz!?
I know it's easier to spot this way but it's a bit too much

[Niko]

Just finished playing Alter Ego: A pretty average point & click adventure game to be honest. The story sounded great, a mixture of Black Mirror & Dead Reefs, with some of the team who actually made Black Mirror. And although with this premise, and that the game started out quite excitingly, with a good opening cut scene & some interesting puzzles, but sadly it soon began to become this long winded, slow grinding story.



Based around two playable characters, one a hard done by stoaway escaped form the police at Plymouth harbour, an Irish thief, Timothy Moor. and the other a newly appointed Detective Sgt. Briscol, an arrogant stiff upper lip Englishman. Both of whom's experiences come togher...eventually.



The story revolves around a local esentric nobleman(Sir William Lewis) who is suposed to be recently deceased, and whom local newspapers & people dubbed him the "white beast" because of a string of bizzare murders over the years. and due to the fact that he was a recluse & sufferd from facial scarring due to some kind of hereditary disease, seemed to help them belive that. but, is he really dead ?

An exciting premise you would agree, and the games visual settings were very nice, bringing the premise to life. But sadly the downside out weigh the good. For example, the sound was not that greatly produced, of paticular note the voice acting, which was very average overall tbh. The puzzles were very simple & not much of a challange to an experienced adventure gamer. Sure the story was interesting enough, but it did plod along very slowly allowing us to use some inventory items along the way, but it lead to a quite dissapointing, abrupt end to the game, after all i had gone through to get to this point, it felt dissapointing.

Rating. 3/5

[Crunchy in milk]

The Saboteur



This is a game I'll reinstall and revisit/replay again during those dry months of the year, or just when feeling nostalgic for some of my favourite games.

You can play it like a succinct but satisfying action movie, by sticking with just the main plot quests, or you can draw it out like an experience by completing all the freeplay challenges and roaming the city, towns & countryside.

A visual and aural treat of a game.

[Lucien21]

Enslaved : Odyssey to the West

3rd Person Action game from the makers of 'Heavenly Sword'.

Trying so hard to be Uncharted but falling short.

Set in a post Apocalyptic New York filled with Mechs who seem to have taken over the world and enslaved humanity. You play Monkey who a gruff loner, who while escaping a slaver ship, becomes enslaved by an attractive redhead who wants an escort back to her villiage.

http://www.giantbomb.com/enslaved-trailer/17-2451/

So lots of working together, lots of fighting robots and lots of jumping and climbing of scenery.

Story is based on an old Chinese novel which will be familiar to anyone who remembers the old Monkey TV show (all the characters have the same names in the game).

Pros

* The motion capture and voice acting is superb. Andy Serkis is good as Monkey and you really get a sense of character from all the main cast.

* Combat is fun if a tad simplistic

* The environments are pretty esp the early New York Levels are pretty recognisable.

* A nice variety of levels and it splits up the climbing and fighting bits well.

* The Cloud hoverboard is a lot of fun.

Cons

* Texture pop-in was very noticable.

* It's waaaay to easy.

* Ending was too short and unsatifying. It didn't really wrap up the storyline and left too many things hanging for the sequel (if there is one as they are now working on the Devil May Cry reboot).

Overall it was a fun game, but not as good as the Uncharted games.

8/10

[M-E]

The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess

After all these years I finally finished this game. I was stuck at one or two dungeons, because the atmosphere and layout of those dungeons just weren't enjoyable at all. Overall this is a great game with a lot of length (I completed it in about 34-35 hours) and of course a wonderful atmosphere. I truly loved the ending and the last boss fight, although it was kind of easy.

4.5/5

[SamuelGordon]

Amnesia Dark Descent.

Didn't leave an impact and was hardly scary. The forced emotions were annoying and the monster that chases you got old real quick. The story is a bunch of mumbo jumbo followed by a crazy ending(s). There was also a bug that made it impossible for me to access the inner sanctum so i had to redo the whole gather the orb thing (ugh!). Some flashback scenes could've been so much cooler like the house raid,torture..let me do the torturing and actually see a human being crying..but i guess that wasn't possible with the engine. Let's hope they pump more money into it next time and i can really see a great game.

5,5/10. Not scary at all. Weak story. Too easy (dodging the monster(s)). Engine sucks.

[Origami]

I truly loved the ending and the last boss fight, although it was kind of easy.

Unfortunately....they always are. At least with the most recent ones. *looks at 0oT, MM, WW*

[kuze]

Originally Posted by SamuelGordon

Amnesia Dark Descent.
let me do the torturing and actually see a human being crying..

what.

[Roper Klacks]

Originally Posted by SamuelGordon

[5,5/10. Not scary at all. Weak story. Too easy (dodging the monster(s)). Engine sucks.

Jezz... did we play the same game? Its nothing like the Amnesia i played :p

[kuze]

Alan Wake - The Writer DLC
The better DLC for those who disliked the constant combat of The Signal, set in Alan's dream that keeps getting more bizarre by the second. I quite enjoyed the environment, the story was nothing I didn't expect though. There's still lots of shooting, but I didn't mind it as much as some apparently do. The score was great, as always, and I was glad to see the promise that Alan Wake's story will continue, even though this is supposed to be the last DLC for the first game. I really hope Remedy gets to make a sequel despite the underwhelming sales.

[Niko]

Just compeleted, loved & Highly reccomend.

[Lucien21]

Medal of Honor - Single Player

EA attempts to relaunch the Medal of Honor franchise to compete with Call of Duty.

Typical FPS action as it puts you in the shoes of "Tier One" operatives in Afghanistan fighting the Taliban.

It has taken alot of it's cues from the highly successful Modern Warfare games by telling the story from various viewpoints as you control different soldiers and various vehicles and weapons.

Pros

* Aims for a more realistic slant than MW2

* Decent shooter mechanics. Guns feel solid and realistic.

* Variety of levels is good. Particulary like the helicopter level.

Cons

* Way to easy. The left trigger snaps to the nearest enemy with uncanny accuracy meaning most of the time you just need to feather the left and right trigger to snap to headshot and BOOM.

* Story is .......Snore. Realism is boring.

* Levels too linear and constrictive. Feels like it is funnelling you down a tunnel.

* Graphics are a bit of a mixed bag.

Overall it was pretty mediocre as shooters go. As much as I thought that Modern Warfare 2's story was total ridiculus it was more exciting than this.

6/10

[Dwagginz]

Originally Posted by Crunchy in milk

The Saboteur
*snip*

I'd been wary about this game, partially due to knowing little about it, but also because it seemed like just another WW2 game. However, what you said has intrigued me so I might pick it up one day.

The last game I finished was GTA IV: The Lost and Damned, one of the two DLC packs for GTA IV. It makes a refreshing break from the car-based solo play of GTA IV in that it's predominantly done with bikes and a gang of bikers. The characters are compelling, it gives another viewpoint on one of GTA IV's major storylines and it's a great experience. I wouldn't say I wished it was longer, though, as I felt it began to risk getting old towards the end (It could be that I felt that due to doing it in one day) but if you haven't got the episodes for IV, then I recommend them even just for TLaD. Oh, and Ashley Butler is quite nice

[kagome25]

9/10

http://www.the-fall-trilogy.com/chapter2-reconstruction

give it a try, you will enjoy it, like I did!