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By Brandon Miller

From the moment I put the Blu-ray disc into the PS3, I knew God of War 3 would be something special. Chalk it up to pedigree. Sony Santa Monica has never let me down in the past so I knew with this being the final chapter in the trilogy, I was in for a gaming experience like no other. Back at E3 2009 I had the pleasure of playing the demo and from that moment on, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the final product.

Let’s start with the game play. Some reviewers criticized the game for being too much like its predecessors. In truth God of War 3 doesn’t reinvent the wheel here. But when the wheel is crafted so beautifully you simply will not care. What Sony Santa Monica have done is simply expand on a winning formula. For instance Kratos now has an array of new moves which if nothing else add options for the way you’ll dispatch enemies. Kratos now has the ability to grab enemies and either bash their heads into a wall, rip them in half, throw them off cliffs or use them as a battering ram against other enemies. Any weapon can now be used to latch onto enemies and pull Kratos toward them to begin juggle combos. It’s all extremely gratuitously violent and I promise you’ll enjoy every moment.

I won’t spoil the boss battles for you by getting into any specifics here, but I’ll simply say that God of War 3 has provided me with some of the most memorable moments in video game history. Every gamer needs to experience these battles first hand.

Graphically God of War 3 is absolutely stunning. Even more so than Uncharted 2 if you can imagine that. The environments, character detail and set pieces are on par with or exceed many CGI cinematics. The fact that you are actually playing this at a silky smooth 30-60 frames per second speaks to the power of the PS3’s cell processor. You’ll marvel at how smoothly the animations look. Every muscle on Kratos ripples and flexes using normal map blend shape technology. The texture detail and dynamic soft shadows add to the dark ambiance of the game. Fire, volumetric smoke, object and camera based motion blur compliment the cinematic experience. The set pieces and environments are as David Jaffe described, “like a painting come to life”. Incredible lip synching with well written and voice acted dialog will further suspend your disbelief that this is a game rather than an epic movie. The music perfectly compliments the visuals with an amazing orchestra and choir capping off a game which can simply be described as epic.

If there is one minor point of contention that I had with God of War 3, it is that the storyline will confuse those who haven’t played the previous games. Consider that your excuse to buy the God of War collection if for no other reason, than the experience the latest chapter to its fullest extent. Aside from that minor flaw, God of War 3 is just about as good as it gets. Run out now and buy this game!

admin Reviews 3, amazing, animation, environments, God of War 3, GOW, GOWIII, Graphics, incredible, review

By Joseph Tresca

So I’ve been playing Heavy Rain for the past 2 weeks now since the game was released and I have to tell you, when I’m in the shower, sometimes I swear I see those little context sensitive button indicators or analog stick movements floating in the air. If you play the game long enough or play through it as many times as I have, you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Why don’t we start from the beginning though. If I had one simple word to describe the game it would be, ‘engrossing’. Upon loading Heavy Rain you are prompted to install it to the hard drive which is close to a 10 minute process. This would normally be boring as you might imagine if not for the piece of origami paper included in the game case. As the game installs you are provided steps to create an origami crane and I found this to be a clever way to pass the time.

We start the game playing Ethan. Ethan has a beautiful house, a beautiful wife, and two energetic and loving children. Perfect life right? Well as you might guess it all comes crumbling down. I won’t spoil anything for you because Heavy Rain is all about the story.

My first reaction to the game was simply put, “wow, incredible”. Never have I been so immersed or as I said earlier, engrossed in the environments, as I was in Heavy Rain. Graphically this game is an absolute stunner. The loading screens display pore level detail on character faces that look full of life. There are little details in their facial expressions and lip movements that are really impressive. This is a showcase for what the Playstation 3 can do. In the mall you’ll see 50 or 60 people walking around each with their own individual motion captured animations. It’s easy to build an environment devoid of people, but when you see life moving all around you, it really pulls you in. If you do stop to smell the roses in Heavy Rain, you can bet they will be the most detailed roses that you’ve ever seen. The attention to detail in the environments is simply impeccable. There are also some beautiful particle effects which include, rain, steam and cigarette smoke.

As a long time gamer my first instinct was to walk around and explore everything with the hope that I might find something that would change the course of events. I’d read from Quantic Dream’s own David Cage that every little decision could have a vast change on the outcome. I was of course determined to make the right little decisions. This is where the game pulls you in. You cannot win Heavy Rain, but you can influence the outcome. You interact with the game through a series of context sensitive button presses or analog stick movements that are either timed or must be pressed precisely in sequential order. At first it seems like a novel idea, although after my third play through, I wanted to throw my controller through my flat panel LCD TV. You’ll want everything to happen faster once you know exactly what the animations look like and the novelty wears thin quickly. I wasn’t very fond of the old school Resident Evil tank style walk mechanic either. It was sometimes a real pain getting the characters to walk into the right position so that I could continue the story. Continuing the story is pretty much what playing Heavy Rain is all about.

The story is generally pretty good. I cared enough about the characters to want to know what would happen next. The dialog was written better than in most games, but inconsistent voice acting often reminded me that this was just a game rather than an interactive movie. The game doesn’t take a lot of skill to play. I’m fairly sure just about anyone, even a non gamer would be able to enjoy playing Heavy Rain, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think where Heavy Rain truly shines is in the third or fifth play through. I can attest that making different decisions will in fact change the course of the story. However by the fifth play through I found myself wishing that I didn’t have to sit through all the decisions in the game that clearly hold little to no bearing on the final outcome. I also wished that once I discovered who the killer was, that another play through would make the game choose a different character as the killer based on my choices. Still the game does have multiple endings and that will be enough for many to slog through the same basic story multiple times. The problem is most people without patience, curiosity or the willingness will miss at least 75% of what this game has to offer. There in lies the inherit problem with this type of game. It requires an almost religious dedication to get the most out of it.

Does Heavy Rain fail or succeed at what it aims to achieve? I’d say it’s mostly a success. I found myself happy that the adventure genre has returned in this form. I know that this style of game could be tweaked to allow the player to feel as if he or she has more control over the outcome. For what it is though, Heavy Rain is certainly worth playing through at least one time. Cinematic Interactive Story telling will probably never take off like the first person shooter but for those seeking a mature and different playing experience, it provides more than enough entertainment to “engross” you.

admin Reviews, Uncategorized David Cage, Heavy Rain, Interactive Cinematic Storytelling, Quantic Dreams, review

By Joseph Tresca

When the original Assassin’s Creed was released, the gameplay mechanic that allowed me to climb and scale just about any building or wall in the environment felt fresh. Because this new game mechanic was central to success and failure in the game I became admittedly obsessed with mastering the techniques required to assassinate foes from the dark.

The original game had a few main problems though. The first problem was that the A.I. was dumber than rocks. You could murder someone in town and then turn a corner instantly and the guards who were intent on apprehending you a moment ago would forget what you looked like as if they were all afflicted with a very bad case of Alzheimer’s.  The second problem many reviewers had with the game was that it became incredibly repetitive. There were three types of ‘quests’ you could complete and they became boring very quickly.

Whether you loved it or not depended on how willing you were to slog through and support Ubisoft as they pioneered a new gameplay technique. Those of us who were hooked would say, ‘Sure it had problems but what potential it had!’

I’ll simplify this review for those of you who are less patient. Assassin’s Creed 2 improves upon every aspect of the first game yet it still misses the mark. I’ve personally concluded that this game is more or less what the first game should have been, but to me having played the first, it really feels like more of the same.

The main reason for this is probably because I could care less about the main character. I could care less about the character he becomes when he’s jacked in. I think the story line in this game is just terrible. I can see how perhaps someone having never played the first game may think this game is refreshing and new but I cannot stress enough how it felt like more of the same.

So lets talk about how things have improved. Graphically the game has been given a facelift. Textures are sharper, characters facial animations are a bit more realistic and overall the draw distance when perched atop an eagle’s nest is stunning.

The A.I. is much much more intelligent now, though still not the sharpest tools in the shed, they do exhibit nearly the same degree of forgetfulness that their predecessors from the first game did. However I did notice them coordinating their efforts to find me by quickly assembling into a relentless search party that would chase me up buildings. The notoriety system is also a major improvement. I especially enjoyed pulling down wanted posters from the city buildings.

There are also a number of added gameplay mechanics such as the ability to steal money from citizens or to increase your bank account by doing the various side quests. At one point in the game you can begin putting this money to use by restoring your uncle’s town. You can renovate an armor smith’s shop for instance so that you’ll be able to get a discount when your armor begins to degrade. Likewise you can rebuild a doctor’s shop to receive discounts on health restoration. The problem I have with all this is that it seems like filler. It borrows heavily from MMORPGs and while I’m sure these added features will impress some players, I would have preferred much more emphasis on crafting new weapons or improved combat.

The combat in Assassin’s Creed 2 isn’t bad by any means. In fact although it is perhaps a bit too complicated it is also very deep and will take some time to master. I would like to make a special note to how cool the double blade kill is.

So should you buy Assassin’s Creed 2? Yes if you haven’t played the first game, definitely not if you have.

admin Reviews Assassin's Creed 2, Playstation 3, PS3, UBI SOFT, Xbox 360

By Joseph Tresca

I know it may be hard to believe but honestly up until E3 last year I had barely touched a God of War game. I know, I know, for a self proclaimed hardcore gamer, I knew I was missing out. But the truth is, I fell into the hype of God of War when it was first released on PS2 and originally I was left unsatisfied with the game’s graphics. I’m thinking that having also owned an Xbox, the more powerful of the three systems last generation, I was expecting something less blurry looking. Ultimately, because I’m a graphics snob I stopped playing one of the best third person action adventure games ever created. Years went by and each time I would mention God of War, everyone had the same answer more or less. “It’s a classic!”, they would say. Well it is a classic and I’m making up for lost time with the newly released God of War Collection for the Playstation 3.

From the very beginning until the very end, God of War grips you and refuses to left go. Sony Santa Monica appear to be the originator of many of the dynamic camera angles we’ve come to know and love in the Uncharted series. You feel as though you are playing a movie. The camera artfully pans just behind the lead character, Kratos shoulders as you discover a new area. It pulls back perfectly to allow you to string together combo after combo knocking enemies in every direction. It is so smooth that it really does make the case for running a game like this at 60 frames per second.

Since we’re talking about frame rate, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the incredible animation. Kratos swims, climbs, rolls and runs with an impecceble attention to detail. The game also has such beautiful set pieces, that to an untrained eye it could easily be mistaken for a PS3 game. It’s worth noting that Sony went the extra mile to re-render the game in beautiful 720P, which was one of the main factors behind my giving the series a second chance. I can’t help but feel slightly disappointed that the movie and cut scenes do not share the same benefit as the in game graphics. While working your way through the various levels and settings of the two games, especially the first God of War, you’ll suddenly watch your beautifully rendered 720p Kratos get all pixelated and muddy looking as the old PS2 graphics are shown on screen for any of the cut scenes. This is a minor blemish for me that keeps this re-release from achieving perfection.

The boss battles are some of the best I’ve ever played, the gameplay is furiously fast and amazingly polished. The sound and music is multi-layered, ambient and immersive. The storyline though simple, is cool enough to keep you coming back for more. And come back for more I did. Thank you Sony for re-releasing this master piece. You’ve made a God of War fan out of a non believer. No easy task. Now I’m counting the days before God of War 3 is released!

admin Reviews God of War, God of War 2, God of War 3, GOW, GOW II, GOW2, PS2, Sony Santa Monica

By William Countiss

So if you’ve read the title of this article you already know my feelings on Uncharted 2. It’s brilliant. It’s a combination of several different game types mixed with an engrossing story, incredible graphics, natural well-written dialog and an unmatched amount of overall polish. I’ve been playing games since I was about 7 years old (I’m 31 now), and I can say unequivocally that Uncharted 2 is the best action adventure game that I’ve ever played. So what makes this game the pinnacle of all games? What makes this the Star Wars or Lord of the Rings and perhaps more suitably the Indiana Jones of the action adventure games world?

Perfect Controls

If you aren’t yet familiar with Uncharted 2, it is a third person action adventure game. It has at times been labeled Dude-Raider for its obvious similarity to Lara Croft’s adventures. But I have to be completely honest with you here, Uncharted 2 makes Tomb Raider look and feel pretty bland. The controls in Uncharted 2 are simply perfect. Aiming transitions the camera to an over the shoulder view that really puts the player inside the environment. The cover system is now much more fluid than in the original game. It feels more like Gears of War now which in my mind has a masterfully executed cover system. The new stealth mechanics don’t feel tacked on and you are always given the option to approach a situation in multiple ways, which allows for a level of strategy not available in the first outing. The climbing, leaping and swinging mechanic is so smooth and so well integrated, you’ll wonder why no other game has been able to successfully blend these elements in the past.

Perfect Camera

Now I don’t know who they are paying to build the camera system over at Naughty Dog, but he really should get a raise. The camera dynamically seems to give you the best possible view of the action each and every time. When Drake climbs down a ladder and into the mouth of an ancient temple the camera zooms in closer so that we the viewer feel as though we’re following our hero with a steady-cam. In another instance we’re put in a situation where Drake has to desperately run away from enemies. For this scene Drake runs toward us as if to leap out of our television screens. During climbing sequences the camera artfully pans or zooms to give us the best view of where we are while also subtly revealing where we have to go next.

Well Written Dialog

This is perhaps the first game that I’ve played where I felt the magic of bringing on board a professional movie script writer. The game dialog never feels forced. Compare this to Killzone 2, Gears of War and just about every Resident Evil game ever created and the difference becomes immediately apparent. This is first class voice acting matched with believable dialog that conveys sarcasm, comedy, jealousy, fear, anger and basically the gamut of human emotions. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Metal Gear Solid 4, but the story and character dialog was so heavy handed and long-winded in comparison to what Uncharted 2 has in store for you.

Engrossing Story

Perhaps the best part about Uncharted 2 is the plot. The story flows naturally with the pacing of the action. You’ll realize here that most games have a decent story but with terrible dialog and voice actors. Uncharted 2 sets the standard for natural dialog that truly enhances the overall story.

Incredible Graphics

You simply cannot ignore what a brilliant job Naughty Dog has done with upgrading the graphics in Uncharted 2. If you were ever skeptical of the power the cell processor offers, then prepare to become a believer. The environments feature rich texturing and there isn’t one poorly rendered wall, floor or ceiling. Every object, statue or enormous set piece has a mind shattering amount of detail and beautiful dynamic shadows add dimension. What’s more, the draw distance pushes the limits on what I thought was possible for this generation. The breath-taking vistas in Uncharted 2 will set the standard for ambiance in games for years to come. But it doesn’t end there, the environments react to Nate’s every move. Floors and ceilings cave, buildings crash down as the objects in the room slide across the floor and lights swing from the ceiling. When a helicopter is near, plants and trees blow wildly due to the wind current. It’s in these subtleties that Uncharted 2 stand above every other game I’ve ever played. Since we’re talking about animation we have to mention that Nate and his friends and enemies are animated exquisitely. He’ll stumble down steps while running quickly, cover his face when near an open fire and struggle to lift himself up from a ledge. The supporting cast and enemies also animate beautifully as they dive for cover, roll away from supressing fire and duck or cower with a real sense of self preservation. The lip-synching although not as good as Heavenly Sword, is still excellent.

If you own a PS3 buy this game, if you don’t, it’s worth owning the system just for Uncharted 2. If you consider yourself a gamer than you need to play this.

admin Reviews Action Adventure, Drake's Fortune, Playstation 3, PS3, Uncharted 2 review