Cabela's Big Game Hunter (PS 2) --Review--

Description:
For the first time ever experience the most realistic Hunting experience ever developed on the PlayStation 2 game console. Hunt and track over 24 different game animals. Animal AI is based on a large number of attributes, including hearing, smell, sight, speed, aggression, daily routines, sizes, sexes, sociability and seasonal change

Summary
WOW! By far the best playstation hunting game ever made, if not all around best hunting game. i read all these reviews and now that i've played the game and beat it I know that if i'm windering about a game that can just come here, thanks alot guys. When reading these reveiws i noticed that alot of these guys had never hunted, coming from someone who hunts, this game does really good in most areas, granted your not just going to just hop into a truck, drive to the game and shoot them its still great. (driving around is very fun)

Sound

The sound in this game is exilant. When hunting its just you and nature, birds caw, winds howl, rain patters, and well guns roar and vehical rumble through the woods sending game running everywhere. The calls in this game are cool sounding, i was very exitec to here the animals call back.

Gameplay

The gameplay in this oddly enough is very divers. You can run and gun, slowly stock up on your prey, you can sit and wait with a decoy throwing a call in here and there. All ways are very fun but i usually drive to the animals get out and trying to shoot them or drive to the top of a ridge and begin stalking. The only one that i havent had much luck with is sitting in a stand calling to the animals holding a bow, they always notce me. Doing so with a gun on the other and works quite well. There is tons of cool stuff in this game. It's almost a game in it's self driving a 4x4 truck, atv, snowmobile, boat around in the mountains until you roll it. while i've been spoiled by GTA:VC's driving mechanics i still think this is very fun. The best new addition to the game it the bullet cam. its fun to see the bullet or arrow flying toward the target. aming is pretty easy but its also pretty challenging with the hunter weaving around making it hard to make longer shots. The shooting and hunting is most effective when mixed with pacience. Even though sometimes i find my self firing blindly at the red dots(the dots are only there in easy) they show you where the animals are. basicaly, the game play is great.

(Reviewed by: Steven)

hehehe.. Good game.. This game is rather unique.. If you wanna to hunt, you don't need to go to the forest/jungle.. ^_^

Ace Combat 5 (PS2) -- Review--

Story:
Sand Island military base in the middle of the Ceres Ocean, dividing the two superpowers Osea and Yuktobania. After attempting intercept of an unidentified aircraft, most of the 108th Tactical Fighter Squadron was destroyed. As the base scrambles its d...

Summary
ACE COMBAT V is simply the flight action game on any platform. NAMCO out flies out guns and out performs any so-called compition out on the market today. AC5 is a flight arcade/simulator style game that features 30 missions and 50 aircraft to test your gaming abilities. The simple days of breaking out of the top gu pack and start shooting down ememy planes is gone to the memory cells in the back of your head. This gem of a game requires patience and some critical thinking skills to survive the lengthy missions. How many missions you ask? Thirty to be exact. Filled with visual overload and mental stress from focusing on the job. Playing a game has never been so frustratingly fun.

Sound
The sound is good but how good can it be when your strapped into a fighter plane. The radio chatter can be hard to keep up with but if pay attention it can be revieling to the direction the game is going. The sound good but you will play the game for the action any.
Gameplay

With all platform games, the game is still a game, to be enjoyed by all that play it. So no complaints about it not being a true simulation. If it was than no one could truely play it or even enjoy it. The game set-up is perfect for all gamers world wide, easy to use but still challanging to the expierenced. The game starts off with a little training flight but then turns into a flight of survival for your squad. From the begining you will be drawn in to the games story (if you take the time and have age on you to appreciate it) wich will have you questioning everything about your missions (again it's my age). The plane of your choice is controlled nicely through the use of every button on the PS2 controller. The planes will act/react a little differently from one to another wich makes choose your plane wisely. No more running back to the line for refueling and a reload of weapons. As like a real plane once your out of missles your out! With the completion of each mission you can choose to purchase or sale planes for better selection in the coming missions but no real selection of weapons like AC4, they are pretty standard issue with respect to each plane. However the creators of AC5 have a little compassion for you by well equiping your plane with a unrealistic number of missles to get by on. But that may not be enough for your flight if you get to TOP GUNish. Targets on the ground and in the air are well displayed for your attack and getting close to them REAL CLOSE is quite fun before you vaporize the target into black smoke. And did I mention the action and suspense, yes there is some surreal moments that can make you literaly sweat while engaging in battle. Wonderfully done story and a excellent mix of action and drama.

(Reviewed by: elder)

Well.. Quite addictive... ^_^.. Great graphic and sound effect..

Devil May Cry 3 (PS2) --Review--

Story:
The story begins with a twist. The half-human/half-demon Dante has a twin brother, Virgil, and he's not on the good guy's side. Rather, he strives to be one of the super-villains that their father, Sparda, strived to rid the world of.

Summary:
Devil May Cry 3 is a really exciting and cool game to play if you like to face weird creatures like a cerebus and your evil twin brother and other mind-blowing enemies. The weapons are really cool including numchucks and dualwielding sword for melee and beowolf as one of the best range weapons (although it's not really ranged)including five different fighting styles at your disposal to dish ot on enemies! If you haven't played it yet, then get out there and play it!!!!

Strength:Weapons, Graphics, Enemies, Fighting styles, Themes, Odd Levels, Boss battles
Weakness: Camera movement, Difficulty, Confusing on certain levels

(Reviewed by: Dylan Barnard)
For me: wow.. Nice gameplay.!! But, the difficult level make me have to look up the walkthrough.. ~.~

Need for Speed Underground (PS2) --Review--

Description:

Need for Speed Underground allows you to build a completely unique exotic ride by earning cash to pay for custom body kits and a host of car mods by winning events. But just creating the ultimate custom street racing machine will not get a racer to the top; it takes a certain amount of attitude and razor sharp driving skills to compete in the tough world of urban racing. The game features 20 fully customisable licensed cars from Mitsubishi Motors, Subaru, Toyota and other top manufacturers. There are hundreds of ways to customise one's ride with aftermarket parts from dozens of providers including AEM Inc., Audiobahn, Bilstein, Dazz Motorsport, DC Sports, Eibach, Enkei, GReddy Performance Products Inc., HKS, Holley, Injen, Jackson Racing, MOMO, Neuspeed, Nitrous Express Inc., O.Z. s.P.a., PIAA, Skunk2 Racing, Sparco, StreetGlow, and Turbonetics Inc.

Summary

In my opinion, as a big fan of racing games, this is the best game i've ever played. I also own Midnight Club II which i also consider a very good game (see my review for that one also), but since i have bought this game, i havent touched Midnight Club II. I'm sure i will go back to it, but for now NFSU is just so addictive that i cant put it down. It does have a couple negatives, but i certainly wouldnt call them flaws because its still a phenominal game reguardless. The premise is simple enough, as most racing games are. The eye candy (and theres alot of it) sucks you in, and the gameplay keeps it fun for a long time. There is 111 levels (that is a little decieving since some of the levels are only a race or two) and you keep unlocking accessories, designs and cars along the way. I am one of those who refuses to spend $55 or $60 on a game, but this is the only one i can think of that could very well be worth it.

Sound

ok, this will get a 4 too. the overall is still darn near perfect, but this area was a little lacking. Infact, if you can grant me one more opportunity to compare it to its closest competitor, i must say that Midnight Club II was on the right track by giving you access to all 35 or 40 songs that it put in the game, and letting you skip to the ones you like as if it was your own personal CD player right there in your car. i personally thought that 3/4 of the music in Midnight Club II sucked, but having that option was a great idea. In NFSU, the # of songs is few and you have no choice (as far as i've found) as to when they are played. User control would make a world of differance. The songs are very upbeat and there is a good mix of rock and hip hop. also, there are several well known songs that you could recognise and that alone makes you want to bob your head to the beat as you race at 180 mph which is nice. larger selection and more control wouldve earned it a 5 though.

Gameplay

The gameplay is solid. I oppose those who had a big problem with the car's handling and turning ability. To me, it is dead on. The physics in this game are fantastic and there are no car control issues at all in my opinion. as for the selection of customizations, it is vast and very fun. there are so many vinal designs to decorate your car with that it is almost tiring just looking through all of them. im talking about hundreds. so, you are sure to make your car look as spiffy and sporty as you can immagine a'la Fast & the Furious. I also love the wide variety of automotive brand names that have added to the realism. when you are given engine parts, you can chose the manufactuer of those parts as if you were in your very own Auto Zone. while one doesnt effect your car more than another (in the same level of performance), it's still very cool to represent a certain manufacturer. then you can go to the decails and chose to put those favorite manufacturer decails on your ride. not tacky, very smooth. There is a good selection of cars, but those GT series fans wont be impressed. there are 20 differant models, and they are all licenced and look identical to its real life counterpart. if there were twice as many, i probebly would love it more, but 20 is certainly plenty. This in my opinion is where Midnight club was deficient...they didnt have licensure for the cars, and while the makers (Rockstar) tried to make them look like real live models, it failed to impress. it is definitely a huge plus for this game though. While i'm going to rate this game a 5 overall because it is so superior to others, and is so increadibly fun and addictive, i will give this category a 4 for the reason that it lacks two absolutely wonderful things (both of which Midnight Club II has and does well)....Replays for one, and secondly free reign to drive where you want to with no boundries. With Midnight Club II, it can get away with lesser graphics because of these 2 things. I still like NFSU more, but if it had those two things, i probebly would quit my job, collect unemployment and sit at home playing Need For Speed Underground until i had carpel tunned syndrome.Unfortunately it lacks them, so i shall stay employed but it would be great if you could see tv camera style replays of the races. you get quick glimpses of what i'm talking about when you crash (which are very cool unto themselves), and when you go over a jump and get air (very quick glimpse!). more of that would have been great. as for the free rome, it is a feature that does get a little old, but it gives you a better appreciation for the graphic quality of the buildings and surroundings. it also is a very stress free way of driving your car and just sppreciating the eye candy that you have helped to create. so, due to that lacking, its less than perfect...but still awesome.

(Reviewed by: stagoalie)

For me, this game is eddictive for you who have known the trick for driving the car..! :D

Kingdom Hearts II --Review--

Story:
The wacky but fun collaboration between RPG masters Squaresoft, and Disney Interactive returns in Kingdom Hearts II for the PlayStation 2. Sora, Donald, and Goofy are joined by a Jedi-cloaked Mickey Mouse as they continue their adventure into other worlds and battle the forces of an evil mummy-wrapped ruler. Whether or not Mickey will be a part of the battle team, however, remains to be seen, though it was revealed that Sora and other characters will see costume redesigns to solidify the game's more advanced timeline.

Summary:

Anyone who’s played Metal Gear Solid 2 can attest to the confusion that runs rampant when a game switches gears—and lead characters—in the heat of the action. When Konami decided we’d had enough with Solid Snake and would finish off the rest of the PlayStation2 masterpiece as Raiden, Master of Peroxide, many were caught off-guard, some so much so that they refused to finish playing the game.

Square Enix’s Kingdom Hearts II offers a similar tactic in the first few hours of the game, but the shock value is nowhere near as disconcerting as it was with Konami’s mega-hit. In fact, the confusion between where Sora, the first game’s hero, is and who the character we’re introduced to, Roxas, is adds to the game as a whole. Fortunately, the pluses don’t stop there.

To be entirely truthful, I wasn’t sure Kingdom Hearts needed a sequel. The first game worked better than expected, given the unorthodox marriage of the Final Fantasy universe with everything Disney. I wasn’t convinced lightning could strike twice, and that Square Enix was looking to do nothing more than make itself—and the big mouse—some more quick cash.

Then again, this is Square Enix we’re talking about, and one should never underestimate these guys when it comes to RPGs.

Sound

Voice acting does leave a little to be desired, as not every voice from the first game has made a return appearance in Kingdom Hearts II (most notably to me: David Boreanaz, formerly TV’s Angel , voiced Leon in the first game; he did not return to voice Leon in the sequel).

All in all, Kingdom Hearts II is a worthy follow-up to its predecessor and a game any PS2-owning RPG fan should own. It ventures a little too close to the first game at times, but Square Enix has created another gem, and while you’ll come for the fast-paced fighting and the exploration noteworthy in the genre, you’ll more than likely stay for the enthralling story. And let’s fact it, isn’t that the whole point of RPGs to begin with?

Gameplay

It’s been about a year since the events of the original Kingdom Hearts and for the most part, the events of the first game have been forgotten. Sora’s memories have been fragmented and scattered throughout the world, but a young boy named Roxas keeps having dreams relating back to the events of the first game. Enter this conspiracy to bring Sora back in one piece and a mysterious group called Organization XIII and you’ve got the basic framework for Kingdom Hearts II ’s storyline. I could go deeper, but I don’t want to give anything away.

From a gameplay standpoint, Kingdom Hearts II starts off slow. This is understandable in the sense that the game needs to establish characters and the overall plot, from for those of us looking to pick up a controller, mash the X button a few hundred times and kill hundreds of crawly minions, this can get frustrating. You’ll be watching cut scenes more often than actually guiding Roxas through an unfamiliar world, and while the cut scenes are well-executed and the story sucks you in almost immediately, you do forget at first that you’re playing a videogame and not watching a Disney feature.

But once the game gives control back to you, it’s off to the races. The mechanics of Kingdom Hearts II aren’t that different from those of the first game. Square Enix has again taken an action-RPG approach to combat, presumably in an effort to keep the Final Fantasy comparisons to a minimum. Truth is, the combat works just as well now as it did in the original game, if not better; the first Kingdom Hearts was plagued at times by slowdown during hectic battles, but that problem has been all but eradicated in the sequel.

Along with the familiar combat mechanics is the return of Gummi Ships, as well as some of the locales from the first game (such as Agrabah from Aladdin and Halloween Town from The Nightmare Before Christmas ). Though the Gummi Ship and its upgrades are much the same as they were in the first game, the Gummi levels are a blast. Decidedly more hectic than the first game, it feels as if Square Enix threw a full shooter in on top of the fleshed-out RPG. In many ways, these levels make up an entire game by themselves, and it serves as a nice break from the often slow-paced story sequences and exploration.

Not all is familiar with Kingdom Hearts , however. Along for the ride this time are the Disney favorites Pirates of the Caribbean and Tron , and there’s even a level that harkens back to the company’s black-and-white days. The merit of these additions will depend mostly on your personal preference when it comes to Disney films (I’m partial to the Aladdin and Pirates levels, but the black-and-white stage didn’t really do anything for me), but the eclectic mix serves the game well.

And come on, this game features Stitch as a potential summon. How cool is that?!

Summons are a part of this game, which should tickle the fancy of the Final Fantasy fans. They’re not implemented in quite the same way as in Square Enix’s flagship RPG series, but their inclusion does add an interesting new wrinkle to what is already an exhilarating and frantic game.

The Final Fantasy element isn’t as emphasized this time around, presumably because the franchise has established itself. Such FF favorites as Cloud, Aerith, Squall (called Leon in this series), Vivi and Seifer do make appearances, but overall this game is more about the Disney atmosphere and the reuniting of Sora, Donald, and Goofy.

The frantic combat, complimented nicely by an intuitive, responsive control scheme, combines nicely with traditional RPG elements such as exploration and item management, and the result is a game that feels like more than a money-making gimmick. The melding of Square and Disney again proves a success from a gameplay standpoint, even though there are plenty of times where this game can feel nearly identical to the last one (mostly when you visit stages that were present in the first Kingdom Hearts ).

In fact, the only thing that truly holds this game back is the fact in a lot of ways, it feels similar to the first Kingdom Hearts . The game does keep a lot of what worked in its predecessor, but I would’ve liked to have seen things expanded on a little further. There are far too many déjà vu moments in this game—mostly in the stages that were visited in the first Kingdom Hearts . I loved the original, and the sequel is a marvelous game in its own right, but I sat there with controller in hand too many times thinking, “Haven’t I done all this before?”

If there’s a third game, I hope the developers try to branch the game out a bit more and change this up a bit.

(Revieved by: Jeff Cunningham)

(For me, i have ended this game so many times in hard difficulty.. This games is really interesting because it combines Square Enix and Disney.. Fantastic.!! 5 of 5)

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City -- Review--

Story:
In real life, hijacking motor vehicles just leads to trouble. It's the name of the game, however, with the GRAND THEFT AUTO series. Taking place in the 1980s, this installment has you stealing more than 120 unique era-appropriate vehicles. You'll have in excess of 40 weapons at your disposal to handle the dirty work, and there are more than nine hours of music to listen to on your collection of stolen car stereos. Actor Ray Liotta lends his voice acting, and there are more than 8,000 lines of dialogue to keep the story moving.

Gameplay: 5 of 5..

Summary:

Ok. Lets see. Well, I can easily say that this is more than any other ordinary video game. I caould easily say that this is the best thing that has ever came out of the 80's. Also I can say that this game is part of many gamers' lives. Possibly one of their biggest parts. This is definetly and absolutley without a doubt the greatest game ever created, no discussion!Ok lets get to the point of the game then. Your name is Tommy Vercetti. A man who simply knows what he's doing. Apart from what happens in the intro that is. The game starts by Tommy, his lawyer (Ken Rosenberg), and two other guys to watch Tommy's back. The point of this is that Tommy has just arrived in a place of hope called Vice City. He is here to make an exchange of drugs and money for his boss, Sonny Foreli. The deal turns out to be a setup and only Tommy and Ken escape with the other two guys dead. Tommy then sets out the next day to sort out all of this mess. This is where you, the gamer comes in. At the same time of trying to get the money back, Tommy is set missions to do by all of the players from vice city. This is mainly for mony, or either that the people who are setting him these tasks say, "By me helping you, you must also help me". There'as they set you out to do their dirty work. These missions include assasains, bombs, car chases etc; Throuout this Tommy also meets a lot of new people including one of the main characters in the game, Lance. Lance says he can help you Tommy out and when the two of them are too far in, They set out together to take over the city themselves. This is where the real fun starts. Tommy can now take over businesses. This is meer parts of their ways to start to take over Vice City. Yes this also provides new missions to keep you going for a very long time.If all that isn't enough then there is also a lot more tasks ahead. Think you've finished? Think again. You also have to do at least 30 unigue stunt jumps before you can say your even near finished. Or find 100 hidden packages before 100% completion. There is also a lot more things like this to do like rampages which are simply mini-missions if you think your up to the task.And yes, theres more. Remember GTA 3? Well theres a hole lot more in Vice City. Bikes, Helicopters, chainsaws. There is simply too much more to say so why not buy the game to find out. Actually just buy the game because it will be one of the greatest things that has ever happened to your console. THis game is a good enough reason to even own a playstation 2. (By the way I'd like to know if anyone out there has every single hidden package. Because I sure have ha ha ha.)

Sound

Now the sound in Vice City is a very big part. This is simply because of The ten different radio stations that Tommy can tune in and listen to. They include some very famous songs and sound absolutley perfect. Rockstar have definetly chosen the right songs for this game as there is nothing better to do than to cruise around Vice City listening to 'Billie Jean', or to go 100mph in an infernus while 'I ran', plays on your car radio. Simply fantastic. Also the sound has some other aspects in the game such as the way the characters talk which is done brillianty. For example, Tommy is quite a cool minded person so his voice is done to perfection as a cool minded voice. The sound works brilliantly!

Gameplay

Ok well then the gameplay. There is so many thing for Tommy to do in Vice City with those lets say, 14 buttons on the anologue pad. Now people might be saying, 'How the hell can Tommy do all this stuff like shooting his uzi out of his car window with just this many buttons?' The answer is quite simple though as Rockstar have made this perfect. The contols are so easy to get use to and gives a really great feel to the game. Driving the car coulde'nt feel more crisp than it is. Or shoting a sniper would be hard to make feel better. It simply is just one great big feel to the game as it seems very easy to use the controls which makes the game so great.

--Reviewed by Jordan Carroll--

(My review will be coming soon)

'Sims 3' coming on February 20

Electronic Arts has announced that the third installation of The Sims, that game that rivals World of Warcraft in the "I got so addicted my boss almost fired me" department, will be debuting on February 20, 2009That's a worldwide release date for both in-store purchases and digital downloads. EA has famously devoted an entire division (or "label") to the blockbuster Sims franchise, in which players create their own families of virtual characters (or "sims") and let their lives unfold. The game was designed by Will Wright, whose new game Spore is hitting stores next month.

New to The Sims 3 are more advanced customization features (including personality traits like kleptomania, paranoia, and clumsiness) and smarter "neighborhoods" that can more extensively affect the outcome of the game.

In addition to The Sims 3, EA will also be releasing a "collector's edition" with a number of bonus features--including an in-game Italian sports car.