Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on June 1st, 2003
During the 1970’s, Kung Fu and martial arts films were the in thing. Bruce Lee and the cheap Hong Kong action film were leading the wave of popularity of the Far Eastern martial arts. Even music of the time reflected America’s love of the Kung Fu culture with a hit song entitled Kung Fu Fighting.
Now Microsoft has brought all of the fun and campy nature of those old 35 mm films to life here on the Xbox. Kung Fu Chaos is a colorful, tongue-in-cheek fighter that is influenced by the Hong ...ong action films of the mid 70’s. Players can choose from eight unique looking fighters and take them on in a trash talking, knock down brawl.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 30th, 2003
Those players out there that enjoyed the PS2 title Frequency and the arcade game Dance Dance Revolution, now have another dance/music title on the Playstation 2 console to move the beat to. Amplitude from Sony lands this month with a full soundtrack, colorful visuals and varied gameplay.
Players pick up the role of a spaceship as it travels down beams of color and sound. Using the directional buttons or the shoulder buttons results in a beat along an already established piece of music. ...he result can be music to your ears, or a bunch of flat notes—it’s up to your eye/hand coordination to determine that.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 30th, 2003
Thank you, Rockstar Games.
Thank you for creating the masterpiece of video gaming known as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. In doing so, you guys gave the finger to every special interest group and soccer mom clan in this country that likes to blame shoddy parenting on mature video games. Thanking Rockstar is a good thing in the aspect that we are lucky that there are still studios--like Rockstar--out there that will create mature games like Grand Theft Auto: Vice City for us to play. With...that being said, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is not really a game to be played, but an experience to be lived.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2003
Like a bolt out of the blue, Guilty Gear X2 comes out this month and totally hits a player between the eyes. When one thinks of fighters on the Playstation 2 console, most think of the studios Capcom or Sega--and those titles popular to those particular production houses. Yet, Sammy Studios released a fighting title for the PS2 that is so marvelous, so fun, and so entertaining, that it almost completely redefines 2-D side scrolling fighters.
The game, of course, is Guilty Gear X2 and it must b... seen and played to be believed. Reveling in the old school 2-D fighter genre that many of us grew up on in those dark arcades of past, X2 is a fantastic mix of unique characters, interesting fighting arenas, classic arcade machine rock and roll, and a healthy amount of combos per fighter.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2003
Even though Final Fantasy X-2 is releasing in Japan this month, and some RPG fans might be going ga-ga over an import of that game, other players who may love the Role Playing Game genre should not overlook Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht from Namco--a game with a decidedly complex storyline and polished in game visuals and cutscenes.
Based on the original game Xenogears, this new title is heavily based on sci-fi themes and an intricate, multi-layered plot. The story starts out ...ith a young researcher named Shion, whom is aboard a starship returning from a mission in deep space where it retrieved a mysterious artifact amid a war with a strange race of creatures known as the Gnosis.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2003
London is known for several popular things: Fish and Chips, Big Ben, the river Thames, but one thing it will probably never be credited for is being the centerpiece of an engaging, fun videogame--at least if one only looks as far as The Getaway. It’s a guarantee that nothing will confuse and frustrate players quicker than a game that can’t make up its mind what it is. Is it a movie? Is it a game? Well, whatever it is, it should choose a path early and then stick with it.
The plot...behind The Getaway revolves around three main characters: Mark Hammond, an ex-criminal on the run for the alleged murder of his wife, Frank Carter, a vigilante cop suspended from the police force for unorthodox methods, and Charlie Jolson, a larger than life crime boss who pulls the strings of these two men to get what he wants out of the London crime scene.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 29th, 2003
Sony seems to be on a roll this season with the release of another fun Role Playing Game that is quite a sight to see. Dark Cloud 2, the sequel to the popular title Dark Cloud which released during the first year of the Playstation 2, is the game we are reviewing here today.
The story follows a young man by the name of Maximilian, or Max, and a girl named Monica. Max is an inventor who likes to tinker with things--hence he carries around a large wrench which also doubles a... a weapon. The story begins with Max discovering that there is a horrible secret involving his town, and having never ventured beyond the gates of his enclosed city, decides that he will travel beyond the city limits to unravel the truth behind the secret.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 27th, 2003
Star Wars certainly is a mega-franchise. Not counting the films, the galaxy far, far, away has shown up in toys, lunchboxes, and other assorted paraphernalia. One thing that we didn’t have when the original trilogy made its way through the theater was a videogame based on the films.
That has changed dramatically over the last six or seven years with numerous Star Wars games coming to several different platforms. Arguably, many of those games were shoddy and fans agreed that they were not repre...entative of the stellar film work of the movies. All that is changing however, now that there are home consoles that have the processing power to display the massive universe that is Star Wars.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 21st, 2003
Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc is by all intents and purposes is a platform game, but video gamers should not just assume they have another plain-vanilla platformer on their hands. On the contrary, although Rayman 3 is another platform title, the slick graphics, neat music, and top notch voice acting make it a game worth checking out.
Most Playstation owners have undoubtedly come across Rayman at some point in their gaming lives whether it was the original Rayman on the PSOne or those e...isodes that followed onto the PS2. Rayman is, of course, the little fellow with no arms and legs that runs around the levels doing justice to the bad guys. He is joined by Murfy, a tough talking fly who is filled with info, and Globox, a chubby goof-off who has accidentally swallowed an evil thing--the Chief of Dark Lums.
Posted in: Game Reviews by Archive Authors on May 10th, 2003
Looking for a fast racer that has some of the best detailed wild crash sequences? Then look no further than Burnout 2: Point of Impact, out now on the Nintendo GameCube. Anyone who is a fan of the Ridge Racer series of games on the PS2 owes it to themselves to check out Burnout 2 and see what all the talk is about. Detailed cities and tracks, well modeled vehicles, and some great in-game physics when it comes to fast cars slamming into objects and demolishing.
Graphics
