Xbox 360

Few games can boast as big a brand as Final Fantasy. With countless releases and re-release across a wealth of formats, Square-Enix's RPG series is one the biggest, and is regarded by a legion of fans as the best. Final Fantasy XIII represents the series' first outing in HD, as well as its first appearance on a Microsoft console. It's clear that rather than simply improve on its predecessor, Square-Enix opted to give the game a major overhaul. Unfortunately, in spite of all the improvements, Final Fantasy XIII feels like it takes one step backwards for every two steps forward.

Perfect Dark is a classic N64 game that a lot of people will debate was even better than retro fan-fave Golden Eye. While both played similarly and offered some highly addictive multiplayer action, a lot of people believe Perfect Dark to be the gold standard based on one key factor: variety. It’s absolutely true that Rare was light-years ahead of the rest of the developers out there when this game originally launched. There are insane amounts of customization, game modes, weapons, and challenges. But how does it stack up 10 years later?

Tower defence games are a pretty niche genre and Army Men... a non-existent one. Both of which I’m big fans of, though on Army Men I liked the idea better than the games. Toy Soldiers takes place on a basement Ping-Pong turned model war table. You’ll experience World War I in a way you never have before: in a game. It’s good to see another historical war used as the backdrop other than WWII.

With a game like Aliens vs. Predator it’s hard not to have an incredible amount of hype going given the nature and history of the series. When you release a game based around two huge franchises that happens to be a follow-up to a beloved PC game the anticipation amongst gamers old and new will be quite large. It’s almost to the point where the game may have the odds stacked against it since everyone already has their own vision of what the epic battle of Aliens vs. Predator should be like. So with that being said I expect some folks to be a bit let down by the Xenomorph vs. Predator vs.

From the moment it debut at the Spike Video Game Awards two years ago there has always been some form of controversy surrounding EA’s adaptation of the classic poem Dante’s inferno.  The first sticking point about the game many had was that it’s based on an amazing piece of literature that was seemingly being diluted into a standard hack and slash action game. Turning a poem of Dante’s Inferno caliber into a game seemed like one of those sacred things that simply shouldn’t be done.

The original Bioshock was a masterpiece of gaming work; it was one of those titles that helped to blur the lines between video games and art. It was a prime example of how something could be fun to play, and yet provide an engrossing story. When a game like that comes along and does well for itself, it enables itself the opportunity of a sequel. Unfortunately with that opportunity comes a high bench-mark to meet or, even more rarely, exceed.

When a new IP launches this generation there may not be a lot of hype for it but there’s always a certain amount of buzz and hope. In this day and age having an original game come out that not only looks interesting but is something that can be considered unique is almost an endangered species of sorts.

Creating a game which draws its influences from some of modern gaming’s biggest series is a bold move on the part of developer Vigil Games, but it’s certainly one that has paid off. By enlisting the help of artist Joe “Mad” Madureira the slick visual style on display in Darksiders alone is enough to make the game stand out. Add to that a combat system that’s as deep as it is rewarding along with a handful of massive boss battles and you have a game that goes well beyond the title of clone.

Two years ago we witnessed a special friendship between two men. Not only were they friends on and off the battlefield but they were also dudebros.  When you have a friend that you can fist bump, high-five and chest bump with after you kill 50 generic terrorists then that indeed is a special bond.  These two bro-tacular soldiers are Elliot Salem and Tyson Rios, the stars of EA’s Army of Two.  When Army of Two premiered two years ago it was somewhat unique as before there hadn’t been an action game to aggressively focus on co-op play, both with an A.I.

Over the past decade there has never been a short supply of games set during WWII.  In fact there have probably been too many most of which bordered on mediocrity or were just retreads of what we’ve seen already.   Even a shift in military campaigns still left gamers craving for something else as playing as a soldier in an fps game is something that really wasn’t taken to the next level in terms of how immersive it is and originality.  Now after almost 10 years of essentially playing the same type of WWII game we finally have something that we haven’t seen or experienced

When you have a game in which the hero sprouts out sayings like “God damn c**k breath commie motherf*****,” or “I own your f****** soul you commie bitch” you know you’re either in for an awesome game, a goofy game, or a big piece of crap that looks like it was designed by people who failed at game design school.  In the case of Rogue Warrior from Rebellion Software and Bethesda it’s the last option as Rogue Warrior is the epitome of what makes a game bad.

For some reason or another there are things that are just meant not to be in the world. Things like world peace, the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series and video game fanboys not arguing with each other are just a few things that probably will never happen, and if they do then I think we should all be scared.  Something else that is a long shot from ever happening is gamers getting a good game based on a film.  For a long time the movie game genre has been a complete joke as the games are simply shells of what they could be and are obvious cash-ins.

This review of AC2 was made by a multi-matter state team of various faiths, beliefs and are neither Mac¹ nor PC (..politically correct).

1998 saw the release of Baldur's Gate, an RPG which is still heralded by many as one of best. Several years on, a few expansions later, and BioWare have finally released what they refer to as the "spiritual successor" to Baldur's Gate; Dragon Age Origins. The game takes the traditional style of Western RPG, which is based heavily around the Dungeons and Dragons rules, and brings the whole niche to a "next-gen" level. And whilst there are a couple problems, the experience offered in Dragon Age Origins is unlike anything you'll have played this year.