Latest Games Review

Avast, ye dogs

2008-03-03T01:47:00.000-08:00

Telstra wants to encourage online piracy, giving away 100,000 free copies of Pirates of the Burning Sea to Australian gamers.

By registering at pirates.gamearena.com.au, PC owners can download the game or secure a DVD version, which includes a seven-day trial subscription. Ongoing play costs from $15.95 a month.

Set in the Caribbean in 1720, Pirates of the Burning Sea is a massive multiplayer online (MMO) role-playing game like the phenomenally successful World of Warcraft, which now has 10 million subscribers. But instead of slaying dragons, players can captain their own ships, have sword fights and work together with thousands of other players around the globe.

The game has been in development at Flying Lab Software since 2002. Chief executive Russell Williams says the company wanted to produce something unique.

"When we started the project we saw a whole lot of fantasy and a little bit of science fiction but we really didn't see anything off the beaten track," he says. "So we thought that as long as we're doing something different, what is the right environment for an MMO?"

Flying Lab decided there was no richer environment than the Caribbean. "There's nothing that you want to do in a game that's not in a pirate period game," he says. "Cool real-world naval tactics, real-world economics, a fantastic player-driven economic system, all the great legends and tales of the pirates. And there's also the supernatural because they were a superstitious lot."

Players can choose to be a pirate and plunder riches or join the Spanish, French or British nations choosing roles such as naval officers, privateers or free traders.

The game features 1000 missions and your choices affect the story as you progress.

"It is endlessly fun to watch those cannons fire off and smash into other ships," Mr Williams says. "It's fun to sail around and it's very skill-based. It's not just click, click, click, waiting for the other player to die."

Every three days a giant fleet battle for control of valuable ports ensures that the map changes and teamwork is rewarded.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

The Club, include simple sprints to the finish

2008-03-03T01:44:00.000-08:00

The creators of Project Gotham Racing have crafted a very different kind of racer. It's a shooter with the heart of a racing game - the object is to kill as quickly and efficiently as possible.

As players run-and-gun through the nondescript courses, points are awarded for skilful slaying. But the key to high scores is bagging a steady flow of victims, which multiplies your points bounty considerably.

Like racing games, it's difficult to beat your competitors without learning the courses. Although they look dull, have drab locations such as steel mills, warehouses and prisons, the levels are masterfully designed. The only frustration is that it is not always obvious where to go next.

There's a terrific tension between trying to complete the courses as fast as possible while taking time to snipe all enemies for maximum points. Self-preservation is a secondary concern to all-out attack but the use of health-boosting pick-up items becomes increasingly tactical as the difficulty rises.

Events include simple sprints to the finish and siege stages where you can't leave a small area and must survive waves of enemies. The most complex mode is time attack, which demands players complete laps of a short circuit against the clock, with kills and collected icons adding precious seconds.

The strangely likeable characters add some variety, each demanding a slightly different playing style.

There are only eight tournaments to play, each with a half-dozen events, plus some fun split-screen and online multiplayer options.

The lasting appeal depends a great deal on your interest (or obsession) in playing the same short stages repeatedly to beat your best scores or see your name in lights on the online leaderboards.

Cooking Mama 2, added a multi-player mode for culinary competition

2008-02-29T19:19:00.000-08:00

This second helping of last year's well-made morsel again lets users prepare and cook all manner of gastronomical delights, from boiled eggs to lobster. But the reheated recipe isn't as fresh, even if it is easier to share with hungry friends.

The game makes clever use of the touch screen, enabling anyone to have fun. Virtual chefs perform actions such as cracking eggs, chopping vegetables, scaling fish and kneading dough as they prepare more than 80 new dishes including pizza, dumplings, cookies, waffles, meatloaf, soups, pies, tempura, pasta and sushi.

Mama is a forgiving and helpful tutor, but expert chefs face a tougher challenge in the new "Let's Cook" mode, which does away with Mama's hand-holding and demands perfection. If you make a mistake such as burning, dropping or spilling the food, the meal will be ruined and your friends displeased.

Completing the various dishes, unlocking new recipes and winning medals and other novelties is surprisingly satisfying, even if you don't get to nibble on your culinary creations. This reviewer particularly enjoyed the chance to apply creative finishing touches to some dishes, such as arranging the food on a plate or assembling a gourmet pizza.

When playing the original, we longed for an Iron Chef-style cook-off against a friend. Cooking Mama 2 has added a multi-player mode for culinary competition, but it is disappointingly limited to just 16 simple tasks such as breaking eggs, cutting corn and slicing pasta.

Those who have already sampled Mama's cooking are unlikely to be ravenous for more of the same, but newcomers will enjoy themselves. Just remember this is unlikely to fully satisfy your gaming appetite: it's fast food rather than a nourishing three-course meal. Because of its simplicity and repetition, it is also best enjoyed in bite-sized portions and would have been more palatable at a reduced price.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

Geometry Wars Galaxies, Levels provide reasonable variety

2008-02-29T19:13:00.000-08:00

Like video game fairy floss, Geometry Wars is deliciously retro-flavoured and addictive but best enjoyed in small doses. It's also a bit hard to stomach at this price, especially when Galaxies predecessors were free bonuses or cheap downloads.

There are plenty of additions to help justify the price and add considerable depth to the "Asteroids on acid" premise but ultimately it's difficult to imagine many could justify spending $70 on a repetitive, two-dimensional blast-'em-up, no matter how much fun it is. The price is also at odds with the game's supposed casual player appeal.

The best new inclusion is that enemies now drop "Geoms" after they are blasted, which serve as crucial multipliers for scores as well as currency to unlock solar systems and planets. The treats quickly disappear, so you are forced to keep moving and venture into dangerous new terrain among the chaos.

The game's structure works well, with players presented with the choice of unlocking new levels as rapidly as possible or seeking to master stages to earn medals. Replay also helps boost the abilities of your drone helpers. The drones initially provide feeble assistance but as they level-up, they transform into (perhaps overly efficient) assassins.

Levels provide reasonable variety, with different enemies, attack patterns and barriers as well as differently shaped grids which force you to vary your furious wave-clearing strategies. Unfortunately, it's annoyingly common for enemies to appear right on your tail.

Previous Geometry Wars games used twin analog stick controls for movement and blasting, providing the perfect interplay between survival and attack. Galaxies players can use the same method using a Classic controller but most will have to use a Nunchuk for movement and the Wii Remote pointer to direct their ship's fire. With practice, the new controls become accurate and responsive but will have detractors.

ENDGAME Overpriced compared to its predecessors but as addictive as ever and the new structure successfully adds depth.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald View product details at Amazon

Burnout Paradise, it's up to you to choose the optimum route

2008-02-23T23:56:00.000-08:00

One of the most significant emerging trends in modern racing games is providing players with huge, open cities to freely explore rather than rigid circuits. Paradise goes even further to add to the sense of immersion in a realistic city, and the result is a remarkable new driving game that feels like the beginning of an exciting era.

Events are not selected using clumsy menus, instead you simply pull up at any set of traffic lights. You can just as easily and seamlessly invite online friends into your city to race (or joyously fool around with).

Impressively, there's still Burnout's trademark blistering speed, and crashes are even more spectacular when you (almost inevitably) make an error. You can even trigger a hilarious "Showtime" crash at any time, orchestrating enormous pile-ups.

Races simply offer start and finish lines: it's up to you to choose the optimum route. Sneaking a quick glance at your on-screen map or compass without crashing is an art.

Other events include the fantastic Marked Man, in which every other competitor is out to stop you, and Road Rage, where you must be the aggressor. Stunt Run will also be popular, with players performing high-speed shenanigans such as jumps, barrel rolls and power slides for high scores within a time limit.

Some might be frustrated by not being able to instantly restart an event if you fail, but rather than drive many miles to try again you inevitably find other nearby distractions. There is a high number of events and fun (solo or multiplayer) achievements to complete, time trial records for every road, and also the simple pleasures of performing jumps, smashing billboards and finding short cuts. Forcing rival racers off the road unlocks their cars at the local junkyard, with rides each uniquely suited to speed, aggression or stunt events.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald View product details at Amazon

World Series of Poker 2008, The game has pleasing TV-style presentation

2008-02-22T17:43:00.000-08:00

Learning the intricacies of poker by playing at Crown or an online casino could be a very expensive exercise indeed. So while many low-cost poker games are available for PC and consoles, World Series could still be considered good value.

Playing online versus (up to eight) other real players is the best way to sharpen your skills and you can appear on screen using a digital camera and practice your best poker face.

The epic career mode is also a huge time-waster, letting you go head-to-head against many of the world's best professional players, including Australia's Joe Hachem.

There's now more incentive to progress through the many tournaments using your customised character in the career mode, with players earning points as well as virtual cash in an effort to be crowned best player of the year. Going "all in" on a big hand and making the final table is an adrenalin rush. If you falter, you still have the chance to boost your bankroll at new cash-only events at famous casinos, with invitations arriving by mobile phone.

The game has pleasing TV-style presentation (which can usually be skipped to hurry the slow pace) and all the necessary information is always on display, such as your hand, the blinds and the status of competitors. Beginners are given plenty of instruction through tutorials and useful tools include those showing the odds of certain hands, cards that will help, and your current hand rank. Computer-controlled opponents are now smarter and more convincing - often aggressive but rarely foolish and occasionally springing deft traps. It's a shame they don't have more distinct personalities and behaviour, though.

In addition to the astonishingly popular Texas Hold 'Em, players can try poker variants such as Omaha, razz and seven card stud, as well as blackjack.

Review by Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

Devil May Cry 4, Experiment with Different Combat Styles

2008-02-22T17:38:00.001-08:00

Adored by fans for its flamboyant combat which blends guns and swordplay, hopes were high that this next-generation debut for the Devil May Cry series would be spectacular. The game certainly does not disappoint in the eye-candy department and is great fun but it is a shame Capcom were not more ambitious.

Despite DMC's hardcore reputation, the game is accessible, with beginners able to choose an easy setting and learn some of Nero's outrageous moves in a tutorial. But experts proficient in demon slaying certainly haven't been neglected and are able to learn devastating combination moves in a deep and rewarding fighting system.

Mouthy and rebellious, Nero is equipped with a huge sword he can rev like a motorbike to unleash more powerful blows. He also wields a long-range pistol and a "Devil Bringer" spectral arm that can grab and hurl enemies and propel him to new heights.

Players also get the chance to control acrobatic sword-slinger Dante, star of the previous DMC games, which offers variety and the chance to experiment with different combat styles.

Taunting foes before unleashing a string of stylish manoeuvres is entertaining, even if the action can become repetitive. Epic boss battles are the highlight, including a hideous toad, a devastating serpent and an enormous flaming demon that smashes buildings with a single blow.

While longer than most games of its ilk, the playtime is artificially padded. It is not always obvious what to do next, which can result in aimless wandering and having to fight reappearing enemies again and again. There is also plenty of backtracking and recycling of the same stunning locations and the (otherwise imaginative) enemies.

Secret missions and end-of-level ratings encourage replay, and fans will enjoy being able to compare their achievements with friends or the world's best players via online ranking tables.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

Donkey Kong Jet Race, Strapped to a couple of rocket barrels

2008-02-22T17:32:00.000-08:00

Poor old Donkey Kong - once again he's had people making a monkey of him. Strapped to a couple of rocket barrels and jettisoned towards a finish line, he's got little to do in Jet Race other than gobble bananas and drift out of the way of precariously placed obstacles. As far as racing games go, this is nothing to go ape over.

Jet Race has a string of simian stars from a bunch of other Donkey Kong offshoot games. The cheeky monkeys Diddy, Candy, Kranky, Funky and Dixie don't exactly make for a stellar line-up but they do exhibit a certain goofy charm that younger gamers will enjoy.

Much like the brilliant Mario Kart, scooping up bananas gives you a momentary burst of speed, while popping balloons rewards your character with power boosts that help you in the race. Whirlwinds can sap your opponents' bananas, a Backward Barrel can be dropped behind you to knock someone out, a Tasty Melon can make you invincible and the Pineapple Launcher attacks the character in front of you with a spiky fruit to the back of the head.

To provide some kind of obligatory Wii motion control activity, players must vigorously shake both the remote and Nunchuk controllers up and down - as if slapping an invisible bongo drum - to accelerate. Once you hit top speed, it's a case of waggling your left or right hand to indicate the direction in which you want your character to turn.

This clumsy control method is imprecise and too slow for responding to sudden make-or-break manoeuvres. As the races get faster and the circuits begin to overflow with objects that can bring your character to a devastating halt, shaking your hands to weave through danger becomes needlessly frustrating.

ENDGAME The control method is a mess, so wait for a more conventional racing game to come along if you want to take your Wii for a wild ride.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

Sight Training, Great Fun to Test Your Noggin

2008-02-22T17:22:00.000-08:00

Nintendo was synonymous with frivolous fun but it is repositioning itself as a leader in lifestyle gadgetry. The Brain Training titles, exercise trainer Wii Fit and this Sight Training are more lifestyle accessories than games.

While it doesn't promise you'll get smarter, fitter or have sharper eyesight, there's a clear implication that spending time in daily training has benefits.

Sight Training wants to improve your focusing so you can distinguish moving objects, acquire more information, move your eyes quicker and react faster. It is pseudoscience given credibility by the endorsement of sports trainer Hisao Ishigaki - but who cares if it's fun?

But unlike the Brain Training games, great fun to test your noggin and pass between family and friends in pursuit of higher scores, most of Sight Training's activities are banal. Examples include tapping on boxes as quickly as possible, recalling a sequence of numbers flashed quickly on the screen, identifying matching shapes and tracking a moving box in a virtual version of Three-card Monte.

The more enjoyable activities are based on real-world sports. You'll hit incoming baseballs, pass or shoot a soccer ball, dodge American Football tacklers, enjoy table tennis rallies and smash volleyballs.

Like Brain Training, the idea is to play for a short time each day and your progress is tracked via graphs. But it's hard to summon the enthusiasm to return when the tasks are so dull, short and repetitive. It's also difficult to shake the feeling that it's your memory and reaction times being tested, not your visual abilities.

Sometimes you are told to take a break and roll your eyes. I didn't need to be told.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon

Turok, Multiplayer options are solid

2008-02-22T17:10:00.000-08:00

Shooter fans have been spoilt in recent times thanks to the likes of BioShock, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4 and the Orange Box. Anything new has to be very special to command attention but Turok is too old fashioned and flawed to seriously compete.

While bearing little relation to the comic or the previous games, Turok's strength is still the "dinosaur hunter" premise and strong lead character. Turok, a native American, is adept with a knife and bow for brutal stealth kills and can also handle more explosive (and less subtle) weaponry such as machine guns, grenades and flame throwers.

Battling dinosaurs such as raptors and the mighty T-Rex is good tense fun, even if their fierce blows can be disorientating, often leading to a quick death. You will also take on dimwitted enemy troops and smart players can orchestrate dinosaur attacks on the hapless soldiers while you calmly watch in safety.

It's hard to ever feel too comfortable, though, because even as you are slowly creeping through the jungle hunting your prey, dinosaurs can mysteriously appear behind you, coming from areas you thought you had cleared.

The game's difficulty is uneven, with some very challenging sequences even on the normal mode. Frustratingly, Turok has checkpoints rather than letting you save your progress at any time, which can result in having to replay the same ridiculously tough sections over and over.

Not fun.

It's also annoying how insufficient information is presented on how to complete the next vague objective, which can result in aimless wandering or unnecessary deaths. Boss battles can be particularly tough, such as combating a giant eel. (Tip: try using your flamethrower on nearby vents.)

Multiplayer options are solid, including three co-op maps to enjoy with friends but Turok is unlikely to drag many gamers away from the likes of Halo, Call of Duty and Team Fortress.

Review by The Sydney Morning Herald | View product details at Amazon