new fifa just a improved copy of pro 2008

fifa is forever playing catch up with pro evolutuion and with both of the games implementing a 'legend mode' it seems that there is getting to be less and less originallity between the two. my younger brother has the new fifa and i'm waiting for the new pro so i've played it.

i see the five star reviews pointing its new features out things such as having to point the analogue it the direction u want the pass to go and bad reviews of it talking about being able to be pushed of the ball to easily and not being able to make long solo runs because of it. that's what makes it more realistic e.g a lightweight robinho bein knocked off the ball by a very physical vidic if he came to close, and these kinds of new features have already been implemented by pro 2008.

i expect wen pro comes out it will be another step up in realism from a copycat fifa once again

far far from KOTOR...

i've been a Star Wars fan ever since I can remember. having watched the first movie well over 100 times i guess that makes you a fan.

But on the games side, it's a love / hate relationship. Sometimes Lucasarts comes out with some amazing games like Knights of the Old Republic (1&2) and sometimes things that aren't so good. Force Unleashed (FU) is somewhere between both.

The good:

- Very polished graphics
- superb representation of the worlds
- Great use of force powers
- Pretty good physics engine with regards to how the game plays

The ugly:

- Extremely linear storyline (ie zero thinking. follow the arrow, kill the lvl boss, move on)
- Originality of story is mixed at best
- Levels and combat become repetitive once you've unlocked all /most of the force powers (after about the 6th mission or so).
- character level progression becomes pretty meaningless since aside from the force powers and attributes there isn't much of a real role playing game to the game anyway

Overall I've been pretty dissapointed by this game. It's one of the titles I've been waiting for after having played both KOTORS twice all the way through. But FU comes up short. Once you've unlocked most of the powers the combat becomes fairly repetitive. The boss battles aren't much fun either. You essentially have to find the pattern to beat each boss and once you find that their isn't much thinking involved. There are no side quests like in KOTOR or characters that you meet that you feel can really alter / affect the story. As I said, the story is linear. Nothing you do alters the final or can change the outcome. Basically it's like playing Sonic the Hedgehog in a Star Wars universe with some minor elements of an RPG game.

In conclusion, it depends what you like. If using the Force, immersing yourself in the Star Wars universe and playing a"platform" (aka Sonic, Devil May Cry or other level / boss) based game is for you then you'll like this game. If you're looking for an in-depth, story driven RPG like Kotor, Mass Effect or Elder Scrolls save you're money...

P.

Surprisingly good

The general consensus of EA by the paying public over the past years has been that they care not about their customers and just churn out sports sims year after year because they know they will sell. The customer normally buys them on a yearly basis in the vain hope that they have become fun again, because certain titles have fully licensed kits or because EA have simply bought out the competition.

It is because of this that in the last four years or so I have avoided any EA sports title as I don't like shelling out £40 each time for a miracle.

But until recently I worked at the head office of Europe's biggest games retailer and that aforementioned consensus was starting to change. After having regular chats with the online content team it was becoming quite clear that EA have started to make games fun again.

On a recommendation I took a chance on Tiger Woods 09 and I have to say that I am actually enjoying playing it. The last version of Tiger Woods I played replicated my real world frustration at playing 18 holes on a bad day. It seemed that the game became a complete chore and I cheated my way to the top with various codes and trainer memory hacks. I really could not be bothered to sit in front of my T.V/monitor screen and get f'ing annoyed at a game that made me want to throw my real clubs around. I guess this could be down to bad gaming on my part but I simply didn't enjoy them.

Tiger Woods 09 on the other hand is actually fun, the biggest thing that bugged me about previous attempts was the fact you could hear a crowd ... but not see them? This element alone made you feel totally alone on the courses, replicating real world golf I suppose but I normally try to drag a friend around for a gruelling 18 holes. Besides, you are supposed to be playing on the PGA Tour. Well Tiger Woods 09 adds some cardboard cut outs on the course which adds a little something to the events you play and makes it feel like you are part of a tournament increasing the playability in my opinion.

With most games I buy customisation is a big element that I enjoy, I have been known to spend more time in edit mode on games than actually playing them and Tiger Woods is no different. I spent a large part of my time playing with both Game Face and normal edit mode. My attempt at importing Kate Beckinsale into the game didn't work too well but my own face went in a treat and was very easy to do. The website method was the easiest for me as I couldn't get a decent shot from the Xbox Vision camera I own. The process was very easy and fun to do although Mac users beware that the upload feature on the site does not like OS X, I had to run my Winbloze XP partition to upload images. The lack of eye and hair colours is a bit disappointing and the prices of some of the accessories are silly, especially considering that the stuff you can waste $'s on gives you no stats boost at all. Buying a cap purely for aesthetics just isn't worth it when they cost so much. Don't get me wrong, I don't want instant gratification but I want some sort of reward from buying a golf glove for ten grand otherwise I will continue to play in the default EA Sports stuff until I am an in-game millionaire.

The graphics are very nice. The water effects are stunning and all adds to the overall polish of the game. The courses feel organic with the ball physics working very well. Thank god they toned down that spin system as you could get some stupid cheat shots off ridiculous ball bounces. It all feels that little more realistic in that sense.

Having only just started a career mode I have found it to be very enjoyable so far winning my first tournament makes me want to play the game more (why am I typing this?) and something I love in this version is the"Three click" system. With majority of golf games all jumping on the bandwagon with the analogue method of playing, it is nice to have this feature in the game which you can switch to anytime you like. It helps so much when putting or playing your short game and opens up a new level of accuracy, how many times have you blasted a ball over the green by using the analogue stick to play your shots in previous versions?

Well to sum up Tiger Woods 09 is well worth playing and I hope that EA continue with this method of improving their sports titles. God knows they needed to!

Cheap Hardware VS Great Games

I've purchased the 60GB XBOX 360 today, mainly because of the exclusive games like DOA4 and HALO3 that aren't available for my PS3.

Since long ago I've been waiting to finally purchase this console and now that the RROD issue is fixed I've thought this was the right time. Actually not everything is OK, since the new controller was a major let down! This controller is a piece of cheap plastic and the d-pad is totally unreliable. The original XBOX controller S was way better than this one. There is also the huge noise that comes out of the box when a disc is inserted, and believe me when I say that it can cause a headache.

The quality of the product is very bad! Overall, regarding hardware quality, I think that the PS3 and the SIX-AXIS controller are in a much higher league. I am one more disappointed gamer regarding Microsoft's poor product quality.

Buy this console only if you drool over the exclusive games and if that is not an issue just buy the PS3.

the most overrated game of all time

I'd rather watch my toaster warm up than the war in halo 3!

This game is okay, there is no doubt about it, i own both a ps3 and an xbox so i'm not being biased by saying this game is nothing more than mediocre, average. There is nothing special about it. Games like metal gear solid 4, call of duty 4, bioshock, mass effect, gosh even resident evil 4 (which for me is the best videogame of all time)are miles better. I really have been scratching my head over why anyone would give this game a 5 - okay to be fair, the main character master chief is pretty cool, the music in the background kicks in at the perfect time, every time(especially the intro theme when the game is loading), the enemy AI is very good (i laughed when one of the small creatures after a gun fight said 'you killed my friend!' and then ran off screaming when he realised it was just me versus him), in other words the package is very pretty but there's little inside, and what is inside is not quality.

The weapons in halo 3 i have the biggest problem with. Admittedly they have a cool line-up (especially the sword and hammer weapon-thingy) but the game never realy encourages you to hold on to a weapon and enjoy the power of it, you are constantly lookin for ammo - it kinda reminds me of the scene in the first matrix movie with neo and trinity entering the huge building with loads of guns - when they empty the clip of a gun and then throw it away - this is extremely cool in the matrix, in the movies, but in video games, i don't think so!

PES IS BACK BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After the dissapointing 2008 poor by pes standard but still an ok game. The demo on Xbox live is amazing it is so smooth passing is better and the players make better runs off the ball. The legend mode looks amazing I can't wait to this in the full game only 2weeks to go.


And FIFA 09 is rubbish!!!!!!!!!!!!

Erm, Rock On I Suppose.

What can you say about this game? Initially i bought this for parties i occationally throw, however i now rank it alongside COD4 as my most played game!

When i first started out i was pretty poor. Well, very poor. I started out on the easy setting and after owning it for about 4 months now i'm 'shredding' on expert! The feeling of nailing a tough solo is satisfying to say the least and as you find yourself getting better at the game you find it more enjoyable. Needless to say that whenever i throw a party everybody is asking where the Xbox is for Guitar Hero 3.

Some complain about the tracklist, I dont. I find the songs worthy and enjoyable with a couple of challenges in the mix, for instance a certain song by Dragonforce has me hooked on expert! I really cannot do the game justice by simply reviewing it. All i would say is that i have convinced a few of my friends to buy the game who initially didnt want it and they all love it!

I would say it is incredibly unlikely you wont like the game if you are a fan of music and rock. At under 50 quid now there is no excuse, buy it and immerse yourself!

The best service out there

Definitely worth the £35

Its the best online service of any of the current consoles by a country mile. If you have an xbox 360, this is a must buy.

Like Lego?

Put simply if you liked either lego star wars or lego indiana jones, or in my case both then you will like lego batman, not much has changed, the hero suits are a nice addition and in my opinion the vehicle levels seem a bit more well planned, there isn't really a story but a mini-boss at the end of each level is good fun. The graphics are standard for the series and there is loads to unlock and great with a friend. So if lego games are your thing then you can't go wrong with this installment

Wait until it's in the bargain basket!

Don't waste your money. Wait until it's in the bargain basket.

I agree with the BJ Hunt, Stefan and many others. Allied AI is shockingly poor. Enemy AI consists of bobbing up and down like one of those fairground games where you hit heads with a mallet. Game play is glitchy, for example; call your squad in when your in a corner and your stuck there until you order them away. Graphics not as good as I expected and jumpy at times.

The real kick in the B***s was theo online game; it's terrible. Get killed at the start and you spend the next 5-10 minutes spectating, and there's only one game type a hybrid capture the flag. Utter total cr*p.

I was really looking forward to this game and put up with the delay after delay on its release date. What a dissapointment. I'll hire or borrow any future releases to save me wasting my money.

Some clarification of the Arcade's features

The Arcade is great value at £120. You get HD gaming, access to arguably the best online gaming system, a media extender, DVD player and more.

For those that are still a little confused about the different 360 models, here's some clarification: -

All new 360s are the same internally, so the graphics you get in games with this model are of exactly the same standard you'd get if you owned an Elite.

All 360s have a HDMI port, but only the Elite actually comes with the cable. There is no benefit in buying an expensive HDMI cable, because the signal is digital. I think I paid £4 for mine and it works perfectly.

The hard drive is only required to play 2 games offline - Football Manager 2006 and Final Fantasy XI. All other disc based games will play without a hard drive. Burnout Paradise requires a hard drive for online play. There may be others, but that's the only one I'm aware of.

If you buy a hard drive at a later date, it simply clips to the side of the console. It doesn't need to be fitted internally.

The official Microsoft wireless adapter is not the only option for wireless. There are third party options too, such as the adapter made by Belkin. If you have a laptop with wireless you can use that to connect, although it means having the laptop on while gaming. You can also use homeplugs. Obviously if it's convenient to use the supplied cable to connect the 360 to your router, that's the best option.

Hopefully someone out there will find this info useful. The 360 has some superb games available for it and at £120 delivered it really is a bargain.

Takes itself far too seriously, with mediocre graphics

I loved all the previous GTA games, going right back to the very first one on PC! I couldn't wait to get my hands on this one...

When I eventually started playing, I was in awe at the sheer size of this game. There are lots of things you can do - go on dates (queue mini-games), use a mobile phone, wander into various shops, meet friends and of course, steal cars. However, I found myself slowing losing interest as the game progressed and before I completed 20% of the game, I decided that it just wasn't fun.

Sure, you can do all sorts of new things not possible in the previous games, but that over-the-top drive to rule the city (or state as the case may be!), stealing & killing your way to the top has been replaced with a morality that has changed the flavour of the game and made it... dreary.

Needless to say, I sold this on and am now looking forward to playing some new games (Fable 2, Fallout 3, Far Cry 2) for their escapism and thrills, not for their bleak and depressing take on the life of a criminal trying to make an honest dollar, but failing at every turn.

I'm sure this game will appeal to loads of realism-junkies and teenagers who will love stealing cars and beating to people to death with a baseball bat. It's just not my cup of tea.

Perhaps Saints Row 2 would tempt me, if this had not left such a sour taste in my mouth.

Completely over-rated

You wanna know why society is the way it is? Games like Call of Duty are partly to answer. I had previously only heard that this was meant to be Game Of The Year, along with various other accolades, but it would appear the game is far from deserving such praise. On single-player, it is a cheesy 'epic' encounter in which the U.S, UK, Russia, and various other parties are yet again involved on a humanitarian mission to avert the world war-fare.

Perhaps the most shocking aspect is the horrid behaviour and language from other gamers that you can play against across the world. Gaming is supposed to be fun - but Call of Duty and other such titles are almost a"cull" for young individuals to live a life that is, obviously, more intense and important than their own. It took me just half an hour before I disconnected; I don't see why you should have to put up with being called a"limey bas**rd" and other pathetic things by Americans, who very scarily treat the game like it's life or death.
Indeed, it is not required that you must use a head-set, but surely the whole point of having that option is to be 'tactically' social and have a good time?
On a technical basis, the graphics are un-undoubtedly excellent as you'd expect off the 360, though I wasn't too fussed on the stiff camera angle.

These are only my views - I understand various individuals will feel the need to rate this a thumbs down because the worship such games, but heck, least some of us have a 'life'.

Excellent Investment

True - £50-60 is a good deal of money to splash out on one little bit of kit. But boy, is it worth it! I can connect to Xbox LIVE wired or wirelessly, and the ONLY sure-fire way to connect without any wires is this little beauty.

The investment is definetly worth it. If you want/need wireless connection to LIVE, this is the way forward.

one of the best games of all time!

dont read anyones comment who doesnt give this game a 5 star rating. the graphics in this game is the best iv seen in a FPS. the variation of the maps and missions keeps u hooked. and the online play beats any game hands down, it is sooooo addictive.

bring on COD 5- world at war!!!!!!!!!

xxx