Reviews for my games.

[legndorock]

Table of Contents
Flower
WipEout HD
Killzone 2
Godfather II
Fat Princess
Grand Theft Auto IV
Call of Duty: World at War
Battlefield 1943
Beatles Rock Band
Fallout 3
UFC Undisputed 2009
Assassin's Creed 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
PixelJunk Shooter
Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy XIII cont.
Skate 3

Flower

This Playstation Network exclusive is a calming and relaxing game, but is it worth your money?

Single Player: At first you may not think this game has much story behind it but in fact it does. Your main mission in this game is to free the city and surrounding areas from things that are destroying the land. For instance taking trash down off of places and cleaning up the area. You will journey as a flower pedal cleaning up the area and attempting to get to the end of the level.

There is meaning behind the levels and if you pay attention you can catch it. It's not just go collect flowers, no there is more to it. You will go through 6 very unique levels and you will not get bored with any of the.

The story is never dull but is very short. There are 6 levels. Each being pretty lengthy with a lot of stuff in them but there's only 6 levels. You can probably go through all the levels within 5-10 hours depending on how much you are just flying around taking in the amazing graphics.

Score: 8/10

Online play: N/A

Gameplay: The gameplay is very unique and works great. In this game you fly around collecting every flower pedal you can, trying to get to the end of the level and looking for secret flowers to find.

Collecting a flower is as simple as flying over it and you will soon see a huge line of flowers following you as you fly through the levels.

Each mission has a different way to reach your objective. In one level you will need to use windmills to help you through the level while in another level you will need to dodge the falling electrical poles to avoid losing flowers. The game does a good job of changing levels up and it will certainly help keep you interested to the end.

The controls are some of the best I have ever used. It uses mostly Sixaxis motion controls and they work like a charm. They respond very quickly and move perfectly to your controller. It will certainly be a unique experience.

9/10

Graphics: The graphics are amazing. Everything is very colorful which really helps add to the games overall appeal. The graphics look very realistic and this game has some of the best looking nature elements in a video game that I've ever seen.

Everything from the grass that sways perfectly in the wind or as you pass it to the water that shows the reflection and ripples as you fly over it. The levels are nice and big and are filled with amazing looking things whether it's trees, windmills, flowers, grass and basically anything you will see outside in a field you'll see.

This game could have some screenshots that are good enough to go on postcards and you would hardly be able to tell the difference between the game and a photograph.

Score:9/10

Sound: The sound is amazing. The gentle and relaxing soundtrack goes perfect with the game. Everything just works well from the bell sounds when you collect a flower to the sound of the wind that propels your flowers.

The different flowers have different bell sounds. When you go on a long run of flowers the music you make sounds awesome. The bells have a gentle sound and really work well.

The sound effects for the wind and water are awesome. This is one of those games that you could leave on and just listen to the great music.

Score: 10/10

Value: Though this game is very short and can be beaten in under 5 hours easily there is secrets to find and the trophies will keep you coming back to this game for a little while.

It's worth picking up for the relaxing vibe to the game and a refreshing new gameplay style.

Score: 7.5/10

Trophies: The trophies are easy. Just things like beat certain levels, bloom a certain amount of flowers, find certain flowers and different trophies that have to do with time.

One that is annoying is Welcome Back. You need to wait a week before you play the game again. So basically you'll be one trophy away from the 100% and you will need to wait a week to get it. Very easy trophies though and they really make you find the great hidden secrets this game has.

Score: 9/10

Overall Score: My overall score will be an 8/10. The game is great there is no denying it, but it is short. With little replayability you may play this game every once in a while after you have the 100% but not often. There is just not enough keeping you coming back with this game.

Recap:

Positives:
Easy trophies
Great visuals
Awesome sound

Negatives:
Very short
Little replayability

[legndorock]

WipEout HD

The classic futuristic racer series was a big hit on the Playstation 1 and has been remade as a downloadable Playstation Network Title. Here is my review of the game.

Single Player: The single player experience is great giving you a lot to do. With the campaign mode having 8 different sections each being different, you can log a lot of hours into the single player mode. The campaign has race cells that when beaten unlock other race cells next to it. It is a good system and works really well. There are 3 difficulty levels to choose from and as you progress through the campaign the speed of the races increases. You will start off on the Venom speed and have races with 3 laps and by the end you will be on Phantom speed and have 5 lap races. With the Fury add on basically doubling the single player campaign you will certainly have a fun time with it.

Score: 9/10

Online play: The online play is good for a racing game. It has an active online community so you never need to worry about finding a game and no matter where you are the online isn't laggy. You can do any type of race online which is nice and the invite feature works like a charm. There is a ranking system in place so that when you win races and tournaments you gain ranks which can be seen on the online leaderboard. You can fully customize a tournament for you and your friends, make your own races for the public to join or just join a public event that someone has made. The leaderboards are a bit slow though to sync your information such as lap times and scores for events like Zone. It's what you expect from a racing game.

Score: 7/10

Gameplay: This games gameplay consists of doing events like races, zone, tournaments, speed laps and time trials with the additional content bringing new race types like eliminator, detonator and zone battle. The gameplay never gets boring as they give you a variety of races on a variety of tracks. Some events you need to go for pure speed to beat the time you have been given. In eliminator you get points for doing damage to your opponents and the most points at the end wins. The zone event has you start off slow doing laps around the track you've chosen but as the zones get higher the speed gets faster to a speed where you need to basically have the track memorized to know where your going. Detonator is a fun event where you get points for shooting mines and bombs with your machine gun and you try to rack up as many points as you can. Zone battle is similar to zone but with other racers on the track and they put a twist on it, they have "zone boost pads" which when gone over put up your zone boost bar and when full can blast you ahead of the competition.

The tracks you play on are amazing. If you loved this series you will appreciate them bringing back some of the best tracks from the older games. The tracks allow a lot of spots of pure racing and other allowing you to go "guns blazing" taking out the competition.

The controls just add to the greatness of the gameplay. The controls are nice and easy but some can take some skill to master such as the barrel roll. It's a very good control scheme having the left analog stick as your steering and as your tilt, The right analog stick as barrel rolling, the face buttons as your weapon absorbing and using and the R2 and L2 as your airbrakes. Everything just feels great.

Score 9/10

Graphics: The graphics in this game are absolutely amazing. This is probably one of the best looking games on the Ps3 and playing it on an HD T.V. is certainly an experience you shouldn't miss out on. The backgrounds are great showing abstract and futuristic things in some tracks and crowds cheering you on in others.

The best place to really see the graphics is when playing a Zone event. In the Zone events you need to make it as far as you can on a track without dieing. Sounds easy but it's not as you go faster and faster as you get into the higer Zones. As you get into the higher Zones the background and whole track changes colors. The colors are absolutely amazing and really show how much effort was put into the game. Even little things like lights on the track pulsing to the beat of the music. It's amazing. Once you get really fast in Zone mode though you can experience some minor lag in the game which is why I gave it the score I did.

Score: 9/10

Sound: To me this is the best part about this game. This soundtrack is amazing! The techno/futuristic type music goes perfectly with this game. There are multiple tracks that are "iPod worthy" in this game and even if you don't have this game I suggest you check them out. Of course if for some reason you don't like the amazing soundtrack then you can always use your custom playlist for this game.

The ships sound the way they should, the explosions sound like they should and the crowd sounds great. Even minor sounds like applying shields has a cool unique sound. The "announcer" in this game is also very good. Telling you what weapons are activated and warning you of dangers ahead such as mines and bombs. Her robotic type voice makes it tie into this game perfectly.

Score: 10/10

Value: Just because it is a downloadable title does not mean it falls short of content. No this game is in my eyes the best value you can get on the Ps3. For $20 you can get an absolutely amazing game that will keep you entertained for a long time. With so many races to do, so many different ships to choose from and so many different tracks to do you will really enjoy the variety and it will never feel stale. This is without even mentioning the DLC for the game.

The Fury add on pack basically doubles your game. It add a whole new campaign mode, multiple ship skins for every ship, new tracks and 3 new game modes. The Fury add on also helps all the trophy hunters out there looking for this tough platinum as the ship skins give you boosts to your ships stats and give you some easy courses to get trophies like Zone Zeus on. If you have this game the DLC is a must as the deal is far too good to pass up on.

Score: 9/10

Trophies: This is one of the hardest platinums out there but also one of the most rewarding and well respected. To get some of these trophies you will need to master a certain event, get a perfect lap time or complete the campaign in the hardest difficulty. If you get easily frustrated with tough trophies this game isn't for you. Trophies like Beat Zico and Zone Zeus are considered to be some of the toughest trophies out there and require you to have great reflexes and knowledge of the tracks.

Beat Zico is a trophy where you need to beat or equal the lap time of 30.82 seconds. Did I mention that this is practically a perfect lap? Having the best ship skin, doing barrel rolls in the exact places, not hitting walls and hitting every speed pad and you will be lucky to beat the time by a hundredth of a second. The precision needed for this trophy is astounding and it is certainly a tough trophy to get.

Zone Zeus is another tough one that requires great reflexes. You need to reach Zone 75 in a Zone event type on any track. So you know you go ahead and try it out and at first you think "how is this hard?." You reach Zone 20 and you still may think it will be easy. Then as you reach Zone 35 and start to go pretty fast you start to hit a couple walls and scrap against some others and start losing health. By Zone 50 you will be bouncing off walls and most likely dead if you don't know the track well. Getting to Zone 75 on any track is tough and you will be in awe just thinking about how fast you're going.

The trophies are great for people who like to challenge themselves, but for people that are easily frustrated this is not a game you want to pick up for some easy trophies. I personally think these trophies are well thought out and I love the challenge and that's why I gave it the score I did.

Score: 8/10

Overall Score: Overall I will give this game a 9/10 and label it as a must own for people who enjoy racing games. You really can't go wrong with this game, for $30 you get the full game and the expansion which is a deal I find very hard to pass up on considering this game could easily sell for $60 alone for the base game. I highly suggest you check this game out.

Recap:

Positives:
Great Soundtrack
Amazing Graphics
Variety
Only $30 with expansion.

Negatives:
Minor graphic lags
Servers slow to sync
Tough trophies (depends who you are.)

[legndorock]

Killzone 2

This game has been so hyped up and is supposed to be one of the faces of the Playstation 3. Lets see if it lives up to the expectations.

Single Player: The single player takes puts you as the main character "Sev" with your squadron of Garza, Velasquez and Natko your main goal being to kill the leader of the Helghast, Scolar Visari and to ultimately stop the Helghan army. This game does a good job on filling you in on things and you really don't need to have played the first game to know what's going on. The missions are each unique and put you in a lot of action. Different troop types and different environments will keep you on your toes as you try for your goal. The campaign is of solid length and you will not be bored going through it.

You have collectibles to find so you will be searching every part of the amazing levels looking for them. There are many plot twists that will have you begging to find out what happens next and you will be very pleased with it.

Score: 8/10

Online play: The online play is so diverse it's insane. Once you begin to rank up and get to the higher levels you unlock things like classes and abilities for your classes. Once your a high enough level you can mix and match any combination you want. You can be a sniper with cloak power up and a medic at the same time if that's how you want to play. You could also be a shotgunner that can set up turrets and have proximity mines. That's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the variety and choices you have to choose from.

The matchmaking is great as it pairs you up with people that are your level. As you level up your competition levels up with you so you will never have it very easy or impossibly hard which makes it a great experience. There are some great features like clans. You can set up clan battles and track your clans stats on the online leaderboard. While on the topic of the online leaderboard I should say that it's great. You are synced within 5 minutes and it shows anything you could possibly want it to. It can show how good you did last month, last week, yesterday, today or all time. It tracks all your stats and you will enjoy looking at how well you did compared to your friends and the world.

The maps are awesome. Some being big which is ideal for snipers and other being small and being ideal for shotgunners and machine gunners. There is a nice balance of the levels so this game isn't overwhelmed with one class. The DLC maps are also amazing. One map for example you are on top of a moving train and you have to fight while dodging the oncoming obstacles making for a very interesting game. Another one you will be fighting and then an alarm will go off signifying a nuke. You will see the nuke explode and if you are outside you are dead. After you step back outside you will see dust flying everywhere and the landscape to be different.

You can easily get addicted to the online and all it has to offer.

Score: 9/10

Gameplay: The gameplay is awesome and there are many different ways you can go about a battle. You can charge in guns blazin' spray firing every enemy soldier you see or you can take the more covered route and sit behind cover peeking out to shoot and then going back behind cover only charging out when there is a very low amount of resistance in the way. This game is non stop action. It's battle after battle with a few short breaks in between.

The controls work well. You can have different preset controls and you shouldn't have trouble finding one you like.. It's a very nice feature especially if your used to another FPS's controls you can find a control that is very similar to it easily. One thing I didn't like though was the unneeded six axis moments. You need to set charges and turn the controller to turn the charge and set it in place. It was really not needed.

Score: 8/10

Graphics: This is definitely one of the strongest points of the game. The characters look awesome and everything flows the way it should. No matter how much is going you won't see the graphics lag. There is one time you see graphics lag for about 2 seconds and that's when you are getting a checkpoint. Don't worry though it won't affect the your fighting or get you killed so it really doesn't matter and you shouldn't mind.

The buildings in the background are just as detailed as everything else in this game and this is one of those games that developers dream to make a game look like. You will see cover destroyed in some cases and grenades going off everywhere. You will see fighting in the background making you truly feel like you are in the middle of a war.

Score: 9/10

Sound: You will hear everything in this game from people dieing to people yelling order and things like grenades going off as well as bullets constantly being fired. The music in the game is great and goes well with it. There is no awkward sounds or anything and you will be pleased with it. The guns sound great and so do the explosions. The characters voices are easy to understand and you will grow to learn each characters voice without having to look at the subtitles at the bottom.

What is really awesome about the sound is the multiplayer custom soundtrack. You can play your music as you are killing people online which makes for an enjoyable experience. Everygame is better when it has music you like. There are no sound flaws but it would be nice if you heard a little more of the great music they made.

Score: 8/10

Value: This game has good value. I'm very happy that I paid full price for this game and would pay $60 again if I had to. The game is very deep and if you like FPS you will certainly love this game. If you like it enough you can buy the DLC packs. The DLC packs include new multiplayer maps and some include new guns. The DLC maps are the best maps in my opinion and I suggest buying at least one map pack. Alternatively you can buy all three map packs for the price of two which is a very good deal. Hopefully they keep the map packs coming as they have been great so far.

Score 8/10

Trophies: For the most part the trophies in this game are pretty easy and will come without you thinking about them but others are very frustrating. Beating the campaign on Elite may be considered one of the toughest difficulties you can get in an FPS game. The enemies get stronger and bullets do more damage to you as you try to accomplish your mission goals. Some parts will be easy but you may find some big difficulty spikes. One of the toughest parts is the final fight. You will be so relieved when you see a checkpoint pop up and you will be on the edge of your seat the whole time because of the wave after wave of enemies that come at you. If you are good at FPS there is nothing that is impossible but certainly some frustrating parts.

Another tough trophy is the Valor Grand Cross. To get this you need to come in the top %1 for the week which is no easy task. This game has a very active online community with people that play the game every day. You need to devote a week to playing this games online to have a chance at getting this trophy. If you play a couple hours a day though you should be fine.

There are a few tough trophies but all in all it's not that difficult compared to other games.

Score: 8/10

Overall Score: My overall score is going to be a 8.5/10. This game has so much going for it with a great single player campaign that really gets you hooked on the game and on top of that the amazing multiplayer that you won't get tired of anytime soon. I highly suggest this game if you own a Ps3 or even if you don't this is one of those games that can produce console sales.

Recap:

Positives:
Amazing Graphics
Great Online
Immersive Single Player

Negatives:
Some Tough Trophies
It's possible to hit a "Wall" on Elite.
Minor graphic freeze ups when loading.

[legndorock]

Godfather II

The first game in the series was very successful. Is the second game good enough to be just as successful?

Single Player: This game like its predecessor has to do with the Godfather movies. You will see yourself doing some of the main events in the second movie and seeing some of the characters from the movie as well. The whole point of this game is to make your own family and take over all the other rival families leaving you as the dominant family. You start off with just yourself to capture businesses. After you take over some businesses you will be able to start to build up your family. You can choose your made man, choosing from 5 different types of made man you will need to choose the best one for your needs. Each type of made man has his own special ability that can help you take over the other families.

The story itself is a pretty good one and it gets the job done. You will see some twists near the end and you it will keep you entertained. The only major problem with the single player is after you beat the game there are no more rival mobsters to fight and you can't really do much. The story a second time through is also very flat and you will find yourself thinking that once is enough.

Score: 8/10

Online play: I won't sugar coat this, the online is boring. There's not enough to keep you hooked on the online. The online community is a small group and the game types don't really work well. The online feels like it's tacked on and really shouldn't be there.

There is one nice feature and that is that when you play online you play as one of your made men and the more experience you get online the better the made man becomes in your single player story. The feature is nice but useless as the game is so easy you won't need it.

Score: 5/10

Gameplay: This game is an action game and it certainly doesn't disappoint when it comes to action. There are some missions you need to do during the game and it keeps the game from feeling stale. The missions unlock things for you like new made men slots and some allow you to promote your made man to a higher position making him more powerful.

There is a good strategy element to the game. After you take over a business you can hire guards to protect it. If you leave it unguarded it leaves it open for a rival family to come and take over the business. It's not like you have unlimited money either so you really need to choose which businesses are valuable enough to hire the max amount of guards and which ones you won't mind risking. Also you need strategy for choosing your made men. Your going to have little chance of winning if you pick all your made men as engineer class for example. You want to have a diverse group following you so you can find the best route to take over a business.

The controls work well, sometimes not as responsive as they should be but they are fine.

Score: 7/10

Graphics: The graphics are nothing to be amazed by. They aren't bad they just aren't at the standard that other games are at. This game has a unique look to it. The game is very colorful which makes it look better. The character models are good and the cars are mediocre. The framerate sometimes falls when fighting a lot of enemies or using your machine guns. There are also other graphic errors and sometimes you will find yourself driving and seeing nothing in front of you until it loads for a second.

Score: 7/10

Sound: This game has some of the classic Godfather music in it making the sound pretty good. It just doesn't play them as often as you would like. You'll hit silent spots when driving your car and you wish there was music on the radio. There is a car radio but it goes in and out and is too quiet.

The guns and characters sound good. There is really good voice acting and you feel like your in that time period talking to people. Each gun has a very unique sound and everyone reacts great. If you were to take your gun out people are going to say different things then if you had your gun put away. There just should be a bit more music.

Score: 8/10

Value: Your not going to get much for your money if you paid full price for this game. You can beat the single player and complete everything within 24 hours. The game is very fun the first time around but after you beat it once there is nothing to keep you coming back. You won't play the multiplayer much and there is no replayability. You should either rent this one or buy it for $20 and then return it when your done.

Score: 6/10

Trophies: If you like easy platinums this one is for you. You can easily get this platinum in a rental period and there is really no hard trophies. This game is pretty fun so it's not like your dragging yourself through this game just for the easy platinum. You will enjoy while your going for it. There are just a few miss able trophies and some people have trouble with doing all the types of executions but you shouldn't have too much of a problem. The trophies aren't really imaginative and the the miss able ones that would make you redo the game give this game the score I gave it.

Score: 9/10

Overall Score: I'll give this game an overall score of 7/10. The single player will keep you interested to the end but there is just nothing to keep you playing this game after you beat it. I suggest you rent it as it is certainly worth a rent but do not buy it unless you find it for a bargain price.

Recap:

Positives:
Easy Trophies
Fun gameplay
Good story

Negatives:
Bad online
Some graphic glitches
No replayability

[legndorock]

Fat Princess

Fat Princess was a highly anticipated Playstation Network downloadable game. Does it deliver the experience people were expecting?


Single Player: The single player is good. It tells you the tale of the Fat Princess and how this war between the red side and the blue side started. The single player story has 7 missions that showcase the levels the game has to offer as well as the features. You should take the single player experience as the training mode to the game as the single player is not the main focus.

The story is nice and you can read the text they provide you or you can skip it. There isn't loads of content in the story but it gets the job done.

There is another single player mode called "Gladiate." In this mode your objective is to reach the highest level you can with the character chosen. There are 12 stages that get pretty difficult in the later stages. This is a fun mode and tests your skills with each class. You will log a good amount of time into the single player and you won't be disappointed. The story is quite short though.

Score: 6/10

Online play: The multiplayer feature is the main focus of this game and it works very well. The online is diversified and really you can do any play style you want. Is draining health and healing your allies your style? The priest class will satisfy yourself. You like to charge out sword and shield in hand? Pick the warrior class. Are you not really into combat and feel like helping by upgrading weapons and gathering resources? Pick the worker and help out your team in a different way than just combat.

The multiplayer has different game modes but the one you will most likely play is Capture the Princess. There is Snatch 'n Grab in which you must capture the enemy princess and put her in your dungeon three times to win, Team Deathmatch which you all know how to play, Invasion where you must capture the towers surrounding the map and Capture the Princess. In Capture the Princess your main objective is to get your princess back from the enemy dungeon while keeping their princess locked away in your dungeon. This is a very team oriented game and the team that works together the best will win the game.

There is a point system for each player. The nice thing about it is how balanced it is. Killing other players gives you the same amount of points as healing players and gathering resources. It makes for a really balanced leaderboard and really lets you choose the class you want to choose.

Another nice feature is bots. When there isn't enough people in a game or a host cannot support enough people on his connection then they add bots. The bots are not just dumb AI and actually do help. You will see their contributions in the resource department most of the time but they really do help fill the game up and make it much more enjoyable.

One bad thing though as this would be the perfect game for voice chat and clans. While you can play with your friends you cannot make a clan of players that is visible to others. This would be a very nice feature in a game like this. Another thing is voice chat would seem perfect to say your strategy but no one seems to talk. You can use voice chat but since many people do not have mics you just don't hear anyone. That is more on the part of Sony though for not giving out mics with their consoles so I won't count it against Fat Princess.

Score: 9/10

Gameplay: The gameplay works. It's an age old game of capture the flag but with a twist. With so many character options you are bound to find your style. You pick classes by simply picking up a hat and immediately you will change into that class. You can pick up hats at your castle or pick up a fallen ally or even a fallen enemy hat. The system works great as you will find who you want to be very quickly.

The strategy behind this game is awesome. This is not a game where you can charge out alone and expect to win the game. This game requires teamwork on many different levels. You need to have a squad protecting the princess to prevent her from getting taken. If you don't have this it's as simple as a group of 2 or 3 guys to come strolling in your castle, take the princess and win the game. You will also need your workers gathering resources. Without resources you cannot upgrade your classes and without upgrades your enemy will have an HUGE advantage over you. It also matters which class you upgrade first and there is strategy behind that within itself. Of course you need a group that goes into battle and fights as well as a group that heals your fighters making it easier to capture the princess. There are many side routes and shortcuts to find and take and can prove very beneficial. Then there is always the question, do I upgrade the catapult or not? By the looks of it you would think this game doesn't have much strategy but for this game the looks only go skin deep.

The controls for this game are good. You have one button to attack and holding down that button charges up your attack. You have a lock on button and also a button to change between hats. The controls are simple enough to be a pick up and play type title.

There are some minor issues though. The lock on system works but you can't choose who you lock onto. Once you push the lock on button you lock onto a nearby enemy and it is very hard to change targets. This is especially frustrating when using the archer and mage classes.

All in all very good gameplay though.

Score: 9/10

Graphics: There are not too many games that look like Fat Princess. Its bright colors and somewhat childish look only masks the true game. As soon as you enter the battlefield and start to hack and shoot your way through enemies you will learn fast that this game is not childish. This game has everything from blood splattering all over the ground to body parts flying everywhere.

The graphics are unique and you can easily tell who is which class and you will never get confused about who's on what team. The characters each look different as you can customize your look and the classes are very distinctive looking.

There are no visual glitches and despite all that's going on the game never drops in frame rate which is really nice.

Score: 8/10

Sound: The music in this game is great and is just what you would expect from this game. You get the music throughout the whole game so there is never any silence, something is always making sounds. You can hear everything from you lunging forward with your sword to the twang of your bow.

The play by play announcer is great. With his British accent he will inform you with what's going on in your game. He has some phrases that you will laugh at when you hear them for the first time. He'll tell you when either team has entered the castle, taken the princess or captured a watchtower. It really is a nice touch.

There are some pretty annoying sounds like the noise the chicken makes when you attack with it and they could've added one or two more songs but the sound is solid nevertheless.

Score: 7/10

Value: The value is good and you can log a lot of hours in the multiplayer. With all the options you have you will find out quickly how you want to play the game. With a single player that gets the job done and top notch multiplayer this game is certainly worth the $15. If the single player was longer it would be higher but it's not so that's why I have given it the score I did.

Score: 8/10

Trophies: The trophies aren't hard but some may feel like a grind. There is a trophy to win 100 multiplayer games which will come in time. The gladiator arenas can get pretty tough making that trophy the hardest to get but with some practice and patience it should come with time. The trophies are unique and show some of the developers personality with the trophy names.

You shouldn't have too much trouble with the trophies.

Score 8/10

Overall Score: My overall score would be a 8.5/10. This game focuses on the multiplayer and gameplay and it surely doesn't disappoint in that regard. I suggest you download this games as it is one of the best the Playstation Network has to offer and you won't be disappointed.

Recap:

Positives:
Only $15
Great online
Gameplay is awesome

Negatives:
Could use some more songs
Grind trophies (If you take them as a grind)
Minor connection issues

[legndorock]

Grand Theft Auto IV

We all know that the Grand Theft Auto series has been great in the past but is this game as good as its predecessors?

Single Player: Best part of the game right here. The single player is absolutely amazing with an unforgettable story of Niko a Russian immigrant trying to make it big the states with his cousin Roman. If you know anything about the Grand Theft Auto series you will know that Rockstar are amazing storytellers and this game is no different.

You play as Niko who is just trying to make a living the best he can, of course it is not always easy. You will be doing various types of side missions and main story missions as you try to earn your living. There are many different people you encounter during the game each unique and each giving you unique missions to complete. From drug runs to protecting people the missions always switch things up and never seem dull. The game has a long story that covers just about every single detail it can. If you rush through everything it can be done in about 15 hours but that should only be if you've played the game before. If you haven't played the game before and you want the full experience this game could easily take over 40 hours to complete.

After the long story is done there is still so much more to do in Liberty City. With various side missions to do, things to collect and it's always fun just to go on a big killing spree. You will be very entertained with this single player.

Score: 10/10

Online play: The online play is an average experience. It is certainly not focused on multiplayer but Rockstar put a pretty good online on this game. There are many different game modes which is definitely good so it doesn't matter if you love driving or shooting there are game modes for you.

It's not like the online is a terrible experience but most people don't play this game for the online. It's not as good as some other FPS genre online like Call of Duty and Killzone 2 but it gets the job done.

The best part of the online and the one I like the most is "Free Mode" In this mode you and other people online can do whatever you want in Liberty City. ANYTHING! It's play time and Liberty City is your sandbox. It's awesome how you can tell your friend "Hey I'm at the Statue of Happiness get a chopper and pick me up." This is truly an excellent mode and is A LOT of fun.

The game has an active community but depending on what game you play you will find some servers may be empty. With the inviting system being not so great it is sometimes hard to get a game of "Turf Wars" or"Car Jack City" going. The invite system doesn't allow you to invite the person if you have more than 50 friends. It's a really bad mistake and gives you a choice to either delete people off your list or just don't play with friends.

Score: 7/10

Gameplay: The gameplay is great. You will find yourself doing a huge variety of missions and side missions that never seem dull. Every mission you do is unique in a way. some missions you'll be driving a getaway vehicles and others you will be chasing down getaway vehicles. Some you assassinate targets and others you work undercover. Just so much variety it's hard to wrap your head around.

They introduced a system where all your missions are given to you through your cell phone. You get texts saying "Hey I'm here come meet me, I have a mission for you" and you also get phone calls telling you missions. It's a great system and works flawlessly.

The combat is great! With so many different choices of guns and being able to kill everything it's awesome. You will find some huge gun fights against gang members and the police. The combat is as good as any other game and it really works well.

The cover system in this game is some of the best I've seen. You can hide behind practically anything leaving you so many options when it comes to the combat. You can drive a car right into the center of a gang get out and use the car as cover to take out the gang members. You can hide behind low walls, high walls, poles, anything! You can shoot your gun from behind cover no matter what gun it is. It can be the pistol or it can be the RPG, it doesn't matter, all guns can be shot from behing cover. You can peek out, shoot some bullets and hide back down or just hold your gun out spray firing everything near you.

If you just feel like playing around Liberty City is the place to do it. There are no loading screens just going around this HUGE city. When I say huge I mean HUGE. This place has 4 separate islands resembling New York City and you will never run out of things to do. You can call up friends and play pool, go drinking, get something to eat, darts, etc. etc.

Driving is awesome with a big selection of cars, bikes and trucks to choose from you will quickly find your favorite ride.

The controls are also awesome. It may take you about an hour to get them down but after that you will effortlessly navigate through the controls.

Score: 9/10

Graphics: Everything you see is awesome. Liberty City is a very close resemblance to New York City. You will find many different landmarks from the Empire State Building to the Statue of Liberty having a very close look alike in Grand Theft Auto IV. If you take a helicopter ride at night over the city you will see how great this game looks. So much detail was put into Liberty City and it definitely shows. All the buildings are very good looking. On the buildings you will see a lot of different and funny things that show the developers personality. For example in the screenshot I show at the top of this review the building is call GetaLife. Things like that and reading other various signs will give you a good laugh.

Each car is also very detailed. From the different paint colors you can spray paint your car by entering a paint shop to the close resemblance between the in game cars and real life cars you will notice you normally don't see the same car that often and they really allow you to experience all of them.

Just to follow the pattern of the rest of the game the characters and random citizens are all unique. When walking down the street you will see everybody doing something. Some may be taking a jog in the park, some doing yoga or some just walking down the street.

This city really feels like a real city and the graphics certainly help this Liberty City to feel alive.

The only bad thing is that the frame rate sometimes drops when it's raining outside but it's really not bad at all.

9/10

Sound: The sound, where to start? First when your just walking down the street you will hear the different conversations the people are having and also how they react to you. If you pull out your gun people will react to that with screams and curses. If you push someone they will mouth you off and things like that.

The music in this game is also great. When your driving a car you can change radio stations with the click of a button and listen to virtually any type of music or talk show. Theres various rap stations, rock stations, R&B stations and of course they have funny talk shows. If you listen to one of those talk shows you will crack up laughing at some of the stuff they say and it is actually fun to just sit in the car with the radio on just to listen to them. The commercials are also awesome. Taking things and making fun of them is a theme for these commercials.

Of course you can always play with your own custom soundtrack if you prefer.

Each car sounds different, the guns sound great and everything that has to do with sound in this game is awesome.

Score: 9/10

Value: This game has an unbelieveable amount of value to it. From the lengthy single player, to the online play, to the replayability you can easily log 100+ hours into this game. It is well worth a $60 investment and you will not be disappointed.

Score: 9/10

Trophies: The worst part of the game are the trophies. At first the trophies are what you expected and dreamed of, completing the single player campaign 100% and individual mission trophies as well as some fun ones like flipping 5 times in one crash. The bad part is the online trophies. The online trophies require you to do certain game modes and reach the highest rank in multiplayer.

The trophy "Wanted" will take you about 75-100 hours depending on your skill and your teams skill. You need to reach $5,000,000 in the online mode and in the highest paying game you can earn an average of $5,000 per game. It takes a long time.

Then of course there is the infamous Auf Wiedersehen Petrovic or commonly referred to as AWP. You need to win every game mode and race type at least once. There are a lot of race tracks to race on and you need to win on every single one. Some of the game types also take a while to do as some games can last a minimum of 30 minutes. It takes a while to complete.

The story trophies are great but if you don't really like the online the trophies will seem like a HUGE grind.

6/10

Overall Score: My overall score would be a 9/10. The single player is flawless and there is an endless amount of stuff to do in Liberty City. If the online was a little better this game would be perfect but nothing is perfect. I highly recommend this game.

Recap:

Positives:
Very unique
Excellent single player
Liberty City is breathtaking

Negatives:
Grind trophies
Invite system
Minor frame rate drops

[legndorock]

Fallout 3



Is life in the wasteland worth your money?

Single Player: If I were to sum it up in one word it would be amazing. The story is excellent and will keep you interested until the end. You play as a a survivor of a nuclear apocalypse, only surviving because you were locked away in a vault that shielded you from the nuclear attacks. After you find out that your father has left the vault without telling anyone the whole vault turns into a big mess and you are forced to leave if you wish to survive. The main quest is about finding your father and seeing why he left without telling you and to see whether he even survived in the dangerous wasteland. The main quest will take you about 20 hours to complete if you rush through it.

The main quest isn't the only thing to do in the wasteland. There are tons of side quests, places to explore, people to meet and loot to find. Each side quest will take you across the wasteland going through different cities and towns. Each side quest is unique and will give you moral choices and in most cases have more than 2-3 ways to do each quest.

There are over 100 locations in Fallout 3 and over 200 if you have the DLC packs! That just shows how huge the wasteland really is. Exploring new places will keep you interested for a long time and the game really rewards you for exploration. The best weapons are found in places that the story and side quests don't take you. For instance there is an alien crash site you need to find on your own that will give you an alien blaster. The blaster just happens to be the best weapon in the game. You can easily log over 100 hours into the game.

9/10


Online play: N/A

Gameplay: The gameplay is not that of an FPS don't assume it is from videos and trailers you've seen. Though you play the game in first person you are not charging around and leaning up against walls shooting at your enemies. You need to manually cover yourself behind pillars or crouch behind a broken wall to dodge the bullets. There are no rolls and the jumps are stiffer than other games so you can't just hop around like a frog dodging bullets. You need to pick your battles, use the right weapon and have a sense of crowd control. You cannot play this game like a Call of Duty and expect to charge out guns blazing and expect to no take a big amount of damage, especially when you turn up the difficulty.

If you've played previous Bethesda games such as Oblivion you would know that you can level relatively easy, sometimes even just holding your analog stick down as you player swims giving you experience. It's not like that in this game. You will gain experience from killing monsters and completing quests. Once you gain a level you can put a point on one of your main attributes such as Speed, Luck, Strength and Agility. Each attribute affects different skills and your players abilities. Strength for instance allows you to carry more as well as you do more damage with melee. Speed will increase, well your speed and Luck will just affect everything you do whether it's giving you extra ammo and money from fallen enemies or having a larger probability to influence someone to do something you want. After you assign attribute points you will assign skill points that will determine how well you hack and lockpicks things, sneak around, shoot and heal yourself. You have complete control and you can put skill points to accommodate your play style whether you like big guns or small guns, to sneak around or charge out you can set the skill points to skills that allow you to play the way you want. The last thing you can do with levels is you can choose different perks. The perks range anywhere from people exploding into blood and guts when you kill them to being able to smooth talk the opposite sex. You have complete control over the style you want to play with all the different options you have.

With Fallout 3 brings a new system to the series and that's the Karma system. Do you want to blow up a city and get paid a big sum of money and lose Karma or do you want to disarm the bomb and save the city and gain Karma? You will be faced with choices like these throughout the game. The constant balance between good and bad Karma can really change the course of the game. If you are constantly in bad Karma people will react to you differently and sometimes even run away from you out of sheer terror. The Karma system really keeps you in check and stops you from just running around killing and and stealing. Almost every quest has a good Karma route and a bad Karma route. For instance you are faced with decisions such as do I do what he wants to get the reward or just kill him and take it off his dead body? Maybe I could steal it when he's sleeping or trick him into just giving it to me now? Things like that give you the choice of whether you want to be the infamous criminal of the wasteland or the hope of the people of the wasteland.

You will face tons of different enemies from mutants to giant bugs and from bandits to the last surviving remnants of the government. Each type of enemy is different and will need a different approach to take down. For instance you may be able to kill that bandit with the sniper rifle but the super mutant will take the sniper bullets as if it's nothing. This will make you need to learn about the different enemies and know how they function.

A big part of the gameplay is VATS. VATS allows you to auto aim on a body part of your enemy such as their head, arm, leg, torso or even the weapon they're holding. This may seem like it makes the game way too easy but if is held in check by having a limited number of AP points. This means you can't just run through the game constantly using VATs and aiming for headshots. It is in some cases better to aim for the enemies arm to disarm them or their leg to slow them down rather than go for the maximum damage headshot. The system is an awesome addition to the game.

9/10

Graphics: As you traverse through the wasteland the graphics are amazing. Stepping into the heart of Washington D.C. and seeing all the buildings and monuments you would see in real life is awesome. The buildings and different places really give you the feeling that a nuclear apocalypse has occurred and that life is few and far between. Graphically everywhere else though they aren't anything to be amazed by. The character models are good, but not great. Some of the insides of buildings are the same way, good but not great. Lighting is a problem in some areas. Some areas are far to dark making things hard to see.

The look of the game really makes you feel the wasteland vibe. The colors are more dull than most games making you feel like death and destruction are all around you. The houses are shabby and the towns are made with materials that were left over from the destruction, the game just looks right for the situation it's set in.

Blood and gore flies everywhere as you kill enemies. Shoot a guy in the head and his head will go flying from his body with a fountain of blood following right behind. It's certainly not a kids game. If you have a certain perk on you will see that after you shoot them their arms and legs will fly off their body and blood will go everywhere. Overall pretty violent.

8/10

Sound: The music in the game is compiled of songs from the 1950's. The songs they have in there are great and you will certainly know them by the end of the game. They make you feel like you're in the time period. You could also listen to Three Dog who is a talk show host. He will talk about you a lot and what your trying to do and what you've accomplished. He says the same things though and they get annoying fast. You will here about how you're trying to find your father what seems like 100 times before you finish the game.

The voice acting in the game is great. Each character has a different voice and they all sound great. Each has their own style and they really make the characters unique. The voice acting couldn't be better.

7.5/10

Value: You can easily log 100+ hours into the game with all it has to offer. With all the different places you can visit and the customization you can have you can make the game what you want it to be. Then of course there is the story you will get sucked into.

9/10

Trophies: The trophies are easy. If you're paying attention you can get every trophy in one playthrough. Most of the trophies have to do with completing quests which you shouldn't mind doing anyway. The collectibles trophies are not hard and unlike some other games the collectibles actually give you incentive to do them giving you attribute and skill bonuses as well as trophies. The trophies will take a while because Fallout will take a long time to complete but they are not hard.

9/10

Overall Score: My overall score will be a 9/10. This game is awesome and any fan of Bethesda or RPGs in general should seriously consider picking up this game. With the release of the Game of the Year edition of the game now is the best time to buy the game and enjoy it for all it's worth.

Recap:

Positives:
Great story
Customization
Easy trophies

Negatives:
Minor lag issues
Repetitive sounds
Some minor graphical glitches

[legndorock]

Assassins Creed 2



Will this game kill the competition or should it sneak its way out of the games you should to buy?

Single Player: This game is a direct sequel to the first Assassin's Creed and will once again put you as the character Desmond Miles, a captured assassin who is being used for is DNA memories to relive past events. You don't play as Desmond much at all. You play for him for the first 10 minutes and you don't see him again until you're halfway through the game. Even though you are not playing as Desmond as much you learn much more about him and Abstergo than you did in the last game.

In the first Assassin's Creed you played as Altair, an assassin looking for redemption when his rank and power were stripped from him when he made poor decisions. In this game you will play as a very different character with a very different motive. You will play as Ezio Auditore Da Firenze, a man who assassinates out of pure vengeance not redemption. Early on you watch as your family is murdered and you make it your goal to kill everyone that was behind it. This will lead Ezio on a long journey that is substantially larger than the first. It will take you at least 20 hours to beat the story and another 5-10 to get the platinum.

Ezio has a much better personality than Altair and it really shows. From his dialog to his actions you can really get a feel about what Ezio is like. They are not all good either. Though Ezio for the most part is a helpful and heroic guy, not to mention a lady killer he also shows a lot more aggression towards enemies. From the types of kills to the way he assassinates his target he is not a forgiving person and it shows throughout the game.

You will meet different people and factions such as the courtesans, thieves and mercenaries. Each will have it's own problem in the town and it seems like right after you meet someone you are killing for them. Though most of the time both you and the person share the same person to kill it should have more story between Ezio and the person you're killing for rather than them just throwing you in the deep end with the killing.

You will not have had to play the first Assassin's Creed to know what's going on in this game. There is a very quick summary of the first game at the very beginning and you will understand what's going on after that. Though it may be a more enjoyable experience if you've played the first game it isn't necessary.

All in all the story is amazing and is definitely worth playing.

Score: 9/10

Online play: N/A

Gameplay: They have made massive strides in the gameplay this time around. They've made new things like swimming and the economy system work well and they have also made the game far less repetitive and the climbing noticeably faster.

The economy system is a big part of Assassin's Creed 2. You will need to buy weapon upgrades, armor, ammunition and things like medicine. The system is fun and rewarding but it can be unbalanced because of your Auditore villa. Once you upgrade your villa the city will bring in more money. Eventually you will be getting about 11,000 Florins every 20 minutes and you will have more money than you will ever need. It does add a very cool dimension to the game though and it is certainly a good part of the game.

Another addition is you can now swim. Ubisoft really heard the fans and agreed that how Altair couldn't swim was not the smartest decision. This time around swimming adds a new element to the game. It is a way to get around the city as well as a way to hide from guards. It opens up your options of moving around as you can drive a boat around the city which is a fast and fun way to travel.

Speaking of traveling they've added a new quick travel system. For a small price you can go from city to city instantly instead of having to go there manually. It's another good improvement but the one downside is you can't quick travel within the city, you will need to quick travel to a different city and back to the city where you just were to change locations quickly.

Repetition was the main concern in the first Assassin's Creed but is definitely shouldn't be this time around. In this game there are many more types of missions and this time around you are not forced to do side missions to unlock your assassination mission. In this game you can do the story missions if you want which are all varied and you can do some of the side missions if you want. Though the game has a linear story with the size of some missions it won't always feel that way.

Another upgrade is to the combat system. The combat system is much more deep this time around with disarming and new weapons coming into play. The hidden blades can be used as a weapon this time around and each weapon has it's pros and cons. The most powerful weapons are normally the slowest and the fastest don't have much power behind them so you have some choices to make. You will find yourself using your fists a lot as well because with the new disarming move it is a fast and easy way to kill enemies as well as get some weapons you can't buy.Ofcourse they've added new ways to prevent combat also if that's the way you would rather play. With the introduction of the economy system they also introduced different factions. These factions can be hired to take guards away from an area or fight along side you if you do in fact get in a fight.

The thing that made the first Assassin's Creed stand out was it's free running and climb anything way of moving around. They haven't changed the system much but they've made climbing noticeably faster this time around. It really makes it a much more enjoyable experience as you are not spending 5 minutes climbing up one large tower. The free running though still has some of the same problems as before. When going for precision it may cause some problems and you may find yourself running up a wall on accident. Don't let that take you away from the game though as it is a rare occurrence and the systems pros far outweigh the cons.

Score: 9.5/10

Graphics: The graphics are breathtaking. As soon as you go into Renaissance Italy for the first time you will see how amazing they are. All the major monuments and building are in the game and though it's not an exact replica of Italy it's probably the next best thing to actually going to Italy. Along with the very close representation of the city they also give you historical notes on the city and landmarks around the city that are very interesting if you care to read them.

Each weapon has unique animations and they are as gory as ever. You will want to buy each weapon just to see the different counter kills.The movement and other animations are very smooth and you won't have any problems with them.

The character models are great until you get up close. Some of the cutscenes get really close to peoples faces and they look kind of weird up close. You will notice the shadows draw in as you get closer to the building but other than that the graphics are great.

Sometimes though I thought that at what expense did we get these amazing graphics? I had the frame rate drop on me numerous times especially near the end of the game. I also had the game completely freeze up on me twice when I was just fooling around after the story was over. You will not notice it much while you're playing through the story but after that the lag is much more frequent though it won't effect your gameplay that often.

Score: 9/10

Sound: This is an amazing part of the game. The sound of the music as well as the voice acting make you feel as though you are in the Italian Renaissance. The orchestral music during the game as well as the random comical singing you will see the street performers do around the city is great. The voice acting though is simply perfect.

Sound: 9/10

Value: This game will give you around 20 hours for the an excellent story and for this day and age that's pretty good. This is the type of game though that you will want to play a second playthrough of. The trophies will add some extra hours into the game and you should get the platinum in around 25-30 hours.

Score: 9/10

Trophies: The trophies are good and fun to collect but there are some problems. One being that some trophies simply aren't unlocking for people. There are reports of people unlocking the trophy for all the other DNA sequences but missing one in the middle because it simply didn't unlock. Once it is fixed then it will be great. I personally have not had any problems but I know others have.

The feathers are also annoying to collect. If you don't use a map good luck as they are hidden very well throughout the game. Other than the feathers though the rest of the trophies are fun and easy to get.

Score: 8/10

Overall Score: My overall score for this game is going to be a 9/10. This game is great but a few problems are keeping it from a higher rating. This game is great and you should go out and get it right away to experience it. You will not be disappointed.

Recap:

Positives:
Story is great.
Graphics are breathtaking
Not repetitive

Negatives:
Frame rate issues
Trophy glitches
Game feels a little too easy

[legndorock]

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2



Easily one of the most highest anticipated games ever but can it live up to the expectations?

Single Player: The single player puts you as two different soldiers for most of the game. Pvt. James Ramirez who is a member of the US army and Sgt. Gary "Roach" Sanderson. You also play as Soap MacTavish for a few missions who is now a Captain and your squad leader for most of the game. Your goal is to take down Vladimir Makarov who was Imran Zakhaevs right hand men. Makarov is terrorizing the world which will be apparent in the first couple missions. They almost force you to hate Makarov. They show you in the very beginning how terrible he is and it will certainly hit home.

The campaign is jaw dropping from beginning to end. There is a lot of action going on and different things around every turn. One minute you may be safe and the next you're in an ambush. The missions are very diverse as well. You drive multiple different vehicles and there are more sniping missions this time around. The driving missions are fun and really switch things up. You can't just drive anywhere but the course you have to go down is pretty big and has a few different ways to get through it. That goes for most of the missions as well. There is no set path for you to go like in the other games. They give you the objective and you need to get there anyway you can. The levels are very big and there are tons of different ways to get to an objective. There are many plot twists and the game will constantly keep you guessing on what will happen next.

The pacing is great. You won't have all the high action missions in the beginning and the slower stealthier missions at the end. They are all mixed in well and even on the stealthy sniper missions the action never lets up. You will be glued to the T.V. until the campaign is finished.

The campaign is awesome but short. The game has more missions than the original Modern Warfare but the missions are much shorter and they are about the same length. You can finish the campaign in about 7-8 hours but with the different difficulty settings that drastically change the game and the fact that it is so good you will most likely play through the campaign again.

There is a new mode called Spec-Ops mode. The mode can be played single player, splitscreen co-op and online co-op. The mode is really meant for 2 players and is much more fun with a partner but most missions can be played by yourself.

Score: 8/10

Online play: This category is the reason why the original game was so popular and why this game is selling like crazy. This game somehow improved on the best online FPS experience. The balance seems better and there are new features that give you control over how you want to play the game. The lure of the first games online was the perks, balance and experience you earned to level up. They haven't change that system much but they've added a few new tweaks to it.

The new features include customizable kill streaks, death streaks, new perks, new weapons, new maps, new modes and custom call signs.

The customizable kill streaks allow to to pick from a variety of different things when you get a certain amount of kills in a row. The ones you pick will greatly effect the battle. For instance if you get a 25 kill streak you can call in a Tactical Nuke. Once you call this in the enemy has 10 seconds to kill you and if they don't a nuke explodes on the map, everyone dies and the round ends. The killstreaks give you choices such as would you rather have a killstreak bonus at 7 kills and its a single missile or do you want to wait until 9 kills and get a Helicopter? The new killstreak system is great.

Deathstreaks are also a new addition. Once you die a couple times in a row you can get a deathstreak bonus. They include things like more health, running faster and even using the other players weapons. It may sound like it throws off the balance but it really just adds to it. Veterans of the game will not notice the small amount of extra health the person may have or the extra speed of the person but it is just enough to give the player that's getting killed a chance to take you down.

The new mode Spec-Ops can be played online. You and a friend can play Spec-Ops together in splitscreen co-op or online co-op. The Spec-Ops missions are great and really make you and your friend coordinate your attacks and use teamwork. For the stealthy missions you will need to take down multiple enemies at the same time and it will take some planning so both players know who they take out so that you don't get caught. There are also missions where one person is on the ground while the other person is in a helicopter clearing the way for the person on the ground. It gives you a great sense of teamwork and is addictive.

It's more of a renovation than an innovation but this is easily the best online FPS experience you will be able to get your hands on. The only game that comes close is the first Modern Warfare. This is the type of online that you will find yourself playing for a long time.

10/10

Gameplay: The gameplay has faced some changes this time around. There is no grenade spam and the enemies are no longer infinitely respawning. There is no invisible line that you need to cross so that your squad moves forward. Both friendly and enemy AI have gotten smarter and it makes the game more fun and realistic.

The multiple difficulty settings change the way you need to go about the game. The way you play Veteran is much different than the way you will play Regular. Now that there is no more frustrating grenade spam and infinitely respawning enemies like in the previous Call of Duty titles the game may seem a bit to easy for experienced players even on the hardest difficulty setting.

The controls are the same as the other Call of Duty titles and are easy to pick up and learn. Newcomers will have no problem picking up and playing this game.

The gameplay never feels stale and the variety of the missions and the things you do really keep this game fresh and it keeps you interested.

9.5/10

Graphics: This game uses the same engine as the first Modern Warfare so the graphics don't seem as amazing 2 years later. The graphics still look good and there is a massive amount of detail in just about every part of the game. From the markets to the mountain sides you can tell they really polished this game up.

You will go to various places across the world. You will go to Russia, Rio de Janeiro, Afghanistan and the USA. Each place looks great. Washington D.C. looks just like Washington D.C. that's ofcourse if the Capital Building was on fire the White House was taken over by terrorists and the Washington Monument was destroyed.

There are a few minor issues like a small lag every once in a while but nothing serious as it doesn't happen often and it doesn't occur for long. It won't effect the gameplay.

The graphics are good and crisp but they just aren't as amazing the second time around.

8.5/10

Sound: The sound is amazing. You cannot complain about the very militaristic music scheme they have going. The drum beats and orchestra set the tone very well.

The voice acting couldn't be better with the returning voices of a few main characters. Your soldiers always have something to say about the mission and where to go. Sometimes it may be annoying for when they talk to much but that is a rare occurrence.

Each gun has it's own distinct sound and you will hear the sounds of battle. You will be compelled to turn up the volume to its highest setting while you play the game to take in the full experience.

Score: 9/10

Value: Let's put it this way, you will be playing this game for a long time. The single player campaign isn't the longest on the market but the wow factor it gives and how amazing it is may be worth the $60 alone. Put in the fact that is has the best online FPS experience on the market and the new addictive Spec-Ops mode and you have yourself a game that you will be playing for a very, very long time.

10/10

Trophies: The trophies are easy and if you are familiar with trophies or achievements from other Call of Duty title than there should be no surprise here. There are some nice witty trophies that have you kill people in a certain way or kill a certain amount of people while driving a snowmobile and random things like that.

Ofcourse there are trophies for beating the missions on Veteran difficulty. This has cause people trouble in the past but rest assured trophy hunters Veteran is a much easier task this time around.

Overall the platinum is easy if you are good at FPS games and can hold your own on Veteran.

Score: 8.5/10

Overall Score: I'm going to give this game an overall score of 9.5/10. If the single player was longer it would have easily have gotten a perfect score from me. The online is unmatched and despite it being short the single player is very fun. You will not be disappointed I guarantee it. I highly recommend you go out and by this game as soon as possible.

Recap:

Positives:
Best online FPS
Spec-Ops is great
It lived up to the hype.

Negatives:
Campaign is 7-8 hours
Very minor lag issues

[legndorock]

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Black Ops is setting sales records all over the world and chances are you've probably played this game somewhere, here are my views on the game.

Single Player: One major campaign changer this time around is your main character talks, a first for the Call of duty franchise. From the outside looking in you may think that it's a minor change but it helps make the single player campaign have an actual story rather than having you run simply run through levels with no purpose like more FPS games nowadays.

You start the game as Alex Mason, the USA's top SOG agent. You're interrogated by a mysterious man that hopes to understand what a group of numbers means. You are the only person that knows what they mean but your extensive fighting and horrible state have made you forget the answer. You play as Alex Mason in flashbacks as he tries to remember what the numbers mean.

The story is great though it can be a bit confusing at times if you're not paying attention. It's certainly the deepest story in the Call of Duty franchise yet though it may not have a real set piece moment that you couldn't stop talking about.

This was a big step away from the normal Call of Duty campaign that has you go mindlessly from mission to mission and it was for the better. Don't expect a Game of the Year type single player campaign but expect a campaign that's better than previous iterations of Call of Duty. I wouldn't buy the game for the single player campaign alone but if you're going to pick up the game or you already have the game it's certainly worth playing.

Score: 8.5/10

Online play: One of the biggest parts of the Treyarch versions of Call of Duty is the Zombie mode. Though the core gameplay has stayed the same from World at War there are enough differences to make it feel different, unfortunately it doesn't feel different in a good way. The mode seems much less accessible than it did before though the mechanics stayed the same. I don't know if it's the maps you play on or it's the game itself but it just doesn't feel as fun to me. This is coming from someone that loved the Zombies in World at War also. At launch there are only two maps to play on and one you need to unlock by beating the story which may make some people angry when they only have one Zombie map to play on from the start.

When the next Treyarch game comes out I want to be able to customize my zombie games like they allowed us to customize our private matches. I want to be able to turn on infinite ammo or super speed and simply mow down zombies, obviously have these matches not count towards the online leaderboards. Let's hope we can see this in the next iteration of this game mode because right now it feels stale to me.

Let's start with the good which is the gameplay itself. This is definitely one of the most balanced Call of Duty games I've played. The player's health has been bumped back up where it was in Call of Duty 4 and the recoil makes so that it requires a little more skill to kill an enemy. Unlike Modern Warfare 2 I feel that the better players can succeed rather than the person with quick reflexes.

Most players will like hearing that killstreaks don't stack on top of each other, meaning that when you set dogs as your killstreak (it's an 11 killstreak) you will need to get 11 kills with your gun. If you have a helicopter and it gets you 5 kills they do not count towards your streak. This makes it so that killstreaks are much less overpowered than they were in previous games and it makes a bigger gap between the more experienced and less experienced players which is what I think Call of Duty needs to head toward after all this time. While I'm talking about killstreaks though prepared to get annoyed by the RC-XD. This thing is probably the most annoying killstreak ever since it's a 3 killstreak and it can go just about anywhere. That is the only killstreak in my mind that makes me angry when I die by it.

The one major difference that sets this game apart from the rest is the economy system. No longer do you need to use unwanted attachments to unlock the ones that you want which is nice. You earn your money called CoD points, yeah you read right. They honestly called their money CoD points. I bet that took them all of 2 seconds to think of, really creative guys. Anyway you earn these points by playing games, earning kills and taking out objectives. The system works great but I feel that it isn't used to its' full potential. Yeah you can buy guns and perks and attachments with your money but you still need to unlock the ability to buy the guns and customize options by leveling up, which to me defeats the purpose. It's a step in the right direction and a great first effort but it could be better.

With the new economy system came wager matches which allow you to bet other players with CoD points. There are 4 different types of wager match modes, each with a different goal and each being unique. One game for instance is called Sticks and Stones. In this gametype you get as many points as you can with a crossbow and ballistic knife. Guys at the top though need to constantly be aware though because getting killed with a tomahawk takes away all their points. These games can get pretty crazy and they're always fun when playing with friends. I normally just stick to the normal game modes but for someone that wants to earn some extra cash and is willing to take a risk or they simply want to have a laugh with friends these gametypes certainly offer it.

So the game introduces a new system and it also is one of the most balanced and fun Call of Dutys to date so why isn't it going to get a high score? Just read below to find out the bad.

Another new addition is dedicated servers. When I first heard this I was one of the happiest guys ever because nothing could have been worse than the constant host migrations in Modern Warfare 2......right? Wrong! The game is almost unplayable in its' current state. In the PS3 version of the game if you'll be lucky to play 2 straight games without the lobby closing in either the middle of the game or after the game finishes. It's the most frustrating thing in the world knowing that at any moment the game can randomly cut out. To add on to that though the game sometimes freezes the whole PS3 when it tries to connect to a new host!

So you may be thinking that that must be it, there's no way they can make it any worse. If you were thinking that you would once again be wrong, sorry. When you do get to play games I would bet money that you will only have full bar connection in about half of your games. Even when the search settings are set to finding players near your location only the servers just can't handle the game.

Treyarch needs to do something because right now in its' current state the online is really hard to enjoy. When you actually do get to play the game is extremely fun and I think it rivals Call of Duty 4's multiplayer with the perfect balance of fun for both newer and experienced players. The problem is though that getting into and staying in a game is a chore and overall makes it frustrating. Just a little tip, I wouldn't even try to get a party together because good luck finding a game.

Once the servers are fixed (I really hope they get fixed) I'll gladly delete the above information on the servers but right now it's such a big factor that it can't be ignored. The score I give for the multiplayer below will also change once the servers are fixed.

If you were going to buy this game for the online portion of the game like millions of others do and you have the opportunity to play it on the Xbox 360 do it. The online portion of the game works to perfection on the Xbox and the servers are fine.

Score: 5/10

Gameplay: Though changes have been made to the other aspects of the game there have been none made in this category. It's the same Call of Duty you know and love or to some people the same one that they know and are getting sick of. The missions are still full of action but this one is more full of action than the other games.

If you ever felt that Call of Duty was a little lacking on the pure run and gun action (I don't know why you would) then you'll be glad to hear that this game is cranked up to 11 on the action scale and it never lets up. Unfortunately it didn't resonate as well as I would have liked. I like games with a lot of action but this game is too over the top. Huge gun battle after huge gun battle with no breaks in the action eventually wear on you through the course of the game. Previous titles have had some different missions to break up the action but this one unfortunately doesn't.

There isn't any moment in the game that makes your jaw drop or anything that's worth writing home about but it does have its' fair share of big set piece scripted events. It's more of the same from this game and that's either a good thing or bad thing depending on who you are. For me the action is just a little too much and a little too frequent.

Score: 8/10