Issue 54, Christmas 2004
Editor’s letter
In Superman: The Movie, Christopher Reeve’s (RIP) boy-scout-with-powers hero turns back time to save Lois Lane’s life by flying really fast around the world, thus spinning it the wrong way. Neat trick, and all you need to do it yourself is the ability to fly at the speed of light.
Apparently, though, this wouldn’t really work. Science (well Google) says no. All that would happen is that the sun would rise and set from west to east, instead of the other way round.
My answer to this is: screw science. According to science you can’t fly, or have lasers for eyes or X-ray vision and you certainly can’t have them all and still hold down a job as a mild-mannered reporter on a daily newspaper. See what I mean? Sometimes you have to ignore the logical conclusion of cause and effect. For instance, you might assume that because every Batman game and most of the movies have stunk all the way to Krypton and back, that Batman Begins will be another licensing offence against gaming. We’re prepared to believe that the Bat will finally get the game he deserves. Go have a look and see what you think.
Anyway, enjoy all the free stuff in the bag and I’ll see you back here on Thursday, 30 Dec for some New Year’s celebrations. Well, the sort that involves reading about games anyway.
Richard Keith, Editor
Features
The Intimidation Game – Batman Begins
Where History Gets Interesting – Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
The American Dream – Scarface: The World is Yours
Monthly Articles
Funny Nicknames – This month, what everyone wants for Christmas.
Could Be a Classic – An original non-sequel gets some focus. This month, The Regiment, effectively the British equivalent of Rainbow Six, starring the SAS.
Replay – Revisiting Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005 and Soul Calibur 2, reader reviews for Obscure and Star Wars Battlefront, cheats for Need for Speed Underground 2, Ratchet and Clank 3, Lord of the Rings: The Third Age and Def Jam: Fight for New York, a walkthrough for The Getaway: Black Monday and an online review for Burnout 3: Takedown.
OPS2 Investigates – This month, Gentle Ben Richardson visits a Vice City-themed disco night. It’s not all about San Andreas, you know!
Back page list – This month, 9 reasons why videogame bosses are better than the real thing.
Monitor
Project: Snowblind – “We continue to be impressed. There’s a real drive to create a fluid FPS with depth of gameplay to match the furious shootery. We hope its arrival in a packed field of fraggers doesn’t rob it of the attention it deserves.” Boiling
Monster Hunter – “While we wish Monster Hunter was totally free-roaming between missions, we’ve had a great visit. Get a group of hunters together and the game really takes off. It’s no wonder dinosaurs are extinct, this is fun.” Hot
Destroy All Humans! – “Pandemic is rapidly marking itself as one of the most talented games developers working on Playstation 2. We can’t wait to begin our probing of rednecks early next year.” Meltdown
Timesplitters: Future Perfect – “It’s still one of our most wanted games of 2005, which pretty much says it all. Still tightly polished and well designed – and that innovative map maker (think of the possibilities) just sweetens the deal.” Meltdown
Enthusia – “If Konami really is creating handling to match the very pretty visuals then Enthusia should make for a quality alternative to the daddy of driving simulators. It’s about time GT had some serious competition…” Hot
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater – “Kojima’s yet to disappoint with an MGS game and we’re confident the man won’t disappoint with MGS3. That said, this playtest has raised our alert status more than we’d like. For now we wait and hope…” Boiling
The Punisher – “The ultra-violence and homicidal way Frank goes about the vigilante business gives The Punisher a bloodthirsty twist but at heart it’s a simplistic Max Payne-style shooter, and we’re not sure if that’s enough.” Hot
NARC – “NARC has an interesting setup, but – in light of other more dependable crime games – it will have to produce more evidence of something special if it’s going to be a major player next year.” Warm
Super Monkey Ball Deluxe – “Play the main game for a thrillingly original and intense experience. Then unwind with 12 utterly superb monkey-filled mini-games, several of which are worth the price of admission on their own.” Boiling
Area 51 – “It’s clever, funny and hugely satisfying. Unfairly, other big shooters have managed to overshadow Area 51, so let’s be thankful that you can sink your teeth into it once the dust has settled in April.” Boiling
25 to Life – “Ignore the GTA comparisons, 25 to Life is more a fast-paced SOCOM-style shooter that’s swapped tattooed thugs for soldiers. It’s all about the gameplay, though, and we’ll have a full report for you very soon.” Hot
God of War – “Think of this one as Devil May Cry versus Prince of Persia, as directed by the steady hands of Ray Harryhausen. OPS2 will be campaigning for a UK release from here on – let’s wait and see what happens, eh.” Boiling
Reviews
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – “Rockstar has taken a genre-defining game and lifted it higher than we thought possible. Genius is the only word for it.” 10/10
Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude – “Parts of Larry are funny. But gags are spread too thinly between a series of uninnovative parlour games. For desperadoes only…” 5/10
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within – “The darker focus is just an OTT sheen. Beneath the surface you’ll find the prince is on incredible form. It’s one hell of a game.” 9/10
Backyard Wrestling 2: There Goes the Neighbourhood – “More like a particularly dodgy fighter than a wrestling game – and short on options as well. Get Def Jam or Smackdown! instead.” 4/10
Goldeneye: Rogue Agent – “A disappointingly bland effort – not a patch on the ancient GoldenEye or the PS2’s big FPS hitters Killzone and Timesplitters.” 6/10
.Hack/Quarantine – “Kudos to Bandai for an original idea, but wringing £160 out of people for four identical games? None of which were very good? That ain’t right.” 3/10
Spyro: A Hero’s Tail – “A perfectly pleasant and competent platformer that’s sadly outshone in practically every department by numerous other efforts.” 6/10
Gadget and the Gadgetinis – “Gadget fan or not, there are better, slicker ways for infant gamers to get their jollies. They deserve much better than this.” 3/10
The Incredibles – “A Faberge Egg of a game (nice looking, hollow inside) with nothing new to see but not the total disaster it could have been.” 6/10
Outlaw Golf 2 – “The focus on tits, ass and violence dulls the overall effect, but ignore it and there’s a rewarding game mechanic to be enjoyed.” 8/10
Knight Rider 2 – “A car combat game that’s a mindless and pointless piece of licence milking, even for consummate Hasselhoff stalkers.” 3/10
Blowout – “It may wear the old skool shooter clothes but it has none of the swagger. Contra: Shattered Soldier is older, but far better.” 4/10
The Urbz: Sims in the City – “So much more accessible than previous Sims games, The Urbz is a brave step out of the usual format that pays off in spades.” 8/10
Guilty Gear X2 Reload – “Hardcore as a heavily mascara’d housewife in a field of donkeys, but there’s still a good game here if you can manage to stomach it.” 6/10
Duel Masters: Limited Edition – “However popular the TV show, Duel Masters: LE is unlikely to convert anyone not already versed in the ways of card battling.” 5/10
The Dukes of Hazzard: The Return of the General Lee – “Slippery physics manage to badly let down what we’re sure would otherwise be a cheap and pretty likeable TV tie-in.” 5/10
Digimon Rumble Arena 2 – “An adequate fan pleaser, but a spectacularly ordinary experience for the rest of us, which is directly due to its multiple shortcomings.” 5/10
Crash ‘n’ Burn – “Provides some knockabout fun for a while, but drab presentation and simplistic – yet awkward – races means it never grips.” 5/10
Mega Man X: Command Mission – “A sadly linear action RPG, which is only enlivened by some great combat touches and the Mega Man character himself.” 6/10
Godzilla: Save the Earth – “Screamingly average monster battler that doesn’t do the Godzilla licence justice. Fine for an hour or two, but no keeper.” 5/10
Dancing Stage Fusion – “If you already own a Dancing Stage game or Singstar, then there’s little point in this. Newcomers may want to climb aboard, though.” 6/10
Disney Move – “A very limited and uninspiring collection of simple excuses to flap about like an idiot. A shocking waste of a perfect licence.” 4/10
Disc Content
Playable Demos
The Getaway: Black Monday
Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
Eyetoy Play 2
Dancing Stage Fusion
Footage
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
Devil May Cry 3
Area 51
Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition
Gran Turismo 4
Singstar Party
Eyetoy Chat
Goal of the Month
Name the Game – Footage from five different games, and you have to guess what they are!
Online leagues for SOCOM 2: US Navy SEALs, Formula 1 2004, Hardware Online Arena and This is Football 2004
The Making of Tony Hawk’s Underground 2
Game Saves
Primal
The Getaway
The Mark of Kri
Ratchet and Clank 2
Onimusha 2
Enter the Matrix
XIII
007: Nightfire
WWE Smackdown! Shut Your Mouth
Silent Hill 3
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
SSX 3
Final Fantasy X2
Medal of Honor: Rising Sun
Beyond Good and Evil
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
Hitman: Contracts
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
Trivia
* This issue came with a 2005 preview magazine, in which the whole team got the dressing up box out (The highlight being Ben Richardson in a leather jacket and his underwear, which was printed again in a later issue). My copy of this issue came from Ebay, so unfortunately, I don’t have the preview magazine and can’t go into any more depth on it. If anyone else can elaborate, it would be much appreciated.
* This issue’s In the Fade (the current incarnation of the OPS2-O-Meter) is dedicated to various moments from San Andreas. The jetpack is at the top of the positive side, and rightly so.
* There’s a missing preview this month, as Blood Will Tell (which has since become one of PS2’s rarest and most expensive games) is listed in the contents as being on page 47, but it’s not there. At least the review isn’t far off.
* The one concern in the God of War preview is the boss battles being quick-time events, a feature that went on to be iconic of the series. I’m assuming the concern was down to the implication that these would be the whole battle, and not just the finishing move as in the final game.
* I associate Prince of Persia: Warrior Within with Jak 2 and Shadow the Hedgehog as the trinity of formerly-family-friendly-franchises (try saying that five times fast) that underwent grimdark makeovers to try and appeal to edgy teenagers. Prince of Persia is both the most extreme and the most shameless in this regard, as the decision was fuelled by the disappointing sales of The Sands of Time and caused creator Jordan Mechner to leave the series because he disagreed with the new direction. Still, it was worth it for the comic where the Prince smoulders with generic rage.
* Do Mega Man fans call themselves Mega Maniacs? If not, they should. It’s quite the catchy moniker.
* This disc has a secret game on it, a scrolling shooter named Frenz-E, in the vein of the Net Yaroze games on the old PSOne demo discs. Bad news, I couldn’t find where it was hidden. Good news, it’s on the next disc too, and no longer hidden!
Quote of the Month: “Fruit is dangerous, and anyone who offers it wants to hurt you.” Inspector Gadget’s origin story involves stepping on a banana peel. Robocop wishes that’s all it took for him to be turned into a cyborg.
Cover price: £5.99
Page Count: 146
No comments:
Post a Comment