Issue 55, January 2005
Editor’s letter
The first time we saw Mercenaries – and we were the first mag to see it – we knew developer Pandemic was onto something special (“It’s like GTA, but in a warzone” were the actual words our correspondent used.) And in the nine or so months since then we’ve been tracking it and hoping that it wouldn’t be another game where promise is lost to necessity and it’s rushed out all unfinished and sorry for itself. So we weren’t just happy, we were relieved, when the finished game arrived and lived up to all our expectations.
But you don’t have to take our word for it. All you have to do is pop the DVD in your PS2 and try it for yourself with what might well be the best demo we’ve ever run. Just remember to go back and play it again once you’ve finished the mission because there’s a whole world of fun to be had.
Once you’ve played it, I’m sure you’ll agree Mercenaries kicks off 2005 with a bang and, as you’ll see in Monitor, it isn’t going to stop there. It hardly seems like any time at all since I was saying the same about 2004 and, as our round-up of the year shows, it’s been that, and more. In fact, it’s been the best year ever. It’s a great time to be a PS2 gamer. Enjoy it and I’ll see you back here on Thursday, 27 January.
Richard Keith, Editor
Features
It’s Here! – OPS2 receive a PSP from Sony, following the handheld’s Japanese release on December 12, 2004. It’s in this issue that the PSP coverage really picks up steam, with a run-down of many of the games planned for the system, as well as its capabilities and features.
The Next Big Things – A look at some of the new trends of 2005’s gaming crop, including originality, celebrity voiceovers, urban and more adult content, among others.
The 20 Best Games of 2004 – A retrospective feature counting down the 20 best games of 2004. I’m surprised it took the magazine this long to do something like this. Anyway, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is number 1, accompanied by CJ saying “You could at least look like you’re surprised.”
Monthly Articles
Funny Nicknames – This month, the highlights of 2004.
Could Be a Classic – An original non-sequel gets some focus. This month, sticky ball-rolling favourite Katamari Damacy.
Replay – Revisiting Spider-Man 2 and Transformers, reader reviews for Sly 2: Band of Thieves and Burnout 3: Takedown, cheats for Jak 3, Prince of Persia: Warrior Within, Killzone and WWE Smackdown VS Raw, online reviews for WWE Smackdown VS Raw and TOCA Race Driver 2, and two new monthly sections for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Pro Evolution Soccer 4, titled The Crib and The Boot Room.
OPS2 Investigates – This month, five budget games get put through their paces in Supermarket Sweep.
Back page list – This month, 10 desirables properties in the PS2 estate agent’s window.
Monitor
Playboy: The Mansion – “Shamefully, we must report that Playboy: The Mansion is vaguely saucy, but only in a ‘The Sims goes softcore’ kinda way. We need to spend more time with the software before evaluating its merits fully. Ahem.” Hot
Phantom Brave – “Limitless combinations, months of gameplay and abnormally large heads. RPG gold, essentially.” Hot
Rumble Roses – “Behind the heaving woman flesh lies a surprisingly accomplished wrestling game that offers a fair amount of depth and variety. Only time, though, will reveal whether it’s a classic or a one-weekend wonder.” Hot
Constantine – “A third-person horror game with the emphasis on action rather than survival. It feels like Max Payne and might not give Resi anything to worry about, but it’s certainly looking respectable enough in its own right.” Hot
Timesplitters: Future Perfect – “We loved the Mapmaker from Splitters 2, but the new version is far superior. It places real power and creativity into the hands of gamers and will have your broadband pipes groaning long into the night.” Meltdown
Ace Combat: Squadron Leader – “Ace Combat looks incredibly sharp, and although the play mechanics will be familiar to veterans, those who haven’t sampled the series before will find it a largely refreshing experience.” Boiling
Devil May Cry 3 – “Capcom has assembled a pleasingly freaky supporting cast for Devil May Cry 3, and everything points to this being a major return to form for Satan’s favourite action series. Watch this space…” Boiling
Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory – “It’s easy to take Splinter Cell’s continuing brilliance for granted, but with better visuals, less trial and error, amid the joy of knifing pinko scumbags, Chaos Theory looks set to take the series into classic territory.” Boiling
FIFA Street – “It’s impossible to tell until we play it, but we’re mildly optimistic that FIFA Street could fill the gap in the football genre that’s marked ‘arcade-centric footie game with strong visuals and no burning balls.’.” Hot
Shadow of Rome – “Every time we see Shadow of Rome it just gets better, and the humour is starting to shine through. Slice off an enemy’s arms and you’ll receive a special ‘Disarm’ combo message. We can’t wait.” Boiling
Cold Fear – “Cold Fear delivers much more than we expected and is shaping up to be a real horror treat. In fact we’d go so far as to say that Resident Evil 4 might want to watch out. We can’t wait to dive in. Hah!” Boiling
Tenchu: Fatal Shadows – “Tenchu seems to be trying to learn some new tricks, and it’ll need them to take on MGS3 and Splinter Cell.” Hot
Commandos Strike Force – “Another FPS set in the conflict equivalent of black, WW2. It never goes out of style. With so much choice right now this one might have to fight if it wants to survive the upcoming onslaught.” Hot
Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks – “It’s early days, but if the potential for exploring the MK world in a plot-driven game can be harnessed – and if Midway delivers on its gameplay promises – this could set the series back on bloodied track.” Hot
Final Fantasy XII – “Let’s hope the game shines like the visuals.” Hot
Reviews
Mercenaries – “What a way to start 2005. Near-limitless in its scope and power, Mercenaries is the first brilliant game of the year – don’t miss it.” 9/10
Miami Vice – “Like a big Dyson sucking your soul out of your nostrils, Miami Vice is franchise abuse of the highest order. Absolute tripe.” 2/10
Ghost Recon 2 – “Ghost Recon 2 comes within a bullet’s width of brilliance, but the inability to save during missions is a total nonsense.” 6/10
King Arthur – “A tedious telling of the Arthurian legend, and a game which is uninteresting without ever being downright poor. Dull, dull, dull.” 5/10
Scaler – “Destined to be overlooked in favour of bigger, better games, Scaler is nonetheless a pleasant slice of platforming.” 6/10
Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events – “Riddled with witty writing and excellent characters, but essentially it’s short, easy, and wholly unsurprising.” 5/10
Power Rangers: Dino Thunder – “Rangerettes might be temporarily roused with interest, otherwise it’s really not worth any of your time, money or patience.” 4/10
Spongebob Squarepants: Movin’ with Friends – “The usual Eyetoy games dressed in different pants. Not really a bad collection, but no real stand-out titles, either.” 6/10
Syberia II – “Ponderous to the point of expiration: this is a nail in the adventure genre’s coffin that’s best left out in the cold.” 4/10
Garfield – “You’re an unfunny wiseass cat cleaning up a house. In real time. We can’t even begin to sum up how pointless this ‘game’ is.” 2/10
Fight Club – “If the first rule of Fight Club is you do not talk about Fight Club, then that’s fine by us. It’s best for all to pretend this never existed.” 5/10
Junior Sports Basketball – “All very well if you like your sports sims to be frantic, pointless and drastically unrewarding. Save your cash for NBA Street instead.” 4/10
GT Racers – “Short of illiteracy or raging madness, we can see no logical reason why this game should be bought. Even by accident.” 1/10
Call of Duty: Finest Hour – “Fresher, fiercer and graphically finer than Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, Call of Duty suffers in the final push from a lack of heart.” 8/10
Euro Rally Champion – “It’s highly unlikely that there was any point in the history of time that this would have been an acceptable videogame.” 3/10
Intellivision Lives: The History of Videogaming – “Just because the Intellivision system deserves a place in videogame history, it doesn’t mean you should be playing it in 2005.” 2/10
Disc Content
Playable Demos
Mercenaries
Rumble Roses
Mashed
Burnout 3: Takedown
Killzone
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
Pro Evolution Soccer 4
Frenz-E
Footage
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Haunting Ground
Destroy All Humans!
Ace Combat: Squadron Leader
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
Online leagues for Formula 1 2004, Hardware Online Arena, SOCOM 2: US Navy SEALs and This is Football 2004
Goal of the Month
The Making of Tony Hawk’s Underground 2
The Making of Call of Duty: Finest Hour
Trivia
* Issue 47 may have been the first one I read, but this issue was the first one I bought for myself. From here on in, I bought the magazine every month for the rest of its run.
* This issue has 4 variant covers – one for each mercenary individually, and the fourth with all three of them together.
* This is the first issue for Leon Hurley as a core team member.
* The Mashed demo on this month’s demo disc is special, as it’s not a repeat of the previous demo, as you would have expected from the disc’s best of 2004 theme. Instead, it’s a brand new DLC level for the game! What’s more, if you own a copy of Mashed, you can replace the demo disc with it while playing the Mashed demo, and if you do, the demo won’t end, allowing you to play the new level to your heart’s content.
* A game called Dealer: Chronic, Pills and Coke is mentioned, and the promotional art is trashed with the comment “We’re hoping the drawing board catches fire before the idea is given a chance to escape.” This was the first and last time the game was mentioned, so maybe it did?
* This issue gives us the blursed sight of the Incredible Hulk wearing a tutu.
* I’m inclined to think that the developers of Fight Club didn’t get the memo that the film isn’t really about fighting, despite what the name may suggest.
* One of the games in the Supermarket Sweep feature, International Golf Pro, was previously reviewed in Issue 47, where it scored a respectable 7/10.
Quote of the Month: “Imagine eating a huge, honey-roasted turkey with all the trimmings, then following it up a few hours later with a microwaved dog turd.” Driv3r’s fortunes go from bad to worse now that San Andreas is out.
Cover price: £5.99
Page Count: 146
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