Issue 88, August 2007
Editor’s letter
June was a pretty bad month for videogames. The annual summer drought of decent titles began in earnest (Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer being a ‘highlight’ – sheesh!). And then games started making headline news for all the wrong reasons. First there was the debacle between Sony and the Church of England over the depiction of Manchester Cathedral in PS3 title Resistance: Fall of Man. And then there was Manhunt 2. You’ve no doubt heard that the game was refused a rating by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), meaning it’s illegal to sell it in the UK. Shortly afterwards the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) in the USA elected to rate the game Adults Only (AO) and, as is its policy with AO games, Sony refused publisher Rockstar a licence to release Manhunt 2 in the States. Uproar ensued among the gaming community, and many of you have written in to express your outrage at the decision. The heated debate has centred around censorship, freedom of choice and freedom of artistic expression. Flip the page and you’ll find our views on the affair. You may be surprised. Anyway, June was a bad month for videogames but when you read this issue, you’ll find things are getting much brighter. We’ve got exclusive playtests of this year’s Smackdown VS Raw title and Juiced 2, an exclusive review of Obscure 2, fresh news on GTA IV, a look at Guitar Hero Rocks the ‘80s, first details on Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 and much more besides.
Nick Ellis, Editor
Features
Rocking Back the Clock – Guitar Hero Rocks the ‘80s. To get in the mood, OPS2 form their own 80s hair metal band, DethKrab.
Mod Almighty – Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights
Monthly Article
Funny Nicknames – This month, how many Facebook friends do you have?
Your Game in Lights – Readers submit their own game ideas. This month, Bod of War, in which the 70s cartoon favourite goes on a bloody quest for revenge. Would Bod fight other classic cartoon characters like Bagpuss, Mr Benn or Roobarb and Custard, I wonder?
Google Fight – Two games or characters are pitted against each other via Google Fight. This month, Harry Potter thrashes Manhunt 2’s Daniel Lamb with 52,500,000 hits to 1,430,000.
Could be a Classic – This month, Dungeons and Dragons Tactics, allowing you to play Dungeons and Dragons on PSP, with strategic positioning crucial to success.
Replay – Part three of the Tomb Raider: Anniversary walkthrough and a Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix walkthrough, online reviews for SOCOM US Navy SEALs: Fireteam Bravo 2 and Smash Court Tennis 3 and what the other mags said about Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Naruto: Uzumaki Chronicles, Raw Danger! and Driver 76.
Playstation Education – Demonstrating various examples of a certain item in PS2 games. This month, angry men.
Monitor
Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror – “More Syphon Filter is always welcome on PS2, and with enhanced visuals and sound, we can forgive the lack of online multiplayer in this PSP port.” Boiling
Moto GP 2007 – “With SBK-07’s developer at the controls, this year’s Moto GP is showing all the signs of a sequel that could be genuinely different and more than a lacklustre update.” Hot
The Golden Compass – “With such fantastic source material, developer Shiny has all the substance it needs to craft a fine PS2 adventure game. Let’s pray they do Pullman proud.” Hot
The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night – “The second part of Spyro’s trilogy promises to be a slick, action-packed ride that’s designed to entertain rather than really challenge. Camp but cute fun for the kids.” Hot
Ben 10: Protector of Earth – “The subject matter suggests this could be a cut above the usual cartoon tie-in, so hopefully the developer has got its act together since its last PS2 releases.” Warm
ATV Offroad Fury 4 – “The series may have sold millions, but the earlier games were distinctly tepid – this looks like being the one to bring the world of ATV racing to a raging climax.” Boiling
Cars Mater-National – “We wouldn’t normally ask for much from a film tie-in. But Rainbow delivered last time and now we want more – and better. And kids can be even more demanding than us…” Hot
Dawn of Mana – “Beautiful and packed with energetic, physics-a-go-go combat; but the overemphasis on action could hold back Mana’s fresh approach to RPG adventuring.” Warm
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3 – “More of the same, we suspect, but then that’s no bad thing considering how nice the previous versions are. Still, we can’t help but wish for something more…” Hot
Wipeout Pulse – “There will be plenty on offer for hardcore Wipeout fans in Pulse, but the old and rather dated formula is unlikely to garner much favour with newcomers.” Warm
King of Clubs – “It’ll never measure up to the comical joy and technical challenge of Everybody’s Golf, but tweak the bland settings and stillborn humour and it could be worth a tee or two.” Warm
Time Crisis 4 – “The wheel isn’t being reinvented here, but that suits us just fine. We’re just glad to be back behind the cross-hairs in a game that will stand up even if you don’t have a HDTV.” Boiling
PS2 Reviews
Obscure 2 – “Nightmarish, gut-wrenching and frustrating, but still a tempting prospect as long as you’re not looking for the next Resident Evil 4.” 7/10
Transformers – “With this subject matter it could’ve been great, but all the noise and effects in the galaxy can’t disguise the lack of invention or class.” 5/10
King of Fighters XI – “It’s getting on a bit, but judged on its own merits, this year’s King of Fighters is a solid addition to the series.” 6/10
King of Fighters: Maximum Impact 2 – “Not the most stylish fighter, but those desperately seeking a bruising helping of Tekken-lite action should look here.” 7/10
Metal Slug Anthology – “There is no argument. The Metal Slug games are cult classics and this collection offers the entire series for just £15. Bargain.” 8/10
Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam – “Without motion-sensitive controls, Downhill Jam is a shallow (albeit somewhat enjoyable) game marred by some irritating bugs.” 6/10
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer – “The How-To guide on how to murder a solid licence, the only thing this game succeeds at is being even worse than its predecessor.” 3/10
Shrek the Third – “Its unique sense of humour and well-rounded characters make this one to consider for a kid’s birthday present.” 6/10
The Shield – “Fans of the show might want to give it a quick rental, but everyone else: consider yourselves warned and watch the TV show instead.” 4/10
Hitman Triple Pack – “This box set is an absolute bargain, worth it for Blood Money alone – think of the previous titles as interactive historical extras.” 8/10
Lucinda Green’s Equestrian Challenge – “Too dull even to be worth buying as a gift for a horse-mad little girl. Spend the cash on a couple of hours’ pony trekking instead.” 4/10
PSP Reviews
Hard Rock Casino – “Possibly worth buying as a portable tutorial for those adults who fancy trying their luck in a real casino, but otherwise, no.” 4/10
Tomb Raider: Anniversary – “As a port, it does the job. But the convulsive controls and lack of new features makes TRA for PSP only an optional extra to the PS2 experience.” 6/10
Parappa the Rapper – “Parappa is just as refreshing today as he was 10 years ago, though somewhat hampered by the PSP’s control scheme.” 7/10
Disc Content
Playable Demos
King of Clubs
Viewtiful Joe 2
World Rally Championship 4
V Rally 3
Project Zero
Ghosthunter
Worms 3D
Sly 2: Band of Thieves
Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon
Micro Machines
Trivia
* After taking last year’s WWE cover off, the divas are back. There’s only one this year, though.
* The Editor’s Letter hints at it, but OPS2 were in favour of the decision to ban Manhunt 2 in an article that is unusually serious for them. When Nick said in the last issue that playing the game gave him horrible nightmares, he wasn’t joking.
* The Viewtiful Joe 2 demo is an interesting one, because despite being an older game, this is actually its first appearance on the disc. On release, Viewtiful Joe 2 was the cause of controversy when the demo that appeared on an American demo disc contained a severe game-breaking bug that wiped your memory card if you played it. Presumably, the delay before it appeared on a UK disc was to fix the bug.
* The results of the Writer Face Off are in, and Mike wins, with 3 readers agreeing with him about Final Fantasy XII being a bad game, compared to only 1 siding with Kim in liking it.
* The Hitman Triple Pack review re-reviews the three games that form the collection, as well as providing an overall score. Blood Money maintains its 9/10 score, but Hitman 2 and Chronicles are deemed to have aged poorly due to their overambition and their scores are dropped to 6/10.
* This issue was supposed to see the debut of the new look, but that was delayed to issue 90. In retrospect, it would have been nice had it debuted here, because then we could have had a full year with the final design.
Quote of the Month: “Faster, boy, play faster!” The peril of having to review a major game when it comes in just before deadline. The Transformers publisher knew what they were doing.
Cover price: £5.99
Page Count: 130
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