Issue 97 (April 2008)

                                                                  Issue 97, April 2008

Editor’s letter
       There’s a lot to be said for giving things a second chance. Take our cover game, Size Matters, for example.
       A couple of months back, we slammed developers for making lazy ports from PSP to PS2, but right now we’re more than happy to welcome Ratchet and Clank back onto PS2.
       Why? Because a great game is a great game, regardless of what format it’s on, and providing it’s handled with care, why shouldn’t the game be ported to other systems?
       Same goes for Silent Hill Origins. Why should non-PSP owners be denied the opportunity to see where Konami’s now legendary series began? That’s right, they shouldn’t.
       Alone in the Dark? Started life as a PS3 game, but now it’s shambling onto PS2 – check out how the game is shaping up on p28.
       Now, if Sony would indulge us and port God of War: Chains of Olympus and Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow over from PSP, I’d be very grateful.
                                                        Andy Hartup, Acting Editor

Feature
Playing Dirty – Off Road

Monthly Articles
Google Fight – Game characters or series battle it out via Google Fight. This month, The Simpsons beats Futurama, with 69,000,000 hits to 12,300,000. At least Futurama gets the consolation prize of having a higher score than most previous winners.

Mouth Piece – A staff member gives their view on a particular topic. This month, Kim asks if games need celebrity voices.

The World According to Playstation – Various locations around a specific theme. This month, monsters.

Reader Reviews – This month, Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria, Devil May Cry, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories and Sega Mega Drive Collection.

Your Game in Lights – Readers submit their own game ideas. This month, two of the PS2’s platformer trinity team up for Ratchet and Clank and Jak and Daxter (I guess Sly Cooper is being saved for the sequel), Penguin Adventures, in which you collect snowballs and avoid seals, Toy Soldiers, a war game with toys, and Fur Fighters 2: Friend or Fur.

The Level – Celebrating the PS2’s best levels. This month, 2,000,000 Leagues Under the Sea from Viewtiful Joe.

The PS2 Games you Should Own – PS2 cult classics. This month, Legacy of Kain: Defiance.

The Greatest – This month, baldies.

Unsung Hero – PS2’s best characters. This month, Guybrush Threepwood from Monkey Island.

OPS2-O-Meter – Measuring games along a certain theme. This month, thugs.

Scene Stealer – PS2’s best scenes. This month, meeting the Bound Man from Project Zero.

Where the Hell is? – Honourable mentions for the Hall of Fame. This month, Grimgrimoire.

Brief History – This month, Ratchet and Clank.

Collector’s Item – Gaming merchandise. This month, a controller modelled on Yuna’s guns from Final Fantasy X2.

Great Game Ingredients – What goes into the best games? This month, Disgaea.

Top 10 – This month, ridiculous names.

Playstation Workout – Get into a gaming genre through four games of increasing difficulty. This month, kids games. Easy – Eyetoy Play: Astro Zoo. Medium – Winnie the Pooh’s Rumbly Tumbly Adventure. Hard – Buzz Junior: Monster Rumble. Killer – Ape Escape 3.

Top Chumps – PS2’s worst characters. This month, Ashley from Resident Evil 4.

The Year in Playstation – This month, 2002. The Best – Timesplitters 2. The Worst – Reign of Fire. Underrated – Space Channel 5. Overhyped – Stuntman. Forgotten – Sly Cooper. Never Again! – Britney’s Dance Beat.

Playstation Education – Demonstrating various examples of a certain item in PS2 games. This month, boobs. People were still angry over the Babe-o-Meter, and they do this? They probably weren’t concerned about backlash at this point, since the magazine was ending imminently anyway.

Split Screen – Playing a game two different ways. This month, Resident Evil 4 in valiant and fearless styles.

Previews
Silent Hill Origins
Alone in the Dark
SBK-08 Superbike World Championship
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam
Ghostbusters
Resistance 2
Damnation
TNA Impact
Lego Indiana Jones
Lego Batman
Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law

PS2 Reviews
Ratchet and Clank: Size Matters – “An engaging and highly enjoyable romp. Size Matters is a welcome return to form for Ratchet and Clank.” 9/10

Sega Superstars Tennis – “A solid serving of tennis-lite, but in the face of Everybody’s Tennis, can only really be recommended to the Sega hardcore.” 7/10

Fire Pro Wrestling Returns – “There’s no finer grap game out there. At £20, this deserves to be bought and adored by every PS2-owning wrestling fan.” 9/10

Odin Sphere – “Exceptional in looks, sound and story, Odin Sphere has all the makings of an instant cult classic. Everyone who owns a PS2 should at least give it a try.” 9/10

Naruto: Uzumaki Chronicles 2 – “The weakest title yet from the Naruto series. It feels unsurprisingly familiar, and lacks any real punch.” 6/10

El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Riviera – “Pointless, boring and annoying: a one-idea game that’s so difficult it’ll make your kids hate themselves.” 4/10

Ar Tonelico: Melody of Elemia – “An average RPG that could’ve been so much more if Gust hadn’t ignored their solid ideas and focused on the ‘sexy’ innuendo.” 5/10

Buzz! The Pop Quiz – “Entertaining, but anyone familiar with the series will find nothing new here. Disappointing.” 6/10

PSP Reviews
God of War: Chains of Olympus – “An unmissable, epic adventure that’s as dramatic as any of Kratos’ full-sized games.” 10/10

Flatout: Head On – “A stupendous game you really must own, even if you don’t like cars.” 9/10

Patapon – “Gets repetitive after a while, but overall a charming, crazy treat.” 8/10

PS3 Reviews
Army of Two – “Likable as its twin leads are, AOT’s gameplay is hobbled by unbalanced guns and AI that’s far too sharp to be fun.” 6/10

Lost – “In its attempt not to spoil the TV show, Lost on PS3 simply skirts all the good stuff.” 5/10

Blacksite: Area 51 – “What could have been a decent shooter is crippled by big technical problems.” 5/10

Disc Content
Playable Demos
Okami
Crash of the Titans
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Arthur and the Invisibles
We Heart Katamari
The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer
Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil
Wallace and Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit
The Simpsons Hit and Run
Tak and the Power of Juju
Bionicle Heroes
Dark Cloud

Trivia
* I’m surprised it took this long for Ratchet and Clank to make the cover, but better late than never.
* This is the final issue for Mike Sterry. On a larger level, Phil Harrison also departed from Sony this month.
* At this late stage, there isn’t much news left to report on, and more rumours and speculation are needed. As such, Yoshinori Ono saying that Street Fighter IV doesn’t need high-quality graphics to be fun becomes “Street Fighter IV confirmed for Wii!”, which then leads into a campaign for a PS2 version, in a stretch that Dhalsim would be proud of.
* Gaydar: This month, Daniel Gay muses on the nature of art.
* With three games scoring 9/10, this month is the strongest review section we’ve had in a while, even more so than Persona 3, which had to carry its review section.
* Sadly, Fire Pro Wrestling Returns wasn’t released in the UK. The European version was only released in Italy, Spain and Portugal.

Quote of the Month: “Just don’t think about the human fist writhing around in his skull.” I’ve now ruined Kermit the Frog for you forever. You’re welcome!

Cover price: £5.99
Page Count: 114