BigFooty Reviews

[Kerrby]

Hi and welcome to BigFooty Reviews, where the community gets their say. First of all I would like to welcome all of you to post your opinion in your review and let your voices be heard.

All of your posted review will be hyperlinked from the index post going straight to your review. It's that simple!! Your reviews can be from, PlayStation 2, across to the Xbox 360 or even a PC game. You can even review consoles such as the Wii. One last thing, if you're going to write a review it HAS to be over 100 words. There's nothing worse than an unfinished review.

Index

Sony​

Playstation 2 -

Playstation 3 -
Assassins Creed - 6.5/10 by HBK619
Burnout Paradise - 8/10 by HBK619
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - 9.7/10 by HBK619
FIFA 2008 - 9.5/10 by Frantelle
Flower - 10/10 by HBK619
GTA IV - 9.5/10 By scooterb
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - 9.4/10 by HBK619


Playstation Portable -

Microsoft​

Xbox -

Xbox 360 -
Mass Effect - 8/10 By Eggman

Nintendo​

Wii -

Nintendo Wii Console Review - 6.5/10 by Kerrby

PC​

 

[Kerrby]

Spare post.

 

[Kerrby]

Nintendo Wii Console - 6.5/10 by Kerrby​

Most people claim that the Wii has revolutionised the gaming industry. With it's motion-sensored 'Wii-Mote', it's hyped up the be the future of gaming.

The Nintendo Wii has had massive debates over whether or not it's a Next Gen console. Stacked up to it's competitors, it's actually doing quite well. Lets just check out the worldwide sales figures as of writing this review:

Wii: 27.09M consoles sold.
Xbox 360: 18.99M consoles sold.
PS3: 13.11M consoles sold. (source: VGCharts)

It seems the Wii is doing pretty well.

Games: The most important thing about a console. This is where the Wii falls down hard. Let me just select the first random game that pops up.

Hamster Heroes. After searching through stacks of games for the Wii, I found that most of them are for kids the age of 10. How is Nintendo making profit when games like Hamster Heroes is on the market. I'm completly shocked at how the Wii keep making sales(infact has made as many sales as it has now).

I have 25 Wii games, 13 which are G, 5 which are PG, 6 which are M and 1 which is MA. I go out looking for a good game which isn't for kids and every time I end up coming back with G games. It's not that I like G games, its that there's no selection.

Hardware: There was a recent article stating that the original Xbox is actually more powerful than the Wii. Checking the specifications, this is actually true. In the article it states that the Xbox wouldn't be able to run Super Mario Galaxy, even though it's more powerful.

The Xbox 360 and the PS3 have High Definition graphics which look amazing, while the Wii has graphics that look unfinished.

Overall the Wii lacks A LOT of features compared to the other consoles but it still goes the dinstance according to sales. I wouldn't call the Wii a waste of money, I would just call it a disappointment. I have followed the Nintendo scene almost since it started and to see how far it's come is really nice to see. If you want to compare the Wii with the PS3 or Xbox 360 then be prepared to be massivly disappointed.

Naming a console after something you do in a toilet is big mistake. Before getting called the Wii, Nintendo were going to call this console "Nintendo Dolphin". Both names are unusual for a console but seem to be big hits.

If you're thinking of buying a Wii, I suggest you don't unless you're after the looks of it. With the PS3 and Xbox 360 coming down in price and the Xbox 360 almost the same price as the Wii, you will sorely disappointed if you choose the Wii.

 

[Eggman]

Mass Effect - 8/10 By Eggman​

Developer BioWare has always been at the forefront of progressive storytelling in games, so it's no surprise that Mass Effect's story is one of its best yet. It's got a unique take on the chase-the-bad-guy-across-the-universe plot, and just when you think you've got everything figured out, the game throws you yet another surprise. BioWare has created a politically charged universe with an exhaustive backstory and filled it with a bunch of interesting, multifaceted characters. Combined with an exciting and unique combat mechanic, it makes for a fun and absorbing experience that you'll want to see through to the end, just to see how everything turns out--even if the game isn't perfect by any means. In fact, it's surprising that so many small annoyances and glitches made their way into a game of such general high quality. Still, most players will be able to look past them and enjoy Mass Effect for what it is: A terrific role-playing game with great production values and fun, exciting action.

Graphics-Quality besides the odd flicker of lime green. But everything seems to work so well with the surrounding space and the hyperjumps. The acid from the bullets and and the bodies disapating into aire is really well done. As for the facial features, Quality, down to the finest and smallest dimple.

The guns are basic, they are space guns, there blocky and should be more refined.

Gameplay-Havn't gone wrong here. Execpt the repeativness of the missions and the lack of control in the macco then it is top notch. Using you power can be an over advantage against The Geth and the fact that there is only 2 real bosses. And personaly i think there should be more ship missions.

When you start you choose a class and then your fighting ability is ranged around that, So only certain classes and use certain things which is annoying at first and frustrating at times (when you just wanna whip out the sniper and own some get, but now you only can pistol them).

Sound-Its sound, nothing special.

OnlineN/A

FlawNot many, if there is any. I suppose that hunting only for this non epic battle at the end was a bit of a shame.

OverallQuality game which can and should be inproved in Mass Effect 2.

I would borrow it off a friend then give it a spin for a couple of weeks.

 

[HBK619]

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots - 9.4/10 by HBK619

Well here we are. Another generation of consoles, another Metal Gear Solid. This time we get Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots exclusively for the PlayStation 3.

The critically acclaimed series from Hideo Kojima has spanned 21 years and many a number of iterations and is still pumping out great games to this day with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots being no exception.

Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots starts you off in a war ridden Country stuck in the middle of a battle on which the sides are unknown. The game starts in typical Hideo Kojima fashion with a 4 minute cutscene to start you off. Then about 10 seconds gameplay. Then into another minute of cutscene. Then to 30 seconds of gameplay. Followed up by about 2 minutes of cutscene. 1 minute of gameplay and then into the final cutscene before the finale of Act 1 which goes for another few minutes. However this start is possibly one of the best starts to a game you could get for a new fan to the series, someone wanting to find out this game or just simply your regular MGS fan. It feels like a culmination of games all in one small Act.

The start of the game of course reveals to us for the first time 'Old Snake'. Yes the aging virus has taken effect and it is making Snake look older and older by the minute(although he still has a fantastic figure, check out the arse on him!!!). Snake has still got all his old tricks though and some new and improved ones. The Metal Gear Mk.II is some good fun. The Solid Eye replaces the systems used for binoculars and various vision goggles from previous games. But 'OctoCamo' is quite possibly the best of the lot(Although FaceCamo proves a worthy advocate later on).

OK, now after some of that banter we can move onto some proper review scores.

GRAPHICS - 10/10 - The graphics in this game are phenomenal. From the use of the motion sensor capabilities for the characters to the way the clothes blow in the breeze. Everything in this game has been done to perfection. The game is done so cinematically too that it really feels like your watching a movie instead of playing a game. The interactivity in the cutscenes (Button prompts that come up which give it that extra cinematic feel) helps when you get a little to into the scene just to bring you out and say "Hey, this is actually a game, get playing".

The guns are very nice. The deformation of buildings in battles. The explosions and the detail put in to every piece of wall, ground, vehicle and character has been amazing and must have required a top notch team.

GAMEPLAY - 9.7/10 - The gameplay in this game is a brilliant mix of stealth and action. For some traditional MGS fans the more action dominated gameplay might deter them away. The action sequences are so well done though that it would be stupid for anyone not to like them. There are a lot of change ups too with the action. It's not all the same type of running and gunning. A lot of it can be strategical while some of it can get really fast paced. It's just a great mix of slow and fast gameplay.

Gameplay of course consists of many elements and the guns in this game are one of them. There's hundreds to choose from. The amount of customisation you can do as well is one of the best that I've seen. The guns are just one feature that will make you want to replay the story mode. The power and velocity of the guns with the ability to change Snipers between one shot, 3 shots and automatic fire is a great feature too.

To be mentioned in the same light as the gameplay is all of the easter eggs in this game. Hideo Kojima has really done his job well this time around cramming as much fun stuff and junk as possible. There is heaps to find if you look hard enough. With plenty to keep you coming back time after time after time.

SOUND - 9.9/10 - The sound in this game is just as good as the graphics and gameplay. With a fantastic natural score throughout the game. The addition of playing songs through an in-game iPod the sounds and music never gets boring.

The voice work is nothing short of brilliant. David Hayter does a great job of reprising his lead role as Old Snake. Even though Snake is a bit of a crank and does grunt alot. Hayter plays the role with a humour that would be hard to replicate. Also for a guy who is only 39, he manages to age his voice very, very well. All of the reprising characters are immaculate as well. The addition of several new characters which keep up the already A-Grade voice acting.

METAL GEAR ONLINE - 8.5/10 - Well MGO is the multiplayer/online add on to MGS 4. Basically this part was debated over whether it would be released as an extra disc, as a separate game or included as is in the overall Metal Gear Solid experience. Overall MGO as a whole works pretty well. There isn't much lag. The weapons and game types are varied and the maps are big and have many cool little MGS throwbacks in it as well.

Overall it's probably a little too uninventive though and little cliché to the whole genre of online games. The 3rd person view doesn't always work particularly well either mainly because 3rd person has always had some issues especially when trying to aim fast and in a frantic situation it is tough to really nail down a target.

The Konami ID system which you have to sign up for and use is a pain in the arse. First if the system is working you need to go to another site to sign up for the Konami ID. Then you need a Game ID. The most annoying thing is that you need to enter an ID that is first off unique and then it has to have at least 9 letters or numbers. NOW not only do you have a PSN ID, which you can easily use for every other online game, you need an extra 2 more ID's. It is just a pain and completely unneeded, that coupled with some of the little annoyances with the overall online brings the score down.

LONGEVITY - 9.5/10 - The campaign will take around 30 hours to finish which is fantastic. The online has plenty of time worth devoting to it if you can get past the shocking Konami ID system.

OVERALL - 9.4/10 - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns Of The Patriots is an immaculate game. It should win and well and truly deserve Game Of The Year 2008. Ahead of GTA IV. The cinematic gameplay, cutscenes and overall experience makes this game a must play. The game is brilliantly written, brilliantly acted and brilliantly made, well done to Hideo Kojima, you have made another CLASSIC!

 

[HBK619]

Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - 9.7/10 by HBK619

The classic war game reinvented into Call Of Duty 4.

In this the 4th instalment of the very popular War game. Call Of Duty 4 moves away from the overly used WWII environment we have seen too many games rip off from the Call Of Duty franchise in using this setting. Some able to use it very well while many also managed to sully the setting almost into unforgivable boundaries.

Instead of rehashing the WWII format Infinity Ward gives us fresh, modern and a usable setting. In my opinion this is the main component that makes this Call Of Duty so good.

Now the story is set around two main Characters one who works for the stealthy side and another who is more in the thick of all the action. Offering a real variety to so many of the missions by having two completely different not only story settings but gameplay settings as well. Instead of just doing the same thing with one character over and over again. We find ourselves looking at two sides of the game. One in which you can take a conservative approach, taking out enemies with minimal noise and attention. While in on the other side of the story, you have a guy who goes in to everything balls and all, and it is non stop furious action.

The story and action are really what makes this game though. Right from the first mission aboard an enemy ship in which you need to track down some documents you can tell that this is going to be a barenuckle fight for victory. Throughout the entire game you will marvel at the wondrous environments in which you are playing and amaze at how cinematic everything is. At many points during the game you will be watching and thinking it is a cut scene when in fact you are having to control the player and need to start doing something. The main mission where you could think you aren't in need of controlling is one in which your a gunner on a chopper having to pretty much total a small town in order to keep your team safe from the many number of enemies, the sheer brilliance and fun of this mission alone will keep you wanting more and thankfully getting it.

Another great mission sends us back 15 years to one of the commanding officers old memories. Boy is this mission brilliant. I don't think I have ever played a game nor a mission that is as good as this, not to mention realistic. You are required to do some "simple" tasks in taking out enemies, creeping around trying not to alert anyone otherwise it is "bye, bye birdy". Unfortunately these tasks are not "simple". You need to time and place them just right otherwise the cavalry comes looking!

To cap this all off you are required to take out a target from a damn far way off. You will need to account for wind, distance and then pop this guy. It may take you 3-4 goes but it is worth it. The following pursuit from this shot is just another fantastic thing to behold in this game.

OK, now for some scores:

GRAPHICS - 10/10 - The graphics aren't particularly vibrant or stunning, but they look as realistic as any game out.

The most photo realistic settings and environments yet to grace our systems. This has definitely set the benchmark for console gaming graphics.

GAMEPLAY - 10/10 - There is so much fun to be had in the gameplay. A wide range of action, many different elements, and a wonderfully cinematic style to the story and it is very fun to boot.

Definitely the benchmark for FPS gampeplay, fresh, exciting, cinematic, a balls to the wall ride full of fun and non stop action.

SOUND - 10/10 - The sound is perfect. Nothing outstanding, but it does it's job in every way. The guns sound powerful but not too powerful. The voice acting is brilliant and the cinematic ambiance is great.

ONLINE - 9.3/10 - Online is made to your ability. You start off with the bare minimum weaponry and gametypes. As you get better and level up the upgrades come in the form of better weapons more and varied gametypes. There are also plenty of challenges to unlock. With great maps and brilliant weapons makes this very hard to dislike on the gameplay/levelling up and weaponry front.

The biggest down point with online though is the lag. Unless you can manage an Australian server you will find it tough to excel at online. As fun as the online is the lag can kill it and the online set-up after the game having now been out for what is now 1 and a half years is purely disgusting.

LONGEVITY - 9/10 - Provided you can get into Australian servers in online you will be playing this game for months on end. The original campaign will take you anywhere from 5-12 hours and it does offer a good replayability and challenge on higher difficulties. The online can last you endless hours provided you don't find yourself in overseas servers otherwise you will find it difficult to continue on with the game.

OVERALL - 9.7/10 - Overall you have a game that is cinematic, new, fresh, fast paced, and very fun, this game is the benchmark so far for FPS gaming and it will still take alot to be dethroned.

This game is a must have for any owner of a console. If you haven't got it yet or are considering it, then go out right now and get it, go on, go right now!
​

 

[HBK619]

Assassins Creed - 6.5/10 by HBK619

Assassins Creed, it was touted as a game that could revolutionise the open-world/sandbox game genre.

With the promise of wonderfully historically accurate cities sprawling with buildings and homes. The ability to pretty much do anything, climb any building/house/brigde, interact with any character in the whole city. Everyone was salivating at the thought of a game in which "Anything was possible!"

So what did we end up with?

Well we seem to end up with a game that was either made unfinished, rushed or with room for sequels to come.

While many will know that there will definitely be sequels after the word of them coming before Assassins was even released and now after great sales we are assured of one, two or even three more games to come.

With that being said we will need to be hopeful of a fair amount of improvement after the first.

First off let me set the scene for you, we start off in the not too distance future in which you play the descendent of the legendary Assassin Altair. The "Big Twist That Will Decide The Future Of The Series" that was touted is a mere storyline formality to make sure this game doesn't get stuck in a repetitive style for the next two or three titles. The so-so sci-fi twist is that future technology has allowed us to lie down in something that looks a bit like a tanning bed called the Animus and let us relive the memories of our ancestors, while it is a cool concept and has also never been done before. It is still a little so-so in terms of what a "Huge Twist" could be.

Now as we sit in the Animus(Memory Bed) we are sent back to the year 1191 AD(The Third Crusade) and have to relive certain memories from Altair's memory. Since this is a a 'memory' this does allow for certain parts of the game to conveniently fit into place. Not being able to access certain areas of a city "Because it isn't apart of that memory". These sorts of gameplay/level restrictions can be a bit annoying as there might be a bad guy that you can see on the other side of this "Visible Wall" that is blocking you from going into certain parts of the city and you aren't allowed to go and kill the guy(This will never be your target though, let that be known).

What happens as soon as you get plonked into the world of Altair is that you are set on a mission to off a guy and end up going for the kill too early, you get caught, but let go, then stripped of your Assassin Powers as you have broken the "Assassins Creed"(That of which is explained in full after this moment). You are still kept within this brethren though but are forced to fight your way back to the brilliant Assassin that you once were.

Basically what Assassins Creed does right, they do very well. Unfortunately what they do wrong, ruins the game to the extent that the Downs well outweigh the Ups.

While the game is fantastic looking with 3 brilliantly made cities each with brilliant lighting, shadows and also very historically accurate. The fun of the Parkour(Free Running) element is perfectly done and hella fun to use and get around the city with. Not to mention sneaking up to your enemies by creeping around the skirts of a building and blind sighting them for the easy kill is always a great feeling.

As said earlier the elements though that make this game good are severely outweighed by what makes it bad.

Each mission you have to complete you must first scout out. You have to find as much information about your target and why he needs to be taken out. Your options are few and far between and remain the same for each and every mission. You can choose to do a few of these before going to kill your subject or all of these thus completing your full memory block(Just a formality to get each cut scene in). Problem is if you do choose to complete all of these then it will get boring after about the third time you do it. The investigation points are: Interrogation - There will be a man shouting out his beliefs on a stage. Once he is finished you then follow him to an alley and beat him up until he tells you his secrets. Another task is the Eavesdrop - This is where you sit on a bench and listen in to a conversation between two very loud talking citizens telling each other secrets. These investigation points stay the same for each mission the only thing changing is the sound bite. Very boring.

Now there aren't only main missions in this game. You also have little side missions to complete which compromise of a few things like Saving Citizens - A person is getting picked on by authorities. You need to come and save the person and take out the authorities. There are also many high buildings you must climb to complete another one of the side missions. There are also races to catch a certain amount of flags in a set time. Once again these are the only side missions in the game and after doing them 10 times in one little section of the city you will get pretty bored once you realise that there are about 50-60 of them in each full city.

Basically this game really felt like they were probably relying on the first to get money and then have the "Oh the sequels will be better" excuse for the next couple of games.

Problem is they should not be counting on "A good sequel". The first game can make or break franchises. They are very, very lucky that they managed a great marketing campaign and hyped it up to the extreme extent. This game would've been around about the Top 5 in terms of games sold for 2007. If not for the stunningly brilliant visuals I have no doubt this would have been torn apart by reviewers.

Onto some scores:

GRAPHICS - 10/10 - Beautiful graphics. Huge cities with no framerate drops, lighting and shadows are probably the best of any game yet.

GAMEPLAY -7/10 - While the Free Running system and being able to climb everything is very fun. This game is severely let down by repeated missions and objectives.

SOUND - 6.5/10 - The voice acting is competent. Kirsten Bell(Veronica Mars) is the only notable voice actor. During the game though nothing but repeated comments from all citizens during the game thus dropping the score considerably.

LONGEVITY - 4/10 - Not much longevity in this game. The main campaign will set you back about 12 hours with no real reason to go back. No online or multiplayer either.

OVERALL - 6.5/10 - Overall what you are left with in Assassin's Creed is a game that promised so much but delivered so little. Poor mission structure, repetitive gameplay and even the Parkour element while being fun it is just a fair bit too easy. Also the crowd interaction is a piss poor element there really needed to be something of the ilk of GTA IV where people do seem to recognise you a little more than just brushing aside and reacting when you're in trouble or with the scripted people who choose to run up to you and ask for your charity. Just not good enough Overall.

So in summation and going on my earlier talk of sequels while I definitely do think Assassins Creed 2 and 3 will or at least should get better from here I cannot see this happening if the developers finished Assassins Creed and went "We have a perfect game". In my opinion that is what every creator should say before sending out a game or at least say "We have a perfect game for our genre". There is simply no way I would believe them saying they thought the missions were full, versatile and never got repetitive. It's simply not true. They have made about 5-6 things to do in 1 mission and that is all that you can do for each mission right until the end of the game!

 

[HBK619]

Burnout Paradise - 8/10 by HBK619

First off let me say that I am not a lover of racing games one bit. I got this game as it just looked to fun to pass up. Open world games are seeming to pop up everywhere nowadays. Never did I think the open world genre would extend to a racing game genre that is usually so generic and sticks to just tracks and nothing non-linear. This one could very well make creators rethink their whole gameplan on going with this genre of racing.

As far as I know on racing games it is pretty much "Here is your starting point, here is your finishing point, go through the checkpoints and do it all as fast as you can and beat everybody else." This game offers so much more than that. You can follow a set path, you can go off on your own, you are encouraged to smash and crash into other cars, taking them out of the game. With several different car types and looks to choose from you can take a dominant authority into the game and look to mainly take out your adversaries. You can choose speed over power in which you just try to get from point A to point B as fast as possible and maybe try and take 1 or 2 cars out in the process, but basically try and avoid at all costs as there are always balances and a faster car will mean less strength and power.

My other thoughts will come a bit later but the real basic style of the gameplay could work in it's own favour by involving something simple that can also be looked at in a complex way too. For me it was pretty simple to just pick up and get going straight away. It will take a little longer to work out the little nuances that make your car tick.

Onto the scores now:

GRAPHICS - 9/10 - Superb graphics for such a big city. Crashes are amazing to look at. Slow-mo cinematic style with the crashes gives enough for you to see the intricate natures of the smash and not one bit looks pre set. Excellent lighting. Wonderful environments and absolutely no framerate drops or loading times in an absolutely massive city.

GAMEPLAY -7/10 - Nothing breakthrough in terms of gameplay except for it being completely open world and non-linear in races. Races and everything else are more of a solid at best kind of stance. Nothing too over the top, but nothing ground breaking either in terms of racing. It does get a bit repetitive once through to the final stages of the licence system, but you should be able bare it.

SOUND - 7.5/10 - Every car noise sounds fine and reacts well. Some cars do sound like a heard of elephants coming towards you though. Soundtrack is pretty pathetic unfortunately, about 5 or 6 good songs. Custom sound tracking on lifts the score up though as you can make it your own game in terms of sound at least.

ONLINE - 10/10 - Undoubtedly the best part of this game. No lag whatsoever. Huge amount of fun to be had with challenges, races, just driving around, plenty to do and will have you playing for months and months. Great fun with mates.

LONGEVITY - 8.5/10 - There is no real 'campaign' per se. You have a huge amount of 'missions' to complete which vary in range. Missions can get a bit repetitive so you might want to have a break and go to online to just break the repetition up a bit. Online will give you plenty of time. With constant support from Criterion in terms of DLC and a new island too there is a long time that can be spent with this game.

OVERALL - 8/10 - Overall I thought that it was definitely nothing ground breaking in terms of other racing formats that I have played. The open world style certainly offers alot more possibilities and definitely adds alot more than a typical circuit track and race game would. The lack of menus is a brilliant addition to the game, no need fiddling about with stupid unresponsive menus, with just a push of the D-Pad you get online and can start playing with your buddies immediately. Not only that but you can also complete minor tasks while in "freeburn" online mode. My final words would be this is definitely a must have buy. With about 75ish cars to collect. Online that will continue for a long time thanks to the great support from its developer and a competent story mode with many features, will keep you going for a fair while.

 

[scooterb]

Good idea for a thread, it should be stickied.

 

[Kerrby]

This is great. Great reviews guys, keep them coming.

Eggman, is that review for Xbox 360 or PC?

 

[scooterb]

I'm still not sure where you got 'Nintendo Dolphin' from.
It was originally meant to be called 'Nintendo Revolution'.

 

[Kerrby]

Yeah got it mixed up, my bad. It was the codename for the gamecube or something.

 

[scooterb]

GTAIV Review - By scooterb

This was probably the most anticipated game in history, and deservingly so.
Having owned GTA:1, GTA:2, GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas, I expected a game that would exceed all of these and provide an experience unrivaled by any other game ever made. I rate Vice City a lot higher than San Andreas, and if Rockstar were to leave the 3rd generation of GTA's to begin the 4th, then it surely had to be next-gen and give something that those 2 games couldn't. And it did just that.

Graphics 9/10 - with the attention to detail being the main priority in such a massively scaled game in NY, the graphics would have to suffer. I wouldn't say that they are bad, or any worse than any other good looking game, but it is just different. It sometimes has more of an 'art' feel than a photorealism feel. I sometimes think that it suffers from frame-rate issues, but nothing too dramatic.

Gameplay 10/10 - nothing but perfect is what we've come to expect from a GTA game. The new cover system works fantastically, giving it more of a realistic feel, and allowing you to replicate what you would probably do in real life. The physics engine is amazing, and offers a whole new dimension to the game. No longer when you run into someone with your car they just fall underneath it an immediately move into a horizontal position. They fly like a rag-doll, leaving realistic damage to your car and smearing it with blood. You can push people over whilst walking into them, and the cars handle a lot more realistically. All of these little details have basically made it into a life simulator, not a game.

Sound 9.5/10 - was a bit disappointed with the radio stations. Vice City set the standard with the 80's theme, which San Andreas promptly destroyed with the gangster theme. GTAIV is basically in between both of these. The character interaction is as good as ever, with the continuance of hilarious one liners said by the pedestrians (eg. taxi driver - "you stupid malaka!"). The voice acting is brilliant as always, as well as the gun and car sounds. You also get the feeling that you're in a big city by the sound.

Online 4/10 - borderline shocking. Unless you have dozens of friends, you almost wouldn't bother with it. It has the right idea, but more often than not, the lag makes it unplayable.

Overall 9.5/10 - the formula remains the same, but the execution has stepped up a notch. The replay value is there, but not as much as GTA: Vice City. This probably due to the complexity of the game.
I can't even imagine what the next installment in the series will be like.
​

 

[HBK619]

Online 4/10 - borderline shocking. Unless you have dozens of friends, you almost wouldn't bother with it. It has the right idea, but more often than not, the lag makes it unplayable.

You must have a slow internet speed, because so far when I have played GTA IV online there has been little to no lag, I suggest you upgrade and enjoy the beauty of no lag.

 

[Eggman]

360 kerrby, i'll have more up tomorrow

 

[frantelle]

FIFA 2008 (PS3) - Frantelle​

i have played well over 150hours of this game and know it inside and out

Graphics (8.5/10): Whilst getting every player/stadium to look exactly how it does in real life seems impossible, EA have come as close as anyone has to date. Like all sports games the crowd is very uniform in what they look like and what they do. Whilst all soccer games have that weird green glowing pitch fifa 08 simply doesnt and my dad has quite often mistaken me playing fifa as an actual soccer match.

Gameplay (9.5/10): obviously depending on whether you enjoy sporting (in this case soccer) games. Best gameplay of any soccer game to date and a new trick entourage taking a few hours to perfect really adds to a star players individual performance. The basics of course must be conquered first and seems as real (in terms of strategy) of any soccer game i have played.

Sound (8/10): Great crowd noise that seem to act depending on how the home team is going. Can break into well known chants as well which really adds to it. Of course the major hurdle for all sports games is the commentary, and whilst it is much smoother then previous attempts, still awfully repititive.

Online(10/10): If you are as competitive as me you will love the online gameplay. Keeps a full set of statistical data of every match and uses a complex ranking system which takes into account the scoreline and the rank of the opponents you just beat or lost to. Also has a website you can log onto and browse through lots of things and even create your own fifa avatar (which you can improve by getting more points, which u get from playing online matches). Even if you select random online game they do their best to pair you with someone of a roughly similar ranking.

Overall (9.5/10): I was a big fan of the old fifa series and this one is by far the best in all regards of this series. If you enjoyed the old ones this is a must buy.​

 

[scooterb]

You must have a slow internet speed, because so far when I have played GTA IV online there has been little to no lag, I suggest you upgrade and enjoy the beauty of no lag.

Not really, I have 1.5Mbp/s download speed.
Every game I have been in has had lag.
You shoot someone, but they're not actually there, you crash into a car, but they keep on driving with no contact, the cars are doing 360's and skids and jolting all over the place etc.

 

[HBK619]

Not really, I have 1.5Mbp/s download speed.
Every game I have been in has had lag.
You shoot someone, but they're not actually there, you crash into a car, but they keep on driving with no contact, the cars are doing 360's and skids and jolting all over the place etc.

Hmm, I sometimes get that problem, maybe you should stick more to GTA Races and Co-op's, the games with a less maximum allowance, that is what I stick to as I am never very good at the deathmatch games, regardless of lag.

 

[Lunchlady Doris]

Not really, I have 1.5Mbp/s download speed.
Every game I have been in has had lag.
You shoot someone, but they're not actually there, you crash into a car, but they keep on driving with no contact, the cars are doing 360's and skids and jolting all over the place etc.

Sounds like a PSN issue. Rarely have these problems on my xbox.

 

[Lunchlady Doris]

Hmm, I sometimes get that problem, maybe you should stick more to GTA Races and Co-op's, the games with a less maximum allowance, that is what I stick to as I am never very good at the deathmatch games, regardless of lag.

What do you mean less maximum allowance?

 

[Kerrby]

Good work guys, great reviews. When we get more, i'll start to alphabetise them .

LLD don't you DARE turn this into a console war thread.

 

[Eggman]

FIFA 2008 (PS3) - Frantelle​

i have played well over 150hours of this game and no it inside and out

Graphics (8.5/10): Whilst getting every player/stadium to look exactly how it does in real life seems impossible, EA have come as close as anyone has to date. Like all sports games the crowd is very uniform in what they look like and what they do. Whilst all soccer games have that weird green glowing pitch fifa 08 simply doesnt and my dad has quite often mistaken me playing fifa as an actual soccer match.

Gameplay (9.5/10): obviously depending on whether you enjoy sporting (in this case soccer) games. Best gameplay of any soccer game to date and a new trick entourage taking a few hours to perfect really adds to a star players individual performance. The basics of course must be conquered first and seems as real (in terms of strategy) of any soccer game i have played.

Sound (8/10): Great crowd noise that seem to act depending on how the home team is going. Can break into well known chants as well which really adds to it. Of course the major hurdle for all sports games is the commentary, and whilst it is much smoother then previous attempts, still awfully repititive.

Online(10/10): If you are as competitive as me you will love the online gameplay. Keeps a full set of statistical data of every match and uses a complex ranking system which takes into account the scoreline and the rank of the opponents you just beat or lost to. Also has a website you can log onto and browse through lots of things and even create your own fifa avatar (which you can improve by getting more points, which u get from playing online matches). Even if you select random online game they do their best to pair you with someone of a roughly similar ranking.

Overall (9.5/10): I was a big fan of the old fifa series and this one is by far the best in all regards of this series. If you enjoyed the old ones this is a must buy.​

Nice review, i agree too. Can you fix the typo, NO should be KNOW

 

[scooterb]

Hmm, I sometimes get that problem, maybe you should stick more to GTA Races and Co-op's, the games with a less maximum allowance, that is what I stick to as I am never very good at the deathmatch games, regardless of lag.

That could be it. I was in a race with about 6 people and it wasn't too bad. Deathmatches are the worst.
I hate when auto-aim is taken off. I just run and hide or find a rocket launcher, which I still miss with.

 

[scooterb]

Nice review, i agree too. Can you fix the typo, NO should be KNOW

And there is a couple of u's in there as well (you).
If we're going to show IGN and Gamespot up, we need presicion.

 

[HBK619]

What do you mean less maximum allowance?

Games with less people allowed in, for example co-op can only have a maximum of 4 people.