SORE THUMBS: WHAT’S NEW IN VIDEO GAMING
By Matthew Scott Hunter
TRANSFORMERS: THE GAME (T)
Rating: **1/2
Activision
Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2
The Transformers license lends itself so well to video games. You’ve got cars that change into giant robots that use both weapons and melee attacks to ravage the landscape. It’s the racing game/shooter/brawler trifecta that caters to every gamer’s desire for over-the-top collateral damage. Unfortunately, this particular Transformers game is also a movie tie-in, and as such, it bears the signs of a rushed production, with half-realized ideas and a handful of annoying glitches.
You’ll want to stick to your Autobot or Decepticon avatar’s robot mode, since the vehicular modes tend to handle as though they’ve had a few drinks. That just leaves you to decimate countless robots and destructible environments with the repeated press of a single button. Oversimplified combat might pass for a Gobot game, but I expect more from my Transformers. Hardcore fans, however, are sure to be pleased by the top-notch character models and animations. I just wish this game could offer more than meets the eye.
POKEMON BATTLE REVOLUTION (E)
Rating: **
Nintendo
Wii
Pokemon spread like viruses. The Pikachu flu always originates on the latest handheld platform but then inevitably spreads to the home console. It happened to N64, GameCube and now Wii. Provided you’ve already purchased Pokemon Pearl or Diamond on DS, you can now transfer your pocket monsters to the Wii. Then you can wage 3D battles online to be the Best Pokemon Trainer in the World! Of course, you’ll never know if you’re the best since the online service lacks trophies, tournaments, leaderboards …
FINAL FANTASY ANNIVERSARY EDITION (E10+)
Rating: **
Square Enix
PlayStation Portable
Okay, I’m just going to say it: The first Final Fantasy game sucks. I’ve just made the hit-list of half the geeks on the planet, but I stand firm. Plagued by mediocre narratives, tedious random encounters and dull battle systems, the series didn’t hit its stride until FF III for SNES. You can choose to accept this now, or you can cling intransigently to nostalgia and buy this umpteenth remake, which will simply encourage Square to make more.
BROTHERS IN ARMS DS (T)
Rating: ***
Ubisoft
Nintendo DS
Maybe it’s because the DS’s enormous roster of 2D sidescrollers have lowered my expectations, but the visuals in Brothers in Arms DS blew me away. The 3D battlefields look fantastic, and the stylus controls work seamlessly. It’s almost enough to make me forget that this game is completely derivative of all the other WWII shooters currently over-saturating the market. Almost.
When Las Vegas Weekly contributor Matthew Scott Hunter realized his career as a lab technician was seriously interfering with his gaming, he pink-slipped himself into a successful career as a freelance writer. Bug the hell out of him at <a href="[email protected]">[email protected]</a>