June 24, 2010

Lightning Reviews

I've been working on and off on a secret project so I don't have the time to write full reviews; however, for some guidance, here are a few fast reviews that I was planning on making large:

Bioshock 2: 8
Rapture comes to life again with beautiful coloration and an exciting adventure. The dual-wielding is a nice touch, but until the very end, the game lacks the emotion of the first game. While the first game is better, this is a welcome return to Rapture and a solid sequel. I also think the multiplayer is fantastic. The online is basically Modern Warfare 1 made Bioshocky.

Red Dead Redemption:
As a massive fan of the first game, I waited for this game since 8th grade. I was very let-down by the single-player. It was severely overhyped because of the "sand-box" aspect. Yes, the sand-box is brilliantly executed. Yes, a lot of work was put into the game. For me, however, singleplayer is about the missions and not your free-roam. Free-roam gets boring, so it's the missions that move you along. The missions were dull, too long, not enough shooting, and at times, very stupid. I recall at least 4 quests that involved herding cattle, and some that involved following dogs around for 10+ minutes to kill one guy. I spent more than 50% of this game riding my horse to different locations, and 30% frustrated at the repetitiveness of each quest. Instead of sticking to Red Dead Revolver's innovation, Rock Star took GTA's missions and forced them into the Wild West. I also hate the "bounty system" because it doesn't make sense. If someone insults me, takes a gun out, tries to shoot me but fails, and I attack back, why am I the criminal? Why should I have to escape from the police when the outlaw was trying to kill me? If I fight back, I lose honor and prices at shops go up. If I don't, I die, have to start over, lose all my money, and takes a smaller honor hit. Great choice.
The online, however, is different. The online takes the singleplayer and strips it of missions and honor-hit of , leaving you with a world where you are free to wreak mayhem without any fears. Even better, you do it with any player that wants to join your possee. The multiplayer games are boring because weapons are pre-set, and the locations are the same as singleplayer.
This game could have been a 10, but lack of innovation docks it to a 6.5 for me. The free-roam takes it up to a 7.5, and multiplayer to an 8. This one is tricky to review because the game has great and horrible aspects. So if you enjoy free-roam, you will love this game. If you are like me who wants solid-missions, wait for a price drop.

FIFA World Cup: 10
Granted that the ratings for sports games aren't the same as ratings for other games, but this game is perfect for a sports game. It has nothing wrong. I'm not a soccer fan and I love it.

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