Hello again, friends and welcome to another week of games and reviews here at Game On! This week, we’ve got quite a few titles to look at, including a good number of handheld titles as well as some slightly sporty games. This week, we cover the gamut of consoles, so let’s not waste anymore time on stupid introductions, shall we?

ON THE REBOUND

Starting off our handheld reviews also starts off our sports games reviews as well this week with NBA BALLERS: REBOUND on the PSP. The franchise’s penchant for 1 on 1 games and lavish cribs and bling is back and portable, and it’s just as good as it’s console counterparts.

The main game is essentially a handheld version of the first game in the series, released two years ago. Same story mode structure, same “create-a-baller” rags to riches plotline, but some of the matches are a bit different, and many of the opponents have changed as well, to update for the newest NBA rosters. To make things easier and more “play and go” for the handheld fan, the matches seem to pass by quicker, and there’s a save and quit function after each match if you choose to do so.

The same solid gameplay remains from the console version: select or create your baler, use a variety of dukes and “act a fool” flashy moves to punk your opponent and drive the rock to the bucket. As you can see, it’ll have you speaking the lingo in no time (as I really don’t know much about sports as it is, let alone basketball). The core gameplay for the title is just as fresh here in the portable form, and everything looks, sounds and feels just as good as it’s big brother, though the character models aren’t quite as detailed, there’s still plenty of moves and features available.

There are actually a few additions to the PSP version as well. For multiplayer fans, there’re a bunch of brand new wireless game types including Dunkfest (where you can score ONLY by dunking), Great Balls of Fire (where each player is always “on fire”, maxing out the potential for match-long blasts of power) and King of Thieves where the player to make the most steals is declared the winner. While most of these extra VS modes are purely to max out the special abilities, some like the Dunkfest and King of Thieves are fun since they require specific goals before scoring.While it may not win any awards for realism, it’s certainly a fun flashy game for the arcade set. If you enjoyed the game enough on console, you’ll be able to bring that experience with you wherever you go now. And that’s not a bad thing at all.

One Gamer’s Opinion:

CAR-TOON

Once again, our game systems are “graced” with another film to game tie-in, this time the Disney/Pixar flick CARS makes it’s way to PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, GBA, DS and PSP, covering all the markets in that time-old tradition of a media blitz. Thankfully, these versions are actually enjoyable to play, and in a rare instance, one of the handheld versions is MORE fun than the home game.

For the consoles, this version of CARS has you playing as Lightning McQueen as you cruise around the free-roaming world of Radiator Springs, looking for races and collecting items such as lost postcards and bonus point icons. The gameplay is fairly basic, but the races are the real meat of the story as you progress and win awards to unlock deleted game sequences and clips from the film. Normal fluff for the tie-in licensed game. However, as I said, the game is free-roaming, so you can race around town, tackling the races and tasks in any order, with more unlocked as you progress well in races.

While the control and style of gameplay is “geared” towards the smaller gamers, there’s still a good bit of skill involved in the races, and as the title was developed by Rainbow Studios (who also brought us the first two ATV OFF ROAD FURY games, as well as the MX VS ATV series) the controls hand very well. As you progress, you unlock more racers and tracks for the multiplayer aspect of the title, as well as new moves, such as a boost and powerslide abilities. Also, for some reason, the cars can jump, so that helps with some of the harder to reach icons strewn around town. It’s all evened out with mini games galore, such as Tractor Tipping, on e of the funnier parts of the flick.

As solid as the console version is, the action is broken up by the sandbox environment. With the PSP version, it’s just straight to business, and that format actually works best for this title, especially on the handheld platform. Here, you compete in a series of races, unlocking each in multiplayer as you go. After a set series of goals, you’ll have a “Boss Battle” race where you go up against one of the films main baddies. Defeat him in a race, and he’s unlockable as a playable character.

What makes this title shine more than its console brethren is the simplicity of the controls and gameplay. While there are a few of the mini games and fetch quests included, the race controls seem a bit more responsive here. For example, the drifting while using the handbrake makes for cleaner turns on the handheld version than on the home title. Also, the jump feature is a bit more intuitive, utilizing a simple button press for clearing gaps in the tracks, rather than and “down, up” motion on the analog stick for the console version, usually used only to reach items high up.

All in all, though, both titles are enjoyable, with plenty of treats for fans of the flick to unlock as they progress. The majority of the voice cast returns for the games to play their characters, and everything seems in tune with the movie, so those familiar and unfamiliar will still have something to watch as they play. As tie-ins go, it’s definitely one of the better ones, with simple easy to follow gameplay, and a good load of fun doing it.

One Gamer’s Opinion:

MOTO-VATIONAL

We go from one driving and racing title to the next with our quick look at MOTO GP 06 for Xbox 360. Once again THQ brings all the realism and power of the MOTO GP circuit season to the Microsoft console, and this time, in high definition, it’s better than ever.

For this new title, the first time the series makes it to the next gen, they have culled together both the 2005 and 2006 seasons of the circuits, so both the tracks and racers that were around at that time will be reflected in those seasons. The game’s hallmark of photo realistic graphics and authentic sound return, as well as the series’ tradition of hyper sensitive steering and braking controls (one trigger being the rear brake and the other the front). This gives the game it’s most impressive realism, and also shows me just how much I could NEVER actually race on a bike if I tried it in reality.

For those unfamiliar with MOTO GP’s learning curve, let me assure you that this is no arcade racer. Thankfully, this time around the developers have included a series of challenges for each track, short goals in tutorial form that allow the player to become acclimated with the tracks, as well as turning and racing control. Completion of these challenges add stat points to your racers attributes.

When you complete a set of race events, you can also unlock the brand new Extreme Mode, with newly designed tracks and bikes, specially made for longer, more challenging races. There’s also the robust online game, with up to 16 racers at a time in a variety of gameplay modes.

There’s no denying the game’s attention to detail and realism. However, that comes at a price (for me anyway). Once again, I have a hard time enjoying the game too much as I continually bail or just wind up in the dirt, scoring a penalty against my race time since the controls are just SO true-to-life. Still, once you actually DO get to complete a race (and well) it’s truly a satisfying feeling. It just takes TONS of trial and error (well, for me at least…).

One Gamer’s Opinion:

EFFECT-IVE

Wow, I sure like to hyphenate in this column, don’t I? Well, our next review is for the much-awaited expansion to last year fantastic THE MOVIES. Now you can create more blockbuster-type features in the game with THE MOVIES: STUNTS AND EFFECTS expansion pack, available now.

Obviously, the main additions with this expansion pack come in the form of what new visual treats you can add to your flicks. Starting in the game in the 60s, you’ll be able to train stuntmen to perform stunts in the films, as well as helping you main cast of actors perform their own stunts. As this tends to wear down their condition, you’ll also be able to create not just training facilities, but a hospital in case they get injured.

In order to get stunts in the films, new stunt scripts can be generated, or made scene by scene in the advanced script creator as in the original game. Casting your stuntman (or woman) as a double with a strong likeness to your main actor is key, and helps in keeping your reviews up. Most stunts start out kind of small (such as slipping on a banana peel) but work up towards dives out of high-rise buildings and such.

The effects also add a great deal to your films, adding green screen, blue screen, explosions, and more to your movies. There’s also a free-cam mode, where you can adjust the position of the camera in more detail in any given shot, or even give starting and ending positions for a wide pan. There’s also a slew of new options of ryour actors, such as new backdrops for sets, new sets, costumes and more editing options, such as a way to add age or weight to an actor for any given film, and customizing (and copying) set dressings and costume edits in a more user-friendly manor.

While the game certainly allows players to flex more of their movie-making muscles, it still doesn’t dull down the extreme micro-management needed for the game. While it doesn’t necessarily ADD too much either, the addition of the need to care for a whole new class of performer certainly hampers it a bit. Still, I think it’s a small price to pay for quality filmmaking. One of my favorite PC titles from last year has just gotten better, and I’m addicted all over again.

One Gamer’s Opinion:

QUICKSHOT OF THE WEEK

This week’s quickshot isn’t much of game at all, but rather an interactive PSP title, geared towards the die-hard METAL GEAR fans out there. METAL GEAR SOLID: DIGITAL GRAPHIC NOVEL takes the pages of the Ashley Wood painted IDW published comics and adds sound effect, animation and minimal voice effects to create a simulated comic experience, similar to THE SILENT HILL EXPERIENCE released this past April. The main difference here, however, is that while reading the comic, you can focus in on certain parts of the panels and search for “Memory Elements” and collect them in order to unlock more of the backstory of the series in a mode called “Memory Building Simulation”. As the story of the Shadow Moses incident from the first game unfolds, you’ll be treated to flashbacks after unlocking certain details, and you’ll be able to piece together clues to gain the whole story. While it sounds a bit more complicated than it really is, it’s a cool little addition for MGS fans to tinker with while waiting for the next chapter(s) to be released. My only complaint with the title is that many of the clues are hard to focus on and collect with the weird little PSP analog nub. Still, most who play this will only be die-hard MGS fans as it is, so they’ll naturally have the patience built up anyway. For everyone else interested, you can also just watch the comic in a non-interactive form if you choose.

One Gamer’s Opinion:

GAMING NEWS

New to “Game On!” is a section I hope to continue fairly regularly, news about upcoming (or recently released) titles, updates and such for all your favorite games and systems. This week, our first News section has but one story, but if you play multiplayer on Xbox 360, it’s a good one. The newest CALL OF DUTY 2 maps have been released, and are available now for download for a whopping 800 Microsoft points as the COD2 Invasion Map Pack. These maps include Antonville, France (Crossroads), St. Louet, France (Newvillers), Amaye sur Seulles, France (Normandy), Alam Halfa, Egypt (Decoytown) and Rostov, Russia (Harbor). Check out the new Russian map below:

That’s all for this week, gamers. Til next time…

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