Yeah, ok. I know in my last column I said “See you in Seven”. I didn’t INTENTIONALLY lie. I fully planned on doing a column last week, but I’ve just been so burnt out from work that it just didn’t happen. I’m sorry. Don’t look at me that way, I still love you… I just needed some time away. But I’m back now, and I’m bringing you lots of gifts… namely reviews and comparisons of more of the latest titles. Feel better? Good, let’s get this over with…

I GOT RHYTHM, I GOT MUSIC

DDR vs GUITAR HERO II

First up this week, it’s the battle of the rhythm games. Long time champ DANCE DANCE REVOLUTION has two contenders entering the fray, with DDR SUPERNOVA out on PS2 and DDR ULTRAMIX 4 bowing as one of the last titles for the original Xbox. Both titles sport a huge array of songs, moves, and difficulty levels, as well as a few new features to keep old fans coming back, and bring in the noobs as well.

SUPERNOVA, for one, has an all-new “Battle” mode, where two players actually “fight” each other based on how well you dance, and yes, it’s just about as ridiculous as it sounds. There’s also a training mode for beginners, and an all new Stellar Master Mode, which is as close to a campaign mode that DDR will ever get. In it, players dance through various “joints” (planet locations on a map of sorts) and complete dance-centric tasks to move on. There are dance showdowns, basically boss battles, to complete as well, to move down to the next series of joints and so on. It’s the first freshest addition in a long time to a series that has only seen marginal “updates” to most of it’s modes.

ULTRAMIX 4, however, seems to be more of the same. Still, it does offer a few nice things, such as the ability to utilize any of the download song packs from the previous entries, as well as sporting a good variety of songs for non-J-pop fans. In fact, both ULTRAMIX 4 and SUPERNOVA feature actual AMERICAN artists such as David Bowie, Fallout Boy and Oingo Boingo across their soundtracks. This makes finding a decent tune to dance to a bit more bearable once you find a name that you can actually recognize without having to be a 14-year-old Japanese girl first.

GUITAR HERO II on the other hand is leaps and bounds above its previous iteration. Featuring the same style of rhythm based madness as the previous year’s entry and amping up the variety with over 55 songs to choose from already streaks this one ahead of the last. However, add to the mix a fantastic new multiplayer mode and a good variety of unlockables and you’re only just scratching the surface.

What makes GUITAR HERO II so enjoyable is its simplicity. Using the guitar controller, press the proper colored fret and strum as the notes pass by. There’s (thankfully) a practice mode to those who never picked up the first game, where you can now not only choose sections of songs to practice, but you can even slow them down to make sure you nail that solo. The main game features the same four difficulty levels as last time (easy, medium, hard and expert) but for some reason even the lower levels seem tougher on some songs. The roster of songs is also much expanded (obviously) with a huge amount of unlockable songs able to be bought down the line.

What makes this game shine, however, is the multiplayer. Adding to last year’s Face Off mode (where two players play the same song with alternating notes to see who scores the highest) is the new Co-op mode. Here, one player plays lead guitar, with the other taking up either bass or rhythm guitar. It adds a whole new spin to certain songs, and an increased difficulty for songs you may be familiar with on guitar, but not on bass. Also new is the Pro Face Off, where both players play the same song, but they must be on the same difficulty level, and play the same notes.

While this year’s game has a huge amount of songs to choose from, not all of them sound as good as the originals, or even last year’s spot on remakes. This time around, most of the singers are doing a horrible job, with vocals for most songs sound just very, very off, or at least just very bad impressions of the original vocalists. Still, everything’s at least in key, and you’re not playing the game for the vocals, just the guitar licks, and the game recreates all the sqeedlies and meadlies well. In fact, there are even a few original recordings in the game. Both Primus (“John The Fisherman”) and Jane’s Addiction (‘Stop”) contributed their master recordings to the game, as well as all the unlockable tunes (including Strong Bad from HomeStarRunner.com singing “Trogdor” and [adult swim] cartoon band Deathklok (from Metalocalypse) performing “Thunderhorse”).

Konami may finally have some competition in the rhythm based game genre, but it seems they’re not standing idly by, after recently copyrighting the name “Guitar Revolution” to go along with their other brands. One day, I fear that all the rhythm games will combine and breed a new race of super human pop stars who can sing, dance and play guitar. Then the “Revolution” will really take place. Until then, we’re just playing one game at a time.

DDR: SUPERNOVA:

DDR ULTRAMIX 4:

GUITAR HERO II:

ROUND ONE: FIGHT!

POWERSTONE COLLECTION vs MORTAL KOMBAT: UNCHAINED

Usually, fighting games don’t do very well on the portable systems. There’s either not enough buttons, or the angles don’t work well, or you just can’t pull off that 22 hit combo the way you could in the arcade or at home. Well, the arcade is just about dead, and handhelds are becoming mode and more like the home consoles, so two new fighting games have hit the PSP, and the results aren’t as horrible as one would expect.

POWERSTONE COLLECTION, for example, takes the two entries in the series (both released on the Dreamcast) and puts them together for the first time, as well as including some odd mini games from the ill-fated system’s VMU memory card. Both games are glorious representations of the original game, where fighters do battle on a multi-tiered field, with plenty of objects to pick up and chuck at your foe and power-ups to collect. The game works well on the PSP’s screen, with bright vibrant colors highlighting the action and simple commands used to execute punishing moves.

The first is the better of the two, but both games feature a good variety of diverse fighters and moves, as well as different power ups and collectibles. The VMU games are a weird distraction, including an odd flying game starring one of the fighters. Still, its inclusion is fairly cool, and certainly keeps the entire series intact in one collection.

MORTAL KOMBAT: UNCHAINED, however, is merely a port of last year’s DECEPTION, just with a few new additional fighters. As well as including MOTARO and SHAO KHAN (from the Gamecube version of the game), we get Blaze, Frost Kitana, and Jax. All of the unlockable fighters from the home version are there, but they’re already unlocked, making the Konquest mode’s inclusion rather unnecessary (because, really, who played that mode for the story?).

Puzzle Kombat and Chess Kombat return as well and work just as they do on console. The main game, however, suffers from one “fatal” flaw: load times. Between matches, between fights, for just about every instance you can think of, there’s a 20 to 30 second loading screen. At least the actual fights are smooth, and the transitions from different tiers in the multilevel fights goes off without a hitch. Plus, the fighting (once it’s loaded) all works just as well as it’s console big brother…though the d-pad still isn’t as responsive as it should be (though that’s more the fault of the system rather than the game). Graphically, the game looks almost as sharp as the original from a distance, but when the camera gets in close (like at the end of a match) the system shows it’s limitations.

All in all, however, it’s a successful port for both. Maintaining all the modes from the feature rich home version of DECEPTION is no small task, and the little handheld does it (mostly) admirably. It’s not perfect, but what works, works very well.

POWERSTONE COLLECTION:

MORTAL KOMBAT: UNCHAINED:

SUPERHERO SMACKDOWN VOL 2.

SPIDER-MAN: FIGHT FOR NEW YORK vs SUPERMAN RETURNS

Once again, the two biggest titans of comicdom face off. Not since the 70s (or maybe it was the early 80s) have these two clashed so tirelessly. Well, now they do it again, but in digital form. I speak of course of the two new games for the two most popular and recognizable comic heroes. However, this match up, like all the ones before it, is not as evenly balanced as one might imagine.

Firstly, my favorite hero gets a brand new game in the form of SPIDER-MAN: BATTLE FOR NEW YORK, out now on GBA and DS (reviewed). Built off the same engine for the previous handheld versions of ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN, this title again takes its cue from the Ultimate Universe. In fact, it seems to stem from some of the early issues of the book, where Peter first fought Norman Osbourne, otherwise known as the Green Goblin. In the Ultimate U, ol’ GG is a giant demon looking beast created by the Super Solider Serum gone wrong, and in the game, you play as both Spidey and his nemesis.

Gameplay is practically an exact duplicate of the previous DS adventure, with many of the same sprites used in the graphics. Spidey can swing, pick up civilians to rescue them, and perform a variety of moves and combos against the ne’er do wells of the city. Likewise, Double G can smash, destroy and generally harm those in his way with wicked attacks and fire bombs. Much like Venom in the previous game, GG story runs parallel to Spidey’s and they both come to a head midway through the game.

Unfortunately, while the title is fun to play and offers up a good video game version of the comics, it’s a bit like “been there, done that”. Because the sprites have been reused, many moves have been too, and everything feels very same-y. That’s not entirely a bad thing if you enjoyed the previous handheld adventure (which, I of course did) but those looking for a fully fresh game might be disappointed.

Sadly, the same can be said for SUPERMAN RETURNS, out now on Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS2, Xbox, with slight variations on GBA and DS. Taking the familiar open world format of the SPIDER-MAN 2 game and applying it to a different set of red and blue tights is one thing, but making it boring is a crime within itself altogether.

The premise is ok by itself. A game based on the film of the same name, fleshed out a bit with side missions and non-movie story modes to continue the game well past the film. Sure, they all do that. But here, it doesn’t quite flow the way that they intended. Maybe it’s the fact that you only really fight two kinds of enemies in this game (drones and boss characters). Maybe it’s the fact that between events, you just sort of hover above the city, waiting for something to happen. Or maybe it’s just because Superman is TOO POWERFUL to make a good game about. Sure, they finally have all his powers, and he’s quite formidable. But, he’s so powerful, that they don’t even give him a health bar. No, instead what we’re treated to is a meter which registers “Metropolis Health”, the life bar of the city itself. If the city becomes too damaged in a fracas, it’s game over for the big caped guy. Lame.

What’s worse is, that while his powers do work well, sometimes they work TOO well. Fighting while flying is ok, but sometimes you’re just moving too fast to keep a good lock on your target. The same can be said for running at high speeds while trying to take down one of the games many super speedy foes. And transitioning from ground to air sometimes isn’t nearly as smooth as you’d want it to be. Still, heat vision, freeze breath, super strength, they all work admirably, and experience points build up new moves.

It’s sad to say that the most fun you’ll have with the game is in a mini game, where you actually destroy the city as Bizarro. But these interjections are too few and far between, and don’t last nearly long enough.

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, both these games’ predecessors should be blushing to beat the band. There’s something to be said for originality however…and it should be directed at these two games, because frankly, they don’t seem to grasp the concept.

SPIDER-MAN: BATTLE FOR NEW YORK:

SUPERMAN RETURNS:

THE (VIOLENT) SPORTS AUTHORITY

BLITZ: THE LEAGUE vs WWE SMACKDOWN VS RAW 2007

I’m not a sports guy. Most of my regular readers know that. Still, every so often, I have to review a sports title, just so I don’t alienate that particular demographic that buys those types of games. I still do it my way, though, which I why I tend to shy away from the mainstream with the few sports titles I do review. This time is no exception.

As most of you know, of all the sports I don’t like, I like football the least. Which is why I was so surprised that I enjoyed BLITZ: THE LEAGUE as much as I did. When I reviewed it for the original Xbox, I found that, while the main game had its hiccups, it was still a fun diversion from a normal gridiron game and still had a lot to appeal to football fans as well as arcade players.

Now that it’s been released for Xbox 360, I still feel the same way…but sadly it’s nothing new. The same game that was released last year has been repackaged, shined up a bit and released as a “next gen” title. And sadly, it doesn’t even look that much different from the original Xbox title. The graphics are still fairly sharp (in places, some models still don’t quite look right in certain cut scenes), the running game is still a bit unbalanced (sometimes you’ll get sacked no matter what, sometimes you’re catch a fumble and get a turnover to a 90 yard touchdown) and the story mode is practically the same. So why then didn’t they just make the original backwards compatible? Achievements?

Granted, yes, the achievements are new, but the online seems to be better integrated here as well. Beyond that, however, it’s still very much the same game. That’s fine if you didn’t play the other one and are looking for a weird MADDEN alternative. But if you bought it once already, why would you plop down another $50 for a gussied up remake?

For our other title, some would argue that its subject matter doesn’t officially count as a “sport” (despite the in game announcers claiming that it contains the worlds best “athletes”). Still, now that it’s become a yearly franchise, WWE SMACKDOWN VS RAW 2007 (on PS2, PSP and for the first time Xbox 360) has continued to grow into the world’s best wrestling title…though currently there’s not much competition.

The game has continued to expand it’s already diverse move set and stylized control, with this year’s entry relying heavily on the analog sticks for more complete control over your combatants moves. Different directions deliver grapples, submissions, lifts and slams. You can even click the stick in for further control, holding your opponent in the air and choosing when and how to slam them to the mat. It’s a certain level of control that, now that you have it, you don’t know how you ever played with out it.

Because of this, control for all the other match types has greatly improved. Ladder matches are now more intuitive as far as reaching that belt (though I often still only climb the ladder when I often only wish to grab it). The Diva matches still seem slightly wonky, but over all, everything has a new coat of style and substance that makes this the richest and deepest wrestler yet.

With the typically immersive create-a-superstar mode, the level of detail you bring to your grappler is unending, with features for move set customization, and entrances so completely directed you can even choose each camera angle and when to set off pyrotechnics. However, if you want your created star to have a chance in the squared circle against the real wrestlers, you’re going to have to play a t a lower difficulty level. Since you begin with your character at such a low power level in his stats, and the other wrestlers are already established, it makes for some rather one sided fights. Still, it’s all gravy, with the aforementioned sweet new control scheme,

It’s strange, but as I’ve stated before, while I hate wrestling itself, I love wrestling video games. Once again, I have immersed myself in a grapple-tastic title and come out with the championship belt. And once again, I’ve loved every sweaty hairy minute of it. There’s something kind of wrong about that, but oh well.

BLITZ: THE LEAGUE:

WWE SVR 2007:

And thus we end another week. Are we satisfied yet? What’s that? Where’s my stuff about the Wii and the PS3? Well, ZELDA is so long I still haven’t quite finished it yet, so that’s delayed yet again, and I’m not even bothering to try to find a PS3 (I’m not made of money you know). But hopefully, you’re at least statiated this week. Now, I’ll be back (probably in another two weeks… I have to go biweekly during the Holidays due to so many games and so much over-workage elsewhere) eventually. See you then.

THE GAME ON! RATING SYSTEM

 

Kick-Ass, Right On, Okay, Eh, and Stinker (or Craptacular)

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