Drjuki
It's interesting how a game as simple as a controllable car sprite over a pre-rendered video can be so captivating. When I was a kid I genuinely thought I has as much control over the environment as any other game.
Playing back now it's obvious that this is ultimately a game meant for children, however it really is a testament to this era of gaming that a concept as simple as this still has a ton of love and effort put into it.
Playing back now it's obvious that this is ultimately a game meant for children, however it really is a testament to this era of gaming that a concept as simple as this still has a ton of love and effort put into it.
1994
If you had told me that out of all the major racing series this was the one that first had cockpit view I would not have believed you
EDIT: Marked twice for the SE edition, which I really should have just played from the start
EDIT: Marked twice for the SE edition, which I really should have just played from the start
It's a reskin of Need for Speed with Nissan cars, I can't think of anything else to say other than that. At least you can say it delivers on exactly what it promises.
2010
This review contains spoilers
Man, you think knowing the ultimate outcome for these characters beforehand might soften the ending of this game but.....nope.
It's inevitable that some comparisons to ODST pop up as well after having played that one recently, however Reach succeeds over ODST in building much more memorable relationships with your squad mates. While I liked the characters in ODST, you only spend a couple of minutes with them before spending the rest of the game assuming they're already dead, as opposed to this game where you get to meet and fight with your team from the beginning, making the ultimate dissolution of your squad even more tragic.
Also, I have to say while I knew and expected my entire team to die (did Jun make it out? I don't think we ever saw him die, he just went off with the scientist lady), from the context of Combat Evolved and everything else, I assumed this was going to end in some grand, star wars death star-type planetary explosion or something, that they were going to completely destroy Reach. Instead what I got was more of a quiet whimper instead of a grand bang, with each member going out on their own throughout the story, constantly whittling down the team until it's just your last stand against endless wave of covenant. And that is MUCH more effective than the alternative, and really brings home a certain "war is hell" theme, rather than the fantastical space battles we've become accustomed to. One of the best sequences in that vein was Kat's death, which caught me so genuinely off guard that I audibly gasped.
Lastly, can I just say how relieved I was when the ancient artifact they were experimenting with under Reach didn't turn out to be Flood, but was instead Cortana? Much better than retreading that storyline again, only thing is I thought Cortana was part of the Pillar of Autumn from the beginning? I'm going to have to replay CE again but it seemed like her and Keyes had a deeper relationship beyond the week between this one and CE, and I definitely thought her and John already knew each other. I don't know I could be totally missing something here, but seriously other than that confusion near the end, can't think of any actual complaints.
It's inevitable that some comparisons to ODST pop up as well after having played that one recently, however Reach succeeds over ODST in building much more memorable relationships with your squad mates. While I liked the characters in ODST, you only spend a couple of minutes with them before spending the rest of the game assuming they're already dead, as opposed to this game where you get to meet and fight with your team from the beginning, making the ultimate dissolution of your squad even more tragic.
Also, I have to say while I knew and expected my entire team to die (did Jun make it out? I don't think we ever saw him die, he just went off with the scientist lady), from the context of Combat Evolved and everything else, I assumed this was going to end in some grand, star wars death star-type planetary explosion or something, that they were going to completely destroy Reach. Instead what I got was more of a quiet whimper instead of a grand bang, with each member going out on their own throughout the story, constantly whittling down the team until it's just your last stand against endless wave of covenant. And that is MUCH more effective than the alternative, and really brings home a certain "war is hell" theme, rather than the fantastical space battles we've become accustomed to. One of the best sequences in that vein was Kat's death, which caught me so genuinely off guard that I audibly gasped.
Lastly, can I just say how relieved I was when the ancient artifact they were experimenting with under Reach didn't turn out to be Flood, but was instead Cortana? Much better than retreading that storyline again, only thing is I thought Cortana was part of the Pillar of Autumn from the beginning? I'm going to have to replay CE again but it seemed like her and Keyes had a deeper relationship beyond the week between this one and CE, and I definitely thought her and John already knew each other. I don't know I could be totally missing something here, but seriously other than that confusion near the end, can't think of any actual complaints.
2007
14 years later and this game easily still holds it own.
Really my only issue is I was expecting the same jump in quality from 2 to 3 as there was from CE to 2. That's not even a slight against the game, more against myself for creating unrealistic expectations in hindsight.
Also, now having completed the trilogy, as good as this entry was I'd have to say it feels a little bit more "safe" than the others, but also I'd attribute that more to Bungie (and myself) being much more familiar and involved with the Halo universe now than we were at the beginning of the series, and as a result the games themselves become more familiar as well.
Really my only issue is I was expecting the same jump in quality from 2 to 3 as there was from CE to 2. That's not even a slight against the game, more against myself for creating unrealistic expectations in hindsight.
Also, now having completed the trilogy, as good as this entry was I'd have to say it feels a little bit more "safe" than the others, but also I'd attribute that more to Bungie (and myself) being much more familiar and involved with the Halo universe now than we were at the beginning of the series, and as a result the games themselves become more familiar as well.
1984
I have to say if I was a child in the 80s this would probably be really fun but as an adult in the 20s it's only kinda fun
1999
Man, there is a staggering amount of content in these games
2005
I have a really complicated relationship with this game.
I love the details and effort that went into building the cars and tracks in this game. The fact that they apparently couldn't get enough licensed tracks to fill up for a whole game and instead designed their own original tracks is really cool and honestly heartwarming to see from where the series ended up at.
But oh my god....the AI in this game can be problematic at points and downright sadistic at others. It honestly felt like the game was gaslighting me at times when I would try to complete a race only to be absolutely demolished by a computer with a different car. When I would then switch to the car that I was being overtaken with, the same computer would then lap me with the car I had just used. It really makes you question whether the game is skewing the odds against you for the sake of challenge or if you're just shit at it.
Apparently they couldn't afford to license any Lamborghini cars but for 2004 and Turn10's initial game the amount of really nice detailed cars is impressive.
Also I just want to point out how my mind was completely blown when I first loaded this game up and saw that they had Drivatar AI, a feature that I'm pretty sure wouldn't be reintroduced until 9 years later in Motorsports 5. I never ended up using it, but I did do all the training sessions to "build up" the profile. While it's much more simpler a feature than its later introductions obviously, it's still an impressive marker of the consistency and improvement of the series today.
I love the details and effort that went into building the cars and tracks in this game. The fact that they apparently couldn't get enough licensed tracks to fill up for a whole game and instead designed their own original tracks is really cool and honestly heartwarming to see from where the series ended up at.
But oh my god....the AI in this game can be problematic at points and downright sadistic at others. It honestly felt like the game was gaslighting me at times when I would try to complete a race only to be absolutely demolished by a computer with a different car. When I would then switch to the car that I was being overtaken with, the same computer would then lap me with the car I had just used. It really makes you question whether the game is skewing the odds against you for the sake of challenge or if you're just shit at it.
Apparently they couldn't afford to license any Lamborghini cars but for 2004 and Turn10's initial game the amount of really nice detailed cars is impressive.
Also I just want to point out how my mind was completely blown when I first loaded this game up and saw that they had Drivatar AI, a feature that I'm pretty sure wouldn't be reintroduced until 9 years later in Motorsports 5. I never ended up using it, but I did do all the training sessions to "build up" the profile. While it's much more simpler a feature than its later introductions obviously, it's still an impressive marker of the consistency and improvement of the series today.
I actually played this one years ago, back when I still had a Wii. Obviously without playing through it again it's all rose-tinted glasses, but I still have to say that this was a solid port of COD4, especially compared to the previous entries for the console.
I mean sure, the graphics look absolutely atrocious. But I mean, Paintball Mode, the addition of the co-op campaign plus being (I'm pretty sure) the first entry for the Wii to have online multiplayer, and a rather balanced and well designed one at that. It's not perfect, but you have to admit IW really worked with the limitations of the Wii rather than against them.
I mean sure, the graphics look absolutely atrocious. But I mean, Paintball Mode, the addition of the co-op campaign plus being (I'm pretty sure) the first entry for the Wii to have online multiplayer, and a rather balanced and well designed one at that. It's not perfect, but you have to admit IW really worked with the limitations of the Wii rather than against them.
I have to say while this edges out Roads To Victory in terms of storyline/graphics, in terms of functionality and game mechanics this port can fall short.
In all seriousness though, I had fun with this, although some of the missions could have been shorter, and the guns you're given versus the enemies you have to fight definitely needs to be more balanced as well.
Also I have to just comment how trippy it is the first time you see a Nintendo DS game load up on your PC screen. Honestly I felt like the game fared better emulated to the PC versus playing the actual DS copy I have stowed away somewhere.
In all seriousness though, I had fun with this, although some of the missions could have been shorter, and the guns you're given versus the enemies you have to fight definitely needs to be more balanced as well.
Also I have to just comment how trippy it is the first time you see a Nintendo DS game load up on your PC screen. Honestly I felt like the game fared better emulated to the PC versus playing the actual DS copy I have stowed away somewhere.
I really don't have much to say about this game, I'm mainly just baffled that it exists. Why port a whole new COD game rather than just putting regular WaW on the PS2? Why make a game with ONLY single player campaign, absolutely no multiplayer capabilities at all, and cut it at 13 missions? Why the addition of a British Campaign (as well as an American European Campaign) yet the complete exclusion of a Russian Campaign? Just so many questions. This game is like late 2000s mobile games, there's nothing explicitly wrong with it, there's just no reason for it to exist.
In terms of quality though, I'd have to say this game is pretty much exactly the same as Big Red One, fun little harmless romp.
In terms of quality though, I'd have to say this game is pretty much exactly the same as Big Red One, fun little harmless romp.
Boy this one is a big jump from the first one. Better graphics, better controls, and a lot more career options to make this game last longer than the first one.
Very surprised they didn't get in trouble at all because they basically ripped off the design of one of the cars from the first Fast & Furious movie.
Very surprised they didn't get in trouble at all because they basically ripped off the design of one of the cars from the first Fast & Furious movie.
Here's a question no one wanted to know the answer to: what if we made a COD game with TANK CONTROLS.
Seriously though, have to say I'm kind of impressed at the quality of the PSP output. For a handheld console the graphics are actually somewhat competent for the time. Weird complaint but, the game needs more weapon drops. Too many times I'd run out of ammo and have to simply melee everyone until an enemy would drop an MP-40. All in all, there's actually potential for a good game under here, it's simply limited by the hardware they had to work with.
But seriously who the fuck thought TANK CONTROLS
Seriously though, have to say I'm kind of impressed at the quality of the PSP output. For a handheld console the graphics are actually somewhat competent for the time. Weird complaint but, the game needs more weapon drops. Too many times I'd run out of ammo and have to simply melee everyone until an enemy would drop an MP-40. All in all, there's actually potential for a good game under here, it's simply limited by the hardware they had to work with.
But seriously who the fuck thought TANK CONTROLS
2001
I had consciously been putting this game and series off since my early childhood for a point where I could play and digest it all in a consistent sitting, and I really can't say that after 20 years of anticipation I was disappointed.
As this was my first playthrough a lot of the personal enjoyment more came from connecting all the fragments I had already been privy to via pop culture, but even besides that narratively this game is fascinating. It builds an amazing world and universe that is ripe for further exploration, but everybody's already said that a million times over of course.
I honestly can't think of anything new to say about this game that hasn't already been rightfully said of it. Personally, I found some of the later levels progression system of "fight through 20-30 gray corridors killing a constant onslaught of aliens and bugs until you get to the objective" a little tiring after a while, and also I managed to get lost in a couple of levels but I'll chalk that up to my faults versus the games.
As this was my first playthrough a lot of the personal enjoyment more came from connecting all the fragments I had already been privy to via pop culture, but even besides that narratively this game is fascinating. It builds an amazing world and universe that is ripe for further exploration, but everybody's already said that a million times over of course.
I honestly can't think of anything new to say about this game that hasn't already been rightfully said of it. Personally, I found some of the later levels progression system of "fight through 20-30 gray corridors killing a constant onslaught of aliens and bugs until you get to the objective" a little tiring after a while, and also I managed to get lost in a couple of levels but I'll chalk that up to my faults versus the games.
A definite improvement over Finest Hour, arguably the first truly story focused COD, one of the only ones to truly explore the french african/italian campaigns still to this day, making for a rather enjoyable playing experience.
Yet they still keep the ass-backwards control scheme and health system from finest hour. Also the graphics are almost worse than original COD on PC, though I'll excuse the limitations of the Xbox hardware
Yet they still keep the ass-backwards control scheme and health system from finest hour. Also the graphics are almost worse than original COD on PC, though I'll excuse the limitations of the Xbox hardware