Jam with the Band
Nintendo DS
Rewind to 2005 and you will see me playing this game in Japanese under the different name of Daigasso! Band Brothers. It’s taken almost 6 years to see this game hit European and American DS owners but yet the game hasn’t aged in quality even after the glut of Guitar Hero, Rock Band and DJ Hero games.
Plastic peripherals are all the rage these days evolving from the sticky dance mat to the fully featured four-piece Rock Band set up which dominates your front room resulting in what looks like Fisher Price invading your private home quarters with each and every generation.
While the Nintendo DS has seen its own brand of plastic instrument with Guitar Hero, there is nothing better than the Nintendo DS itself to perform music on the move. Such musical delights on the portable machine ranging from the crazy Rhythm Paradise and Elite Beat Agents to the more serious tone of Jam with the Band.
Jam with the Band is deceiving. It may look simple and kind of boring in its aesthetics but underneath the visuals is the most difficult music game I have learnt to play but that does not stop it from being a thoroughly enjoyable and unique experience, one of which eases you into the difficulty levels intuitively and fairly.
Introducing you to the game is a very odd looking woman named Barbara who will teach you how to play the game and grade you based on your performance from one of the sixty instruments in the game across fifty different songs. While the game may sound fairly generic so far, the real genius lies within each song containing seven to ten different types of instrument for you to master giving you an huge library of pieces of music to play.
Amongst the sixty instruments featured is the more traditional guitar, piano and drums to the more unfamiliar steel drum, banjo and even the NES console system which leads to a worldwide variety of music for you to sample.
As you can see in the screenshot, the game follows a series of button presses for you to get in time with in order to create a part of the music and if successful, you will please your fans and unlock new ranks of difficulty and even some new songs.
There’s a real incentive to get your Nintendo DS connected to the Nintendo WiFi connection. Gaining access to the in-game music download store offers you fifty songs of your choice to download for free and even though you can’t delete the songs you’ve downloaded you can’t really complain for them expanding your game by almost double.
9/10
Monday, 31 May 2010
Tuesday, 18 May 2010
A PUN ABOUT BEING AWAKE ROFL
Alan Wake Review
Xbox 360
Rated 15
Episodic gaming is the new kid on the block which is usually associated with bite size gaming on the downloadable platforms but in recent years we have seen a slow income of retails games which divide the main course into smaller, separate episodes and even include a “previously on...” video to remind you of previous events in the story similar to what you’d see in the current episode of Lost.
This is not the only thing reminiscent of Lost in Alan Wake; the story is shrouded in mystery and at one point even results in trees being torn down by an unknown shroud of black smoke making sure you’re kept in the dark and in suspense.
Alan Wake is a famous novelist writer with a serious case of writers block and is in dire need of a vacation to escape the pressures of fame and the inability to create the next blockbuster novel.
Settling down in a log cabin in the remote town of Bright Falls which is very reminiscent of the popular TV show Twin Peaks results in Alan Wake and his wife being separated after a seven day blackout. The story maintains an exciting pace with the end of each episode with a cliff hanger plot line to ensure you want to come back and see Alan Wake’s story to the end.
Calling the game a survival horror and comparing it to something like Silent Hill would be apt but the game is definitely more of a thriller, the game rarely does the traditional scares that you might expect from an atmospheric, tense videogame which gives the game a definite action thriller feel to the entire package.
Games like these live or die on their core game play elements but thankfully Remedy have managed to provide a simplistic yet entertaining combat experience, offering you only the bare minimum in weaponry and tools to use against the enemies which are interestingly designed without leaving the roots of reality. Shrouded in a black gas cloud, the enemies will ambush you in dark and only then will you have to fend yourself with a variety of light based tools to ensure you keep The Taken at bay, over exposure of a light source weakens the enemy to a vulnerable state in which you can kill them with your weapon of choice leaving a greatly satisfying combat mechanic which doesn’t wear thin by the end of your time with Alan.
While the on-foot action is exhilarating and tense there are a few moments of down time which take place in the vehicles, showing the games roots as an open world venture. Hopping into a car or a truck handles surprisingly well and feels good to eliminate The Taken with your headlights but ultimately the driving experience is flat and soulless which feels more filler than an enjoyable experience, I had really hoped they would have used this to provide the player with some exciting chase scenes but you are left with a poor excuse of padding out some game time.
Alan Wake has some excellent set pieces in each episode which is connected by a roller coaster ride which Remedy has created. It might have taken six years to see the light of day but overall the game is a mighty fine action thriller which will no doubt entertain you for the brief time you’re in the eerie town of Bright Falls.
8/10
Xbox 360
Rated 15
Episodic gaming is the new kid on the block which is usually associated with bite size gaming on the downloadable platforms but in recent years we have seen a slow income of retails games which divide the main course into smaller, separate episodes and even include a “previously on...” video to remind you of previous events in the story similar to what you’d see in the current episode of Lost.
This is not the only thing reminiscent of Lost in Alan Wake; the story is shrouded in mystery and at one point even results in trees being torn down by an unknown shroud of black smoke making sure you’re kept in the dark and in suspense.
Alan Wake is a famous novelist writer with a serious case of writers block and is in dire need of a vacation to escape the pressures of fame and the inability to create the next blockbuster novel.
Settling down in a log cabin in the remote town of Bright Falls which is very reminiscent of the popular TV show Twin Peaks results in Alan Wake and his wife being separated after a seven day blackout. The story maintains an exciting pace with the end of each episode with a cliff hanger plot line to ensure you want to come back and see Alan Wake’s story to the end.
Calling the game a survival horror and comparing it to something like Silent Hill would be apt but the game is definitely more of a thriller, the game rarely does the traditional scares that you might expect from an atmospheric, tense videogame which gives the game a definite action thriller feel to the entire package.
Games like these live or die on their core game play elements but thankfully Remedy have managed to provide a simplistic yet entertaining combat experience, offering you only the bare minimum in weaponry and tools to use against the enemies which are interestingly designed without leaving the roots of reality. Shrouded in a black gas cloud, the enemies will ambush you in dark and only then will you have to fend yourself with a variety of light based tools to ensure you keep The Taken at bay, over exposure of a light source weakens the enemy to a vulnerable state in which you can kill them with your weapon of choice leaving a greatly satisfying combat mechanic which doesn’t wear thin by the end of your time with Alan.
While the on-foot action is exhilarating and tense there are a few moments of down time which take place in the vehicles, showing the games roots as an open world venture. Hopping into a car or a truck handles surprisingly well and feels good to eliminate The Taken with your headlights but ultimately the driving experience is flat and soulless which feels more filler than an enjoyable experience, I had really hoped they would have used this to provide the player with some exciting chase scenes but you are left with a poor excuse of padding out some game time.
Alan Wake has some excellent set pieces in each episode which is connected by a roller coaster ride which Remedy has created. It might have taken six years to see the light of day but overall the game is a mighty fine action thriller which will no doubt entertain you for the brief time you’re in the eerie town of Bright Falls.
8/10
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
PEOPLE, TO BATTLE! (Dot net)
Everybody, run inside! A blizzard is coming. An epic duo of games is set for release this year for both PC and Mac formats. Blizzard Entertainment, creators of the globally famous Diablo, Starcraft and Warcraft series have decided to give the players the key to unlock Starcraft II from the depth of development imprisonment for you to Zerg Rush your fellow strategists at the end of July.
It’s been a whopping twelve years since the original Starcraft hit retail shelves offering a Real Time Strategy so popular it’s played live on Korean television equal to any sport over here, people cry when their favourite Starcraft professional win the equivalent of the FA Cup and recently Starcraft professionals have been known to take bribes in their games.
As crazy as that sounds please do not let it put you off playing Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty, it’s without a doubt the most enjoyable RTS game I have played and offers gaming for everybody with a love for those games similar to Command and Conquer.
The first of three chapters is due out on the 27th July and offers a fully fledged 30 mission campaign based on the human storyline aka The Terran. Alongside the story mode will be the meat of the dish, the multiplayer component for you to tackle alien races in co-operative and competitive game modes.
Starcraft is to have sold 9.5 million copies across the globe which was quite impressive back then, even if 4.5 million sales were in Korea. Starcraft II will no doubt beat those records if what I have played is anything to go by.
Another titan to see a release this year is World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. An expansion to the most popular MMORPG of all time will see the world torn asunder with an earthquake so large it’ll change the existing World of Warcraft forever.
Introducing new playable races such as the Goblin and Worgen (werewolf) will surely entice new players into the MMO and with a brand new set of quests, zones and raids for seasoned veterans like myself it’s sure to be a must have for anyone with an interest in online gaming for the PC/Mac.
Although the expansion set has yet to be given a release date, I am sure we will be seeing around the autumn time or possibly soon after, they don’t want to be steal Starcraft 2’s thunder now.
This year is a great year to get involved with PC gaming and 2011 sets to be a corker too, Blizzard third mega seller series, Diablo 3 will get a release as well as (hopefully) a sequel to Valves Portal and/or Half Life 2.
It’s been a whopping twelve years since the original Starcraft hit retail shelves offering a Real Time Strategy so popular it’s played live on Korean television equal to any sport over here, people cry when their favourite Starcraft professional win the equivalent of the FA Cup and recently Starcraft professionals have been known to take bribes in their games.
As crazy as that sounds please do not let it put you off playing Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty, it’s without a doubt the most enjoyable RTS game I have played and offers gaming for everybody with a love for those games similar to Command and Conquer.
The first of three chapters is due out on the 27th July and offers a fully fledged 30 mission campaign based on the human storyline aka The Terran. Alongside the story mode will be the meat of the dish, the multiplayer component for you to tackle alien races in co-operative and competitive game modes.
Starcraft is to have sold 9.5 million copies across the globe which was quite impressive back then, even if 4.5 million sales were in Korea. Starcraft II will no doubt beat those records if what I have played is anything to go by.
Another titan to see a release this year is World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. An expansion to the most popular MMORPG of all time will see the world torn asunder with an earthquake so large it’ll change the existing World of Warcraft forever.
Introducing new playable races such as the Goblin and Worgen (werewolf) will surely entice new players into the MMO and with a brand new set of quests, zones and raids for seasoned veterans like myself it’s sure to be a must have for anyone with an interest in online gaming for the PC/Mac.
Although the expansion set has yet to be given a release date, I am sure we will be seeing around the autumn time or possibly soon after, they don’t want to be steal Starcraft 2’s thunder now.
This year is a great year to get involved with PC gaming and 2011 sets to be a corker too, Blizzard third mega seller series, Diablo 3 will get a release as well as (hopefully) a sequel to Valves Portal and/or Half Life 2.
Sunday, 9 May 2010
May I introduce to my games?
As gaming becomes more expensive to develop, publishers are finding new ways to breach into our wallets and negotiate with the Queen who lives inside. Summer gaming is infamously a time for the “other” games to be released. The games which would be lost inside the Christmas rush, but things are changing.
Now more than ever is the number of Triple-A quality games being produced each year and while they would all stick their head above the sand for a Christmas release there is a slight chance that a good half of them wouldn’t sell enough to break even on the millions of dollars invested in them. What is the answer? Summer gaming is here and along for the ride is a whole host of new names and popular games to keep you busy during those typical rainy summer days.
Looking back a week or two has already seen the release of some fantastic games which shouldn’t be ignored. Monster Hunter Tri makes its debut on a console other than the PSP on the Nintendo Wii. A landmark achievement for both Nintendo and Capcom trying to reach their impressive title to a whole new audience with an online 4 player co-operative mode it certainly is treading new ground for most Nintendo Wii owners, I’m sure.
FIFA World Cup 2010 has seen its premature release to keep FIFA lovers entertained. Improving upon a familiar feel adding some new features but also removing the key 20 player online mode makes it a good, but questionable purchase if you already own FIFA 10 but if your desire is to take Kazakhstan to World Cup glory then don’t let anybody get in your way.
Looking to the month of May begins with Capcoms alternate to Monster Hunter for PS3 and 360 owners with Lost Planet 2, expect to see a fully fledged co-operative mode which will see you and three other friends hunting monsters, surely this is no coincidence?
Alan Wake has been six years in the making with the fear of it going the way of Duke Nukem Forever but here we are with a single player horror game, one for the Silent Hill and Resident Evil lovers out there but if you’re looking for something a bit more light hearted then you can hop on board for Skate 3 on the 14th May.
The following week has another long-awaited game finally reaching to consoles is Red Dead Redemption. The creators of Grand Theft Auto have decided that if you replace cars with horses and have cowboys participate in a bar room shoot out would be a good idea and I agree but if you’re more interested in the four wheels of transportation then Split/Second Velocity will suit your petrol head needs.
Split/Second is a spiritual successor to the Burnout series with the ability to destroy the race track around you, ever wanted to blow up a bridge behind you and see your enemies tumble to their demise? Well now you can.
Also due for a return is Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands which will also see a movie tie-in around the same time so expect to see Jake Gyllenhaal taking the lead role of the Prince and expect the typical ledge grabbing action you have become to know and love.
All these titles are due on May 21st but if for some reason none of the above tickle your gaming fancy then one week later will unleash a final blow to your wallet with the sequel to the fantastic UFC Undisputed.
As if May wasn’t overloaded with more than enough videogames to last anyone a good year or two, Nintendo has decided that the most anticipated game of the year will be released in the first week of June. Judging by early reviews, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is shaping up to be the best 3D Mario title to date.
These games are just the cream of the crop, there are loads of other games due for release so keep your eyes open on various websites for the game you’ve been waiting for.
Now more than ever is the number of Triple-A quality games being produced each year and while they would all stick their head above the sand for a Christmas release there is a slight chance that a good half of them wouldn’t sell enough to break even on the millions of dollars invested in them. What is the answer? Summer gaming is here and along for the ride is a whole host of new names and popular games to keep you busy during those typical rainy summer days.
Looking back a week or two has already seen the release of some fantastic games which shouldn’t be ignored. Monster Hunter Tri makes its debut on a console other than the PSP on the Nintendo Wii. A landmark achievement for both Nintendo and Capcom trying to reach their impressive title to a whole new audience with an online 4 player co-operative mode it certainly is treading new ground for most Nintendo Wii owners, I’m sure.
FIFA World Cup 2010 has seen its premature release to keep FIFA lovers entertained. Improving upon a familiar feel adding some new features but also removing the key 20 player online mode makes it a good, but questionable purchase if you already own FIFA 10 but if your desire is to take Kazakhstan to World Cup glory then don’t let anybody get in your way.
Looking to the month of May begins with Capcoms alternate to Monster Hunter for PS3 and 360 owners with Lost Planet 2, expect to see a fully fledged co-operative mode which will see you and three other friends hunting monsters, surely this is no coincidence?
Alan Wake has been six years in the making with the fear of it going the way of Duke Nukem Forever but here we are with a single player horror game, one for the Silent Hill and Resident Evil lovers out there but if you’re looking for something a bit more light hearted then you can hop on board for Skate 3 on the 14th May.
The following week has another long-awaited game finally reaching to consoles is Red Dead Redemption. The creators of Grand Theft Auto have decided that if you replace cars with horses and have cowboys participate in a bar room shoot out would be a good idea and I agree but if you’re more interested in the four wheels of transportation then Split/Second Velocity will suit your petrol head needs.
Split/Second is a spiritual successor to the Burnout series with the ability to destroy the race track around you, ever wanted to blow up a bridge behind you and see your enemies tumble to their demise? Well now you can.
Also due for a return is Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands which will also see a movie tie-in around the same time so expect to see Jake Gyllenhaal taking the lead role of the Prince and expect the typical ledge grabbing action you have become to know and love.
All these titles are due on May 21st but if for some reason none of the above tickle your gaming fancy then one week later will unleash a final blow to your wallet with the sequel to the fantastic UFC Undisputed.
As if May wasn’t overloaded with more than enough videogames to last anyone a good year or two, Nintendo has decided that the most anticipated game of the year will be released in the first week of June. Judging by early reviews, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is shaping up to be the best 3D Mario title to date.
These games are just the cream of the crop, there are loads of other games due for release so keep your eyes open on various websites for the game you’ve been waiting for.
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