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Rocksmith Review

Graphics:
8.0
Gameplay:
8.5
Sound:
9.0
Control:
0.0
Replay Value:
8.5
Overall Rating:
8.7
Online Gameplay:
Not Rated
Publisher:
Ubisoft
Developer:
Ubisoft Montreal
Number Of Players:
1-2
Genre:
Genre


Years ago, my Guitar Hero bundle arrived for review and after getting a feel for the game, I couldn't stomach it. Honestly, I simply didn't like it. And it's not just me, anyone else who plays the guitar agrees – this game is impossible for an actual guitar player to enjoy. The issue with Guitar Hero for people like me is that we're trying to play the actual song, down to the rhythm, as if we were using a real guitar, as opposed to striking one of five buttons with another button acting as the 'pick'. Still, when reviewing games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band, we had to be objective (plus, at least the drumming in later iterations was fairly solid), and we saw them for what they were – fun party games. But the guitarist in me always wondered, why can't someone just release a game where you use an actual guitar using an adapter, that detects what notes you're playing and rewards you for legitimate musical skill. RockSmith is precisely that. And what started out as a project that many were skeptical would pan out this well, has ended up being arguably the sleeper hit of the year; so much so that stores are backordered for weeks, and prices of the game have inflated on eBay. Ubisoft has a hit franchise on their hands.

The core of RockSmith is extremely simple, one that any seasoned or even non-seasoned player will grasp – you play along to music in the game. It's what almost every guitar player does right now where they run music through their PCs and play along through their amp. Except the difference here is you get graded, and fairly accurately, might I add. RockSmith is ideal for all types of players, the newcomers, amateurs, experienced, and advanced. Thanks to its dynamic learning curve, the amateur will learn the ropes through a series of tutorials the game has to offer, as well as being treated to simplified note charts for every song they play. So as opposed to being thrown into a song full blast, you will be prompted to hit a note or two every few seconds just to get a feel for the song, your guitar, and what the primary notes are. Once the game sees you are up to par with everything it gives you, it'll gradually add a few extra notes for you to hit. So there's a level of layers you'll go through until you are given the song in its entirety. And speaking of which, when you have mastered a song, you will be allowed to turn the chart off and just play it by ear, which is pretty awesome. Though, you can unlock the song's layers quicker by playing the tune in full from the get go – it seems like the game detects your experience in that regard as well, and will allow you to unravel the more advanced note charts quicker.

The chart is laid out on screen exactly like a guitar fretboard, with the odd numbered frets labeled and the strings boasting individual colors. Personally, the odd numbering could've been executed a bit better, the developer should've figured out a way to display all numbers. Because the chart scrolls upward, it's sometimes a little difficult to see where the next note is…'is it the 7th fret or 8th fret?' It's hard to put into words, exactly, but you'll know what I mean when you actually play the game. It would make more sense to display just the fret numbers that are approaching, instead of having all of them laid out. Furthermore, the color scheme for each string is a little unusual, as well and should've been thought of more carefully. Again, when you're in the middle of concentrating on the song, it can be a little hard to remember which string is the yellow string as the notes for it approach – this is also partly because the other strings will dim into the background. The better design aesthetic would've been to label the strings with a descending color intensity – the darker colors would've been the lower pitched top strings, the lighter colors would've been the higher pitched bottom strings. But again, if you can get around this odd curve, you will still be rewarded with a fantastic learning experience – and if you already have the experience, chances are you won't even look at the screen anyway.

I can honestly say I almost never looked at the screen, since a number of these songs I knew quite well and was able to ace them and earn a number of streak related trophies, as well as a 98-100% accuracy ranking. There is a career mode in the game called Journey (don't get excited, because there isn't a single Journey song in the game), there is also a ranking system based on accumulating points for every performance, and naturally with every rank you earn a trophy. There is also a few mini-games in the Guitarcade, which are good for a quick and fun distraction. Likewise an offline multiplayer mode is present for two, and you have the ability to use a mic and sing along. So there's quite a bit to do beside just playing guitar in the game by yourself. But at the end of the day, what most concerned me is the core of the game and that would be playing the guitar and the game's ability to accurately grade you. What I also enjoyed seeing was that you don't have to play songs precisely as the game wants you to, so if you play some of these songs another way and it sounds virtually identical to the actual recording the game will not penalize you. The detection system is based on pitch and notes, not which frets you're actually hitting.

Having said that, your purchase of RockSmith will depend on the track list. Do you like what you see? If so, get it. If not, don't. What I will tell you off the bat is that there aren't any excruciatingly difficult songs here. No Dream Theater. No Trivium. No Slayer. No Iron Maiden. No Killswitch Engage. The tunes veer on the lighter side of rock, so there's really nothing terrible heavy either – and that's point. Because RockSmith is a new franchise, Ubisoft clearly doesn't want to alienate a massive set of gamers out there who will likely never perfect music from the aforementioned bands. Or at the very least, they didn't want to make songs like that as part of the core experience, which is where DLC comes in. As expected for a game like this, DLC is present…but at $3 a song, it's also very pricey and the costs add up quick. Again, seasoned players are more likely to just stick to playing along with the music through their PCs and playlists. But someone who wants to learn without paying $50 every week for a lesson shouldn't even think twice about it, RockSmith was made for you and you will get a whole lot of satisfaction out of it (slight pun intended as Rolling Stone's hit song is one of the most frequently centered songs in the game, including commercials and such).

Lastly, audio quality is fantastic, though despite what Ubisoft claims, optical out (for the home theater setups) will not always provide the most lag-free experience. In fact, in my experience, my optical Sony receiver had a half-second delay in output which made playing the game impossible, forcing me to use my TV's internal speaker output. Not all optical receivers do this, only a small handful which largely plagues Sony's as their receivers are meant for videogames and movies where this is constant output of sound, as opposed to a game like RockSmith which requires an input of sound to the PS3, then to the receiver, and out from the speakers. It's a minor quip and is not a fault of the game, but rather the hardware I have – so it is not losing points for it. Where RockSmith does lose some points is its inability to fine-tune the audio in the same way you can in RockBand and Guitar Hero, where the volumes of certain sounds and instruments can be toned down or up. I'd have liked to see this level of personalization; it should be a necessity for a game of this nature. Though, what I did love was accessing the amp, unlocking new sounds and tones and just doodling around in the game and practicing.

RockSmith is the real deal, believe the hype. It's a well executed game with superb tone recognition. It is effectively what Guitar Hero should've become after the third or even second iteration. This the proper evolution of the music game genre, and Ubisoft is at the forefront of it. I'm not sure what kind of patents are involved in creating a game like this, though I wouldn't be surprised to see RockSmith remain as the only franchise that allows you to use any real guitar to play the game. I used my ESP Eclipse, Ibanez Iceman, Schecter C1 Classic, and Gibson Les Paul Prototype (a conceptual prototype the company never produced in the 80s) and they all worked. It's also worth mentioning that my Eclipse has a DiMarzio D-Sonic humbucker retrofit at the bridge, and the game has no problems with the guitar (no noise, feedback, etc.). The reason for that is because the game is digitally outputting the sound of your guitar, using tones the game is preloaded with. Likewise, if you plug in an electric acoustic, it'll still sound the same as a standard electric guitar in game – but it has to have an actual pickup, though.

Technical tidbits aside, I really believe that RockSmith is the future of music games and that publishers such as EA/MTV Games and Activision will strive to achieve an experience as close as possible to RockSmith – again, assuming there aren't a slew of patents that Ubisoft has secured. I can definitely see this turning into a massive franchise in the coming years. Kudos, Ubisoft…kudos.

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception Review

Graphics:
10.0
Gameplay:
10.0
Sound:
10.0
Control:
9.5
Replay Value:
10.0
Online Gameplay:
9.5
Overall Rating:
10.0
Publisher:
SCEA
Developer:
Naughty Dog
Number Of Players:
1-12
Genre:
Action


When I created PSX Extreme alongside my brother 12 years ago, the last thing I imagined was that I'd have something called a Blu-ray disc spinning inside a PlayStation 3, displaying an image that would absolutely surpass the CG sequences I was used to from the likes of Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX, Chrono Cross, Legend of Dragoon, and so forth. What action-adventure shooters like Uncharted and Gears of War are for the industry today, is what the above RPGs were for a generation of gamers yesterday. And while many of us have vilified this genre for dumbing gaming down, and with good reason, games like Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is a core example of what being the very finest exception to a rule is all about.

And it really is the finest exception. While I couldn't have imagined playing something like Uncharted 3 back in 1999, I bet few even imagined playing something like this 5 years ago when the PlayStation 3 debuted. Sure, the original game was superb when it launched, but we didn't think Naughty Dog would make such massive strides with its sequel. And that very same sequel left the inevitable Uncharted 3 with some massive loafers to fill. Not only does Uncharted 3 fill the footwear, but its footprint is sasquatch-esque in size, tearing the very seams of the shoe it's attempting to fill. Playing Uncharted 3 left me with simply one thought: 'how do they do it'? "They" being Naughty Dog, of course.

The moment you boot the game up, you're taken for a ride. You're thrown into a really tense bar scene that quickly escalates into a huge brawl and you're familiarized with the polished and honed fighting mechanics of the game. Where as in Uncharted 2 there was a bit of clunkiness to the hand-to-hand combat, Uncharted 3 deals away with nearly all of that. The next thing you know you're running around pounding everyone in sight, throwin' a bunch of bloody wankers to the floor, beating them until they can no longer stand…and when you're done a cutscene unfolds, the end of which leaves your jaw on the floor and your mind racing at every possible outcome of this "what now?" situation. This is really clever Hollywood-class writing here, folks. To flesh out the characters and to calm you down following the cutscene will be your second chapter, a prequel of sorts…the story of Drake meeting Sully. It's like Harry meeting Sally, without the awkward moaning and with a lot of roof jumping through a lush Columbian backdrop. This is quality stuff, believe me.

Within the first 30 minutes of the game, Uncharted 3 has sunk its teeth into you, and I dare anyone to admit you didn't fight yourself to put the game down. The shooting mechanics have remained largely the same, though collision detection is now flawless as every well aimed bullet will connect and either kill or wound your opponent. Climbing and general control quirks have also been ironed out, which makes the game play even smoother than the last, though I do think things such as jumping over obstacles and certain leaps of faith could've been handled better. But if you happen to fail, the game stores plenty of checkpoints throughout every chapter and chances are you won't have to repeat anymore than 30-60 seconds of gameplay to correct your mistake.

A.I. continues to be one of the finest aspects of the game, ranging from absolutely moronic to tactile and organized. Depending on the difficulty you set your game to also has an affect on the brains of your support – so if you're playing on the easier settings and witness Sully not doing anything about enemies who sneak up behind you, well don't say I didn't warn you. At the very least, play this on the standard difficulty – it's fairly well balanced that way.

Though, as is always the case with this franchise, it's the story and its characters that really grab you. The level of interaction between everyone is simply unparalleled; there's just no other gaming experience that is within miles of what Uncharted 3 offers to the gamer on a scale of immersion. Uncharted 2 was epic in its presentation, and yet somehow Uncharted 3 is able to expand on that. The scenarios are more tense. The writing keeps you on the edge of your seat. The action will have you gasping for air with every leap of faith or wondrous moment. The simple joy you experience completing these epic moments is unlike any feeling you've ever felt in a game. And while I'm aware of how vague I'm being with my descriptions, there's just so much amazement to see in Uncharted 3 that giving even the slightest bit of detail would feel like I'm spoiling something special.

And that's what makes Uncharted 3 so unique, it's how special the game feels; you are part of this interactive journey, you are part of these characters, you want the good guys to succeed not because you want to win, but because you're convinced this character on your screen has a real-life personality. You're convinced that they're real, and you know that you are the key to their success…and it is brilliant feeling. The level of satisfaction one gets from completing some absurd escape is all too high. Though, I must say if I did have one complaint about the game, it's that some of the escapes can feel a little drawn out and farfetched. Though blame it on the game's absolutely flawless execution, because it does such a remarkable job at conveying this sense of realism, that you almost can't forgive it for being just a "videogame". Because Uncharted 3 feels, plays, and looks so life-like, some of the crazy escapes occasionally get to you because of how implausible they can be, all because you've let go of the fact that this is still a videogame at the end of the day. Again, it's one of those scratches that doesn't really scratch the surface…the double-edged sword, if you get what I mean.

Multiplayer was introduced with Uncharted 2, and it returns for Uncharted 3 with enhancements, additions, and fixes. Much of what you loved about last year's game returns, including co-op. While it's early to tell just how fulfilling the multiplayer experience is, I can tell you that it is robust. A number of you have already played the multiplayer beta, which boasted weapon enhancement, rankings, medals, boosters, and so forth. Modes such as Free For All (Deathmatch), Team Deathmatch, Team Objective, Plunder, Hardcore, Co-Op Hunter, Co-Op Arena, and Co-Op Adventure round out the list of available multiplayer modes. We've seen what a great job Naughty Dog did with the last game's multiplayer, and we've witnessed how great Uncharted 3's multiplayer efforts turned out, as well. Granted, because there is virtually no one playing the game online right now aside from us press folk with special access invites, we can't truly gauge the multiplayer because we don't know what its core audience and infrastructure will turn the experience into. Still what we do know is that the game boasts a feature rich and wholly enjoyable multiplayer experience and that the beta was a solid indicator of said audience and infrastructure (matchmaking, woo!). Still, Ben will be providing his own review which will include additional multiplayer details once the game launches worldwide for all.

To wrap things up, I think goes without saying that Uncharted 3 will go down as the best looking game of this generation by a long, blistering, and freezing Antarctic mile. Apart from another Naughty Dog title, I don't see anything getting close. I don't have to spell it out for you, you've seen the HD footage and the high-resolution screens. You've seen the glistening screens that show off those gorgeous landscapes, the textures on the wall, ground, objects and characters, the flawless animation, the surreal lighting, the lack of a jagged edge on the screen, the solid framerate, and those stunning cinematic cutscenes.

So with visuals that clean and practically perfect, it only makes sense the audio matches. As is par for course, Uncharted 3 delivers a deck of aces for the audio. The same way the graphics accomplish everything they possibly can to deliver the most polished picture possible, the audio delivers every punch it can pull off to do the same for your ears (and the audio system you should have taking advantage of this marvelous sonic achievement). The voice acting remains flawless, and it is one of the main principles behind making the game feel so alive and the characters so real. Drake still makes his quips and snide remarks, and the bounce between Sully and Drake remains as effortless as ever. All interactions you experience with the supporting cast will probably upset you once you realize that the chances of the Hollywood movie having dialogue this perfect and natural is slim to none. Of course there is a soundtrack in the background that'll accompany you with every tense moment, and a ton of boomy and rich sound effects to accompany you when those same tense moments get out of control. Home theater guys will have a field day with this.

There's only one last thing that needs to be said, and this is going to be one of the shortest conclusions I'll ever piece together. All that can be remains to be said about Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception is that it both defies and defines everything a videogame is and should be. In that order.

Why Gran Turismo 5 Is a Rightful G.O.T.Y Winner

So when Ben and I got on the phone to go over the nominees and the winners, the process hit a few snags. Some we had expected, some we didn't. The whole rundown is fairly straightforward and simple. Ben had a number of nominees written down per category, but when we sat down to discuss the whole list, I had brought up a number of other titles for various categories that Ben had forgotten. We had changed and removed nominees during the review, and yet the whole process was still relatively easy. There were only a handful of categories where we drew out long list of pros and cons, before ultimately making our decisions. Graphics, for example, was one of them. Both Ben and I came down to God of War III and Gran Turismo 5, and after a lot of scrutinizing I made the case for God of War III and Ben agreed.

The great thing about the dynamic Ben and I share is that we are able to share our objective analysis on any given subject and usually one or the other agrees with it. It's never a tug-of-war process, and we've never once had an instance of bickering. One such example is that I was able to make a case of Gran Turismo 5 being the multiplayer game of the year, and that FIFA 11 was the best sports game of the year – and Ben agreed. But then we hit our metaphorical wall. It was time to pick our Game of the Year. So, as per usual, we had our choices narrowed down and then we start picking those we don't think stack up. Process of elimination brought us to Heavy Rain and Gran Turismo 5. Oh, shit.

So began the case building, I had expressed why I felt Gran Turismo 5 is the best game of the year, and Ben did the same for Heavy Rain. To complicate things more, Ben agreed with me. Yet, I agreed with him. Doesn't that just blow your mind? So after about an hour of us talking about just the GOTY category, we agreed there was nothing left to do but to call it a tie. At one point Ben had said "these are about as polar opposite as polar opposite can get." And he's right. I mean, it's one thing if you're comparing, say, Uncharted to Metal Gear Solid, God of War to Final Fantasy, or Metal Gear Solid to Kingdom Hearts, but it's another when you're comparing Heavy Rain to Gran Turismo 5. The reason being is that, at least in those aforementioned titles, you take control of beings. Living, breathing, (well, sort of) creatures that convey emotion and physical actions, which is largely combat. Those games despite being different genres, have a ton more in common than Heavy Rain and Gran Turismo 5.

But then I said to Ben "are they really that different? I mean, yes, they're nothing alike. But they do share one massive similarity in that they both strive to achieve a certain level of realism that no game in each respective genre has accomplished thus far." And it was at that point that we realized why making this a tie made perfect sense and Ben had suggested I write an op-ed explaining why Gran Turismo 5 deserved it (that's just how much Ben agreed with my GOTY decision). And so here is why the choice was made.

First off, I'm not one to call out other writers out there, but the "critics" who covered Gran Turismo 5 or rather the "gamers" who reviewed Gran Turismo 5 did a pretty lousy job at it. I won't get into the specifics, because luckily forums like GTPlanet and NeoGAF have already done all of the ego-shredding for me. And believe it or not, but both of these forums are an integral part of this decision. If you've visited GTPlanet or even NeoGAF's official GT5 thread, you'll have noticed a collective of enthusiasts not just gathering to race online, but also doing something that I'm sure was a goal of Kazunori Yamauchi – sharing. Yes, sharing. It is absolutely brilliant how the Gran Turismo community gets online to share not just tips for a race, but things like in-depth car setups, down to the very increments of a damper setting on a vehicle's suspension. And if those suspension settings are still not working out for you, how about borrowing an absurd 800HP Toyota? It has a better power-to-weight ratio and it handles better than the impossibly insane Shelby you were trying to win with (like I was).

Yes, you can hand someone the keys to your virtual car and help him score that gold, prize money, experience points, and even the bonus car for winning. Hell, a bunch of people simply let you keep the car they've just gifted you. The community is absolutely riddled with gamers who are willing to help each other out, no different than a real life group of guys (and some gals) who post on a multitude of car forums. Somehow, Gran Turismo manages to take the experience outside of the virtual world and maintain it with fellow gamers such as you…and that's just sensational.

But that's not even the end of it. Then you simply start looking at the features list. 1000 cars. Awesome. 70 track setups. Kick ass. Course creator. Yes. WRC. Formula One. SuperGT. NASCAR. Karts. 16-player online gameplay. 60 frames per second. Custom Soundtracks. That list goes on and on, as you know, and it's only going to get longer. Since launch Polyphony has already released four new updates for Gran Turismo 5, nearly every single one having an affect on gameplay. Fantastic enhancements to the online gameplay have made matches exactly the way they should be with update 1.2, and that just came only a number of days after the launch of the game. Another update added a plethora of advanced race events to the game, quelling those who complained there wasn't enough race content in GT Life. Also added was an online dealership where rare and highly sought after cars can be purchased. A multitude of other little updates and additions were made throughout these downloads, and the craziest thing is that there are many more to come. Polyphony has already expressed that they are fully committed to Gran Turismo 5 as a platform that they will add to very frequently. New cars and tracks aren't just what we can look forward to, but also formerly standard cars becoming premiums, complete with damage and interiors. All of that. Free. Absolutely free. Brilliant.

But that's still not the end of it. Honestly, 1000 cars is a fantastic feat no matter how you slice it. I've said this countless times before, but I'd much rather have those 800 standard cars, then an extra 100 or 200 premium cars. The bottom line is that it's more content and more options. Furthermore, I find the cockpit view to be pretty pointless in a videogame, because it is simply not the best way to accurately drive in a simulator – that would be the bumper or hood cam with a Logitech steering wheel in front of you. So if I'm never even looking at the inside or outside of my car to begin with, I'm not too fanatical about how it looks. Yes, I love the premium cars and I love a gorgeous looking game, but unless you're using the photomode all the time, you shouldn't be too concerned. Besides, I've actually noticed a lot of the standard cars such as the Bugatti Veyron and a number of others look shockingly better than other standard vehicles – which implies that Polyphony did add extra touches to a number of cars they felt deserved them.

Yet, I'm not finished. Because its the physics that really reeled me in. Getting in front of my Logitech G27, stepping into my Nissan 370Z and taking it out for a spin is a great feeling. I have my own personal test track in the game, Autumn Ring Mini, and it's become my proving ground for every car I own. I'll race a new car around stock, note the time, get to work on the mods, and then race it around again and mark the improvements. Currently, my 1230HP Bugatti Veyron and 900HP Audi R8 V10 hold the top two seats, though despite being slower, I prefer the more sonorous and lively Audi over the clumsy, dull, and understeering Veyron any day of the week. The Audi can also perform these epic and controlled drifts that I just have to look back and awe at the 1/4 mile long cloud of smoke I left behind as I went through a curve. It's simply sensational how each and every car feels so utterly different than the last. Even the different variants of the 350Z, the Skyline, RX7, etc. – they all have a unique handling or performance characteristics that makes them instantly discernible from one another – no other racing game achieves that level of detail. None.

And while I contest that Gran Turismo 5 is far from perfect, it is simply unparalleled in the genre. It offers so much in such a tiny package, and yet it keeps on giving. I've been glued to the game from the moment I got it, because as a bleeding heart gearhead, who is often the annoying guy who loves to explain the ins and outs of a vehicle, this game captures my attention. It speaks to me. I know that, for the most part, what I do in a real-life car, I can do in Gran Turismo 5.  I know that it's more difficult in real-life to drift a high-powered BMW 1-series than a 370Z – because one has an open-differential and the other a limited slip. Going back to what I said about being the annoying car guy, just two days ago my cousin was confused why only one wheel in one of his cars spins when he's climbing out of a mountain of snow (yay, NYC blizzard!). So I sat there and detailed how a differential works, and the types of differentials that exist and how they function. A few weeks ago, my girlfriend couldn't grasp the concept of a manual transmission. She understands the process of clutching and shifting, but doesn't understand the function. So I sat there and explained to her what exactly is going on internally right below the very seat she was in. So you can see that I'm *that* guy. I'm an absolute automotive fiend and I'm extremely critical when it comes down to authenticity in sim racers, and simply put Gran Turismo 5 matches my expectations, and in some cases exceeds them. Is it the most realistic a racer can possibly be? No. But it's really close.

It's a shame that critical reception was so…dare I say it…wrong for the game. And in many ways, I felt pretty embarrassed reading some of the reviews. But, it is what it is, because in a short amount of time Gran Turismo 5 has already added a slew of content and fixed a number of technical issues it had – a testament to Polyphony's commitment to the game. Looking ahead, Gran Turismo 5 is sure to only improve considerably more and we can't wait. So having said that, I'd like to end this piece with a thank you to: Kazunori Yamauchi, the entire Gran Turismo 5 community, Polyphony Digital, Quantic Dream, and Sony for giving PSX Extreme the ability to pick two Game of the Year winners.

Gran Turismo 5 Review

Graphics:
9.5
Gameplay:
9.8
Sound:
9.8
Control:
10.0
Replay Value:
10.0
Online Gameplay:
10.0
Overall Rating:
9.9
Publisher:
SCEA
Developer:
Polyphony Digital
Number Of Players:
1-2 (16 Online)
Genre:
Racing
Release Date:
November 24, 2010


How do you review a game like Gran Turismo 5? To be honest with you, the more I play the more I come to realize this is an extremely frustrating review to write, and I'll explain. Expectations for Gran Turismo 5 have been set so astronomically high that it's almost impossible not to find certain let downs, and thus, have some disappointments. I mean, it's been five years in the making, and with every year we're hearing rumors of more and more features possibly being added to the final product. At the end of the day, about 90-95% of those rumored features made it in. But a lot of people expressed concerns with one in particular, the 1000-large list of cars, of which about 250 are premium from-the-ground-up models specifically made for GT5, including damage and fully modeled interiors. The other 800 are standard vehicles, models out of Gran Turismo 4 and Gran Turismo PSP, but re-skinned in higher-resolution, don't feature modeled interiors, and boast minimal damage.

Now, first thing's first…damage control (no pun intended). I've always felt that the design process is all about giving the gamer/owner options. Do you really not want an extra 800 cars to toy with, even if they are notably weaker in visual quality? That's sort of like saying, "no, I don't want this bag of quarters, because bills are better"…sort of, but you get the point. At the end of the day, money is money, and a virtual car is a virtual car. Options . Hey, if you don't like the standard cars, by all means don't buy them – they're only sold in the used car dealership, all other cars are premium. To be frank, unless you're looking at the standard cars in photo mode or up close in replays, you really aren't that bothered by them during the races. Gran Turismo 5's lighting does a fantastic job at making the lesser models blend in during races. But we're talking a bit too much about the visuals.

It's the gameplay that really sealed it for me. At first, as is par for course, GT5 starts off a bit slow. But things quickly get rolling as you make your way through GT Mode (the career), increasing your driver level, racking up money, buying new cars, winning new cars, buying tons of mods, and so forth. With every level increased, there's always something to look forward to. You see, unlike past Gran Turismo games where you could cheat by grinding and earning tons of money to buy an expensive exotic, tune it, and smoke every single challenge, the level system prevents you from doing that. You can earn money by grinding, sure, but the higher your level gets the more experience points each level will need in order to move onto the next. So grinding for experience points is extremely difficult. But exotics are spread across numerous levels, for example you need to be at level 12 to purchase an Audi R8 5.2 V10, meanwhile above level 20 for a Ferrari F40. Fear not, though, because if you're playing through the career, you'll earn your money and points and unlock not just the ability to purchase a certain car, but also numerous special challenges, including Top Gear, Nascar, AMG School, and a few others.

License tests are no longer an absolute requirement anymore, as the game now relies on your drive rank instead, but they're still present for those devout fans. I will say this, though, some of the challenges, like the Top Gear VW SambaBus challenge are simply brutal and not fun. It took me handful of attempts to complete this challenge, and worst of all…you're driving at an average speed of 50MPH and struggling to go faster, so it was especially maddening when some jerky A.I. decided to clip me at the very end, forcing me to spend another five minutes redoing everything all over again. Ugh. To top it all off, in order to unlock the Top Gear track for regular use, you have to get gold in this challenge. Eventually, you figure it out, and the key is not to be scared of the speed as these busses aren't going fast enough to lose control through most of the curves.

Gran Turismo 5 is about as loaded as a racing game can get. It has a ton of features that seemingly never end. Karts, Super GT, Formula One, LeMans, Rally, and Touring Cars are just some of the extras that went in along side of your everyday pedestrian vehicles. There are over 50 tracks in the game, some of which are reversed courses or various versions of a course (short, standard, modified turns). There is more than enough track diversity in the game as far as cities, real courses, and original courses to keep you happy. But in case you wanted more, a course creator allows you to highly modify a track template to your liking using a number of tools at your disposal.

Now, I've expressed a concern with the frustrating levels of certain challenges, and allow me to express a few more faults I've noticed. First, how come there is no brake upgrade option in the tuning section? It's one of the most common upgrades on cars today, and yet it's completely missing in the game. Sure, your braking will improve considerably with tires and weight reduction mods, but an actual upgrade of the calipers and rotors would've been splendid. Odd. Also, how come I can't slap on new wheels on a standard car? I'm assuming it's because the level of quality between the standard car and the premium wheels isn't compatible, but regardless, they could've just ported over high-resolution GT4 wheels for the standard cars. I also noticed there was no more nitrous upgrade. Additionally, how come we don't have drag racing anymore? Staging some drag races online would've been epic; although I have found a little workaround where racers can just take to the Top Gear runway and line up there.

But at the end of the day, there are simply features and options that Gran Turismo offers that no other racing game does. Even if some other racer features a few options that GT5 doesn't have, it still won't offer as many in total. And what's most impressive is that Polyphony Digital has announced frequent downloadable updates to the game, and already in just five days, we've had two updates, one of which has added new features for online gameplay. Expect cars and possibly tracks to arrive by way of these updates, and it's been said that Sony will not charge for any of them. Don't forget, various updates for GT5 Prologue added numerous cars and enhancements, which no one ever paid a dime for.

Lastly, I should go over the physics. To do this, I will preface this paragraph with a simple comment: if you're playing Gran Turismo 5 with a controller, you're playing a videogame. If you're playing Gran Turismo 5 with a Logitech G25 or G27 wheel, you're playing a simulator. The physics model is far and away the best of any racer I've sampled. Unlike other sims where the cars feel floaty and disconnected from the ground, every car in GT5 feels superbly planted. This feeling of connectivity, or feedback, especially comes across well with the Logitech G27 I've been exclusively using with the game. I haven't even touched the controller for a single round. Also, note that I play using professional physics, professional wheel settings, manual transmission, with all assist nannies off (including traction control). Basically, the most advanced settings possible is how my game is configured, and never anything different. Saving my cars from a drift gone too angular is no different than what I've done on a real car before. Likewise, the same goes for holding a drift too. The physics are simply a treat to someone like me. But don't be put off if you aren't hardcore, because there are other physics settings that even beginners will feel very comfortable with.

I've already mentioned some details about the visuals, but I'll reiterate that the standard cars blend in well during races, just don't take them into photo mode. The premium cars are absolutely gorgeous to look at, they are so precisely detailed that you'll no doubt try everything to avoid smashing them when damage has been enabled later on into the career. That and, well, you have to pay for any severe damages made. The interiors are very true to form, but things like display text on the dash screens and such aren't that great to look at, which was expected. There are visual quirks such as some screen tearing and bits of very slight framerate dips, but all of that will be resolved in the very near future with an update (just like GT5 Prologue's first update). But, what will likely not be fixed is the shadows, which are unusually jaggy and very apparent before races and when you're playing using the cockpit view. Here's hoping that Polyphony pull a rabbit out of their hat and fix the shadowing, because it's pretty much my only major visual complaint. To add to my list of small visual complaints, the tire smoke, while very nice, creates a jagged image when it's engulged the car – this is due to a low-resolution texture mixing/clipping with a high resolution texture. And the rain, while pretty to look at when using the rear or front bumper cam, looks obviously pixilated when in the cockpit view.

While it may sound like I'm complaining too much, all of this stuff really is minor. Gran Turismo 5 is a powerhouse, it's just that because it's so damn beautiful, its flaws stand out that much more. I find GT5 looks best when played using 720p, as it smoothens out the image considerably (720p allows for better anti-aliasing with the game), in addition to mostly preventing framerate dips and tearing. The game also has video options that either sharpen the game, smoothen the game, or leave it with a bit of both. Lastly, as far as track detail, the city tracks look absolutely beautiful with the gorgeous scenery and superbly modeled roads, I prefer them by far. The real courses look nice too, but compared to the other tracks, they're more vanilla for obvious reasons.

Despite what you may have heard about the game's audio, primarily the exhaust and engine notes, Gran Turismo 5 actually sounds fantastic. Having sampled a number of cars in the game that I either own, drive frequently, or have driven numerous times before, I've verified how they all sound. My 350Z, which I've sold literally hours before I began writing this on 11/28/10 sounded pitch perfect as you start it up upon selecting it. Same goes for my 370Z, which is what I replaced the 350Z with, it sounds spot on. Even a bunch of the standard cars sounded good, and sound even better with a few exhaust mods – they truly do come alive if you have a nice audio setup. And yes, even though there is a soundtrack in the game, you are more than welcome to override it by using your own from the hard-drive of your PlayStation 3; always massive points in my book.

So was Gran Turismo 5 worth the wait? Absolutely! Sure there's a few drawbacks, but when looking at the big picture, they hardly seem to matter. The game will be kept alive with continuous downloadable updates, and that's already well under way. So with that said, is it possible that after numerous updates we may actually revisit this score and bump it up to a possible 10? Yes. But let me make something clear, a 10 doesn't quite mean perfection. Having said that, I'll allow Ben to wrap up with a few words he asked me to share at the very end:

"Without making any comment on the game itself, I'd like to remind everyone of something- we can't issue review scores based on expectations alone.  For the most part, an overall score takes the competition into account; i.e., the current games on store shelves.  Whether or not GT5 measures up to our super lofty expectations does matter, but let's not forget that at the end of the day, we have to ask ourselves, "how does this stack up against the best of the best of the generation?"

It's not necessarily about comparing it to some picture of perfection in our minds; it's about saying to the consumer, "you should buy this because it's superior to most other products" or, as the case may be, "you shouldn't buy this because it pales in comparison to other options."  We hope you understand." – Ben D.

To put it blunt: there is no equal.

FIFA Soccer 11 Review

Graphics:
8.4
Gameplay:
9.0
Sound:
9.0
Control:
9.0
Replay Value:
9.5
Online Gameplay:
9.5
Overall Rating:
9.1
Publisher:
EA Sports
Developer:
EA Sports
Number Of Players:
1-8 (2-22 Online)
Genre:
Sports


Okay, I know that this is late and by all means FIFA madness is over. But, UEFA Champions League is currently under way, so that gives me a new window to tell you why FIFA '11 is brilliant. Chances are, if you're reading this now, you've played a FIFA game in the past or you are, at the very least, a fan of the sport. For this current iteration. FIFA makes some marked improvements over its predecessors, including the enhancement of Career game modes, enhanced online gameplay (11 vs. 11!), improved ball control, and refined goalkeeper AI making FIFA '11 an easy purchase.

I have spent a lot of time playing the game over the past month or so, and much of it has been with friends and family. My circle of friends, including my older brother, get highly competitive when it comes down to FIFA and tensions run very high. FIFA continues to provide the game with an experience unlike any other sports game can achieve. Whether its running down the field and cracking your opponent, executing the perfect play, a corner kick that leads to a header-goal, a long range goal beamed from a distance, or even the ever disappointing goal post smack (this is the point you'll find yourself cursing out your attacker), there is never a shortage of excitement with FIFA 11. Even the referees you choose determine the kind of game you'll have, as every ref has a different set of attributes that affect penalty-calling, or lack thereof.

Furthermore, when you aren't playing with a friend or online, the Career Mode has been changed to include Be A Pro and Manager Mode all under one area. In the revamped Career, you can be either a manager, player, or player-manager for up to 15 seasons. Numerous fixes and additions have been made to the mode, all for the better, and I'm sure FIFA fans will take a great liking to it. I do have some issues though, primarily with the A.I. No matter how you tweak the game settings, there are far too many instances when a non-player controlled teammate will simply watch as the ball rolls by, or does not read a more than obvious play as its about to happen. Unless you're in control at all times, which is simply impossible, your A.I. will give up way too many opportunities at making an interception or steal, and in critical situations, these kinds of drawbacks really hurt. I do like the passing system overall, but going back to the A.I., your players should not be calling for a center when there's two or three defenders around them. Lastly, Be A Goalkeeper is a solid addition, but can be a bit boring at times.

FIFA games have looked pretty decent for the past few years. There aren't a whole lot of changes to FIFA 11, none that are immediately noticeable, at least. Though that isn't a slight against the game, since the game engine is pretty smooth, and the overall look is polished. But, we are pretty far along this generation and it would've been nice to see some marked improvements made in graphics that go beyond just player celebrations. At least the framerate doesn't jerk anymore during cutscenes and match intros. Still, FIFA 11 is a decent looking that shouldn't offend anybody's senses.

Now we know that audio has always been a strong suit of the series, thanks largely to the commentary stylings of Martin Tyler and Andy Gray. FIFA 11 continues to employ the duo's delivery with a constant stream of broadcasting that contributes to the game's atmosphere. There is an internationally inspired soundtrack present, but it's mostly something you'll ignore, either way. What really sends the audio presentation over the top is the stadium crowd and how involved they get, because let's face it, that is a core aspect of watching football.

All in all, FIFA 11 delivers the goods. It's got the presentation down quite well, and the overall fluidity of the gameplay is unmatched. It's remained relatively the same visually, and the commentary continues to be strong, but it's the tension of every match that'll get you hooked for a long time to come. It does need some aspects of its A.I. fixed up in order to make non-controlled players more willing to pounce on the ball. Regardless, there's nothing better than FIFA 11 when it comes to footy on your console.

God of War: Ghost of Sparta Review

Graphics:
9.8
Gameplay:
9.5
Sound:
9.5
Control:
9.0
Replay Value:
9.0
Overall Rating:
9.5
Online Gameplay:
Not Rated
Publisher:
SCEA
Developer:
Ready at Dawn
Number Of Players:
1
Genre:
Action


How does Sony manage to do it all the time? No, allow me to rephrase that. How does this franchise always manage to do it? How does it manage to not change its formula, but always win us over? God of War: Ghost of Sparta plays not much differently than the GOW games before it, and yet, we don't care. Has this franchise stumbled upon something that defies age? I'm not sure just yet, but what I do know is that I wholly enjoy this game. Much like every other God of War title, you're thrown into the eye of the storm immediately, so the game wastes no time in delivering the goods – and that's par for course. Traditionally, GOW games were never about long and tiresome training intros, and that's because the game is so accessible, there was never a need for them. Yes, occasionally you'll get gameplay hints towards the beginning, but they aren't very intrusive and allow the gamer to focus on the action.

And that's what makes God of War so great. Not just this game, but the franchise as a whole. It has never strayed from what's made it a superb series in the first place; it never lost its focus. God of War never tried to be something more than a balls-to-the-wall, super fast, super violent action game, and I respect that. It never decided that it had to become an RPG midway through, or that it needed strategy elements. No. God of War's focus has always been: 'pressing a series of buttons makes the character furiously whip around and spill lots of blood'. Perfect. And those boss battles? Let's face it, the reason we love them so much isn't because of how epic they can be, but it's because of how gruesome the boss' death ends up being. Those are just some of the reasons why we love God of War, and all of the reasons continue to exist with Ghost of Sparta.

The upgrades, the mayhem, the weapons, the boss battles, and even the always engrossing storyline – Ghost of Sparta continues the faithful God of War tradition of being the total package, despite coming in a package that only fits inside the UMD slot of your PSP. Perhaps the only drawback to all of this, and this may be considered a technical limitation, is that Ghost of Sparta is nowhere near as lengthy as other games in the series. The UMD can only store so much, and that impacts the length of the game to about eight hours. Though are a variety of challenge modes for you to partake in once you finish the game, which increase the amount of time you can spend with it considerably.

Bar none, Ghost of Sparta is the best looking PSP game available today. The same way that the franchise has set a bar on the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3, it has done the same on the PSP. Chances are, considering the age of the PSP, it's unlikely a better looking game will come along and unseat Ghost of Sparta – I simply don't see it happening. So not only is Ghost of Sparta one of the best playing games for Sony's handheld, but it's the best looking one. Ready At Dawn has pushed this little unit to its limits by increasing the texture clarity, smoothing out the edges around game characters, allowing the framerate to run silky smooth, and employing some really spectacular effects. Chains of Olympus already looked great, but Ghost of Sparta simply looks better.

If you're a God of War fan, you know what to expect from the audio. Voice acting courtesy of TC Carson, who continues to deliver some of the best voice acting this industry sees on the regular, in addition to a soundtrack that's made to raise your tension, thanks to its fully orchestrated arrangements. Ghost of Sparta's brilliance knows no bounds, as the audio will leave you in a more than satisfied state. I also found it best to have a pair of nice headphones plugged in while playing, because the audio simply sounds that much more rich when it's streaming directly into your ears, as opposed to the PSP's speakers.

All in all, God of War: Ghost of Sparta is the PSP game you should have no reservations about. It's a well deserved $40 purchase that'll stay in your collection of portable titles for a long time. It's the ultimate example of the full console experience in the palm of your hands. God of War: Ghost of Sparta boasts everything you'd expect out of the franchise: superb visuals, great audio, massive gameplay, epic story, and great controls, all in a package that fits in the palm of your hand.