Game Review: Need for Speed: Undercover

Game: Need For Speed: Undercover
Console: Sony Playstation 3
Developer: EA Black Box
Release Date: 21st November 2008

Need For Speed: Undercover was released during an interesting time in the franchise; Most Wanted '05 and Carbon were two of the best loved and critically well received games in the series, but ProStreet didn't quite hit the same levels of success, thanks in part to taking the focus off illegal street racing. In attempting to return to the series roots with Undercover, several game mechanics return from Most Wanted and Carbon; notably the police chase system and some race types, though the AI seem to have been lifted straight out of ProStreet, offering little to no challenge for much of the game.

One new aspect of Undercover is live action story cutscenes, as the plot of the game is told via pre-recorded video with real actors. In a photo-realistic game this might work quite well, but given Undercover's frankly poor visuals, the live action scenes create a disconnect with the gameplay which pairs with the already fairly predictable plot to do very little. The game's major plot twist is all but spoiled in the game's introductory cutscene, not that it would have been particularly interesting if saved.

The race types in Need for Speed Undercover appear varied on first glance, but Highway Battle and Outrun modes are essentially re-purposed canyon chases (minus the canyon), Circuit and Sprint races are a staple of the Need for Speed series, and Checkpoint races make players realise how barren the city map really is. The final three event types which raise your heat level include Cop Takedown and Cost To State events, which usually involve coercing the AI into following you to a crash breaker, and Escape which is literally just a police chase you need to escape from.

Some races are Master Events which progress the plot, and there are also jobs that need to be done for characters in the game. These usually take the form of delivering stolen cars and are much the same as a police pursuit, but in a different car. Some races gift players with the pink slip to a new car; these can't be sold but offer an alternative to purchasing cars from a fairly expensive shop, or paying real money to unlock said cars in the PS Store.

Police chases are much the same as those featured in Need For Speed: Most Wanted, except that simple acts such as turning a corner or driving in a straight line are often enough to lose police attention entirely. Add to this the useless AI during races, and the lack of cars on the streets anywhere on the map, and Undercover feels like it's set in a ghost town, populated solely by incompetent police and racers.


Despite my points so far being mostly negative, the street racing in the game does feel good. There's an extra sense of speed from the motion blur, and the handling seems to be somewhere inbetween Most Wanted and ProStreet for a return to the street racing roots of the series. For some reason though, the game runs atrociously; constant pop-in, framerate issues, stuttering, literally freezing for seconds at a time, spawning cars in mid-air as players race by, and other various audiovisual glitches make Undercover a truly difficult game to enjoy.

Although Most Wanted and Carbon both made their way to 7th generation systems, meaning that Undercover is technically the 3rd game in this console generation, it's graphically very poor, looking like a PS2 game most of the time. The car customisation options are ripped straight from ProStreet as are some of the car models, and even police radio clips sound like they're from Most Wanted. The soundtrack is pretty decent, but only plays whilst in races for some reason, leaving freeroaming eerily silent. The music also cuts in and out at will whilst racing, presumably because the rest of the game runs just as badly.

Overall Need For Speed: Undercover is a mess. Wanting to return to the series street racing roots is understandable after the failed experiment that was ProStreet, but in 16 months of development, all Black Box managed to do was make Most Wanted again, but far worse. The plot is arguably more detailed but feels like more a grind, the graphics and gameplay don't match up to a game released 3 years earlier, and there's just no reason to play Undercover when games like Carbon and Most Wanted already existed.

Rating: 44/100
Grade: E

Game Review: Need For Speed Most Wanted (2012)

Game: Need for Speed: Most Wanted
Console: Sony Playstation 3
Developer: Criterion Games
Release Date: 2nd November 2012

It's always a bold move to reboot a much loved title, and even more of a bold move to do so when the new version is actively worse. In 2005 Need for Speed: Most Wanted built upon the police chase mechanic in the Need for Speed franchise, providing a game where players could carefully climb the Most Wanted rap sheet; tracking their infractions, the wanted status of their cars and having genuinely fun and challenging police chases as part of a street racing video game. 2012's game of the same name sees players climb the Most Wanted list for almost doing nothing, has no penalty for being arrested and little sense of progression or car ownership throughout the game.

Let's start with the basics; around Fairview, the game's city are hidden 123 "jack points" where players can get into a car and drive away, with 6 races available per car to gain upgrades and SP. The more SP a player has, the higher they climb on the Most Wanted list. Getting into pursuits also gains SP, as does doing just about anything in game, so climbing the list is almost a given as long as you're playing the game. Doing well in races is the only way to upgrade cars and once you've got enough SP, you're allowed to challenge the racer in the next position up on the list. Beat them in a race, and you've only to take down their car in order to own it and take their spot on the list.

This cycle continues until you beat the game; race and upgrade a bit, get in a few police chases and climb the most wanted list; there's no real story and the multiplayer focus is evident. Fairview is an open world much like Paradise City in Burnout (another Criterion game), though there's very little of note to explore, and many races are made harder by sudden 90 degree turns or ill thought out routes. There's a nice time progression system and the actual driving element of the game feels pretty good.

Garages are dotted around the map at which cars can be fixed and resprayed instantly, mainly helping out in police chases. There aren't any hiding spots like the ones featured in Most Wanted '05, so players are left to run down their wanted level in more of a GTA V fashion, unless they can find a garage to respray their car. Pursuits in general are pretty easy to escape from, with huge gaps being left in roadblocks for the most part. I missed the crashbreaker feature from Most Wanted '05 when there weren't gaps though since trying to find one at full speed isn't ideal.

Getting busted has little to no consequence in a pursuit, aside from losing the SP you'd have gained for escaping. In Most Wanted '05 you'd get a marker on your car, and 3 meant it'd be taken from you for good. Cars in the earlier game also retained a heat level unless repainted for a more realistic police force that wouldn't instantly forget your transgressions provided the pursuit was over. Takedowns seem to play a far larger part in the game also, likely thanks to Criterion; in pursuits and racing in general the slow-mo takedowns from Burnout give the game somewhat of a different feel to a classic Need for Speed game.

Before each race there's a cinematic which is usually completely unrelated to anything currently taking place. Perhaps they were intended as tests for the graphics engine or some sort of cinematic statement but I found myself skipping most of them. It's also worth noting that some races and car jack points are locked unless some of the 5 DLC packs for the game have been purchased. This appears to be the start of Need for Speed Payback style monetization, with a "Time Saver" pack released alongside the game to helpfully mark all of the jack points and unlock all multiplayer cars.

Graphically the game looks great; on par with, if not better than 2011's Need for Speed: The Run. It's just a shame that the progression is much less enjoyable. At many points in races the AI would rubberband in my favour at the finish line, essentially handing me undeserved victories. I'm aware that this game had a multiplayer focus and capabilities but putting little to no effort into single player mode isn't the way to improve multiplayer modes.

Overall while I did find myself driving a bigger range of cars overall in the game, being handed them for free with no sense of investment in them meant that I generally didn't care about upgrades or races outside of gaining SP, which was criminally easy to do anyway. Managing to make my way for #11 on the most wanted list to #7 in just under 3 hours of gameplay says to me that single player mode was an afterthought for the beginning of online focused, DLC heavy multiplayer Need For Speed experiences, and those just aren't my thing.

Rating: 61/100
Grade: D

WWE Games Review Part 2: The 2D Years (1992-1996)

WWF licensed Mega Drive games took a step up from the 8 bit era in trying to recreate the atmosphere and feel of wrestling in a video game. Strangely all 5 games in this era were developed by the same company and had very few changes control and content wise. 

Game: WWF Super Wrestlemania

Console: Sega Mega Drive

Developer: Sculptured Software

Release Date: 1992

The first WWE game by Sculptured Software, WWF Super Wrestlemania features just 8 wrestlers; Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, Randy Savage, Ted DiBiase, Shawn Michaels, Papa Shango, British Bulldog and Irwin R. Schyster. The minimalism continues in that there's only 2 main game modes; Survivor Series which is a 4 vs 4 tag team matchup between all the wrestlers featured in the game and WWF Championship which works its way through the roster 1 on 1. 

The controls are pretty simple with A for grappling, B for kicking and C for punching. Combinations of the 3 buttons are used for special moves, pins and tagging. Gameplay can be fairly slow, and players have to wait out the longer animations rather than being able to use any cancels. Matches are fairly short since the health bar featured is easy to deplete, and once it's empty pinfalls are certain reach a 3 count. 

Graphically the game is nothing special, particularly Shaun Michaels looks absolutely nothing like himself. The ring is decorated in light blue and not much else, there's no entrances or commentary and crowd noise is just a constant underlying bit of white noise. Some hits sound pretty impressive and pins have a sampled vocal count. The audiovisual presentation is generally basic though, as is standard for 1992.

Overall WWF Super Wrestlemania is easily controllable, simple to work out and not too difficult to have a bit of fun with. There's a few mode types, single and tag matches as well as multiplayer, but don't expect to be coming back to it in 2017 as any kind of classic.

Rating: 56/100

Grade: D

Game: WWF Royal Rumble
Console: Sega Mega Drive
Developer: Sculptured Software
Release Date: 1993

From the outset, WWF Royal Rumble is quite clearly running on the same basic game engine as Super Wrestlemania as it was developed by the same company and feels very familiar. This isn't always a bad thing but when you consider that the Survivor Series and WWF Championship modes have been removed in favour of a Royal Rumble and Three-Way Tag Team match options which are single events rather than a fully fledged mode.

The titular Royal Rumble itself is particularly difficult to enjoy, featuring 6 men in the ring at once whose animations must finish before they're vulnerable to be hit, so good luck waiting while everyone else is engaged in hitting someone else. It's basically a lot of chaos and grunting which doesn't really provide much in the way of excitement. Three Way Tag is somewhat similar as there's always a third wheel left out of the action.

There are twelve playable wrestlers and overall the action is faster and more responsive than before. In one-on-one matches, gameplay feels much improved from Super Wrestlemania, and the health bars deplete a little slower to give more drama and momentum during matches. Other than this though gameplay is very similar to the older game with a few more moves added and the controls switched around a little, including support for the 6 button controller. 

Graphically there have been some improvements with some of the wrestlers resembling their real life counterparts a little more, and slightly more cartoonish depictions and brighter colours helping the overall presentation. The crowd are still just white noise and there's no commentary, but it's a bearable game for multiplayer or one-on-one fights, though players will likely be disappointed with the Royal Rumble itself. 

Rating: 50/100

Grade: D

Game: WWF Raw

Console: Sega Mega Drive

Developer: Sculptured Software

Release Date: 1994

There comes a point as a software developer where you need to stop releasing the same game year in, year out and put some new ideas in. Clearly no-one told this to Sculptured Software, as except for a roster update and new Raw Endurance matches there's basically no change from the last two games featured. Sure, they've added in all the modes together now so you can play a Royal Rumble or a Survivor Series, but anyone with both previous games would have basically been able to do that anyway. 

The controls and gameplay feel a little bit faster and tweaked towards speed but it's hard to tell as most of the moves and gameplay features are the same. There's 12 playable wrestlers in this game also, with some change ups from the previous roster, and new MIDI versions of wrestler's themes on the selection screen.

Graphically the game features very slight improvements over WWF Royal Rumble, but nothing that's immediately noticeable. Sounds too have stayed pretty much the same, and so there's not a lot more that can be said about WWF Raw. Overall it would have been better to take a risk and change up the damage system to a momentum meter of some kind, or added a big match type or main mode which would give the game replayability over its predecessors. Instead we got an amalgamation of the game modes from the previous 2 games, a few new wrestlers and nothing else.

Rating: 59/100

Grade: D

Game: WWF Wrestlemania: The Arcade Game

Console: Sega Mega Drive

Developer: Sculptured Software

Release Date: 1995

The final Mega Drive game I'll be looking at in this review was also available on the Playstation and in arcades, but due to the nature of gameplay and the graphics, I don't think it'll make too much difference to play the fourth generation version rather than the fifth. With new publishers Midway at the helm, the core gameplay of Wrestlemania resembles Mortal Kombat far more closely than any of the 2D games before it, even going so far as to have weapons appear out of nowhere and have Bam Bieglow's fists catch fire when attacking. 

With 8 wrestlers to choose from, there was less selection than in the previous game, and the new digitised sprites are stylistically less pleasing than the cartoon versions of wrestlers from WWF Raw. There are just two game modes, both very similar tournament fighter style competitions for WWE belts. All movesets are pretty similar and lack many conventional wrestling moves, and overall the game plays the worst of the Mega Drive titles.

Graphically the game is a step back from the cartoonish sprites used before, and considering that Mortal Kombat was first released in 1992, the digitised sprites seem somewhat dated in this 1995 release. The same goes for the Playstation version, and although that version had more commentary and voice clips than the Mega Drive version, the sound effects and musical clips that play during matches don't really suit the action onscreen.

Overall Wrestlemania: The Arcade Game is one of the least impressive early WWE games, due to its similarities to Mortal Kombat and disregard for many nuances of actual wrestling. Graphically and sonically inferior to other games, and with a smaller roster of characters than the last instalment, this home version of an arcade game doesn't have any appeal to fans of wrestling or fighting games.

Rating: 44/100

Grade: E

Game: WWF: In Your House
Console: Sony Playstation
Developer: Sculptured Software
Release Date: 31st October 1996

You'd be forgiven for thinking that the first WWF title in this review to feature on the Playstation would attempt to break out of the tournament fighter clone style in which the Mega Drive saw itself entrenched. This was not the case as WWF: In Your House follows closely in the Mortal Kombat mould of Midway developed wrestling games, though some nice touches were made in attempting to emulate the general moves used in wrestling compared to the usual fighting game moves.

There are 10 playable wrestlers in the game, which isn't a lot but there are just enough for a variety of heels and faces, selected from the forefront of '96 WWF talent. It's just a shame that the movesets featured in the game aren't more distinct, since punching, kicking and lifting other wrestlers up uses the same animations for all 10 playable characters. Each wrestler instead gets their own stage, much like a fighting game, themed around their gimmicks.

Gameplay occurs in tournament fighter style for the most part; all wrestlers have a life bar which empties as they are successfully attacked. Once a wrestler's life bar reaches zero and they are on the floor, they can easily be pinned by their opponent, provided there are no other wrestlers in the ring. Other wrestlers may provide interference or otherwise tamper with the three count for a pinfall. Powerups can be turned on or off, and are spread around the ring during gameplay as both hazards and bonuses.

Season mode is somewhat of a disappointment as there's literally no story whatsoever; it plays just like the arcade mode of a tournament fighter as players work their way through the cast of playable wrestlers. Besides this though the option to have 4-wrestler matches is pretty appealing, though there's little else in terms of content and modes.

Graphically the game takes a similar route to Mortal Kombat, using digitized sprites of wrestlers for some realism at the cost of pixellation. The animations used are passable though similar for each wrestler, and the crowd and arenas simulate a wrestling environment for the most part. The in-game commentary is provided by Vince McMahon and Mr. Perfect, and there's an impressive amount of it for such an early game. The music however lets the experience down with only guitar licks which play after moves are landed; either nothing or a constant soundtrack would have been preferable.

Overall WWF: In Your House isn't the triumphant Playstation debut title it could have been. Instead it's more likely to be lumped in with the earlier titles which tried to pull off similar tournament fighter style gameplay rather than trying to mimic the story and drama of the WWF and its wrestlers from the time. Even back in the day, the more effort put into making a game a true reflection of what it could be, the better it will be.

Rating: 53/100
Grade: D

WWE Games Review Part 1: The 8-bit Years (1987-1993)

Game: WWF Wrestlemania

Console: Nintendo Entertainment System

Developer: Rare

Release Date: 1989

The first proper licensed WWF action-based wrestling game ever; WWF Wrestlemania allows players to choose from 6 big names; Ted DiBiase, Bam Bam Bigelow, Honky Tonk Man, Randy Savage, Andre The Giant, and Hulk Hogan. Players use the NES's limited set of buttons to attack in combination with the d-pad. While there's an impressive variety of moves for the time, there's a lot of legitimate wrestling moves missing too, and of course no jumping off the ringposts or anything fancy like that. 

The only mode of the game appears to be in tournament format, but having struggled to win a single match this was hard for me to verify. The reason matches are so difficult to win is partly the game's hit detection, which requires players to be standing directly in front of their opponent, facing them, side on from the screen view. A little in front or behind will mean a missed attack, and when coupled with the fact that opponents continuously move around it's difficult to stay consistently on the attack. Each player has an energy bar which is drained both by attacking and being hit, though the latter drains the bar more quickly. Staying still appears to replenish energy but never as quickly for the player as the opponent. Once an energy bar is empty, that wrestler can be pinned for a 3 count.

Graphically the game doesn't look at all bad for the era, with recognisable wrestlers both in the ring and their top of screen portraits. The open-ring view of the action works well and prevents the game from having too much of a top-down style too. Instrumentals of wrestling themes accompany gameplay, which is fun and likely a better choice than 8-bit sound effects for physical contact.

Overall WWF Wrestlemania isn't much to look at or play thesedays, and it can be incredibly frustrating to even win a single match, but as the very first proper WWE wrestling game it shows a number of ideas which would be refined and improved upon to make later wrestling games. It can definitely be considered the start of an era of wrestling games which played more like fighting games with a wrestling theme added to them.

Rating: 44/100
Grade: E

Game: WWF Wrestlemania Challenge

Console: Nintendo Entertainment System

Developer: Rare

Release Date: 1990

If you thought WWF Wrestlemania was a bad game then Wrestlemania Challenge from just a year later may well put into perspective how competent of a game the first release actually was. Roster-wise things aren't too bad with 8 licensed wrestlers and an option to play as "yourself" should you wish to. The addition of 2-on-2 and 3-on-3 matches is also welcome, though they're played with 1 wrestler from each team in the ring at any one time.

The real issues begin as soon as players start a match; gameplay has switched to an isometric view meaning that simply moving around the ring becomes far more complex than it needs to be with 8 directions to worry about instead of 4. The hit detection is a little better, and each wrestler has some unique moves but the frustration and difficulty factor remains as it's tough to get consistent hits in before the opponent inevitably recovers their stamina. A successful pin requires stamina to be in the final section of the bar, but once again it's not a game which is easy to pick up and play.

Graphically this is worse than the original WWF Wrestlemania with simpler depictions of wrestlers and basic animation. There's a visible crowd which is nice, but overall it feels like a less enjoyable visual and gameplay experience than the first game. There are more 8-bit wrestling themes which is the only real positive point to the game, everything else is either the same as before or worse.

Overall Wrestlemania Challenge's decision to go isometric was the first mis-step of many which doomed this game to being one of the worst in the early era. It's only forgiveable since it was a second attempt at making a licensed wrestling game. This is the sort of game that you'll find yourself playing only if you're trying to play every licensed WWE game in existence.

Rating: 26/100
Grade: F

Game: WWF Wrestlemania Steel Cage Challenge
Console: Nintendo Entertainment System
Developer: Sculptured Software
Release Date: 1992

Released after the first Mega Drive WWF release, Steel Cage Challenge could have been a scaled down version of the 2D fighting game style adopted by the 16-bit games. Instead it focused a little better on wrestling, adding optional steel cage matches, and including a roster of 10 licensed wrestlers as well as WWF Championship and Tag Team Belt modes where players fight through the roster to lay claim to the titles.

Gameplay is fast and responsive with simple but effective gameplay and enough moves to satisfy most wrestling fans of the era, if not more modern fans. Steel cage matches are a good addition, and slightly more easily winnable than a regular match since the cage needs to be escaped while the opponent is down, rather than a pinfall occuring. In terms of difficulty level, there are 3 difficult options but the controls are also far easier to use and hit detection is much better.

Graphically the game isn't the best with small wrestler sprites and little detail or distinctive features for each. With the cage in the way for some of the matches too, it's potentially the least graphically impressive so far, but with some rocking wrestler themes and one that sounds a little too close to We Will Rock You, it wins back some points for its sound design. Crowd chants are white noise behind matches which isn't ideal, but then music behind matches isn't realistic either so it's hard to please everyone.

Overall what WWF Wrestlemania Steel Cage Challenge lacks in visuals, it makes up for in gameplay which is by far the most important part of a wrestling game, or any other game for that matter. For the first time, players are able to take full control of their wrestler without being hindered by poor controls, and challenge themselves with several difficulty levels and modes. 

Rating: 62/100

Grade: C

Game: WWF: King Of The Ring

Console: Nintendo Entertainment System

Developer: Grey Matter Inc.

Release Date: 1993

Released after two of the Mega Drive WWF games, King of the Ring for the Nintendo Entertainment System did a great job of showing just how much better the 16-bit generation was than the outgoing 8-bit one. Featuring 10 wrestlers, and an eleventh "customise your own" wrestler, the movesets featured in the game were identical, with the only differences between wrestlers being their stats, which are the only customisable detail on the create-a-wrestler. 

Gameplay is semi-enjoyable with decent hit detection and flow. As with the other 8 bit games, health is managed via a bar, which allows for 3 count pinfalls when depleted far enough. It seems like the bar doesn't need to go too much past half way for a pinfall to last to a 3 count, but health is so easily taken away from opponents by button mashing that players might as well see off most of their health bar before going for the pin anyway. 

Graphically the game is nowhere near as detailed as any of the 16-bit releases; I had some issues telling some of the more homogeneous wrestlers apart and as their movesets are literally identical, this can be a major issue. The sound effects are one of the least impressive parts of the game, and the only audio which plays during matches is once again white noise to imitate the crowd. 

Overall there's not too much to like about WWF: King of the Ring. Inferior for the time of its release and shackled to the limitations of the 8-bit system, it struggles to provide any coherent wrestling action and instead turns into a button mashing challenge of distinguishing wrestlers from one another. 

Rating: 48/100
Grade: D

So that's all four 8-bit WWE games from the dark ages of wrestling games when it was hard to tell who was who, there were hardly any movesets and more than one game mode was a rare treat. In part two I'll be looking at 4 2D Mega Drive games, and one 2D Playstation game!

Game Review: Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Game: Animal Crossing: New Leaf
Console: Nintendo 3DS
Developer: Nintendo
Release Date: 8th November 2012

Games from the Animal Crossing series are particularly hard to review against other video games. For a start players are encouraged to play in small amounts each day rather than the marathon sessions I'd spend on Yakuza games. Also the pace of the game is such that without a few months of gameplay, it's hard to experience enough events, progression and differences from previous instalments to give a fair score. I've been playing since June this year, logging over 70 hours pretty easily, almost as much as my favourite Gameboy Colour RPG; Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

In New Leaf, players assume the title of mayor, allowing them to change more about their town than ever before, in addition to new features and customisation options. One of the best new features is the town ordinance system, allowing players to choose one bonus from a list of four, to accommodate for late risers, early risers, those seeking cash or those trying to keep their town green. This is helpful since I used to play the game on my way to work, and the earlybird ordinance allowed me to interact with villagers earlier and sell off unwanted goods instead of waiting until I'd finished work to reboot the game.

Another fairly unique trait of Animal Crossing that I've observed over the years is player loyalty towards villagers; if you've had a certain villager in your town before, you'll want your favourites back again. Animal Crossing: New Leaf has lots of new villagers to choose from including a big selection of mice and rodents in addition to loads of the classic cast. It's also easier than ever to try and lure your favourites into town with the campsite providing a rotating list of villagers camping in your town whom you can invite to move in whenever you'd like. In this way I'm hoping to get Lily the frog before too long!


House expansions and paying off your mortgage are still the crux of the game, with more expansions and house decoration styles available than ever. It's possible to make a truly unique and themed house with the items available both in the game and designed by other players via QR codes. Paying off your mortgage must also be balanced with mayoral duties and paying for new things to be built in town, especially on the main street where there's tons of shops that'll start to appear if you play the game often.

Graphically the game is better than ever, still in its cartoon style but with the possibility to experience the world in autostereoscopic 3D. The music of Animal Crossing has always been a strong selling points, and with a new tune for every hour of play, special seasonal tunes, and all of K.K. Slider's songs this game is no exception. The relaxing music sets the scene for spending an hour or two just talking to your villagers or improving your town, providing some much needed stress relief as you play.

Overall you get as much out of Animal Crossing games as you put in, but with more things to do than ever, New Leaf is the best version out there currently. The Nintendo Switch is due to get an instalment of the series soon though, so it's possible this won't be true for long. Whatever happens though, players are able to choose a version of the game, and have their own unique experience, build bonds with their villagers and invest their travel time, quiet moments or whenever they play into something that gives back to them.

Rating: 88/100
Grade: A

Game Review: Yakuza 6

Game: Yakuza 6
Console: Sony Playstation 4
Developer: Sega
Release Date: 17th April 2018

It's been a while since I've reviewed a game on this blog; playing too many games in a short space of time can really burn out the desire to play anything. So this year I've dedicated my gaming time to experiencing longer and more immersive games, mainly from the Yakuza series. If Sega are to be believed, Yakuza 6 is the final console instalment of the series, and the last Yakuza game to feature Kazuma Kiryu as its protagonist. He is, after all 48 years old by the time that the game takes place in 2017.

The game's plot revolves around firstly uncovering the mystery surrounding a hit and run involving Haruka Sawamura, Kiryu's 21 year old adoptive daughter. Through attempting to find the father of her baby, a far bigger secret's existence is uncovered and the second half of the game sees Kiryu and some small town yakuza defying the wishes of everyone around them to reveal perhaps the greatest political secret Japan has ever kept.

Unlike Yakuza 0 and Kiwami, 6 runs on a completely new game engine; the Dragon engine. Upgraded graphics are the first thing to note, as the game looks gorgeous and fighting is smoother than ever, with larger spaces in which to do battle. Another impressive feature is the removal of load times for interiors, meaning fights can spread into shops, restaurants and anywhere Kiryu can run to. The upgrade system has also received an overhaul and now features five categories of EXP which can be used to buy new moves, attributes and skills.

The tonal balance of the game is just as two-sided as any other Yakuza title; a fairly serious and shocking quest for the truth in the main storyline is balanced with ridiculous side quests, engaging distractions and mini-games and so much to do that it's easy to sink another 10-20 hours into postgame, just for the sake of completion. On a side note, some of Yakuka's best substories happen in this game, which is really saying something.

Interestingly Yakuza 6 features cameos from particularly famous Japanese actors including Beat Takeshi (Battle Royale, Takeshi's Castle) and Hiroyuki Miyosako (Kamikaze Girls), borrowing both their likeness and voices to add star power and a higher budget feel than ever before. The character writing in the game feels more than ever as if every story relevant character has clear motivations, goals and reasons behind their actions as the game leaves no thread unresolved by the very end.

If you're into the Yakuza series, I'd definitely recommend giving this game a go; prior completion of Kiwami might give a good insight into some of the recurring characters though. If you've never played a Yakuza game, you'd likely be better off to start with Yakuza 0, simply as there's no prior story with that instalment. However you look at it though, the game design, writing, visuals, music and concept all come together to prove once again that video games can and will continue to be art.

Rating: 98/100
Grade: A

Game Review: Yakuza Kiwami

Game: Yakuza Kiwami
Console: Sony Playstation 4
Developer: Sega
Release Date: August 2017

After declaring Yakuza 0 the highest rated video game I've ever reviewed on this blog, it seemed only right to check out Yakuza Kiwami, an HD remake of the original Yakuza for PS2. The events of Yakuza 0 lead up to and somewhat set up the beginning of Yakuza Kiwami, and having played the prequel first helps with investment into a few of the character's struggles. To share too many plot details would be to spoil the once again near perfect pacing and tonal balance of game, but just as with Yakuza 0, there's many moment of tension, conflicted emotions and of course hilarious sub-stories.

After 10 years of imprisonment, Kiryu returns to 2005 Kamurocho to find that things have moved on from the 90s and that once again his help is needed to control Yakuza in-fighting, as he searches for answers to the mystery behind a missing 10 billion yen. Since Yakuza 0 and Kiwami share a game engine, gameplay is functionally very similar between the two games, and the fighting engine hasn't changed all that much, though the level-up system is now based on exp. rather than money.

The PS2 version of Yakuza had some pretty poor graphics, fixed camera angles in parts, loading screens before all fights, and a pretty low effort translation. Yakuza Kiwami fixes all of these issues, and more resulting in the definitive version of the game. This isn't just an HD remaster, this is a true remake and improvement which means that there's almost no merit to going back and playing Yakuza on the PS2 anymore. The graphics are excellent, there's a sense of Kiryu getting back used to fighting as you upgrade his abilities, and the storyline is once again amazing.

Overall Yakuza Kiwami is well worth picking up if you played and enjoyed Yakuza 0, or if you enjoyed the PS2 original. The mass of additional content in the PS4 version, including the Majima everywhere missions and several other features really enhance the game and give it a lot more replayability. While the plot isn't quite as standalone or epic as Yakuza 0, the writers were basically constricted to the plot of the original and there's still a ton of epic and cinematic moment which occur in the game.

Rating: 89/100
Grade: A

PSP Month: Chili Con Carnage

Game: Chili Con Carnage
Console: Sony Playstation Portable
Developer: Deadline Games
Release Date: 16th February 2007

If you've ever played Total Overdose, you'll know exactly what to expect from Chili Con Carnage; a very similar game by the same developer. With a Mexican theme, third person shooter gameplay and lots of kills to chain together, the game takes a whacky and sometimes fun approach. There are 7 missions in total, each split into a few parts but the overall gameplay is a little too monotonous as players work their way through the levels shooting everything they can with auto-targeting.

There's some humour to the game's overall story and it's obvious that it's not to be taken particularly seriously; the gameplay seems to be the main attraction. That said, I found the gameplay to be pretty bland and not varied enough to warrant 7 missions. Sure there are combos that players can string together, jumping and shooting enemies but the auto targeting takes away any challenge from the game.

Graphically the game is pretty average, and more to the point uninteresting save for its Mexican theme which quickly gets old. Levels are laid out in a fairly linear style, even if a little exploration is necessary to find the next goal. Music and voice acting is mainly comedic as is to be expected with this kind of game. 

Overall Chili Con Carnage is too short to be considered a full gaming experience, too long to be interesting as a niche concept style game, trying to be funnier than it is, with a boring gameplay style and lacklustre combo and shooting options. Without auto aiming it could be at least fun to try and hit the enemies but instead players will find themselves spamming the shoot button as enemies appear. 

Rating: 44/100

Grade: E

PSP Month: Pursuit Force

Game: Pursuit Force
Console: Sony Playstation Portable
Developer: Bigbig Studios
Release Date: 7th March 2006

Pursuit Force is a fairly unique action game for the PSP allowing players to take on the role of a special forces police agent, attempting to shut down five of the most dangerous gangs in the city. There are 6 missions per gang, for a total of 30 with later missions unlocked through ranking up in earlier ones. Gameplay missions mostly consist of chasing other vehicles on a boat, motorcycle or in a car, jumping from vehicle to vehicle and shooting gang members in order to neutralise them.

There's not a lot of difference between gameplay in boats and cars, although they handle a little differently. Gameplay is significantly more fun in cars than boats. Missions get a little longer as the game goes on, but there are no checkpoints, so failure means starting from the beginning. This is an issue as things are pretty hard from thestart, so with later missions it can be frustrating to say the least. The story behind missions are also limited by the gameplay and usually reduced to 'This gang is attacking something or someone, you've got to help".

Graphically the game isn't bad on the PSP but it's nowhere near the level of the best games for the console. The HUD is a little cluttered with the lawfulness meter in the bottom right, car and player health in the bottom left, a map in the top left, subtitles at the top, an objective counter in the top right, weapon and ammo info at the side and various targeting symbols on screen. The voice acting isn't bad and there's some humour in some of the missions.

Overall Pursuit Force is a lot of the same thing, and the game only really gets harder as it goes on, rather than any more interesting. It's a good concept for a game and the gameplay itself works well, there's just not enough variety to keep players pushing on through the difficulty wall, and not enough story to keep players interested in progressing.

Rating: 60/100
Grade: D

PSP Month: Playstation Network Collection: Power Pack

Game: Playstation Network Collection: Power Pack
Console: Sony Playstation Portable
Developer: Sony
Release Date: 24th October 2008

The PSN Collection: Power Pack is a three game compilation of Playstation Network games released for the Playstation Portable and features Beats, flOw and Syphon Filter: Combat Ops. I'll be reviewing this as a collection since the individual games are mostly gimmicky or short. It's an interesting choice of titles too; a rhythm game, a relaxed indie "life simulation" and a shooter, but maybe they were going for variety?

Beats

As a fan of rhythm games, I was pretty sure I'd like Beats. It allows players to import music from their Memory Stick Pro Duo and creates beatmaps based on the pulse for players to tap along with. The songs which come as standard with Beats are all pretty lifeless and don't show the game off in the best possible light, but if you're a fan of energetic electronic music then you're in luck. I chose to import The Prodigy's song "Wild Frontier" and finally I could feel the beatmap working alongside the song to create steps in time with the beat.

The play area has 3 "landing pads" for steps, and players press the corresponding button when the symbol is in the centre of the landing pad. In addition to this, when a step is performed on the left or right pad, the d-pad must be held in the corresponding direction to register the step. This isn't too complex, but anyone who's played regular rhythm games like Dance Dance Revolution or Rhythm Heaven will likely find themselves forgetting to press left and right every once in a while.

Graphically the game has a basic interface, but a large choice of backgrounds and themes against which to play. It's an interesting experience and some songs work better than others; it's a matter of luck really. It'd be tough to listen to an album this way, but I can't see myself wanting to play more than 5 songs in a row in the Beats format. 

Overall it's not bad for a bitesize rhythm game, and the near infinite choice for songs is nice though the game will only allow 127 to be accessed at once. The powerup bar and subsequent Fever mode are a nice touch also, but I feel like Beats is missing a real unique selling point which distinguishes it from other beatmap based rhythm games like Audiosurf and Dance Factory.

Score: 6/10

flOw

flOw is a very simple game with deep ocean style visuals where players control a creature and "eat" other creatures to become larger and more detailed. Each screen is pretty small, but players can move up and down to dive deeper and find new things to eat and merge with. Every now and then it's possible to lose some of your creature, but this isn't a particularly competitive game and it's easy to get any progress back.

There's very little to do in flOw aside from swimming around and consuming everything in sight. While it might be fun to watch your creature grow for a minute or two, when there's literally nothing else to do in the entire game, it can get old quickly. As beautiful as the concept and execution is, when there's not a lot of gameplay it can be difficult to enjoy a game.

Overall flOw is mind-numbingly boring, and should only be played as a bedtime wind-down. Apparently the game can save your "progress" but there's no end goal, and nothing to achieve so it seems pretty pointless to me. As relaxing as this type of game is, it needs to bring a little more to the party to compete with any of the other titles on the PSP.

Score: 3/10

Syphon Filter: Combat Ops

Perhaps the most disappointing of the three games in terms of content, Syphon Filter: Combat Ops is essentially a map designer add-on for Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow, allowing players to create and share their own multiplayer maps. Since my PSP has some connectivity issues with my Wi-Fi, I wasn't able to verify whether you're able to play these maps, but I doubt there'd be anyone online to play with even if I had been able to.

Graphically it looks okay, and fans of Syphon Filter might have a little fun designing some maps, but it's a very poor inclusion on a multi-game collection which purports to be a "power" pack of video games.

Score: 1/10

Overall

I'm not entirely sure what the point of this Playstation Network collection was; if it was to collect together the best that PSN had to offer, at least from Sony's game selection then why are there only three games, and why are they all such average or boring games? There's variety in the type of games included but I can't see anyone truly enjoying this UMD for very long at all. With other collections like EA Replay, Gradius Collection, Metal Slug,  Power Stone, Namco and more on the PSP this is a very weak showing.

Rating: 30/100
Grade: E

Master System Month: Shadow Of The Beast

Game: Shadow Of The Beast
Console: Sega Master System
Developer: Psygnosis
Release Date: 1991

Shadow of the Beast is a strange game; partly because it starts players out on an overground level with no instruction and assumes they'll walk left, find a key, enter a building and decent underground to continue the game which defies most gamer logic and partly because it feels so different to other Master System games. Most platform games take place on several height levels, but the start of Shadow of the Beast is completely flat, and gives no indication that the player should be getting a key instead of exploring.

Once you get underground the game is difficult, but a little more predictable. Any items picked up can be used via a pause menu of sorts, though some potions will take away health so it's best to exercise a little caution. The enemy and boss designs are interesting, and even the player character is very different from that of normal games, though explanation for this can be found in manual rather than the game itself.

Graphically the game is pretty impressive with some seriously nice visuals in the underground part of the game. The music is the main audiovisual achievement though with a classic soundtrack both on this version and on the 16-bit Mega Drive version. Psygnosis were always known for pushing the gaming boundaries a little so it's unsurprising that Shadow of the Beast is good, if a little unconventional.

Overall the game is playable once you know what you're doing, but still can be somewhat difficult at times with enemies zooming in from off-screen to take your health, and some exploration and item menu experimentation needed to finish the game. If you want something a little more complex than your standard 8-bit game though, it's well worth a try!

Rating: 62/100
Grade; C

Master System Month: Spider-man

Game: Spider-man
Console: Sega Master System
Developer: Technopop
Release Date: 1991

Depending on what you want out of a Spider-man video game, it's possible that Spider-man on the Master System will be tolerable. The classic web-swinging movement through levels is nice and fluid and works well with the control system, and it's easy enough to wrap up baddies in webbing and dispatch them off screen. The issue comes with the game's overall premise though; players are given 25 minutes to collect 5 keys from 5 Spider-man arch-enemies and disarm a bomb.

The story begins with The Kingpin blaming Spider-man for placing the bomb, and since everyone appears to believe him, Peter Parker must clear Spider-man's name by stopping it from going off. Most levels consist of platforming, beating up baddies and bosses, and swinging around by web. Inbetween levels the story is advanced via pictures and hard to read text.

Graphically the game is pretty average for the era; the sprites are small but it's easy enough to tell who's who, and the locations are recognisible but not particularly detailed. The music isn't all that memorable, but it's the mix of an overall time limit, some tough sections of the game and repetitive gameplay that lets Spider-man on the Master System down the most.

Overall the story isn't all that exciting; collecting 5 keys to disarm a bomb supposedly planted by you seems contrived, and we'd have to wait for the Spider-man games on the Playstation 2 before we got the web slinging action we truly craved from this sort of licensed video game. A version of this game also came out for Mega Drive, but this is one of the rare cases where the Master System game appears to be better than the 16-bit version.

Rating: 60/100
Grade: D