Gamerscore Addicts

Mon Oct 19, 2009 1:59 pm by palindromic BOB

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising
A Codemasters Game

8 years ago, Codemasters changed the way people thought about the first-person shooter. With Operation Flashpoint: Cold War crisis, you had a huge amount of freedom in an open world and a level of realism that hadn’t been seen before. An attempt to transfer this experience to the original Xbox in 2005 had a lukewarm reception. With dated graphics it did little to endear itself to the console gamer. Tactical shooters such as Rainbow 6 and Ghost Recon began to thrive on console and soon Operation Flashpoint was lost in the sands of time. Now the sequel has finally appeared, developed solely by Codemasters, this also has a brand new game engine. But how does it hold up.

Starting up the game you are greeted with your options and naturally you want to jump straight into the ...

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Comments: 16

Fri Oct 30, 2009 8:18 pm by niteowl1980

BORDERLANDS - A GEARBOX SOFTWARE / 2K GAME

October is always a busy time for the games industry as the years blockbusters fill shop shelves and try to tempt us to part with our hard earned cash. This year in the same release window as Forza, Fifa and PES comes Borderlands, the latest game from Gearbox, published by 2K Games, which is trying to jostle for a place in the collection of hardcore gamers everywhere.

Set on the planet Pandora the basic premise of the game is that, playing as one of four different character classes (either Brick the berserker, Roland the soldier, Lilith the siren or Mordecia the hunter) you are searching for the mythical Vault, rumoured to be the location of alien technology that is only accessible once every 200 years. The Atlas Corporation, having harnessed such power found on another planet, is the ruling power of Pan...

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Comments: 9

Thu Oct 22, 2009 10:19 pm by Kent Hammer

Forza Motorsport 3
a Microsoft and Turn 10 game.

Anybody that knows me will be only too aware that I love my racing games! So when I received this game from Microsoft last week, I was very excited to get started on what has turned out to be a wonderful and exciting passage of discovery. To say that doing this review has been a labour of love would be an understatement.

OK, OK, enough gushing from me for now, lets get down to the nuts and bolts of it.
This is the follow up game to 2007's smash hit game of the year Forza Motorsport 2.
A game that was close to all our hearts here at GSA, as it was one of the first games that brought us all together as a community and many many race nights followed.

So let me start by telling you what's new and on offer this time around. Quite simply the game has been improved upon and tweaked in ...

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Comments: 16

Mon Oct 26, 2009 12:33 pm by Hendo 259

KING OF THE FIGHTERS XII REVIEWED BY CHRIS HENDERSON

Now when I received this game I wasn’t sure what to expect, with being a newcomer to KOTF brand. With this being a highly anticipated game, I was hoping it to be like a certain other classic beat em up which received an update recently. I won’t go in too much detail right at the start as I will leave that for later in the review but I was in for a shock!

Now where to start.....

Well once I put this game in my disc drive I was full of anticipation as I am a big beat em up fan. But as I said earlier I was in for a shock, as soon as I started the game I noticed the graphics. They looked liked they would be more comfortable as Xbox live arcade game. But as I have come to under...

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Comments: 1

Thu Oct 22, 2009 3:12 pm by Angel

OFFICIAL GSA REVIEW OF HALO WARS

For years Halo has proudly sat upon the throne of the worlds premier arcade shooter, since the first Halo game was released in 2001 the series has gone from strength to strength and is showing no signs of dulling with age whilst continuing to attract millions of gamers all around the world.
Bungie Studios continue to make more sequels for this groundbreaking title but now a different development group,Ensemble Studios, have taken it upon themselves to experiment with the Halo world and have converted the world renowned first person shooter into a strategy game, at first glance this seems like a rather crazy idea, but how did it actually turn out?

Ensemble Studios began the long and difficult march towards their goal by refusing to use any of the usual RTS control schemes due to the fact that they can be overly technical a...

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Comments: 3

Sun Sep 27, 2009 10:29 pm by ricklilley

Trials HD

Recently released on XBLA and developed by RedLynx, Trials HD is a side scrolling physics based Motorcycle trials game. With more than 50 tracks and an additional Skill Games mode. The main aim of the game is to complete each track as quickly as possible and with as few Faults (restarts) as possible.

One of the first things that hits you when you start playing is the controls, as you don’t actually steer the bikes at all, all you have is throttle and brake controls and the ability to lean the rider’s body position back and forth on the bike.
On the easier tracks you can get away with just using the throttle and an occasional touch of break but as the levels get harder you need to use the riders position more and more.

There are 5 different difficulty levels and a tournament mode. The difficulty leve...

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Comments: 4

Fri Oct 23, 2009 8:34 am by Hendo 259

LIPS NUMBER 1 HITS REVIEWED BY CHRIS HENDERSON

After receiving my copy of Lips Number 1 Hits in the post, I just couldn’t wait to get home and start singing…. Ok I sound like a cat being swung round someone’s head, but Lips isn’t about being good. Its about having a laugh and most importantly, how much of a fool you can make of yourself singing one of your favourite songs.

Lips No 1 Hits is a true party game and to tell the truth if you have the first lips it is more of an expansion on that. But don’t let that put you off as it is well worth getting, you are supplied with about 32 new tracks and you have access to all the songs you have downloaded so far for the first Lips. Now some of the default songs on the first lips will not come over due to license issue, but on main they are all there!

...

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Comments: 10

Thu Oct 22, 2009 7:26 pm by niteowl1980

Brutal Legend is the latest game from Tim Schafer, the designer behind Psychonauts, Grim Fandango and The Secret of Monkey Island. A project that Schafer has been trying to get completed since just after the much-lauded Psychonauts hit the Xbox back in 2005.

The main draw point of this game is the involvement of Jack Black who voices the main character Eddie Riggs. A veteran roadie who sees his place in life to live in the shadows, saving the day for metal bands without ever being noticed. After an accident during a metal gig where he is knocked down by a piece of falling stage, he wakes up in an alternate dimension where his roadie skills will truly be tested freeing an enslaved human race from the evil Lord Doviculus and winning over the love of the female lead Ophelia, armed with an axe, The Separator, and your trusty guitar, Clementine.

You can choose how to...

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Comments: 1

Thu Oct 22, 2009 3:27 pm by garymason72

NBA 2K10

A 2K Sports game

It’s that time of year again, when all the sports game developers roll out next year’s version of their franchise games and this year is no different. With EA's NBA Live 2010 being released a few weeks ago and receiving good reviews NBA 2K10 has a lot of expectation on its very broad shoulders. In recent years 2K's effort has come out on top of the basketball game war and is hoping this year’s improvements will keep it top of the league of basketball Sims.

The biggest addition to this year’s version is the My Player mode. A mode in which you take control of your own created player. This mode is rapidly becoming the norm and the most popular game mode in the modern franchise sports game with Fifa soccer, Madden Football and NHL the most recent to take it on-board. Each of those games does it really well with a good...

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Comments: 2

Tue Oct 20, 2009 7:36 pm by SimonB Demented

OFFICIAL GSA REVIEW OF LOST ODYSSEY

In recent times the boundaries of the RPG genre have begun to shift somewhat, with new themes and ideas constantly being implemented its almost impossible to define what a real RPG is nowadays. Where once the staple diet was a mixture of turn based combat, swords and spells we now live in an era where developers attempt to create sci-fi space opera's and post apocalyptic FPS' whilst all the time attempting to stay true to the roots of the RPG. I for one have enjoyed seeing the genre mature and blossom to incorporate new ideas but like all fans of RPG's I'm a stickler for tradition and occasionally yearn for the good ole days.

Similarly to most gamers of my generation the first dalliance I had with the RPG genre came in the form of the now rightly r...

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Comments: 5

Sat Oct 17, 2009 1:30 am by palindromic BOB

FIFA 10
An EA Sports Title

Review by Thunderbear10 with bits by Palindromic Bob



The second most pondered question in the world today:

Is there a God?

The one that everyone cares about:

FIFA Or PES?

Flashback to 2005 and this question was rather pointless. Without a doubt the answer was PES. FIFA was clunky, felt scripted, lacked realistic physics and was generally pants. PES presented realistic, beautiful, slick football showered with flashes of brilliant skill and outrageous goals.

Go forward to 2009 and serious thought was required to answer this question. FIFA 09 was the game where EA Sports finally started to reap the rewards for all the hard work that had gone into producing their Next Gen game engine. PES on the other hand seemed to be slowing down, with P...

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Comments: 8

Fri Oct 16, 2009 6:18 pm by SimonB Demented

GSA OFFICIAL REVIEW OF NHL 10

2009 has been something of a golden year for EA Sports franchises with superb outings from all of its big hitters, and speaking of big hitters NHL 10 has arrived and it isn't about to buck that trend as it sticks out its chest and struts confidently into our gaming worlds.

When it comes to American sports ice hockey has always been deemed the most accessible and as with previous iterations you can jump right into the action from the outset and start dishing out pain within seconds. It may seem trite to refer to the unmitigated violence of NHL straight off the bat but there can be no more satisfying feeling in gaming than crushing an opponent into the boards and leaving him in a crumpled, dazed mess.

With this years title EA have built upon the success of last years multi award winning NHL 09...

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Comments: 4

Fri Oct 16, 2009 8:40 am by Hendo 259

Section 8 reviewed by Christopher Henderson

Being asked to review Section 8 was a bit of a thrill for me, as I love futuristic shooters. As most 20 something’s, I spent most of my teens glued to my PC playing Quake 2. So I was looking forward to playing the multiplayer on Section 8, I will elude to that later in the review. First a bit of background….

Section 8 is a first person shooter developed by Time Gate Studios and published by South Peak Interactive. It utilizes the Unreal...

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Comments: 5

Thu Oct 15, 2009 7:07 pm by RabidHellBunny

Genre: Strategy & Simulation
Developer: Ninja Bee
Players: Single player mode and online multiplayer 1-4.
Achievements: 12 equalling 200 gamer score

Picture the scene: a lush green landscape filled with trees, sheep, precious crystals and outcrops of rock, one lonely building (Basic workshop), 3 platforms on the ground and 2 little villagers (Keflings) meandering around aimlessly looking for guidance, this is where you step in (well your giant avatar)!

The Keflings need a kingdom and a leader. They are hard workers just are incapable of thinking for themselves, you need to put your little Keflings to work cutting down the trees and harvesting the rocks with these materials you can then transport them to the basic workshop. The first thing you need to do is create the 4th platform to join the other 3 and create the town square, this unl...

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Comments: 5

Wed Oct 14, 2009 2:35 pm by garymason72

Stoked

A Bongfish game

Whenever I think about snowboarding games I always think about EAs classic SSX series, so when I heard there was a new snowboarding game coming to the 360 I was looking forward to pulling on my Snowboarding gear and hitting the slopes.
The game starts with you having to create your character choosing from a range of faces, body styles and clothing. There isn’t a massive range of clothing to start but you will unlock more as you play. After creating your ‘border’ you move into the tutorials showing you each of the different move types and also introduces you to the first problem with the game, the voice acting is terrible while learning the moves, he only has about 3 phrases, it wouldn’t be too bad but if you're anything like me you will be hearing them a lot while getting to grips with the controls.
Stoked is trying...

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Comments: 4

Wed Oct 14, 2009 5:23 pm by SimonB Demented

GSA OFFICIAL REVIEW OF GUILTY GEAR 2: OVERTURE

Since Microsoft's initial foray into the game console market with the original XBOX it has always been an ambition of the big M to crack the Japanese market. Thus far this has seen us lucky European gamers get the best Eastern themed titles coming to our 360's, more often than not these games have been favourably received and in some cases quite rightly lauded as being up there with the best the 360 has to offer.

The latest title from the Orient to be released over here is Guilty Gear 2: Overture, its been almost two years since this game initially debuted in Japan and even America has had this game since October 2008. Its understandable that GG 2 has had a delayed release in this region as its fair to say that it is quite a niche title and may well not appeal to the majority of ...

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Comments: 1

Thu Oct 01, 2009 9:42 pm by Kent Hammer

Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 Commander’s Challenge Review

This game is the next chapter in the evergreen Command & Conquer franchise. Except this time its an XBOX Live arcade title and a huge one at that using up over two whole gigs of HD space!

Now I know some of you are still desperately clinging onto the idea that bigger isn't always better, but when it comes to this gem it certainly is as it packs a big bang for your buck!

This baby contains over thirty hours of classic RTS gaming goodness, mmmm nice!
It consists of 50 challenges, letting players use their skill and guile to battle through and achieve victory anyway they can.

Now I have always been a fan of the series since way back when and it is always one of the first games I load up onto any new PC or laptop I own, So now getting to play ...

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Comments: 5

Mon Oct 12, 2009 3:01 am by palindromic BOB

Puzzle Bobble Live! a.k.a Bust-a-Move Live

Another puzzler hits the line up for XBLA, this time in the form of Puzzle Bobble Live aka Bust-a-Move Live! This classic ball busting game (thats the aim of it) set the standard for trigonometry based colour matching games, and the game mechanic can be seen in newer titles such as Zuma. The original now makes a long overdue comeback as part of Taito’s XBLA line up.

The game is simple. Point your bubble cannon and shoot so that it joins forms a chain of at least 3 matching colours that are suspended from the ceiling above. When done successfully they pop and a give you access to the rest of those colourful little critters. You can also bounce your bubbles off the walls of each level to reach areas that a straight shot can’t. After every few shots the ceiling drops a little and the goal is to clear the screen and prev...

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Comments: 3

Wed Sep 16, 2009 10:50 pm by garymason72

Colin McRae:DiRT 2

A Codemasters Game.

When i heard there was a new Dirt game coming out i thought it would be the usual sequel, Same basic game with a few extra tweaks to the game play and maybe some newer vehicles. After a night of playing Dirt 2, I couldn’t have been more wrong,

Let’s start with the basics, Dirt 2 is made up 5 different race categories, these are Rally, a fast point to point race much like the real thing with each of the racers starting at 15 second intervals, this is a cool feature it allows you to catch the racer in front but also to be caught, if your driving is anything like mine the latter will happen a few times too often.

Trailblazer, which is similar to the rally events only the tracks are alot more open and less technical, these are all about speed, so when picking your car keep that in mind vehicle ...

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Comments: 12

Thu Oct 08, 2009 3:21 pm by Gamblor74

Now it is the start of a fantastic Journey! Let’s make a journey to the cave of monsters.

Bubble Bobble Neo is a remake of the classic arcade version from 1986 (really, that long ago!). The storyline, as I remember it, goes that Bub and Bob’s girlfriends were kidnapped and they were both turned into dinosaurs (not sure why). They need to travel though 100 levels to rescue them.

Bubble bobble was a fantastic arcade game, not for the graphic, which are fine but looked dated when the game was first release, not for the music, although I can still remember the tune, but for the playability and fun factor, which still remains. This is a game not to be played alone though. In fact certain levels seem impossible on your own.

To play the game, all you have to do is blow a bubble to trap the baddies and then using your spikes, jump up and pop the bu...

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Comments: 3