Sony Ericsson XPERIA Play first impression

Yesterday evening I had a hands-on with Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play (the "PlayStation" phone) at the London #XperiaMWC event.

The Xperia Play is the only new Xperia not to share the same DNA as the Pro, Arc and Neo. It doesn't have a Bravia reality engine, nor does it have the cracking 8MP Exmor R backlit sensor that graces the back of the other Xperia phones.

As a gaming device, the Xperia Play houses a slider that contains the gamepad, not too dissimilar to Sony's PSP Go. Here you will find the four directional pad, dual touchpad (to simulate dual-analog on PS1 games), four action buttons (with classic none-coloured PlayStation shapes), start/select buttons and a another button that I assume emulates the analog button of the original PlayStation Dual Analog controller.

I found the buttons to be small. In fact smaller even than those you find on the original DS Lite. Tactile feedback isn't particularly good, particularly the shoulder trigger buttons. It isn't the most comfortable portable console out there, though I do have to stress that it is the only modern (and small) smartphone with a built-in gamepad.

The body was mainly made of plastic (in fact all the Xperias were mainly made of plastic). This was likely a design decision to not only keep costs down, but also to keep the weight down. Fortunately while it felt cheap, the built quality was great. The slider was solid and did not wobble or creak. How long will it last is another matter.

The Xperia Play contains an ageing Adreno 205 GPU and 1Ghz Scorpion processor. While no slouch by itself, the effect of using such an outdated architecture was immediately felt when gaming. Games like Asphalt 6 was slow to boot and suffered from frame drop outs. Not only that but I took issue with how Gameloft did not optimise the interface to be used with the gamepad. At times I am required to use the d-pad to navigate and sometimes I am forced to use the touchscreen.

On the upside it was obvious how much the gamepad (however bad it is) improves upon mobile gaming. Touchscreen gaming gaining traction lately, but the lack of controls has always hindered gameplay. Even a simple Gameloft game (and people know how much I hate Gameloft games), was much more enjoyable because I do not have to resort to on-screen buttons to do tasks, or use the dreadful accelerometer to move. I see more of the screen as well as it isn't blocked by the large thumbs.

No doubt by the time the Xperia Play launches, games optimised for the Xperia Play's architecture and unique gamepad will appear. Only time will tell if gamers will be tempted to ditch their PSP and DS, or away from the 3DS and pending PSP2/NGP for the Xperia Play, but for everyone else - the lure of the PlayStation brand could sell them this device, or at least that is what Sony Ericsson are hoping.

Final Fantasy XIII extended impressions

As you know, I wasn't very impressed of Final Fantasy XIII when I first played it. Twenty hours in and things have improved somewhat. I still had to plough through about 15 hours of utter boredom as the story is blighted by petty talk, in-fighting and the lack of cohesive directions, but at least the game is slowly coming together.

The new Role system is similar to the old Job system. This allows the player to somewhat customise the characters through six roles: Commando, Ravager, Sentinel, Synergist, Saboteur and Medic. The actions the characters perform during battle will depend on the roles currently assigned to them, for example a Medic will heal where as a Synergists will buff and a Ravager will focus on using elemental offenses. The role of each character can be switched on the fly via the Paradigm Shifts system.

While the Paradigm System is a dumbed down version of Final Fantasy XII gambits, I am finding myself enjoying the new battle system, which works half way between the fantastic Active Dimension Battle of Final Fantasy XII and the old ATB series staple. Switching A.I. on the fly is still good fun but I do find the battles as a whole much much easier than the previous title - and I haven't even started grinding yet. Crystarium is a rejigged Final Fantasy XII Sphere Grid but in 3D. It is a clusterfuck system and it gives me a headache everytime I use it. It is a pathetic replacement to the more intuitive License Board.

Weapons and accessories can be upgraded using loot (spoils) gained during the course of the game. These can be sold or dismantled to gain new materials to be used as further upgrades. Because there is no traditional levelling up system in place, it is generally more important to spend more time levelling up the weapons and accessories.

Both me and my partner agree. We love the art direction, character design etc. of Final Fantasy XII more. If you are a Final Fantasy X fanboy/girl you will be happy with the art direction here. Visually, the game is disappointing. Frame rate is very consistent during the most important bits - the combat, so nothing to complain about here. But while it does contain more polygons and better textures, it just kinda looks like a 720p Final Fantasy X game, but with the added advantage of a free camera. The pre-rendered cutscenes are stunning, but then so were the ones in the previous titles.

The linearity isn't bothering me as much as I thought it would be. There are some nook and crannies to look for treasures, but that's about it. I like towns, but do not mind the lack of towns in here either. In any case the lack of exploration do annoy me somewhat, but then again the architecture design here is so awful I didn't feel like doing much exploration anyway even if given the chance...

Bar Lighting, all the main playable characters have really forgettable design and are annoying to boot. There are three kind of voice acting in this game: brilliant (Lightning), competent (Fang) and awful (the rest). Shame that Lightning only ever speaks once every millennium. The plot is convoluted mess, especially in the beginning. But the story is slowly and beginning to get a little bit more interesting as my party (spoilers!) found themself ditched on an ancient arc after getting their arse kicked by a pope who I can't even bother remembering his name (end spoilers!).

The composer is the same guy who composed the score for Final Fantasy X and Dirge of Cerberus. That pretty much tells you all you need to know (that the soundtrack is shit). I play mainly with the volume turn all the way down just not to disturb my partner and never miss it. In fact I was seriously tempted to play the soundtrack of Final Fantasy XII (scored by Hitoshi Sakimoto - the same composer to the excellent Valkyria Chronicles and Vagrant Story) whilst playing this. A Jpop mix - seriously? It works for Persona 3 because the tracks fits the game style and location, but not here.

I am beginning to feel that Final Fantasy XIII is last-gen game moonlighting as a current-gen game in that shiny Bluray disc. It just plays and feels like one (just like Final Fantasy X felt like a PSone game), albeit with upgraded graphics. Well historically it is, as development started out as one but it has been more than three years since the PS3 was released (we have had two sublime Uncharted games for goodness sake!).

Final Fantasy XIII first impressions

So I got Final Fantasy XIII, much to my surprise (was a surprise gift). Have been playing for about an hour or so, so beware that this is just an initial first first impression (more like a hands-on).

In-game visuals isn't as impressive as all the hype has led me to believe. The characters are pretty darn poor, in design and their personality. The voice acting ranges from mediocre to downright cringe worthy. Gameplay wise, can't say I enjoy the separate battle screen but at least it isn't as bad as I thought it would be. It still ain't Final Fantasy XII though. Basically I can only control one party member (others are on auto, Persona 3-like) and so far all I do is press X for attack and occasionally on potions duty. I loved Persona 3, so this isn't a bad thing. It has been an easy first hour though (HP automatically refilled after every battle), such is Square Enix's desire to making it easier for the lowest common denominator.

Rather surprisingly Lightning has been the most likeable character in the game, in terms of her voice acting and character design. The rest are just so... well, unlikeable. Obviously with only one hour under my belt, I am sure that each character's back story will be examined (well, at least I hope so). I just wish their design weren't so... crappy. Sazh is one annoying guy who follows Lightning around, likely to be included as comic relief (he has a Chocobo pet). There's another typical Tetsuya Nomura playable character (called Snow - puke!) and is supported by a Blanka-like monkey, a girl who only wears underpants and is followed by a Jax-like (Naughty God) character (design wise anyway as he is a total coward). Square Enix better make Nomura take a break after this. Perhaps even swallow their pride and throw big money at Yasumi Matsuno whilst taking an ad on a big national paper apologising to the way they treated him.

I was initially reluctant to take much note the complaints regarding linearity. After all there has been plenty of A+ games in the past (Uncharted 2, God of War series, Mirror's Edge) that are linear including Final Fantasy ones. But it has just been a straight line - literally! I do hope things improve quickly, but various online reviews do indicate that I would need to play through about 20 hours of shit before hitting the good stuff. Fingers crossed they are right as I would be mighty pissed.

At any rate, after this unexpected procurement, I'll have to put on hold my plans for God of War III. Killing Zeus and sexing up Aphrodite will just have to wait for next month whilst I see what the fuss the first title in the Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy XIII​ world is all about.

Resistance: Retribution impressions

Sony Bend Studio's last PSP game wasn't that great. In fact it was awful. But by the simple fact of giving people the option to use auto-target, their latest game Resistance: Retribution plays a bit like a proper console shooter game as it does make use of the face buttons (which emulate the functions of the right analogue pad rather shoddily) less important. Still even though Resistance: Retribution looks like a third person shooter, it is actually more similar to a first person game.



Toggling the up button allows you to switch between auto and manual aim. Most of the time you will likely just ignore them as manual mode is simply too difficult to use (it zooms in a bit). The left button reloads your weapons and pressing the right will cycle through the available weapons. Firing is via the right shoulder button whilst the left shoulder button offers an alternate fire (if available). Sony Bend has also coded in options that will allows you to customise the speed and acceleration somewhat though I think the default setting was perfect. You can also turn off aim assist and auto recentre if you feeling a bit superior. Weapons includes an automatic, rifle, grenades and rocker launcher. No doubt more will be uncovered in the full game.

Auto aiming works well. As enemies enter the area covered by your weapons reticule you can merely press the right shoulder button down to lock on the enemy and let it do the work. At most you will need to run around for cover, kill a bunch of close enemies, switch to the rocker launcher and aim at ranged enemies like giant robots. I was fairly surprised by how intuitive the controls were considering how much I hated the PSP version of Syphon Filter. Here I found the gameplay to be of second nature, so well done to Sony Bend in getting at least the controls right.



The visuals are rather impressive. The frame rate is very smooth and never stuttered despite the number of enemies and special effects. While the grotto is fairly limiting (there is no sense of epic scale in the demo), the graphical details are still incredible. The load time seems to be very quick, not surprising considering I was running the demo from a Memory Stick. Perhaps the only issues of contention I can think of is the lack of anti-aliasing filter, and it doesn't look nearly as pretty as God of War: Chains of Olympus (which I doubt any developer can surpass except maybe Ready at Dawn themselves).

Resistance: Retribution certainly looks good and the gameplay seems to be working fine. In a year where one isn't expecting plenty of quality games, it is one of the few PSP titles (including Dissidia, Disgaea 2 and Patapon 2) I am actually looking forward to.

This impression is based on the demo. Resistance: Retribution is due out this March.

SoulCalibur IV impressions

Coming up from SoulCalibur III, veterans may noticed that not much has changed in SoulCalibur IV. Gameplay remains essentially unchanged (which to be fair is expected). It is a very accessible series, and even the simplest of button mashing will get most people true. However like all fighting games, learn and memorise the button sequences and you will be rewarded.


A dramatically improved character creation, first introduced in SoulCalibur III, is also included where you can create and customised your character in pretty much every conceivable way. Animations are smooth and details are reasonably high. Shame the same can't be said about the environments... Visuals are upgraded, but apart from having higher polygons, resolution and better textures - does not really seem to take advantage of the consoles relative power. For example arena's debris will gradually disappear. So while the visuals are 'current-gen', the game does not attempt to improve on the physics. For example why are we not able to kick a cracked tile and fling it to the opponent? And why are the fighting arenas planes still flat?

Speaking of physics, the much talked about new costumes of some of Soulcalibur's popular characters is a bit disappointing. You get about two per characters (more may be unlocked, but I don't know about that). The much talked about 'boob physics' is pretty restraint really (at least in the PS3 version - yes even with Ivy), especially compared to the various iteration of successive Dead or Alive titles. Hilde the new character is sensibly dressed, though a new feature in Soulcalibur 4 allows desperate single male players to slowly chip away at their armour...


I've had the opportunity to play both the 360 and PS3 version (couple of hours total) and my preference would be to go for the PS3 version. This is a biased opinion I admit, as I much prefer the Dual Shock pad for fighting games when compared to the 360's rubbish d-pad. Still hardcore fighting fans will likely already own a fighting stick (like this 360 or PS3 Hori arcade stick), in which case go with whichever console you own (or whichever Star Wars characters you want to play as... sad as that may be...). The 360 version's boob physics is more 'jelly' and unrealistic as though the female characters were all fitted with all things Itagaki patented implants. And if that is what you prefer...

I will wait till I have the chance to go into the game deeper before passing judgement, but as it is, SoulCalibur IV is pretty much an evolutionary progression of the series. You won't be expecting a revolutionary title like the classic Dreamcast title, but it is still the best 3D fighter title out there. Replayability should be high, though if you are expecting a story (heh) you will be extremely disappointed.

Final Fantasy IV DS first impressions

Based on a short playtime (well, watching Jennifer play - I will wait for the weekend trip to Scotland first):

Cecil: Not liking his voice so far. Apparently the voice actor Yuri Lowenthal voiced Seraph from Digital Devil Saga series (and the main protagonists in Nocturne), all of which I enjoyed. I hope for an improvement when he becomes a Paladin.

Kain: So far the best with a gruff and dark voice that matches the new Batman look. According to the ever unreliable Wikipedia, Liam O'Brien is "usually cast in some of the most unusual roles, as such he tends to play characters that show signs of insanity or are complete evil geniuses".

Rosa: An elegant voice, though a bit too Americanised for the setting. I rather enjoyed Karen Strassman's performance in Odin Sphere as the Valkyrie Gwendolyn, but for some reason it isn't right here.

(Young) Rydia: No idea who the voice actress is, but nothing wrong with it. She sounds like a naive kid, which is exactly what she is when she first joins the party. We will see if her voice changes as she matures.

The new translation is an improvement over Final Fantasy IV Advance and the other English versions. The language has been spruced and cleaned up too. You will be glad to know that touch screen controls is optional and you can stick with superior face button controls. I will write more once I get a chance to play it this weekend and get the hang of it.

Oh and Namingway is now called Mappingway but changed his name to Livingway at Kaipo...

You can order the North American version of Final Fantasy IV DS here.

Metal Gear Solid 4 first impression

From the moment Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots starts I knew that this would be something special and different. Eschewing the stealth approach of previous MGS titles, MGS4 opens with aplomb throwing you right into the middle of an intense battlefield - a showcase of Hideo's new 'No Place To Hide' approach, as well as the technological showcase of what a current-gen console like the PS3 was capable of. And yes Snake is still the old man he was confirmed to be some years ago and no last minute MGS2 style switch-a-roo (at least not within the two hours when I had the opportunity to play it), and playing as an old man has many disadvantages...

The first act of MGS4 is something that is not at all unique to modern video gaming. The setting is in a typical ravaged Middle Eastern setting where war is an on-going normality. The local militias are battling one of Liquid Ocelot's PMC (Private Military Companies) made up of standard conscripts and Gekko, a new generation of Metal Gear mechas. Littered in between are Hideo Kojima's trademark excessive use of cut scenes, which in my opinion, are what made this series so compelling. I am aware that near the end the cut scenes will tread towards over-excessive but I won't lie to you - I will be looking forward to those. The transition between pre-directed sequence to real time gameplay is so seamless, much more so than God of War.

The visuals are fantastic. If there ever was a game that one should use to promote high definition, this would be it. It was crisp, and the lack of overt-aliasing was pleasing to the eyes. Something that can't be said about GTA IV (which yes, I played a little bit of that too)... The graphics on the 32" Samsung 720p telly (not mine) is so good, I am convinced. Now I can't wait to jump on the high-def bandwagon but I will have to wait for 1080p screens to drop in price first, though I have to admit it is all so tempting to just order the special edition MGS4 PS3 pack now. Combined with the cinematography, storyline and script; Guns of the Patriots is the most film-like video game since, well, Snake Eater and such a title surely deserves the best telly.

Change is good and the way MGS4 takes stealth game forward by pushing you towards a none-linear battlefield, allowing you to choose exactly how you want to proceed, is beyond anything I've ever played. There is little doubt here if the rest of the game follows the same freshness as the opening first act (from what I was told, I was only halfway through the act one), this is definitely the game of the year.

Echochrome demo impressions

I have been waiting to play echochrome since Sony unveiled the title at last year's E3 presser. Thankfully a demo of echochrome for PSP was released on the Japanese PlayStation store today. The demo is very short and only last a couple of minutes worth of puzzles, but gave at least gave me a good impression on how well the game works on the PSP.

The idea of the game is difficult to put into words. It is far easier to watch a video, but I will still try my best. You can always refer to the illustrations and video below. echochrome's gameplay revolves around a mannequin figurine walking on geometrical planes. In order to guide the figurine through planes that may seem impossible to traverse because there is a gap, or a black hole etc., you rotate the camera to change the perspective. For example if you require a figurine to cross a gap you simply rotate the camera so that an adjacent vertical panel would hide the gap. Because we couldn't see the gap any longer, meant that the rules has changed and it simply doesn't exist for the figurine, and is allowed to continue its journey through. This set of rules were developed based on OLE Coordinate System engine.


A gap blocks the path for our simple fellow.


But a simple change of perspective 'erases' the gap through an optical illusion.


Figurine survives the walk, thanks to you.

The illustration above is nicked of the OLE site and actually features in the demo as the second tutorial. While the visuals are similar, the PSP's figurine is much more detailed. Not that it matters anyway for a game like this. Supplementing the demo's string solo was a calming English voice over that provides encouragement. The figurine walks at a short pace giving you enough time to think ahead. It can also be stopped if you require the additional time, or speed up. The important camera is solely controlled via the analog pad. Here lies the biggest problem. As you may know the PSP's analog pad isn't the greatest iteration of analog sticks. Being a pad and all, it isn't particularly accurate. It isn't a problem with the demo, but I can imagine it being a liability with later more complex puzzles. This should not be a problem with the PlayStation 3 version though as I have always found Dual Shock analog sticks to be pretty good.



The PSP version is rumoured to actually cost more than the PS3 PSN version, but it will also come with double the amount of puzzles. The PSN version however include a level-editor, if rumours are true, so that may be a more appealing purchase. Either way echochrome has a potential to be a great, engaging and addictive game, if Sony would give it a chance and market it well. Sending great games like Patapon out to die doesn't inspire confidence that they will. And whether or not echochrome will appeal to a fast changing video games market remains to be seen, but I hope it will.

You can download the Eboot file here and copy them onto your Memory Stick. Alternatively you can also download the PSP demo directly from your PSP's web browser through here, then later pre-order from your favourite importer. :) The Asian version (known as echochrome plus) has dual language: Mandarin and English.

Patapon demo impressions

Patapon is a rhythm-based platform game brought to you by SCE Japan Studio, the same people who created the under appreciated LocoRoco. Judging from the demo, this game is going to be hell of a fun. The game involves you, the Almighty of the Patapon world, beating your drums in rhythm to motivate your tribal creatures to do your bidding.

Input to simulate drum beats are via the four face buttons. For example: Pata-Pata-Pata-Pon (which is square -> square -> square -> circle), instructs your tribe to move forward; and Pon-Pon-Pata-Pon which orders the conscripts to throw spears.


Unfortunately you won't be attacking this Giant Enemy Crab's weak point for massive damage in the demo

Unlike LocoRoco, Patapon is much more challenging, especially if you have not developed a sense of rhythm. The challenge is in the timing, but anyone who has a couple of hours experience with a game pad should be fine. Combos can be raked through perfect timing execution as you go from chanting to beats etc.

Even if you have already made up your mind and will be getting the game, you should still download the demo. The save file generated at the end of the demo will be compatible with the retail version and gives you the rare Staff of Protection weapon. Anyway day one purchase for me. Go my pata-pata-pons!

Patapon will be released this 22nd February for twenty quid.

Final Fantasy IV DS remake impressions

I had the chance to play an import copy of Final Fantasy IV remake whilst everyone was off away in London burdening their credit cards further. Played for 2-3 hours before turning it off just after I saved Rosa. I will wait for the localised version and I suggest everyone else to do so too. Here are my impressions from my limited play through:

• Game is on top screen.
• Didn't like the new logo. Seriously prefer Kain.
  
• Dungeon maps has percentage value, like in Star Ocean 3. Getting 100% will produce bonus goods.
• Battle frame rates are lower than FF III DS due to increased amount of characters on screen. Polygon counts are lowered because of this.
  
• You can't zoom in the camera like in FF III DS.
  
• Fixed side perspective for battle with nice pre-rendered background.
• Intro FMV is encoded in a much lower bitrate with huge macro blocks so visible. I don't care for them so it isn't a huge loss. Might as well scrap it from the Westernised version and use the extra space for better textures or increased sound quality.
  
• Cut scenes are rendered in real time using polygonal models and are very nice.
• Speaking of cut scenes, these are very well directed. On par with Final Fantasy XII. This isn't surprising as the storyboard cut scenes were done by Yoshinori Kanada, key animator in such fine anime films like Mononoke-Hime and Nausicaa: Valley of the Wind.
  
• Voice acting is superb though are restricted to 'important scenes'.
• There is an Auto-battle mode with one gambit(?).
• Difficulty seems higher than the last version I played (FF IV Advance), no doubt compounded by my lack of Japanese reading skills handicap as well as increased enemy stats.
  
• Enemies are far more aggressive, picking on low-level Rydia. Could this really be a remake of the fabled original Super Famicom version (none EasyType)?
• Loading time of 2-3 seconds FTL.
• Rydia doesn't start with level 1. Instead she joins in with a calculated level based on Cecil's. She was level 7 on mine with some white and black magic and two summons (Chocobo and Pochika).
• I have no idea what Pochika is or does, but it costs a bucket load of MPs to summon and so far isn't terribly useful. It looks like a Kodama from Mononoke-Hime.
  
• The soundtrack seems to have been re-arranged. The Red Wings theme is majestic.
• The original generic towns from previous versions are replaced with themed towns. Desert town Kaipo for example has middle-eastern architecture.
• Rosa is hot.
• Kain looks like Batman. And sounds like Batman too.
  
• Boss fights are harder. Expect plenty of grinding. >.<
• The game has three save slots and one quick save slot for quick gaming in the bus.
  
• Thought bubbles materialised above a character's head when accessing the menu. If only I understood what they are...
  
• You can change your avatar. So I use Rydia instead of Cecil, at least until I got Rosa.
  
• There is a new Decant Ability System where party members can use an ability from previous party members who has left, but I have no idea yet how.
• Like FF III DS, touch screen controls are *optional*. A huge plus in my books as I still prefer face buttons. Learn from that Nintendo.
  
• Graphics aren't that amazing with minimal polygons, but there are subtle improvements such as shadows on character's body during cut scenes and better quality textures.
• Facial expressions are amazing. Eyes blink, mouth moves etc.
• Cecil still sleeps with his armour and helmet on...
  

And finally:

• The dancers strips into bikinis and are more provocative here. Huzzah!

I do hope that some sort of code optimisation will be done to speed up the game, because right now I find the loading screens are annoying. I also happen to enjoy the voice acting but have a deep feeling that Square-Enix will replace them with English voices. Anyway as far as localisation is concerned, hurry up S-E. The increased in difficulty is a huge plus in my books and this alone makes this remake the definitive version of the game. No doubt plenty of reviewers will be complaining about the difficulty, though not me as I love it. Seems that reviewers are getting soft with modern RPG titles that holds your hands throughout the game (glares at Final Fantasy X).

Anyway sucks that I have to leave the game and return it to its original owner. But giant Mechs in S-E's tactical-RPG title Front Mission 1st should keep me occupied for now.

Video Game Impressions: Final Fantasy XII battle system

Vaan and Penelo was at Level-4 when I had them hunt a large wolf called the Wolf in the Waste. We were almost raped by the giant. Lucky for me Penelo was on Gambit, which allows her to automatically target and fight nearby enemies. I was busy using Vaan to heal instead and occasionally having him cast a wide variety of offensive Magick. Before long she (or he) was down and I was off to collect my 500 gils bounty. Then I went to the Clan Hall to gloat at Montblanc, the cheeky Clan Centurio head honcho who also happens to be a Moogle, while he showered me with gifts due to my updated clan status from Moppet to Hedge Knight. Nice. Hunts are basically side-quests but this is the only way one can increase the clan status (how very MMO).

Enemies now visibly roam the open land (or dungeons) so there are no longer any random encounters that jRPG-haters hate, no longer turn based (turns are still governed by an ATB like gauge similar to that of Final Fantasy VI), but thankfully still menu-based. If any enemies are nearby simply open the battle menu and select attack. The party will automatically attack the enemy of whom the party leader has selected. It is also possible for different party members to attack different enemies in the surrounding by navigating the d-pad and opening their individual battle menus, but I found this chaotic. I am looking forward to expanding the auto-party control system called Gambit once Yamoora's Gambits store opens and Gambit is available on the Party Menu.

The new system to obtaining new skills such as Magick or the abilities to don certain armour or weild new weapons are now governed by the License Board, which looks like a checkers/chess board, and is similar to Final Fantasy X's Sphere Grid. Basically each victory will yield License Points (LP) in addition to Experience Points (EXP) and loots (which have to be sold to obtain gils, the currency of Final Fantasy games). You can then trade in LP on the License Board to unlock new Licenses. I believe this is a balancing feature. If a party member obtains a powerful weapon early in the game he or she would not be able to use it until you unlock the particular License to use it on the License Board. In addition to Magick, the License Board is used to unlock Technicks (eg. steal) as well as permanent stat bonuses.

I have only been playing the game for 3 hours now but so far everything about the latest Final Fantasy numbered game is engrossing. The visual style is excellent and the graphical capability of the six year old PS2 console is pushed to the limit. The architecture of Rabanastre, the town Vaan lives in, is beautifully constructed. I can't wait to start exploring Ivalice. Sadly there isn't an option for enabling progressive scan, but the game does support widescreen in the PAL version. Game of the year candidate, surely.

Play the game now.

National Express thoughts / Lego Star Wars II DS / Wii stuff

I can't begin to tell you how much I hate the new fleet of National Express coaches. It looks comfy, but really - it isn't! It looks modern, until you notice the number of cheap and tacky plastic furniture that graces its interior. Like cheap Asian (except Japanese) cars.


DS version: not recommended. At all.

Today I went into GAME to return Lego Star Wars II* for DS. The version is almost identical to the console version (except shorter) despite different developers - with graphical/gameplay bugs to boot. It plays like the dreaded Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (not surprising since it is by the same developer) where instead of hack-hack-hack, you shoot-shoot-shoot. Nice to see that George Lucas is still keen on ripping fans off.

I also took the chance to enquire about the new Wii. Though NoA has only announced that a white coloured version (don't they know white is so uncool' as the 'only colour' that would be available in North America, sadly NoE failed to announce any specific for the European market. The GAME staff did mentioned that his company will be making both white and black accessories, so based on that there is a small chance that Europe will get a black Wii as well. I hope that is true. White is so un-cool.

Video Game Impressions: killer7 (GameCube)

Yay! The stupendous Big Brother is finally coming to an end, which means no more bullshit programmes on the telly. Even some of my mates who stupidly enjoys reality TV has complained about the banality of this year's series.

Anyway... I recently got myself a copy of Suda 51's killer7 (original GCN version) from GameStation. Let me tell you, this is one of the most fucked up games I have ever played, and I meant that as a compliment. Produced by Shinji Mikami (Resident Evil, Viewtiful Joe, Gyakuten Saiban), the game features unconventional gameplay (on rails) and graphics (textureless cel-shaded).



You play as this assassin called Harman Smith. He has the ability to manifest himself into seven different split personalities, both mentally and physically. They are known as the killer7. Each of the seven has their own abilities such as unique killing skills.

I won't talk much since I am pretty tired right now and describing the game would require some kind of use of my right brain, I don't feel like using either one right now. You can read the review at Eurogamer though.

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Video Game Impressions: Nintendo DS Lite & Tomb Raider: Legend

I won't bore you with an in depth review of Nintendo's new DS Lite. Instead here are some pictures and first impressions.


Vs







A reduced-size GBA slot cover is provided


Normal GBA carts protrudes around one cm

Pros:
- Smaller (42% less volume)
- Lighter too
- Amazing screen
- Four level brightness - high level brightness perfect for summer alfresco gaming sessions
- Larger capacity battery
- Inside matte finish
- Still region free
- Longer and thicker stylus slot
- Buttons do not 'click' (may be negative to some)

Cons:
- Reduced-sized GBA slot (a necessary evil, I guess)
- New charging slot
- Outside glossy finish which attracts fingerprints
- OS not updated (still need to reboot!)
- So far only exists as expensive imports (on top of the potential H.M. Revenue & Customs tax)

Playing Metroid Prime: Hunters has never been more satisfying.

Totally unrelated to the DS Lite, but still remaining with gaming:

I also had the chance to have a go with the new Tomb Raider: Legend demo today. Behind the unrealistically glossy new Lara, gameplay works essentially the same as the original Tomb Raider. However playing Legend isn't the same as when I first played Tomb Raider nine years ago on the family computer.


In 1996, playing a scantly clad sexy female Indiana Jones style character while hunting for old relics in exotic locations was a unique and refreshing twist, especially when compared to the many male-centric games

I guess the idea of controlling a semi-nude sexy protagonist isn't that big a deal nowadays. Still as a game title, Legend is pretty good and should satisfy most fans of Lara Croft and the third person platform genre. It isn't a killer title, but if the price drops down to £15, I may just be tempted to play the full version.

You can download the PC demo here or here.

Technorati tags: Nintendo Nintendo DS Nintendo DS Lite DS Lite Gaming Portable Consoles Tomb Raider Tomb Raider Legend Lara Croft

Video Game Impressions: Quake 4

Some 12 years ago I started killing Nazis in Wolfenstein 3D with my uncle's PC. Then there was the original Doom as well. Where other kids were playing Mario (well I was also playing that) on their NES I had Doom.

But as far as shooter games goes nothing has ever best id's other franchise to date - the Quake series. The first proper 3D fps I played was Quake on the family's Pentium Win 95 PC. Hell I am still enjoying the original Quake on my Pocket PC.

Well after roughly two months wait, Quake 4 retail price has dropped by half. This is probably due to the release of the XBox 360 version as the 'ultimate version'. (Have fun folks.) Quake 4 as some of you may know is the true successor to Quake II. Quake III Arena does not count as it lacks single player mission mode.

My system being a crappy Celeron stuck to a three year old graphic chipset, I had my doubts that it could crunch through. But after tweaking through the system I managed to get a respectable frame rate at SVGA medium setting. I had to disable some effects but I did leave shadows and bump mapping on. Not bad for a crappy system.


Quake 4 as seen through my crappy old system

Sure the quality could have been better but right now I am unwiling to spend hundreds of pounds to frag something. I am amazed that the engine was flexible enough to actually allow a Geforce4 card.

Update: Well I had a blast. I do wish we can do away with those chattering NPCs. It was rather easy even though there were great moments. It was too short. The story did not have the same level of depth that even the original Half-Life did. Visually it was great, but I just can't help thinking that Cormack needs to rethink id's strategy. You can only retell the same story so many times.

Video Games

PlayStation 3

Final Fantasy XIII first impressions
Final Fantasy XIII extended impressions
Heavy Rain review
Heavy Rain Chronicles: Chapter 1: The Taxidermist review
Killzone 3 review
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots impressions
Soulcalibur IV impressions
Uncharted 2 (my GOTY)
Valkyria Chronicles: Selvaria's Mission DLC review

PlayStation Portable

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII
Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness
Dissidia: Final Fantasy
echochrome
echochrome impressions
Everybody's Golf impressions
flOw
Gitaroo Man Lives!
God of War: Chains of Olympus
God of War: Chains of Olympus: Battle of Attica
Gran Turismo (PSP)
Jeanne d'Arc
Killzone: Liberation
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker demo impressions
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops
MotorStorm: Arcitc Edge
N+ (N Plus)
Patapon
Patapon impressions
Patapon 2
Resistance: Retribution demo
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona (PSP)
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
WipEout Pulse

Nintendo DS

Advance Wars: Dual Strike
Animal Crossing: Wild World
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
Bleach DS Souten ni Kakeru Unmei
Brain Age Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day
Contact
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime
Toshio Iwai's Electroplankton
Final Fantasy III DS
Final Fantasy IV DS
Final Fantasy IV Japanese impressions
Final Fantasy IV impressions
Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
Geometry Wars: Galaxies
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Lego Star Wars II
LifeSigns: Surgical Unit
Mario Hoops 3-on-3
Meteos: Disney Magic
Metroid Prime Hunters
Metroid Prime Pinball
More Brain Traning from Dr. Kawashima: How Old is Your Brain?
New Super Mario Bros.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice for All
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Trials & Tribulations
Pokémon Diamond and Pearl
Professor Layton and the Curious Village
Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan
The Rub Rabbits
Super Monkey Ball: Touch & Roll
Super Princess Peach
Touch Detective 2 1/2
Trauma Center: Under the Knife
Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble
The World Ends With You

Wii

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
No More Heroes
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles
Resident Evil 4: Wii edition
Super Mario Galaxy

PlayStation 2

Atelier Iris: Eternal Mana
Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
Final Fantasy XII
Final Fantasy XII battle system impressions
God Hand
God of War
Grim Grimoire
ICO
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Odin Sphere
Ōkami
OutRun 2006: Coast2Coast
Rogue Galaxy
Shadow of the Colossus
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha vs. The Soulless Army
Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4
Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
Suikoden V
Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria

PlayStation

Parasite Eve

GameCube

Killer 7 impressions
Resident Evil 4 impressions

Game Boy Advance

Final Fantasy IV Advance
Final Fantasy VI Advance
Gunstar Future Heroes

PC

Colin McRae 2.0
F.E.A.R.
Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne
Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit
Need for Speed V: Porsche Unleashed
Quake 4
The Sims 2
Tomb Raider: Legend impressions

Others

DoDonPachi Maximum (Windows Phone 7)
Flux Challenge (WinMob)
Halo: Spartan Assault (Windows Phone 8)
The King of Fighters '94 (Neo Geo)
Quake Mobile (WinMob)
Real Racing 3 (iPhone / Android)
Snails (PalmOS)

Hardwares

Metal Gear Solid 4 Bluetooth headset
Nintendo DS Lite first impression
Nintendo DS Lite Enamel Navy mega review
Sony PSP Slim & Lite (PSP-2000) review
Wii Remote Jacket

Guides

Final Fantasy XII: PAL Zodiac Spear guide
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops plots
Newbie's guide to installing 3.73, 3.80, & 3.90 M33 CFW on PSP and PSP Slim & Lite
Playing classic PlayStation games on PSP consoles
Playing multi-disc PlayStation games on PSP consoles
PS1/PSX on PSP game manuals/FAQs

Features

2007: The Rise of Video Games
2007: Video Games "Yet Another GOTY List"
Distant Worlds: Music From Final Fantasy Celebration: 25th Anniversary Concert London 2012
DOA: Dead or Alive film review
Exclusive PlayStation 2 games guide
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children film review
God of War: Chains of Olympus photo session
Golden Joystick Awards 2008
Hellgate London tube tours
I am a cross dressing gamer
Metal Gear Solid replay
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, why the Raiden hate?
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops: EVA, model spy extraordinary
Nintendo DS Lite nasty super crack on left hinge
Nintendo DS games guide
Six fictional female RPG characters
Top 5 racing games I've played
Top 100 games of all time
Video games rating explained
WipEout Pulse photo session