Playstation 2 Reviews U-Z

Urban Reign is one of several unsatisfying fighters recently released, along with Beat Down: Fists of Vengeance (yuck) and The Warriors (blah). This one places your character in a series of one-against-many brawls, most of which conclude with the player hurling his controller at the floor and cursing at the screen. The general design of the game is abysmal. The fights are separated into "missions", which is never a good sign. Each is introduced by some verbose scrolling text that I could give a crap about. During each battle you face one or more thugs in urban locations including a bar, gas station, warehouse, and motel. The indistinctive characters are forgettable, the scenery is uninteresting, and the females sport unnaturally broad shoulders. At least the controls are responsive, allowing you to quickly deal successive blows to multiple opponents. Most are initiated via the circle button, but it's also possible to grapple opponents, "redirect" attacks, and run up walls to deliver flying kicks. The action is fast and the collision detection is crisp, but the fights are lengthy, monotonous, and frustrating. The difficulty is poorly tuned. Each thug has a huge life bar, and it's annoying how even executing a devastating attack only chips away at it slightly. When facing multiple foes, it's a good idea to keep them separated, because once they gang up on you, you're toast. Once you find yourself surrounded, you can only watch as you're pounded to oblivion. The instructions claim you can take advantage of your surroundings and use weapons, but these aspects are extremely under-utilized. Urban Reign regularly saves you progress, but you never feel like you're accomplishing anything, and the multi-player modes are equally pointless. The search for a decent 3D Streets of Rage (Genesis, 1991) type of game continues. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.

It just dawned on me that Vampire Night is essentially House of the Dead for the Playstation 2. If the "Sega" logo didn't give it away, I should have known from hearing villagers shout ridiculous lines like "Don't come! Don't come!" and "Thank you for rescuing me". The game takes place in what appears to be the late 19th century at a castle inhabited by vampires and their minions. Your character smoothly glides over snowy slopes and scenic courtyards as you take aim at ghouls, winged demons, and charging knights. Enemies have health meters but hitting their blue "sweet spot" will cause them to instantly disintegrate. You cannot shoot off their limbs, which makes me very, very sad. Vampire Night supports the Guncon 2, which has got to be the lightest, most comfortable, and most accurate light gun I've ever used. The stages convey spooky atmosphere thanks to sharp graphics, moody lighting, and a haunting soundtrack. The castle looks spectacular bathed in moonlight and the scenes in the snowy woods are just gorgeous. One unique aspect of the game is your ability to "free" infected villagers by shooting the "red octopus" latched onto them. If you hit the villager instead, they transform into a raging werewolf. With no crosshair to guide you, it's almost impossible to hit those octopus dead on. A better strategy is to shoot slightly off to the side and then gradually zone in on your target. Saving people can unlock alternate paths, but since it's hard to do, most playthroughs are the same. You'll always battle the same bosses and these encounters are lengthy and tiresome. The coop action is okay but the constant audio prompts are annoying ("Reload! Reload! Re-Re-Reload!"). The arcade mode is fun but would have been better if you could rank in with a high score. The "special mode" is basically the same as the arcade except you're searching for a particular item hidden in a barrel, crate, or vase. This mode also lets you equip special items, skip stages, or add more credits. Vampire Night is not great, but if you're a House of the Dead fan you'll probably feel compelled to pick this one up. NOTE: This game will not work on an HDTV. © Copyright 2014 The Video Game Critic.

War of the Monsters resurrects those low budget monster movies of the 1950s, and it does so with a cinematic flair. The introduction actually looks like a classic monster flick (complete with low quality video and sound) and the main menu is a drive-in movie screen. The loading screens feature "movie posters" of the monsters featured in the game, and even the dramatic musical score is dead-on. The gameplay is pretty chaotic, with epic monster battles that cause major devastation to their surroundings, especially when they take place in the middle of a city. It's quite relaxing to step on mobs of screaming people as they run in terror through the streets. But unlike Gamecube's Godzilla game, the monsters here are scaled down a bit, so you can actually climb the buildings and leap between rooftops! This adds an extra dimension to the battles and makes War of the Monsters a better game. It's even possible to be crushed by falling buildings! The cast of gigantic monsters includes an ape, praying mantis, robot, lava monster, shogun warrior, and giant lizard just to name a few. The animation is astounding - check out how the praying mantis scuttles around realistically and twitches when it dies. Intuitive controls let you pick up cars, subway trains, radio towers, and hurl them as weapons. The one-player mode is fun until you reach the frustrating bosses that take forever to kill. Victories earn points toward unlocking new stages or mini-games, but unlike Godzilla, all the main monsters are available from the beginning (cool!). The two-player mode is crazy fun, and even lets you throw some CPU-controlled monsters into the mix. A split-screen mode is used, but this occasionally switches to full screen when both monsters are in close proximity. Some people say it's disorienting, but I like it. War of the Monsters is an amazing game that effectively recreates the spirit of those old monster flicks on your Playstation 2. © Copyright 2003 The Video Game Critic.

As much as I love snow games, I wasn't expecting much from this $9.99 bargain bin title. But once I began playing this obscure snow speeder game, I couldn't stop! Whiteout's arcade mode is well designed and super addictive. Your main goal is to open tracks, and each is well worth the effort. My favorite is Jackson Ridge, a Midwestern river valley location with plenty of bridges and wooden overpasses. Besides providing beautiful scenery, each track is loaded with huge ramps, clever shortcuts, and objects you can bust up. Likewise, the realistic snow effects and subtle shadowing deftly convey the feeling of plowing through the crisp snow and ice. I also like how Whiteout provides several reasonable objectives for each course. These include earning a certain number of points (mainly through tricks), passing through a certain number of burning loops, finding all the shortcuts, smashing all the breakable scenery, or beating a lap time. Each objective is achievable if you concentrate on it, but you can also knock off a few in an exceptionally good run. This is one of the few racers that manages to strike a reasonable balance between racing and performing tricks. But as much as I enjoyed Whiteout's simple racing action, it does have a few glaring flaws. First off, one of the announcers is incredibly annoying, shouting all sorts of infantile drivel like "I could never do this Johnny, I'd CRAP myself!" It's actually embarrassing to play this with the volume up! Another issue I have is with the "blur" effect exhibited when you kick in a turbo boost. Not only does it NOT look the least bit impressive, but it makes it extremely hard to see where the heck you're going! As you'd expect from an "extreme" style game, Whiteout features the obligatory "hip" edgy guitar music, but thankfully the volume is kept very low. Overall, this game was definitely worth the money and will get a lot of use over the cold winter months. © Copyright 2005 The Video Game Critic.

If you take the winter Olympics game Torino 2006 (PS2, 2005), toss in a few new events, and slap a budget price tag on it, you're left with Winter Sports 2008. Sure it's a rehash, but it's also one hell of a good deal! One to four players can compete in realistic winter Olympic action including alpine skiing, bobsledding, ski jumping, and speed skating. It's ideal for a beer-fueled, smack-talking rivalry between friends, but only if you set up the game right. First, be sure to select the 7-event competition over the 15-event option. The 15-event competition includes the slower events, and with players taking turns (sharing the same controller no less), it can take forever. Next, be sure to turn off those worthless, time-consuming medal ceremonies. Finally, make sure each player enters his initials, because the game saves high scores and records. Most of the events are not only fun, but exceptionally easy on the eyes. The simple controls are indicated on the screen at the start of each run, and you'll get the hang of them after a wipeout or two. The sensation of speed is excellent, especially in the skiing and bobsled events. And when you gaze down from the top of the towering ski jump platform, it's quite a sight. The mountain backdrops look nearly photographic, and at night the lighted villages look incredible. Winter Sports is fun but could have been better. Some events have two heats and lengthy runs, causing them to wear out their welcome. It would be nice if a few events were truly head-to-head (like speed skating), and having to share a single controller is bogus. The figure skating event has a nice rhythmic control scheme that captures the grace and fluidity of the sport, but why do the skaters have powder on their faces? Curling is the slowest, most strategic event, and the fact that its control scheme includes a fast-forward button should tell you something. Cross-country skiing tends to be long and arduous, although the bright scenic countryside almost makes it worthwhile. The athletes are realistically animated, but why are all the members of my German team black? I could do without Winter Sports' grinding guitar soundtrack, which would be more appropriate in an "extreme sports" title. I did enjoy the lighthearted two-man commentary, especially with the dry English humor. Winter Sports offers several solo modes including the obligatory "career" mode. Fun to play and occasionally breathtaking, Winter Sports 2008 is an excellent bargain if you're into seasonal sports. © Copyright 2008 The Video Game Critic.

World Heroes was a popular one-on-one fighting series on the Neo Geo from 1992-1995, boasting colorful characters spanning cultures and time periods. This disc contains all four games: World Heroes, World Heroes 2, World Heroes 2 Jet, and World Heroes Perfect. In addition to colorful martial artists, there's a pirate captain, viking, magician, witch doctor, and massive football player. The animation is exceptional and each character exhibits distinctive (and often comical) mannerisms. The vivid stages include a bell tower with stained glass windows, a medieval castle, a tiki village, and a scenic view of Mount Fuji. The stages aren't quite as detailed as King of Fighters but it's fun to see what each has in store. The first three games are distinguished by their simple control scheme. There are only three buttons (punch, kick, throw), but holding in punch or kick delivers a heavier blow. World Heroes Perfect uses a more conventional four-button (two punch, two kick) configuration. The first three games in the series feel a bit slow compared to modern fighters, but I appreciate their deliberate pace. Perfect is much faster (King of Fighters fast), and is a huge step up from the nearly unplayable Neo Geo CD edition. As for emulation quality, my friends were critical of the slow-down, harsh sound effects, and controls. For best results, you really need an arcade-style joystick. Anthology has a few nifty bells and whistles. You can save customized controls and high score tables. The ability to view moves via the pause screen is super convenient. You can also modify the colors of the character outfits although I have no idea why anyone would want to. The only thing missing is some historical background material. If you have any appreciation for 2D fighters at all, World Heroes Anthology is a must-have. And considering these cartridges originally retailed for $200 each, this is an absolute steal. © Copyright 2015 The Video Game Critic.

I probably know less about professional soccer than anyone else in the world, but I can still appreciate a good soccer video game. Winning Eleven 8 continues the trend of incremental improvements in the series, but the basic controls still need work. The strength of this series has always been its realism, huge selection of teams (over 100 worldwide), and rich league mode. Personally, I couldn't care less about any of that stuff! I just like to get together with some friends and see if we can hold our own against a computer opponent. Even if you barely know what you're doing, the non-stop action is exciting, especially around the goal. The graphics and animation are terrific, and the players look realistic even close-up. The passing controls are crisp, but it's very easy to make an accidental extra pass after you receive the ball. While dribbling there's a real sense of momentum, so you can't just turn on a dime. Some of my friends complained about the auto-switching mode, where the computer selects your player for you, but you can turn that off. Unlike the previous edition of the game I reviewed (Winning Eleven 6), it's easier to score in this edition. Unfortunately, the shooting controls still really stink. The shooting meter moves too quickly, and since holding it down increases the height of your shot, most of mine go sailing way over the goal. It doesn't help that most of these players couldn't hit the broad side of a barn if their lives depended on it! The excessive cut-scenes and replays are a real pain, and tend to disrupt the flow of the game. Perhaps you can adjust some of these annoyances via the menu screens, but I found the option screens very confusing to navigate and make sense out of. You'd think that the eighth edition of any game would be pretty close to perfect, but Winning Eleven 8 still has a way to go. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.

The Yu-Gi-Oh card game is not exactly simple, and Duelists of the Roses is even more complicated! If you're a newcomer, prepare yourself for a serious learning curve, but Yu-Gi-Oh veterans will feel right at home. Some of the card rules have been altered, but the biggest change is that the game is now played on a 7x7 board. This gives the game a chess flavor, and adds a whole new dimension to the gameplay. Each board has different terrain configurations that affect how the cards behave. For example, a shark is much more powerful in water terrain, but virtually powerless in the wasteland. Another new concept is the "card leader", which dispenses other cards and holds your life points. By attacking the leader, you inflict direct damage to your opponent's life. The main mode has a convoluted storyline about how you've been sent back in time to fight England's War of the Roses - with cards! It's really annoying having to sit through all the absurd, incredibly verbose text, and you'll have to hit the button about 100 times to get through it all. There's also a tutorial for newcomers, which does a thorough job of explaining the basics but can run well over a half hour! Once you actually start playing the game, you have to deal with a clumsy, non-intuitive user interface. It's extremely confusing, and you'll lose your first few matches due to hitting the wrong buttons. The CPU makes its moves fast, so fast that sometimes it's hard to tell what he did! If that's not frustrating enough, some computer opponents have unfair advantage in terms of decks. They'll combine two or three cards per turn while you're stuck with a deck of odd mismatches. When you're lucky enough to win a match, you'll gain extra cards from a virtual slot machine. Gradually, you can construct three decks with distinct strategic value, but that might take a while. In addition to the story mode, there's also a "custom" mode that lets you play without the story, a trading card mode, and a useless two-player mode. The graphics and sound are functional but not great, and you'll want to skip the Pokemon-like battle scenes. Still, gameplay is what counts, and with the proper investment of time, Duelists of the Roses delivers. After some initial frustration, you may have a hard time pulling yourself away from this engrossing strategy game. © Copyright 2003 The Video Game Critic.

This kid-friendly adventure packs a lot of predictable platform action, but taken as a whole it's fairly entertaining. Based on the film Zathura, a young boy and his older brother are thrust into a wild science fiction fantasy after discovering an old board game in their basement. I usually downplay the significance on storylines in video games, but this one is exceptionally compelling and well integrated into the gameplay. Zathura's graphics are only average at best, and the astronaut character has the worst haircut ever seen in a video game. The audio is commendable however, with superb voice acting, an epic soundtrack, and distinctive retro-futuristic sound effects. The adventure begins at the kids' house, but soon moves to robot-infested space stations and distant alien worlds. The gameplay offers a nice balance of platform jumping, laser-dodging, and frenetic shooting action as you traverse its 20+ stages. If the idea of hopping across turtles in a pool of lava or leaping between floating space garbage turns your stomach, this game is not for you. You'll control three characters through the course of the game, including the two kids and a robot. The menacing robot actually terrorizes you through the early stages, but is later reprogrammed to be your friend, and his firepower is awesome. Zathura's shooting action is very satisfying thanks to a slick auto-aiming mechanism and colorful explosions. In certain stages one of the kids has to deflect laser bolts with a wrench, and it's very tricky until you realize you just need to tap the circle button non-stop. The manner in which areas are recycled is aggravating, but the game offers some surprises to keep you on your toes. At one point, my character was swallowed by a huge volcanic monster boss, but before I could set the controller down, I saw the kid clinging to the thing's tongue for dear life! Some enemies are simplistic, like the blocky lava rock monsters, but the fearsome Zorgon lizard men look great as they snatch up weapons using their slithery tongues. The game has a few technical blemishes worth mentioning, including a slightly choppy frame rate, periodic camera positioning quirks, and uneven stage difficulty (stage three is a killer). Still, Zathura's interesting storyline, easy gameplay, and brisk pacing makes it a worthwhile journey. With all the gratuitously violent adult games on the market, it's nice to play a wholesome adventure that can be enjoyed by both kids and adults alike. © Copyright 2006 The Video Game Critic.