Street Fighter IV:
Shoryuken!!! Few videogame series have made such a strong impact on their respective genres in the way that Street Fighter has over its 20 year lifespan. My memories take me back to the early-Nineties and Street Fighter II, which was heralded as being the catalyst that ignited the fighting game boom of that decade. I remember sneaking out of the schoolyard at lunch times to play mini-tournaments on the arcade machine in our local chip shop. The machine was used so often by school kids that the punch and kick buttons had been worn down from teenage sweat and frantic button-mashing.
It was Street Fighter II that spawned the iconic roster of virtual fighters which are now firmly etched into the memories of fans, and remembered with great fondness by all who were lucky enough to have spent time in its company. Blanka, Chun-Li, Ryu, Ken and Guile are just a few of the names that immediately trigger nostalgic flashbacks to epic SNES battles that would keep my brother and I locked away happily for hours in our bedroom without any need for food, drink or conversation.
It was with Street Fighter II that the series’ six-button configuration was born, giving us a deep fighting experience that required skill to master, but could still be enjoyed by anyone. From Blanka’s Lighting Cannonball to E.Honda’s Killer Head Ram to Ken’s Hadoken, the character-specific special moves were all impressive to watch, yet tricky to pull off in the heat of the flurrying battles, which were brilliantly orchestrated through a range of carefully traded blows, head butts, slaps, throws, fireballs and dragon punches.
Street Fighter IV has brought these memories flooding back to me with a tidal wave of affection, but more importantly, it has given us, fans of the series, a chance to re-live them all over again. Furthermore, a new legion of gamers now has the opportunity to see what all the fuss was about, and I have no doubt that they’ll absolutely love it. Street Fighter IV encapsulates the glory days of Street Fighter II by bringing back the iconic list of fighters and their familiar move sets, but it also flings some new fighters into the arena, most of whom fit seamlessly into the roster and feel like they’ve always been part of the furniture. Street Fighter is back, looking better than ever, with some superb enhancements that make it just as much fun, if not more, than I remember. This is virtual sparring at its very best and a glorious return to the quintessential fighter of this generation.
The character roster in Street Fighter IV boasts all of the recognizable figures from Street Fighter II. The mystical Indian Yogi, Dhalsim, returns, who fights well from long range thanks to his elasticized arms and legs, alongside “chunky-thighs” Chun-Li with her face-slapping Spinning Bird Kick, and the Russian Wrestler, Zangief, with his hugely powerful frame and devastating Spinning Piledriver move. The four bosses also reappear -– Vega, Sagat, M Bison and Balrog bring their blend of hard-hitting moves into the arena and all look suitably 'next-gen', rendered impressively in stylized 3D computer graphics. The characters look like they’ve always done, but have now blossomed into crisper, sharper and more vivid figures on screen and represent a true evolution of the series.
Backdrops have also been given a much needed lick of virtual paint. Some of them are still familiar. Guile’s home base of The United States Air Force airbase with an F-16 fighter jet in the background, for example, makes a return, but has been given a shot of next-gen sheen and now has so much more depth and detail to it. Similarly, other locations, including the likes of the Rundown Back Alley, Volcanic Rim, Beautiful Bay, and Cruise Ship Storm boast impressive animations and weather affects that breath life into them.
If you’ve played Street Fighter before then the majority of the moves will be instantly and reassuringly familiar. Quarter circle and punch still executes Ken’s Hadoken, whereas Guile still uses the same ‘charge style’ gameplay of old, where you need to hold the thumbstick to the left for a couple of seconds to charge it up before shifting it to the right and pressing punch to pull off a Sonic Boom. To veterans it means that you can instantly, and probably very quickly, battle through arcade mode on the lower to medium difficulty settings, but if you're new to the series, it’s going to take some effort to master the timing and skill needed to pull off the likes of a Ryu's Metsu Hadoken or Chun-Li's Hokyokusen.
The fighting system in Street Fighter IV has depth and a number of layers to it, new and old, that will offer a challenge to new and veteran players alike who hope to master the techniques and rise to the top of online leaderboards. Light, medium, and hard punches and kicks used in combination with thumbstick movement give you access the brilliant range of special moves and super and ultra combos, which when mastered will really sort the men out from the boys. Luckily, Capcom has thought of everything and has included a brilliant Training mode, which takes you by the hand and guides you through each character’s move set and then teaches you how to string attacks together. Training mode is a great new addition to the series. It allows you to get to grips with some of the new game mechanics and gives everyone a fighting chance.
Shoryuken!!! Few videogame series have made such a strong impact on their respective genres in the way that Street Fighter has over its 20 year lifespan. My memories take me back to the early-Nineties and Street Fighter II, which was heralded as being the catalyst that ignited the fighting game boom of that decade. I remember sneaking out of the schoolyard at lunch times to play mini-tournaments on the arcade machine in our local chip shop. The machine was used so often by school kids that the punch and kick buttons had been worn down from teenage sweat and frantic button-mashing.It was Street Fighter II that spawned the iconic roster of virtual fighters which are now firmly etched into the memories of fans, and remembered with great fondness by all who were lucky enough to have spent time in its company. Blanka, Chun-Li, Ryu, Ken and Guile are just a few of the names that immediately trigger nostalgic flashbacks to epic SNES battles that would keep my brother and I locked away happily for hours in our bedroom without any need for food, drink or conversation.
It was with Street Fighter II that the series’ six-button configuration was born, giving us a deep fighting experience that required skill to master, but could still be enjoyed by anyone. From Blanka’s Lighting Cannonball to E.Honda’s Killer Head Ram to Ken’s Hadoken, the character-specific special moves were all impressive to watch, yet tricky to pull off in the heat of the flurrying battles, which were brilliantly orchestrated through a range of carefully traded blows, head butts, slaps, throws, fireballs and dragon punches.Street Fighter IV has brought these memories flooding back to me with a tidal wave of affection, but more importantly, it has given us, fans of the series, a chance to re-live them all over again. Furthermore, a new legion of gamers now has the opportunity to see what all the fuss was about, and I have no doubt that they’ll absolutely love it. Street Fighter IV encapsulates the glory days of Street Fighter II by bringing back the iconic list of fighters and their familiar move sets, but it also flings some new fighters into the arena, most of whom fit seamlessly into the roster and feel like they’ve always been part of the furniture. Street Fighter is back, looking better than ever, with some superb enhancements that make it just as much fun, if not more, than I remember. This is virtual sparring at its very best and a glorious return to the quintessential fighter of this generation.
The character roster in Street Fighter IV boasts all of the recognizable figures from Street Fighter II. The mystical Indian Yogi, Dhalsim, returns, who fights well from long range thanks to his elasticized arms and legs, alongside “chunky-thighs” Chun-Li with her face-slapping Spinning Bird Kick, and the Russian Wrestler, Zangief, with his hugely powerful frame and devastating Spinning Piledriver move. The four bosses also reappear -– Vega, Sagat, M Bison and Balrog bring their blend of hard-hitting moves into the arena and all look suitably 'next-gen', rendered impressively in stylized 3D computer graphics. The characters look like they’ve always done, but have now blossomed into crisper, sharper and more vivid figures on screen and represent a true evolution of the series.
Backdrops have also been given a much needed lick of virtual paint. Some of them are still familiar. Guile’s home base of The United States Air Force airbase with an F-16 fighter jet in the background, for example, makes a return, but has been given a shot of next-gen sheen and now has so much more depth and detail to it. Similarly, other locations, including the likes of the Rundown Back Alley, Volcanic Rim, Beautiful Bay, and Cruise Ship Storm boast impressive animations and weather affects that breath life into them.
If you’ve played Street Fighter before then the majority of the moves will be instantly and reassuringly familiar. Quarter circle and punch still executes Ken’s Hadoken, whereas Guile still uses the same ‘charge style’ gameplay of old, where you need to hold the thumbstick to the left for a couple of seconds to charge it up before shifting it to the right and pressing punch to pull off a Sonic Boom. To veterans it means that you can instantly, and probably very quickly, battle through arcade mode on the lower to medium difficulty settings, but if you're new to the series, it’s going to take some effort to master the timing and skill needed to pull off the likes of a Ryu's Metsu Hadoken or Chun-Li's Hokyokusen.The fighting system in Street Fighter IV has depth and a number of layers to it, new and old, that will offer a challenge to new and veteran players alike who hope to master the techniques and rise to the top of online leaderboards. Light, medium, and hard punches and kicks used in combination with thumbstick movement give you access the brilliant range of special moves and super and ultra combos, which when mastered will really sort the men out from the boys. Luckily, Capcom has thought of everything and has included a brilliant Training mode, which takes you by the hand and guides you through each character’s move set and then teaches you how to string attacks together. Training mode is a great new addition to the series. It allows you to get to grips with some of the new game mechanics and gives everyone a fighting chance.
As you approach Aristide, the psychotic and powerful Alma unleashes her wrath upon the city of Auburn, which culminates in a massive explosion that the Manhattan Project scientists could have never imagined. After waking up in an underground “hospital,” you’re left to pick up the pieces.
Although only a few of the horror “episodes” are genuinely frightening, they’re all fairly unsettling. When you’re walking along a corridor and the action drops off, you’re either walking into an ambush or it’s time for a supernatural ride. Through clever visual techniques and eerie audio effects, Monolith skillfully displays an Alma-altered reality where chaos and death reign. The issue with these events is that, as expertly crafted as they are, they inevitably become predictable. When events are foreseeable, they are significantly less frightening. And honestly, the name of the game is F.E.A.R. – it doesn’t get any clearer than that. As you saunter down an empty hallway, it becomes routine to expect some sort of paranormal occurrence. Still, if you play with the lights low and the sound high, F.E.A.R. 2 can be quite the thrill.What’s not thrilling is how ordinary the rest of the game is. Not bad, but merely ordinary. In the end, all that matters is a game’s fun factor. If you can deal with some of F.E.A.R. 2’s outdated design decisions, you’ll undoubtedly have a blast.
Here’s why you might not, however.Some of today’s widely accepted first person shooter mechanics aren’t present in F.E.A.R. 2. Now, we don’t dislike that is it’s different – in fact, we encourage change and new ideas. But that’s just it: F.E.A.R. 2 doesn’t innovate; it falls back on last-generation play styles. Health, for example, is not rechargeable or regenerative. Instead, you can carry up to three Medpacks that you can use to recharge your health at any point. It’s not broken or overly unwieldy, it’s just unnecessary. Also, aiming and shooting are mapped to L2 and R2 respectively (rather than the generally preferred L1 and R1 combination), and controls are not customizable whatsoever. Still, the biggest problem with F.E.A.R. 2 is in the game’s actual environmental layout. 
Depressingly bland locations and the lack of destructible environments are further indications that the power of the PS3 hasn't been harnessed. While the latter isn't always needed to craft a great first person shooter, it certainly helps to create realism. Shellshock 2 lacks realism in abundance, and at no point captures the feeling that you're involved in something significant. It's a limp experience that feels like you've stepped back in time to where the technology that makes things crumble and look war-worn wasn't available. With the power of the PS3 at its fingertips, you'd expect a lot more in terms of visual and audio impact. Overall, aside from some nicely rendered cut-scenes, and some decent voice-acting, it looks and sounds like an average PS2 game.
All of this could be forgiven if the gameplay were any good, but it’s not. There are no memorable moments (apart from the one where I turned it off,) there are no intense firefights, and there’s little to experience in terms of excitement. There's actually no real need for me to go on because Shellshock 2 is an instantly forgettable title that will end up in the bargain-bin graveyard of video game stores across the country.
The noble, yet selfish hero meets up, or in the Prince’s case, gets landed on by the girl before aiding her in achieving her goals while realizing his own self-worth. Upon first meeting, our two main characters go back and forth in dialog in regards to moralities while fleeing from the princess’s pursuers. Once they arrive at the Temple, which keeps the world in a state of light, the Prince quickly realizes what exactly he’s gotten himself into. Apparently, Elika’s father feels the need to unleash the Dark God Ahriman unto the world once more covering it in darkness and corruption. As expected, it’s up to you and Elika to return the world into its proper state by visiting fertile grounds and releasing the light back into the world. Elika seems to be the focal point to every gamer’s quandary when discussing Prince of Persia. This is in large part due to the abilities she possesses and lends to your character. A couple examples of these abilities include the inability to truly die or lose a fight. While both of these ‘issues’ are true to the fullest extent, they don’t completely overlap the frustration one experiences when continually missing a jump due to poor timing or misdirection. Sure, Elika picks you up and returns you safely to a platform, but the frustration of needing to be saved is on par with the same frustration that comes with dieing. As for the battlegrounds, Elika steps in front of you in order to prevent the final blow that sends the Prince to his resting place. Fortunately for your opponent, if Elika needs to get involved, his entire life bar is rejuvenated and you must essentially restart the fight.
On top of these two potential complaints, Elika is everything a gamer could want out of an AI-based partner within this setting. She never gets lost, obstructs your view or causes you to backtrack to find her. Like a lost puppy, Elika follows you to the ends of each fertile ground with the same determination that flows within you. Not only does the young princess prevent you from pushing up daisies, but also she enables you to clear large distances that you wouldn’t otherwise be able to reach, as well as supplementing battles with various magical abilities against troublesome enemies. This only helps further the solid combat design recreated inside the walls of Ubisoft.In order for Prince of Persia to be successful at engaging the player through its fighting mechanics, the developers and designers needed to take a second and realize what they were trying to achieve. Even though titles of the past have included an open fighting style similar to that of God of War, Ben Mattes and his team decided to step back one pace and then take three steps forward in creating a unique combat template found only in the Prince’s latest adventure. What you end up with is a one-on-one system in which each battle feels a tad more significant than your standard one-on-30 duel.
The system is also very user-accessible and any casual gamer can sit down and benefit from its simplicity even though there is an underlying combo system to be discovered. While fighting, there are five buttons that you utilize in order to be successful and chain together some impressive combos. Square allows you to slash with your sword, circle gives you the ability to use your gauntlet, X performs aerial assaults, R2 allows you to block and triangle gets Elika involved in some high-flying magical attacks.Combining any of these buttons into a combo is a simple process and results in the game displaying impressive sequences of combat. Stringing together a simple button score can end up with your sword sliding straight through your opponent, which has the ability to end a battle much quicker than usual. On top of this, if you have solid momentum while platforming, you can get to enemies before they materialize in order to strike them before they even exist. Of course, this is easier said than done.
ing him or smashing up his business. The combat scheme will be instantly familiar if you played the first game and it has been refined here to ensure that gunplay feels smoother. Disappointingly though, like the first game, there’s some poor examples of enemy behavior and even some instances of where citizens get in your way – one lady decided it was a good idea to do the "running man" in the entrance doorway of a building we were trying to takeover. Furthermore, gun-fights can be fairly chaotic and rarely require good marksmanship. We found ourselves on most occasions throwing Molotovs in the general area of enemies and erratically spraying anyone in a 360 degree radius with a sub-machine gun. Still, that's fun as well.
You can stick yourself behind cover instantly and swap from one piece of cover to the next extremely smoothly, and then effortlessly peak over the object to focus in on the enemy. The smooth cover system and the polished combat control scheme make for a fluent and well-paced game that feels almost arcade-like.
Alternatively, if you don’t want human company fighting alongside you, you can choose from one of three A.I. controlled sidekicks, who do a great job at backing you up and providing cover as you attempt to clear the enemy threat and catch up with the “bitch” who stole your skull. Blood on the Sand is all about racking up points, picking up hard cash, and massacring those who stand in your way. Multipliers are awarded for kills, which adds a bit of excitement to proceedings and encourages you to chain together kills, while cash can be collected from dead bodies and caskets and used to purchase new weapons, counter-kills, and taunt packs that add weight -- and a whole load of "mutha f**kers" and ill-bred jibes -- to your vocabulary. There are also masses of timed side objectives, which add intensity and drama to each of the stages.
Besides, Midway has done an impressive job fusing some of the familiar features from GTA, including its excellent way-point system, police evasion mechanic and mission structure, together with a few new ideas and plenty of over-the-top Hollywood flair.The story of Wheelman follows Milo, an undercover agent and a digitized Vin Diesel, whose talent behind the wheel leads him into the heart of Barcelona’s criminal underworld where feuding gangs rule the streets. While the disjointed tale doesn't keep you engrossed for long enough for you to really care about your character or what his underlying mission is, the action more than makes up for it in terms of entertainment value. Plenty of frantic car chases through the Spanish city in a range of four-wheeled and two-wheeled vehicles, from Oil Tankers to Japanese Superbikes, plus many familiar objectives, including escort, rampage, delivery and taxi missions, in addition to street races and on-foot gun battles against Barcelona’s toughest criminals, ensure that there are a diverse range of objectives to get stuck into.
It's clear, however, that a lot of effort has been put into the general car handling and physics, as well as the variety of stunts and super moves available. The result is an arcade-like, exaggerated driving experience that benefits greatly from its range of over the top control mechanics. From the satisfying Burnout-style ‘Takedown’ melee system, where you use the right thumbstick to smash vehicles off the road, to the visually impressive ‘Cyclone’ super move, where your vehicle spins 180 degrees, the camera pans inside the car giving you a view through the windscreen and then slow-mo kicks in, affording you with a short space of time to blow up cars with a couple of shots from your pistol, it’s explosive stuff from start to finish.Aside from the well implemented drift mechanic and the ability to handbrake sharply around corners, the range of game-defining super moves are a welcome addition to the driving portion of Wheelman and are essentially what makes it stand out from the crowd. By filling up a focus gauge, which you do so by driving recklessly fast around the city, you're able to execute a range of super moves, including the aforementioned 'Cyclone,' as well as a super boost or 'Aimed Shot,' which gives you a window of opportunity to kill enemies with a single blast. There's also the outrageously silly but enjoyable ‘Air Jack’ move that allows you to leap from one vehicle to another with a press of a button. These super moves are geared toward making Wheelman an accessible, fast-paced and exciting arcade-like experience, and to that extent it does it exac
tly what it sets out to do: entertain.
Inevitably, they all involve navigating the skies, keeping your eyes glued to the radar for incoming enemies, and using the various strengths and weaponry of the 54 planes on offer in order to see off a mixture of naval and ground forces, as well as dealing with aerial threats from the likes of bombers, fighters and helicopters. HAWX has a steady learning curve that gives players ample time to get to grips with controlling the planes and their weapons. The action builds nicely, starting you off with defending the U.S border against Mexican troops, where you simply need to fly over the targets and execute covert airstrikes. Later, you're given missions like the manic and exciting air, ground and sea assault on Rio De Janerio where you need to juggle weapons and change tactics depending on the current threat. 
As mentioned earlier, the much shouted about Enhanced Reality System (ERS) does make things a whole lot easier. ERS gives you a small window of opportunity to gain an attacking advantage over your enemy or to make a defensive maneuver to get out of the way of an incoming missile. You simply press ‘X’ when the prompt appears on screen and then you need to follow a set pathway, which lights up on screen and is accompanied by a timer that ticks down to zero. If you follow that pathway for the required amount of time then you get a free strike on your enemy, or you're able to evade a locked-on missile. ERS is a handy tool that’s obviously there to broaden the appeal of HAWX for those seeking an accessible experience, but it’s very tempting to use it at every opportunity. If you do that, it does feel like you’re just following tunnels on the screen for the majority of the campaign and therefore not getting the full game experience, but instead just taking part in a shallow, and rather insignificant experience, rather than one that relies on you using your piloting skills to actually earn your EXP and ranking.
