DJ Hero 2

Developer: FreeStyleGames

Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 19, 2010
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), Xbox 360, Wii
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: A smooth remix.

0:00 I liked the original enough to buy it when it went on sale for $40 recently, but not before that. I’ve been told this sequel is much better, but I find that hard to believe -- what can they possibly add?

0:01 This being a PS3 game, of course there’s a version 1.01 update to download already. At least my firmware is somehow up to date. The 6MB file downloads and installs rather quickly.

0:02 Headphones bounce on a white floor. The headphone wire flies through a white expanse, creating colorful abstract art as it does. It plugs in to the DJ Hero 2 logo. Nice, simple and quick... I’m a fan.

0:03 A remix of "Crank That Souljah Boy" plays over the menu as the game logs in to the DJ Hero 2 server. I am not a fan. The game asks if I’ve played DJ Hero before, and also if I’d like to hear about new features in the sequel. How considerate!

0:04 The tutorial starts by telling me to spin the record to rewind the music, which I already knew how to do. I thought I told you I played DJ Hero already...

***-->CONTINUE READING<--***

***-->AT GAMERONI<-***

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Bakugan: Battle Brawler

Developer: NOW Productions
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 20, 2009
Systems: Wii (Reviewed), Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, Nintendo DS
ESRB Rating: E
Official web site

In a nutshell: I still don't exactly know what a Bakugan is supposed to be.

0:00 The back of the box promises that "This is Bakugan like never before." That's highly accurate for me, since I'd never heard of Bakugan before receiving this game in the mail. But I like to keep up with the "youth culture" with its "Internet" and its "sexting" and its "industrials" and so forth, so I figured I'd see what this was all about.

0:01 Two Yu-Gi-Oh rejects stand alongside the game's logo as an awesome guitar riff plays on the preview screen. BWAH-NOW!

0:02 What seems like a billion game company logos fly by, then we see a view of the earth from space. A red-jacketed guy throws what looks like a gem. A circle with six colored gem pie pieces appear briefly. A blue-haired girl rides a robo-lion. The red jacket guy summons four girls, then throws another gem ... oh, no, it looks more like a poké-ball. Out of the ball comes a HUGE RED DRAGON to battle a HUGE BLUE DRAGON. They both shoot energy from their mouths in huge streams that EXPLODE in a HUGE CONFLAGRATION ARGH SO MUCH AWESOME AND TITLE!

0:03 A light electric guitar slow jam plays over the title screen. When I press +, red-jacket guy tells me how his "whole world changed one day when all these random cards rained down everywhere." Really? Cards falling from the sky? Really? Anyway, the kids made up a game to play with the cards, but it turns out the cards opened up a new dimension of monsters or something. "We are the Bakugan Battle Brawlers. Bakugan: One goal, two worlds." What goal would that be? And what two worlds, exactly?

0:05 I guess I'd better go to the Tutorial first. Maybe it'll teach me what a Bakugan is. "Hello, I'm Alice. I'll tell you all about playing Bakugan," She's a cute little redhead in a yellow summer dress. "Let me help you out." You can help me out anytime, Alice... *swoon*

0:06 I have a deck of cards and three Bakugan. My goal is to win three Gate Cards. That's great, but WHAT'S A BAKUGAN?

***-->CONTINUE READING AT CRISPY GAMER<--***

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Modern Warfare 2

Developer: Infinity Ward
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Nov. 10, 2009
Systems: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3
ESRB Rating: M
Official Web site

In a nutshell: It's hard to see the good graphics through all that smoke.

0:00 Believe it or not, I never actually went back to the first Modern Warfare after my first hour with the game. I liked it, don't get me wrong, but I got distracted by something shiny and never mustered up the energy to revisit it. Tonight, though, I braved 150 or so fans at my local GameStop so I could get you my impressions of Modern Warfare 2 first thing in the morning. I do it all for you ... the readers.

0:01 A quick downloaded update, some logos and fine print, and we get the most nondescript title screen I've ever seen. It's just a smoky background with the title and "Press Start Button" flashing. There isn't even any background music. I thought this was supposed to be the entertainment event of the DECADE. What's with the lame-o title screen?

0:02 I have to turn the brightness slider way up to get it to the suggested levels on my television. Then I adjust the horizontal and vertical margins for my widescreen TV. Why has it been two minutes and I haven't SHOT ANYTHING GRAAAAAAH!

0:03 "Disturbing Content Notice: Some players may find one of the missions disturbing or offensive. Would you like to have the option to skip this mission?" Hmmm, looks like the controversy got to them. "No, I will not be offended" is my answer, but how can I be sure? Is this a legally binding promise not to be offended by whatever nebulous, potentially offensive thing they show me? "If you answer yes, you will never be asked about skipping levels again." OK, I get it! "Yes, never ask me again." Sheesh!

0:04 There's the background music, a low, pulsing tune like a heartbeat. I can choose Campaign, Multiplayer or Special Ops. The Multiplayer says "0% complete." That implies I can complete the multiplayer mode. This confuses me.

***-->CONTINUE READING AT CRISPY GAMER<--***

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DJ Hero

Developer: FreeStyleGames
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 27, 2009
Systems: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3, Wii, PS2
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Holy crap I am not a natural DJ.

0:00 I really wanted to play this game at E3 but the Activision booth techs refused to let me for some reason. The company didn't send me a copy of the $120 game for review, either, so I guess I'd better try it out while I'm up here at the Crispy Gamer offices before I decide whether to plunk down my cash.

0:01 Even before I start the game, I don't know how to hold the controller. Do the buttons go on the left or the right? Does it matter?

0:02 An animated scene of a dystopian city, with a crumbling edifice. A young DJ with big headphones looks through green-tinted binoculars (night vision, perhaps?). His Russian-style hat flaps in the wind as he jumps on a robot/monster that looks like a giant record needle. He steers it with some huge handle as a trucker in a big red big rig drives right at him. They crash, and the trucker jumps out at the last minute, joining the Russian-hatted DJ atop the robot/monster. A green eyed guy in a hoodie plugs a cable into skyscraper-sized speakers, which let out a huge shockwave that knocks over the robot/monster and wrecks large sections of winding highway. Russian hat guy grabs some vinyl as he falls through the air, handing it off to another DJ before he lands. Thousands of people litter the highway, cheering for some reason. The title appears. I ... I have no idea what just happened.

0:04 "Attention: Here's what's happening," says a message window. Apparently what's happening is, the game is loading. That required an "Attention"?

0:05 A remix of "Another One Bites the Dust" and some song I don't recognize plays over the menu. Let's "Learn to DJ." "Hey, it's your boy DJ Grandmaster Flash, the first guy to make the turntable an instrument." Wow, he's a bit of a braggart just because he happened to invent scratching. "I'm gonna teach you everything you need to learn about being a DJ, so listen up very carefully and let's get started." He suggests putting the turntable controller somewhere "like a lap, or a table ... anything that works for you!" I think putting a turntable on your lap might be the least hip-hop thing I've ever heard.

***-->CONTINUE READING AT CRISPY GAMER<--***

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Rapala: We Fish

Developer: Fun Labs
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Sept. 22, 2009
System: Wii
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site

In a nutshell: I am not a leading expert and fan of Speed Fishing.

0:00 I've never met a fishing game I really liked, but I'm in the mood for something out of the ordinary today. Plus the back of the box promises "24 wild and wacky fish," so how can I lose?

0:01 "A Nunchuk is required," the game tells me, with a picture of a Nunchuk in case I was confused. In the middle of a lake, a Crocodile Dundee lookalike casts a reel. Cut to an old grey-bearded fellow with a cane and top hat tap-dancing around a stage. "Ladies and gentlemen," he begins. "My name is Seymour Breem, one of the richest men in the world and the leading expert and fan of the sport of SPEED FISHING! I'm just crazy enough to offer the winner of this contest the prize of one billion dollars. Let's begin the first global speed fishing tournament!" Dundee brings up a fish, who flies straight to the camera and screams "Gooooo fish!" in an extremely unsettling way. The next minutes is an insane montage of stereotypical characters doing nutty things on small boats. Rather than try to describe it, I'll just list a few choice quotes I managed to get down: "I'm gonna be a billionaire cowboy!" "Now the fun begins." "Hey ninja ... eat my duck." "Ninjaaaa Magic!" "Weeeee FISH!" That was ... not at all what I was expecting. Also ... Speed Fishing?

0:06 I guess I'll start with Tournament mode. There's a two-player co-op tournament option, which would be nice if I could ever imagine any of my friends wanting to play a speed fishing game.
0:07 My character choices for this morning: Randall the Crocodile-Dundee-alike cowboy, Zogby the token black guy (complete with afro), Ken the Ninja in a suit, Luc the chef and Emily the girl in an old-fashioned orange-and-black dress with wings on her back. I'll ... go with the ninja, I guess. "Behold my Ninja MAGIC!" he says.

***-->CONTINUE READING AT CRISPY GAMER<--***

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NPPL Championship Paintball 2009

Developer: Sand Grain Studios
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Nov. 18, 2008
System: PS3 (reviewed), Xbox 360, Wii, PS2
ESRB Rating: E-10+
Official Web site

In a nutshell: A strategic first-person shooter where the messy death is replaced with messy paint.

0:00 There's a National Professional Paintball League? And it has championships? And it's popular enough to have its own videogame? OK, I have to at least try this out...

0:01 Some grainy, quick-cutting video of what I assume are real NPPL tournaments. Annoying heavy metal music plays as helmeted, full-suited paintballers dive around inflatable barriers. "Is it a game or a battle?" says an on-screen message. I'm going to go ahead and say game...

0:02 "Pro Player Tips: Support your local paintball field," says the loading screen. How in the world is that a pro player tip? Or even a tip of any kind. "Suggestion" would be more accurate.

0:03 The next few minutes spent "Creating Game Data" on the hard drive. Out of thin air, apparently!

0:07 I can choose between 26 different pro paintballers, which I suppose would be impressive if anyone gave a flying leap about pro paintballers. I go with William Smith, because he reminds me of superstar actor/rapper Will Smith, who would be great in a paintball movie. Also, he has a perfect 20/20 rating in "Marker Handling," so there's that.

***-->CONTINUE READING AT CRISPY GAMER<--***

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Call of Duty: World at War

Developer: Treyarch
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Nov. 11, 2008
Systems: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3, PC, PS2, Wii, DS
ESRB Rating: M
Official Web site

In a nutshell: All the fun of World War II, now with more grenades!

0:00 I was prepared to like this game after playing a bit of the excellent Call of Duty 4 (different developer, I know). But this post on Joystiq has changed my expectations a bit.

0:01 This minute spent downloading a downloadable update that's available for download. DOWNLOAD!

0:02 After downloading yet another update (that's a first), we're on to the title screen. Through some gray fog, I can see pith helmets sitting on bayonets sticking up out of the ground. The music is Silent Hill-style creepy.

0:03 Graphic content can be set to "reduced" or "unrestricted." This makes sense, but calling it "unrestricted" just makes it sound so ... DECADENT!

0:04 "WARNING -- Call of Duty: World at War contains graphic content and historical footage which some players may find disturbing. Player discretion is advised." Yeah, I got that impression from the Joystiq post...

0:05 The selectable difficulties are Recruit, Regular, Hardened and Veteran. The last of these says point-blank: "You will not survive." Well that doesn't sound like fun! I'm just a Regular guy.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Guitar Hero World Tour

Developer: Neversoft
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 26, 2008
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), PS2 Xbox 360, Wii
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Guitar Hero ... now with crappy drums!

0:00 I've played all the previous Guitar Hero games, but haven't even touched this one in previews. I'm especially excited to see how the drums hold up to those from Rock Band, one of my favorite games of all time.

0:13 Jumping the clock forward to account for the time it took to unbox and set up the drums and guitar. The setup is actually a touch more complex than that for Rock Band, although the drums already seem a bit sturdier.

0:14 I put the game in the system. The preview screen blares: "SHARE THE EXPERIENCE! Join together for the definitive rock & roll gaming experience in Guitar Hero World Tour." Jeez, what marketing major dropout wrote that?

0:15 Shocker ... there's a game update that needs to be installed. A 19 MB download delays the start of the game yet more.

0:17 Downloaded, installed and finally ready to go ... after some more loading, of course.

0:18 Logos, then the traditional animated opening. A Kenny G lookalike plays a clarinet on stage in front of a huge, bored-looking crowd. In the wings, a guy with an evil grin and a devil ring looks on. The music notes turn into a spiral that hypnotizes the crowd. A big-haired glam-rock singer gets the "GH" signal on his phone. A girl with a tiny cup of coffee gets the same on her watch. A blonde-haired guy in a white robe gets it in the forest. A pink-haired girl sitting in an airport also receives the call. They all rush to the stage and break the hypnosis with a concentrated blast of pure rock. WHOO!

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Spider-Man: Web of Shadows

Developer: Treyarch/Shaba Games
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 21, 2008
System: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, DS, PC
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: He flies through the air with the greatest of ease.

0:00 I was a huge Spider-Man fan ... when I was five. Since then I've only kept up loosely with the whole wall-crawler mythos. I played the first movie-based game on the PlayStation2, and felt it was a slightly sub-par brawler.

0:01 Spidey flits about the walls of New York buildings and watches as various company logos appear on video billboards. Seems like a lot of work just to see a few ads, Spidey.

0:02 Spidey appears crouched and ready in a small band against a grey background. Intense violin-based music completes the title screen. "New Game" is the only selectable option on the menu, so off we go.

0:03 Spidey walks slowly and calmly, head held low, as an etude plays. All around him, there's carnage. He breaks into a run and dives off the roof of a building. "You know what that does to you," says a disembodied voice. "You know how it can change you." Spidey swings around a bit, bounces off some walls and enemies that are loitering around. The camera is set in real tight on his back through it all. "When this is said and done, who will the people remember as their savior?" says disembodied voice No. 2. Man ... this is heady stuff for a comic book game.

0:04 And I'm immediately in control of the "Prelude" mission. A car crashes in the distance and I run off the rooftop to investigate. As I slide down the skyscraper wall, the camera turns 90 degrees to make the wall seem like the ground. Trippy.

0:05 I mash the X button to take out some grey-suited "symbiotes." Very stylish attacks, including some impressive slow-mo on the fourth hit of the combo. You can really feel the impact of all the blows.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Rapala Fishing Frenzy 2009

Developer: Sand Grain Studios
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Sept. 2, 2008
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), Xbox 360, Wii
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Just as boring as I imagine real fishing is.

0:00 I've never been fishing in real life, and the last fishing game I played was the mildly intriguing Super Black Bass on the SNES. But that didn't have Sixaxis motion controls!

0:01 Water washes over the Sand Grain logo. Some loading, then straight to a title screen with a picture of a fish chasing a lure and some twangy fiddle music.

0:02 During another, longer loading screen, the game scrolls some text about the surprising amount of bass below the Woodrow Wilson bridge in DC. Who knew?!

0:03 I start a new game, and two creepy-looking generic characters sit under a beach umbrella: a guy and a girl, both in breezy summer wear. I choose the guy. MALE PRIDE!

0:05 I've turned on the "Tutorial" option, so I dive into some "Open Fishing" on Lake Wylie at 6 a.m. Here's hoping the game will teach me how to fish.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith

Developer: Neversoft
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: June 29, 2008
Systems: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3, PS2, Wii
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Rock this way.

0:00 This and Rock the 80s are the only Guitar Hero games I haven't played yet, and my fake-guitar obsession knows no bounds, so I figured I'd give this disc a spin despite not being a huge Aerosmith fan. FYI, I'm using the Rock Band Stratocaster because a) it's better and b) it's the only one I have that works on the Xbox 360.

0:01 After a decent bit of loading, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry introduce the Neversoft logo. Pan to "NIPMUC" where there's a dance tonight. 2-D cut-outs of nerdy high school kids dancing, then Aeroesmith's van crashes through the wall and Tyler spills out and throws up the horns! People in the audience offer up contracts in deference to his extreme rocking. Backstage, Tyler hugs Perry and suddenly they're in "Aero Force One" flying to stadium gigs around the world. Seems suitably over-the-top for an intro. I really like the animation and art style.

0:02 So I'm not going to explain the gameplay much here because, come on, it's Guitar Hero. You know the drill by now.

0:03 The silver lady from the Just Push Play album cover is on the title screen. Seems appropriate. Let's dive into "quick play." Four of the eight initially available songs are by Aerosmith. The Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night" is the only one I really know, and it's a cover version. Phooey.

0:07 The cover version turns out to be surprisingly decent. I get a 25G "Sick as a Dog" achievement for my five star, Hard difficulty performance. I forgot how much better the background performers look in Guitar Hero when compared to the grainy, music-video style in Rock Band.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2

Developer: Bizarre Creations
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: July 30, 2008
System: Xbox 360
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site

In a nutshell: I'm rooting for the triangles.

0:00 Considering I've played the original game probably more than any other Xbox 360 title, the question of playing this one for "more than an hour" already seems kind of moot.

0:01 Jumping right in to Deadline mode, the only mode available initially. I see one of my Xbox Live friends, DangerPenguin, is ahead of me with 325,635 points. I wonder if that's good. I also wonder who DangerPenguin is.

0:02 "Avoid the deadly enemy shapes." You have to love a game that can have an instruction like that. You HAVE to! Seems a lot like its predecessor right off: 2-D, overheard perspective, left stick moves, right stick fires.

0:03 In the first game, my score multiplier went up automatically as I killed enemies. This time I have to pick up little golden "Geoms" the enemies drop to increase the multiplier. I'm not a fan. Especially because I lose my first life trying to collect some.

0:04 Most interesting new enemy: A white line that reflects my shots back at other enemies. I can't figure out how to kill it, short of a screen-clearing bomb. Least interesting new enemy: An orange triangle that flies in a straight line. Snooze.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Guitar Hero: On Tour

Developer: Vicarious Visions
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: June 22, 2008
System: Nintendo DS
ESRB Rating: E10+
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Keep on rocking in the free world.

0:00 I was a big Guitar Hero fan who turned into a bigger Rock Band fan when Harmonix moved on to their new series. The idea of a version that I can play anywhere is intriguing, even as I worry about the Guitar Grip and the lack of Harmonix involvement.

0:01 This minute was spent opening and setting up the ridiculous the Guitar Grip controller attachment, which bulges almost obscenely out of the GBA slot on my DS Lite. The pick-shaped stylus that's included is a nice touch.

0:02 The introductory screen warns me to take frequent breaks to avoid cramps. This is not encouraging.

0:03 The screen seems upside-down until I realize I'm supposed to hold the guitar grip in my left hand. Feels a bit awkward, but no more awkward than the regular Guitar Hero controllers.

0:04 I start a new Career and choose my favorite frontman, Axel Steel, partly because of his ridiculous name and partly because "he shreds his guitar like it's cheese," according to his bio. Add in a Flying V guitar and we're ready to rock!

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars

Developer: Underground Development
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: May 27, 2008
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), Xbox 360, PC, Mac, Linux
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Putting the FPS in RTS.

0:00 I played and loved the first two Quake games, but I couldn't tell you a thing about the Quake universe "mythos," as it were. Here's hoping such knowledge is not necessary to appreciate this game.

0:01 "Enemy Territory: Quake Wars needed to perform an initial installation. This will take 8 to 9 minutes." Of course.

0:09 Now the game is "loading data." A much faster process, but still just as annoying.

0:10 We're off! A bunch of logos appear on the underside of a massive spaceship. "They search the galaxy for the sole item their existence requires. Harvesting... and consuming everything in their path ... and now they have arrived here." Roughly a bajillion more megaships appear in the sky above the Earth. There's a glowing red portal with a metallic ring shaped like the Quad-Damage item from Quake. A bit too cute for my tastes, there. Cut to title.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

Developer: Infinity Ward
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Nov. 6, 2007
Systems: Xbox 360 (reviewed), PS3, PC
ESRB Rating: M
Official Web Site

In a nutshell: Halo: Reality Edition

0:00 I'm not usually one for war games (unless they're of the Advance Wars variety), but after hearing everybody and their cousin Fred praise this one, I decided to borrow a copy and see what the big deal was.

0:01 "50,000 people used to live here. Now it's a ghost town." We're in Pripykat, Ukraine. An old man complains about the West. A TV reporter talks over scenes of anarchy. "Just as they laid waste to our country, we shall lay waste to theirs." Some guy does a voiceover in... Russian? More scenes of firefights and chaos. I can't tell if this is still in the Ukraine... looks slightly more... American?

0:03 An S.A.S. login screen... not sure what that stands for. "Good news first. The world's in great shape." Civil wars, 15,000 nukes at stake. Great... Khaled Al-Asad is a bad guy. Soap is a new good guy... oh, that's me. And I'm already in control. Nice.

Read the full review over at Crispy Gamer