Rate / Review the Last Video Game You've Played or Finished - Blu-ray Forum

Al_The_Strange · 07-10-2011, 11:09 AM

Do what the thread's title says.

It could be PC, PS3, Xbox, or whatever (speaking of which, let's not get into any petty debates about what system is better than what, shall we?

).

Al_The_Strange · 07-10-2011, 12:46 PM

So over the past few months, I've been grinding away at "The Saboteur" on the PS3. I got it cheaply, and at first glance, it looked cheaply-made; something like a "Grand Theft Auto IV" and "Assassin's Creed" rip-off. But after the initial prologue acts, the game really grew on me.

The game definitely has no shortage of explosive action and gun-battles. Whether going through the story episodes or the thousands of free-play targets, there's always something to blow up. I found it rather relaxing to explore the open-world cityscape and countryside, systematically combing through the targets. The game does have its share of challenges, but it rarely frustrated me. I wound up enjoying the game so much, I've dumped 55+ hours into it, and it became my default go-to game after a hard day's work.

The story for this is rather unrefined though. It does a decent enough job at detailing the drama of the French Resistance movement during WWII; I'm sure that none of it is historically accurate or anything, but it is pretty interesting at times. The characters are quite strong though; the main character Sean is quite hilarious and lovable as a foul-mouthed drunken womanizing Irishman, and with a strong sense of loyalty and vengeance, his story is quite gripping at times. His relationship with the other characters also help make the story shine. But, at times the story touches upon aspects that are never fully-developed (especially the occultish relics you're made to recover, but are never referred to again...WTF?!), and in the end, it felt a little rushed in certain parts.

The game's quality can be a mixed bag. The graphics are generally not bad; I was digging the film-noir-themed color sceheme and the jazzy music. Some of the cutscenes look really slick, and others look a little cheap and poorly-rendered. The game itself shows decent design and attention-to-detail, but there are a few spots where you can get stuck, or you find you can't climb somewhere where you should. AI can be incredibly stupid (I must have run over hundreds of civilians, purely because they're not smart enough to move out of the way of moving traffic). Ultimately, the game has a few glitches and quirks, but it is brilliantly designed for the most part.

On the plus side, trophies for this game are very easy. I'm just one away from a platinum!

No multiplayer.

4/5 (entertainment: 5/5, story: 3.5/5, game: 3/5)

Recommendation: As a rental.

Al_The_Strange · 07-29-2011, 01:51 PM

Been playing "Fallout 3" again lately. I must have spent over 200 hours on it, with three different playthroughs. It's that great.

5/5 (entertainment: 5/5, story: 4.5/5, game: 4.5/5)

Recommendation: Hell yeah!

bluearth · 07-29-2011, 05:48 PM

Little Big Planet 2 - Playstation 3

Well this is the last game I've played and finished so here we go.

How does the sequel improve over the original? Little Big Planet 2 is more of a vast expansion of the first game rather then a remade sequel. Because of this however its backwards compatible with all your Little Big Planet 1 items and custom levels.

Play

The single player story was fun to play through. It was shorter with less goodies to collect and easier to play through then the first game, but I found it more entertaining and funner. The voice acting really helped the experience and thanks to the advanced tools in the game the developers were able to create more complex and fun levels.

Create

The create mode has been boosted thanks to the addition of many key tools. The controlinator is the most important addition in my opinion. Now you can control objects with buttons on the DS3. No longer are you restricted to levers and switches to control objects. Advanced machinery and vehicles are now possible. There is also great additions like the anti gravity tool and gyrscope which will keep whatever its attached to balanced at any angle you want.

Unfortunately one of the most dissappointing parts of create mode is how the promise of it being capable of making more then just platform levels falls short. We were teased with the ability to make RPGs, shooters and many other genres with the tools available. While it is possible to make these genres with the rools available its not really worth trying. You have to have immense creativity to bend the available tools to create genres other then platforming. It was very dissappointing that there are no tutorials or hints on how to create a RPG or anything other then a platformer. Of course the most talented level designers could make it work, but most of us will find the time needed to do so not worth it.

Also, while many powerful tools have been added the basic level "canvas" you are given remains pretty much the same. Level designing is extremely bottlenecked thanks to bringing back the stale, straightforward Little Big Planet 1 platform "canvas". The 3 levels of depth aren't enough anymore. With some nifty work with the game's editor tools you can create a "top down" level but this extremely limits your ability to create as you are now limited to just 3 levels of height.

I feel Media Molecule rehashed the Little Big Planet 1 platform canvas in order to keep continuity with Little Big Planet 2. Thats a shame, because I feel my creativity is extremely limited. This forces every level to have a platformer feel which is dissappointing considering Media Molecule touted Little Big Planet 2 as being much more then a platformer.

If you don't mind creating in the confines of a platformer then you'll love the create mode. However I feel the series should have grown up past just being a straight forward and platformer and should have added 3-D maps to create on or at the very least 5-6 levels of depth with a 3rd person camera view.

Share

Online is steady. There are loads of quality levels that are easy to find thanks to a large variety of search tools. If you like platforming you will get all you ever wanted here. However for me thats just the problem, the platforming genre dominates 99% of user levels. I had hoped there would be quality RPGs and other genres but most creaters have learned that its not worth trying to twist the game's tools to create those games. Its just not worth the time and hassle.

Unfortunately Little Big Planet 2 is just a large upgrade to Little Big Planet 1. However I still think its a great game and definitely worth a buy. The single player story is entertaining and there will always be something new and fresh to play from the user content. Also Media Molecule is moving on to a new project and taking a break from Little Big Planet, making this the last game for some time, so dont worry about #3 coming out any time soon.

Overall score: 9.2
Recommendation: Buy at full price

Anomaly · 07-31-2011, 06:13 AM

I'll do my last 4...

Alice Madness Returns (360): 8/10. A great platformer not in the typical cute platformer tradition. My main issue is the saving system, which is automatic. I was at a point where I had completed quite a bit of a level, but had to stop playing. I lost everything I had done in that area, and some of it was tough. Otherwise, this is a great platformer with outsatandingly creepy artwork.

Catherine (360): 7.5/10. Very adult themed decision making and sequences. I love story driven gameplay, which Catherine is, but... There's not much gameplay tied to the story sequences (at least not yet). The majority of action comes from the character's nightmare sequences, which comprise of extremely well done & sometimes frustratingly difficult (block pushing) puzzles.

Gran Turismo 5 (PS3): 8.5/10. It's GT, what more is there to say? My only gripe is that it doesn't seem like much of an improvement over GT4 (I highly prefer GT4's layout). There's surprisingly few tracks and (premium) cars. The newly implimented damage is very minimal. GT5 runs neck & neck with Forza Motorsport 3 for best driving simulator, with each being clearly superior in different areas.

L.A. Noire (360): 7/10. On one hand, I was expecting more, while on the other, I wasn't expecting much since I'm no Rockstar fan. For me, this is their best title to date. I just wish more emphesis had been put on real detective work, in drawing our own conclusions. I really like the game, but it gets repetitive rather quickly.

bluearth · 07-31-2011, 11:07 PM

Gran Turismo 5

Gran Turismo 5 is a car enthusiast's dream. 1,000 cars will ensure something for everyone. However only a portion of these cars are "premium". The others are standard. The difference is the premium cars take full advantage of the PS3's hardware. They have cockpit views and fully detailed interiors. They are high res and sharp. The standard cars have no cockpit view and last gen quality interiors that are only visible from track side cameras. From a distance there isn't much visible difference in the cars, but up close the standard cars stand out as nothing more then improved GT4 cars. Small words and logos on standard cars are blurry and unsightly. Parts like windshield wipers are low poly and unsightly. Standard cars cant get new rims but can be painted.

The good news is the standard cars have the same physics as the premium cars. And thats were GT5 really shines, the physics.

The physics in Gran Turismo 5 is the strong point of the simulation. Very pin point. You feel the understeer, the oversteer. I would argue in certain areas it exceeds PC sims like rFactor.

Visible damage is close to non existant but mechanical damage adds a nice touch to the game.

The graphics range from "this is real" to "how did they overlook that?". There are some extremely nasty looking graphical problems that plague the otherwise photorealistic presentation.

Sound has improved over GT4 dramatically, but will not satisfy most.

Gameplay is a mixed bag but is mostly bad. The leveling up system is completely broken. You'll find yourself replaying the same events over and over to gain money and XP. Championships feel short and rushed. AI cars brake way too early, perhaps an effort by PD to make passing easier, but this cheapens the race. There is no qualifying so you start midfield every race every time. This makes it difficult to win some races without overpowered cars. Long endurance races still have no option to save and this time you have no B-spec driver to help take some of the load. The B-spec mode where you let AI drivers drive for you seems to be half finished. There are many bugs with it and it seems like a waste at times. The feature could have been awesome if more time was spent on it.

Overall the single player experience is pretty bad.

But online is where the game shines. Up to 16 drivers duel it out. You have a ton of options to configure your races.

Positives
+ Great physics
+ Large variety of cars
+ The Ultimate Nurburgring Simulator
+ Somewhat constant updates
+ Customizeable menu and race music
+ Photo realism with premium cars

Negatives
- Terrible Single Player Mode with head scratching design decisions
- Graphical glitches distract from photorealism
- crash damage is largely invisible
- Standard cars

Overall: 8.9

Recommendation: Buy at full price if physics matter alot to you as much as the racing or if you are a Nurburgring nut but wait for Greatest Hits price if not

Al_The_Strange · 08-01-2011, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bluearth

Little Big Planet 2 - Playstation 3

[Show spoiler]

Overall score: 9.2
Recommendation: Buy at full price

I played that for a while, and I agree with everything here. Some of the level editing really stumps me, but it's still pretty fun.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anomaly

Alice Madness Returns (360): 8/10. A great platformer not in the typical cute platformer tradition. My main issue is the saving system, which is automatic. I was at a point where I had completed quite a bit of a level, but had to stop playing. I lost everything I had done in that area, and some of it was tough. Otherwise, this is a great platformer with outsatandingly creepy artwork.

Catherine (360): 7.5/10. Very adult themed decision making and sequences. I love story driven gameplay, which Catherine is, but... There's not much gameplay tied to the story sequences (at least not yet). The majority of action comes from the character's nightmare sequences, which comprise of extremely well done & sometimes frustratingly difficult (block pushing) puzzles.

Been playing those lately too; these reviews are spot-on.

Greenboom98 · 08-03-2011, 11:19 AM

Review:
E.V.O. - The Search For Eden (SNES) 7.5/10
Really interesting game to say the least. You start as a fish and you can evolve to a human being. You go through different eras of the planet Earth and throughout each you can evolve the current specie of the era to anyway you want. The game lets you name & save your creatition so you can then access it later. (The only time I access one of my creation was at the final boss)

Pros:
-Evolve or de-Evolve you creature as you see fit with different combinations for your create. Depending how you evolve or de-evole, your stats change according to your creature's limbs.
-Story - While there's the main story of the game, throughout each of the eras, there are plots tied to specific creatures... hence is where you get your bosses.
-World Map - Each era has a world map where you move from location to location. As you go throughout each era, you'll see the world map evolve as well with you too. While it doesn't offer too much freedom, it's nice to be able to decide what sections you want to do or go back and revisit again.
-Dinosaur Era! - Do I need to say anything on this era? :-D
-Nice sprites & graphics for the SNES era.

Cons:
-Very repetive. Pretty much each era you'll start as a really weak creature. You have to kill other creatures and eat their food in order to get Evolution Points (E.P) in order to evolve. This means that you will have grind nonstop to be able to become pretty strong and survive the era you are in.
-Really hard. Some of the bosses in this game are just insanely difficult. Without getting the best possible offense & defense evolutions, you won't stand a chance. Even with those high evolutions, sometimes it'll all come down to really timining which is extremely difficult at times. Final boss is just damn godly especially with that damn fish.
-Music - I really like some of the game's music but others are just plain annoying. There is a few songs that just piss me off because of the time you spend there since you are trying to get E.P. music just repeats nonstop while you are there.

Final words:
Really good RPG game. The whole element of evolving or de-evolving is just fantastic. Also, the game has multiple endings to scenarios depending what you decide. The ending of the game is always the same no matter what your creature looks like. The nonstop grinding gets kind of agravating at times though. The diffuculty curve is way too step as you get towards the final eras of the game & the final boss is just unfair. It's very difficult to find a physical copy of this game; but if you can find a copy, it's worth checking out. Worth Checking Out - 7.5/10

Al_The_Strange · 08-15-2011, 03:24 PM

“Alice: Madness Returns.”

I’ve always wanted to see “Alice in Wonderland” done as something dark, bloody, and psycho. Having never played the first original game, I was psyched for this latest rendition.

The game generally uses the same playing style as “God of War” or “Dante’s Inferno,” so you spend a lot of it doing melee fights with blades and ranged weapons. In this case, you get a cool-looking kitchen knife, a pepper grinder, a hobby horse, a tea pot, and bunny-rabbit bombs. Sound too cutesy? Once you get the hang of the moves and understand how the enemies work, you can be a hackin’ slashin’ whirlwind of lethal force! Combat tends to be challenging, but rarely overwhelming. In between the combat zones, however, you can expect to do some platforming. Lots and lots of it. You’ll jump across giant chasms, floating islands, invisible platforms, and various other zany areas, so you can flip switches, hold down buttons, and solve puzzles. It gets a little frustrating at times, and it tests the patience a great deal; the chapters feel pretty darn long. But I found it addicting after a while; I was always intrigued to figure the puzzles out and get to the next zone (and of course, to get all those darn collectables).

The story for this game is a little whack. I was pleased and intrigued to see all the popular characters re-envisioned, and each setting was very distinctive. They managed to make the original lore fit into the context of an adult-rated game very well. The only real problem is the disjointed narrative, offering no real structure to the story, even though there is a point. Then again, this might be part of the game’s design, to make us experience the main character’s madness firsthand. I still found it offputting, if not a little too formulaic.

The game seems well-made, with lovely graphics. I was pleased with most of the gameplay; the camera moves were a little annoying in a few spots, and the controls usually got flipped when going through the keyholes, but otherwise it was smooth. Voice-acting seems good. Production designs are great, featuring plenty of cool settings, props, costumes, creatures, and music.

Recommended.

4/5 (entertainment: 4.5/5, story: 4/5, game: 4/5)

Trophies seem do-able for this game, so I'll be doing some more grinding with it.

07-10-2011, 11:09 AM	#1
Al_The_Strange Blu-ray Prince Top contributor Member since:Apr 2009 Location:Out there...past them trees... Home Theater Gallery:126 4K collection:1125 Blu-ray collection:4949 DVD collection:530 Digital collection:1013 Blu-ray reviews: 132 Trading Score:32	Rate / Review the Last Video Game You've Played or Finished Do what the thread's title says. It could be PC, PS3, Xbox, or whatever (speaking of which, let's not get into any petty debates about what system is better than what, shall we? ).

07-29-2011, 05:48 PM	#4
bluearth Blu-ray Guru Member since:Feb 2007 Blu-ray collection:92 Blu-ray reviews:2	Little Big Planet 2 - Playstation 3 Well this is the last game I've played and finished so here we go. How does the sequel improve over the original? Little Big Planet 2 is more of a vast expansion of the first game rather then a remade sequel. Because of this however its backwards compatible with all your Little Big Planet 1 items and custom levels. Play The single player story was fun to play through. It was shorter with less goodies to collect and easier to play through then the first game, but I found it more entertaining and funner. The voice acting really helped the experience and thanks to the advanced tools in the game the developers were able to create more complex and fun levels. Create The create mode has been boosted thanks to the addition of many key tools. The controlinator is the most important addition in my opinion. Now you can control objects with buttons on the DS3. No longer are you restricted to levers and switches to control objects. Advanced machinery and vehicles are now possible. There is also great additions like the anti gravity tool and gyrscope which will keep whatever its attached to balanced at any angle you want. Unfortunately one of the most dissappointing parts of create mode is how the promise of it being capable of making more then just platform levels falls short. We were teased with the ability to make RPGs, shooters and many other genres with the tools available. While it is possible to make these genres with the rools available its not really worth trying. You have to have immense creativity to bend the available tools to create genres other then platforming. It was very dissappointing that there are no tutorials or hints on how to create a RPG or anything other then a platformer. Of course the most talented level designers could make it work, but most of us will find the time needed to do so not worth it. Also, while many powerful tools have been added the basic level "canvas" you are given remains pretty much the same. Level designing is extremely bottlenecked thanks to bringing back the stale, straightforward Little Big Planet 1 platform "canvas". The 3 levels of depth aren't enough anymore. With some nifty work with the game's editor tools you can create a "top down" level but this extremely limits your ability to create as you are now limited to just 3 levels of height. I feel Media Molecule rehashed the Little Big Planet 1 platform canvas in order to keep continuity with Little Big Planet 2. Thats a shame, because I feel my creativity is extremely limited. This forces every level to have a platformer feel which is dissappointing considering Media Molecule touted Little Big Planet 2 as being much more then a platformer. If you don't mind creating in the confines of a platformer then you'll love the create mode. However I feel the series should have grown up past just being a straight forward and platformer and should have added 3-D maps to create on or at the very least 5-6 levels of depth with a 3rd person camera view. Share Online is steady. There are loads of quality levels that are easy to find thanks to a large variety of search tools. If you like platforming you will get all you ever wanted here. However for me thats just the problem, the platforming genre dominates 99% of user levels. I had hoped there would be quality RPGs and other genres but most creaters have learned that its not worth trying to twist the game's tools to create those games. Its just not worth the time and hassle. Unfortunately Little Big Planet 2 is just a large upgrade to Little Big Planet 1. However I still think its a great game and definitely worth a buy. The single player story is entertaining and there will always be something new and fresh to play from the user content. Also Media Molecule is moving on to a new project and taking a break from Little Big Planet, making this the last game for some time, so dont worry about #3 coming out any time soon. Overall score: 9.2 Recommendation: Buy at full price Last edited by bluearth; 07-29-2011 at 05:52 PM.

07-31-2011, 06:13 AM	#5
Anomaly Banned Member since:Jul 2011 Home Theater Gallery:1 4K collection:115 Blu-ray collection:787 DVD collection:398	I'll do my last 4... Alice Madness Returns (360): 8/10. A great platformer not in the typical cute platformer tradition. My main issue is the saving system, which is automatic. I was at a point where I had completed quite a bit of a level, but had to stop playing. I lost everything I had done in that area, and some of it was tough. Otherwise, this is a great platformer with outsatandingly creepy artwork. Catherine (360): 7.5/10. Very adult themed decision making and sequences. I love story driven gameplay, which Catherine is, but... There's not much gameplay tied to the story sequences (at least not yet). The majority of action comes from the character's nightmare sequences, which comprise of extremely well done & sometimes frustratingly difficult (block pushing) puzzles. Gran Turismo 5 (PS3): 8.5/10. It's GT, what more is there to say? My only gripe is that it doesn't seem like much of an improvement over GT4 (I highly prefer GT4's layout). There's surprisingly few tracks and (premium) cars. The newly implimented damage is very minimal. GT5 runs neck & neck with Forza Motorsport 3 for best driving simulator, with each being clearly superior in different areas. L.A. Noire (360): 7/10. On one hand, I was expecting more, while on the other, I wasn't expecting much since I'm no Rockstar fan. For me, this is their best title to date. I just wish more emphesis had been put on real detective work, in drawing our own conclusions. I really like the game, but it gets repetitive rather quickly. Last edited by Anomaly; 07-31-2011 at 06:19 AM.

07-31-2011, 11:07 PM	#6
bluearth Blu-ray Guru Member since:Feb 2007 Blu-ray collection:92 Blu-ray reviews:2	Gran Turismo 5 Gran Turismo 5 is a car enthusiast's dream. 1,000 cars will ensure something for everyone. However only a portion of these cars are "premium". The others are standard. The difference is the premium cars take full advantage of the PS3's hardware. They have cockpit views and fully detailed interiors. They are high res and sharp. The standard cars have no cockpit view and last gen quality interiors that are only visible from track side cameras. From a distance there isn't much visible difference in the cars, but up close the standard cars stand out as nothing more then improved GT4 cars. Small words and logos on standard cars are blurry and unsightly. Parts like windshield wipers are low poly and unsightly. Standard cars cant get new rims but can be painted. The good news is the standard cars have the same physics as the premium cars. And thats were GT5 really shines, the physics. The physics in Gran Turismo 5 is the strong point of the simulation. Very pin point. You feel the understeer, the oversteer. I would argue in certain areas it exceeds PC sims like rFactor. Visible damage is close to non existant but mechanical damage adds a nice touch to the game. The graphics range from "this is real" to "how did they overlook that?". There are some extremely nasty looking graphical problems that plague the otherwise photorealistic presentation. Sound has improved over GT4 dramatically, but will not satisfy most. Gameplay is a mixed bag but is mostly bad. The leveling up system is completely broken. You'll find yourself replaying the same events over and over to gain money and XP. Championships feel short and rushed. AI cars brake way too early, perhaps an effort by PD to make passing easier, but this cheapens the race. There is no qualifying so you start midfield every race every time. This makes it difficult to win some races without overpowered cars. Long endurance races still have no option to save and this time you have no B-spec driver to help take some of the load. The B-spec mode where you let AI drivers drive for you seems to be half finished. There are many bugs with it and it seems like a waste at times. The feature could have been awesome if more time was spent on it. Overall the single player experience is pretty bad. But online is where the game shines. Up to 16 drivers duel it out. You have a ton of options to configure your races. Positives + Great physics + Large variety of cars + The Ultimate Nurburgring Simulator + Somewhat constant updates + Customizeable menu and race music + Photo realism with premium cars Negatives - Terrible Single Player Mode with head scratching design decisions - Graphical glitches distract from photorealism - crash damage is largely invisible - Standard cars Overall: 8.9 Recommendation: Buy at full price if physics matter alot to you as much as the racing or if you are a Nurburgring nut but wait for Greatest Hits price if not Last edited by bluearth; 07-31-2011 at 11:11 PM.

07-10-2011, 12:46 PM	#2
Al_The_Strange Blu-ray Prince Top contributor Member since:Apr 2009 Location:Out there...past them trees... Home Theater Gallery:126 4K collection:1125 Blu-ray collection:4949 DVD collection:530 Digital collection:1013 Blu-ray reviews: 132 Trading Score:32	So over the past few months, I've been grinding away at "The Saboteur" on the PS3. I got it cheaply, and at first glance, it looked cheaply-made; something like a "Grand Theft Auto IV" and "Assassin's Creed" rip-off. But after the initial prologue acts, the game really grew on me. The game definitely has no shortage of explosive action and gun-battles. Whether going through the story episodes or the thousands of free-play targets, there's always something to blow up. I found it rather relaxing to explore the open-world cityscape and countryside, systematically combing through the targets. The game does have its share of challenges, but it rarely frustrated me. I wound up enjoying the game so much, I've dumped 55+ hours into it, and it became my default go-to game after a hard day's work. The story for this is rather unrefined though. It does a decent enough job at detailing the drama of the French Resistance movement during WWII; I'm sure that none of it is historically accurate or anything, but it is pretty interesting at times. The characters are quite strong though; the main character Sean is quite hilarious and lovable as a foul-mouthed drunken womanizing Irishman, and with a strong sense of loyalty and vengeance, his story is quite gripping at times. His relationship with the other characters also help make the story shine. But, at times the story touches upon aspects that are never fully-developed (especially the occultish relics you're made to recover, but are never referred to again...WTF?!), and in the end, it felt a little rushed in certain parts. The game's quality can be a mixed bag. The graphics are generally not bad; I was digging the film-noir-themed color sceheme and the jazzy music. Some of the cutscenes look really slick, and others look a little cheap and poorly-rendered. The game itself shows decent design and attention-to-detail, but there are a few spots where you can get stuck, or you find you can't climb somewhere where you should. AI can be incredibly stupid (I must have run over hundreds of civilians, purely because they're not smart enough to move out of the way of moving traffic). Ultimately, the game has a few glitches and quirks, but it is brilliantly designed for the most part. On the plus side, trophies for this game are very easy. I'm just one away from a platinum! No multiplayer. 4/5 (entertainment: 5/5, story: 3.5/5, game: 3/5) Recommendation: As a rental.

07-29-2011, 01:51 PM	#3
Al_The_Strange Blu-ray Prince Top contributor Member since:Apr 2009 Location:Out there...past them trees... Home Theater Gallery:126 4K collection:1125 Blu-ray collection:4949 DVD collection:530 Digital collection:1013 Blu-ray reviews: 132 Trading Score:32	Been playing "Fallout 3" again lately. I must have spent over 200 hours on it, with three different playthroughs. It's that great. 5/5 (entertainment: 5/5, story: 4.5/5, game: 4.5/5) Recommendation: Hell yeah!

08-03-2011, 11:19 AM	#8
Greenboom98 Special Member Member since:Feb 2010 4K collection:30 Blu-ray collection:732 DVD collection:75 Trading Score:3	Review: E.V.O. - The Search For Eden (SNES) 7.5/10 Really interesting game to say the least. You start as a fish and you can evolve to a human being. You go through different eras of the planet Earth and throughout each you can evolve the current specie of the era to anyway you want. The game lets you name & save your creatition so you can then access it later. (The only time I access one of my creation was at the final boss) Pros: -Evolve or de-Evolve you creature as you see fit with different combinations for your create. Depending how you evolve or de-evole, your stats change according to your creature's limbs. -Story - While there's the main story of the game, throughout each of the eras, there are plots tied to specific creatures... hence is where you get your bosses. -World Map - Each era has a world map where you move from location to location. As you go throughout each era, you'll see the world map evolve as well with you too. While it doesn't offer too much freedom, it's nice to be able to decide what sections you want to do or go back and revisit again. -Dinosaur Era! - Do I need to say anything on this era? :-D -Nice sprites & graphics for the SNES era. Cons: -Very repetive. Pretty much each era you'll start as a really weak creature. You have to kill other creatures and eat their food in order to get Evolution Points (E.P) in order to evolve. This means that you will have grind nonstop to be able to become pretty strong and survive the era you are in. -Really hard. Some of the bosses in this game are just insanely difficult. Without getting the best possible offense & defense evolutions, you won't stand a chance. Even with those high evolutions, sometimes it'll all come down to really timining which is extremely difficult at times. Final boss is just damn godly especially with that damn fish. -Music - I really like some of the game's music but others are just plain annoying. There is a few songs that just piss me off because of the time you spend there since you are trying to get E.P. music just repeats nonstop while you are there. Final words: Really good RPG game. The whole element of evolving or de-evolving is just fantastic. Also, the game has multiple endings to scenarios depending what you decide. The ending of the game is always the same no matter what your creature looks like. The nonstop grinding gets kind of agravating at times though. The diffuculty curve is way too step as you get towards the final eras of the game & the final boss is just unfair. It's very difficult to find a physical copy of this game; but if you can find a copy, it's worth checking out. Worth Checking Out - 7.5/10

08-15-2011, 03:24 PM	#9
Al_The_Strange Blu-ray Prince Top contributor Member since:Apr 2009 Location:Out there...past them trees... Home Theater Gallery:126 4K collection:1125 Blu-ray collection:4949 DVD collection:530 Digital collection:1013 Blu-ray reviews: 132 Trading Score:32	“Alice: Madness Returns.” I’ve always wanted to see “Alice in Wonderland” done as something dark, bloody, and psycho. Having never played the first original game, I was psyched for this latest rendition. The game generally uses the same playing style as “God of War” or “Dante’s Inferno,” so you spend a lot of it doing melee fights with blades and ranged weapons. In this case, you get a cool-looking kitchen knife, a pepper grinder, a hobby horse, a tea pot, and bunny-rabbit bombs. Sound too cutesy? Once you get the hang of the moves and understand how the enemies work, you can be a hackin’ slashin’ whirlwind of lethal force! Combat tends to be challenging, but rarely overwhelming. In between the combat zones, however, you can expect to do some platforming. Lots and lots of it. You’ll jump across giant chasms, floating islands, invisible platforms, and various other zany areas, so you can flip switches, hold down buttons, and solve puzzles. It gets a little frustrating at times, and it tests the patience a great deal; the chapters feel pretty darn long. But I found it addicting after a while; I was always intrigued to figure the puzzles out and get to the next zone (and of course, to get all those darn collectables). The story for this game is a little whack. I was pleased and intrigued to see all the popular characters re-envisioned, and each setting was very distinctive. They managed to make the original lore fit into the context of an adult-rated game very well. The only real problem is the disjointed narrative, offering no real structure to the story, even though there is a point. Then again, this might be part of the game’s design, to make us experience the main character’s madness firsthand. I still found it offputting, if not a little too formulaic. The game seems well-made, with lovely graphics. I was pleased with most of the gameplay; the camera moves were a little annoying in a few spots, and the controls usually got flipped when going through the keyholes, but otherwise it was smooth. Voice-acting seems good. Production designs are great, featuring plenty of cool settings, props, costumes, creatures, and music. Recommended. 4/5 (entertainment: 4.5/5, story: 4/5, game: 4/5) Trophies seem do-able for this game, so I'll be doing some more grinding with it.

Best Blu-ray Movie Deals