Editorial Review

Editorial Review

In many ways, creating a sequel to Half-Life is an unenviable task.After all, the goal is to craft not just any ordinary game, but an improvement to a title that is widely considered to be the high water mark for first person shooters.Fortunately, Valve does not disappoint on their sophomore effort.

Half-Life 2 picks up exactly where its predecessor leaves off, with gamers stepping once more into Gordon Freeman's HVAC suit as he awakes at some indeterminate time in the future, now apparently in the employ of the mysterious G-Man.Humanity has been sold out to alien forces, and your job is to escape their thrall and lead the resistance to victory.

HL2's key successes are in a few critical areas, the first of which is the new physics & graphics engine, called Source.People and objects fall, fly, tip over, float, and break in an extraordinarily realistic fashion, and in-game puzzles often require you to use simple applications of physics to progress. Second, an elaborate facial structure system coupled with excellent voice acting make for some of the most believably human NPCs in gaming history.This is no small thing; you will find yourself actually caring about the characters who surround you, even those that are normally regarded as cannon fodder.Third, the level design exhibits a subtle brilliance, which frequently fools you into feeling like you're making your way through an organic environment and not a forced linear path.These elements combine to form one of the most truly immersive experiences ever captured on a PC.

This gaming bliss comes at a cost, however.If your computer isn't running the latest and greatest hardware, you may find yourself turning down a lot of the slick graphics to keep the machine from choking.Also, at the time of this writing the only two bundled multiplayer games are a barely updated version of Counter-Strike and HL2 DeathMatch. Counter-Strike: Source is every bit as fun as the original, but the DeathMatch is lackluster and contains only a handful of uninspired maps.

Overall, Half-Life 2 is a smashing success, every bit worthy of the prestige and respect that the franchise has been awarded.This is absolutely a game that every computer gaming enthusiast is going to want to have in their collection.-- Jon "Safety Monkey" Grover

Pros:

• Advanced graphics and physics system provide highly immersive experience
• Believable, expressive non-player characters
• Fun, realistic level design

• Requires a very fast computer to play with all bells & whistles on
• DeathMatch mode has few maps and is not terribly entertaining

Features

• Half-Life: Blue Shift
• Comprehensive bundle of the award-winning first-person action-shooter Half-Life games
• Features Half-Life: Game of the Year Edition
• Half-Life: Opposing Force
• Team Fortress Classic and Half-Life: Counter-Strike

Asin: B00006FXIN
Sales Rank: 166
Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Shooters (Shooter)    4. Havas   

Editorial Review

More often than not, when a game is in development for more than threeyears, it does not live up to the hype. Bungie's Halo is the exception.Not only does it meet expectations, it greatly exceeds them. This sci-fifirst-person shooter is a nearly perfect blend of gameplay, graphics, and sound.

The story revolves around the conflict between humans and an alien race known asthe Covenant. The aliens have discovered a powerful artifact--on the ring-shapedplanet called Halo--that will shift the balance of power, and it's up to theplayer to stop them. In addition to several first-person-shooter levels, thegame offers numerous opportunities to engage in vehicular combat. Both the enemyand allied artificial intelligence are extremely impressive. Enemies will usethe terrain and layout to put you in tight spots. Allies will know when to coverand aid you. For instance, if you hop into a jeep, an ally will know to jump inand man the turret on the back of it.

The graphics are exquisitely detailed, but only move at 30 frames per secondrather than 60. The sound effects and voice acting are superb. The level designis among the best ever; most of the game is engaging and challenging withoutbeing frustrating. There's also high replay value thanks to the built-insingle-player, cooperative, and deathmatch modes.

Much like the outstanding GoldenEye 007 for Nintendo 64, Haloraises the bar for console first-person shooters. All console action games willbe measured against Halo for years to come. --Raymond M. Padilla

Pros:

• Outstanding game design
• High replay value
• Impressive AI

• Several maps are used multiple times
• Save functions could have been better implemented
• Graphics move at 30 frames per second, not 60

Features

• ESRB Rating: Mature
• Genre: Shooter
• Mission: You and the other surviving defenders of the devastated colony-world make a desperate attempt to lure the alien fleet away from earth.
• Platform: Windows 98/98SE/Me/2000/XP

Asin: B00009TW6R
Sales Rank: 164
Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Adventure    3. Action    4. Shooters (Shooter)    5. Strategy (Strategic)    6. Science Fiction (Sci-Fi, Scifi)   

Features

• One new Hero per race, each possessing powerful spells and magical abilities
• A host of new units, each equipped with new abilities and spells, giving players the opportunity to create diverse strategic and tactical forms of combat
• Player-built shops, unique for each race, equipped with items carefully designed to improve and aid the units of every race
• Neutral Heroes, available for recruitment by all players, that can supplement and strengthen a player's army with all new spells and abilities

Asin: B00008ODBQ
Sales Rank: 195
Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Adventure    4. Strategy (Strategic)    5. Fantasy    6. Macintosh (Machintosh)    7. Mac    8. Apple    9. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, crpg, crpgs, rpg, rpgs)    10. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)    11. Havas   

Features

• Four different races to command including Orcs, Humans, Night Elves and Undead, each possessing unique units, magical abilities and weapons of war.
• Skeletal and skinning animation process allows infinite frames of animation resulting in true fluid movement of 3D models.
• Advanced world design tools allowing players to customize every aspect of the game including tile sets, character art, quests, mission objectives, and unit types, AI, attributes, special abilities and spells.
• Expanded multiplayer options over Battle.net including a larger number of players per game and multiple game types including team play and questing.

Asin: B00005V9Q1
Sales Rank: 750
Subjects:  1. Historical (historic) Recreation (Recreations)    2. Military (Wargames    3. Macintosh (Machintosh)    4. Mac    5. Apple    6. Havas    7. Computer Games    8. Action    9. Adventure    10. Strategy (Strategic)    11. Fantasy   

Editorial Review

How big is this game? Even publicists for other games end up talking about Vice City when they call our office, babbling in the same helplessly intoxicated way that afflicts everyone who plays it. The achievement of Vice City (which, as everyone knows by now, is set in the 1980s and offers an all-new, Miami Vice-inspired story) is not only that it manages to live up to an absurd level of expectation, but that it takes the game places that fans of its predecessor Grand Theft Auto 3 never dreamed of, and that it achieves this astonishing level of innovation without losing anything that made GTA3 the bestselling PS2 game of all time.

After a brilliant homage to the era of the Commodore 64 in the opening credits, the first thing you'll notice is the improved graphics, which are smoother and more detailed, and--with effects like neon lights reflected on rain-slick streets, and intense Florida sunlight--have a lush, tropical look that immediately gives you a strong sense of place. The architecture is more fabulous by tenfold, with art deco buildings, high-rise hotels, and believably seedy back alleys. The control scheme is essentially the same as in GTA3, but the cars handle much better, and in pedestrian mode there is a new crouch move. You will have access to fast, great-handling cars right away, as opposed to GTA3 which made you unlock the second island before you could get your hands on any respectable wheels. This game has such riches to offer that there is no need to be chintzy with the vehicles.

Cops are more vigilant this time--minor offenses like whacking innocent bystanders will more often than not get you a two-star wanted level--and are harder to elude (though they still can't seem to climb stairs or negotiate sharp turns). So while free-roaming exploration is as fun as ever, there is more incentive to perform the missions instead of randomly raising hell. Not that that's a bad thing: even lazy criminals like myself (in GTA3, I would rather toss hand grenades into traffic than follow orders from some rude Mafia boss) will be quickly caught up in the vivid characters and hilarious, fascinating story, in which you play an acid-washed-jeans-wearing thug named Tommy Vercetti. Where in GTA3 missions were blocky, schematic affairs only nominally connected to the story, this time tasks move the story briskly along and deftly blend cinematics and game action. For example, there is a scene of a character throwing Tommy a gun, at which point you are suddenly thrown back into the action and must make an instant decision about whom to trust and what to do.

There are more, and more detailed, indoor environments, including a hotel, police station, and mall (a slight downside to this is that some of the more elaborate indoor environments require load times). The layout of the city, with tons of backyards, narrow alleys, and fire escapes, encourages creativity when eluding pursuit, as does greater access to rooftops. Get your motorcycle up the fire escape and a whole new world of action is possible, including... well, use your imagination.

This overview barely scratches the surface of the Vice City experience, its colorful explosion of music, clothes, combat, and brilliant voice acting, not to mention the plot twist midway through the game that changes the very nature of the game itself. Though it was the outrageous, amoral violence that got all the press, the essential genius of GTA3 was its intoxicating blend of script and open-ended action. In Vice City this is--to use a cliché that is for once apropos--taken to a whole new level. --David Stoesz

Pros:

• Astonishing, innovative gameplay
• Godlike attention to detail
• Opportunity to drive on the beach at midnight listening to the Human League's "Fascination"

• More load times

Editorial Review

With Grand Theft Auto III, Rockstar proves that not alldevelopers are concerned with toning down the violence in their games. Thissequel is even more bloody, violent, and sadistic than its popular predecessors,offering up an enormous 3-D city in which nearly any criminal act is possible.Players are free to steal cars, beat up the local population for their money (orweapons), make time with prostitutes, or simply roam to their heart's content.Those seeking more structure can embark on dozens of plot-driven missions orsteal cars that let them play minigames. Nab a cop car and you can go onvigilante missions. Grab a cab and you can play a deadly version of CrazyTaxi. Take a fire truck and you can earn money putting out fires. The gamejust never gets boring.

As in real life, there are consequences for your criminality. As your randomacts of mayhem mount up, the police start hounding you, eventually calling inSWAT trucks, the FBI, and even the army if you continue down the path ofdestruction. Shaking these pursuers is easily the most fun part of the game,especially when a bunch of friends are packed in the room to witness your narrowescapes.

Grand Theft Auto III is fine-tuned to near perfection in every category.All the vehicles, from slick sports cars to lumbering dump trucks, handleexactly as you'd expect and smash apart realistically when abused. The threeislands in the game are rendered in terrific detail considering their size, andare packed with traffic, pedestrians, and hidden jumps. The audio is equallyamazing. Pedestrians talk, cops scream at you, and you can tune in ninedifferent radio stations whenever you are in a car. It all adds up to amonumental achievement: the rare console game for adults that manages to geteverything right. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Offers an enormous world for players to exploit, rendered in staggeringdetail
• Equally fun whether you go on plot-based missions or run around as afreelance crook

• Ultraviolence, foul language, and adult situations mean you'll want to keepthis far away from kids
• It takes too long to get from one island to another, making some missionstedious

Features

• ESRB Rating: Mature
• Genre: Action/Adventure
• Mission: Take on missions to build your reputation in the underground world, or wreak some havoc carjacking/hijacking 120 different vehicles using some of 40 weapons in your arsenal.
• Platform: Windows 98/98SE/Me/2000/XP

Asin: B00008JODN
Sales Rank: 331
Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Adventure    4. Mechanized action    5. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

With Grand Theft Auto III, Rockstar proves that not alldevelopers are concerned with toning down the violence in their games.This sequel is even more bloody, violent, and sadistic than its popularpredecessors, offering up an enormous 3-D city in which nearly anycriminal act is possible. Players are free to steal cars, beat up thelocal population for their money (or weapons), make time withprostitutes, or simply roam to their heart's content. Those seekingmore structure can embark on dozens of plot-driven missions or stealcars that let them play minigames. Nab a cop car and go on vigilantemissions. Grab a cab and play a deadly version of Crazy Taxi.Take a fire truck and earn money putting out fires. The game just nevergets boring.

As in real life, there are consequences for your criminality. As yourrandom acts of mayhem mount up, the police start hounding you,eventually calling in SWAT trucks, the FBI, and even the army if youcontinue down the path of destruction. Shaking these pursuers is easilythe most fun part of the game, especially when a bunch of friends arepacked in the room to witness your narrow escapes.

Grand Theft Auto III is fine-tuned to near perfection in everycategory. All the vehicles, from slick sports cars to lumbering dumptrucks, handle exactly as you'd expect and smash apart realisticallywhen abused. The three islands in the game are rendered in terrificdetail considering their size, and are packed with traffic,pedestrians, and hidden jumps. The audio is equally amazing.Pedestrians talk, cops scream at you, and you can tune in ninedifferent radio stations whenever you are in a car. It all adds up to amonumental achievement: the rare console game for adults that managesto get everything right. --T. Byrl Baker

Note: This review refers to thePlayStation2 version ofthis game.

Pros:

• Offers an enormous world for players to exploit, rendered instaggering detail
• Equally fun whether you go on plot-based missions or run around asa freelance crook

• Ultraviolence, foul language, and adult situations mean you'll wantto keep this far away from kids
• It takes too long to get from one island to another, making somemissions tedious

Editorial Review

Reviews (187)

MASTER MAN
I THINK THAT THIS IS BETTER THEN TEKKEN 4 BECAUSE U CAN TAG PEOPLE AND THEN YOUR THEM

The Greatest Fighting Game on the PS2!
Have you always had that feeling, the feeling where you like 2 characters, but can only choose 1? The worst feeling in this universe? Well, Tekken Tag Tournament solves your problem. This is one of the greatest Tekken games to date (All of them are great). Thank you Namco, you have shown me the light. Your PS2 collection isn't complete without a Tekken game. If you have that feeling (the worst one in the universe) go out and buy Tekken Tag Tournament. I did, and I'm a brand new person now. No more of that worst feeling in the universe anymore! I've started over, Namco has created the best fighting games ever, this one isn't an exception. Thank you Namco!

Features

• Jump and swing from ropes, fire catapults, kick boulders, and more
• Live out the final installment in the trilogy with seamless movie-to-game transitions
• For 1 or more players
• Third-person action/adventure gameplay
• Eight playable characters, including Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Sam, and Frodo

Reviews (205)

did they make worthy battles??????
I so far love this game I baet it in three months and the enemies dont put up a good fight. they some times just remain still and dont bother to attack. there are only a few hard levels in this game the black gate and pelenor fields and minas tirith top of the wall. the trolls dont put up a figth either.
The only hard enemies in this game are oliphonts and enemies with life meters. Over all a good game.

Awesome, Challenging Yet Fun... A must have!
This game rocks! It is so cool! If intense battles, magicical attacks, and awesome combos are what you want, BUY THIS GAME! You can play as Gandalf, Gimli, Legolas, Aragorn, and Sam. They each have their own unique attacks and upgrades. Challenging levels where you fight off squadrons of Orcs and other enemies makes the game suspenseful yet fun. The graphics are great. With Gandalf you can power up your staff and then release its power all around you, destroying many orcs. Legolas can use arrows to swiftly take out many orcs. Aragorn and Gimli fight fiercely. Sam fights swiftly and efficiently. In short, this game is for everyone, non-LOTR fans and LOTR fans. THIS IS A GREAT GAME!!!

Reviews (115)

great game for the price
i bought this game new for $8 and it rules. i wouldn't spend 40 or 50 bucks on this because it might get boring at times, but it is still fun. excellent graphics, interesting characters, weird story, and cool weapons (fav. flak cannon) if you don't have it yet, just go out and buy it.

SOMEONE TELL ME
if in unreal championship that if you can turn the blood and gore and/or taunts on and off

Editorial Review

Unreal Tournament 2004 isn't just an expansion pack or semi-sequel to last year's 2003 edition. It's a full blown and worthy sequel to the original Unreal Tournament, and a rock solid multiplayer and single-player game in its own right.

For starters UT2004 looks fantastic. The Unreal engine is built to compete with the best graphics engines around, and Epic didn't skimp on the special effects here. The missions run the gamut from cramped, intense corridor fighting to wide-open spaces. There are plenty of vehicles to pilot, and all of your favorite weapons, from the rocket-launcher to the flak cannon.

The single-player mode is still extremely strong because the robots you compete against are so well-programmed. They're not programmed to beat you, per se, but rather to play convincingly like a cadre of real people. Some are good, some are bad, they miss occasionally, and they even spout trash talk like people do online.

Multiplayer is where it's at with the return of Deathmatch mode, Domination, Double Domination, Capture the Flag, the return of Assault mode (a favorite missing from the 2003 edition). A brand new concept called Onslaught challenges teams to capture Power Nodes scattered throughout the level. The game offers the fun of paint-ball with the thrill of vicarious warfare and ultra-violence, in the safety and comfort of your own office or computer room. Really, the only complaint here is the whopping 6 gigabyte hard drive installation requirement and the fact that the game requires an impressive computer to run it. Look at the system requirements carefully before buying! --Andrew S. Bub

Pros:

• Gorgeous graphics
• Superb multi- and single-player modes
• Onslaught mode is a great addition

• Requires a very powerful PC and a huge hard drive

Features

• Limited edition 2 DVD set version of futuristic gladiator blood sport battles
• Includes a Logitech Internet Chat Headset for use with the game's exclusive voice over IP (voice chat) technology
• New weapons and battle arenas unique to Unreal Tournament 2004, including land, air, and space vehicles
• 150 hours of Video Training Modules that teach how to create custom game content
• For 1 player or multiplayer over LAN or Internet connection

Reviews (33)

sweet game
i downloaded this demo for this game, and even though it only had a few things to do on it it was tons of fun. i had to buy the whole game cause it was so awesome! this is a wicked sick game! it kicks ass!

Back at Best Buy
I was in Best Buy and I saw this only lacking the bogus "Collector's Tin" and the head set for 30$.

Choice! FPS
Unreal Tournament is my choice deathmatch/arena based game. UT2004 is more like it's own platform than just a game. These are the best graphics I've seen to date (as of April 2004) detailed, smooth, realistic and so much more. The graphics are a fine complement to the intense nature of the actual blood-sport and insane battle sequences which leave you howling for more. A tool to blow your steam and RAGE!

Features

• Open environment based gameplay allows players to take multiple paths and approaches to defeat the enemy
• Featuring an all-new reward system, unlockable extras, and realistic environment rendering
• For 1 to 4 players
• 10 massive gameplay levels spread across 5 major missions
• Fight off the attack on Pearl Harbor, lead the assault on Guadalcanal, blow up the bridge over the River Kwai, and much more

Reviews (89)

Over-hyped, under-produced
So many of my friends absolutely raved about this game that I ended up buying it and am totally disappointed.I have never played a first-person shooter that is as little fun as this game.The multiplayer is lackluster in comparison to Quake, which came out almost a decade ago, and as far as consoles go, Halo has it beat hands down.My opinion, of course, but the world that this game tries to put you in doesn't strike me at all as immersive and I was very disappointed with the feel of the controls as it's nearly impossible to make any sort of coordinated-looking assault on the enemy.Not to say that it's difficult seeing as the enemy guys have almost no autonomy whatsoever so once you know where they are you can easily pick them off even though it takes a great deal of effort simply to shoot one of them.I am a master sniper on Halo so it's not a problem with my ability to use the actual controller, just in case you were wondering.

That all being said, this game COULD have been really cool.My main complaint is that it just wasn't fun for me.Not in the slightest.I've been having more fun with my copy of Sega GT 2002 that I picked up for $3, and I'm not even usually a racing game fan.If you want a cheap first person shooter go out and get Goldeneye for the 64.They had it right back then... not sure why they can't get it right now...Hm.

No Men on team
There are no men on youre team pretty much.I would strngly suggest Frontline which is long and has men on youre team.I do like the bots in multiplayer.I also like co-op mode.Bottom line: TOO SHORT ANDNO MEN ON YOURE TEAM.

Features

• For 1 to 64 players (multiplayer requires Internet connection)
• Authentic WWII fighting game with over 20 levels
• 3D worlds powered by the Quake III engine
• Over 21 WW II weapons and interactive vehicles including the M4 Sherman tank
• 22 different enemies including Gestapo officers

Reviews (45)

Close to five stars but not quite
First of all, Breakthrough is worth ten bucks even if it is short.Ten Bucks is nothing.I am semi-surprised it went that cheap.Heck, buy it used for 5 bucks.
Anyway, about the game.The graphics, battles, guns, and sound are all very good.And one thing that I really like about it is that the AI is not so annoying.In the first medal of honor the AI would hit you without even aiming.Or they would see you even if you were extremely well hidden.The AI in this is better, and the action is crispier.Anyway, I think that for the price it is a good buy and you will be playing it through more than once.
It's a good game and was definitely better than Spearhead.

Flawed but consistent
If you liked other MOHAA editions, then this is fairly true to the original format.Being so, it provides little in terms of new dynamics. Some new weapons, and the setting in the African/Italian Theatre add some appeal. Overall, you get what you expect. There are some very frustrating attributes to this expansion: ammo can be scarce, seemingly where it is needed most. A particular part in the game where you're fending off the enemy while your comrade unlocks a door for the longest 30s known to the universe with low ammo provided many hours of cursing, to the point where I just loaded to an earlier point, conserving ammo in anticipation of this part of the game.Thus gameplay can be stilted by unimaginative challenges.As usual, the game AI is poor, compensated by amazing sharpshooting skills of every enemy soldier.Stealth is almost useless in this games as with other MOHAA installments.But, if it wasn't fun on some level, I wouldn't have finished it.Recommend picking up cheap or used if you can. Not worth full price of admission.

Editorial Review

EA has finally brought its Medal of Honor series (already wildly popularon the PlayStation) to the PC. Set during World War II, Medal of Honor:Allied Assault chronicles the fictional exploits of Lt. Mike Powell as hebattles his way from the shores of Africa to the shores of France to the heartof Nazi Germany. On the PSX, the Medal of Honor games were hailed asrevolutionary, and though Allied Assault never quite merits that level ofpraise, it's still a great game.

At first glance, Allied Assault seems to have a lot in common with theWorld War II-themed Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but the similaritiesare strictly superficial. Allied Assault takes a more realistic approachto the action, both in the enemies that you face (there are no zombies ormutants) and in the mission structure. The game unfolds across six real-lifetheaters of war, and the 30 playable missions vary a lot in how they play out.Just like a character in a good army movie, you'll be sabotaging tanks,destroying submarines, and sending false communications. Nearly all yourmissions are very well designed, especially the mission where you land on OmahaBeach.

The D-day mission has received a lot of attention, and for good reason--once thedoor on your Higgins boat drops, all hell breaks loose. The men in front of youdrop in a hail of bullets, a Higgins boat to your left is blown to bits, andmachine gun fire rakes the water everywhere. Getting from the boat to therelative safety of the shingles is a truly harrowing experience, although partsof it borrow a little too much from Saving Private Ryan.

Since the game is set during WWII, you'll face a wide range of enemies,including tanks, machine gun nests, and even planes. The enemy AI is better thanin Wolfenstein--enemies will duck for cover, lay down suppressing fire,and throw back grenades--but too often it's obvious that enemy actions arescripted. At times you can actually tell when you've triggered the next wave ofenemy attacks: stay still and nothing happens; silently creep a foot forward andthey all come rushing out. This kind of heavy-handed scripting is a throwback tothe days of Doom, and more than a little bit of a disappointment.

Graphically, Allied Assault looks quite sharp. It uses the QuakeIII graphics engine and the character models, vehicles, and textures arewell done, especially if you have a high-end video card. Unfortunately, thereare some glitches, such as clipping and collision detection problems. It's notuncommon to see enemies walking halfway through a door or a wall. Also, in a(successful) effort to get a "T" rating, there is absolutely no blood or gore.When you a shoot a Nazi infantryman with your captured MG-42 machine gun, hesimply falls down.

The weakest part of Allied Assault is its multiplayer component. Thereare four game types, all of which are exceptionally average, and none of them isas compelling as Wolfenstein's multiplayer. Still, it is undeniably funto wage war in bombed-out French villages and other World War II battlefields.Allied Assault offers a fun single-player game and its D-day mission willgo down as a classic gaming experience. --William Harms

Pros:

• D-day mission is incredible
• Lots of mission variety
• Nice graphics

• There are a few graphical glitches
• Heavily scripted AI
• Multiplayer is very average