Reviews: Sand, tombs and the IRA

HELLO.
I thought I'd bring myself to do another update as I promised you some reviews.

Prince of Persia: the Sands of Time
.nuf fo stol syawlA

I'll admit now, before the big delivery last week I'd never played a Prince of Persia game, except the original, and that put me off for life. But after remembering laying Tomb Raider: Legend a while back, and how I'd heard they were similar, I gave PoP a shot.

... I was impressed. The graphical level isn't hugely important for SoT as it's quite an old game now, with two sequels. The storyline can sometimes be tricky to remember but It's basically a royal Arabian scandal gone horribly wrong, with sand demons and the lot. The game sees you swinging, crawling, jumping, ducking, dodging and diving past traps and enemies alongside a slightly useless companion... Your typical platform/adventure game then. I'm currently about 35% of the way through the game and I noticed a few cool features.

The dagger of time, I think, is a nifty little tool that transforms battles from a dull slice-and-dice-athon to a matrix style swordclanger. When you die, you can (usually) reverse time so that you can change the outcome and live to see another swarm of sand mummies. You can also freeze enemies in sand, before diving over them and slicing them straight in half, which is always a rare delight.

However, the game's not without it's downsides. The sidekick that comes in a little later on, Farah, can be extremely annoying. I'll find myself happily carving enemies, and the next minute I have to restart because she's too thick too run away from them. Her bow adds virtually no benefit to combat either. The camera angles can also be a little tricky sometimes and result in death from spiky pits, but a quick time reverse and that's all O.K

How about value? Magnificent. I picked this up in a triple pack of all three games, for £10. That's just £3.00 odd for a rip roaring tale of bravery and swinging on poles. Go for it.

88% - "Impressive"
Gameplay - 9/10
Story - 7/10
Graphics - 6/10
Music - 8/10
Value - 10/10

Now, this would be where I did a review of Myst for PSP. However, I found it so dull and disappointing, I traded it in for Tomb Raider: Legend, also on PSP.

Tomb Raider: Legend
She really is a legend.

Some say that the PSP port of TrL was a little worse, due to the lack of another analogue stick and slightly worse graphics. However, the content actually increased as far as I know, and after about a quarter of the game I'm happy to be back in Lara's comfy bosom.

Ok, I already mentioned the graphics. To be fair, they're a little more square than the console versions, but hey, does the DS have the FULL game port? No. The story is as it always has been; Treasure, tombs and tigers, with added spikes, stones and very large guns... And this time I'm talking about the weaponry.

The game was a huge breath of fresh air after the dog-crap-worthy Angel of Darkness on PS2, which was in no way related to raiding tombs - you instead shot your way through hordes of numb skulled thuggish guards. The story in TrL sees you after Excalibur, the fabled mighty sword in relation with King Arthur, Merlin and all that. The control system seems to be leaked from Prince of Persia, with less running up walls and reversing time. There ARE guns, and human foes, but nothing ridiculous. No rocket launchers to use against superhuman soldiers. You've still got climbing, many forms of rolling and diving, and extremely cute outfits that fit the re-designed Lara snugly.

However, from what I've learned, the game seems to be quite short. I've done about a quarter of the game in a few hours, which is a shame, seeing as how the few hours were fun. However, the disappointing length is made up by collectible treasure, 3 difficulty levels and time attack modes.

All in all, I'm happy I traded the desperately frustrating Myst in. I'm having fun with the greatest English fiction character ever created all over again. Bliss.

85% - "Welcoming"
Gameplay - 8/10
Story - 8/10
Graphics - 7/10
Music - 7/10
Value - 8/10

The Crying Game
Funnily enough, It's not a game.

Well, it's true. When I told the guys and girls at school they all assumed it was some game where you had to cry to win. Sorry to disappoint, although I'm guessing it made a few soppy ones cry back in the day. I'm here to give a brief review.

Ok, so the story is... Actually, It's not simple. The first half is about a black British military officer (Forest Whitaker) who is captured by IRA agents and held hostage. The second half is one of the agents chasing the soldier's old... Partner, the seemingly beautiful Dil. There's some real talented acting involved. And I mean that - some of the best I've seen. Whitaker's accent seems very false but other than that I was swayed.

There's not too much to see about The Crying Game. I recommend it to anyone mature enough to take it in.

79% - "Unique"
Story - 7/10
Acting - 10/10
Dialogue - 8/10
Music - 6/10
Value - 7/10

Well, that's all the reviewing I'm doing for now, I need to go and check my E-Mail. A few side notes.

1. My Auntie Sue is getting married, congratulations!
2. I got an E-Dog... Look it up.
3. SATS this upcoming week.
4. I got Myspace. Yuck. www.myspace.com/alternateview
5. I have Monday off. B'doing!